Cyberpunk: Edgerunners nabs Crunchyroll's Anime of the Year award

2022 was a good year for anime, with each seasonal slate boasting their fair share of heavyweight titles. The hype wave remained strong from one release window to the next, but there were only a handful that stood out from the crowd.

Honoring anime’s best shows, voice actors, animators, and creators of the past year, the Crunchyroll Anime Awards 2023 has named the top picks for its respective categories. Taking home the highest honour of Anime of the Year is Cyberpunk: Edgerunners, the Netflix spin-off directed by Studio Trigger’s Hiroyuki Imaishi (Gurren Lagann, Promare), which also nabbed Best Voice Acting Performance for Zach Aguilar, who voiced protagonist David Martinez.

While nominated for Best New Anime, the series was bested by crowd favourite Spy x Family, one of the most anticipated and popular shows to come out of last year’s fall anime lineup. The rest in the running included Call of the Night, Lycoris Recoil, My Dress-Up Darling, and Ya Boy Kongming!.

Here’s a complete rundown on all the winners of the awards event, which admittedly could do with a little more options and variety in its nominations:

• Anime of the Year — Cyberpunk: Edgerunners
• Best Action — Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Entertainment District Arc
• Best Animation — Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Entertainment District Arc
• Best Anime Song: “The Rumbling,” SiM, Attack on Titan Final Season Part 2
• Best Character Design — Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Entertainment District Arc
• Best Comedy: Spy x Family
• Best Continuing Series: One Piece
• Best Director — Haruo Sotozaki, Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Entertainment District Arc
• Best Drama: Attack on Titan Final Season Part 2
• Best Ending Sequence: “Comedy,” Gen Hoshino, Spy x Family
• Best Fantasy — Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Entertainment District Arc
• Best Film: Jujutsu Kaisen 0
• Best Main Character: Eren Jaeger, Attack on Titan Final Season Part 2

• Best New Series: Spy x Family
• Best Opening Sequence: “The Rumbling,” SiM, Attack on Titan Final Season Part 2
• Best Original Anime: Lycoris Recoil
• Best Romance — Kaguya-sama: Love Is War -Ultra Romantic-
• Best Score: Attack on Titan Final Season Part 2
• Best Supporting Character: Anya Forger, Spy x Family
• Best Voice Artist Performance (English): Zach Aguilar, David, Cyberpunk: Edgerunners
• Best Voice Artist Performance (Japanese): Yuki Kaji, Eren Jaeger, Attack on Titan Final Season Part 2

Congratulations to all winners! With a host of highly-anticipated new titles and returning AAA-listers like Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Season 3 and Jujutsu Kaisen Season 2, this year’s strong lineup continues to be a treat for fans.

ALSO READ: Cyberpunk: Edgerunners review: Leaning into the meanest, darkest aspects of dystopia

This article was first published in Geek Culture.