Japan Crowns MAKEINE: TOO MAN LOSING HEROINES! as 2024’s Anime of the Year, Beating Out SOLO LEVELING

Japan has spoken, and its choice for 2024’s Anime of the Year isn’t what most fans expected. While Solo Leveling has been dominating headlines, streaming charts, and international awards, Japan’s own Newtype Magazine Anime Awards, run by Kadokawa Group, handed the top honor to Makeine: Too Many Losing Heroines!

The announcement came through Newtype’s official X account, covering anime released between July 2024 and April 2025. That means Solo Leveling Season 2, which aired during this period, was part of the competition.

Still, Makeine came out on top, leaving many anime fans surprised, especially since both series were created by the same studio, A-1 Pictures.

The win is even more interesting because Makeine is a romantic comedy, which is a genre that rarely steals the spotlight from heavy-hitting action or fantasy titles.

The series, which premiered in July 2024, tells a story that flips the usual rom-com setup on its head by following the characters after a failed love confession. The show’s heartfelt storytelling and emotional honesty obviously struck a chord with Japanese audiences.

Meanwhile, Solo Leveling, the anime adaptation of the massively popular Korean manhwa, continued its winning streak elsewhere, recently being crowned Anime of the Year at Crunchyroll’s Anime Awards. It’s even expected to stay strong in next year’s awards season. But Japan’s results paint a more complex picture of anime’s global appeal.

While Makeine takes the top spot, Solo Leveling still performed impressively, securing fourth place and surpassing fan favorites like Dandadan. This shows that its popularity in Japan is steadily rising, even if the nation’s tastes differ from Western audiences.

The rest of Japan’s top three included Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX and The Apothecary Diaries Season 2, reflecting the local crowd’s continued love for long-running franchises and character-driven dramas.

In the end, Makeine: Too Many Losing Heroines! winning Anime of the Year highlights the unique sensibilities of Japanese viewers. Where Western audiences often gravitate toward spectacle and scale, Japan’s voters leaned toward something more grounded and emotionally resonant.

Still, with Solo Leveling climbing higher in Japanese rankings and The Apothecary Diaries finding international acclaim, it’s clear that the gap between audience preferences across the globe is narrowing.

For now, though, Makeine stands tall as Japan’s biggest anime of 2024, a romantic underdog that beat out some of the year’s biggest titans.