History Main / MeaningfulReleaseDate

* [[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13646760/15/The-NEW-151-Pokeshipping-Stories A Friendly Battle]] was released on February 27th, 2021, the 25th anniversary of Pokemon and the writer's 20th birthday. It focuses on Ash and Misty having a full battle with each other. Another story of this collection, [[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13646760/35/The-NEW-151-Pokeshipping-Stories 25 Years Later]] was released on April 1st, 2022, 25 Years after the Japanese premire of "Pokemon, I Choose You!", when Ash and Misty made their debut.

** The chapter "Home, Sour Home", which is concerned with Deborah's poor relationship with her father, was released on June 20, 2021; Father's Day.
** "Woman, Wife, Worker", ADayInTheLimelight chapter for Kitsune, was released on Kitsune's birthday, September 17th.

* Just like the horror movie examples above, Holiday movies (usually Christmas-themed more-or-less) aim for a release in either November or December, otherwise known as the "holiday season".

** In the fifth series of the revived show, the date in which the universe was [[ApocalypseHow scheduled to blow up]] was June 26th 2010, the air date of season finale "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS31E13TheBigBang The Big Bang]]".

* The ''Series/BlackMirror'' episode "[[Recap/BlackMirrorFifteenMillionMerits 15 Million Merits]]". The theme of the episode was a {{dystopia}}n satire of TV talent shows. At Creator/CharlieBrooker s request, the episode was broadcast on Creator/Channel4 immediately after the 2011 finale of ''Series/TheXFactor'' ended on Creator/{{ITV}}1.

* An unintentional example '''and''' aversion for the 2015 ''Franchise/SuperSentai'' series ''Series/ShurikenSentaiNinninger'', which had its entire schedule delayed by one week, due to episode 46 of [[Series/ResshaSentaiToQger the previous series]] being preempted by the death of a Japanese journalist at the hands of ISIL extremists: Episode 1 ended up debuting on February 22, also known as Ninja Day, since the number 2 in Japanese sounds like "ni," or "nin-nin-nin", while Episode 7, which [[MilestoneCelebration celebrated]] the 40th year of ''Super Sentai'' with two RoleReprise guest stars for a team-up, was supposed to air on April 5 – 40 years to the day that ''Series/HimitsuSentaiGoranger'' premiered - but had to air on April 12th in the end.

* ''Series/TheNoddyShop'' episode "The Birthday Party", which is about Noah Tomten's birthday, first aired on September 11, 1998, two weeks before Sean [=McCann=]'s 63rd birthday.

** "Donkey's Bad Day", about the titular character having an unlucky day, aired on August 13th, 2021, which was on a Friday. Many people associate Friday the 13th with bad luck.

** "Acornball; Super Duper Magic Fun Box", which contains a plot about how best friends don't have to like the same things, aired on June 8, 2022, National Best Friends Day.
* ''Series/That70sShow'': The episode "Kitty's Birthday (That's Today?!)", [[ForgottenBirthday where Red and Eric accidentally forget Kitty's birthday]], originally premiered on February 27, 2001, which was 3 days after Creator/DebraJoRupp (Kitty)'s 50th birthday.

* The remastered albums of Music/TheBeatles were released on 09/09/09, based on the infamous [[BrokenRecord "lyrics"]] to "Revolution 9". ''Music/SgtPeppersLonelyHeartsClubBand'' was released worldwide on CD on 1 June 1987, so that it would indeed be "twenty years ago today."

* ''Songs that Saved My Life'' is a series of compilation albums where various rock bands cover songs that helped them through a rough time. The first single from the first album, Neck Deep's version of "Torn", was released on September 10, 2018, which is World Suicide Prevention Day.

* Creator/CirqueDuSoleil's ''Drawn to Life'' opened at Disney Springs at [[Ride/DisneyThemeParks Walt Disney World]] on November 18, 2021, the same day as WesternAnimation/MickeyMouse's 93rd birthday. The entire show is a love letter to Disney's hand-drawn era and a collaboration with Creator/WaltDisneyAnimationStudios and "Walt Disney Imagineering".

