Strangerataru posted at Weekly Jump a really interesting site that shows the history of Shounen Jump. Having been a jump reader (although not entirely faithfully, I don’t get the weeklies like others do. I just get the weeklies of series I read.), I can’t help but be curious about Jump’s history. And oh dear, looking at the website has made me reminisce some of the best stories I’ve ever read in manga history.
Shounen Jump’s probably one of the strongest magazines out there. That’s the very reason why it even runs in English now. And you can’t help it, Jump’s got some of the best stories told in manga. All the way back, it has mastered the formula of shounen manga. According to Frederick Schodt, there are three key elements in a shounen manga: friendship, perseverance, and victory. Throughout the decades, you can just see how they’ve done this. From Barefoot Gen to One Piece, they’ve basically shown boys of all ages how to live a dream. I guess that’s why readership of Shounen Jump doesn’t exactly fall within the bracket of young boys, but really all ages.
Honestly, looking at all those titles makes me sigh just thinking about all of the fun mangas I’ve read under Jump. Well, I’m looking forward to your 40th anniversary in the next few years. Hopefully, you guys can keep on making crafting some of the best shounen stories ever told.
On a side note, I used to think that Shounen Jump was the best ever until I do notice the wear and tear on some of their series. Sometimes, they hold on to much to the formula that they lose grasp of the story. Or maybe this is just my little tired mind speaking after finishing some papers last night. (?????????) But essentially, as I noticed through their history, there seems to be a reuse of formula that somehow wears the audiences thin. Like, if I ever see another martial arts/ninjutsu/butsu/whatever series, my head will definitely explode.
