Screening of Saturday 10th January 2026

Akemeshite Omedetou Gozaimasu!

Yes indeed, JAFWA welcomes you back from the Festive Season for a hot new season of anime screenings in 2026.
We hope you are rested and readied for this Saturday.

This week’s JAFWA screening is mostly new regular items, as voted for by our faithful attendees. Though we must confess that some of the items in the program are so fresh and new that at the time of writing this that they have not yet screened in Japan. As such they won’t be ready for screening at JAFWA this week so we have added were going add a movie to fill the gap this week, but now it will have to be something else.
Even so, there are still a couple of items that may not be ready for this week, so be prepared to expect a hopefully pleasant surprise.

In our expected program we start the night off with the most popular title from the last survey, the story of a combat robot who wants to be a normal family with its two mad scientist ‘parents’.
Then we have the travel story that hadn’t quite finished last year, as over two episodes the protagonist greets the New Year in far flung corners of Japan.
After the Dinner Break it seems people are eager for a spurned princess to lay into some corrupt nobles and deliver a beatdown.
Then a somewhat sad movie showing a somewhat fictionalised account of the real life Himeyuri students in war-torn Okinawa. There will be a last minute change of plans. You will find out Saturday.
After the Late Break we hope to start the next season of supernatural fighting from combat exorcists. But if it is not yet available we will repeat the most recent prior episode.
Then what happens if an absolute king is reincarnated in a magic world and must deal with growing up once more.
And we end the night with the first episode of the last season of violent people seeking stolen gold shortly after the Russo-Japanese war of 1905. But if this episode is not yet available we will repeat the most recent prior episode. But whatever happens it won’t be as extreme as the OAV we screened in December.

Anime is going mainstream. Last year at the cinemas has been the “Demon Slayer” movie, followed by the “Chainsaw Man” movie, and then the “Jujitsu Kaisen” movie. Soon this year there will be a “Gundam” movie Life is wonderful for anime fans.

If you would like to showcase the anime that holds great meaning and value to you, please offer to sponsor a night of JAFWA and screen your favourites. If you don’t want to sponsor an entire night like both Lindsay and Elliot did previously, there is the other scheme for our signed up members. On the night nearest your birthday, as Greg and Sally did, you can nominate something to play during the Dinner Break (limited to 30 minutes max). You may have to help us source this material, so plan and inform us in advance please.
Note that Feb 14, 2026 is already reserved.

Below is the draft program for the evening of Saturday January 10^th, 2026.

All items in the original Japanese language with English subtitles. With assistance from a grant from and

5:15pm	Alma-chan wants a Family	Ep 1/11
5:40pm	Zatsu Tabi	Ep 9/12
6:05pm	Zatsu Tabi	Ep 10/12
6:30pm	dinner break, with possibly interesting stuff
7:15pm	door prize drawing, and announcements
7:30pm	May I Ask for One Final Thing?	Ep 1/13?
7:55pm	Cocoon something else	movie	TBA
9:00pm	Late Break
9:10pm	Jujutsu Kaisen season 3	Ep 1/?	(v) TBC
9:35pm	The Beginning After the End	Ep 1/12	(v)
10:00pm	Golden Kamuy	Ep 1/?	(v) TBC

Doors Open before Screening:~5:00 PM

Program Finishes:~10:45 PM

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Dates of Interest

Barring a resurgence of COVID-19 pestilence, these fannish events of interest are scheduled to happen:

• Saturday January 10^th 2026 — JAFWA’s first screening upon returning in 2026!
• Thursday January 15^th 2026 — Missed out on the Mamoru Hosoda retrospective – its back!
• From Thursday January 29^th 2026 — In assorted cinemas Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron-Blooded Orphans Urdr-Hunt.
• From Thursday February 5^th 2026 — Mamoru Hosoda’s latest masterpiece film Scarlet.
• Weekend May 9-10^th 2026 — Local artists celebrate at Tokyo Alley 10th Anniversary at Perth Convention and Exhibition Center.

Synopses

Click ‘Continue’ below to see

Alma-chan Wants to Have a Family (Alma-chan wa Kazoku ni Naritai)

Alma is a super high-performance girl-type robot weapon created by two genius scientists, Enji Kamisato and Suzume Yobane. However, because the pair created her, Alma thinks that the two are actually her parents, and uses all in her considerable power to make them the perfect family.

This evening’s Episode: “Nice To Meet You“

Genius engineer Suzume and genius artificial intelligence programmer Enji are both ostracised by the scientific community for their ridiculous theories and odd personalities. Deciding to prove their critics wrong they cooperate to build a human shaped military asset they name Autonomous Learning Military Android, or Alma. They are surprised Alma identifiers them as her parents. How to test if her AI is working and learning?

Zatsu Tabi (That’s Journey)

Chika Suzugamori is a college student who has been shopping some manga pitches around to publishers ever since she won a rookie manga award, but keeps getting rejected. Just as she was about to lose hope in ever breaking into the manga industry, she decides on a whim to go traveling without any particular goal. During her journey, Chika meets different people, experiences local cultures, and finds new inspiration for her manga.

