I-DLE opening. Get the cast, trailer & release details here!){kind=link}
The romantic comedy anime adaptation will premiere on April 8 airing on TV Asahi’s late-night IMAnimation W block. Crunchyroll confirmed it will stream the series simultaneously across North America, South America, Europe, Africa, Oceania, the Middle East, and other territories, making it accessible to international audiences from day one.
Based on the manga by Norishiro-chan and Sakana Uozumi that’s been running since August 2021, the series follows Takuya Seo, an otaku secretly obsessed with anime series targeted toward young girls who sits behind two popular gyaru classmates, Kotoko Ijichi and Kei Amane.
When his hidden interests accidentally slip out during a casual classroom interaction over a borrowed eraser, Amane surprisingly corrects him on anime details with suspicious accuracy.
The setup flips the typical high school caste system, hinting that maybe these “popular girls” aren’t as different from the otaku protagonist as everyone assumes.
The production team and voice cast
TMS Entertainment’s Studio 6 handles production under director Shin Mita, with series composition by Kazuhiko Inukai, who previously worked on Hokuto no Ken and Bakugan Battle Planet. Rion Matsuda designs the characters and serves as chief animation director, bringing experience from Girlfriend, Girlfriend and Reborn to Master the Blade.
The main cast features Shō Komura as Takuya Seo, Konomi Inagaki as Kei Amane, and Yū Serizawa as Kotoko Ijichi. The vocal performances will be crucial to selling the awkward chemistry between the closeted otaku and his unexpectedly knowledgeable gyaru classmates.
K-Pop meets anime with (G)I-DLE opening theme
South Korean group (G)I-DLE performs the opening theme song “HIDE AND SEEK,” marking another collaboration between K-pop acts and anime productions.
Osaka rock band sunsoogirl handles the ending theme “Ishō Nakako,” balancing the international opening with a local closer. The musical choices reflect the series’ blend of mainstream appeal with subculture subject matter.
The manga has built a solid following since its 2021 debut in Monthly Comic Zenon, with over 1 million copies in circulation as of late 2025. Yen Press released the English version’s first volume in October 2025, positioning the anime adaptation to ride that growing Western interest.
The premise taps into familiar otaku anxieties about social hierarchies and hidden hobbies while promising to subvert expectations through its gyaru characters who might share more common ground with the protagonist than their appearances suggest.
Whether it leans into genuine character development or settles for surface-level gags will determine if it stands out in the crowded rom-com anime landscape.
So, what do you think, will this otaku-meets-gyaru setup deliver something fresh, or are you bracing for the usual tropes? Drop your thoughts below.