* ''VideoGame/Persona5'', a game with a major visual {{motif}} in the form of hearts and a theme of "stealing hearts", was set to release in the Americas and Europe on Valentine's Day 2017, before delays pushed the release back to the no-longer meaningful April 4.[[note]]For what it's worth, the game's story proper starts on April 9, but that would be unfeasible as a release date because that date was a Sunday in 2017.[[/note]]

* ''VideoGame/MassEffectAndromeda'', a game about a space journey to the eponymous galaxy, was released on March 21, 2017 in North America. If this date is written in the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Date_format_by_country date format customary in the US]], it becomes 3/21 -- or "three-two-one", the iconic countdown preceding most RealLife spacecraft launches.

* The various ports of ''VideoGame/PuyoPuyoFever'' were released on the 24th of a month. 24 is the GoroawaseNumber for "Puyo", and as a result it's the ''Puyo Puyo'' series' ArcNumber.
* The final major update for ''VideoGame/{{Terraria}}'', titled "Journey's End", was originally going to be released in 2019, but got pushed to 2020 instead. [[https://forums.terraria.org/index.php?threads/prepare-to-embark-on-journeys-end.87442/ It was later released on 16 May 2020]], ''Terraria'''s ninth anniversary.

* ''VideoGame/{{Celeste}}'''s ninth chapter, "[[GrandFinale Farewell]]", was released as DLC on September 9th, 2019.

** Act 6 began on November 11, 2011, so Hussie [[LampshadeHanging lampshaded]] it by making it an in-universe meaningful release date, referred to as "[[DoubleWeapon 2x3prong]] Day (whatever that means)". Not surprisingly, Act 6 introduces a new ArcNumber based around eleven, or sometimes three ones (1/11), four ones (11/11), or six ones (11/11/11), more commonly the latter.

* ''WebVideo/UltraFastPony''. The episode "Pirate Shipping", in which the cast celebrates the holiday of "Heartsgiving", went live on 28 November 2013, the same date as that year's American Thanksgiving. (Since the creator is Australian, this may just be a weird coincidence.)

** The 100th episode, "The Hard Easy", premiered on October 1, 2012, Creator/{{Cartoon Network}}'s 20th anniversary.

** The show's GrandFinale, "The Hardest Thing", premiered on May 14, 2022, a day before [[ConvenientEclipse a total lunar eclipse occurred in real life]]. The episode in question heavily features Amphibia's red moon[[spoiler:, actually a PlanetSpaceship controlled by [[GreaterScopeVillain the Core]], [[ColonyDrop slowly descending towards the planet]].]]

* ''WesternAnimation/ThePowerpuffGirls1998'' episode "The Bare Facts", centered around the Mayor and told mostly from his POV (at least camera-wise) aired on January 20th, 1999. January 20th being the date most U.S. presidents are inaugurated.

* On October 10, 2015, five years to the day of the show's premiere, ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'' released "Crusaders of the Lost Mark", a WhamEpisode in which [[spoiler:the Cutie Mark Crusaders finally received their cutie marks since their (accidental) introduction together in the first episode]]. Four years and two days later, the GrandFinale aired, tying up everything together in a nice BookEnds fashion.

* The ''WesternAnimation/{{Unikitty}}'' episode "Birthday Blowout", an episode that celebrates the birthday of Puppycorn, the dog-unicorn little brother of the title character, was released on February 16th, 2018, the start of the Chinese New Year for the Year of the Dog.

