History of The Summer Hikaru Died in Timeline

The Summer Hikaru Died is a Japanese manga series by Mokumokuren, serialized since August 2021. The story centers on Yoshiki, a teenager living in rural Japan, who realizes his best friend Hikaru has been possessed by something supernatural. Yoshiki grapples with the altered dynamic of their friendship and the supernatural elements that begin to manifest. The manga explores themes of identity, friendship, and the unsettling presence of the otherworldly in an otherwise ordinary setting, as Yoshiki tries to understand the entity that now inhabits his friend's body.

January 2021: Mokumokuren Posts Drawings on Twitter

In January 2021, Mokumokuren began posting drawings on Twitter in their spare time, which led to the serialization of the manga.

August 2021: Manga Serialization Begins

In August 2021, The Summer Hikaru Died manga series, written and illustrated by Mokumokuren, began serialization on Kadokawa Shoten's Young Ace Up website.

August 31, 2021: Series Serialization Begins

On August 31, 2021, The Summer Hikaru Died series, written and illustrated by Mokumokuren, began serialization on Kadokawa Shoten's Young Ace Up website.

2021: One-Shot Introduction

In 2021, Mokumokuren introduced The Summer Hikaru Died as a one-shot under the Boys' Love genre.

September 2022: Yen Press Licenses Series

In September 2022, Yen Press announced that they licensed The Summer Hikaru Died series for English publication.

October 2022: Series Copies in Circulation

By October 2022, The Summer Hikaru Died series had 550,000 copies in circulation.

2022: Official Publication Genre Choice

In 2022, Mokumokuren chose not to specify the genre of the official publication of The Summer Hikaru Died.

2022: Next Manga Award Ranking

In 2022, The Summer Hikaru Died ranked 11th in the web manga category of the Next Manga Award and was the most popular choice among traditional Chinese voters.

June 2023: Series Reaches 1.4 Million Copies

By June 2023, The Summer Hikaru Died series had 1.4 million copies in circulation.

December 4, 2023: Novelization Published

On December 4, 2023, a novelization of The Summer Hikaru Died manga series, written by Mio Nukaga, was published by Kadokawa Shoten.

December 2023: Series Reaches 1.9 Million Copies

By December 2023, The Summer Hikaru Died series had 1.9 million copies in circulation.

2023: Kono Manga ga Sugoi! and Other Rankings

In 2023, The Summer Hikaru Died topped Takarajimasha's Kono Manga ga Sugoi! list of best manga for male readers, was nominated for the 16th Manga Taishō, ranked fifth in the Nationwide Bookstore Employees' Recommended Comics, ranked seventh in the seventh Tsutaya Comic Award, and was listed by the New York Public Library among its Best Books for Teens. It ranked 29th on the "Book of the Year" list by Da Vinci magazine.

May 24, 2024: Anime Adaptation Announced

On May 24, 2024, an anime adaptation of The Summer Hikaru Died was announced and later revealed to be a television series produced by CygamesPictures, directed and written by Ryōhei Takeshita. Yuichi Takahashi handled the character designs and chief animation direction, and Masanobu Hiraoka handled "Dorodoro" animation.

June 4, 2024: Series Reaches 2.3 Million Copies

By June 4, 2024, The Summer Hikaru Died series had 2.3 million copies in circulation.

November 4, 2024: Series Reaches 3 Million Copies

By November 4, 2024, The Summer Hikaru Died series had 3 million copies in circulation.

December 2024: Six Tankōbon Volumes Published

As of December 2024, the individual chapters of The Summer Hikaru Died have been collected in six tankōbon volumes.

2024: Yen Press Licenses Novel

In 2024, at New York Comic Con, Yen Press announced that they also licensed the novelization of The Summer Hikaru Died for English publication.

2024: Eisner and Harvey Awards Nominations

In 2024, the first volume of The Summer Hikaru Died and series author Mokumokuren were nominated for the Eisner Award for Best U.S. Edition of International Material—Asia and for Best Writer/Artist respectively. The series was also nominated for Harvey Awards in the Best Manga category.

2025: Anime Premiere

In 2025, the anime adaptation of The Summer Hikaru Died is set to premiere in Q3 on Nippon TV. The ending theme song is "Anata wa Kaibutsu" by Tooboe. Netflix will stream the series globally, with Abema streaming it inside Japan for free.

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