TL;DR, Kodansha announced the winners of the 50th Kodansha Manga Awards. Shonen, shojo, and general category winners plus the full nominated lists and the selection committee were released.
Kodansha has named the 50th Kodansha Manga Awards winners across Shonen, Shojo, and General categories. The prizes went to Utsuranain desu, Uruwashi no Yoi no Tsuki, and Kimi to Uchuu wo Aruku Tame ni, with full nominee lists and judges revealed. The announcement confirms the category champions alongside the other shortlisted titles.
Below you will find a clean winners list, every nominated work, the magazines each series runs in, and the full selection committee behind the 50th Kodansha Manga Awards winners. All details come from Kodansha’s official announcement.
Who won the 50th Kodansha Manga Awards?
Kodansha crowned three category champions and published the complete shortlists. Here are the headline results, followed by every nominated title in each field for quick reference.
- Shonen winner: Utsuranain desu by Ruka Konoshima
- Shojo winner: Uruwashi no Yoi no Tsuki by Mika Yamamori
- General winner: Kimi to Uchuu wo Aruku Tame ni by Inuhiko Doronoda
Shonen category nominees included a strong spread of magazine hits. Alongside Utsuranain desu, the shortlist featured Kaoru Hana wa Rin to Saku by Saka Mikami, Gachiakuta by Kei Urana, and Madan no Ichi by Osamu Nishi and Shiro Usazaki. These series reflect a mix of digital-first readers and weekly magazine audiences.
Fans will recognize Gachiakuta for its kinetic action and worldbuilding, while Kaoru Hana wa Rin to Saku brings school romance drama into the shonen space.
In Shojo, Uruwashi no Yoi no Tsuki led a lineup that also included Shinimodori no Mahou Gakkou Seikatsu wo, Moto Koibito to Prologue kara (Tadashi Koukando wa Zero) by Eiko Mutsuhana and Gin Shirakawa, Taiyou yori mo Mabushii Hoshi by Kazune Kawahara, and Tonari no Stella by Ammitsu. The slate spans contemporary teen romance to fantasy-tinged school life. For the General category, Kimi to Uchuu wo Aruku Tame ni prevailed over Darwin Jihen by Shun Umezawa, Nezumi no Hatsukoi by Riku Ooseto, Heisei Haizanhei Sumire-chan by Satomi U, and Mii-chan to Yamada-san by Nene Azuki.
This mix captures socially conscious storytelling, adult slice-of-life, and experimental humor. As listed by Kodansha, these are the 50th Kodansha Manga Awards winners and their fellow nominees.
Winners by category, with magazines and nominated titles
The Kodansha Manga Awards 2026 winners also arrived with publication details. In Shonen, Utsuranain desu by Ruka Konoshima appears in Weekly Shounen Sunday. That makes it a rare Shonen winner magazine entry from outside Kodansha’s own weeklies, reflecting the award’s cross-publisher scope.
The other Shonen shortlist entries span both print and app platforms: Kaoru Hana wa Rin to Saku by Saka Mikami runs on Magazine Pocket, while both Gachiakuta by Kei Urana and Madan no Ichi by Osamu Nishi and Shiro Usazaki serialize in Weekly Shounen Magazine.
For Shojo, Uruwashi no Yoi no Tsuki by Mika Yamamori runs in Dessert, a core Kodansha shojo line and a fitting home for the Shojo winner magazine spotlight. The category’s nominees reached across labels: Shinimodori no Mahou Gakkou Seikatsu wo, Moto Koibito to Prologue kara (Tadashi Koukando wa Zero) by Eiko Mutsuhana and Gin Shirakawa is from Flos Comic, Taiyou yori mo Mabushii Hoshi by Kazune Kawahara is in Bessatsu Margaret, and Tonari no Stella by Ammitsu appears in Bessatsu Friend. In General, Kimi to Uchuu wo Aruku Tame ni by Inuhiko Doronoda is serialized on &Sofa.
The General winner nominees also pulled from prominent seinen spaces such as Afternoon and Weekly Young Magazine, plus digital.
- Shonen nominees and magazines: Kaoru Hana wa Rin to Saku (Magazine Pocket), Gachiakuta (Weekly Shounen Magazine), Madan no Ichi (Weekly Shounen Magazine)
- Shojo nominees and magazines: Shinimodori no Mahou Gakkou Seikatsu wo, Moto Koibito to Prologue kara (Flos Comic), Taiyou yori mo Mabushii Hoshi (Bessatsu Margaret), Tonari no Stella (Bessatsu Friend)
- General nominees and magazines: Darwin Jihen (Afternoon), Nezumi no Hatsukoi (Weekly Young Magazine), Heisei Haizanhei Sumire-chan (Weekly Young Magazine), Mii-chan to Yamada-san (Magazine Pocket)
All titles and placements are taken directly from Kodansha’s announcement. If you track categories, this layout makes it easy to see how print weeklies, monthly magazines, and app-first platforms fed each shortlist of General winner nominees and beyond.
Who sat on the 50th Kodansha Manga Awards selection committee
The judges’ bench combined veteran hitmakers and cross-genre voices. According to the Kodansha selection committee list, seven creators served as jurors, each cited with a representative work.
- Shin Kibayashi, known for Bloody Monday
- Natsumi Ando, known for Watashitachi wa Douka shiteiru
- Yuuzo Takada, known for 3×3 Eyes
- Hikaru Nakamura, known for Arakawa Under the Bridge
- Kaoru Hayamine, known for Meitantei Yumemizu Kiyoshirou Jiken Note
- Hiro Mashima, known for Fairy Tail
- Hidekichi Matsumoto, known for Sabage-bu!
That mix bridges mainstream magazine pillars and offbeat stylists. Shin Kibayashi brings thriller craft and editorial range across pen names. Hiro Mashima adds long-running shonen experience and serialization insight.
Hikaru Nakamura contributes a sharp comedic eye from alternative-leaning hits with broad crossover appeal. Together with Natsumi Ando, Yuuzo Takada, Kaoru Hayamine, and Hidekichi Matsumoto, the group covers shojo, shonen, seinen, and children’s readerships.
Kodansha credits this committee with selecting the 50th Kodansha Manga Awards winners from the announced shortlists. Their resumes span weekly and monthly outputs, print magazines and digital platforms, which maps cleanly onto the nominated field. It is a panel built to weigh pacing, character appeal, and magazine fit while leaving room for quirky voices and new formats.
Source: MAL