The 6th annual Crunchyroll Anime Awards took place last week, with anime fans turning out in their millions to vote for their favourite shows, characters, artists, voice actors, directors, fight scenes (!), and musical tracks from the last year of anime. Many of the category nominees and winners were spawned from manga, and as you know, we’re big on manga here at the library. So, here are the manga series you can find gracing the shelves of our libraries that are behind this year’s award-winning anime adaptations. Get in quick to reserve ’em, they won’t stay on the shelves long!
(Or if you find yourself having to wait, why not check out our full manga collection here?)
Attack on Titan / Hajime Isayama
{shōnen: action, dark fantasy, post-apocalyptic}
“For the past century, what’s left of mankind has hidden in a giant, three-walled city, trapped in fear of the bizarre, giant humanoids known as the Titans. Little is known about where they came from or why they are bent on consuming human-kind, but the sudden appearance of an enormous Titan is about change everything.” (Catalogue)
Category wins:
- Anime of the Year
- Best Antagonist — Eren Jaeger
- Best Japanese VA Performance — Yuki Kaji as Eren Jaeger
- Best Opening Sequence — ‘Boku no Sansou’ by Shinsei Kamattechan
Category nominations:
- Best Action
- Best Protagonist — Eren Jaeger
- Best Fight Scene — Eren Jaeger vs. War Hammer Titan
- Best Japanese VA Performance — Ayane Sakura as Gabi Graun
- Best Russian VA Performance — Vlad Tokarev as Eren Jaeger
- Best Ending Sequence — ‘Shogeki’ by Yuko Ando
Beastars / Paru Itagaki
{shōnen: coming-of-age, drama, fantasy}
“At a high school where the students are literally divided into predators and prey, it’s personal relationships that maintain the fragile peace. Who among them is a Beastar an academic and social role model destined to become a leader in a society naturally rife with mistrust?” (Adapted from Catalogue)
Category nominations:
- Best Romance
- Best Opening Sequence — ‘Kaibutsu’ by Yoasobi
- Best Ending Sequence — ‘Yasashii Suisei’ by Yoasobi
Boruto: Naruto Next Generations / Ukyo Kodachi
{shōnen: adventure, fantasy}
“Naruto was a young shinobi with an incorrigible knack for mischief. He achieved his dream to become the greatest ninja in his village, and now his face sits atop the Hokage monument. But this is not his story… A new generation of ninja are ready to take the stage, led by Naruto’s own son, Boruto!” (Adapted from Catalogue)
Category nominations:
- Best Fight Scene — Naruto Uzumaki vs. Isshiki Otsutsuki
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba / Koyoharu Gotōge
{shōnen: adventure, dark fantasy, martial arts}
“In Taisho-era Japan, Tanjiro Kamado is a kindhearted boy who makes a living selling charcoal. But his peaceful life is shattered when a demon slaughters his entire family. His little sister Nezuko is the only survivor, but she has been transformed into a demon herself! Tanjiro sets out on a dangerous journey to find a way to return his sister to normal and destroy the demon who ruined his life.” (Catalogue)
Category wins:
- Best Film
- Best Animation — Ufotable Studios
- Best Score — composers Yuki Kajiura and Go Shiina
- Best Ending Sequence — ‘Shirogane’ by LiSA
- Best French VA Performance — Enzo Ratsito as Tanjiro Kamado
- Best Latin American VA Performance — Irwin Daayán as Kyojuro Rengoku
- Best Russian VA Performance — Islam Gandzhaev as Tanjiro Kamado
Category nominations:
- Best Action
Fruits Basket / Natsuki Takaya
{shōjo: comedy, romance, supernatural}
“After a family tragedy turns her life upside down, plucky high schooler Tohru Honda takes matters into her own hands and moves out…into a tent Unfortunately for her, she pitches her new home on private land belonging to the mysterious Sohma clan, and it isn’t long before the owners discover her secret. But, as Tohru quickly finds out when the family offers to take her in, the Sohmas have a secret of their own–when touched by the opposite sex, they turn into the animals of the Chinese Zodiac.” (Catalogue)
Category nominations:
- Best Drama
- Best Romance
- Best Girl — Tohru Honda
- Best English VA Performance — Laura Bailey as Tohru Honda
JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure / Hirohiko Araki
{shōnen: adventure, fantasy, supernatural}
“Young Jonathan Joestar’s life is forever changed when he meets his new adopted brother, Dio. For some reason, Dio has a smoldering grudge against him and derives pleasure from seeing him suffer. But every man has his limits, as Dio finds out. This is the beginning of a long and hateful relationship!” (Catalogue)
Category nominations:
- Best German VA Performance — Marios Gavrilis as Dio Brando
Jujutsu Kaisen / Gege Akutami
{shōnen: adventure, dark fantasy, supernatural}
“Yuji Itadori is resolved to save the world from cursed demons, but he soon learns that the best way to do it is to slowly lose his humanity and become one himself! In a world where cursed spirits feed on unsuspecting humans, fragments of the legendary and feared demon Ryomen Sukuna were lost and scattered about. Should any demon consume Sukuna’s body parts, the power they gain could destroy the world as we know it…” (Adapted from Catalogue)
Category wins:
- Best Action
- Best Girl — Nobara Kugisaki
- Best Fight Scene — Yuji Itadori and Aoi Todo vs. Hanami
- Best Character Design — designs by Tadashi Hiramatsu and Gege Akutami
- Best German VA Performance — René Dawn-Claude as Satoru Gojo
