The Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize celebrates the contributions of legendary mangaka and manga Pioneer Osamu Tezuka. He is the mangaka behind such legendary titles like Astro Boy, Black Jack, Kimba The White Lion, and Phoenix. And now, the Asahi Shimbun has announced all eight nominees who might win this year’s prize.

For this year, the nominees are:

  • Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba by Koyoharu Gotouge
  • Kodama Maria Bungaku Shuusei by Yoshiharu Mishima
  • Ulna at the Emplacement by Toru Izu
  • SPY×FAMILY by Tatsuya Endou
  • Nyx no Lantern by Kan Takahama
  • The Blue Period. by Tsubasa Yamaguchi
  • Sarissa of Noctilucent Cloud by Maki Matsuda and Kome
  • A Brief History of Robo sapiens by Toranosuke Shimada

An esteemed panel of judges picked the nominees from a pool of manga presented by specialists and bookstore employees. This year’s judges include actress Anne Watanabe, author Kazuki Sakuraba, mangaka Osamu Akimoto, Machiko Satonaka, and Tarou Minamoto, scholar Shouhei Chuujou, manga critic Nobunaga Minami, and manga researcher Tomoko Yamada. Manga have to have released a compiled tankoubon volume in order to be selected for such a prestigious award.

The Asahi Shimbun will then announce the winners in Late April 2020. After that, they will then hold an awarding ceremony on 4th June.

Previous winners include Golden Kamuy, Doraemon, MONSTER, Berserk, Beastars, and Saint Young Men.

Source: PR Times