Summary
Initially launched as a bi-weekly magazine under the parent company, Shueisha, in 1979. TheWeekly Young Jumpmanga magazine is a publication underShueisha’s Jump line of magazines. Majorly featuring seinen manga, the magazine, as the ‘young’ in its title alludes, is targeted at young adults.
Over the years since its creation,the magazine has publishedand serialized many manga, some of which have become household names in the manga world, gaining traction and appeal throughout their production duration. Therefore, below, this piece will look at some of the best manga published in theWeekly Young Jumpseries.
10Real
Anime-Planet Rating: 4.3 / 5
Realtells an emotional tale from the perspective of people living with disabilities, specifically in sports, and how their lives are impacted by their disabilities. The series revolves around the central characters, Tonomi Nomiya, former captain of hishigh school’s basketball teamwho quit school after causing a traffic accident that ruins the life of a little girl, Kiyoharu Togawa, a former sprinter who loses the use of his right leg and plays wheelchair basketball in his free time.
Finally, Hisanobu Takahashi, Nomiya’s supposed replacement on the basketball team, who got himself into an accident that left him paralyzed from the waist down. The series sees all three characters react and adjust to the life-altering events that threaten to take away their dreams and passions.
9LIAR GAME
Anime-Planet Rating: 4.2 / 5
Liar Gameexplores honesty in a thrilling, high-stakes game of lies, betrayal, and strategy. The series focuses on the central character, Nao Kanzaki, a girl whose name is literally ‘honesty’ and has more than lived up to it to the point where it’s almost foolish. However, Nao’s life is altered after she inadvertently accepts an invitation to the Liar Game.
In this game, participants are encouraged to lie and deceive their opponents to earn money. A loss, however, would mean a lifetime debt. Simultaneously, the infamous Shinichi Akiyama, an unparalleled con artist, has just been released from prison. After a strange encounter, Nao persuades Shinichi to help her with the Liar Game. The two of them form an unlikely pair of a foolishly honest girl and a master deceiver, and together, they must navigate through a tournament of lies where a single truth would undo their lives.
8Gantz
Anime-Planet Rating: 4.1 / 5
Gantzrevolves around the uncharacteristic lives of two high school students, Kei Kurono and Masaru Katou, who end up tragically dying after the pair attempt to save a drunk man by diving in front of a train. Instead of dying, the boys find themselves in a strange and rundown apartment full of strangers like themselves who have just died. In the room with Kei and the others is also a mysterious ball-shaped sphere, which they later discover is called ‘GANTZ’.
Kei and everyone else in the room are suddenly tasked with killing a strange creature and have weapons provided to them before they are all teleported to an unknown location. Kei and his friend realisetheir chances of survivalmay be much slimmer than anticipated. Driven by the thought of survival, Kei does his best to live through Gantz’s hellish experiences, hoping to someday save himself from them.
7Shadows House
As the title suggests,Shadows Housefocuses on thechilling and mysterious occurrenceswithin the grandiose Shadow House. The series follows the residents of the mansion, who are pitch black from their heads to their toes and emit a strange soot that continuously stains the house. Tending to these Shadow residents are living Dolls, one of which is partnered with a Shadow resident. More strangely, each doll bears a striking and uncanny resemblance to the Shadow Resident they are paired with.
This is the situation of the lively Emilico, one of the many living dolls of the Shadow House. Paired with her master, Kate, Emilico is eager to tend to her master’s wishes and, cleans after her immaculately and acts as her master’s face. In turn, Kate treats Emilico as a confidant. However, things begin to veer in a sour direction as the bonds between Kate and Emilico deepen, and they begin to witness strange happenings around the mansion and start to uncover uncomfortable secrets.
6Elfen Lied
Elfen Liedfeatures the fictional possibility of mutation/creation of an entirely new species on earth alongside humans and humanity’s response to these perceived new species. The series focuses on the ‘Diclonius’, a mutated species with appearances similar to humans, except for a few differences, namely horns on their foreheads, the ability to use telekinetic invisible arms called vectors, and conspicuously different hair colours.
