The official website for the Summer Pockets TV anime has released its seventh promotional video and a new visual, prominently featuring the character Umi Katō, voiced by Aimi Tanaka. This latest reveal comes ahead of the anime’s 18th episode broadcast in Japan, teasing an upcoming character arc centered around Umi.
Premiere and Production Details
The Summer Pockets anime, based on Key’s popular visual novel, officially premiered in Japan on April 7, 2025. It is set to air on various channels, including TOKYO MX, BS11, and MBS. Crunchyroll is simulcasting the series.
The animation is being handled by studio feel., with Tomoki Kobayashi (known for Remake Our Life!) directing the series. Keiichiro Ochi is in charge of the series composition, and Mai Otsuka is responsible for character designs. The music for the anime is a collaborative effort by Jun Maeda, Shinji Orito, Tomohiro Takeshita, Donmaru, and Ryo Mizutsuki. Konomi Suzuki performs both the opening theme song “Alkatale” and the ending theme song “Lasting Moment.” The newly released seventh promotional video also previews Konomi Suzuki’s new opening theme song, “Finistella.”
The World of Summer Pockets
Story Overview
The Summer Pockets narrative centers on Hairi Takahara, a young man who travels to the isolated, rural island of Torishirojima during his summer vacation. He uses the recent death of his grandmother as an excuse to visit the island to manage her estate. Once on the island, he encounters a cast of mysterious girls and begins to unravel forgotten memories and deal with personal trauma. The visual novel‘s story, originally released in 2018, is set on an island with a population of about 2,000 people.
Key Characters and Voice Cast
The anime features a returning voice cast from the original visual novel, including:
- Hairi Takahara voiced by Shoya Chiba
- Shiroha Naruse voiced by Konomi Kohara
- Ao Sorakado voiced by Natsumi Takamori
- Kamome Kushima voiced by Nene Hieda
- Tsumugi Wenders voiced by Emiri Iwai
- Miki Nomura voiced by Saku Ichimiya
- Shizuku Mizuori voiced by Sahomi Koyama
- Umi Katō voiced by Aimi Tanaka
- Kyoko Misaki voiced by Megumi Takamoto
- Kobato Naruse voiced by Minoru Shiraishi
- Inari voiced by Konomi Suzuki
- Ryoichi Mitani voiced by Kentaro Kumagai
- Tenzen Kano voiced by Yohei Hamada
Umi Katō, the focus of the newest visual and video, is a character from the expanded version of the game, Summer Pockets Reflection Blue. Figures of Umi Katō, alongside Shiroha Naruse and Ao Sorakado, are also slated for release between May and June 2026.
From Visual Novel to Anime Adaptation
The Original Visual Novel
Summer Pockets is a Japanese visual novel developed by Key, a brand of Visual Arts, known for acclaimed titles like Kanon, Air, and Clannad. The original game was first released for PC in Japan in June 2018, with an English version made available on Steam in February 2020. It was later ported to iOS, Android, and Nintendo Switch. An expanded version, Summer Pockets Reflection Blue, which includes new heroines and routes, was released in June 2020.
Challenges in Adaptation
Adapting the extensive scenario of a visual novel like Summer Pockets into an anime series presented considerable challenges for the production team. Director Tomoki Kobayashi noted the difficulty of abridging the vast amount of events and story elements to fit within the episodic structure of a TV anime. Game writer Kai was involved in guiding the adaptation process, ensuring that key character lines and well-received scenes from the game were included. While cuts were necessary, the adaptation also allowed for the inclusion of scenes that were not able to be fully realized as “event CGs” in the original game due to predetermined still counts. The inherent differences in narrative structure between games and TV series, where games allow for extended scenarios and multiple routes, also posed a hurdle in maintaining player comprehension and story flow within fixed 30-minute anime chunks.
