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41st Annual Kodansha Manga Awards' Nominees Announced

Japanese publisher Kodansha announced the nominees on Friday for its 41st annual Manga Awards, honoring 14 titles across three categories. The winner for each category will be announced on May 9.

Best Shōnen Manga

Fire Force (Enn Enn no Shouboutai)
Atsushi Ohkubo
Magazine: Weekly Shōnen Magazine (Kodansha)
Summary: Terror has paralyzed the clockwork metropolis of Tokyo! Possessed by demons, people have begun to burst into flame, leading to the establishment of a special firefighting team: the Fire Force, ready to roll on a moment's notice to fight spontaneous combustion anywhere it might break out. The team is about to get a very unique addition: Shinra, a boy who possesses the unique power to run at the speed of a rocket, leaving behind the famous "devil's footprints" (and destroying his shoes in the process). Can the Fire Force discover the source of this strange phenomenon and put a stop to it? Or will the city burn to ashes first?

Kishuku Gakkō no Juliet
Yōsuke Kaneda
Magazine: Bessatsu Shonen Magazine (Kodansha)
Summary: The Dahlia Academy boarding school is attended by two students from two nations, and a forbidden love blooms between them. In the Tōwa Nation's dormitory stands Romeo Inuzuka, and in the Principality of West dormitory stands his lover and eternal enemy, Juliet Percia. Everything begins with the confession that Romeo stakes his life on.

Altair: A Record of Battles (Shōkoku no Altair)
Kotono Katō
Magazine: Monthly Shonen Magazine (Kodansha)
Summary: For generations the Turkiye Devleti and the Balt-Rhein Empire have stood in stern opposition to each other. Then one night, when an imperial minister is found assassinated, the two nations are plunged into a potentially explosive situation. As the generals of Turkiye's council cry for war, Mahmut comes to discover the devious truth behind the assassination. Thus the young pasha's battle for his country, peace, and trust in his fellow man begins!

Dagashi Kashi
Kotoyama
Magazine: Weekly Shonen Sunday (Shogakukan)
Summary: The story follows Kokonotsu, who does not want to inherit his family's rural candy store as his father wishes. A girl named Hotaru, who's crazy about small-time candy stores, appears at the store and repeatedly visits in order to convince him to take it over. The title means "Cheap Sweets Candy," which is also the name of a Japanese band, but read differently it could mean "However."

Best Shōjo Manga

Omoi, Omoware, Furi, Furare
Io Sakisaka
Magazine: Bessatsu Margaret (Shueisha)
Summary: Yuna wants a love that's like a dream. Akari thinks she can become better at love and is very realistic in her approach. The two heroines' stories will unfold beside two male main characters. Kazuomi doesn't understand love. He asks, "What's that, something tasty?" On the other hand, Rio won't reject anyone who comes his way, as long as that person is cute.

Deguchi Zero
Haruhi Seta
Magazine: Nakayoshi (Kodansha)
Summary: Yūhi Akabane is a 15-year-old girl who dreams of being an actress. She has decided to go to the acting school Diamond Actors Academy, which has produced many famous actors and actresses in the entertainment business. However, it turns out the school holds more than she expected: the Lady Queen, the teacher with the highest authority, is a killer who will murder anyone who fails a subject. And now there's no way out.

Harumatsu Bokura
Anashin
Magazine: Dessert (Kodansha)
Summary: Mitsuki always wanted to have real friends, but she always had a tendency to be a loner. Even when she entered high school with the intent to not be a loner, she was largely unsuccessful. The only thing that made her happy was the cafe where she worked part-time. One day, four super-cool guys showed up at the cafe where Mitsuki works, but they made her upset. When she finds out that they were all members of the basketball club at her school, her life begins to change!

P to JK
Maki Miyoshi
Magazine: Bessatsu Friend (Kodansha)
Summary: The manga revolves around a first-year high school student named Kako who is a beginner at love, and a handsome policeman named Kōta. The two meet at a mixer and are immediately attracted to each other, but Kōta starts treating her coldly after he realizes she is a high school student. The two decide to get married instead of just date, and after getting Kako's parents' permission, they marry secretly and have a commuter marriage until Kako graduates from high school. The manga follows their trials and tribulations through their marriage.

Best General Manga

Grand Blue
Story: Kenji Inoue, Art: Kimitake Yoshioka
Magazine: good! Afternoon (Kodansha)
Summary: The manga centers on the budding youthful drama of a college student living in a coastal city who meets scuba-diving and sake-loving upperclassmen and extraordinarily beautiful women.

The Fable
Katsuhisa Minami
Magazine: Young Magazine (Kodansha)
Summary: A fabled genius at killing resides somewhere hidden in Osaka. Taught since childhood to obey the orders of his boss, he is ordered to live in Osaka as a normal person for one year in order for the boss to lay low.

Interviews with Monster Girls (Demi-chan wa Kataritai)
Petosu
Magazine: Young Magazine the 3rd (Kodansha)
Summary: Monsters of legend walk among us, going by the name “demi-humans.” Ever since he's discovered the “demis,” one young man has become obsessed with them. So when he gets a job as a teacher at a high school for demi-girls, it's a dream come true! But these demis, who include a rambunctious vampire, a bashful headless girl, and a succubus, have all the problems normal teenagers have, on top of their supernatural conditions. How to handle a classroom full of them?!

Tokyo Tarareba Girls (Tokyo Tarareba Musume)
Akiko Higashimura
Magazine: Kiss (Kodansha)
Summary: Kaori, Rinko, and Koyuki are three single women who are around 30-years-old. They didn't expect to still be single, and with the Olympics approaching, they're wondering what they can do about it.

Otaku ni Koi wa Muzukashii
Fujita
Magazine: Pixiv/comic POOL (Ichijinsha)
Summary: The story centers on the awkward romantic comedy between Narumi, a female office worker who hides her fujoshi lifestyle, and Hirotaka, a handsome and capable company man who is secretly a game otaku.

In past years, Kodansha gave out a "Best Children's Manga" award as well, but starting in 2015 Kodansha has integrated the nominees for that category into the Best Shōnen Manga and Best Shōjo Manga categories instead.

Last year, Tsuyoshi Yasuda's DAYS manga won the Best Shōnen Manga award, Junko's Kiss Him, Not Me manga won the Best Shōjo Manga award, and Yū Suzunoki's Kōnodori manga won the Best General Manga award.

Source: Comic Natalie