Kaiju No.8 Mission Recon Recap Film Opens in Cinemas This April
Crunchyroll has today announced that Kaiju No. 8: Mission Recon, a theatrical recap of the Shonen JUMP+ anime’s first season, is releasing in cinemas across the UK and Ireland on Wednesday 16th April with screenings available both in the original Japanese with English subtitles, and an English language dub.
Adapted from the original manga created by Naoya Matsumoto – the anime series, which premiered in April 2024, is set in a world under attack from giant kaiju and follows the story of Kafka Hibino as he follows his dream of joining the anti-Kaiju Defense Force. The recap film debuted in Japanese cinemas in March 2025, and was accompanied by the original episode “Hoshina’s Day Off”, which will also be included in this release.
Official Film Synopsis:
In a Kaiju-filled Japan, Kafka Hibino works in monster disposal. After reuniting with his childhood friend Mina Ashiro, a rising star in the anti-Kaiju Defense Force, Kafka decides to pursue his abandoned dream of joining the Force… when he suddenly transforms into the powerful “Kaiju No. 8.” With help from his junior colleague Reno Ichikawa, Kafka hides his identity while striving towards his life-long dream of passing the Defense Force exam and standing at Mina’s side. But when a mysterious intelligent Kaiju attacks a Defense Force base, Kafka faces a crucial decision in a desperate situation…
The omnibus film Kaiju No. 8: Mission Recon features an action-packed recap of season one and a new original episode, “Hoshina’s Day Off”.
“Hoshina’s Day Off”: A day off… a rare day of peace for the Defense Force. After spending so long training, Reno has forgotten what he’s supposed to do with free time. He sees that Hoshina is up to something with his own day off and decides to go on a mission to tail him with Iharu! But then things go in an unexpected direction…
Kaiju No. 8 is adapted from the original manga created by Naoya Matsumoto. It is animated by Production I.G (GHOST IN THE SHELL), with kaiju artwork and design supervision by Studio Khara (Evangelion: New Theatrical Edition, Shin Godzilla Pre Visualization Development).
CREDITS:
Original Manga: Naoya Matsumoto (Serialized in “MANGA Plus by SHUEISHA”).
Director: Shigeyuki Miya & Tomomi Kamiya.
Series Composition & Screenplay (Season 1): Ichiro Okouchi. “Hoshina’s Day Off”
Original Story: Yuto Tsukuda. “Hoshina’s Day Off”
Screenplay: Yuichiro Kido.
Character Designer & Chief Animation Director: Tetsuya Nishio.
Kaiju Supervision (Design & Artworks): Studio khara.
Animation Studio: Production I.G
Source: Crunchyroll Press Release
