86 (2nd Cour)

Alternate Title

８６―エイティシックス―(第2期)

Synopsis

The Republic of San Magnolia is at war with its neighbor, the Empire of Giad. Having lost considerable forces to Giad’s Legions, autonomous mechanized killing machines, the Republic has since developed a way to fight back through its own mechanized units, called Juggernauts. But while the public thinks Juggernauts are unmanned and thus the war is being fought solely with machines, the truth is that they are piloted by humans called “Processors” who come from the Republic’s unofficial 86th ward, in which the Republic’s minority race, the Colorata, are forcibly isolated from the rest of the Republic and used as fodder in the war. One such “Processor” is Shinei Nozen, the commander of the special unit Spearhead. Known for its high Handler turnover rate, Spearhead fights on the frontlines of the war, and joining the unit as its new Handler is a talented young woman named Lena. Together, Shinei and Lena fight not only to win the war but to free his oppressed people. But when they stumble upon a dark secret, they learn that the war isn’t at all what it seems...

Background

86 began as a light novel series written by Asato Asato and illustrated by Shirabi that has been published under ASCII Media Works’ Dengeki Bunko imprint since February 2017. As of June 2021, 10 volumes have been published. The light novel has also been licensed for English release in North America through Yen Press, and as of August 2021, eight volumes have been published.

A manga adaptation illustrated by Motoki Yoshihara began in October 2018 and is serialized in Square Enix's seinen manga magazine Young Gangan. As of June 2021, three tankobon volumes have been published. Similarly to the light novel, the manga has also been licensed for English release in North America through Yen Press, and as of March 2021, two tankobon volumes have been published. There have also been three additional manga created for the series: an adaptation by Suzume Somemiya titled 86: Operation High School that began in June 2020 and is serialized in Media Factory's seinen manga magazine Monthly Comic Alive, 86: Run Through the Battlefront by Hiroya Yamazaki that began serialization on Square Enix's Manga UP! app in January 2021, and a prequel by Asato Asato titled 86: Fragmental Neoteny that began serialization in April 2021 in Monthly Comic Alive.

The second cour (second half) of the anime adaptation is once again being produced by A-1 Pictures and sees returning staff including Toshimasa Ishii as director, Toshiya Ono as series composer, Tetsuya Kawakami as character designer, and Hiroyuki Sawano and Kohta Yamamoto as music composers. The anime will premiere in Japan in October 2021.

Characters

Shinei Nozen (Voiced by: Shoya Chiba)
The commander of the Spearhead, the First Defense Squadron of the Eastern Front’s First District. His personal nickname is “Undertaker,” but those of the 86th Ward who fight on the frontlines call him the “Grim Reaper.” He has a special ability that surprises Lena. He is usually a man of few emotions, and he enjoys reading.

Vladilena Milizé (Voiced by: Ikumi Hasegawa)
A talented young woman from the famous Milizé family who inherited noble blood from Serena, and white Alba who lived on the land before it became the Republic. At the age of 16, she had risen to the rank of Major in the Republic Army and was assigned to serve as a Handler for the 86 in their frontline battle against the Legions of the Empire of Giad. After her talents catch the attention of her commanding officer, she is assigned to Spearhead, where she meets Shinei. Her nickname is “Lena”

Raiden Shuga (Voiced by: Seiichiro Yamashita)
A young Eisen man and the vice-captain of Spearhead. His callsign is “Werewolf.” He has known Shin, the captain of the squad, for a long time and trusts him fully. Although he is rough with words, he supports his troops as a big brother. Before he became a soldier, he was sheltered for five years by members of the Alba Group.

Theoto Rikka (Voiced by: Natsumi Fujiwara)
A small, slender boy and member of Spearhead who commands the 3rd Platoon. His callsign is “Laughing Fox.” He enjoys sketching, and many of the troop’s personal emblems were designed by him. He is usually cool-headed, but is highly suspicious of those who have oppressed him.

Anju Emma (Voiced by: Saori Hayami)
A girl of Adularia and Celesta descent and a member of Spearhead. She was assigned to the squad at the same time as Daiya. Her callsign is “Snow Witch.” She is one of the most elegant and ladylike members of the squad, and enjoys knitting lace. On the other hand, her fighting ability stands out even among the male members. Before she became a soldier, she was severely abused in a concentration camp, which left her with scars on her back.