** The episode "Fears of a Clown", in which Bart gets busted for his pranks and is sent to a rehabilitation program for his pranking habits, aired on AprilFoolsDay.
** In Asia, the episode "You Don't Have to Live Like a Referee", which was about the FIFA World Cup, aired on June 12, 2014. Not only was this the first day of the 2014 World Cup, but the episode [[NoHoperRepeat aired against the opening ceremony]].
* ''WesternAnimation/StevenUniverse'' "Heart of the Crystal Gems" DVD[[note]]With the episodes "Bismuth", "Mindful Education", "Storm in the Room", "The Trial", "A Single Pale Rose", "Now We're Only Falling Apart", "What's Your Problem?", "The Question", "Made of Honor", and "Reunited"[[/note]] came out on August 14, 2018, one day before Steven's birthday. "The Question" also aired on July 4, American Independence Day, and is about Ruby discovering her ''independence''. A later episode "Together Alone" that served as the start of Era 3 for Homeworld aired on New Years Eve.

* The ''WesternAnimation/ElenaOfAvalor'' episode "The Return Of El Capitan", which takes place on Dia De Los Muertos, aired on October 27, 2018, which is one year after the Mexican premiere of ''WesternAnimation/{{Coco}}'', which focuses on the holiday.

** "Nothing Can Stop Della Duck", which featured [[spoiler:Della finally getting to meet her children after spending a decade trapped on the moon]] aired on May 13, 2019, the day after Mother's Day.
** "Double-O-Duck in You Only Crash Twice!", an episode which parodies the ''Franchise/JamesBond'' franchise, was supposed to come out on the same day as [[Film/NoTimeToDie the most recent entry in the series]] (before the latter's release date was pushed several months back due to the coronavirus pandemic).

* The ''WesternAnimation/MuppetBabies2018'' episode "Mystery On The Muppet Express", which focuses on [[AllDrummersAreAnimals Animal]] and Summer, aired on November 15, 2019, which is National Drummer Day.
* The ''WesternAnimation/JakeAndTheNeverLandPirates'' special "Jake Saves Bucky" aired on September 19, 2012, exactly one year after the episode "Captain Hook's Parrot/Skybird Island is Falling". The episode "Pirate Pogo/The Sneaky Snook-Off" premiered 2 years later.

* The ''WesternAnimation/HouseOfMouse'' episode "Donald's Pumbaa Prank", which is about AprilFoolsDay, aired on March 31, 2001, the day prior to said holiday.

** The HalloweenEpisode of ''WesternAnimation/BluesCluesAndYou'' aired 20 years to the day of the premiere of "Blue's Big Costume Party".

** Willow debuts in the episode "I Was a Teenage Abomination", which aired on January 24, 2020. The day after that, January 25, is the birthday of her voice actor Creator/TatiGabrielle.
** The GrandFinale, "Watching and Dreaming" aired April 8, 2023 the day before Easter Sunday. [[spoiler: With Luz undergoing death and resurrection and Belo’s religious symbolism, it fits right in.]]

** The episode "The Romantic", which focuses on Gumball trying to pull off a series of romantic gestures for Penny, aired on October 8, 2015, almost exactly one year after they had their RelationshipUpgrade in "The Shell", which aired October 9, 2014.
** The episode "The Schooling", which is the '''18'''th episode of Season '''6''', premiered in the USA on June '''18''', 20'''18'''.
* ''WesternAnimation/RegularShow'': The episode "This Is My Jam" centers around a song called "Lovin' in the Summertime", which, as the name implies, is about the arrival of summer. In Latin America, the episode first aired on December 22, 2011, which is around the time summer starts in the Southern Hemisphere.

** ''Film/IndependenceDayResurgence'' soft-released on June 22nd, 2016, nearly 2 weeks before the 4th. Not only did 2016 mark the 20th anniversary of the first movie, but July 4, 2016 was the U.S.A.'s 240th birthday.

*** ''Film/AvengersEndgame'' opened just one day shy of a full year to the release of ''Infinity War''.

* ''Film/{{Solo}}'' was released on May 25, 2018, the 41st anniversary of the ''Franchise/StarWars'' franchise.

