2011 Seiun Award Nominations announced

The nominees for the 42nd annual Seiun Awards have been announced, and rather than wait until the winners have been announced like last time, I’ll give a run-down of the nominees, based on a Google translation of a Japanese site with the list, which can be found here. The original versions of the titles are being placed next to the Google Translated versions, in case someone who understands Japanese better wants to translate the titles for me.

The Hugo Award Nominations themselves are being announced this year, and that list will be posted later today.

Best Japanese SF (Novel)

The nominees are

  • Miyano Dragon (不動カリンは一切動ぜず) by Ueda (which appears to be an original Chinese work)
  • [Last Year] Will Be A Good Year (去年はいい年になるだろう) by Yamamoto Hiroshi (which, if the translation is accurate, is an amazing title)
  • [Etc.] Doron fell (どろんころんど) by Kitano Yuusaku
  • Logical mystery tour [with you] (エンドレス・ガーデン ロジカル・ミステリー・ツアーへ君と) by Satoshi Makoto
  • Highway Penguin’s Forest (ペンギン・ハイウェイ ) by Noboru Yoshihiko
  • Processing Sales (artificial girl Chitose) (スワロウテイル人工少女販売処) by Swallowtail

Best Japanese SF (Short Fiction)

  • “Allo, toi, toi” by Hase Toshizi
  • “Loved the demon king Alisma water” (アリスマ王の愛した魔物) by 小川一水 (Author’s name didn’t translate properly)
  • “Ship of colorful water” (五色の舟) by Hara Tsu Tai
  • “Prisoner’s dilemma,” (囚人の両刀論法) by Kobayashi Taizou
  • “Miss Theremin” (テルミン嬢) by Water Hara Tsu Tai
  • “Magunefio” (マグネフィオ) by Ueda 早夕里
  • “Agari” (あがり) by Matsuzaki Yuri

Best International SF (Novel)

  • The first one I can’t identify – and might be by an Japanese writer, living in the US, for the Japanese market. The title is Alien Township, and it’s by a writer named Maikuru. If anyone can enlighten me on this, that would be appreciated.
  • World War Z by Max Brooks
  • Farthing by Jo Wilson (the first part of the Small Change trilogy. Alternatively, the entire Small Change trilogy might be getting nominated – I can’t tell).
  • The Map of Time by Felix J. Palma
  • Hunter’s Run by George R. R. Martin
  • Un Lun Dun by China Mieville
  • Genesis by Bernard Beckett

Best International SF (Short Fiction)

Best SF Film and Television

  • District 9
  • The Tatami Galaxy (Link is to Hulu)
  • Kamen Rider W (or Double)
  • Welcome to the Space Show
  • Samurai Sentai Shinkenger
  • Time Traveler: The Girl Who Lept Through Time (the Live Action Adaptation of the novel that the anime I reviewed earlier was based on).
  • Uchū Inu Sakusen (translates as “Space Dog Operations” and is a sci-fi comedy live action TV series)

Best Comics

This category covers both Manga and International comics.

  • Fullmetal Alchemist (which apparently concluded this year) by Hiromu Arakawa
  • The Lucifer and Biscuit Hammer by Satoshi Mizukami
  • Natsu no Arashi! by Jin Kobayashi
  • Wunderkammer by Rosuke Nishikawa
  • Saru by Daisuke Igarashi
  • Kick-Ass by Mark Millar (Writer’s Note: ugh) and John Romita Jr.
  • Bentoraā Bentoraā by Ryoma Nomura
  • SF Taishō Special Edition: Banbutsu Riron (Perfect Edition) by Miki Tori (writer for Patlabor WXIII)

Free Entry

This category is open for any real-world events that are related to science, science fiction, and technology.

  • The return of the Hayabusa Space Probe to Earth.
  • The success of the Ikaros Solar Sail
  • The Robots and the Arts exhibit at the Amori Exhibit of Art.
  • The book SF Magazine’s 50th Anniversary Anthology
  • The live feed of the Hayabusa probe’s return.
  • The Japanese launch of the iPad.

As an aside, if anyone from the Hugo Award committee is listening, I wouldn’t mind seeing a category that’s something like this in a future Hugo Awards.