Even a Replica Can Fall in Love Gets Anime Adaptation
You’ve got a biological copy handling your obligations while you stay in bed. That’s the setup Kadokawa is selling. The trailer confirms a 7 April 2026 broadcast date.
Studio Voil are handling animation. Ryuichi Kimura directs—his previous work includes A Galaxy Next Door and Aikatsu!. Tomoko Shinozuka, who wrote Wotakoi, scripts alongside Misaki Morie. Character designs come from Eiji Abiko, known for Cells at Work! Code Black.
The opening theme “Refrain” comes from Shytaupe. Asmi handles the ending, “Awa”.
The Cast
- Sumire Morohoshi voices both Sunao Aikawa and her replica, Nao. She played Emma in The Promised Neverland.
- Ryōta Suzuki plays Shuuya Sanada. Known for Yu Ishigami in Kaguya-sama: Love is War.
- Yūki Takada is Ritsuko Hironaka—voiced Aoba in New Game!.
- Kaori Nazuka voices Suzumi Mori. She was Nunnally in Code Geass.
- Jun Fukuyama plays Shun Mochizuki. He voiced Lelouch in Code Geass.
- Rina Hidaka is Kozue Satou. She voices Milim in That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime.
- Shugo Nakamura plays Haruka Yoshii.
The Story
Nao isn’t a person. She’s a biological photocopy created to attend school when Sunao can’t. Standard proxy arrangement—until the copy develops feelings.
To stop her crush from mixing them up, Nao changes her hairstyle. She starts collecting memories that belong to her alone. She’s not just filling in anymore. She’s becoming.
Harunadon’s light novel won the Dengeki Novel Prize in 2022. Volume six releases 10 April 2026.
What Makes This Work
The moment the replica stops mirroring and starts initiating—that’s the pivot. Nao doesn’t just want to be seen. She wants to be distinguished. That’s not teenage melodrama. That’s a fundamental shift in agency.
- How would you react if your substitute started making choices you’d never have the nerve to attempt?
- What does it mean when the copy turns out more authentic than the original?
- Is the real conflict between two girls—or between the face we show and the one we hide?
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