The staff of the anime adaptation of Joumyaku and Mizuki Yoda’s MARRIAGETOXIN manga series have reveal the main visual and latest PV for MARRIAGETOXIN Season 2, which will premiere in January 2027. In addition, an interview with MARRIAGETOXIN Season 2 director Motonobu Hori was released.
Read the full interview below:
Were there any fan reactions to Season 1 that particularly stayed with you?
Hori: I had the chance to attend Anime Expo 2026 in July, where I got to see firsthand how people who had actually watched the show reacted. Everyone gave us such a warm response, and it really brought home to me that this series has been embraced.
There was a segment where I sat down with Haruki Ishiya, who plays Hikaru Gero, and Shion Wakayama, who plays Mei Kinosaki, to introduce our favorite scenes, and they played the footage for us. The audience cheered at every single scene. I got the impression that they were truly enjoying it, and that made me very happy.
Your recent works, such as Carole & Tuesday and Metallic Rouge, have been very different in style from MARRIAGETOXIN. What is it like to move from one genre to another? How do you prepare differently for a romantic comedy and for a more serious work?
Hori: My career started as an animator, and having the character of a project change from job to job was an everyday occurrence — that is simply how I have built my career. So switching genres does not feel like anything particularly special to me.
If there is one thing I am careful about, it is that above all I work from what the characters are feeling. I may not really think about it in terms of genre at all.
And in the case of MARRIAGETOXIN, Gero himself has no intention of doing comedy — he is throwing everything he has into searching for the best marriage. In terms of that earnestness, I actually think of it as a serious work.
How did you envision bringing the outlandish, one-of-a-kind world of MARRIAGETOXIN to life through animation?
Hori: There were two things in particular that I kept in mind.
The first is that the original manga is a work in which the genre keeps shifting within very short spans. There are serious moments, gags, touching stories, sad stories — all mixed together, and switching over in short turns. Even while reading the manga, I thought it would be a difficult work to turn into anime. But when I thought about it, I realized that in the short-form videos we watch every day, a cooking recipe is followed by footage of an accident, which is followed by a clip of a cute animal. We are used to seeing scenes switch that quickly. If we could capture that same sensation, it would actually make for an enjoyable series. That was the first thing.
The second is that the original is split between two people: Joumyaku, who handles the story, and Mizuki Yoda, who handles the manga. If you look only at the content, Joumyaku writes almost everything with a comedic touch, essentially as gags — and rendering that in Yoda’s gorgeous artwork creates a gap. No one is calling out the absurdity, no one is playing around, and yet absurd things are happening. That is the humor unique to MARRIAGETOXIN. In adapting it, I felt we had to achieve in animation the same effect that Yoda’s art achieves. So we never cut corners on the action — we animated it properly and put real effort into it, and drew everything beautifully and with style. Those were the two things I was mindful of as we made the series.
The series is extremely bold and packed with action, and at the same time it depicts real, warm human connections between people from all kinds of backgrounds. As director, how do you balance those elements on screen so that the story comes across in full?
Hori: This gets into the specifics of how it is directed, but because the series really is built out of short scenes joined together, I felt that if the emotion were cut off each time, it would become hard for viewers to connect with it. So I wanted the mood to build over a somewhat longer flow.
For that reason, even when we go from comedy to action, or from action to a sad moment, rather than changing the music in fine increments each time, we might let the same piece play slowly across three scenes. Using music like glue to bind the flow of the scenes together, and building the mood that way — that is the approach we took.
Looking back on the production of Season 1, is there an episode that has stayed with you?
Hori: I am not sure it qualifies as a highlight, but… when I was first offered the job, I was called into the office of Mr. Minami, the president of Bones, and handed the original manga. That was the first time I read it, and after skimming through it I answered “I’ll do it” rather lightly. When I went back and read it properly afterwards, I realized what a demanding work it was.
It being a Bones Film production is part of it, and most of the works I have directed have had a heavy animation workload — but even among those, MARRIAGETOXIN, for all that its gags and comedy make the content look light, has been the heaviest of anything I have done in terms of the actual work. Our producer, Saito, worked hard to bring together an excellent staff. The whole time we were making Season 1, it felt like swimming across an ocean without ever stopping — completely exhausting.
What are your impressions of Haruki Ishiya’s performance as Gero and Shion Wakayama’s as Kinosaki? How do you feel their performances have added depth and appeal to each character?
Hori: Gero is an extremely strong character as a hitman, but he also has an endearing side to him, so I think Ishiya’s range as an actor was a very good fit.
As for Kinosaki, there is almost no information about what kind of character they are, not even in the original manga. When we explained Gero’s role to Ishiya, all kinds of words came out, but we struggled to find the words to describe Kinosaki. Joumyaku, the original creator, came to watch the recording for episode 1, but even so, all we got was a single line: “They are the one who leads Gero astray.” (laughs) They really are a mystery of a character, but there is a naturalness that comes through in Wakayama’s voice, and I think it made Kinosaki a character who is enigmatic and yet has a very approachable charm.
