Kagurabachi, The Apothecary Diaries, and more nominated for 70th Shogakukan Manga Awards

Thursday, December 5, 2024, saw the nominees for the 70th Shogakukan Manga Awards officially announced, including Kagurabachi, The Apothecary Diaries, and more manga series. 12 manga series in total have been nominated for the awards, with this being the second year that Shogakukan has stopped dividing nominees into categories.

A vast majority of the works nominated, including The Apothecary Diaries spinoff, come from Shogakukan, with Kodansha having two works nominated, and Shueisha one. However, it is worth noting that Shueisha’s one nominee is Takeru Hokazono’s Kagurabachi, which is very arguably the frontrunner for this year’s awards.

Kagurabachi, The Apothecary Diaries spinoff two most notable nominees announced thus far

As mentioned above, Takeru Hokazono’s Kagurabachi serialized in Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump magazine is the frontrunner in this year’s awards. This is largely due to the immense popularity and praise the series has received since debuting, which is almost unheard of for a new series. Likewise, it’s also one of the most recognizable titles in the nominees, alongside The Apothecary Diaries spinoff Maomao’s Notes from the Inner Palace series.

Maomao’s Notes from the Inner Palace is written and illustrated by Minoji Kurata, with Touko Shino serving as the original character designer and Natsu Hyuga as the original creator. The manga is serialized in Shogakukan’s Sunday GX magazine. Shogakukan has been awarding the prize since 1956, with last year’s winners including Frieren, The Elusive Samurai, Trillion Game, and more. Additional nominees for the 70th Shogakukan Manga Awards include:

In the Clear Moonlit Dusk by Mika Yamamori, serialized in Kodansha’s Dessert
Kujo no Taizai by Shohei Manabe, serialized in Shogakukan’s Weekly Big Comic Spirits
Kore Kaite Shine by Minoru Toyoda, serialized in Shogakukan’s Monthly Shonen Sunday
Burning Kabaddi by Hajime Musashino, serialized in Shogakukan’s Manga ONE
Natsume Arata no Kekkon by Taro Nogizaka, serialized in Shogakukan’s Big Comic Superior
Puuniru wa Kawaii Slime by Maedakun, serialized in Shogakukan’s Weekly Coro Coro Comics
Black Alice by Satomi Nakamura, serialized in Shogakukan’s Ciao
Manchuria Opium Squad by author Tsukasa Monma and illustrator Shikako, serialized in Kodansha’s Young Magazine
Yume no Shizuku, Kin no Torikago by Chie Shinohara, serialized in Shogakukan’s Anekei Puchi Comic
Red Blue by Atsushi Namikiri, serialized in Shogakukan’s Weekly Shonen Sunday

The Apothecary Diaries first began as a web novel on the Shosetsuka ni Naro website by Natsu Hyuga, before being adapted into a light novel with illustrations from Touko Shino. Artist Nekokurage has adapted the light novels into a manga series. A television anime adaptation premiered in Fall 2023, with a second season currently being produced.

Takeru Hokazono’s Kagurabachi manga series first began serialization in September 2023 as a part of Shuieisha’s JUMP NEXTWAVE initiative. It is the only series of the three introduced to still be ongoing today. It was recently reported that a television anime adaptation had been greenlit, with CyGames Pictures and Shochiku being involved.