The series' central character, Lucy, has endured various extreme levels of experimentation. Her trials halt when she manages to escape, leaving destruction and havoc in her wake. In the process, she’s injured, which leads her to develop a secondary personality known as Nyu. After escaping her captors, Lucy is found by two locals, Kouta and Yuka, and they take her in—a decision that changes their lives forever.
5Oshi No Ko
Oshi No Koweaves an entertaining web of lies, deceit, and mystery to create a compelling tale. The series focuses on the countryside gynaecologist Gorou Amamiya, who is a massive fan of the sixteen-year-old Ai Hoshino, a famous pop idol. Things get complicated when Ai Hoshino shows up at his clinic, heavily pregnant and asking to be delivered. Little does Gorou know that his life is about to be forever altered.
Killed by an obsessed fan of his famous patient, Gorou is reborn as one of Ai Hoshino’s newborn twins, Aqua Hoshino. Puzzled by his new life and the death of his previous life, Gorou, now Aqua, is determined to find out the truth of the mysteries of his life from within the entertainment industry, but he soon realises that the world of showbiz is a lot darker from within.
4Kaguya-sama: Love Is War
Anime-Planet Rating: 4.4 / 5
Arrogance and love mix rather well inthis romantic series.Kaguya-sama: Love Is Warrevolves around the two central characters, Miyuki Shirogane, the prodigy with the highest grades in the country, and Kaguya Shinomiya, the unparalleled beauty of the Shinomiya Household. Together, the duo led the prestigious Shichiin Academy as its student council president and vice president. Other students often regarded the pair as the perfect couple despite the absence of any relationship.
However, after working alongside each other and spending so much time together, intimacy has become inevitable; unfortunately, their pride as elite students of the academy ensures that neither will ever willingly confess their feelings for the other. Therefore, the pair take it upon themselves to get a confession from the other and will do so at any cost.
3Tokyo Ghoul
Tokyo Ghoulpresents the horrifying transformation of the central character, Ken Kaneki’s life, from an everyday college student fascinated with books to a half-human, flesh-eating half-ghoul at the centre of two opposing sides, threatening to destroy themselves at the expense of the other.
The series starts with the shy Kaneki’s date with the beautiful Rize. What should have been a regular date becomes a horrifying nightmare when Kaneki finds himself on the verge of death as Rize savours his flesh for herself.
Barely surviving the encounter after being taken to the hospital, Kaneki discovers that he has become a half-ghoul like the one who assailed him. To get used to his new reality, Kaneki is taken by a group of friendly ghouls who run a coffee. However, his peaceful new life does not last long, as Kaneki soon finds himself at the centre of an all-out war between the ghouls and the Commission of Counter Ghoul, an organisation desperate to rid Japan of the existence of ghouls.
2Golden Kamuy
Golden Kamuy’spremise is set in the aftermath of the Russo-Japanese War inthe early twentieth centuryin the region of Hokkaido. The series revolves around the central character, Saichi Sugimoto, a war veteran nicknamed ‘Immortal’, who has been reduced to scraping out a meagre existence after the war. Sugimoto takes on a perilous quest after discovering a map of the hidden fortune of the Ainu people.
However, unfortunately, Sugimoto is not the only one aware of its existence, nor is he the only one willing to do whatever it takes to get to it. Before long, Sugimoto is faced with the harshness of reality as he competes against rogue soldiers from the war and ruthless criminals to find the fortune in question. Only with the help of an Ainu native named Asirpa and his survival skills will Sugimoto survive long enough to reach his goal.
1Kingdom
Kingdompresents anear-historical taleof lofty ambitions that begins with two orphans, Xin and Piao, who dream of becoming great military generals despite their low status as orphaned slaves. The pair move closer to their dreams when they encounter a nobleman who offers Piao the opportunity to undertake a position in the royal palace of the state of Qin. Inevitably parting ways, Xin and Piao promise each other to meet again as the world’s greatest generals.
However, fate is not kind to the boys, as Piao is on the verge of death when they meet again. Their last meeting encourages Xin to the point where he comes across the young and soon-to-be king of Qin, Zheng Ying. Zheng and Xin initially get off on bad terms; however, they become comrades who embark on a quest of blood and war together. Zheng aims to unify the warring states under Qin, while Xin seeks to reach the pinnacle of the military. Together, the pair challenge impossible odds that will forever alter history.
