AnimeJapan 2022 revealed the results of the 5th Manga We Want to See Animated ranking (also known as AniRank). A total of 102 titles were nominated this year and only 10 made the final list. Some of them are popular worldwide, while others are not so much. The same goes for the English licensing situation.
2022’s AniRank nearly got buried in a number of announcements and news, but the titles that made the top 10 are things most of us have at least heard of. So without any further ado, let’s see what titles the fans picked for this year’s list!
Author: Naoya Matsumoto
Publisher: Shueisha
Year: 2020 – Present
English License: Viz Media
Kafka hopes to one day keep his pact with his childhood friend Mina to join the Japan Defense Force and fight by her side. But while she’s out neutralizing kaiju as Third Division captain, Kafka is stuck cleaning up the aftermath of her battles. When a sudden rule change makes Kafka eligible for the Defense Force, he decides to try out for the squad once more. There’s just one problem—he’s made the Defense Force’s neutralization list under the code name Kaiju No. 8.
Viz Media
Author: Satoru Nii
Publisher: Kodansha
Year: 2021 – Present
English License: Kodansha USA
Haruka Sakura wants nothing to do with weaklings—he’s only interested in the strongest of the strong. He’s just started at Furin High School, a school of degenerates known only for their brawling strength—strength they use to protect their town from anyone who wishes it ill. But Haruka’s not interested in being a hero or being part of any sort of team—he just wants to fight his way to the top!
Kodansha Comics
Author: Rikito Nakamura
Illustrator: Yukiko Nozawa
Publisher: Shueisha
Year: 2019 – Present
English License: Seven Seas Entertainment
Aijo Rentaro has asked a hundred girls out and struck out every time. In desperation, he prays for guidance, only to be told by a god that his rejections were due to a cosmic mishap! Now this god will set things right by making sure Aijo gets one hundred dates. Except, as things often go with gods, there’s a catch: each of his one hundred dates is Aijo’s destined soulmate! Worse, if he doesn’t return their feelings, they’ll all die in horrible—and hilarious—accidents!
Seven Seas Entertainment
Author: Yuu Toyota
Publisher: Square Enix
Year: 2018 – Present
English License: Square Enix NA
The magical power gained by 30-year-old virgin Adachi … is the modest ability to read the mind of anyone he touches. Unsure how to handle his useless power, Adachi accidentally reads the mind of his colleague Kurosawa. Kurosawa’s mind turns out to be full of love for Adachi! Adachi can’t believe his colleague is in love with him. However, with no way of knowing his feelings have been discovered, Kurosawa continues trying to win over Adachi. Will the handsome man’s sincere feelings for the virgin come to fruition?!
Crunchyroll
Author: Chugong
Publisher: D&C Media
Illustrator: Dubu
Year: 2018 – 2021
English License: Tapas, Pocket Comics, Webnovel, Tappytoon
In this world where Hunters with various magical powers battle monsters from invading the defenceless humanity, Seong Jin-Woo was the weakest of all the Hunters, barely able to make a living.
However, a mysterious System grants him the power of the ‘Player’, setting him on a course for an incredible and often times perilous Journey.
Follow Sang Jin-Woo as he embarks on an adventure to become an unparalleled existence through his “Level-Up” system – the only one in the entire world!Official Synopsis (Web Novel)
Author: Aka Akasaka
Illustrator: Mengo Yokoyari
Publisher: Shueisha
Year: 2020 – Present
English License: None
“In the world of showbiz, lies are a weapon” Gorou is working as a gynecologist in a local city. Showbiz means living a disconnected life. On the other hand, the idol he supports, Hoshino Ai, begins to rise up to the stadium. Those two have the “worst” meeting, and then fate starts to turn…!? Akasaka Aka x Yokokura Menko, a sublime tag team, draw a shocking story depicting the “entertainment world” from a completely new angle!
ACN Edit
Author: Kei Kamiki
Publisher: Shueisha
Year: 2020 – 2022
English License: Viz Media
Synopsis:
Ruru Miyanagi is an ordinary girl who lives in an ordinary, boring, rural town by the sea. One day, while digging for clams, she finds a beautiful gemstone buried in the sand. Her hopes of cashing in the gemstone are thwarted when she notices a tiny crack in it. But when she tries to fix the crack herself, the gemstone breaks, and Mag Menuek, the god of destruction, appears in its place. Thus begins Ruru’s new life of living with an immortal, somewhat-adorable God of Chaos hell-bent on taking over the world!
Viz Media
Author: Satoutoshio
Publisher: Line Corporation
Year: 2020 – 2021
English License: None
Synopsis:
For Nito, Tatsuka is a close childhood friend. He thought so, but suddenly Tatsuka conffessed to liking him!?? Ichizu Pure Attack x Unconscious Cute Boys’ Couple Supreme Childhood Friend BL.
AnimeJapan
Author: Plutus
Illustrator: Spoon
Publisher: CARROTTOON
Year: 2017- Present
English License: Tappytoon
The beautiful Athanasia was killed at the hands of her own biological father, Claude de Alger Obelia, the cold-blooded emperor! It’s just a silly bedtime story… until one woman wakes up to suddenly find she’s become that unfortunate princess! She needs a plan to survive her doomed fate, and time is running out. Will she go with Plan A, live as quietly as possible without being noticed by the infamous emperor? Plan B, collect enough money to escape the palace? Or will she be stuck with plan C, sweet-talking her way into her father’s good graces?! Based on the hit novel. Genre: Romance, Comedy, Fantasy
Tappytoon
Author: Pom
Publisher: Line Corporation (Digital), Ichijinsha (Print)
Year: 2019 – 2021
English License: None
Hanaoka Makoto, a crossdresser who loves cute things, is one day confessed by a female kouhai named Aoi “because she had mistaken Makoto for a girl”. Makoto himself confessed that he is not a girl, but rather male; and rejected her saying “I had never had a crush on anyone” while apologizing to her. However, Aoi, facing the truth of Makoto being a crossdresser, is happy to find out that her senpai is attracted to both males and females, so she makes a statement that makes Makoto’s head sping: “I’ll prove that I can become your first love”
ACN Edit
This concludes the top 10 list of the “Manga We Want to See Animated” of AnimeJapan 2022, also known as AniRank. All of the manga in the list are fairly popular, but that doesn’t mean that the ones that didn’t make it to the top 10 are not. Two of these titles, Senpai wa Otokonoko and Solo Leveling, were also included in AnimeJapan 2021’s AniRank, but no announcement has been made for them.
It’s also interesting to note that three out of 10 titles above are not really “traditional manga”. Solo Leveling, Wind Breaker, and Suddenly Became a Princess One Day are originally Korean manhwa – webtoons (in Solo Leveling’s case the series started off as a web novel). This shows that fans are really embracing new formats and are no longer bound by the traditional idea of what anime should be based on. After all, we have already seen some webtoon adaptations, such as Tower of God and The God of High School.
It will not be surprising if any of these titles receive an anime adaptation in the future. Komi Can’t Communicate and Spy x Family, both of which were on last year’s list, were adapted. If you want to see the authors’ comments and the original article for the AniRank results, just visit AnimeJapan’s ranking page.
Source: AnimeJapan 2022
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