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The Kids’ Choice Awards are an annual awards ceremony by Nickelodeon Studios, and they’re often viewed as the children’s equivalent of more prestigious trophies like the Emmys and Golden Globes. The Kids’ Choice Awards don’t hold the same weight as other award ceremonies, but they’re frivolous and fun for kids. The awards became famous in the 90s for celebrating children’s entertainment and dumping slime on winners and presenters. Nickelodeon quickly became known as the house of slime thanks to the Kids’ Choice Awards and its many slime-based game shows. The studio also doesn’t limit its nominations to Western media, having expanded into overseas programs.
One of the categories in the Kids’ Choice Awards is Favorite Cartoon. While Pokémon was the first anime nominated for Favorite Cartoon in 2000, anime doesn’t often get nominated, making Dragon Ball Daima’s nomination for this year’s Kids’ Choice Awards stand out. Always is the only anime among the six nominees, including Monster High, SpongeBob SquarePants, The Loud House, Teen Titans Goand The Simpsons. The winners are determined by online voting on the official Kids’ Choice Awards website, with the winners announced on June 21st, 2025. South African musician Tyla will be hosting this year’s ceremony, located in Santa Monica, California.
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The Kids’ Choice Awards Prove Children Watch Anime!
Even though Always isn’t the first anime to be nominated, the nomination further proves how mainstream anime has become in Western media, and the Kids’ Choice Awards are fully aware of the medium’s popularity. Anime is expected to have its biggest year in 2025, with multiple companies expected to invest millions in the medium. Anime is no longer a niche thing that only some kids watch on Toonami, and has become one of the most-streamed media. This year’s Kids’ Choice Awards also highlights how little difference between live television and streaming. Always primarily aired on Crunchyroll and Hulu, showcasing how people, especially children, don’t differentiate what they watch on streaming from what they watch live on channels like Nickelodeon.
All the other Favorite Cartoon nominees have been previous nominees in the category, including The Simpsons. SpongeBob SquarePantswhich has been airing on Nickelodeon since 1999, has been a winner of the category several times already, most recently winning the 2024 Favorite Cartoon trophy. Even though The Simpsons is typically viewed as more adult than traditional children’s programming, it is still beloved by kids of all ages. The Simpsons has also been going through a mini-renaissance, delivering some of the best episodes in years, including a recent one where Conan O’Brien hosts the “series finale.”
Even though Dragon Ball has been airing episodes in the West for nearly three decades now, Always feels the most kid-friendly of the franchise. Although many young boys watched the original Dragon Ball Z on Toonami, the franchise is often seen as more for preteens or young teenagers than young children. It’s unknown if Dragon Ball Daima‘s lighter tone will give it a better shot at winning this year’s Favorite Cartoon. The winner is determined by the whims of the voters, who are children. Maybe The Simpsons will have a shot this year.