Looking at the series as a whole, it is a story about hitmen, but I think of it as a work that affirms life. Both of their voices carry a positive mood, so in creating the atmosphere of the series, their voices and their performances were a perfect fit.
Fans’ expectations are running high for Season 2, premiering in January 2027. How are preparations for the next season coming along?
Hori: Production is moving along smoothly.
When I went to Anime Expo the other day, I never expected such a positive reaction. I had thought the content of the source material was very Japanese, so I honestly did not imagine that audiences overseas would take to it so warmly. I want everyone to see it as soon as possible, but making something properly does take time, so I hope people will look forward to it.
I imagine there is not much you can say about Season 2 yet, but could you tell us what you are most looking forward to, and what you expect will be a challenge as director? What kind of trials will Gero face? And what do you hope viewers take away from Season 2?
Hori: Characters who appeared in Season 1 making a return is another element that makes it fun.
As director, simply making a second season of something this demanding is quite a challenge in itself. But I want to keep the energy of the series intact, hold on to the momentum we had in Season 1, and make a Season 2 with the kind of drive that carries you straight through in one sitting.
Beyond that, an appealing new marriage prospect appears for Gero, and of course there are scenes in which the relationship between Gero and Kinosaki deepens through various developments, so I hope people enjoy that side of it as well.
Finally, could you give a message to the fans? And a word for those who have not yet watched MARRIAGETOXIN?
Hori: I think it is a series you can enjoy in a very easygoing, casual way. I said this often in interviews in Japan before Season 1 started, but I think it is the perfect thing to watch after work, before you go to sleep. You come home tired after a long day, relax with a chu-hi in hand, watch it, and go to bed in a good mood. MARRIAGETOXIN is very well suited to that, so if that is the kind of series you are looking for, I would love for you to watch it.
I also think it is a surprisingly rare kind of work. It is not a story about saving the world, but while you are watching it puts you in a good mood, and it leaves you feeling ready to head off to school or work again tomorrow. Please do give it a watch.
If you could choose one of the “Master” abilities from the world of MARRIAGETOXIN — either one that already exists or something completely original — which would you choose, and what would you use that power for?
Hori: The Sound Master. Naruko’s ability lets him manipulate other people through sound and hypnosis. Directing is a job that involves a great deal of talking with people and a great many meetings, so being able to control people freely would make the work a whole lot easier. (laughs)
Season 1 of MARRIAGETOXIN is streaming now on Crunchyroll with English subtitles and an English dub.
Yurina Hirate performs opening theme song “Kill or Kiss,” and singer-songwriter AKASAKI will perform the ending theme song “Shake Na Baby.”
The cast of the anime includes:
- Haruki Ishiya as Hikaru Gero
- Shion Wakayama as Mei Kinosaki
- Anna Nagase as Kyoko Himekawa
- Mariya Ise as Shizuku Ushio
- Asaki Yuikawa as Shiori Ureshino
- Soma Saito as Genya Naruko
- Hinano Shirahama as Kimie Arashiyama
- Simba Tsuchiya as Piichi Nakagawa
- Haruka Shiraishi as Akari Gero
- Isamu Yusen as Toshiki Hanamaki
Motonobu Hori is directing the anime series. Kimiko Ueno is in charge of series composition and scripts, Kohei Tokuoka is the character designer and chief animation director, and Taisei Iwasaki and yuma yamaguchi are the music composers. BONES Animation is supervising the production by BONES Film and MARRIAGETOXIN Project.
Additional staff includes:
- Sub Character Design: Yurika Sako
- Costume Design: Kotono
- Prop Design: Ayumi Nagaki, Ryo Hirata
- Art Design: Toshiki Amata
- Art: Bihou
- Color Design: Hiroko Umezaki
- Photography Director: Go Kanbayashi
- 3DCG: SANZIGEN Inc.
- CG Animation Director: Taiki Nagashima
- Editing: Kumiko Sakamoto
- Sound Director: Haru Yamada
- Sound Effects: Tomokazu Mii
Here’s an overview of the anime, courtesy of Shueisha:
For centuries, the deadly arts have been perfected by those known as the Masters. Among them, the Poison Masters of the Five Great Families hold the most fearsome power and influence. Hikaru Gero, heir to the Poison Masters’ Gero Family, has lived his entire life in the underworld, far removed from love or marriage.
But when the Gero Family head decrees that Hikaru’s sister must bear an heir to preserve the bloodline – by force if necessary – Hikaru resolves to protect her at all costs. It is then that Hikaru encounters Mei Kinosaki, a brilliant marriage swindler who becomes the target of his latest job. Realizing that the only way of solving the family succession problem and protecting his sister is through marriage, Hikaru impulsively asks Mei for help in finding a bride.
“That’s the first time anyone’s ever proposed like that.”
And so, with the cunning marriage swindler Mei as his advisor, elite assassin Hikaru embarks on the most challenging mission of his life: finding a wife!
Their goal: the ultimate marriage.
This is the world’s toughest mission for love, brought to you by the ultimate duo – an assassin and a marriage swindler!
