Summary
Hundreds of chapters of manga are released every year, with all of them vying for the attention of the masses. Some bring the series they are attached to massive fame, even becominginternational mega-hits. Manga likeNarutoandDragon Ball Z, for example, have taken on lives of their own, delving into every manner of medium a person could think of.
Some manga go in the complete opposite direction, though. For some, a project might’ve been cut short for one reason or another. Alternatively, maybe the story just ran its course, leading to its natural end. Either way, fans may come to the conclusion that it wasn’t a manga’s time to go. What follows is a list of manga that just ended way too soon.
Author and Illustrator
37
Status
Hiatus
While not canceled, it’s been years (nine to be exact) since this incredible series has been updated. While Takehiko Inoue has promised a return to the story sometime in the future, many fans seem hesitant to get their hopes up.
That’s probably due to the fact thateach panel ofVagabondis meticulously gone over, with Inoue using tools like a menso brush and paint to bring his incredibly detailed panels to life. It may be hard to believe a mangaka who has been away from this particular story for so long could get themselves back to the solitary lifestyle thatsuch work must require.
12
Canceled
Act-Agefollowed an incredibly good method actor on her journey to stardom. Accompany that with an educational angle, that taught readers about the often mystified acting profession, and Shōnen Jump had anotherfresh hit on their hands.
However, tragedy struck when themangaka, Matsuki Tatsuya, was arrested for some extremely unacceptable behavior. This led to theabrupt cancelation of the manga, which was a completely understandable outcome of the whole ordeal.
11
Completed
Sweat and Soapindulge in one of the more uniqueworkplace romancesin the manga, with the main character Asako’s smell being the driving force behind it. What’s more, it ditches the classic “will they, won’t they” romance trope andfocuses on a full-fledged relationship, and the life that the two leads are building together.
From dating to moving in together, things move kind of quickly for the two love birds. So much so that fans might wish that the series slowed down a bit just so they could spend more time with this oddball couple.
8
Amid an apocalyptic winter, Agni’s home village is laid to waste, and his sister is burned alive in front of him. However, his regenerative powers make it so that the flames that engulf his body live on forever, setting Agni on a burning quest for revenge.
Being thefirst serialized manga by Tatsuki Fujimoto,Fire Punchshowcases the mangaka’s many idiosyncrasies that would be refined in the wildly popularChainsaw Manmanga. Here, though, an incredibly messed up world is established that could have done with a bit more exploration, which themanga’s short eight-volume runjustdidn’t have the timeto provide.
7
In the time that it was taking for new chapters ofHigh School of the Deadto be written, an entire season of a slickly animated television show was produced. That anime was then dubbed, sending the series into the stratosphere, with fans clamoring for more of the manga’s unique blend ofgore and sex appeal.
Tragically, theauthor of the acclaimed manga passed awayafter a battle with coronary artery disease, leaving the manga never to be completed. Of course, lovers of the manga’s art would find solace in illustrator Shōji Satō’sTriage X. But readers ofHOTDwill always be left wondering what harrowing situation Komuro and the crew would find themselves in next.
2
Having gone through several iterations, from a Light Novel to an American live-action film starring Tom Cruise,All You Need Is Killis a story that wasnever meant to last long. This is a shame because the “Groundhog Day, but in the middle of a war” idea is just too cool not to do more with.
For instance, eventually, in the story, it’s discovered that the time loop is caused by a particular unit within the alien horde that the United Defense Force is up against. So why not continue the story, maybe following other, unrelated soldiers, as they come to similar realizations, or otherwise try to combat such a powerful foe?
