Luffy wins best main character at Crunchyroll Anime Awards 2024 over Eren Yeager and Thorfinn

Modified Mar 02, 2024 13:34 GMT

Luffy in Gear 5 as seen in One Piece anime (Image via Toei Animation)

The Crunchyroll Anime Awards 2024, a much-awaited event for anime fans worldwide, recently announced the winner of the Best Main Character award. It is none other than Monkey D. Luffy, the protagonist of the One Piece anime by Toei Animation.

This announcement is a delight to the fans, especially considering the previous controversy where One Piece was not included in the nominations for the Crunchyroll Anime Awards 2024 Anime of the Year category.

The 8th Crunchyroll Anime Awards were held in Tokyo, Japan, on March 2, 2024. The event started at 6 p.m. JST and was hosted by Sally Amaki and Jon Kabira, and fans saw numerous celebrities from various areas such as music, acting, directing, and streaming as presenters.

Crunchyroll Anime Awards 2024 declare Luffy to be the most loved anime lead

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It was announced at the Crunchyroll Anime Awards 2024 that Monkey D. Luffy from One Piece won in the Best Main Character category. The presenter for this award was Emiru, the American Twitch streamer, cosplayer, and podcaster.

Fans had the privilege to vote for their favorites by casting their votes once every day. Given the immense fan base of One Piece, it is not surprising that Luffy emerged as the winner. However, Luffy has been subject to criticism from One Piece viewers for being somewhat one-dimensional and showing minimal character development, especially when compared to a layered character like Thorfinn.

However, to say that Luffy should not have won would be an oversimplification. In the Wano arc, which concluded last year, Luffy truly surpassed himself. He nearly lost his life multiple times while battling Kaido, who is considered the strongest man on earth. The moment that truly broke the internet was Luffy's first real transformation in the series: Gear 5.

In contrast to his previous Gear transformations, which were, in reality, adaptations of his Devil Fruit powers according to his opponents, Gear 5 was a result of the awakening of his Devil Fruit. For the first time, Luffy was significantly superior to his opponent, Kaido.

The transformation into Gear 5 was made even more spectacular by the various animators who were brought in to direct the scenes in visually spectacular ways, which ended up adding a whole new dimension to Luffy.

Nominations for Crunchyroll Anime Awards 2024 Best Main Character 2024

Luffy during the Wano Arc which concluded in 2023 (Image via Toei Animation) Enter caption

The year 2023 was remarkable for anime fans, as they were presented with a range of unforgettable series and films. Thus, each nomination category was filled with exceptional contenders.

The Crunchyroll Anime Awards 2024 Best Main Character category saw nominations for the following characters:

Luffy from One Piece
Hitori Gotoh (a.k.a. Bocchi) from Bocchi the Rock!
Denji from Chainsaw Man
Eren Jaeger from Attack on Titan The Final Chapters: Special 1
Shigeo Kageyama (a.k.a. Mob) from Mob Psycho 100 III
Thorfinn from Vinland Saga season 2

Synopsis of One Piece

Luffy as seen in the One Piece anime (Image via Toei Animation)

One Piece follows the youngster Monkey D. Luffy, who is motivated by great pirates such as Gol D. Roger and Shanks to become the Pirate King. To achieve this dream, he has assembled a crew of ten individuals.

They are currently on a quest to be the first ones to locate the coveted treasure known as One Piece, believed to be on an island named Laugh Tale. However, their journey is fraught with challenges, both from the evil World Government and other pirates navigating the vast seas.