A Sign of Affection
A Sign of Affection is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Suu Morishita. It started serialization in Kodansha's Dessert magazine in July 2019. As of November 2025, thirteen volumes have been released. An anime television series adaptation produced by Ajiado aired from January to March 2024.
Plot
Yuki Itose is a university student with congenital hearing loss. Besides sign language, she communicates through text and lip reading. When a foreigner asked her for direction in a language she assumed was English, a young man comes to her aid and catches Yuki's attention. The story revolves around Yuki as she narrates her silent world, and the people around her.Characters
;Yuki Itose;Itsuomi Nagi
;Ōshi Ashioki
;Kyōya Nagi
;Rin Fujishiro
;Ema Nakazono
;Shin Iryū
Development
In an interview with Kodansha USA, the author duo Suu Morishita stated that they decided to make the main theme sign language since they were both interested in the idea. However, since neither of them had much experience with sign language, they did research, which included reading books on the subject, interviewing teachers, and getting someone to supervise how it was used.When it came to the art, they decided to use Copic Multiliner brown markers for the outlines and Dr. Ph. Martin's color ink for the coloring because they felt it gave the art a "soft and delicate" style.
Media
Manga
The series is written and illustrated by the author duo Suu Morishita. It started serialization in Dessert on July 24, 2019. On June 24, 2021, it was announced the manga would go on a hiatus as the writer and storyboarder gave birth to a child. The manga returned in November 2021. As of November 2025, thirteen volumes have been released.In March 2020, Kodansha USA announced they licensed the manga for English publication digitally. At Anime Expo Lite in July 2020, they announced a print release for the series. Later that month, they announced they would publish chapters of the series digitally simultaneously with the Japanese release. Kodansha's K Manga added the series to its simultaneous-publication catalogue in August 2023 after the series had been removed from Kodansha USA services in January. Starting from April 2024, Kodansha USA began additionally releasing 3-in-1 omnibus versions of the manga. The series was also translated into French by Rosalys and published by Akata.
Volumes
Chapters not yet in ''tankōbon'' format
These chapters have yet to be published in a volume.Musical
A stage musical adaptation, titled A New Musical: A Sign of Affection, ran in the Honda Theater in Tokyo from June 4 to June 13, 2021. It was directed by Maiko Tanaka, with Sanae Iijima writing the screenplay, Kiyoko Ogino composing the music, and Kiyomi Maeda in charge of choreography. It starred Erika Toyohara as Yuki, Takahisa Maeyama as Itsuomi, Manatsu Hayashi as Rin, Saho Aono as Ema, Ryōsuke Ikeoka as Ōshi, Kodai Miyagi as Shin, and Ryuji Kamiyama as Kyōya. A recording of the musical was broadcast on the Japanese television channel on October 10, 2021.Anime
An anime television series adaptation was announced on July 5, 2023. It was produced by Ajiado and directed by Yūta Murano, with Yōko Yonaiyama writing the scripts, Kasumi Sakai designing the characters, and Yukari Hashimoto composing the music. The series aired from January 6 to March 23, 2024, on Tokyo MX and other networks. The opening theme song is "Yuki no Ne", performed by Novelbright, while the ending theme song is "Snowspring", performed by ChoQMay. Crunchyroll streamed the series worldwide outside of East Asia. Muse Communication licensed the series in Southeast Asia.Episodes
Reception
The series ranked 17th in the 2020 Next Manga Award. It ranked ninth in the 2021 edition of the Kono Manga ga Sugoi! guidebook's top 20 Manga for female readers. Also that year the series was nominated for the 45th Kodansha Manga Award in the category; it was nominated for the 46th edition in the same category in 2022; for the 47th edition in 2023; and the 48th edition in 2024. The manga was also nominated for the first Ebook Japan manga award. The manga also won the grand prize at the eleventh An An manga award. The manga has been nominated for the 68th Shogakukan Manga Award in the category.The series has received widespread critical acclaim. Sean Gaffney from Manga Bookshelf gave the first volume praise, calling it an "excellent debut" and stating he wanted to read more. Koiwai from Manga News also praised it. Like Gaffney and Koiwai, Darkstorm from Anime UK News also gave the first volume praise, comparing it to A Silent Voice, as well as calling it "beautifully drawn and written".
The anime was nominated at the 9th Crunchyroll Anime Awards in three categories: "Must Protect At All Costs" Character, Best Romance, and Best Drama.