Jujutsu Kaisen and Frieren may not be the biggest anime of winter 2026

Following the premiere of Sentenced to Be a Hero on Crunchyroll, Kadokawa, publisher of the original light novel series, filed a trademark for the name in Japan, according to Manga Mogura RE on X, a sign of the huge splash the new anime series has made in its debut.

It may seem like an obvious move for a publisher to make, but Kadokawa is notoriously slow to capitalize on the popularity of its IPs. Re:Zero – Starting Life in Another World, Kadokawa’s most profitable series, for example, premiered in 2014, but the company didn’t try to file a trademark for the abbreviation “Re:Zero” until 2024. The application was initially rejected because the trademark was deemed too similar to two existing Japanese trademarks also going by “Rezero”, but unrelated to the anime, according to online sources.

Getting the anime’s full name trademarked in America even took some time; the process did not begin until 2020, and wasn’t approved until 2023, according to the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) TTABVue system.

Kadokawa’s quick move to get Sentenced to Be a Hero trademarked tells us two things. First, the publisher has learned its lesson when it comes to slowly getting IPs registered, and second, they are looking at Sentenced to Be a Hero‘s quick success and taking it as a sign that the series may just be the next big thing. It’s also worth noting that Kadokawa is now partially owned by Sony, which set the tone for anime’s explosive year in 2025, distributing Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle, Chainsaw Man Movie: Reze Arc, and Scarlet.

This could mean Sony, which also owns anime streaming platform Crunchyroll, and Kadokawa see big things for Sentenced to Be a Hero in an already stacked lineup of anime. January 2026 also sees the return of Jujutsu Kaisen and Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End, all airing on Crunchyroll. Of course, these series already have massive fanbases and have proved their quality and value over any doubt. If nothing else, Sentenced to Be a Hero is already being looked at as an IP with great potential.

Episode 2 of Sentenced to Be a Hero is scheduled to release on Jan. 16 with a Crunchyroll simul-dub.