‘Yuri On Ice’ Wins Crunchyroll’s First-Ever Anime Of The Year Award
Yuri On Ice, a Japanese anime that portrays the beautiful story of two male figure skaters coming to terms with their sexuality and overcoming personal hurdles, managed to win the “Anime of the Year Award” in Crunchyroll’s first-ever Anime Awards. The other notable finalists nominated by a panel of judges, were ERASED, Joker Game, Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress, Mob Psycho 100, My Hero Academia, Re:Zero, and Sh?wa Genroku Rakugo Shinj?.
Crunchyroll, a leading online destination for anime and manga announced that Yuri On Ice is the winner of The Anime of the Year Award. The announcement on Saturday 28 was about the platform’s inaugural Anime Awards. The award was announced in front of more than 400 of the leading anime influencers. The audience also had industry experts whose opinion mattered in the world of anime, as well as fans who were fortunate enough to attend the Crunchyroll Anime Awards Party in San Francisco. Fortunately, Crunchyroll ensured fans of anime across the world could watch the first-ever anime awards orchestrated by the platform. The entire event was streamed live.
The first-ever Anime Awards of Crunchyroll, meant to recognize and appreciate notable Japanese anime that aired in 2016, was topped by Yuri On Ice. The painfully short 12-episode anime enthralled its rapidly growing fan base with its unique storyline and topic that’s rarely observed in the world of anime. The immensely popular Japanese anime portrays the messy, yet beautiful relationship between Yuri, a 23-year-old figure skater from Japan, and Victor, a 27-year-old competitor from Russia.
Incidentally, Crunchyroll partly leveraged its community spread across the world to judge the winners in multiple categories. Speaking about YOI bagging the inaugural Anime Awards, Dallas Middaugh, Head of Content Management at Crunchyrollsaid,
“This first ever annual Anime Awards honed in on the best part of Crunchyroll: its community. Through the Anime Awards, fans have been able to engage with their favorite shows in new ways, connect with fellow members of the fandom, and celebrate the medium. The impassioned reaction to the Anime Awards illustrates both the anime fanbase’s collective commitment to the medium and the strength of the content created this year. We are thrilled to name Yuri!!! on ICE as the 2016 winner of the Anime of the Year Award, and are excited to recognize the incredible work and talent within anime in 2017 and years to come by continuing the tradition of the Anime Awards.”
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Yuri on Ice managed to win over 44 percent of the votes. Speaking about the phenomenal success of the anime, Kun Gao, General Manager and Founder of Crunchyroll, said,
“Yuri!!! on ICE has achieved tremendous popularity in 2016, and has pushed anime to new heights by innovating the traditional format of storytelling and bringing to light issues that are not commonly featured in the genre. It’s no surprise that Yuri!!! on ICE was the winner by a landslide. We are thrilled that Yuri!!! on Ice has both captivated passionate anime fans and introduced new viewers to anime, and we are privileged to have had the opportunity to distribute this amazing property to its many viewers outside Japan”
Besides “The Anime of the Year” award, Crunchyroll’s Anime Awards also lauded other interesting aspects of Japanese anime, including Hero of the Year, Villain of the Year, Best Couple, Best Fight Scene, and more, reported Market Wired.
[Featured Image by Mitsuro Kubo/Yuri!!! On Ice/Funimation]
