Persona 5 The Animation

Persona 5 The Animation is a television anime adaptation of Persona 5, produced by A-1 Pictures and directed by Masashi Ishihama. The anime is licensed by Aniplex and began airing on April 7, 2018, with Crunchyroll, AnimeLab and Hulu streaming the series to North American audiences. There will be a total of twenty-four episodes.

It currently only has a Japanese version with all of the original cast members (with the exception of Miyu Matsuki and Kazunari Tanaka, who both passed away before the game's release). Aniplex has announced an English stream of the anime to also air in April. No English dub is currently announced, with several voice actors confirming that no dubbing has commenced as of March 2018.

According to an interview, the anime will have a surprise that will deviate from the game's story.

The opening and ending theme songs are composed by Meguro and performed by Lyn, titled "Break In To Break Out" and "Infinity," respectively.

Synopsis
Ren Amamiya is about to enter his second year after transferring to Shujin Academy in Tokyo. Following a particular incident, his Persona awakens, and together with his friends they form the "Phantom Thieves of Hearts" to reform hearts of corrupt adults by stealing the source of their distorted desires. Meanwhile, bizarre and inexplicable crimes have been popping up one after another. Living an ordinary high school life in Tokyo by day, the group maneuvers the metropolitan city as Phantom Thieves after hours. Let the curtain rise for this grand, picaresque story!

Episode 1 - I Am Thou, Thou Art I

 * Differences between the game and anime include:
 * Goro Akechi assists Ren during the casino heist.
 * Ren's attempted escape after the police ambush is cut.
 * Caroline appears in Shibuya while Justine appears in the casino.
 * A brief scene of Ren being sentenced by a judge is shown during a flashback.
 * When Ren canvasses the Yongen-Jaya neighborhood for Cafe Leblanc, Tae Takemi can be seen walking past him at one point.
 * Sadayo Kawakami drops a leaflet for Victoria House Cleaning services, which she quickly picks up, during the initial meeting with the protagonist and principal Kobayakawa.

Episode 2 - Let's Take Back What's Dear to You

 * Differences between the game and anime include:
 * Ren's first battle against Shadow Kamoshida's bodyguards is cut short.
 * Ren and Ryuji don't encounter Morgana until after they enter Kamoshida's Palace for the second time.
 * Ren and Ryuji do not encounter the police before they go to Shujin Academy.
 * Ren helps Shiho Suzui after accidentally bumping into her in the school hallway.
 * While Ren is going to lunch, Makoto Niijima can be seen talking to some classmates.
 * Kawakami talks to Ren outside the classroom after he meets Ryuji, rather than inside the faculty room.
 * Haru Okumura can be seen tending to the plants outside of Shujin Academy.
 * Shiho is seen wearing her gym uniform during her conversation with Ann after school.
 * One scene shows Kamoshida physically abusing Shiho in his office.
 * After Ryuji awakens his Persona, he, along with Ren and Morgana, battle against Pixie, Bicorn and Agathion instead of Eligor.
 * Morgana summons his Persona after Ryuji awakens his own.
 * Kanami Mashita can be seen on the big screen after Ryuji and Ren escape the Palace the second time.
 * Toranosuke Yoshida can be seen in the beef bowl shop.

Episode 3 - A Beautiful Rose Has Thorns!

 * Differences between the game and anime include:
 * Akechi catches a brief glimpse of Ren and Ryuji at the station in April.
 * Mika can be seen at the train station doing a photo shoot with Ann.
 * Yuuki Mishima talks to Shiho that Kamoshida wants her to come to his office at the gym instead of in the hallway.
 * Kawakami is the one teaching class 2-D during Shiho's suicide attempt instead of Mr. Ushimaru.
 * Shiho receives bruises on her face after her failed suicide attempt instead of receiving them from Kamoshida before.
 * Ren and Ryuji don't encounter Ann in the Metaverse until after she's captured by Shadow Kamoshida.
 * Ren, Ryuji and Morgana secure the route to Kamoshida's Treasure before they save Ann from Shadow Kamoshida.
 * As Joker, Ren introduces himself to Ann using his real name.

Episode 4 - Steal it, if you can!

 * Differences between the game and anime include:
 * Ren and Ryuji visit Munehisa Iwai's Untouchable airsoft shop after the calling card for Kamoshida is sent.
 * Ren meets Takemi for the first time after the calling card for Kamoshida is sent.
 * Ann visits Shiho at the hospital before entering Kamoshida's Palace to steal his Treasure.
 * The Phantom Thieves steal Kamoshida's Treasure at night instead of daytime.
 * The Phantom Thieves, except for Ren, start using codenames before they find their way to Kamoshida's Treasure.
 * Morgana fails to cling on the Treasure and is interrupted by Kamoshida.
 * Ren ends up fusing Pixie and Arsene during the battle with Kamoshida.
 * The scene where the Phantom Thieves try to escape Kamoshida's Palace after they successfully steal his Treasure is not shown.
 * Mishima and the others apologizing to Ann after Kamoshida's confession is not shown.
 * Shiho is shown waking up from her comatose state at the hospital after Kamoshida's confession.
 * Ren is given the codename "Joker" by Morgana at Leblanc instead of in Kamoshida's Palace.
 * Sojiro Sakura finds out about Morgana after Kamoshida's confession.

