Anime With The Worst Release Schedules, Ranked

JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Steel Ball Run was one of the most anticipated anime arrivals in 2026, but unfortunately, fans haven’t been too thrilled with the release of the Joestars’ latest adventure on Netflix. Following the premiere episode, the streaming service confirmed that the next leg of the race would arrive later this year, though a specific release date hasn’t been revealed. In light of the big controversy surrounding the anime adaptation of Hirohiko Araki’s legendary work, we decided that now was the right time to revisit other anime series that ran into similar issues.

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To start, let’s break down how we are ranking the anime in question. We aren’t ranking based on the quality of the series themselves, but rather, on the impact that said delays had on the anime medium as a whole. We’re also looking to focus on single series, rather than continuations of originals, for example, Dragon Ball Z to Dragon Ball Super won’t be making the list. Unfortunately, there are plenty of examples of anime that have had long delays in between seasons and/or episodes, so there were plenty of franchises to choose from.

7.) Tiger & Bunny

In a landscape where anime focusing on superheroes are few and far between outside of My Hero Academia, Tiger & Bunny introduced a welcome entry for the costumed enthusiast community. Despite the popularity that the superhero series saw when it debuted in 2011, it took eleven years for season two to arrive in 2022, with many originally believing that the show would never continue. With a new live-action adaptation already announced, Bunny and Tiger have left their mark on the anime world, despite how long it took for the anime to come to a close.

6.) The Devil is a Part-Timer!

The Devil is a Part-Timer first debuted as a light novel in 2011, telling a wild story wherein the lord of the underworld found himself working in a restaurant that was a parody of McDonald’s. While the comedy hit the ground running when its anime debuted in 2013, it took close to a decade to see a second season arrive. With the light novels and manga now finished, the second season wrapped up the story, though the wait was a controversial one, considering how long it took for season two to arrive.

5.) Zom 100: Bucket List of The Dead

Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead might not have had decades between episodes like the aforementioned Tiger & Bunny and The Devil is a Part-Timer, but recency bias helps this one make the list. The zombie-fueled comedy anime had months between several of its episodes, specifically the ones that ended season one. A second season has yet to be confirmed at this point, following the success of the first season and the live-action adaptation that arrived as a movie. With the manga continuing to release new chapters to this day, fingers crossed, anime fans won’t be waiting for ten years to see Akira Tendo return to the small screen.

4.) Gate

Gate makes its way to the list as an anime comeback that many fans never saw coming. With the manga originally arriving in 2011, many viewers believed that the original twenty-four episode season was the “end-all, be-all” for the anime adaptation. Gate: Tides of Conflict was shockingly announced last year, with a release window of 2027. With the subject matter revolving around mystical beings fighting against our world’s military, the Gate sequel announcement sent shockwaves through the anime community despite it being over a decade since the show premiered.

3.) Bleach

Bleach was originally so big that it was considered to be a part of Shonen Jump’s “Big Three.” Despite this fact, the manga and its anime adaptation weren’t able to steer clear from being canceled. For quite some time, many shonen fans believed that Ichigo and the Soul Society would never see their final adventure animated. Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War brought the series back after years out of the limelight, finally giving the supernatural shonen series the true ending that it deserves. The fourth and final entry of the anime adaptation will arrive later this year, and while we might never see Ichigo and company return past this season, it was a welcome return all the same.

2.) JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Stone Ocean

To look at the problems surrounding Steel Ball Run, all we need to do is look at the JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure season that preceded it. For the majority of JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure’s anime run, episodes were released weekly for its previous arcs, with fans even dubbing the release days “JoJo Fridays.” Unfortunately, the streak was broken with Jolyne Cujoh’s story, as batches of episodes were released all at once on Netflix. Unfortunately, future episodes were separated by months, and sometimes a full year, leaving a sour taste in the mouths of Joestar fans. Many fans of the source material felt the release schedule did a disservice for Jolyne’s story, leaving the same fans to fret over the Steel Ball Run potentially falling under the same curse.

1.) Attack on Titan

Bar none, Attack on Titan’s release schedule earned its place as the top-ranking anime series on this list. The series following Eren Jaeger and the Survey Corps had years in between seasons, with Wit Studio covering the first three and MAPPA adapting the fourth and final season. Considering how successful the series was from the jump, Attack on Titan ran into even more controversy with the release of its final season, thanks to how it was divided up. Much like previous seasons, the fourth season took years to finish, spread out over different parts and coming to a close with the hilariously titled “Attack on Titan The Final Chapters Special 1 & 2.” To this day, Attack on Titan’s schedule has gained more notoriety than that of the Joestars.

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