Anime, manga, and K-Comic Platforms • Where do you read and watch anime, manga and Korean comics online?
read more
×
remind me tomorrow
remind me next week
never remind me
Subscribe to the ANN Newsletter • Wake up every Sunday to a curated list of ANN's most interesting posts of the week.
read more
ANN Readers' Choice Awards
by Diane Concepcion,
Hello, ANN Community! Thank you for participating in our first-ever ANN Readers' Choice Awards! We were absolutely blown away by the outcome! With over 300 participants joining us, the turnout was incredible, and so were the results! And so, without delay, here are the 2024 Anime News Network Readers' Choice Awards winners!
Maomao was definitely in the lead! Our young apothecary won our ANN readers' hearts with a whopping 129 votes or 42.2% of the total votes. Everyone else couldn't catch up, even Momo Ayase (DAN DA DAN) and Kumiko Omae (Sound! Euphonium 3), who had only 21.9% and 9.8%, respectively.
This was a surprise and a tight competition! With so many nominees, Laios and Kafka were tied with 34 votes or 11.1% of the total vote and won this round. However, Ken Takakura (DAN DA DAN) was close; he was a vote away! After Ken Takakura, everyone else could not keep up. Lawrence Kraft (Spice and Wolf) and Natsume Takashi (Natsume's Book of Friends) trailed Ken Takakura with 26 and 24 votes respectively.
Makoto Hanaoka of Senpai is an Otokonoko captivated us with their performance. The nonbinary beauty, often dressed as a girl with a long blonde wig, came out ahead of their fellow competitors, Makoto Tainuma (Dead Dead Demon's Dededede Destruction), Guideau (The Witch and the Beast), and Margarette Macaron (Mashle: Magic and Muscles). Their story touches on both the emotional fallout of being different and the everyday issues of high school, and Makoto embodies both of them. The community has deemed Makoto Hanaoka to be the best (and cutest of) them all!
Best Villain of the Year: Turbo Granny of DAN DA DAN
Another one bites the dust for Turbo Granny! With 78 votes, no one could keep pace with her, even the agile Himiko Toga with 30 votes, and our beloved and beautiful Goddess Freya, from Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? V, who had 50 votes. With her big bright yellow eyes, unruly white hair, and her comical taste for schlongs, she is not to be underestimated! This granny is the winner of this Villain of the Year race! This definitely shows that Turbo Granny's reputation precedes her, as she is an urban legend from Japan. Also, be careful when driving since you might encounter this yokai!
Frieren: Beyond Journey's End is a masterful piece. In an anime fantasy world filled with mages, elves, demons, and dwarves, a majestic soundtrack is needed. With 114 votes, it is no surprise that the soundtrack has touched the ANN community's hearts. A round of applause goes to Evan Call, the composer of this slice-of-life anime series, who is also the composer of Violet Evergarden and the recent My Happy Marriage! His incredible conducting skills bring the orchestra and choir to life, whisking us away to the enchanting world of Freiren, where every moment is filled with magical adventure.
The most discussed section of the Reader's Choice Awards! With over 20 nominations, the anime series that received 13.7% or 42 votes, beating The Apothecary Diaries by a mere two votes, Yatagarasu takes the first place! Based on a Japanese novel series, this anime aired in the spring of 2024. This captivating anime not only whisks us away to a fascinating alternate world where humans can transform into ravens, but it also dives deep into rich drama and thought-provoking political dialogues. The ANN community has dubbed this series the Most Underrated Anime of 2024, shining a light on its unique storytelling and compelling themes.
And this is where we conclude the Readers' Choice Awards! So, what do you think of the 2024 winners? Is it a yay or a nay? Let us know your thoughts on our Talkback Thread, and we'll see you on the next one!
Time travel is a cool angle to approach a power fantasy anime, but poor writing prevents it from ever feeling like it’s living up to its full potential.― I'm not going to sit here and legitimately argue that it's either a point for or against this anime that its esteemed hero of a protagonist—the legendary warrior who's transcended time itself to save everyone—is named Kyle. Friggin… Kyle. But there...
Season to premiere next year with returning main cast, staff― The official website for the television anime of Rikito Nakamura and Yukiko Nozawa's The 100 Girlfriends Who Really, Really, Really, Really, Really Love You (Kimi no koto ga Dai Dai Dai Dai Daisuki na 100-nin no Kanojo) manga announced on Saturday that the anime will have a third season next year. The tagline on the teaser visual below re...
Dancer/actor Min Tanaka, playwright/actor Hideki Noda also honored― The Japanese government has selected 21 honorees for this year's roster of Persons of Cultural Merit. The roster includes Masako Nozawa (Dragon Ball's Son Goku, Gegege no Kitarō's Kitarō) as the first voice actor to be so honored, as well as manga creator Keiko Takemiya (Toward the Terra, The Door into Summer, Andromeda Stories), da...