Episode 5 - The Phantoms

 * Differences between the game and anime include:
 * Ren and Ryuji sell Kamoshida's Treasure to Iwai together. Iwai doesn't give Ren the paper bag, unlike in the game.
 * Ren doesn't feel any sense of recognition towards Shido when he and Ryuji are pushed aside at the elevators.
 * Ann's run-in with the woman who blamed Ann for bumping into her in the Wilton Hotel buffet is shown.
 * The Phantom Thieves decide on the name "The Phantoms" via P. A. D., rather than inside the Wilton Hotel.
 * Sae Niijima and the SIU Director talk about cabinet ministers losing their reputation, and about Kamoshida's case.
 * The Phantom Thieves don't check the Phantom Aficionado Website until after Mishima tells Ren about it.
 * Instead of identifying Ren as a Phantom Thief, Mishima pretends he doesn't know and reports everything about the Phan-site to him.
 * The Shadows in Mementos pay the Phantom Thieves no attention.
 * The Phantom Thieves' fight against Obariyon (Natsuhiko Nakanohara's Shadow) is limited to an All-Out Attack.
 * Sojiro asks Ren to help at Leblanc for the first time after the completion of the first Mementos request.
 * Akechi visits Leblanc with Sae, and Ren meets him there for the first time instead of at the TV studio.
 * Ryuji, Morgana, and Ann know about Akechi beforehand.
 * In text messages, Mishima's icon is the number 3.

Episode 6 - Our next target is...

 * Differences between the game and anime include:
 * Makoto Niijima talks with Ren, Ryuji, and Ann on Shujin's roof after midterms, and the Phantom Thieves refrain from arguing with her.
 * Ren and the others don't see Ichiryusai Madarame until they visit his art gallery.
 * Ren and Ryuji aren't bombarded by Madarame's crowd of fans.
 * Hifumi Togo makes a cameo appearance as a character on a shogi game app.
 * During the Phantom Thieves' visit to Madarame's shack, Yusuke Kitagawa wears his casual winter attire instead of his school uniform.
 * Ichiko Ohya doesn't show up after Ren, Ryuji, and Ann visit Madarame's atelier.
 * Yusuke shows Ren, Ryuji, and Ann a picture of "Sayuri" in an album instead of using his phone.
 * The Phantom Thieves keep themselves hidden while talking to Nakanohara in order to protect their identities.

Episode 7 - He is my other self

 * Differences between the game and anime include:
 * The Phantom Thieves don't encounter a Treasure Demon.
 * Ren and Ryuji meet Ohya as Ann is readying to model nude for Yusuke.
 * Ann strips off her layers of clothing in just Yusuke's room, rather than finishing in the hallway.
 * Ann, Morgana, and Yusuke enter the exhibit instead of the courtyard of Madarame's Palace.
 * While in Madarame's Palace, the Phantom Thieves never show Yusuke the portraits of himself or Madarame's other pupils in order to convince him.
 * The Phantom Thieves encounter Shadow Madarame immediately after they bring Yusuke into the Palace.
 * A brief flashback shows a snippet of Yusuke's childhood with Madarame.
 * After Yusuke awakens his Persona, he manages to defeat several Koppa Tengu by himself without help from the Phantom Thieves.
 * Ippon-Datara is not present after Yusuke awakens his Persona.

Episode 8 - Put an end to all this and use your own artwork for once.

 * Differences between the game and anime include:
 * When Madarame received the calling card, he did not ask the exhibit staff member about the security cameras and the exhibit staff member didn't mention Morgana in his cat form.
 * The Phantom Thieves are at the stairways rather than at the exhibit.
 * Shadow Madarame no longer transforms into Azazel by laughing and distorting his face. Instead, he transforms by surrounding himself in a dark aura, rolls his eyes, then spreads his arms and splatters the camera with black paint.
 * Shadow Madarame never mentions about encountering a guy in a black mask in his Palace after the Phantom Thieves defeated him.
 * The scene where the Phantom Thieves try to escape Madarame's Palace after they successfully steal his Treasure is not shown.
 * Madarame's confession scene is less hysterical compared to the in-game version. Instead, he is seen confessing his crimes of plagiarism, then quickly breaking into tears.
 * Nakanohara is seen again at the Shibuya streets smiling after Madarame's confession.
 * The Phantom Thieves celebrating their victory at Leblanc happens before the TV station trip and before they changed into their summer school uniforms.
 * The flashback of Ren's incident with Shido in the past is cut.

Episode 9: Operaton maid watch

 * Differences between the game and anime include:
 * Ren, Ryuji and Yusuke went into Yongen-Jaya's public bathhouse on a separate night from their celebration. Ann goes there as well while Morgana stays behind to keep an eye on washing machines.
 * Ryuji is shown to find the Victoria House Cleaning services leaflet from his mailbox.
 * Yumeko Mogami is seen stalking Ikesugi on the school corridor while Ren is walking past them after borrowing The Great Thief from the library.
 * Haru Okumura made an earliest cameo appearance in her gym outfit outside school.
 * During the text messages, Ryuji's icon changes into a skull.
 * Ryuji lets his former teammates beat him up to get even with them instead of leaving him in off the hook.

Music

 * Opening theme
 * "Break In To Break Out" by Lyn


 * Ending theme
 * "Infinity" by Lyn

Adaptation Differences
There are some differences between Persona 5 The Animation and the game, including but not limited to:
 * The calendar isn't shown as days go by.
 * The Social Stats system is not included.
 * Ren does not need to physically go through the Velvet Door to visit the Velvet Room and may be able to visit the Velvet Room while asleep (as seen in the post-credits scene of Ep. 9).

Persona O.A
To promote the anime and distribute news, a promotional app, Persona O.A, was released on March 15, 2018. The app features a news feed and a calendar detailing upcoming Persona related events. At a later date, the app will be updated with a Mementos exploration game, which will include persona summoning, dungeon crawling and light character interactions.

The app also allows players to earn Persona Points by signing in daily, which can then be used to purchase wallpapers or enter lotteries to attend events.