Gintama Creator Breaks Silence on Netflix Anime Revival

The same mind behind Gintama is getting a major classic of theirs brought to life with a new anime from Netflix, and the creator has opened up about the new project. Netflix has been lining up a strong wave of offerings this April as part of the upcoming Spring 2026 anime schedule, but they have confirmed that there are even more anime on the way than fans might have ever expected. This includes Gintama creator Hideaki Sorachi’s very first manga being revived with a new anime already slated for a release this April.

Gintama creator Hideaki Sorachi first hit the pages of Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump magazine in 2002 with Dandelion, a one-shot story that ultimately didn’t get picked up for a full serialization. But Netflix surprisingly announced that this one-shot was going to be revived with a brand new anime series premiering this April, and Sorachi shared their hilarious reaction to the classic work becoming a new series, “It seems the word delicacy does not exist at Netflix.”

Gintama Creator Breaks Silence on Dandelion Anime

“I usually avoid rereading my debut work because it is embarrassing,” Sorachi began in a special message shared with fans alongside the Dandelion anime’s announcement. “Yet somehow Netflix decided to dig it up, adapt it into an anime, and expand on it in various ways. It seems the word delicacy does not exist at Netflix. But since this opportunity has come along, maybe I will take the chance to visit those characters again for the first time in twenty years.” For fans familiar with Gintama, Sorachi’s tone here is by far from a surprise.

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As for Dandelion itself, quite a few details have been revealed for the new anime. The series will be running for seven episodes in total, and will be making its worldwide debut with Netflix sometime later this April but a concrete release date has yet to be announced at this time. Taking on the original one-shot of the same name, this is going to be a story that many fans likely have not seen before unless they managed to get the first volume of the Gintama manga all those years ago.

What to Know for Dandelion Anime

Dandelion will be directed by Daisuke Mataga for NAZ. Yosuke Suzuki will be handling the scripts for the new anime, Ai Asari will be providing the character designs, and Yuki Hayashi will be composing the music. The original one-shot story followed Tetsuo Tanba and Misaki Kurogane, who worked for the “Japan Angel Federation Send Off Department” to help wandering souls with regrets pass on to the afterlife.

While the full cast for the Dandelion anime still needs to be fully revealed, Chikahiro Kobayashi and Megumi Han join the series as Tetsuo and Misaki respectively. Gintama is also in the midst of celebrating the manga and anime’s 25th anniversary (which has been going on for the last few years), and has been coming back with a number of cool new projects of its own like its full revival films hitting theaters. But with the return of this classic, fans are going way back in Sorachi’s career.

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