Akane Banashi just released its official PV during Jump Festa 2026, and the anime world is going abuzz. The world of rakugo has been a diamond in the rough for Weekly Shonen Jump when you consider it debuted back in 2022 and slowly gathered its fans. And now it’s finally getting the anime adaptation that it gets, and if this PV is anything to go by, we’re in for quite a treat.The trailer gives us our first real look at what studio ZEXCS has been cooking up. It also looks stunning. Considering how difficult it must be to adapt a series that is primarily about individuals sitting down and telling stories, the animation quality on display is astounding. But in the first place, that's precisely what makes Akane Banashi such a special effort.What the Akane Banashi Trailer RevealsThe PV opens with the main character, Akane Osaki, looking at her father about to make her proud. The scene looks warm and calm, showing the beauty of traditional theater. Short clips show Akane trying to learn, with a clear focus on descriptions from her potential senseis about her rakugo.Akane is voiced by Anna Nagase (Ushio Kofune in Summertime Render), and the small samples we get sound good. The cast also includes Takuya Eguchi (Loid Forger in Spy x Family) as Karashi Nerimaya and Rie Takahashi (Megumin in Isekai Quartet) as Hikaru Koragi. Jun Fukuyama (Lelouch Lamperouge from Code Geass) joins as Shinta Arakawa, Akane's father, whose expulsion from the rakugo world sets the entire story in motion.One standout moment in the Akane Banashi trailer shows Akane's resolve not to lose to anyone while on the main stage. The visuals convey the weight of that moment without doing too much. That scene is the emotional core of the series, and they seem to understand its importance. There's also footage of Akane as a child, watching her father, which perfectly captures her initial love for rakugo.What Makes This Adaptation SpecialDirector Ayumu Watanabe takes up the directorial mantle and is proven by his work on Summertime Render. His experience in pacing and mood will be a good support for Akane Banashi. The series isn’t action-heavy, unlike typical Shonen Jump properties. It’s more like a sports anime passing itself off as one about the art of traditional storytelling. Balancing that is difficult.The trailer also previews the Karaku Cup, a student rakugo tournament that Akane enters and competes in against Karashi and Hikaru. This arc is when the manga really hits its stride. There have been plenty of competition arcs in shonen manga, of course, but Akane Banashi makes them feel new by putting them in the context of an art form most readers probably knew nothing about going in.What is exciting is how this anime appears to be dedicated (story and character-wise) to explaining rakugo without dumbing it down. The series doesn't expect you to know anything about rakugo. But after the trailer, you would want to learn more.The Road to April 2026Akane (Image Credit: Studio ZEXCS)Akane Banashi will premiere in April 2026 on TV Asahi's IMAnimation block and BS Asahi. No specific date yet, just a spring window. That gives ZEXCS several more months to polish everything, which is probably for the best. Rushing an adaptation never works out well.The manga has 19 volumes released in Japan so far, and VIZ Media publishes it in English. If you can't wait until spring, the manga is worth checking out. Yuki Suenaga's story and Takamasa Moue's art create something genuinely compelling. The series even has supervision from actual rakugo performer Kikuhiko Hayashiya, which adds authenticity.Akio Izutsu is writing the music, Kii Tanaka created the characters, and Michihiro Tsuchiya is in charge of series composition. That staff is strong and has experience in a variety of genres. The fact that they brought in Hayashiya for rakugo supervision shows they're taking this seriously.ConclusionAkane Banashi is not trying to be the next big battle shonen. There are no superpowers or world-ending threats. Just a girl who wants to prove her father's art was never weak, climbing her way through the ranks of a traditional performance world. And somehow, that premise has created one of the most engaging stories running in Jump right now.The preview shows that the anime gets what makes the manga successful. It has emotion, interesting characters, and a real passion for what it talks about. If the complete series lives up to what this trailer shows, we could be seeing one of the best anime of 2026. I really can't wait for spring to arrive.