Several episodes of upcoming anime, and events in Japan have been delayed or outright cancelled over fears of the coronavirus (now know as COVID-19).
On February 17th, we reported on the 7th episode of A Certain Scientific Railgun T being delayed due to the virus affecting production in unspecified ways. Now, we are seeing numerous stories in a similar vein.
First, entertainment company Bushiroad announced they would be cancelling all events they run until the end of March 2020.
According to Comic Natalie (via Anime News Network), these include events for World Wonder Ring Stardom, Future Card Buddyfight, BanG Dream!, Revue Starlight, Monthly Bushroad manga magazine, the Assault Lily doll line, Rebirth for you, Weiß Schwarz, and more. Those who purchased tickets can get a refund.
While the D4DJ unit Happy Around! did not perform at Animax Musix Nextage on February 22nd, the organizers themselves later announced they would be cancelling the event due to the virus.
Infinite Dendrogram also delayed its 7th episode, due to “production circumstances” relating to the virus. This happened after discussion “with the on-site staff in Japan and abroad” (Translation: Google Translate). The first episode will air in its place on February 20th.
Nippombashi Street Festa, promoted as one of Japan’s biggest cosplay events, was cancelled over the coronavirus as well. Scheduled for March 15th, the cancellation was announced on February 19th [1, 2]. While the event attracts 200,000 visitors, the parade is cancelled, with no plans to reschedule at this time. Some other events and shops will be open however (according to Esuteru via Anime News Network).
An event to promote the upcoming Final Fantasy VII Remake was also cancelled [1, 2, via Anime News Network]. The “Battle Train Final Fantasy VII Remake Another Story” would have taken place on February 22nd, and had nearly 300 participants on the Yamanote line using their smartphones in a treasure hunt (earning a reward for completing it).
With the increasing fears of coronavirus across the world, the upcoming Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games are seeming less likely by the day. This is compounded by Japan being the nation with the third-most cases (not including the Diamond Princess cruise ship docked in Japan), and unclaimed rumors that Asians are affected by the virus more.
As of February 13th, Olympic Game organizers state plans to cancel the games are “not being considered.”
The coronavirus has affected many other businesses in China, including Google, Apple, Facebook, and more. Johns Hopkins Whiting School of Engineering is mapping the virus’ spread [1, 2]. As of this time of writing, there have been over 76,000 confirmed cases worldwide, and over 2,000 deaths. Over 18,000 people have had a “total recovery.”
In Japan (not including the Diamond Princess cruise ship), there have been 94 cases, and 1 death, with 18 recovering.
