Killing Youth
Watch if you miss quality shonen comedies with thoughtful action; a great choice for fans of "Great Pretender," where a charismatic anti-hero finds himself in an unusual setting but maintains professionalism.
The premiere on Tokyo MX is scheduled for April 11, 2026, with a global release on Crunchyroll and Netflix starting on the same day. The story revolves around Juuzo Oogami — a legendary 39-year-old hitman who has never failed a mission. After being bitten by a mysterious wasp, he transforms into a 13-year-old boy and receives orders to infiltrate a middle school. The tone is dynamic action mixed with absurd school comedy, where a tough mercenary with a code of honor faces teenage dramas and childlike innocence. The atmosphere balances between "Kuroko no Basket" and "Spy x Family," but with more fight scenes and criminal confrontations. Format: a TV series of 12-13 episodes of 24 minutes each, an adaptation of the manga from Weekly Shonen Jump. If "Great Pretender" met "Assassination Classroom" in the hallways of a Japanese school, this story would be the result.
The premiere will take place on April 11, 2026, on Tokyo MX and streaming platforms Crunchyroll/Netflix.
A standard course of 12-13 episodes of 24 minutes each has been announced; renewal depends on ratings and manga sales.
The manga is completed with 13 volumes, there is enough material for a second course, but the decision on renewal will be made after the finale of the first season.
Both works are created by Tadatoshi Fujimaki for Jump, sharing dynamic fight scenes and charismatic characters, although "Killing Youth" is a comedy about a hitman, not sports.
A PG-13 rating is expected for scenes of violence and action scenes; the humor is aimed at teenagers and older.