* ''Film/TheRiseOfSkywalker'' was released on Creator/DisneyPlus on 4 May 2020, commonly referred to by its fandom as Star Wars Day.

* Subverted for ''Literature/HarryPotterAndTheDeathlyHallows''; it was originally intended to release on 7/7/2007 (as seven is a number often associated with magic and it was the seventh and last book), but it would have fallen on the second anniversary of the 7 July terrorist bombings in London, so it was changed to July 21 instead.

* ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask'': In order to suit the game's dark tone and macabre themes, the original UsefulNotes/Nintendo64 version was released shortly before Halloween in 2000, and the UsefulNotes/Nintendo3DS remake came out on Friday, February 13, 2015.

* ''WesternAnimation/AdventureTime''[='=]s ''Mystery Train'' episode, which takes place on Finn's 13th birthday, first aired on 3/14/11 putting Finn's birthday on Pi Day.

* The ''WesternAnimation/SpongeBobSquarePants'' episode "SB-129" in which Squidward accidentally time travels too far into the future, then too far into the past [[spoiler:and then "nowhere"]] aired on December 31st, 1999--the last day before the year 2000. Nickelodeon actually aired several new episodes of shows with a millennium/future theme that night, including ''WesternAnimation/TheAngryBeavers'' and ''WesternAnimation/{{Kablam}}''.

* October 23, 2020 kicked off the events of ''WesternAnimation/KipoAndTheAgeOfWonderbeasts'', although it was first released on January 14, 2020. This date commemorates the start of the mutant outbreak. It also happened to be on Rad Sechrist's daughter's birthday!

* The ''WesternAnimation/DocMcStuffins'' episode "The Rip Heard Round the World/Walkie Talkie Time" aired on April 20, 2012, which is the 45th birthday of actress Lara Jill Miller.
** The series finale of ''WesternAnimation/DocMcStuffins'' aired on April 18, 2020, which is the birthday of series creator Chris Nee.

* Using the American dating system, the first episode of ''WesternAnimation/GravityFalls'' aired on 6/15/12 (June 15, 2012). The final episode was aired on that number backwards, 2/15/16 (February 15, 2016), befitting of the show's heavy use of secret messages and codes.

* The author of ''FanFic/AngelOfTheBat'' originally wanted to post the final battle on Christmas, 2014, as the event itself was set on Christmas Eve. As it became clear this was undoable with any quality left in place and the death of the author's dog took its toll, this idea was abandoned. The fic ultimately received its final non-epilogue chapter on March 17, 2015, exactly one year after it began.

* Chapter 29 of ''Fanfic/{{Continuance}}'' was posted on December 8, 2015. December 8 is [[VideoGame/{{Persona 4}} Yukiko Amagi's]] birthday, and the fic pairs her with the protagonist.

* The English patch for ''[[VideoGame/{{Touhou}} Yousei Daisensou]]'' (''Fairy Wars'') was released on September 9. The game stars Cirno, who has a memetic association with the number 9.

* The UpdatedRerelease of ''Videogame/MetalWolfChaos'' was released on the 76th anniversary of the nuking of Hiroshima, which aside from fitting the tone of a game about Americans blowing things up is also the kind of CrossingTheLineTwice sense of humor that Creator/DevolverDigital gets up to.

[[folder:Web Comics]]

* The first five ''Franchise/{{Halloween}}'' movies, naturally, were released in October with ''Film/HalloweenII1981'' being the closest to the actual holiday (October 30th, 1981) [[SubvertedTrope before]] [[Film/HalloweenTheCurseOfMichaelMyers the sixth movie]] opened in September and the next four were summer releases. The 2018 {{Unreboot}} was the first since ''Halloween 5'' in 1989 to be released in October, and sequels ''Film/HalloweenKills'' and ''Halloween Ends'' followed suit.

