Urusei Yatsura and Inuyasha fans rejoice, as Rumiko Takahashi’s MAO manga series is getting its time to shine with a new weekly anime adaptation! Final Weapon has everything you need to know about the MAO anime, including the weekly schedule, release dates and timing for new episodes, and the cast and staff.
The story of MAO focuses on its titular protagonist, who is a young mystic living in the Taisho era of Japan in the early 1900s. Despite his appearance, Mao has actually been cursed, and he’s been alive for 900 years thus far. His world takes another turn when Nanoka Kiba, a junior high schooler from modern-day Japan, travels from the future to the past. The two meet, and they unite to take on dark powers that now have a say in both their lives.
MAO Anime Release Dates, Exact Premiere Time and Schedule
New MAO episodes will release on Saturdays at 2:15 p.m. PT / 5:15 p.m. ET on Hulu. Episodes will be released with English subs. MAO will feature 26 episodes in total across two consecutive cours without breaks.
Here are the release dates and schedule for MAO (subject to change):
- First Cour
- Episode 1 – April 4 – OUT NOW
- Episode 2 – April 11 – OUT NOW
- Episode 3 – April 18 – OUT NOW
- Episode 4 – April 25 – OUT NOW
- Episode 5 – May 2 – OUT NOW
- Episode 6 – May 9 – OUT NOW
- Episode 7 – May 16 – OUT NOW
- Episode 8 – May 23 – OUT NOW
- Episode 9 – May 30 – OUT NOW
- Episode 10 – June 6
- Episode 11 – June 13
- Episode 12 – June 20
- Episode 13 – June 27
- Second Cour
- Episode 14 – July 4
- Episode 15 – July 11
- Episode 16 – July 18
- Episode 17 – July 25
- Episode 18 – August 1
- Episode 19 – August 8
- Episode 20 – August 15
- Episode 21 – August 22
- Episode 22 – August 29
- Episode 23 – September 5
- Episode 24 – September 12
- Episode 25 – September 19
- Episode 26 – September 26
New episodes of MAO will premiere at the following times (subject to change):
- Pacific Daylight Time: 2:15 p.m. PDT
- Mountain Daylight Time: 3:15 p.m. MDT
- Central Daylight Time: 4:15 p.m. CDT
- Eastern Daylight Time: 5:15 p.m. EDT
- Greenwich Mean Time: 9:15 p.m. GMT
OP/ED, Cast and Staff
Kis-My-Ft2 performs the opening theme song “HEARTLOUD,” and TRUE performs the ending theme song “Juai (Cursed Love).”
The cast of MAO includes:
- Yūki Kaji as Mao
- Natsumi Kawaida as Nanoka Kiba
- Hiro Shimono as Hyakka
- Toshiyuki Toyonaga as Kamon
- Momoka Terasawa as Otoya
- Kazuyuki Okitsu as Shiranui
- Motoko Kumai as Funa Uozumi
- Yōko Hikasa as Tenko
- Risa Shimizu as Sana
- Reina Ueda as Yurako
- Takashi Matsuyama as Byōki
The staff includes:
- Director: Teruo Sato
- Series Script Supervisor: Yūko Kakihara
- Character Designer, Chief Animation Director: Yoshihito Hishinuma
- Art Director: Hiroshi Katō, Izumi Hoki
- Color Key Artist: Masumi Ōtsuka
- CG Director: Tomohiro Fujie
- Compositing Director of Photography: Akane Fushihara
- Editing: Kazuhiro Nii
- Sound Director: Hiromi Kikuta
- Music: Shū Kanematsu
Where Can I Watch MAO?
The MAO anime is streaming on Hulu in the U.S. and Disney+ in Canada, Australia and New Zealand, and Latin America. In Japan, the anime is airing on the NHK-General channel, along with various other channels and streaming services.
What is MAO About?
Takahashi launched the MAO manga in Shogakukan’s Weekly Shonen Sunday magazine on May 8, 2019, and VIZ Media publishes the manga in English.
Here’s an overview of the manga’s first volume, via VIZ Media:
Nanoka passes through a portal into the Taisho era, where exorcist Mao reluctantly rescues her from the jaws of a grotesque yokai. When Nanoka gets back to the present, she discovers she has some new, incredible abilities. She returns to the past looking for answers, only to get caught up in Mao’s investigation of a series of gruesome murders. As her questions about herself multiply, Nanoka learns that Mao is cursed by a cat demon named Byoki—and so is his sword. If anyone but Mao attempts to wield it, they are doomed. But when Mao’s life is in jeopardy, Nanoka picks up his blade and swings!
