Classroom of the Elite

Classroom of the Elite (Japanese: ようこそ実力至上主義の教室へ, Hepburn: Yōkoso Jitsuryoku Shijōshugi no Kyōshitsu e, lit. 'Welcome to the Classroom of Real Ability Supremacism'), abbreviated as Yōjitsu (よう実) in Japan, is a Japanese light novel series written by Shōgo Kinugasa, with illustration by Shunsaku Tomose. It was published from May 2015 to September 2019 under Media Factory's MF Bunko J imprint, a sequel Classroom of the Elite: Year 2 (ようこそ実力至上主義の教室へ 2年生編, Yōkoso Jitsuryoku Shijōshugi no Kyōshitsu e Ninensei-hen, lit. 'Welcome to the Classroom of Real Ability Supremacism Second-Year Students Edition') was published from January 2020 to November 2024. Another sequel Classroom of the Elite: Year 3 (ようこそ実力至上主義の教室へ 3年生編, Yōkoso Jitsuryoku Shijōshugi no Kyōshitsu e Sannensei-hen, lit. 'Welcome to the Classroom of Real Ability Supremacism Third-Year Students Edition') began publishing in March 2025. A manga adaptation by Yuyu Ichino began its serialization in Media Factory's Monthly Comic Alive on January 27, 2016. A manga adaptation of the sequel light novel series illustrated by Shia Sasane began serialization in the same magazine in December 2021. An anime television series adaptation produced by Lerche aired with the first season in 2017. A second season aired in 2022 and a third one in 2024. A fourth season has been announced.
Set in the prestigious national high school 'Tokyo Metropolitan Advanced Nurturing School' established by the Japanese government, the story is about a dispute over 'Class A' whose members are destined to achieve any desired success after their graduation.
The Japanese government has established the Tokyo Metropolitan Advanced Nurturing School, dedicated to instruct and foster the generation of people that will support the country in the future. The students are given a high degree of freedom in order to closely mimic real life. The story follows the perspective of Kiyotaka Ayanokōji, a quiet and modest boy, who is bad at making friends and would rather keep his distance, but possesses unrivaled intelligence and incredible physical ability. He is a student of Class-D, which is where the school dumps its inferior students, widely considered "defective". After meeting Suzune Horikita and Kikyō Kushida, two other students in his class, the situation begins to change, and he gets involved in many affairs and his thought of an ideal normal high school life begins to get scattered, taking a toll on his sanity.
The series is written by Shōgo Kinugasa and illustrated by Shunsaku Tomose. Media Factory published eleven volumes, along with three short story volumes from May 25, 2015 to September 25, 2019, under the MF Bunko J imprint. Seven Seas Entertainment has licensed the series. On February 17, 2021, Seven Seas announced it released a new version of volume seven, due to the localization decisions in the original omitting several paragraphs.
A sequel light novel series titled Classroom of the Elite: Year 2 (ようこそ実力至上主義の教室へ 2年生編, Yōkoso Jitsuryoku Shijōshugi no Kyōshitsu e Ninensei-hen, lit. "Welcome to the Classroom of Merito-Supremacism: Second-Year Students Edition") was published under the MF Bunko J imprint from January 2020 to November 2024. The series concluded with twelve main volumes and three short story volumes, including volume 12.5 released on November 25, 2024. Seven Seas Entertainment has also licensed Year 2.
A sequel light novel series titled Classroom of the Elite: Year 3 (ようこそ実力至上主義の教室へ 3年生編, Yōkoso Jitsuryoku Shijōshugi no Kyōshitsu e Sannensei-hen, lit. 'Welcome to the Classroom of Real Ability Supremacism Third-Year Students Edition') has been published under the MF Bunko J imprint since March 2025.
A manga adaptation illustrated by Yuyu Ichino began serialization in Media Factory's Monthly Comic Alive magazine on January 27, 2016. It has been collected in twelve tankōbon volumes as of February 22, 2022. Seven Seas Entertainment has also licensed the manga and the first volume was released in February 2022.
A spin-off manga illustrated by Sakagaki and featuring Suzune Horikita was serialized in Monthly Comic Alive from June 2017 to May 2018. Its chapters were collected in two tankōbon volumes. At Anime Expo 2022, Seven Seas Entertainment announced that they licensed the spin-off for English publication.
A manga adaptation of the sequel light novel series illustrated by Shia Sasane began serialization in the Monthly Comic Alive magazine on December 25, 2021. It has been collected in four tankōbon volumes as of January 2025.
An anime television series adaptation aired with the first season on AT-X from July 12 to September 27, 2017. Seiji Kishi and Hiroyuki Hashimoto directed the series at Lerche, Aoi Akashiro handled the series composition, Kazuaki Morita designed the characters, and Ryo Takahashi composed the music. The opening theme song is "Caste Room", performed by ZAQ, and the ending theme song is "Beautiful Soldier", performed by Minami. Crunchyroll streamed the series with subtitles and Funimation streamed the English dub. iQIYI added the series onto its platform, Q3, and the Thai dub in 2022.
On February 21, 2022, it was announced that a sequel was in production. The series was later revealed to have two seasons, with Lerche returning as the studio. The second season is directed by Yoshihito Nishōji, with Kishi and Hashimoto served as chief directors, Hayato Kazano replaced Akashiro as the screenwriter, and Morita returning as the character designer. Masaru Yokoyama and Kana Hashiguchi replaced Takahashi, and served as music composers. The second season aired from July 4 to September 26, 2022. The opening theme song is "Dance in the Game", performed by ZAQ, and the ending theme song is "Hito Shibai" (人芝居), performed by Mai Fuchigami. The third season was originally scheduled for 2023, but it was delayed to January 2024. The third season aired from January 3 to March 27, 2024. The third season's opening theme song is "Minor Piece", performed by ZAQ, and the ending theme song is "Konsei Dai Kakumei" (今世大革命, "The Great Revolution of this World"), performed by Yui Ninomiya.
A fourth season, covering the first semester of the Year 2 sequel light novel series, was announced during the "MF Bunko J Natsu no Gakuensai 2024" livestream event on September 1, 2024.