Anime and manga can be a cutthroat world, with some manga getting canceled with less than 20 chapters released, barely giving them a chance to establish themselves before being declared failures. But what if that cancellation wasn’t the last these stories were heard of, and instead some were given a second chance at life as anime?
That’s the conclusion reached by the Japanese Association of Corporate Executives, also known as the Keizai Doyukai. The goal of the group is to develop a more sustainable means for Japan’s content creation industry to grow. As it stands, the rapid rate of cancellation of manga in magazines like Shonen Jump is putting creatives at risk of burn out, not to mention potentially wasting great ideas by not giving them a chance to develop properly before being ruled a flop. There are certainly plenty of canceled manga that had a lot of potential, which fans never got to see borne out.
Adapting Canceled Manga as Anime Could Offer Series a Second Shot
Canceled Series With Dedicated Fanbases Could Still Live On
First, one must dispense with the idea that a canceled series is «bad» in some way; a lot of canceled series, especially at Shonen Jump, simply didn’t have a flashy enough opening, or moved too slowly in the beginning, or any number of other reasons that have nothing to do with the quality of art or storytelling going on. There have been many canceled Shonen Jump series which had reasonable fanbases, but even those weren’t enough to save the series from cancellation. Fans start to get burnt out when series they’re just getting invested in are canceled, especially if it happens frequently.
One thing that the report points out which is increasingly important is that magazines like Shonen Jump primarily poll Japanese readers to see if a series is popular, completely ignoring international fans who may be invested. A series could be relatively unpopular in Japan, while being a major hit in the US or other areas, and yet the magazine’s editors would have no way of knowing this, and may well cancel the series anyway, not realizing what they’re throwing away. Taking a second look at these kinds of canceled manga and seeing if they might be worth reviving as anime is brilliant.
The Keizai Doyukai Had Other Suggestions for Anime Sustainability
The Organization Noted Other Problems with the Anime Industry
The willingness to ruthlessly cancel a manga after only a few chapters isn’t the only issue with the anime and manga industries, of course. The Keizai Doyukai cited other problems, like stagnant pay, shortages of animators, and difficulties with the production committee system that can cause major inefficiencies. They also advocated for government support of production companies that are just starting off, legislation regarding AI, aid in training new animators, and an increase in anti-piracy measures outside of Japan.
Part of the reasoning for looking at canceled manga for anime adaptations is the fact that original anime productions, which aren’t based on manga, are incredibly expensive and have much longer development periods, so many investors are worried about investing in them. If a studio could point at a canceled manga’s existing fanbase, they would at least be able to prove that there’s some audience for this series, something an original series might have a tough time doing.
If these series were to succeed as anime, it may even convince editors like those at Shonen Jump that they’re often too quick to cancel a series.
The idea of series like Hunter’s Guild: Red Hood and PPPPPP getting a second life as anime is definitely an exciting one for fans who got invested in these manga before they were canceled. If these series were to succeed as anime, it may even convince editors like those at Shonen Jump that they’re often too quick to cancel a series. While the Keizai Doyukai is mainly a lobbying group and has no power of its own, these suggestions are largely quite sound advice for the anime industry, and with any luck, some people in power may listen.
Shonen Jump
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