12 episode anime shows are common these days. Almost every anime in each season is only 12+ episodes long.
The only exceptions to this rule are anime like:
- My Hero Academia
- Black Clover
- Boruto
Or any other brand new
There’s a good reason for that.
Why Anime Has 12+ Episodes These Days:
1. Non-Mainstream anime shows
The Demon Girl Next Door is a good example of this.
Most anime that air these days aren’t mainstream shows like MHA,
Mainstream shows gain most of the industry’s attention, so naturally they have a lot of episodes and the leverage to support it.
A show like The Demon Girl Next Door (and dozens and dozens of new shows) can’t say the same thing.
In the case of a show like this, 12 episodes is a smart move on the studios part.
With this they can:
- Gauge
- Assess
- Observe
And determine whether an anime is worth taking to the next level and continuing. Having so few episodes allows them to do that.
If a lot of new and non-mainstream anime took the traditional route of 26+ episodes or more, that’d be more risky.
That leads to my next point.
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2. Risk management
Ascendance Of A Bookworm and many other anime in the past few years get the same treatment… Unless they already have an audience (like Re:Zero, etc).
It makes no sense otherwise.
In 2019 – Ascendance Of A Bookworm ran for 12 episodes. It’s an Isekai.
The reception was good, so they went on to make a 2nd season in 2020. I imagine in Japan it must have “sold” enough or gave studios, sponsors and so on enough results to feel it’s worth making a 2nd season.
It built up an audience and so they ran with it.
Same thing happened with My Next Life As A Villainess. The
That wouldn’t have happened if the anime didn’t do well online (and sales wise I assume).
But here’s a question: what if both studios made 26 or even 50+ episodes right out the door?
Chances are it might not have done as well. Or built up enough interest to keep viewers…. Interested.
Aside from that, there’s always the chance an anime won’t do well regardless, even if it’s just 12 episodes.
With 12 episodes an anime:
- Costs less
- Less risk
- Less headache
- Less worry
In the worst case they can scrap it, or at least make up some of the
If it’s an original series with no light novels or
That way, they can measure success without breaking the bank.
But not many studios have the balls (or the budget) to make an ongoing, long series like
It costs a lot of
Mistakes or overestimation can be
3. Budgets
Like I just said, it costs a lot of
Not sure of the prices in 2020 but a few years back, $2 million dollars was apparently the average cost of a full anime.
Not every anime studio is Toei Animation or Madhouse, so $2 million needs to be managed wisely.
That’s a lot of
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4. Expectations
It’s easier to watch an anime series with 12 episodes.. Meaning you know it’s “just 12 episodes” so it’s easier to process.
When an anime is much longer it weighs on you. It’s why I didn’t watch Naruto for so many years, I focused on the 500 episodes instead of just starting.
Most anime fans do the same thing.
With 12 episodes:
- It’s a wall small enough to walk over (instead of jump).
- It’s more encouraging.
- Everyone has enough time for it (12 episodes = 4 hours).
- It’s just enough to decide whether you like it or not.
I’d assume studios have picked up on this, and it benefits them as well, so everyone wins.
Technology, life, and the 21st century is so immediate and its made “time” more valuable than ever.
Unless the anime has tons of original material, or the studio decides to create a “anime, it’s a smart move on their part.
5. Promotional material
No Game No Life is the perfect example. The anime aired years ago and hasn’t had a 2nd season (for different reasons).
Either way – the anime only ran for 12 episodes and sometimes – that’s all a studio wants.
They can use a 12 episode anime as “promo” for the original:
- Light novel
- Manga
Or any other material the anime is adapted from.
This “promo” becomes enough to make more
No Game No Life blew up so I imagine in the case with this anime, it worked better than expected.
Same thing happened with The Devil Is A Part Timer. This
Originally from a
Even so, that doesn’t matter if studio white fox planned it that way, because the popularity served its purpose. And help the
It’s annoying as a fan to see it (cliffhangers), but that’s how it goes in general.
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