It has been announced that the light novel "I Made Friends with the Second Prettiest Girl in My Class" (KuraNika) from Kadokawa Sneaker Bunko (KADOKAWA) will be adapted into a TV anime in 2026. It is a "friends" romantic comedy about a shady boy and his "second" heroine, and it has been announced that the main cast will include Ishiya Haruki as the shady boy Maehara Maki, Manaka Iwami as Asanagi Umi, the second cutest girl in the class, Sayumi Suzushiro as Amami Yuu, Umi's best friend and the most beautiful girl in the class, and Ikumi Hasegawa as Nitta Niina, Umi and Yuu's friend. Ishiya, Iwami, and Suzushiro have appeared in the voice comics and other parts of the series.
The work is a light novel written by Takata and illustrated by Azuri Hinata, and is a popular work that won the grand prize in the paperback category of the "Next Light Novel 2023". The story is about Maehara Maki, a loner in class, who is always at the center of the group and becomes friends with Asanagi Umi, a girl who is rumored by the other boys to be the "second cutest in the class". The comic version is also popular, and the series has sold more than 1 million copies in total.
The anime will be directed by Hideki Tachibana, with series composition and scriptwriting by Keiichiro Ochi and character design by Shoko Takimoto. It will be produced by CONNECT. A teaser visual featuring Umi Asanagi and a promotional video announcing the anime adaptation have also been released.
Ishiya, who plays Maehara Maki, commented, "I'm very happy to be able to continue to be involved in the series. Both the original and manga are works that offer a variety of enjoyable elements, such as frustration, emotional changes, slowly progressing relationships, and life-sized worries. I wish I could have had a youth like this, and I hope to be able to play the role of a boy who grows despite being pushed around by charming characters, while accepting this in a relaxed manner. Please look forward to the broadcast!"
Iwami, who plays Asanagi Umi, said, "Congratulations on the TV anime adaptation of 'Kuranika'. I feel surprised to think that it's already been about three years since I first played Asanagi Umi. I truly enjoyed playing Umi, and when I heard that it was being adapted into an anime, I felt very happy that they would be entrusting it to me again. My wish has come true, and I am very happy. I am also looking forward to seeing everyone coming to life in the anime. I will do my best to portray Asanagi Umi in an appealing way to all 'Kuranika' fans and everyone I meet through the anime. I look forward to your continued support!"
Suzuyo, who plays Amami Yuu, expressed her delight, saying, "First of all, congratulations again on the decision to make an anime! I first got to work on this production in the PV a few years ago, and I'm extremely happy and honored to be able to continue playing Yuu in the anime...! Thank you so much!"
"The words 'Second Cutest in the Class' in the title are particularly memorable for this work, but the Yu-chan I will be playing is what they call 'the cutest girl in the class'...! She is so cute, energetic and honest that people around her call her an angel, and she is the kind of girl who can easily win anyone's heart. I feel that she has a natural idol power that makes everyone naturally drawn to her. But honestly... they're all cute regardless of order!! (laughs). I will do my best to act in a way that doesn't lose the sparkling aura that Yu-chan exudes!! Please also look forward to her interactions with her best friends Umi-chan, Niina-chan, and Maehara-kun! Thank you for your support!"
Hasegawa, who plays Nitta Niina, commented, "Congratulations on the anime adaptation of 'Kuranika'!! The other cast members announced this time were involved in 'Kuranika' through voice comments and so on, so as this is my first time participating I'm feeling quite excited and nervous (laughs). I'm really happy to be a part of this production! The dubbing has yet to begin, but just imagining having lively exchanges with everyone as Niina is already fun! I hope you'll look forward to it until it airs. Thank you!"
Original author Takata said, "I think readers have been looking forward to this even more than I have. It's been about a year and seven months since the announcement that the anime adaptation plans were in the works in September 2023, so it's taken a little while for us to make this announcement, but I'm relieved to be able to tell you about the decision. There is still a lot of information that I haven't told you, and I feel like I want to burst into chatter right away, but I will hold back and wait for an official announcement. The series is scheduled to air in 2026, so until then, let's prepare by reading the original work and the comic book adaptation. As those two said, it's important to do your homework and review."
On April 25th, the web radio show "Kuranika Radio," featuring Iwami, Suzuyo, and Hasegawa, began broadcasting.
◇Staff (titles omitted)
Director: Tachibana Hideki▽Series composition and script: Ochi Keiichiro▽Character design: Takimoto Shoko▽Production studio: CONNECT
◇Cast (titles omitted)
Maehara Maki: Ishiya Haruki▽Asanagi Umi: Manaka Iwami ▽Amami Yu: Sayumi Suzushiro ▽Nitta Niina: Ikumi Hasegawa