** ''Film/AvengersInfinityWar'' was set to be released on May 4th, 2018, just 2 days past the 10th anniversary of the MCU's first installment, ''[[Film/IronMan1 Iron Man]]'' (May 2nd, 2008). The film rounds up a massive AllStarCast from previous entries celebrating a full decade of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.[[note]]It's also 6 years to the day of the first ''[[Film/TheAvengers2012 Avengers]]'' movie (May 4th, 2012).[[/note]] The release, however, was then pushed a week forward to April 27th.

* The all-encompassing piece [[https://cssieben.substack.com/p/mastery-of-morality-and-wings-of-fire "Mastery of Morality and Wings of Fire"]] was purposefully released on the [[''Wings of Fire'']] series' 10th anniversary; it serves as [[GreatBigBookOfEverything a one-stop shop]] for learning about the books' history and themes.

* [[DeathOfTheAuthor Whether or not it was intentional]], following the delays caused by the Tohoku earthquake, the finale of ''Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagica'' almost showed on the week of April 30/May 1st, the actual day of the Walpurgis Night; the name of the FinalBoss. Instead, it was bumped forwards to Good Friday 2011 (April 21), the day celebrating UsefulNotes/{{Jesus}} sacrificing himself for the sins of mankind. Many viewers saw correlations with the plot.
** ''Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagicaTheMovieRebellion'' premiered on October 26th, 2013, a few days before Halloween. At one point in the movie, [[ItMakesSenseInContext a character says they're a pumpkin]]. [[spoiler:She, Homura Akemi, turns out to be a witch.]]
* The 21st episode of ''Anime/DigimonAdventure'' where Taichi [[spoiler:briefly]] goes home to the real world and discovers that [[YearInsideHourOutside it's the same date he left]] which is August 1st, 1999. The episode (directed by Creator/MamoruHosoda and connected to the plot of the pilot movie) also aired on August 1st 1999. This date as "Odaiba Memorial" is mentioned several times throughout that show and [[Anime/DigimonAdventure02 02]]. In real life, it's practically a holiday for the fandom and the stars of the franchise, even using 8/1/2014 to announce ''Anime/DigimonAdventureTri''.
** ''Anime/SummerWars'', also directed by Hosoda, was released in Japan on August 1st, which is Sakae Jinnouchi's birthday in the film.

* ''Anime/PrettyCure'':
** ''Anime/SmilePrecure''
*** The second episode, where Akane becomes a Cure for the first time, was released on her seiyuu Creator/AsamiTano's birthday, February 12th.
*** An AprilFoolsPlot was released on, you guessed it, April 1st, 2012.
** ''Anime/HappinessChargePrettyCure'' - a Mother's Day episode was released on May 11th. A soccer episode was released on June 19th, the start of the 2014 World Cup.
** The 14th episode of ''Anime/HugttoPrettyCure'', which revolves around a daycare, aired on May 5th, 2018, which is Children's Day in Japan and Korea.
* ''Anime/YamishibaiJapaneseGhostStories'', a horror anthology anime, aired in the Summer season. This is because Summer is considered the best season for horror stories in Japan.

* The first chapter of the manga version of ''Manga/{{Akira}}'' came out on December 6, 1982, which is the date of the apparent nuclear explosion that destroyed Tokyo and issued the start of WorldWarIII in the story. When the film version came out a few years later, the date of the explosion that destroyed Tokyo was changed to July 16, 1988, the same day the film was first released in Japan.

* ''Manga/SeitokaiYakuindomo'', being a SexComedy, had it's movie released on July 21, 2017 because it's a pun on "masturbation" in Japanese.
* ''Anime/MagicalGirlLyricalNanohaReflection'' was released on July 22, 2017. July 22 also happens to be the day the movie takes place InUniverse.
* The delayed viewing of the third ''Anime/LoveLiveSunshine'' concert, ''Wonderful Stories'', premiered in some countries on June 30, 2018, the date of the eighth anniversary of the ''Anime/LoveLive'' franchise.
* Whether by chance or on purpose, both seasons of the ''Anime/AceAttorney'' anime have this to a degree- Season One aired in 2016, the year the first game takes place, while Season 2 (covering the third game) was released in October of 2018, which was when "The Stolen Turnabout" (the first case in the third game where Phoenix is the lawyer and that isn't a flashback) takes place.

