2 Years Later, Major Shonen Jump Series Confirms It Saved Itself From Cancellation

It turns out that one major series running in Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump magazine was able to save itself from cancellation, and has gone on for two years since. Shonen Jump has been going through a lot of changes in the past few years as following the loss of some of the magazine’s longest running hits in quick succession, many other titles have started and been quickly cancelled in the hopes of trying to find the next breakout hit. It’s been tough for those works that have been on the edges.

Shoichi Usui’s Ultimate Exorcist Kiyoshi is one such series as it didn’t quite make a mark with fans when it first made its Shonen Jump debut back in 2024. In the years since the series has gone on to be one of the steadier titles in the magazine too. But it turns out as revealed by an extra included in the latest volume release in Japan (as spotted by @WSJ_manga on X), that this series was almost cancelled after only three months before bouncing back in a huge way.

Ultimate Exorcist Kiyoshi Saved Itself From Shonen Jump Cancellation

As detailed in the latest volume release in the series about Toji Shuten, the series was set to be cancelled within Shonen Jump around his debut as one of the Three Grand Crosses. They were teased to be some of the strongest exorcists, and Kiyoshi needed to pass their test to become a Grand Cross exorcist himself. This makes a lot of sense in retrospect as the series seemed to be heading to its climax with the debut of the Great Demon Lord Asuta Roth in Chapter 19 (which is usually around the chapter number where early cancellations happen).

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Asuta Roth was teased to be the strongest demon, and lead to a huge fight against Kiyoshi. But the series ended up doing so well in sales that it saved itself from cancellation. It’s revealed in the volume extra that some of the ideas had to be shifted around and changed because the manga was no longer heading towards a grand finale. In retrospect, it’s why Asuta Roth wasn’t the only Great Demon Lord around. Going from being labeled as “the” Great Demon Lord, he’s revealed to be one of three after the fight ends.

What’s Going On With Ultimate Exorcist Kiyoshi?

It’s also why Ultimate Exorcist Kiyoshi has seemed like it’s been heading towards climaxes for quite a while. Each new arc seems big enough to be the final one, and each one then introduces fans to yet another group of demons that was stronger than the last. It’s the classic Shonen Jump formula revealing that a string of victories only leads to tougher fights that pop out of nowhere, but the manga has likely been on the cusp of cancellation this entire time.

It’s led to the series having a unique kind of energy that isn’t seen in the rest of the magazine. It’s been nostalgic to see that each arc ends with a massive fight that could feel like an ultimate finale, only then to reveal that there’s a bigger one in the next arc. It’s made it an exciting read thus far, and that will likely continue to be the trend until it gets an anime adaptation of its own someday.

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HT – @WSJ_manga on X