Overview
Toilet-bound Hanako-kun is AidaIro's manga, serialized in Square Enix's Monthly GFantasy since 18 June 2014. Nene Yashiro, a Kamome Academy student desperate for a boyfriend, follows a school legend and summons Hanako-kun, the ghost said to live in the third-floor girls' bathroom and to grant wishes. Instead of a frightening spirit she meets a mischievous boy, and becomes his assistant in keeping order between the human world and the spirits on campus.
OtaHub's take
The series builds its world around the school's seven mysteries, where students' rumors can change the very nature of the spirits. The tone shifts easily between comedy, romance and melancholy passages about the characters' pasts. AidaIro's art, with thick outlines, flat blocks of color and decorative page layouts, is an instantly recognizable signature that the anime keeps fairly faithfully.
Lerche's anime aired its first season from January 2020, followed by the After-School Hanako-kun shorts (2023-2024) and a second season in 2025. As for the manga, according to OtaHub it went on break from the November 2025 issue so the author could receive medical treatment, and returned on 18 August 2026 in the September issue of Monthly GFantasy, just as the main story is digging into Hanako's past.
Verdict
Suited to readers who like supernatural school stories with a distinct look, mixing humor, romance and sadness. Anime viewers can turn to the manga to catch up on the parts of Hanako's past that the animation has not reached, keeping in mind the monthly schedule and the chance of further breaks when the author needs rest.
