Welcome to the Championship Match of this year’s AniMarch Madness tournament! We started with 64 anime and are down to the final two—and boy, no one could have predicted this final round. Everyone’s bracket is busted!

The final two anime are Fruits Basket (2019), which came out of the Romance / Comedy Region, and Violet Evergarden, the champion of the Critical Darlings Region. On the way here, Fruits Basket defeated Ao Haru Ride, Oregairu, Kaguya-sama: Love is War, and Toradora, and dethroned last year’s champ convincingly in the semifinal round. Violet Evergarden dominated The Ancient Magus Bride and ERASED in the opening rounds, slipped by favorite Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood by seven votes, and then swept past Cowboy Bebop and Demon Slayer.

Now, it’s time to determine which of these two will be this year’s champ! Neither has made the finals before, so we’re guaranteed not only a new champion but a first time one as well.
Polls open across our social media platforms at about 9:00 a.m. ET and close 24 hours later. You can vote here and on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Discord!
Good luck to both anime!
- Fanart Friday, Too: Fu Xuan is a Star - 09.29.2023
- Fanart Friday: Dancing Pilots - 09.29.2023
- Fall 2023 Anime First Impressions - 09.27.2023
Wow, top two anime and not a single explosion filled shonen anime to be found! This is really surprising!