Coronavirus Shuts Down Multiple Anime Productions And Japan’s Major Cosplay Event Nippombashi Street Festa

Spencer Baculi   |  

Feb 19, 2020

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The anime community of Japan has begun to feel the effects of the recent global spread of the COVID-19 Coronavirus as series productions and a large cosplay event are announcing delays as a direct result of the disease.

The first anime casualty of the Coronavirus outbreak was the series A3! SEASON SPRING & SUMMER, announcing in an official blog post that the series would be delayed until the end of the season, and was corroborated by a similar announcement from the show’s New Zealand and Australian broadcaster AnimeLab:

Due to unexpected issues with the production process and the current global health crisis, A3! will continue to be delayed.

Our partners in Japan have let us know that the series is currently planned to resume in April.

We’ll continue to keep you updated as we know more. pic.twitter.com/CEIqbT3jFf

— animelab (@AnimeLab) February 16, 2020

Next was Asteroid in Love, which delayed their 7^th episode by a week, opting to air a recap episode in its original time slot instead.

On February 17^th, it was announced that the 7^th episode of A Certain Scientific Railgun T would be delayed, with a post on the official website specifically citing “the influence of “COVID-19” as the reason for the production being “postponed.”

Inifinite Dendrogram became the latest casualty on February 18^th, with the series’ official website stating that the “recent spread of the new global coranoavirus “COVID-19, we decided to postpone broadcasting and distribution of episode 7 due to production circumstances. We deeply apologize to the fans for the sudden announcement.”

These series were most likely affected by the Coronavirus by way of their animation partners in China. As the virus sweeps the country and millions are quarantined, some businesses have been repeatedly shut down under various quarantines which prevent workers from performing any of their duties.

Outside of anime series production, concerns over the virus have also led to the cancellation of one of the largest cosplay events in Japan, the Nippombashi Street Festa.

Originally slated to be held on March 15^th, a February 19^th statement from the organization stated that the event had been “canceled due to concerns about the spread of the new coronavirus.”

The organization has also confirmed that they will be offering refunds at a later date while also searching for alternative avenues for certain events and item distributions.