Original anime at this scale does not come around often, and when WIT Studio steps up with one, the anime community listens. The studio behind Attack on Titan and Vinland Saga just unveiled its next ambitious project, LONA, and the premise alone sets it apart from almost everything else on the 2027 calendar. Brain science, mysterious attacks by the dead, and a synchrotron radiation facility as the setting. This one is already unlike anything currently in the pipeline.
When Does LONA Release?
LONA is scheduled to premiere in Spring 2027. No specific broadcast date or streaming platform has been confirmed at the time of writing.
| Detail | Info |
|---|---|
| Premiere Window | Spring 2027 |
| Studio | WIT Studio |
| Type | Original TV Anime |
| Streaming Platform | Not Announced Yet |
What Is LONA?
LONA stands for Laboratory of Optics and Neural Analysis. The series is set in a slightly futuristic, broken world where humanity faces an alarming new threat. People believed to be dead have begun attacking the living, and the government tasks a specialised research organisation, LONA, with investigating the phenomenon.
Researcher Ao and her apprentice Sango take on the case by doing something extraordinary: analysing the brains of the deceased to uncover what thoughts and memories people leave behind before they die. The central question driving the series is as unsettling as it is fascinating. What did those people see in their final moments, and what do countless memories etched into neural circuits actually reveal?
The story draws inspiration from the SPring-8 synchrotron radiation facility at the RIKEN research institute in Harima Science Garden City, Hyogo Prefecture, which serves as the real-world model for the series’ setting.
LONA Cast and Characters
| Character | Voice Actor | Role |
| Ao | Minako Kotobuki | Researcher at LONA |
| Sango | Anna Nagase | Trainee researcher |
| Mugen | Fuka Izumi | Mascot within the LONA facility |
New additions to the cast also include Maaya Sakamoto and Takehito Koyasu, though their character details were not fully confirmed at the time of the announcement.
LONA Production Staff
LONA brings together a remarkable creative team, with several high-profile names attached across every department.
| Role | Staff Member | Known For |
| Original Story and Screenplay | Akiko Nogi | Unnatural, MIU404, Inu-Oh |
| Director | Takashi Katagiri | SPY×FAMILY CODE: White |
| Original Character Design | Posuka Demizu | The Promised Neverland |
| Character Design | Yudai Iino | The Devil is a Part-Timer!! |
| Music | Hiroko Sebu | I Want to Eat Your Pancreas |
| Animation Producer | Kazuki Yamanaka | SPY×FAMILY, Bubble |
| Studio | WIT Studio | Attack on Titan, Vinland Saga |
Notably, LONA marks Akiko Nogi’s first original TV anime, following years of acclaimed live-action drama work. The project has been in development since 2020, making this a six-year labour of passion for the core team before any public announcement was made.
What Makes LONA Stand Out
Original anime at prestige production scale are increasingly rare, and LONA differentiates itself from the crowd in several clear ways.
- The premise centres on neuroscience and consciousness rather than the artificial intelligence or dystopian future angles that dominate science fiction anime.
- The story explores what memories survive death, raising philosophical and ethical questions that feel genuinely new territory for the medium.
- WIT Studio’s track record, combined with Posuka Demizu’s character designs and Akiko Nogi’s screenwriting pedigree, positions LONA as one of the more ambitious original projects announced for 2027.
- Three teaser visuals have been released, one featuring Sango with Ao reflected in her eye, another showcasing the interior of the LONA research facility, and a third teasing a mysterious object central to the story.
LONA premieres in Spring 2027, produced by WIT Studio. Streaming and broadcast details have not yet been announced.
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