* The second half of ''Anime/CaroleAndTuesday'' was released on Netflix on Christmas Eve, 2019 -- not only a day before Carole's birthdate, but on a Tuesday that year as well.
* ''Manga/KaguyaSamaLoveIsWar'':
** The episode that formally introduced Iino came out on May 2, 2020, just 3 days before the character's birthday.
** The following episode (which featured the second adaptation of a "Fujiwara acts motherly to Shirogane" chapter) aired on May 9, 2020, the day before Mother's Day.
** Episode 10 of Season 2 adapted Chapter 85 (Osaragi's first [[ADayInTheLimelight Day in the Limelight]] chapter) and came out less than a week before Chapter 192, another Osaragi focus chapter. There's also a major link between those two chapters since the former [[RewatchBonus is filled with foreshadowing]] towards the reveal in the latter that [[spoiler:she has feelings for Ishigami.]]
* ''VideoGame/InazumaEleven Orion no Kokuin'': The episode where Aphrodi joins Inazuma Japan was released on May 17, which is also the date of his birthday.

* ''Manga/LaidBackCamp'': Episode 9 of the second season, in which [[BirthdayBuddies Aoi and Nadeshiko realize that they share a birthday on March 4]], first aired on March 4, 2021.
* ''Manga/FairyTail100YearsQuest'': The first two chapters were released back-to-back in Japan on July 25, 2018, just one day shy of a full year after the final chapter of ''Manga/FairyTail'' on July 26, 2017. That's approximately the same amount of time spent between the original story's FinalBoss and DistantFinale, which itself leads directly into ''100 Years Quest''.

* In the film ''WesternAnimation/{{The Grinch|2018}}'', the titular character says he has had to deal with Whoville and Christmas for 53 years. This film is set to be released approximately 53 years after [[WesternAnimation/HowTheGrinchStoleChristmas the original animated adaptation]] from 1966. In addition, the film began its run in some theaters on November 8, 2018, eighteen years after the release of [[Film/HowTheGrinchStoleChristmas the 2000]] LiveActionAdaptation.

* ''WesternAnimation/MinionsTheRiseOfGru'' was originally scheduled to release on July 3, 2020, six days before the exact day that ''WesternAnimation/DespicableMe'', which ''Minions 2'' is a prequel to, was released a decade prior. However, as multiple films' releases were shuffled that year due to the Coronavirus pandemic, the release date for ''Minions 2'' was moved ahead by exactly ''two years''.

* The ''WesternAnimation/JakeAndTheNeverLandPirates'' special "Jake Saves Bucky" aired on September 19, 2012, exactly one year after the episode "Captain Hook's Parrot/Skybird Island is Falling".

* The series finale of ''WesternAnimation/DocMcStuffins'' aired on April 18, 2020, which is the birthday of series creator Chris Nee.

** An AprilFoolsPlot for ''Anime/SmilePrettyCure'' was released on, you guessed it, April 1st, 2012.

* ''Anime/YamishibaiJapaneseGhostStories'', a horror anthology anime, aired in the [[Summer2013Anime Summer season]]. This is because Summer is considered the best season for horror stories in Japan.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheLorax'' was released on March 2nd, 2012, which would have been Creator/DrSeuss' 108th birthday.

* ''WesternAnimation/{{Coco}}'', which is set around the Day of the Dead, was released in Mexico first on October 27, 2017, the weekend before the holiday. The international versions were released the next month, but it was important for Disney that Mexico would get their movie first, establishing the Spanish language as the official version, and that it open for Dia Del Los Muertos.