How Bushiroad Crunched the Numbers
Bushiroad's Anime Data Insight Lab, a research division within the entertainment conglomerate, tracked all 72 Spring 2026 anime (53 new series, 19 sequels) across the first four broadcast weeks. The full report, published June 4 on Japanese press-release platform PR TIMES, measures two things: a "Trend Score" based on Google search volume (how many people look up a show) and a "Fan Score" drawn from X post volume (how many people talk about it).
The headline finding: the shows people search for and the shows people discuss are pulling in opposite directions, and the gap widened every week.
Sequels Own Search. New Shows Own Conversation.
Re:ZERO -Starting Life in Another World- led search from day one. Its Trend Score climbed from 75.8 in Week 1 to 93.9 by Week 4, a growth curve the report compares to Jujutsu Kaisen's winter 2026 run (77.0 to 97.0). That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime, Classroom of the Elite, and Dr. Stone: Science Future held strong behind it, keeping the search Top 10 sequel-heavy throughout: six sequels in Week 1, seven by Week 4.
Fan conversation told the opposite story. Week 1's buzz Top 10 featured seven sequels and just three new shows, carried by brand recognition and premiere excitement. By Week 4, new shows held seven of those ten spots.
Daemons of the Shadow Realm, the new manga from Fullmetal Alchemist creator Hiromu Arakawa animated by Studio Bones, was among the biggest movers. Kill Blue, adapted from Kuroko's Basketball creator Tadatoshi Fujimaki's action manga, also climbed in. They were joined by Fist of the North Star and Agents of the Four Seasons: Dance of Spring as sequel chatter faded.
The report reads this as expectation versus satisfaction. Week 1 Fan Scores reflect what audiences hoped a sequel would deliver. Week 4 scores reflect what actually kept them posting.
Botan Kamiina Leads Every Growth Chart
Botan Kamiina Fully Blossoms When Drunk, a comedy about a college student whose personality transforms after a few drinks, posted the season's most dramatic growth. Its Trend Score jumped from 8.8 to 17.5, a 200% retention rate. Its Fan Score retained at 137%. No other new show this season cleared 100% in both metrics.
The median numbers put that in perspective. New shows typically retain just 49.0% of their Week 1 search interest (sequels manage 58.9%). On the conversation side, new shows actually outpace sequels on average, with a 53.7% median retention versus 40.4% for returning series. Botan Kamiina sits well above every median.
Other new titles with strong Fan Score retention included Daemons of the Shadow Realm (127%), Go for It, Nakamura! (114%), Kill Blue (109%), and Snowball Earth (106%). Wistoria: Wand and Sword, returning for its second season, was the top-retaining sequel in fan conversation at 125%.
Looking Ahead
This analysis covers only the first four broadcast weeks of the season. The Lab's own winter 2026 report noted that dark horses emerged late from streaming and theatrical routes, so the current rankings could still shift before the season wraps.
For international viewers, many of the season's top performers are streaming globally. Re:ZERO is available on Crunchyroll, Snowball Earth streams on both Crunchyroll and Disney+, and Daemons of the Shadow Realm is on Crunchyroll. The Anime Data Insight Lab plans to publish follow-up analysis as the season progresses.