3-gatsu no Lion
3月のライオン
Synopsis
Having reached professional status in middle school, Rei Kiriyama is one of the few elite in the world of shogi. Due to this, he faces an enormous amount of pressure, both from the shogi community and his adoptive family. Seeking independence from his tense home life, he moves into an apartment in Tokyo. As a 17-year-old living on his own, Rei tends to take poor care of himself, and his reclusive personality ostracizes him from his peers in school and at the shogi hall. However, not long after his arrival in Tokyo, Rei meets Akari, Hinata, and Momo Kawamoto, a trio of sisters living with their grandfather who owns a traditional wagashi shop. Akari, the oldest of the three girls, is determined to combat Rei's loneliness and poorly sustained lifestyle with motherly hospitality. The Kawamoto sisters, coping with past tragedies, also share with Rei a unique familial bond that he has lacked for most of his life. As he struggles to maintain himself physically and mentally through his shogi career, Rei must learn how to interact with others and understand his own complex emotions. [Written by MAL Rewrite]
Staff

Fukino, Fuminari
Producer

Iwaki, Tadao
Producer

Matsunaga, Kousuke
Producer

Nojima, Masahiro
Producer

Sano, Masayuki
Producer

Tomoda, Ryou
Producer

Yodo, Akiko
Producer

Yoshikawa, Takahiro
Producer

Ishikawa, Tatsuya
Assistant Producer

Ooshima, Miku
Assistant Producer

Oota, Kyouko
Assistant Producer, Publicity

Asano, Naoyuki
Director, Storyboard, Animation Director

Okada, Kenjirou
Director, Episode Director, Storyboard

Shinbou, Akiyuki
Director, Series Composition

Kameyama, Toshiki
Sound Director

Hara, Hidekazu
Episode Director

Itamura, Tomoyuki
Episode Director

Iwai, Sayaka
Episode Director

Kawabata, Takashi
Episode Director, Storyboard

Kidokoro, Seimei
Episode Director

Mikami, Yoshiko
Episode Director

Miyamoto, Yukihiro
Episode Director

Nakamura, Ryousuke
Episode Director, Storyboard

Nakura, Yasuhiro
Episode Director, Storyboard, Key Animation, Background Art, Layout

Ootani, Hajime
Episode Director, Storyboard
Opening & Ending Themes
Openings
- 1: "Answer (アンサー)" by BUMP OF CHICKEN (eps 1-11)
- 2: "Sayonara Bystander (さよならバイスタンダー)" by YUKI (eps 12-22)
Endings
- 1: "Fighter (ファイター)" by BUMP OF CHICKEN (eps 1-6, 8-11, 22)
- 2: "Nyaa Shougi Ondo (ニャー将棋音頭)" by Hinata (Kana Hanazawa), Akari (Ai Kayano), Momo (Misaki Kuno) (eps 7)
- 3: "orion" by Kenshi Yonezu (米津 玄師) (eps 12-21)
If You Liked 3-gatsu no Lion
AI picks
Nana Maru San BatsuBoth follow a solitary protagonist drawn into a competitive strategy game community where personal growth emerges through mentorship and intellectual challenge.
Blue PeriodShares the coming-of-age narrative of an isolated protagonist discovering passion and identity through artistic pursuit while navigating self-doubt and social connection.
Touhai: Ura Rate Mahjong TouhairokuBoth center on a withdrawn high school protagonist living alone who finds purpose through high-stakes games, balancing psychological tension with personal introspection.


















