Firefly Wedding (Hotaru no Yomeiri), the anime adaptation of Oreco Tachibana’s Meiji-era romance about a dying noblewoman and the assassin she proposes to, premieres on October 9, 2026. It is produced by david production, the studio behind JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure and Fire Force, and Crunchyroll has already been confirmed for streaming. Here is the release date, staff, story, trailer and what to know about the manga, which finished its run in January 2026.
Firefly Wedding release date
The anime starts in Japan on Friday, October 9, 2026, in Fuji TV’s late-night slot (listed for 11:30 pm JST), which puts it in the second week of the Fall 2026 season. Crunchyroll is listed as the international streaming partner, so expect episodes shortly after the Japanese broadcast each week.
An episode count has not been announced. The manga is a compact, complete story, so a single cour of 12 or 13 episodes is the most likely format, though the production has not confirmed whether it will adapt the whole series in one season.
Key facts at a glance
| Detail | Confirmed information |
|---|---|
| Title | Firefly Wedding (ホタルの嫁入り, Hotaru no Yomeiri) |
| Premiere (Japan) | October 9, 2026, Fuji TV |
| Studio | david production |
| Director | Takahiro Kamei |
| Series composition / script | Yuuko Kakihara |
| Character design | Yukiko Aikei |
| Music | NOGRID |
| Ending theme | TOOBOE |
| Streaming | Crunchyroll |
| Episode count | Not yet announced |
The story
Satoko Kirigaya has everything a young woman of her class is supposed to want in Meiji-era Japan: beauty, a noble family and the right age for an advantageous marriage. She also has a terminal illness and very little time left. Before she can secure a match that will restore her family’s standing, she becomes the target of Shinpei Goto, a hired assassin, and in the moment she should be dying she makes him an offer instead: marry her. Shinpei accepts, and takes the “until death do us part” clause more literally than she expected.
What follows is a romance built on a countdown. Satoko is trying to spend what is left of her life on her own terms, Shinpei is trying to work out what he is now that he has a wife instead of a target, and the people who wanted Satoko dead have not gone away. The manga’s reputation comes from how it balances the two halves, a slow, genuinely tender relationship and an assassination plot that keeps interrupting it, and from an art style that makes the period setting feel lived-in rather than decorative.
The manga is finished, which matters
Oreco Tachibana’s Hotaru no Yomeiri began serialising in Shueisha’s Manga Mee in 2023 and concluded in January 2026, a few months before the anime was scheduled. That means the adaptation is working from a completed story with a known ending, which is unusual for a romance anime and removes the risk of an anime-original finale. VIZ Media publishes the manga in English as Firefly Wedding, and the full run is available if you want to read ahead.
Studio and staff
david production handles the animation, a studio better known for action series (JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure, Fire Force, Undead Unluck) than for period romance, which is part of what makes the assignment interesting: the assassination side of the story is in safe hands. The confirmed staff:
- Original creator: Oreco Tachibana
- Director: Takahiro Kamei
- Series composition and script: Yuuko Kakihara
- Character design: Yukiko Aikei
- Music: NOGRID
- Ending theme: TOOBOE
Yuuko Kakihara is the busiest writer of the Fall 2026 season: she is also on The Apothecary Diaries Season 3 and Blue Box Season 2, both of which premiere the same week. Her track record on character-driven adaptations is the strongest signal that the romance half will be handled with care.
Trailer
Watch the official trailer below:
Where to watch Firefly Wedding
Crunchyroll is the confirmed streaming platform outside Japan. Exact regional availability and the simulcast timing will be posted on the official site and Crunchyroll’s own Fall 2026 lineup announcement closer to the premiere; we will update this section when the schedule is published.
Why it is one to watch
Romance is the most crowded genre of Fall 2026, with Blue Box and Ranma ½ both returning, but Firefly Wedding is the only one of them that is a new adaptation with a complete story, a period setting and a genuine thriller running underneath it. The manga’s following on AniList and MyAnimeList is well above what a josei debut normally gets, and david production plus Kakihara is a stronger team than most first-time adaptations receive. If you liked My Happy Marriage, this is the closest thing this season has to it, with sharper edges. For the rest of the October lineup, see our Fall 2026 anime season preview.
FAQ
When does the Firefly Wedding anime come out?
October 9, 2026 in Japan on Fuji TV, streaming on Crunchyroll.
Is the manga finished?
Yes. It ran from 2023 to January 2026 and is published in English by VIZ Media.
How many episodes will it have?
Not announced. One cour is expected.
Who is making it?
david production, directed by Takahiro Kamei and written by Yuuko Kakihara.
Is it similar to My Happy Marriage?
It shares the period setting and the arranged-marriage premise, but Firefly Wedding is darker, with an assassination plot driving the story.
This article will be updated as the episode count, cast and simulcast schedule are confirmed. Last updated September 15, 2026.
