Rascal Does Not Dream of Santa Claus is set to return with its highly awaited first episode on Saturday, July 5, 2025, at 11:30 pm JST. The episode will air across multiple Japanese networks, including Tokyo MX, ABC, BS11, and GTV, followed by international streaming on Crunchyroll for audiences worldwide. As the latest installment in the Rascal Does Not Dream series, this episode introduces a new arc featuring a mysterious girl in a Santa outfit and brings back the familiar emotional intensity fans have come to expect.

 

The story picks up with Sakuta Azusagawa now navigating life as a university student. Though his relationship with Mai Sakurajima continues, physical distance begins to shape the emotional tone between them. Mai is now frequently away for work, leaving Sakuta in a liminal space of emotional quiet. Just as things seem to be settling into a gentle rhythm, a new disturbance arrives in the form of Touko Kirishima, a girl dressed as Santa Claus who only Sakuta can see. Her sudden appearance marks the beginning of another Adolescence Syndrome mystery that threatens to unravel the lives of Sakuta and those around him.

What makes this episode especially intriguing is how it bridges the world of the supernatural with the familiar weight of personal trauma. Just like the earlier chapters in the Rascal franchise, this arc continues to explore the psychological complexities of adolescence through fantastical circumstances. Touko is not just an odd figure in a costume. She seems to bring with her a strange new wave of disturbances, including a social phenomenon where people start dreaming of future events with unsettling accuracy. This movement, known as dreaming, becomes another anchor for the story, offering symbolic and literal implications for what's to come.

While details about Touko remain under wraps, her connection to the syndrome and her unique ability to gift its effects to others adds fresh tension. In a series known for characters who reflect real emotional struggles through strange and often tragic circumstances, Touko's role feels poised to offer yet another layered exploration of guilt, memory, and unresolved emotions.

For long time fans of the franchise, this episode will also likely offer moments of reunion. Familiar faces from previous seasons and films are expected to return as the narrative begins threading old emotional arcs with this new, holiday tinged mystery. Though the tone is soft and introspective, the first episode will carry the underlying promise of heavier revelations as the season progresses.

The Rascal series has always balanced subtle storytelling with emotional weight, and Rascal Does Not Dream of Santa Claus looks to continue that tradition. The choice of seasonal imagery, the gentle tension in Sakuta’s life, and the eeriness of Touko’s unexplained existence all hint at a hauntingly beautiful story that will unfold with grace and thoughtfulness.

Rascal Does Not Dream of Santa Claus will stream on Crunchyroll for international viewers shortly after the Japanese broadcast. While only the subtitled version will be available initially, more language options may be introduced later. For fans in India, the episode will be available by 8 pm IST on July 5. Viewers in North America and Europe can also stream it in the morning or afternoon, depending on the time zone.

If you have followed Sakuta and Mai’s journey through the series and films, this new chapter promises to be another emotionally rich experience. The magic of Adolescence Syndrome continues to serve as a metaphor for the inner battles of youth, and this time, it arrives wrapped in snow, memory, and the quiet mystery of a Santa who should not exist.

 

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