Shonen Jump Teases Its Next Manga Imprint

In the world of manga, there are no names bigger than Shueisha. The publisher has been in the game for decades now and is responsible for releasing some of manga’s most popular series. Now, it seems Shueisha has a new Jump imprint on its mind, so fans will want to familiarize themselves with the name Jump Toon ASAP.

The title surfaced online this week after reports of a new Shueisha trademark hit social media. As it turns out, Shueisha has trademarked the name ‘Jump Toon’ alongside two logos. These items were trademarked as of March 3rd, and now a tech component has been added to the mix.

After all, a web domain for Jump Toon has been located. Netizens learned a Japanese domain for the alleged imprint has surfaced, and it was established on March 3rd as well. Currently, the domain hosts no information on whatever Jump Toon may be, and the name’s trademark application is just as barren. So for now, fans will have to wait for Shueisha to say something official about the imprint.

Of course, this is hardly the first Shonen Jump imprint to spawn from Shueisha. In total, more than 10 imprints have come from the Jump line of comics with Shonen Jump being the first. The base series debuted in July 1968 before Weekly Shonen Jump went live the next year. To date, Weekly Shonen Jump has ushered in nearly 20 sub-magazines, and it is responsible for bringing series like Dragon Ball and Naruto to life. Other Jump imprints include V Jump, Monthly Shonen Jump, Weekly Young Jump, and more.

Of course, manga readers are eager to see what Jump Toon is all about. Given the name, it seems likely Shueisha is eyeing some sort of webtoon push. After all, web comics are very popular in Japan, and recent sales figures confirm Western readers are consuming webtoons more so than ever before. Thanks to the success of Shonen Jump+ and its online library, Shueisha may have big webtoon plans in mind, and Jump Toon could the first installment of a larger strategy. For now, we will have to wait on Shueisha to formally acknowledge this new imprint now that trademark details have gone public, so manga readers better keep an eye out for future updates!

What do you make of this latest Shonen Jump update? Share your thoughts with us in the comments section below or hit me up on Twitter @MeganPetersCB.