Shindou-kun's Tight Squeeze may not be the most creative romance manga out there, explicit or otherwise, but if you're looking for a spicy good time, it more than fits the bill.― I've read most of Seven Seas' releases under its Steamship imprint, in no small part because I've crusaded for years on the concept that those of us who were little girls reading Sailor Moon and Cardcaptor Sakura are now ad...
Jean-Karlo takes next week off, but not before he imparts some Digimon deep cuts from the "Prelude" anime short.― Welcome back, folks! So, I know what this looks like, and by the time you read this, I will be in San Diego on vacation. But this past Sunday rolled around, and I was preparing myself to write this week's column, only to remember I was supposed to be on vacation. But then I realized, my ...
This Halloween season marks the perfect occasion to sit down and watch some of the best horror anime out there—and the ANN staff is here with their recommendations!― Horror is a broad genre with many facets. For some, it's simply ghosts and monsters—the eldritch and the unknowable. For others, it's more psychological—the twisted aspects of the human soul and the terror born therein. And for still o...
Nikkei Entertainment! shares a behind-the-scenes interview with the cast of the summer's hottest film, Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Infinity Castle!― English translation of articles from the Japanese entertainment magazine Nikkei Entertainment! Read Nikkei Entertainment! on the web! Find Nikkei Entertainment! on Instagram and X On July 11, a Pre-release Blessing Event was held at Zojoji Temple in ...
Ayune Araragi's story of police officer, detective's journey to discovering love― Kadokawa announced on Friday that a television anime of Ayune Araragi's Isshiki-san wa Koi o Shiritai (Isshiki-san Wants to Know Romance) manga has been green-lit. Araragi drew an illustration to celebrate the news: The romantic comedy follows Rinna Isshiki, an elite, straight-laced officer who joined the police at age...
Tomokazu Seki, Shunsuke Takeuchi, Yoshitsugu Matsuoka, Chiaki Kobayashi, Kikunosuke Toya star in modern remake― A new television anime of Motoei Shinzawa's High School! Kimengumi (High School! Funny-Face Club) manga will premiere next January. It will run in Fuji TV network's Noitamina programming block on Fridays at 11:30 p.m. (9:30 a.m. EST). A website opened on Friday with an image music video an...
The first episode's premiere ends up being a set-up appetizer for the rib-eye steak of its second episode, which knocks it out of the park.― “Love and Peace,” hollered scores of Vash cosplayers at the Trigun Stargaze panel at New York Comic Con, hosted by Crunchyroll. That's a lofty dream for the much-beloved pacifist gunslinger, Vash the Stampede, in the desert Noman's Land. At the panel, the Trig...
I’m just amazed by how much you could squeeze out of this bizarre premise.― Let's Go Karaoke! is a series that succeeds in making the unbelievable believable. It's a comedy at heart, yet the bond between its two unlikely leads makes for melodrama that's both kitschy and effective. Who'd'a thunk that the best way to overcome your musical failures and teen angst was by teaching a yakuza member how to ...
"Final message" posted on Itagaki's Facebook account― The official Facebook account of game designer Tomonobu Itagaki announced on Thursday that he has died. A "final message" from Itagaki stated on the account that if the message has been posted, it means that he has died. Itagaki was 58. The message translates:My final words:The light of my life is finally fading.If this message has been posted, i...
Who will find the blue-eyed white sauvignon blanc?― We last left Shizuku and Issei facing a challenge from a secret cabal of wine experts whose self-appointed role is to preserve Yutaka Kanzaki's true goal – the perfection of the “mariage” of wine and food. In Volume two, to be seen as worthy of the challenge of finding “The Drops of God,” Issei and Shizuku must first pass a preliminary test, consis...
The voices of Johnny Joestar, Gyro Zeppeli, Diego Brando, Lucy Steel, and Steven Steel shared their excitement for the next installment of JoJo's!― April 12, 2025, fans of Jojo's Bizarre Adventure waited with bated breath during the final JOJODAY 2025 announcement, “Total Distance: Roughly 6,000 km. Prize money: 50 million dollars. Humanity's first horse race across America. Steel Ball Run Jojo's Bi...
Iwaisawa's attention to natural movement and his team's stylistic take on the camera angles help to visually elevate the movie's message about chasing one's passion.― Six years ago, Kenji Iwaisawa took the world by surprise with his hilariously charming adaptation of Hiroyuki Ohashi's ON-GAKU. Now, with a larger budget and a team of industry professionals, Iwaisawa has taken on the challenge of adap...