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Girls und Panzer Festival Returns After Four-Year Hiatus

The popular Ōarai Angler Fish Festival will return to Ibaraki Prefecture's coastal town of Ōarai on November 19 after a four-year hiatus. The last festival was held in 2019, and drew a record 140,000 attendees.

Organizers announced the festival would return during the "Girls & Panzer Virtual Live, Hajimemasu!~ Ōarai de Zen'in Shūgō!!!!!!!~" event on August 19. Cast members Mai Fuchigami (Miho Nishizumi), Ai Kayano (Saori Takebe), Mami Ozaki (Hana Isuzu), Ikumi Nakagami (Yukari Akiyama), and Yuka Iguchi (Mako Reizei) will attend along with series' theme song performer ChouCho. ChouCho's new song, "Never Say Goodbye," will serve as the theme song for the last three Girls und Panzer das Finale films.

The Ōarai area suffered greatly after the March 2011 tsunami, but attendee turnout for past Ōarai Angler Fish Festivals helped bring revitalization to the town. The event initially hosted 25,000 attendees, quadrupling to 140,000. Past events featured activities that were both fish and otaku-oriented.

The six-part Girls und Panzer das Finale film series is currently in production, and the series' official website unveiled the first full trailer and key visual for the fourth film last month. The film will open in Japan on October 6.

Source: Comic Natalie