2024 fall | Episodes: 12 | Score: 8.6 (13264)
Updated every Tuesdays at 00:00 | Status: Finished Airing
Type: TV
Producers:TV Tokyo | Aniplex | Nihon Ad Systems | Hakusensha | Ai Addiction
Streaming: Crunchyroll | Netflix
Synopsis
As a young child, Takashi Natsume believed his ability to see youkai to be nothing but a curse. Now a high school student, Natsume has managed to heal from his old wounds and form unbreakable bonds with humans and youkai alike. Natsume's newfound friendships—including the one with his spirit bodyguard Madara, nicknamed "Nyanko-sensei"—are often interlaced with his duty to return the names of the spirits written inside the Book of Friends, his late grandmother Reiko's keepsake. While more remarkable youkai reach out to him, Natsume discovers that he still has much to learn about the world that surrounds him. [Written by MAL Rewrite]
Voice Actors
Inoue, Kazuhiko
Kamiya, Hiroshi
News
10/01/2024, 11:20 AM
In this thread, you'll find a comprehensive list of television anime acquired for simulcast release during the Fall 2024 season. Anime series licensed for home ...
09/21/2024, 10:01 AM
In this thread, you'll find a comprehensive list of Fall 2024 titles with an accompanying promotional video, commercial, teaser, or trailer. This post will be u...
06/30/2023, 08:35 PM
The official website of the Natsume Yuujinchou (Natsume's Book of Friends) anime series announced on Saturday that a seventh season is in production. The websi...
Reviews
terrascura
There’s a quiet kind of magic in this series — not the kind that dazzles, but the kind that lingers. The kind that drifts through you like sunlight through leaves, soft and slow, almost unnoticeable until you realize how deeply it's warmed you. Finishing this season feels like closing the pages of a well-worn journal — one filled with faded photographs, lingering smiles, and memories written in a language only the heart can read. What moves me most about Natsume Yuujinchou is its devotion to the unseen and the unspoken. The loneliness we carry in silence. The weight of memories that outlive their tellers. The gracein small kindnesses, and the invisible threads that bind us — human and youkai alike. It never reaches for grandeur or spectacle, but instead offers quiet revelations, heart-warming moments, sweet melancholy, carried in shared glances, hesitant words, and unspoken understanding and resonance. And somehow, those moments feel so much bigger than any dramatic twist ever could. Season 7 may be one of my favorite seasons yet — perhaps right beside Season 4. It held some of the most tender, reflective moments in the series so far. There’s a subtle but powerful deepening of Natsume’s relationships here: with the Fujiwaras, with Nyanko-sensei, with his friends… and especially with himself. The emotional resonance of certain stories — particularly one of the flashbacks about Reiko and the origin of the Book of Friends — caught me off guard and left me blinking back tears as the credits rolled. That moment will stay with me. And though the pacing is as gentle as ever — a slow burn, even by Natsume’s standards — there’s a rare and precious beauty in that calmness. It’s a kind of stillness that feels like a sanctuary, a quiet harbor in a world that rarely slows down. This show has a rhythm all its own, and if you let yourself fall into it, you find something healing there. Something true. It’s been a source of quiet comfort and reflection, reminding me that kindness matters, that we're all carrying invisible stories, and that even fleeting connections can leave lasting warmth, that there is brilliance in simplicity and small moments. I'm grateful for this gentle reminder of the beauty of the impermanence and imperfections of life. This is a series I’ll always come back to. Not for action or plot twists, but for soulfulness. For that sense of gentleness and bittersweet humanity that’s so hard to find elsewhere. It’s a story that holds a very dear place in my heart — and always will. Until next time. 💖
Demon05
Natsume Book of Friends. this anime is so close to my heart, i always get emotional when i watch natsumes story, i wish one day i can be like him live like him. this anime is peace for me. last time when i was binge watching this series was in 2017 itself and now after 7 years i still hold natusme yuujinchoo close to my heart. even though this series focused more on shojo (girl) audience but as a 24 yr old young man, i feel this anime to my heart. natsumes journey from season 1 to season 7 is tremendous growth in his character and howeveryone around him is supporting him in someway or other. i wish we all humans were like this, always kind and helpful to each other.
