Crunchyroll added Keroro Gunsō ☆, an all-new Sgt. Frog television anime, to the streaming service with English subtitles on Friday. The company is streaming the anime under the title KERORO☆, and is streaming the series worldwide except in Asia.

The anime debuted on October 3 at 9:30 a.m. on TV Tokyo and its affiliates.

The anime features an all-new cast for the franchise. The previous Shin Gekijōban ☆ Keroro Gunsō Fukkatsu Shite Sokkō Chikyū Metsubō no Kiki de Arimasu! film that opened in June featured a returning cast from previous installments in the anime.

The cast includes:

Nobuhiro Kondō (Shōnen Ashibe GO! GO! Goma-chan four seasons, Yu-Gi-Oh! Sevens, Cardfight!! Vanguard GZ) is the chief director of the anime, and Akihiko Sano (Farmagia, animation director for Medaka Box) is directing the series at BN Pictures with production cooperation by Bridge and AISLE. Toshimitsu Takeuchi (Shōnen Ashibe GO! GO! Goma-chan four seasons, Yu-Gi-Oh! Sevens, Fairy Musketeers) is overseeing the series scripts, and Hatsue Nakayama (Cardfight!! Vanguard GZ) is designing the characters. Kan Sawada (Shin Gekijōban ☆ Keroro Gunsō Fukkatsu Shite Sokkō Chikyū Metsubō no Kiki de Arimasu!, Yowamushi Pedal anime franchise) is composing the music.

Additional staff members include:

Shin Gekijōban ☆ Keroro Gunsō Fukkatsu Shite Sokkō Chikyū Metsubō no Kiki de Arimasu! (New Sgt. Frog the Movie: The Earth Is in Mortal Peril as Soon as We Come Back!), the new 20th anniversary anime film project for the franchise, opened in Japan on June 26. The film ranked at #4 in its opening weekend, earning 150,809,200 yen (about US$927,900) in its first three days.

Crunchyroll added the earlier television anime to its catalog beginning in 2021, and it describes the anime:

Keroro is Sergeant Frog – the leader of a platoon of warriors sent to conquer planet Earth. But when the amphibious invaders discovered how much humans enjoy dissecting their comrades, the troops were scattered, the mission was aborted, and Keroro was abandoned. Now, this once proud soldier spends more time wielding a vacuum than he does the weapons of war. It’s a far cry from the glory of battle, but hey, at least he’s got his own room. And though the invasion may have slowed to a hop, Sergeant Frog still occasionally yearns to overcome his karaoke addiction and reassemble his troops.

Sunrise‘s earlier anime series based on Mine Yoshizaki‘s Sgt. Frog (Keroro Gunsō) manga ran from 2004 to 2011, and it spawned five feature films. Funimation released two “seasons” of the anime on DVD, after ADV Films had licensed but not released the anime.

Discotek licensed the anime, and its release of Sgt. Frog includes all 358 episodes in successive SD Blu-ray Disc volume releases by season, beginning in 2021. Discotek released seasons 5-7 in 2024.

American manga publisher Tokyopop released 20 volumes of the original manga in North America before shutting its doors in 2011.

Source: Crunchyroll (link 2) via @AIR_News01

Disclosure: Bandai Namco Filmworks Inc. (Sunrise) is a non-controlling, minority shareholder in Anime News Network Inc.

Japanese watch maker Toei (no relation to the film and television studio) announced on Thursday that it has partnered with The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya anime for limited-edition 20th anniversary watches. The watches’ faces will feature several homages to the anime, including the Prefectural North High School emblem, the SOS Brigade emblem on the second hand, equations, an “H” over the world map, the benzene molecule ring (from the anime’s opening), two natural diamonds at the 20-minute mark (to commemorate the anniversary), …

… And a “date” window that only cycles through the days 17th to 31st and the “♾️” symbol, to live out your own personal Endless Eight loop:

The watches will come in a Haruhi Suzumiya model and Yuki Nagato model. Both models will come with metal and leather bands, a special watch case with The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya 20th anniversary logo, a special guarantee card featuring art of Haruhi Suzumiya or Yuki Nagato, a 20th anniversary SOS Brigade watch stand, and an SOS Brigade Leader arm band with the Haruhi Suzumiya model or a Sterling Inferno bookmark for the Yuki Nagato model.

The watches are set to go on sale on October 8 on the online Fulton Japan store for 29,700 yen (about US$188) with tax. Only 2,006 watches of each model are set to be produced, in honor of the anime’s first airing in 2006.

Return to Taisho 12 with New Sakura Wars 30th Anniversary Watch

Along with The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya watches, Toei announced the Sakura Wars 30th Anniversary watch on Sunday. The watch will feature hands inspired by the Spirit Sword Arataka, the 1 to 6 o’clock markers replaced with decorations inspired by six members of the Imperial Assault Force Flower Division (Sakura Shinguji, Sumire Kanzaki, Maria Tachibana, Iris, Kohran Li, and Kanna Kirishima), and a moon phase display with silhouettes of the Grand Imperial Theater and Koubu mecha.

The watch will also come with a leather watch case with the Sakura Wars 30th Anniversary logo, a metal Spirit Sword Arataka-inspired bookmark, and a special guarantee card featuring six members of the Imperial Assault Force Flower Division.

The Sakura Wars 30th Anniversary watch launched on September 29 on the online Fulton Japan store for 29,700 yen (about US$188) with tax. It has a limited run of 2,026 units.

Sources: Fulton Japan website (link 2), PR Times (link 2) via Dengeki Online, Nijimen