An unexpected dieting streak by Gintama creator Hideaki Sorachi was reportedly what set his recently announced Netflix anime adaptation in motion. According to Weekly Shonen Jump editor-in-chief Yu Saito, who spoke at a recent joint press event attended by Oricon News, the idea to adapt Sorachi’s debut one-shot manga Dandelion (2002) came about after Gintama ended in 2019. At the time, Sorachi had stopped drawing manga altogether and decided to focus on losing weight instead.
“The very first spark came after Gintama ended, when the author wasn’t drawing manga and was really focused on dieting…” Saito explained. “We thought, ‘How about doing something to motivate him to draw again, like turning a short story into an anime or something?’ When we asked, he said something like, “Well, if that happened, I’d be happy.”
Then, this tentative idea eventually became a full Netflix production. Originally, the project was reportedly envisioned as four short episodes. However, to the surprise of Sorachi’s editors, Netflix proposed expanding it into a seven-episode series, despite the source material’s relatively short length of 31 pages. When informed of the expanded scope, Sorachi’s first response was “Don’t push yourselves too hard.” Saito noted that Sorachi has a positive stance on seeing his work adapted, and that his attitude is generally to leave things to the creators involved once the source material leaves his hands, which makes him easy to work with.
Produced by NAZ, Dandelion is directed by Daisuke Mataga, with Yosuke Suzuki overseeing series composition and Ai Asari handling character designs. Yuki Hayashi (My Hero Academia, Haikyuu!!) will be handling the music. The main cast includes Chikahiro Kobayashi (Saichi Sugimoto in Golden Kamuy and Legoshi in Beastars) and Megumi Han (Gon Freecss in Hunter × Hunter).
Originally published as Sorachi’s debut work and later included in the first volume of Gintama, Dandelion follows angels Tetsuo Tanba and Misaki Kurogane of the Japanese Angel Federation’s send-off department as they guide lingering spirits to the afterlife. The anime adaptation will expand on the short one-shot with original episodes and previously unexplored backstories. The series is scheduled to premiere in April 2026.