Firechick12012
(According to MAL, this is my 600th completed anime!) Hell yeah, more Natsume Yuujinchou! You guys know by now that I absolutely LOVE this series, and will gladly inject more of it into my veins like heroin any chance I'm able. And finding out that a seventh season of the show was going to be made? You bet your ass I was hyped as hell! Unlike with seasons 5 and 6, where I was deep in anime burnout and didn't get around to watching them until this year, I actually watched season 7 as it aired this time, and am gonna watch the dub when Ihave the time. All of this was awesome in and of itself, but it was just announced that Bushiroad is making a video game for the series set for consoles such as PC and Nintendo Switch! I hope to God that gets an English translation (And a good one at that!) or a physical release in the US, because I will eat that shit up! Man, we Natsume fans are eating like kings and queens! Like with my review for seasons 5 and 6, I'm not gonna go into a plot summary, as you already know by now what Natsume Yuujinchou is about. Why belabor the point? The animation and soundtrack are great as ever, a testament to how consistent both have been since the series' inception. There's really not much I can say about them that I haven't already said in my previous reviews of the last six seasons. I do like both the opening and ending songs, which are well sung and do a great job of conveying the series' atmosphere and aesthetic. Like I mentioned in my previous reviews of the series, Natsume as a series has always put a lot of focus on its characters, but it's only recently that it's started doing more with already established ones, like Taki, Nishimura, Kitamoto, and even Natori. Episode 7 reveals that Taki has an older brother (Who honestly looks like he could be her twin) and is focused on his issues regarding his relationship with their grandfather. The episode after that is told entirely from Nishimura's point of view and shows him dealing with a shapeshifting yokai disguising itself as Natsume while examining what their friendship means to them. Remember that mustache yokai with the big head who's always hanging around the Dog Circle? Episode 5 is an entire episode dedicated to him, giving it a surprising amount of character considering he's normally relegated to being the comic relief. In my opinion, this season's absolute best episode is the second-to-last one, where one prominent character gets some much needed background: Reiko. The series always established her as being a loner who made the Book of Friends, jump-starting the entire plot, but fans like myself have always wondered just how Reiko even started collecting yokai names, or why her modus operandi is challenging them to games or fights. Not only does this episode heavily expand on Reiko as a person and show how a misunderstanding caused her to become the person she was, that single event singlehandedly started Reiko's whole crusade of collecting yokai names and making the Book of Friends. Not only is it an absolute masterclass in terms of writing and character development, it actually made me tear up quite a bit, on par with earlier episodes like Hotaru's episode in season 1, or the episode in season 3 showing how Natsume came to live with the Fujiwaras. Consistency has always been Natsume's strong point, and even after almost two decades, it never lost its subtle touch and "less is more" philosophy. I mean, what other anime can you think of it that manages to make you care about an origami spirit? If I could name one issue I have with this particular season, it'd be that it didn't follow up on a pretty big reveal at the end of season 6. I won't spoil what that reveal is here, but if you're going to drop a big revelation like that, at least follow up on it! Though this season did make up for it with explaining why Reiko decided to gather youkai names in the first place. Plus, there is going to be another episode bundled with a blu-ray volume that's due to come out this April. But come on, you know me, that's not enough to kill my love affair with this series. I've been a Natsume fan since 2008, and that's not going to change any time soon. Although now I wonder: Is the series ever going to have a definitive end? The manga's been running since 2003, and from what I've researched, there's still some material left to cover should the anime decide to greenlight an eighth season. I'm more than happy to have my fill of more Natsume's Book of Friends, but as much as I adore the series, I don't want it to be one of those series that just goes on and on forever and overstay its welcome, even with the breaks between anime seasons. And again, you can't jump into this season without having seen the previous six, as it continues to build on what those past seasons established, so you'll be lost if you jump into the middle or end. But I'm not here to be a negative Nancy, and I still love this series all these years later, this season included. If there's ever more Natsume on the horizon, you can bet I'm ready to chow down!
_winterbear_
This series is pure comfort. I absolutely loved it. I did not even realize until 2025 that this season was out. This anime always has such a gentle, heartwarming vibe, and the way it shows Natsume's kindness and his bond with both humans and ayakashi is just beautiful. Reiko's story added even more depth in this season, and watching Natsume carry her legacy while staying true to himself is so touching. And the music is one of the best in any anime I've ever watched. It fits perfectly with the emotional, peaceful moments. This series feels like a warm hug; this season is no exception. It’severything I love about Natsume’s Book of Friends. I would recommend this to everybody who loves slice of life or fantasy.
Anurag29
The amazing heartwarming anime comes back with another season after 7 years and it delivered like always,the adventure of our simple kind protagonist with his silly cat continues with new encounters with new youkai as always,this anime as always will make you sit and wonder soo much things about life, there is a good amount of progression about the things we know and char development to an extent is also there. This anime was soo unique and I can keep watching more and more of it,much recommended to watch but you will anyways if you are the 7th season page.