As if there was ever any doubt otherwise, Studio Orange announced yesterday that they will be producing a third season of BEASTARS anime for Netflix. Original author Paru Itagaki also drew an illustration of Legoshi to mark the occasion.
That being said, they’re being awfully coy about the wording. Instead of using the term ‘season 3,’ they’re referring to it as a ‘new chapter’ in the BEASTARS story: some have taken this to mean that it might be a movie instead of a TV series (possibly hoping to replicate some of Demon Slayer’s success), but Studio Orange doesn’t have a history of this. It’s also stated quite clearly in the tweet that it will continue the story from the end of season 2.
🎉アニメ『#BEASTARS』新章制作決定🎉#NETFLIX アニメシリーズにて、第2期の続きが描かれる新章の制作が決定🐺アニメーション制作は引き続き、3DCGで圧巻の映像表現を誇る #オレンジ @cg_orange_inc 🍊❕お楽しみに🐰🦌
▼最新情報はコチラhttps://t.co/nuirK65F7K#bstanime pic.twitter.com/WpeDwzTjgf
— アニメ「BEASTARS〈ビースターズ〉」 (@bst_anime) July 20, 2021
What’s certainly possible, however, is that the adaptation for BEASTARS season 3 might take a different form from those in the past. The number of chapters in the next ‘Interspecies Relations’ arc (twenty-three) wouldn’t be enough to fill an entire season of anime, so Studio Orange might be tempted to bring in some additional content. Select stories from BEAST COMPLEX seem like probable candidates, considering that they concern the other residents of the Hidden Condo where Legoshi finds himself.
Bar these adaptational choices, it’s quite likely that BEASTARS season 3 will be the final adaptation. After the Interspecies Relations arc is the ‘Revenge of the Love Failure’ arc, which ended up rounding off the story of the original manga. It certainly would be tough to fit all seventy-two chapters of that final arc alongside the penultimate one in a single series, but stranger things have happened.
We don’t yet have a concrete release date for BEASTARS season 3, so keep your eye on the official website for more details. Season 2 is streaming worldwide on Netflix now, by the way. Our review was very positive!