Legendary creators Chiaki J. Konaka and Yoshitoshi ABe, renowned for their seminal work on Serial Experiments Lain, have announced that their long-gestating sci-fi project Despera will debut as a manga in 2027. The announcement was made by Konaka during a special appearance at the Japan Weekend Madrid event in Spain, accompanied by a striking new promotional visual shared across social media.
According to Konaka, the upcoming manga will feature a setting and historical era distinct from the original concept outline of the anime project. He also explicitly clarified that despite the creative pedigree shared with Serial Experiments Lain, this new narrative exists as a separate universe. The core anime production has faced numerous historical setbacks, notably the tragic passing of director Ryūtarō Nakamura in 2013, followed by pandemic-related delays that slowed down funding and animation progress.
Franchise History and Roots
Initially unveiled at Seattle's Sakura-Con back in 2009, Despera draws its thematic inspiration from a poem by Dadaist writer Jun Tsuji, alongside the terminology associated with outlaw figures. The original premise follows Ain, a fourteen-year-old girl constructing complex machinery without formal scientific training, historically anchored in the Taishō era of 1922 Japan just prior to the Great Kantō earthquake. With the 2027 manga release on the horizon, fans of the iconic creative duo finally have a concrete milestone to look forward to.
