Lycoris Recoil shorts get manga by Yasunori Bizen in 2027

Yasunori Bizen isn't letting go of Lycoris Recoil. The author has just finished the manga adaptation of the original series and already has a new project: Lycoris Recoil: Friends are thieves of time., the print version of the Café LycoReco animated shorts. The serialization will start in the February 2027 issue of Monthly Comic Flapper, Kadokawa's magazine.

The announcement comes just as the main manga ends. Bizen had been adapting the story of Chisato and Takina since September 2022, and the final chapter ran in the magazine's December issue, which went on sale on November 5, 2026. Now he shifts gears: from the Lycoris missions to the small everyday moments at the café.

A short serialization, about six months

Bizen himself confirmed it on his X account. He explained it will be a short serialization, roughly six months. That's his own estimate, not a set figure: the official announcement doesn't specify a chapter count.

The magazine also confirmed the project through its official account, as reported by Anime News Network. The source material is the collection of six animated shorts that premiered in April 2025 on Aniplex's YouTube channel. Those episodes were also distributed by Aniplex USA and Crunchyroll, with a premiere on April 16, 2025.

The shorts don't focus on action. They show the daily life of Chisato, Takina, and the other members of Café LycoReco, a lighter approach than the main series. That's the tone Bizen will now bring to the manga.

The end of an era

The main adaptation ended with nine collected volumes in Japan. Kadokawa published the ninth on August 21, 2026. Yen Press, for its part, released the fifth volume of its English edition on June 23 of the same year. They are separate editions, and there's no announcement of a Spanish release for the new manga.

The franchise goes beyond the anime and manga. Lycoris Recoil: Ordinary Days, the spinoff novel written by Asaura, had over 250,000 copies in circulation in 2022.

From A-1 Pictures to print

Lycoris Recoil premiered in July 2022 with production by A-1 Pictures. Crunchyroll streamed it during its Japanese broadcast and added an English dub. In January 2024 it joined Adult Swim's Toonami block.

The series marked the directorial debut of Shingo Adachi, who had previously worked as character designer and chief animation director on Sword Art Online and Wagnaria!!. Imigimuru, author of This Art Club Has a Problem!, handled character design, and Asaura, known for Ben-To, developed the story. Kimika Onai, with costume work for Nogizaka46 and Sakurazaka46, designed the uniforms.

That team shaped a visual identity that has carried over to the manga, the novels, and the shorts. Bizen now works with that material from another angle: daily life without bullets, without conspiracies, just the characters and their routine.