by The “Manga Award 2023” award ceremony, in which bookstores and other manga lovers from all walks of life select “the manga they want to recommend the most at this moment,” was held in Tokyo on the 27th. Author: Minoru Toyoda ) won the grand prize. Upon receiving the grand prize, Mr. Toyoda was surprised, saying, “Why me?” but also relieved, saying, “This year is my 20th year as a manga artist, so I feel like I’m finally doing it.”
“Gessan” (Shogakukan), serialized since November 2021, lives in Izu Oshima, 120 km south of Tokyo. The main character is Ai Sou, a first-year high school student who loves manga. When he learns that a long-time hiatus manga artist he admires will be exhibiting at a doujinshi sale, an unexpected encounter at the venue changes Ai’s life. Set in a high school manga study group, it is a creative youth drama depicting the pain and joy of creating a work.
How can I become a cartoonist? It is a story about a girl who steps into the world of manga creation that seems to be familiar but unknown and has attracted attention from active manga artists and manga fans, such as “a manga that makes you want to draw manga” and “I want to recommend it to everyone involved in creation.” Gathering, “This manga is amazing! 2023 “It has won 6th place in the man’s edition. Regarding the secret story behind the creation of the work, Mr. Toyoda said, “I decided on the title to inspire me before the serialization or to give me a sense of encouragement. I thought it would be perfect, and since it’s something I always say to myself, I decided to give it this title.”
The work depicts a manga artist, but “The part involving the teacher is a true story (laughs). After that, I put the feeling that I was about to die at that time … “At first, I wanted to make it a fun club activity. For the previous work, I drew whatever I wanted and said, ‘I’ve done it!’ With that in mind, I thought that next time I would draw a manga for people,” he said, telling him that he was drawing for people interested in creating manga. Also, “I have a child in the 3rd grade of elementary school, and the characters that appear in the first volume were drawn like a picture story for the first time, so I drew a manga that my daughter was drawing (laughs).
When I told him, “I won the Manga Taisho!” he was frustrated…I told him, “I’ll say this publicly, so please forgive me!” I could say it to him today.” it made me laugh. Furthermore, since his wife has experience as a manga artist, he said, “The character of a genius manga artist is a manga that a genius can only draw, so I leave it to my wife.”
The Manga Taisho was established in 2008 and is now in its 16th year. Of the works for which a new book was released last year (January 1 to December 31, 2022), works with a maximum of 8 volumes are eligible for selection. One of the judges selected “5 works that I would recommend to people” and nominated 11 works with the highest number of votes (including the same ranking). In the first selection, 102 judges voted for 242 jobs, and 11 nominated results were announced in January.
In the second selection, the judges read all the nominated works and then conducted the second selection, including 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place. After selecting and tallying on a point system, one piece was chosen for the “Manga Award.” Many of the award-winning and nominated works have been made into dramas and movies in addition to animation.
The 2008 first grand prize, “Gaku” (Shinichi Ishizuka, Shogakukan), was made into a movie starring Shun Oguri, and the third award, “Thermae Romae” (Mari Yamazaki), was also made into a movie starring Hiroshi Abe. In addition, the 2012 Grand Prize winner “Gin no Saji” (Hiroshi Arakawa) was made into an anime in Fuji TV’s late-night animation frame “Noitamina” and made into a live-action film starring Sexy Zone’s Kento Nakajima. How to become” (Mitsuharu Yanagimoto) was made into a movie starring Yurina Hirate.
“Manga Award 2023” Nominees ・ “Akane Banashi” Takamasa Umakami, Hiroki Suenaga ・ “Star of the Garden of Women” Yama Wayama ・ “Light Mask” Takayuki Yamaguchi “Sayonara Eri” Tatsuki Fujimoto ・ “Two people sucking tar behind the supermarket” Jishu ・ “Opposite you and me” Agazawa Kocha Ikka Matsuki, “Summer when the light died” Ren Mokumoku 1st grand prize winner (2008): “Mountain” Shinichi Ishizuka 2nd award (2009): “Chihayafuru” Yuki Suetsugu 3rd award (2010): “Thermae Romae” Mari Yamazaki 4th (2011): “Lion in March” Chika Umino 5th (2012): “Silver Spoon Silver
