Anime NYC and Japan Society have announced the winners of the second annual American Manga Awards, during a ceremony held on August 21 at the historic Japan Society in Manhattan. The award, which was launched last year, celebrates the best manga published in North America all while uplifting the world and art of Japanese comics. The ceremony coincided with the first day of Anime NYC, the Japanese pop culture convention being held at the Javits Center in New York City August 21–24.
This year, Sumiko Arai’s The Guy She Was Interested In Wasn’t a Guy at All snagged the Best New Manga award, and The Apothecary Diaries by Hyuganatsu and illustrated by Nekokurage won in the Best Continuing Manga Series category. Ashita no Joe by Asao Takamori, who died in 1987, and Tetsuya Chiba took home two prizes for Best New Edition of Classic Manga and Best Letting. The full list of winners are as follows:
- Best New Manga: The Guy She Was Interested In Wasn't a Guy at All, Volume 1, by Sumiko Arai (Yen Press)
- Best Continuing Manga Series: The Apothecary Diaries, Volumes 12 - 13, by Hyuganatsu, with art by Nekokurage (Square Enix Manga & Books)
- Best New Edition of Classic Manga: Ashita no Joe: Fighting for Tomorrow, Volumes 1-2, by Asao Takamori and Tetsuya Chiba (Kodansha)
- Best One-Shot Manga: Tamaki & Amane by Fumi Yoshinaga (Yen Press)
- Best Translation: The Otaku Love Connection, Volume 1, by Chu Amairo, trans. by minami (Square Enix Manga & Books)
- Best Lettering: Evan Hayden for Ashita no Joe: Fighting for Tomorrow, Volumes 1-2, by Asao Takamori and Tetsuya Chiba (Kodansha)
- Best Publication Design: Riley VanDyke and Carl Gustav Horn for Planetes, deluxe ed., Book 1, by Makoto Yukimura (Dark Horse Manga)
When Ashita no Joe won its second award of the evening, artist Tetsuya Chiba said, “I’m already so grateful just to see this being published in translation in America, but two awards? Wow, what an unexpected joy. It just brings home to me how lucky we were to have so many wonderful people involved with this series, from my partner Asao Takamori on down.”
“Anime NYC and Japan Society are proud to once again celebrate the incredible talent, creativity, and impact of the manga community,” MK Goodwin, Anime NYC’s event director, said in a statement. “We’re thrilled to honor these storytellers and continue building a tradition that shines a spotlight on their work year after year.”
