On Saturday, Crunchyroll held their first Anime Awards show at San Francisco’s Folsom Street Foundry. At the show, festivities, including a live DJ, anime screenings, video game lounges, and custom T-shirt printing.
The main attraction, though, was the presentation for Anime of the Year. Earlier this month, Crunchyroll unveiled thirteen of the fourteen categories, which ranged from “Best Male Character” to “Most Heartwarming Scene.” For the show, though, Crunchyroll kept “Anime of the Year” close to their chests.
Looking at the previous announcement, it almost seemed like a foregone conclusion when Yuri!!! On ICE was revealed to be Crunchyroll’s first big winner. The title, which won seven of the other thirteen categories, seemed like the overwhelming favorite going into the evening.
That said, when the envelope was finally opened, it seemed almost like an inevitability that Yuri!!! On ICE was able to ride a wave of hype to claim the year’s biggest prize.
For those who aren’t familiar, Yuri!!! On ICE was a Fall 2016 series, from studio Mappa. Sayo Yamamoto (Michiko & Hatchin) and manga author Mitsurou Kubo (Moteki) created the project, with Yamamoto filling the dual role of director chair and series composition. Parasyte -the Maxim- character designer Tadashi Hiramatsu lent his talents as a character designer.
In North America, Funimation aired Yuri!!! On ICE as a Simuldub, while Crunchyroll simulcasted the subtitled version. Crunchyroll describes the show as:
Yuri Katsuki carried the hope of all Japan on his shoulders in the Figure Skating Grand Prix, but suffered a crushing defeat in the finals. He returned to his hometown in Kyushu and hid away in his family’s home, half wanting to continue skating and half wanting to retire. That was when the five-time consecutive world champion, Viktor Nikiforov, suddenly showed up with his teammate, Yuri Plisetsky, a young skater starting to surpass his seniors. And so the two Yuris and the Russian champion Viktor set out to compete in a Grand Prix like none the world has ever seen!
To the folks behind Yuri, congrats on your win. Here’s to another successful year at Mappa.
Source: Crunchyroll (Press Release)
