Fire Force Season 3 — Part 2: When It Returns

Fire Force Season 3 is a split-cour final season — the first half aired in Spring 2025 and Part 2 is scheduled to return in January 2026. This second cour will finish adapting the manga’s endgame arcs and wrap the whole series.

Part 1 pushed straight into the final phase of Atsushi Ōkubo’s manga: Company 8’s desperate missions, the kaiju-scale threats, and the huge revelations about the Pillars and the Evangelist’s plan. The mid-season finale tied up the kaiju battle, delivered a surreal Shinra/Inca sequence that sends Shinra on a disorienting (and visually trippy) past-journey, and closed with a time jump that leaves Tokyo and Company 8 in a tense, altered state. If you were following weekly, you’ll remember the final episode left more questions than answers — which is exactly why Part 2 matters. Therefore, The Jan 2026 return isn’t a rumor. It’s an official split-cour schedule the production committee and simulcasters announced (the split was revealed at Anime Expo 2024 and reinforced in later trailers/teasers). Practically, that means:

• The anime gets a longer runway to animate the climactic arcs properly (rather than cramming everything into one short cour).
• The winter 2026 anime season will be stacked expect a lot of crossover chatter and comparisons as Fire Force competes for attention.

Crunchyroll’s coverage and the official teasers both confirm the January window for cour 2. If you want punctual reminders, follow Crunchyroll and the show’s official X/YouTube channels, they’ll post PVs and air-date specifics first.

Multiple episode to chapter trackers and recappers agree on this matter. Part 1 adapted roughly chapters ~175–216 of the manga, which means if you want to read ahead, start at chapter 217 to be just ahead of the anime. Part 2 will adapt the remaining final arcs, the intense political / Evangelist confrontation, the Final Pillar and the epilogue — basically the manga’s sprint to the finish. If you’re a manga reader who wants the quickest path to spoilers, that chapter marker is the best place to jump in. But remember anime pacing sometimes shuffles moments for drama, so the episode-to-chapter mapping isn’t always exact and if you want to preserve surprises, stop reading right before chapter 217.

The production has already released Part 2 teaser visuals and short PVs showing looming showdowns between Company 8 and the Evangelist forces; the new visuals lean into dramatic, “final battle” vibes. Crunchyroll posted the official cour-2 teaser and news coverage picked up a new key visual that teases Shinra and Arthur facing the central threats. A handful of cast or guest casting announcements (new supporting roles and seiyuu) dropped alongside promotional material at events like Anime NYC 2025. Expect more cast reveals and a proper full PV ahead of the January return.

So, Part 2 promises to close Fire Force’s long, ambitious story with high stakes and big visuals, and the January 2026 slot gives the studio a shot at doing it justice. If you loved the lore and spectacle, this finale should be essential viewing. If you were left lukewarm by Part 1’s pacing, Part 2 is your chance to see whether the show can deliver its promised payoff.

Image Credit David Production