2012 About.com Manga Readers' Choice Awards

Which new series or one-shot was the overall best new manga of 2011? Shojo, shonen, seinen, josei, yaoi, or all ages manga -- it's up to you! Voting for the top 5 nominees opens on February 22.

See the past years' winners of the About.com Readers Choice Awards:

• 2011 Readers' Choice Awards (for titles released in 2010)
• 2009 Readers' Choice Polls
• 2008 Readers' Choice Polls
• 2007 Readers' Choice Polls

With so many new action-packed shonen manga series and one-shots to choose from this year, Which new Japanese comics or international manga series or one-shot for boys was on your must-read list this year? Voting for the top 5 nominees opens on February 22.

See the past years' winners of the About.com Readers' Choice Awards for Best Shonen Manga:

• 2011 Readers' Choice Awards: Best Shonen Manga - Bakuman
• 2009 Readers' Choice Polls: Best Shonen Manga - Pandora Hearts
• 2008 Readers' Choice Polls: Best Shonen Manga - Slam Dunk
• 2007 Readers' Choice Polls: Best Shonen Manga - Gin Tama

High school crushes to fantasy romances in exotic lands, suspenseful dramas to wacky comedies, which new manga series or one-shot for girls captured your heart? Voting for the top 5 nominees opens on February 22.

See the past years' winners of the About.com Readers' Choice Awards for Best Shojo Manga:

• 2011 Readers' Choice Awards: Best Shojo Manga - Dengeki Daisy
• 2009 Readers' Choice Polls: Best Shojo Manga - Kimi ni Todoke
• 2008 Readers' Choice Polls: Best Shojo Manga - High School Debut
• 2007 Readers' Choice Polls: Best Shojo Manga - Love*Com / Vampire Knight (tie)

In Japan, manga for grown-ups are generally either seinen (for men) or josei (for women). However, for readers in North America, manga for grown-ups appeals to both male and female readers, so I've opted open up the nominations for 'graphic novels for grown-ups' in two categories: Drama/Action and Comedy/Slice of Life. Voting for the top 5 nominees opens on February 22.

See the past years' winners of the About.com Readers' Choice Awards for Best Action/Drama Manga / Seinen Manga:

• 2011 Readers' Choice Awards: Best Drama/Action Manga - House of Five Leaves
• 2009 Readers' Choice Polls: Best Seinen/Josei Drama Manga - Pluto
• 2008 Readers' Choice Polls: Best Seinen Manga - GANTZ
• 2007 Readers' Choice Polls: Best Seinen Manga - Mushishi

Where the Drama/Action category is geared toward honoring the gritty, action-packed and sometimes angst-filled side of the manga spectrum, the Comedy/Slice of Life category is all about spotlighting the graphic novels for grown-ups that offer a more light-hearted approach to storytelling. Voting for the top 5 nominees opens on February 22.

See the past years' winners of the About.com Readers' Choice Awards for Best Comedy/Slice of Life Manga / Josei Manga:

• 2011 Readers' Choice Awards: Best Comedy/Slice of Life Manga - Bunny Drop
• 2009 Readers' Choice Polls: Best Seinen/Josei Comedy Manga - Sayonara Zetsubou-Sensei
• 2008 Readers' Choice Polls: Best Josei Manga - Object of Desire
• 2007 Readers' Choice Polls: Best Josei Manga - Town of Evening Calm, Country of Cherry Blossoms

Manga isn't just for teens and grown-ups! There's also titles that offer fun and adventure for younger readers too. Voting for the top 5 nominees opens on February 22.

See the past years' winners of the About.com Readers' Choice Awards for All-Ages Manga:

• 2011 Readers' Choice Awards: Best All-Ages Manga - Chi's Sweet Home
• 2009 Readers' Choice Polls: Best All-Ages Manga - The Big Adventures of Majoko
• 2008 Readers' Choice Polls: Best All-Ages Manga - Legend of Zelda

From sizzling and sexy to sweet and sometimes hilarious, boys love or yaoi manga offers a lot more variety than you might think. Which newcomer made the best first impression in 2011? Voting for the top 5 nominees opens on February 22.

See the past years' winners of the About.com Readers' Choice Awards for Yaoi (Boys' Love) Manga:

• 2011 Readers' Choice Awards: Best Yaoi Manga - Finder: Target in the Viewfinder
• 2009 Readers' Choice Polls: Best Yaoi Manga - ZE
• 2008 Readers' Choice Polls: Best Yaoi Manga - A Foreign Love Affair

Sure, there are many manga series that are 10, 20, even over 50 volumes long. But there are also many excellent one-shot graphic novels/anthologies that pack in a lot of stories in a single volume. Which one-shot hit the mark in 2011? Voting for the top 5 nominees opens on February 22.

See the past years' winners of the About.com Readers' Choice Awards for Best New One-Shot Manga:

• 2011 Readers' Choice Awards: Best One-Shot Manga - A Drunken Dream and Other Stories
• 2009 Readers' Choice Polls: Best One-Shot Manga - GoGo Monster
• 2008 Readers' Choice Polls: Best One-Shot Manga - Tokyo Zombie

Now that manga from Japan is published around the world, there's more and more artists who are creating a new breed of comics inspired by manga. Whether you call it manhwa, manhua, webcomics, or just comics, which new series or one-shot (not originally from Japan) was most worth reading in 2011? Voting for the top 5 nominees opens on February 22.

See the past years' winners of the About.com Readers' Choice Awards for International Manga:

• 2011 Readers' Choice Awards: Best New International Manga - There's Something About Sunyool and The Last Airbender: Zuko's Story (tie)
• 2009 Readers' Choice Polls: Best New International Manga - 1520
• 2009 Readers' Choice Polls: Best New Korean Manhwa - Pig Bride
• 2008 Readers' Choice Polls: Best Original English Language Manga - Anima

One major change in 2011 was the growing influence of digital publishing in the world of manga. Whether you read it online on your computer, or used your smartphone, iPad, Kindle, Kobo, or Nook to enjoy your favorite manga, which new digital release was your favorite read of 2011? Voting for the top 5 nominees opens on February 22.

This is a brand new category for 2012, so to get an idea of what's eligible for this poll, visit these online manga sites:

• VIZManga.com
• Kodansha Comics' iPad app
• Yen Press' iPad app
• Dark Horse Digital
• JManga.com
• eManga.com
• NETComics
• Square Enix Manga
• Seven Seas Manga
• GEN Manga
• Animate