After Tons of Complaints, Kaiju No. 8 Will Fix a Major Season One Fail With Its Return

adminMarch 25, 2025

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Kaiju No.8‘s anime was off to a great start in adapting a manga series filled with way too many monster intestines to even think about animating and soldiers with incredible capabilities, whose movements in battle against said creatures were physical feats astonishing to the eye even in a work of fiction. Riding the high of success, the anime may have grown complacent with one of the most highly anticipated arrivals of one of the esteemed captains from a different division.

When Gen Narumi, 7th Captain of the First Division of Defense Force, made his first appearance, fans’ rising praise quickly turned into criticism of this character’s portrayal, although he was only meant to debut for a very short time in Kaiju No. 8‘s first season. Gen’s appearance can differ greatly depending on whether the manga depicts him in work mode or outside in a more casual setting, but this was one design that the audience was not prepared for. Needless to say, in this era of widespread backlash, it seems that bullying the studio worked in fans’ favor as the season 2 trailer features an all-new look at Gen Narumi.

Kaiju No. 8 Retcons 7th Captain’s Next Appearance in Season 2

Spawning a Tide of Fanart For One Scene Like Never Before

Kaiju No.8 season 2 trailer recently premiered at AnimeJapan 2025, sharing the release date for its anime to come out sometime in late summer, around July. Along with an insight into some of the new cast Kafka Hibino is going to be interacting with this season, fans got a reintroduction to Gen Narumi as he plays video games in the dark seclusion of his room. Tasked with Kafka’s newest inclusion, Gen switches up from his lazy gamer persona to an imposing captain with the ‘Foresight’ ability as featured in one of the last frames.

The Real World Origin For Kaiju No. 8’s Kafka Makes the Manga so Much More Heartwarming

Kafka’s narrative of following his dream originated from author Naoya Matsumoto’s struggle.

Fans studied Gen’s drastic change in appearance, placing the two scenes side-by-side to scrutinize every last detail. The massive upgrade by Production I.G. almost gives off the impression that these two depictions were made by different studios. Gen’s face now has a natural shape and his hair doesn’t come off in separate chunks, his eyes — while still very much tired– have greater detail in the shape and when in Foresight mode.

Gen’s first appearance in season 1 was meant to be more comical in nature, after getting caught fresh from a mission and therefore, he’s a bit out of sorts with his hair blown out and his eyes lined with overuse. But it also gave him a rather flat depiction in comparison to other characters from that season, with some fans stating he looked like a lizard. While the intention to portray him as tired was there, it didn’t entirely nail the 7th captain’s initial introduction. Determined to impress, Kaiju No.8‘s season 2 made it clear that it wouldn’t disappoint again by making it clear that Gen Narumi was receiving better attention by making him the highlight of this promotional video.