Matt Schley
April 22, 2024 
Back in February, we reported that 10 titles had been nominated for the annual Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize. Now we’ve learned which manga won the coveted award, named after the Godfather of Manga himself.
The lead prize went to PLINIVS, the historical manga by Mari Yamazaki (Thermae Romae) and Miki Tori. The manga, which ran for 12 volumes, is a biography of Plinivs, also known as Pliny the Elder. It ran from 2013 to 2023.
Meanwhile, the award for best new manga went to Kanda Gokura-cho Shokunin Banashi by Akihito Sakaue. The manga tells the tales of daily lives of craftspeople in Edo period Japan like blacksmiths and tatami stitchers.
The short manga award went to Tsuyukusa Nanatsuko no Issho by Miri Masuda. The manga is a slice-of-life story about a 32-year-old manga artist and their daily ups and downs, and also deals with the COVID-19 pandemic and the impermanence of life.
Finally, the special award went to the executive committee of Comitia, the long-running doujinshi event focused entirely on original works. The event was first held 40 years ago in 1984 and is held in multiple cities throughout Japan over the course of a year.
Hopefully some of this attention prompts official English-language releases for these award-winning manga!
Source: Asahi Shinbun
