86 is an exciting addition to the spring 2021 anime season. While the concept of marginalised characters fighting for equality in a dystopian, futuristic landscape isn't exactly novel, there are a lot of interesting elements about the show and the characters that already make fans excited for more.
In 86 we follow Lena, a 16-year-old elite soldier who becomes a Handler of key drones that fight a never-ending war between her native Republic of San Magnolia and the Gidian Empire. The public is told that the drones are unmanned and completely autonomous, but this is a lie those in power tell the people—and themselves. In truth, those fighting in the drones are residents of the little-known 86th district of the republic. These people have been stripped of their citizenship and rights and are not even treated as casualties when they die.
Lena is determined not to reproduce the behavior of previous Handlers. Like her father before her, she wants to treat the people of 86 as humans. As she gets to know a detachment of young men and women from 86, particularly their leader, Shinei, Lena decides to fight for them, even if they are reluctant to accept a member of the elite as one of their own. But how many episodes is 86 going to have?
According to the popular anime database MyAnimeList, the first part of 86 is going to have a total of 11 episodes. This means that it would run until about mid-June. But don't be discouraged if you wanted more, as this is a 2-part show. The second cour of 86 already has a MyAnimeList entry, so it won't be too far off.
At the time being, little is known about the release date and the exact number of episodes of the second part. We do know, however, that it's going to be a split-cour show, meaning that at least one anime season will pass before it airs, making October 2021 a likely time. A cour is typically 11-13 long, meaning that the total number of episodes for Season 1 of 86 will be from 22 to 24.
86 is based on a light novel by Asato Asato, which later got adapted into a relatively new manga. The former is currently 9 volumes long, while the manga has 2 volumes. The relatively small amount of source material means that around 22 episodes might be enough for now and, of course, there's nothing stopping the creators from giving us more content in the future as the manga and light novel move on.
Meanwhile, other great anime you can watch this season include Fruits Basket Season 3 and To Your Eternity.
Related:Will There Be a Season 3 of Steins;Gate? Is It Finished or Coming Back?
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