- Best Portuguese VA Performance — Leo Rabelo as Satoru Gojo
Category nominations:
- Anime of the Year
- Best Protagonist — Yuji Itadori
- Best Fight Scene — Itadori and Kugisaki vs. Eso and Kechizu
- Best Director — Sunghoo Park
- Best Animation — MAPPA Studios
- Best Opening Sequence — ‘Vivid Vice’ by Who-ya Extended
- Best English VA Performance — Adam McArthur as Yuji Itadori
- Best French VA Performance — Mark Lesser as Satoru Gojo
- Best Latin American VA Performance — José Gilberto Vilchis as Satoru Gojo
- Best Portuguese VA Performance — Amanda Brigido as Nobara Kugisaki
Kaguya-Sama: Love is War / Akasaka, Aka
{seinen: psychological, romantic comedy, slice-of-life}
“As leaders of their prestigious academy’s student council, Kaguya and Miyuki are the elite of the elite! But it’s lonely at the top… Luckily for them, they’ve fallen in love! There’s just one problem—they both have too much pride to admit it. And so begins the daily scheming to get the object of their affection to confess their romantic feelings first…Love is a war you win by losing.” (OverDrive description)
Category nominations:
- Best Latin American VA Performance — Jessica Ángeles as Kaguya Shinomiya
Komi Can’t Communicate / Tomohito Oda
{shōnen: coming-of-age, romantic comedy, slice of life}
“Socially anxious high school student Shoko Komi would love to make friends, but her shyness is interpreted as reserve, and the other students keep her at a distance. Only timid Tadano realizes the truth, and despite his own desire to blend in, he decides to help her achieve her goal of making 100 friends.” (Catalogue)
Category wins:
- Best Comedy
Category nominations:
- Best Romance
- Best Girl — Shoko Komi
My Hero Academia / Kōhei Horikoshi
{shōnen: adventure, fantasy, superheroes}
“Middle school student Izuku Midoriya wants to be a hero more than anything, but he hasn’t got an ounce of power in him. With no chance of ever getting into the prestigious U.A. High School for budding heroes, his life is looking more and more like a dead end. Then an encounter with All Might, the greatest hero of them all, gives him a chance to change his destiny…” (Adapted from Catalogue)
Category nominations:
- Best Antagonist — Tomura Shigaraki
One Piece / Eiichirō Oda
{shōnen: adventure, fantasy}
“As a child, Monkey D. Luffy dreamed of becoming King of the Pirates. But his life changed when he accidentally ate the Gum-Gum Fruit, an enchanted Devil Fruit that gave him the ability to stretch like rubber. Its only drawback? He’ll never be able to swim again– a serious handicap for an aspiring sea dog! Years later, Luffy sets off on his quest to find the One Piece, said to be the greatest treasure in the world…” (OverDrive)
Category nominations:
- Best Portuguese VA Performance — Carol Valença as Monkey D. Luffy
- Best Russian VA Performance — Polina Rtischeva as Monkey D. Luffy
Re:Zero: Starting Life in Another World / Tappei Nagatsuki
{shōnen: adventure, dark fantasy, isekai}
“Subaru Natsuki was just trying to get to the convenience store but wound up summoned to another world. He encounters the usual things–life-threatening situations, silver haired beauties, cat fairies–you know, normal stuff. All that would be bad enough, but he’s also gained the most inconvenient magical ability of all–time travel, but he’s got to die to use it. How do you repay someone who saved your life when all you can do is die?” (Catalogue)
Category nominations:
- Best Antagonist — Echidna
- Best Portuguese VA Performance — Luísa Viotti as Echidna
Sailor Moon / Naoko Takeuchi
{shōjo: fantasy, magical girl}
“Usagi Tsukino is a normal girl until she meets up with Luna, a talking cat, who tells her that she is Sailor Moon. As Sailor Moon, Usagi must fight evils and enforce justice, in the name of the Moon and the mysterious Moon Princess. She meets other girls destined to be Sailor Senshi (Sailor Scouts), and together, they fight the forces of evil!” (Catalogue)
Category nominations:
- Best Spanish VA Performance — Adelaida López as Usagi Tsukino
The Way of the Househusband / Kousuke Oono
{seinen: action, comedy, slice of life}
“It’s a day in the life of your average househusband if your average househusband is the legendary yakuza “the Immortal Dragon”! A former yakuza legend leaves it all behind to become your everyday househusband. But it’s not easy to walk away from the gangster life, and what should be mundane household tasks are anything but!” (Catalogue)
Category nominations:
- Best Spanish VA Performance — Marc Zanni as Tatsu
Lastly, we’d like to give a special shout-out to perennial cult classic and fan favourite Cowboy Bebop, which was nominated for Best Latin American VA Performance, for José Vilchis’ performance as Spike Spiegel. We sadly don’t have this in our collection, but we do have DVDs of the original anime series and movie as well as Rose Bridge’s excellent book for the 33 1/3 series dissecting the official soundtrack:
Yōko Kanno’s Cowboy bebop soundtrack / Bridges, Rose
“Cowboy Bebop is one of the most beloved anime series of all time, and if you ask its fans why, you can expect to hear about its music. Composer Yoko Kanno created an eclectic blend of jazz, rock, lullabies, folk and funk (to list just a few) for Cowboy Bebop’s many moods and environments. Cowboy Bebop’s blend of science fiction, westerns and gangster films promised to be “the work which becomes a new genre itself,” and only Kanno’s score could deliver.” (Adapted from Catalogue)
