Why Vinland Saga season 2 deserved the Anime of the Year 2024 at Crunchyroll Anime Award 2024, explained

Modified Mar 05, 2024 18:23 GMT

Why Vinland Saga season 2 deserved the Anime of the Year 2024 at Crunchyroll Anime Award 2024, explained — Thorfinn as seen in Vinland Saga season 2 (Image via MAPPA)

As anime fans would know, Vinland Saga season 2, despite being nominated for five awards at the Crunchyroll Anime Awards, failed to win any accolades. While fans wished for the series to at least win the Anime of the Year Award, unfortunately, Jujutsu Kaisen season 2 swooped up that award as well.

That has resulted in outrage online, as fans believed that Makoto Yukimura's series was the best anime to be released last year. Hence, they were shocked to see that a shonen anime like Jujutsu Kaisen swept up the award for the second time since the series' inception.

So, was Vinland Saga season 2 actually more worthy of winning the Anime of the Year Award at Crunchyroll Anime Award 2024?

Disclaimer: This article reflects the author's opinion.

Vinland Saga season 2 was more deserving of Anime of the Year Award than Jujutsu Kaisen season 2

Thorfinn as seen in Vinland Saga (Image via MAPPA)

Vinland Saga season 2 is more deserving of the Anime of the Year Award than Jujutsu Kaisen season 2 because its entire season was applicable for consideration for the award.

Unbeknownst to fans, Crunchyroll Anime Awards have two rounds to decide its winners. The first round is exclusive to select journalists and anime enthusiasts around the world, who are essentially the award's judges.

They pick the prospective nominees for each of the categories, following which, the top six are selected as nominees for the second round, i.e., open to fan voting.

Satoru Gojo as seen in Jujutsu Kaisen season 2 (Image via MAPPA)

However, the process isn't that fast due to the sheer number of judges worldwide. In fact, the first round ended at the end of October 2023.

It meant that out of the 23 total episodes in the Jujutsu Kaisen season 2 anime, only the first 10 episodes were applicable for consideration in the nomination. That included the entire Hidden Inventory Arc and the first five episodes of the Shibuya Incident Arc.

Any fan would agree that the best parts of the anime were much later in the season. Hence, fans who voted for the anime could have made an error in judgment because they might have not been informed about the same.

Yuji Itadori as seen in Jujutsu Kaisen season 2 (Image via MAPPA)

In the meantime, Vinland Saga season 2 premiered in the Winter 2023 anime season and was released all the way to the end of June 2023.

It meant that the entirety of the anime was under consideration. Thus, it can be said that Vinland Saga season 2 lost to Jujutsu Kaisen season 2 due to fan biases and lack of information.

Nevertheles, there's good reason to believe that Vinland Saga season 2 was far better than Jujutsu Kaisen season 2 even if the shonen anime's entire season were to be considered.

Thorfinn and Einar as seen in Vinland Saga (Image via MAPPA)

Vinland Saga season 2 adapted the Slave Arc of the manga. This arc was the most crucial arc in showcasing the change in the protagonist Thorfinn Thorsson's heart.

He was previously part of Askeladd's band and had killed countless innocent people during that time. The only thing that pushed him was his goal to kill his father's murderer, Askeladd. Unfortunately, Askeladd died, leaving Thorfinn without a goal in life.

Since then, Thorfinn wished to pass away, as he could not forgive himself for the sheer number of people he had killed in the past. However, with help from his new friend Einar, Thorfinn was able to push his past aside.

He vowed to never hurt anyone, leading up to his "I have no enemies" moment. Altogether, Vinland Saga season 2 was pure cinema. Unfortunately, fans treating the Crunchyroll Anime Awards like a popularity poll led to its defeat.