Crunchyroll, Aniplex of America, and Aniplex, Inc., took over Times Square on Saturday, June 17, 2023, with an anime display celebrating the release of Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba: Swordsmith Village Arc. Cosplayers and fans crowded into Times Square for the event as scenes from the anime filled the lighted billboards. A similar anime-themed event took place at New York Comic Con in 2022, when a promotion for One Piece Red took over Times Square (see “ICv2 Interview: VIZ Media’s Kevin Hamric”).

Although the manga series has ended, both the manga and the anime continue to be popular. Theatrical release of Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba: Mugen Train had a box office total of over $19 million on its opening weekend in April 2021 (see “‘Demon Slayer’ Debuts Big in U.S.”), and the streaming anime, including the new arc, is the top title on Crunchyroll as of this writing. As for the manga, which is published by VIZ, the first two volumes of the series and a complete box set with an MSRP of $199.99 were on the Circana BookScan Top 20 best-seller list for May 2023 (see “May 2023 Circana BookScan”).

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