This Evening’s Episodes: “Completion at the Hot Spring, Then the First Sunrise” and “Home in My Heart”

Going North in November, Chika braves the cold for the greatest of views from the Hakkoda Ropeway. All for inspiration for her manga, though a hidden hot spring is good. Then with success under her belt, Chika heads South and goes on another solo journey to Wakayama to see the first sunrise of the year.
After Chika makes a circuitous return from her solo New Year’s journey in Wakayama with the question “What next?”.A somewhat down Koyomi joins her for a journey North to Hanamaki in Iwate, and learn of the literary great Miyazawa Kenji. What is their goal?

May I Ask for One Final Thing? (Saigo ni Hitotsu dake Onegai Shitemo Yoroshii Deshou ka)

In the middle of a ball, Scarlet’s fiancé, Prince Kyle, suddenly calls off their engagement. She’s falsely accused of being a bully, and people unfairly call her a “Villainess.” At her wit’s end, she asks for one last favor: to give him a good fist in the face. So begins Scarlet’s story of revenge against Kyle and his corrupt cronies.

Tonight’s Episode: “May I Kindly Beat the Tar Out of Those Evil Nobles (Pigs)?”

he emotionless Scarlet is publicly dumped by her fiancé Second Prince Kyle of Pallistan Kingdom so he can marry Terenezza Hopkins, who claimed that Scarlet bullied her for years at the academy, though without any shreds of evidence. Scarlet accepts his wishes and asks for one last favour. But punching Kyle is not enough.

Cocoon (“Kokuun”)

A story based on the real life group called the Himeyuri students.

Tonight’s Episode: “2025 movie”

The Himeyuri students was a group of 222 students and 18 teachers of the First Okinawa Girls’ High School and Okinawa Women’s Normal School formed into a nursing unit for the Imperial Japanese Army during the Battle of Okinawa in 1945. They were mobilised by the Japanese Army on March 23, 1945.
The students were wrongly told that the Japanese army would defeat the American invasion easily, and that they would be safe from danger. Many brought their school supplies and uniforms with them to study and prepare to return to school. Deployed instead to frontline cave hospitals under constant gunfire and bombings, few students and teachers managed to survive the war.

Jujutsu Kaisen: The Culling Game (Jujutsu Kaisen Shimetsu Kaiyuu Zenpen)

Negative human emotions – regret, bitterness, shame – are the source of all curses that infest the world and hide in everyday life, leading to death in the worst cases. Yuji Itadori, a particularly strong young man, attempts to save a friend from a curse, only to wind up consuming the special grade curse of Ryoumen Sukuna’s finger. Only a curse can eliminate another curse, and Yuji’s career as a cursed person who must exorcise curses has now begin. Now that curses are mainstream, the Culling Game begins, pushing Yuji and his allies to their limits.

Tonight’s Episode: “Execution”

Following the events of the Shibuya Incident, Tokyo has become infested with curses; Yuji Itadori and Choso exorcise them, which also serves as further training for the two. Upon the death of Naobito Zen’in, his will is read out, but to the surprise of the assembled relatives due to an arrangement by Toji Fushiguro, if Satoru Gojo is out of commission, Megumi Fushiguro will succeed him instead. Thus the assassins converge on Yuji.

The Beginning After The End (Saikyou no Ousama, Futatabime no Jinsei wa Nani o Suru? lit. ‘What Will the Mighty King Do in His Second Life?’)

King Grey is a once-powerful ruler reborn as Arthur Leywin, a boy with untapped potential. He discovers that his new life is filled with danger and adventure at every turn. From mastering powerful spells to facing fierce enemies, Arthur must use his skills and wits to protect those he cares about and uncover the secrets of his mysterious reincarnation.

Tonight’s Episode: “The Rebirth of the King”

Grey, the most powerful and bloodthirsty king in the world, dies suddenly in his mid-30’s of no apparent cause. Floating in the abyss, a voice urges him to seek out the light. He suddenly awakens in an alternate world as newborn Arthur Leywin, first son of retired adventurers Reynolds and Alice. At first he is furious to be reduced to a helpless infant, but he soon discovers humans in this world use an unfamiliar power called magic.

Golden Kamuy final season(Goruden Kamui)

Saichi Sugimoto, a survivor of the battle of 203 Hill in the Russo-Japanese War has become a miner in Hokkaido in order to provide for the widow of his dead comrade, Toraji. He hears a dubious story of hidden Ainu gold stashed by a criminal group, and accidentally finds clues to its location. He decides to search for the gold along with an Ainu girl, Asirpa, who rescues him from Hokkaido’s harsh northern wilderness. Though other parties are also hunting for the gold.

Tonight’s Episode: “Town of Reunions“

In Sapporo it looks like Jack the Ripper has made an appearance. The various factions have nearly acquired all the tattooed skins as they converge upon Sapporo. But are their goals compatible? Or can they gather for a drink of beer? Can Asirpa keep them on course?