Naoki Urasawa

Awards & Honours

Awards Won

Honours

Records

Naoki Urasawa is one of the most decorated manga artists in history, with a record of three Shogakukan Manga Awards and two Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prizes. His series Pluto earned both a Kodansha Manga Award and an Eisner Award, making it a rare crossover success between Japanese and American comics. He is also the first manga artist to host a major NHK documentary series about the craft, Manben Neo, further cementing his role as a cultural ambassador for the medium. Filmmaker Bong Joon-ho and writer Junot Díaz have both publicly praised him as a storytelling genius, reflecting his impact far beyond manga fandom.

AwardsUrasawa has won the Shogakukan Manga Award three times: for Yawara! (1990), Monster (2000), and Pluto (2009). He received the Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize twice, for Monster (2001) and Pluto (2005). Pluto also won the Kodansha Manga Award in the General category and an Eisner Award for Best U.S. Edition of International Material—Asia in 2009. His other honors include the Angoulême International Comics Festival Prize for Scenario for Pluto (2008) and Best Series Award for 20th Century Boys (2011).

Honours & Distinctions

NHK Documentary Series Host

NHK Educational TV·2020

Hosts Urasawa Naoki no Manben Neo, a documentary series exploring manga artists' working methods.

Records & Feats

Over 140 million copies in circulation

Sales Record·2021

By December 2021, Urasawa's manga had sold over 140 million copies worldwide, making him one of the best-selling manga authors of all time.

First manga artist to host an NHK documentary series on manga craft

Career Milestone·2020

Urasawa hosts Manben Neo, a documentary series that profiles the creative processes of other manga artists, a first for NHK.