Entry tags:

awards, darkhorse, delrey, netcomics, ponentmon, tokyopop, viz

MangaCast Awards (Yomi's) Final Nominees
All right, the call went out to you the readers and fans of manga out there and in considering the time constraints and how small the audience is we got a good number of replies. The nominees are in and after doing a little math before passing it through to the head judge, a tanned Mr. Jarred Pine, I am proud to announce the final nominees.

First off a round of applause and many thanks to everyone who participated. Your votes have spoken and I believe the finalists are a pretty good indicator of some of the best of the last year. Obviously there was no way to get every title represented here, as everyone of them are excellent in their own right. Nevertheless, the finalists are still worthy of a look from all of you and are only the tip of the iceberg in terms to quality as manga continues to grow in North America.

Best Publisher

Dark Horse Comics is one of the largest comic-book publishers in the U.S. and is recognized as the world's leading publisher of licensed comics material. The company publishes a wide variety of licensed, creator-owned and company-owned books. In addition to publishing more than 500 books a year, the company is successfully involved in motion picture production through their Dark Horse Entertainment division.

Del Rey Manga launched its first titles in May 2004, when Random House and Kodansha entered into a large-scale cross-publishing relationship. As a result, Kodansha, the largest publisher in Japan, brought their strongest properties to the Del Rey Manga line. When the first four titles were released, Ken Akamatsu's Negima and CLAMP's Tsubasa were the top two graphic novels in the country, and CLAMP's xxxHOLiC and Sunrise's Gundam SEED were close behind. With just eleven manga releases that year, Del Rey's success resulted in its becoming the number four manga publisher in the United States, quickly establishing the company as a powerhouse in the fastest-growing field in American publishing.

Headquartered in San Francisco, CA, VIZ, LLC and ShoPro Entertainment, Inc. merged to form VIZ Media, LLC (VIZ Media), one of the most comprehensive and innovative companies in the field of manga publishing, animation and entertainment licensing of Japanese content. Owned by three of Japan's largest creators and licensors of manga and animation, Shueisha Inc., Shogakukan Inc., and Shogakukan Production Co., Ltd. (ShoPro Japan), VIZ Media is a leader in the publishing and distribution of Japanese manga for English speaking audiences in North America and a global licensor of Japanese animation. The company offers an integrated product line including, magazines such as SHONEN JUMP and Shojo Beat, graphic novels, videos, DVDs, audio soundtracks and develops and markets animated entertainment from initial production, television placement and distribution, to merchandise licensing and promotions for audiences and consumers of all ages.

Best Short

The Push Man by: Tatsumi Yasuhiro Publisher: Drawn & Quarterly

Sexy Voice & Robo by: Iou Kuroda Publisher: Viz Media/Shogakukan

Galaxy Angel Party Various Artists Publisher: Broccoli Books

Best Global Manga

DRAMACON by: Svetlana Chmakova Publisher: TOKYOPOP RUSSIA/CANADA

Dokebi Bride by: Marley Publisher: netcomics SOUTH KOREA

JAPAN Various Artists Publisher: Ponent Mon FRANCE/JAPAN

STEADY BEAT by: Rivkah Publisher: TOKYOPOP USA

Best Manga

Fullmetal Alchemist by: Arakawa Hiromu Publisher: Viz Media SquarEnix

NANA by: Yazawa Ai Publishers: Viz Media Shueisha

MONSTER by: Urusawa Naoki Publishers: Viz Media Shogakukan

DEATH NOTE by: Ohba Tsugumi/Obata Takeshi Publishers: Viz Media Shogakukan

The final nominees have been emailed to our judges and online ballots are due by June 17. Jarred and I have selected a good mix of MangaCast contributors, manga bloggers, commentators and a manga industry rep to select the best from the many first round nominees we received.

The Yomis will be handed out at this year's San Diego ComicCon to help celebrate the growth of the manga community in North America and commemorate the first anniversary of the MangaCast.