After My Hero Academia and Jujutsu Kaisen, now Kaiju No. 8: Why WSJ bigshots are suffering from disappointing endings?

The manga for Kaiju No. 8 has recently aired its final chapter, and fans seem to have some strong opinions. While many readers feel this ending was not the worst, a few have noted that it's been a trend where series that are part of the Weekly Shonen Jump (WSJ) are not delivering the best conclusions.

Weekly Shonen Jump has long stood as the titan of the manga industry. It brought the world titles like Dragon Ball, One Piece, Naruto, Bleach, and more recently, My Hero Academia, Jujutsu Kaisen, and Kaiju No. 8. But as we enter the mid-2020s, a troubling pattern is emerging: disappointing endings.

Many of these titles were popular worldwide and have been heavily promoted. That is why all three have ended in ways that left fans unsatisfied, even disillusioned. Compared to past eras, Naruto, Bleach, and One Piece, it seems like the current generation doesn’t seem to have the luxury of time.

Kaiju No. 8 ended at just 129 chapters. Jujutsu Kaisen barely crossed 250. My Hero Academia ran for a decade but rushed the final act. This shorter serialization model is becoming the new norm and is reflected in the storytelling.

Rather than slow burns and layered world-building, we now get breakneck pacing and condensed arcs. Whether this is due to mangaka burnout or corporate scheduling is hard to say, but the trend is clear.

With JJK, MHA, and now Kaiju No. 8 done serializing, Shonen Jump is scrambling to find its next flagship series. One Piece is in its final saga. The magazine is in a rare moment of transition, not unlike the post-Naruto and Bleach era. Promising contenders like Sakamoto Days, Dandadan, and Kagurabachi are on the rise. But none have yet matched the commercial or critical highs of the Big Three or even Demon Slayer.

What was the issue with the Kaiju No. 8 manga ending?

When Kaiju No. 8 launched in 2020, it felt fresh. A protagonist in his 30s, Kafka Hibino, broke the mold of teenage Shonen leads. The setting, a world ravaged by giant kaiju and protected by a defense force, was ripe with potential.

But by the time it wrapped up in Chapter 129 (July 2025), fans felt whiplash. Major plot points—like the origin of the Kaiju, the fate of Chief Shinomiya, and Kafka’s kaiju powers—were either brushed over or ignored entirely. Side characters like Reno, Kikoru, and Iharu, who had been given considerable setup, barely got closure.

And the emotional heart of the story, Kafka and Mina’s relationship, was denied the final payoff fans had waited five years to see. Instead of a satisfying finale, Kaiju No. 8 ended like an unfinished season. Some speculate that time constraints or editorial pressure played a role, but the result felt like a halfway mark, not a conclusion.

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Why are WSJ endings suffering?

Producing 19–20 pages of manga weekly is brutal. Many mangaka suffer from a lack of sleep, health issues, and creative exhaustion. Even with assistants, the weekly grind is unsustainable for several years. As stories grow in scale, the demand to maintain quality while releasing them weekly becomes nearly impossible.

We’re now in the era of Jump Plus and the digital-first series. Physical magazine sales are down. New manga are more likely to live or die based on streaming anime success, social media buzz, or digital reader engagement. This shift leads to shorter runs, quicker conclusions, and more abrupt transitions from manga to anime and beyond.

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What needs to change?

For WSJ and its creators to deliver more satisfying conclusions, a few things must change:

1) Flexible Publishing Models: Like Chainsaw Man Season 2 on Jump Plus, authors should be allowed to work biweekly or monthly if needed. Fewer chapters, higher quality.

2) Less Interference: Editors should support storytelling, not dictate it. Creators know their stories best.

3) Long-Term Vision: New series need time to grow. Forcing a premature conclusion ruins not only endings but the entire legacy of a series.

4) Respect for Authors: Physical and mental health of creators must be prioritized. Burned-out authors cannot deliver great finales.

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Final thoughts

Weekly serialization pressures, editorial meddling, and the push for fast success in a social media-dominated world make it harder for creators to finish their stories properly. Fans are ready to follow stories for years. They just want those stories to finish with the same care and power they started with. And right now, that’s what Weekly Shonen Jump needs to deliver most.