24 minSeason 5 • Episode 12
LatestWhile Shido and Mio face each other and convey their feelings, Westcott activates his terrifying ritual. Can Shido and the others stop his plot from achieving fruition?
Thirty years ago a strange phenomenon called a "spacequake" devastated the center of Eurasia, claiming the lives of at least 150 million people. Since then, smaller spacequakes plague the world on an irregular basis. Shido Itsuka, a seemingly ordinary high schooler comes across a mysterious girl at the ground zero of a spacequake and learns she is one of the "Spirits" who are the real cause of the spacequakes that occur when they manifest themselves in the world. He is recruited to make use of his mysterious ability to seal the Spirits' powers thus stopping them from being a threat to mankind. However, there is a catch: to seal a Spirit's power, he must make her fall in love with him and kiss him.
Production
AIC+'s lush animation elevates trashy premise to art
Acting
Marina Inoue's Tohka balances lethal power with pure cinnamon roll
Writing
Light novel adaptation commits to every unhinged scenario
Nobunaga Shimazaki
Shido Itsuka (voice)
Marina Inoue
Tohka Yatogami (voice)
Misuzu Togashi
Origami Tobiichi (voice)
Ayana Taketatsu
Kotori Itsuka (voice)
Iori Nomizu
Yoshino (voice)
Asami Sanada
Kurumi Tokisaki (voice)
Maaya Uchida
Kaguya Yamai (voice)
Sarah Emi Bridcutt
Kuzuru Yamai (voice)
Minori Chihara
Miku Iyazoi (voice)
Aya Endo
Reine Murasame (voice)
Takehito Koyasu
Kyōhei Kannazuki (voice)
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
The light novel series spans 22 volumes; Kurumi's overwhelming fan popularity forced the author to expand her role significantly beyond initial plans.
Date A Live became the definitive 'disaster girlfriend' subgenre template, directly inspiring countless imitators in the 2010s light novel boom.
JP
