The Crunchyroll Anime Awards are back to celebrate the year’s best anime content, and have finally released more details about the awards ceremony, as well as when and where to buy tickets for the event. The awards ceremony is set to take place on the night of February 24th, 2018 at the Montalban Theater in Hollywood and is a celebration of all things anime. If you aren’t able to make it to the ceremony, as it will also be live streamed here.
During the ceremony, shows that will be highlighted include both shows that live on Crunchyroll, and those that don’t, such as Crunchyroll’s ‘My Hero Academia‘ Season 2, Amazon’s ‘Made in Abyss‘, and Netflix’s ‘Little Witch Academia‘ Season 2. Here’s the trailer for the anime awards for a preview of what’s to come with this year’s awards:
[su_youtube url=”https://youtu.be/CyV1Bhxv9Tk”]Here are all of the nominees for this year’s awards:
Anime of the Year:
- March Comes in Like a Lion – Season 2 (Crunchyroll)
- Made in Abyss (Amazon)
- Land of the Lustrous(Amazon)
- My Hero Academia – Season 2 (Crunchyroll)
- Descending Stories: Shōwa Genroku Rakugo Shinjū – Season 2 (Crunchyroll)
- Little Witch Academia (Netflix)
Manga of the Year:
- “Golden Kamuy” Vol. 1
- “My Lesbian Experience with Loneliness”
- “My Brother’s Husband” Vol. 1
- “In This Corner of the World”
- “Descending Stories: Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinju”
- “Delicious in Dungeon” Vol. 1
Best Action
- My Hero Academia – Season 2 (Crunchyroll)
- Land of the Lustrous (Amazon)
- Blood Blockade Battlefront & Beyond(Crunchyroll)
- Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron Blooded Orphans – Season 2 (Crunchyroll)
- Attack on Titan – Season 2 (Crunchyroll)
- Fate/Apocrypha (Netflix)
In addition, here are some testimonials from this year’s panel of judges on what the Crunchyroll Anime Awards have in store for attendees and online viewers next month.
Andrew McDanell – Co-Founder of OtakuSpirit.com
“Never in my many years of anime viewing would I imagine taking part in such an exciting event as the Anime Awards. Any chance to give credit to the anime we know and love is something special. For me, I don’t see it so much as a competition, but rather a celebration. A celebration that has no losers. While not every title can make it to the top, there really isn’t a title that doesn’t bring joy or connect with someone personally.”
“Anime as a medium has come a long way for the western audience. Availability is great, the volume of releases is overwhelming, and there’s nearly something for everyone to enjoy. As such, the necessity for an Anime Awards has never been truer. It’s important to not only highlight fantastic titles, but give credit to the creators who pour their efforts into such a unique medium of entertainment.”
Zac Bertschy – Executive Editor at Anime News Network
“I think it’s fair, at this point, to attribute a pretty sizable chunk of anime’s current cultural ubiquity to the relentless effort of Crunchyroll. It makes perfect sense to me that they’d be the ones (at long last, in my opinion) to give this vibrant, challenging, constantly-evolving artform a proper celebration. It’s something I’m proud to participate in.”
Yssa Badiola – Lead 2D Animator at Rooster Teeth Animation
“At least 200 series have been produced in 2017, and it’s high time we acknowledge the hard work, passion, and dedication that goes into each project. As a professional animator and an anime fan, it’s great to know that the Anime Awards are here to highlight the series you should take risks on.”
Miranda Sanchez – Editor, IGN
On The Anime Awards’ value:
“Of all the media I’ve covered, I rarely see the same level of camaraderie as I do with the anime community. Events like The Anime Awards are a wonderful way to bring the community together. Being able to talk about some of the best anime of the year with other fans that are just as passionate is exciting! Regardless of the results, events like this are also a great opportunity to learn about anime that you may not have considered watching before.”
On differences between this year and last year:
“The process for choosing nominees and winners this year is much more rigorous. I’ve felt a lot more involved in helping curate a great selection of nominees with the other judges. Unlike other awards, The Anime Awards is unique in that it favors fan opinion over a panel of judges or separate awards between a panel and fans. I like that it brings both groups together so that the community as a whole has a chance to choose the best anime of 2017.”
On being a judge:
“I enjoyed contributing to The Anime Awards last year, and I think this year will be even more fun! I’m honored to have the opportunity to collaborate with other great people working in the anime industry to determine this year’s best anime.”
Make sure to check back in as voting concludes and winners are honored at the Crunchyroll Anime Awards ceremony next month!