Kurena Kukumila (Voiced by: Sayumi Suzushiro)
A girl with agate hair and topaz eyes who is a member of Spearhead and commands the 6th Platoon. Her callsign is “Gunslinger.” She is an excellent marksman with a sniper rifle and provides skillful support to Shin and his vanguard troops. She secretly has feelings for Shin. She has a tragic past in which her parents were killed by members of the Alba Group.

Lev Aldrecht (Voiced by: Taiten Kusunoki)
The head of Spearhead’s maintenance team. He has gray, charcoal-colored hair and wears sunglasses. Though he has a harsh tone, he cares about the members of Spearhead.

Henrietta Penrose (Voiced by: Riho Sugiyama)
A member of the San Magnolia military, she is the head of the research team developing "Para-RAID," which allows Handlers to instantly connect with their 86ers in the field. She is close friends with Lena and consults with her about everything. Her hobby is making confections. When she was a child, she lived next door to Shin and had a familial relationship with him.

Jérôme Karlstahl (Voiced by: Satoshi Mikami)
A Colonel in the San Magnolia military. He was one of the few survivors in the attack by the Legion nine years ago and was close friends with Lena’s father. He is the youngest person to ever be promoted to Colonel and is chosen to be the handler of Spearhead. He sees the 86 as pawns to be used in the war.

World

Juggernaut
Touted as an unmanned combat machine (drone) by the Republic, due to the Republic’s failure to commercialize AI, Juggernauts are piloted by an 86 as its “Processor.” It is equipped with a 12.7mm heavy machine gun or high-frequency blades on its attacking sub-arms and a 57mm smoothbore cannon on its back gun-mounted arm. It features fragile armor, and the well-being of the Juggernaut’s Processor is rarely considered.

86
The “non-existent” 86th ward of the San Magnolia Republic where the Colorata minority are forced to live. Residents of the 86 are not treated as humans and are stripped of all their rights as citizens of the Republic. As such, they are used as fodder in the war and their deaths aren’t even counted.

San Magnolia Republic
Officially, the San Magnolia Republic consists of 85 wards. It originally was a multi-ethnic nation that accepted immigrants with open arms, but after an invasion by the neighboring Giad Empire, it adopted a strict policy of eliminating all but the Alba race, which led to the forced isolation of the Colorata race inside the 86th ward, which is considered to be outside the Republic. Although the Republic has been resisting the invasion, due to the Giad Empire’s Legion forces they have suffered great losses (mostly 86s) and have lost half of the country’s land. Currently, communication between the Republic and other countries has been cut off, and it is believed that they have been completely destroyed.

Giad Empire
A major power that succeeded in developing Legions and declared war on its surrounding countries. It has the most advanced technology and military power of any nation on the continent and has plunged the entire continent into war against its Legion forces. A short time after the Legion began their attack on the Republic, the Empire lost control of the machines, and since then they have continued to operate on their previous directive.

Legion
The world’s first fully unmanned combat machines (drones), successfully developed by the Giad Empire. They come in multiple types including scout type (Armise), close quarters type (Grauwolf), and tank type (Rave), and they attack in formation. They are each equipped with a highly capable autonomous AI that faithfully carries out its directive to “eradicate hostile forces.” Since their invasion of the continent, they have dealt major blows to all the surrounding countries.

Spearhead
An elite unit deployed to the frontlines of the Eastern Front, where the battle against the Legion is most intense. Its commander is Shinei, who is also known as the “Undertaker.” For some inexplicable reason, the unit has a history of its Handlers going insane and hearing the “voices of the dead.”

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• Original Creator: Asato Asato
• Original Character Design: Shirabi
• Original Mechanical Design: I-IV
• Director: Toshimasa Ishii
• Series Composition: Toshiya Ono
• Character Design/Chief Animation Director: Tetsuya Kawakami
• Art Director: Masanobu Nomura, Yumi Horikoshi
• Backgrounds: Bihou, Inc.
• Color Design: Nagisa Abe
• CG Director: Hiroyuki Yoshino
• CG Production: Shirogumi
• Director of Photography: Masaharu Okazaki
• Editing: Akinori Mishima
• Sound Director: Jin Aketagawa
• Music: Hiroyuki Sawano, Kohta Yamamoto
• Animation Production: A-1 Pictures