Kagurabachi Takes Home New Popularity Award That Tees Up an Anime

Kagurabachi is not even a year old and already a major contender at Shonen Jump.

By Megan Peters

Kagurabachi is nearing its first anniversary, but despite its youth, the series stands as one of the biggest in shonen. Created by Takeru Hokazono, Kagurabachi managed to become a viral hit even before it was released, and the action-packed manga has only grown bigger since its launch. As such, the series just took home a big award in Japan, and it has sparked buzz about a Kagurabachi anime.

The whole thing came to light in Japan as the Tsugi ni Kuru Manga Awards posted its picks for 2024. While the digital category went to Girl Meets Rock, the physical manga category went to Kagurabachi. The fan-voted award gifted Hokazono's manga 101,836 votes which is more than 3x what second place earned.

As you can see, Kagurabachi fans came out in full force for this award, and the Tsugi ni Kuru prize is a coveted one. Japan loves few things more than a popularity poll, and this manga award marks one of the industry's most famous. Many previous winners of the Tsugi ni Kuru Manga Award have gone on to get anime adaptations, so all eyes are on Kagurabachi.

After all, Hokazono's art style is incredibly cinematic, and it has been begging for an anime since day one. A number of fan-artists have started their own anime projects to bring Chihiro to life if you can believe it. Given the fast rise of Kagurabachi, an anime adaptation is a matter of when rather than if. Despite its success, we do need to remember that Kagurabachi is not even a year old yet. Hokazono needs to ink more arcs on page before an anime adaptation can be feasibly considered, but once it has enough material banked, you can bet the competition for Kagurabachi's license will be fierce.

If you have not read the sword-fighting shonen, Kagurabachi is easy to find. The manga is available on Viz Media's Shonen Jump app, and the publisher is working on a physical release of Kagurabachi to boot. So for those wanting more info on the series, you can read its official synopsis below:

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"Young Chihiro spends his days training under his famous swordsmith father. One day he hopes to become a great sword-maker himself. The goofy father and the serious son--they thought these days would last forever. But suddenly, tragedy strikes. A dark day soaked in blood. Chihiro and his blade now live only for revenge. Epic sword battle action!"

What do you make of this latest Kagurabachi award? Give me a shout at @meganwpeters with your take! You can also let us know what you think over on Twitter and Instagram.

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