Weekly Shōnen Magazine

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Weekly Shōnen Magazine
Weekly Shonen Magazine logo.png
Shōnen Magazine first issue.jpg
Cover of first issue, featuring sumo wrestler Asashio Tarō III
CategoriesShōnen manga[1][2]
FrequencyWeekly
Circulation883,804[1]
(July–September, 2016)
PublisherKodansha
First issueMarch 17, 1959; 62 years ago (1959-03-17)
CountryJapan
LanguageJapanese
WebsiteWeekly Shōnen Magazine

Weekly Shōnen Magazine (Japanese: 週刊少年マガジン, Hepburn: Shūkan Shōnen Magajin) is a weekly shōnen manga anthology published on Wednesdays in Japan by Kodansha, first published on March 17, 1959. The magazine is mainly read by an older audience, with a large portion of its readership falling under the male high school or college student demographic. According to circulation figures accumulated by the Japanese Magazine Publishers Association, circulation of the magazine has dropped in every quarter since records were first collected in April–June, 2008. This is however, not an isolated occurrence as digital media continues to be on the rise.

It is one of the best-selling manga magazines. By March 2008, the magazine had 2,942 issues, having sold 4.55 billion copies, with an average weekly circulation of 1,546,567. At an average issue price of ¥129 ($1.29), the magazine had generated approximately ¥590 billion ($5.9 billion) in sales revenue by March 2008. In addition, about 1 billion compiled tankōbon volumes had been sold by March 2008.[3]

Jason Thompson stated that it is "more down-to-earth, as well as just a tad more guy-oriented" compared to Weekly Shōnen Jump and likened this magazine to "more like something you'd find in the guys' locker room."[4]

Features[]

Series[]

There are currently 23 manga titles being serialized in Weekly Shōnen Magazine. Ahiru no Sora is currently on hiatus.

Series Title Author Premiered
A Couple of Cuckoos (カッコウの許嫁) Miki Yoshikawa January 2020
Ace of Diamond Act II (ダイヤのA Act II) Yūji Terajima August 2015
Ahiru no Sora (あひるの空) Takeshi Hinata December 2003
Amagami-san Chi No Enmusubi (甘神さんちの縁結び) Marcey Naito April 2021
Bakemonogatari (化物語) Nisio Isin, Oh! great March 2018
Blue Lock (ブルーロック) Mineyuki Kaneshiro & Yūsuke Nomura August 2018
Edens Zero (エデンズ ゼロ) Hiro Mashima June 2018
Eisen no Lovelock (英戦のラブロック) Tatsuya Shihira May 2021
Fire Force (炎炎ノ消防隊, En'en no Shouboutai) Atsushi Ōkubo September 2015
Four Knights of the Apocalypse (黙示録の四騎士, Mokushiroku no Yonkishi) Nakaba Suzuki January 2021
Girlfriend, Girlfriend (カノジョも彼女, Kanojo mo Kanojo) Hiroyuki March 2020
Hajime no Ippo (はじめの一歩) George Morikawa October 1989
I Contact (iコンタクト) Hiroaki Iganno, Kaya Tsukiyama August 2021
Kenja ga Nakama ni Natta (賢者が仲間になった!) AZU March 2021
Kuroiwa Medaka ni Watashi no Kawaii ga Tsūjinai (黒岩メダカに私の可愛いが通じない) Ran Kuze May 2021
Megami no Cafe Terrace (女神のカフェテラス) Kōji Seo February 2021
Rent-A-Girlfriend (彼女、お借りします, Kanojo, Okarishimasu) Reiji Miyajima July 2017
Seitokai Yakuindomo (生徒会役員共) Tozen Ujiie July 2008
Sentai Daishikkaku (戦隊大失格) Negi Haruba February 2021
Shangri-La Frontier (シャングリラ・フロンティア, Shangurira Furontia) Katarina, Ryōsuke Fuji July 2020
She's Adopted a High School Boy! (男子高校生を養いたいお姉さんの話) Hideki April 2018
To Your Eternity (不滅のあなたへ, Fumetsu no Anata e) Yoshitoki Ōima November 2016
Tokyo Revengers (東京卍リベンジャーズ) Ken Wakui March 2017
When Will Ayumu Make His Move? (それでも歩は寄せてくる, Soredemo Ayumu wa Yosetekuru) Sōichirō Yamamoto March 2019

Circulation[]

Circulation
Date(s) January–March April–June July–September October–December Magazine sales Ref
March 1959 to March 2008 1,546,567 4,550,000,000 [3]
April 2008 to December 2008 1,755,000 1,720,000 1,691,667 67,166,671 [5]
2009 1,664,167 1,633,334 1,614,616 1,593,637 84,574,802 [6]
2010 1,571,231 1,565,000 1,556,250 1,551,819 81,175,900 [7]
2011 1,529,693 1,491,500 1,489,584 1,472,084 77,777,193 [8]
2012 1,447,500 1,436,017 1,412,584 1,404,834 74,112,155 [9]
2013 1,376,792 1,357,000 1,324,209 1,308,117 69,759,534 [10]
2014 1,277,500 1,245,417 1,211,750 1,192,267 64,050,142 [11]
2015 1,156,059 1,127,042 1,107,840 1,085,110 58,188,663 [11][12]
2016 1,038,450 1,015,659 995,017 986,017 52,456,859 [1][13]
2017 964,158 932,713 883,804 840,667 47,077,446 [13]
January 2018 to March 2018 815,458 10,600,954 [13]
March 1959 to March 2018 1,512,692[3][13] 5,236,940,319

Reception[]

The Weekly Shōnen Magazine achieved success in the 1970s and subsequently had increased sales. As a result, it became the top selling manga magazine in Japan of its period, appearing popular amongst many otaku. But the position was later occupied by Weekly Shōnen Jump, when this competitor was born in 1968, knocking Shonen Magazine off the top spot. Shōnen Jump had now begun to circulate and dominate the manga magazine market. This began from the 1970s and continued throughout the 1990s, largely owed to Akira Toriyama's Dragon Ball. In the middle of the 1990s, Shōnen Jump suffered the loss of Dragon Ball, as the franchise had come to an end in 1996, and thus lost much of its readership. Shōnen Magazine had now made a comeback in October 1997, regaining its original position as the top selling manga magazine of its day until this was brokered in 2002. Currently, the two magazines have competed closely in terms of market circulation. Sales of the two magazines now remain very close. Circulation has dropped below two million.[14] In a rare event due to the closeness of the two magazine's founding dates, Weekly Shōnen Magazine and Weekly Shōnen Sunday released a special combined issue on March 19, 2008. In addition, other commemorative events, merchandise, and manga crossovers were planned for the following year as part of the celebrations.[15] Others include Shōnen Magazine, published by Kobunsha of the same Kodansha group. Shōnen Magazine famously serialized Tetsujin 28-go, the first anime Mecha from July 1956 to May 1966.

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b c "Boy's Manga" (in Japanese). Japanese Magazine Publishers Association. September 2016. Retrieved November 6, 2016.
  2. ^ Thompson, Jason (2007). Manga: The Complete Guide. Del Rey Books. pp. 338–339. ISBN 978-0-345-48590-8.
  3. ^ Jump up to: a b c "Shonen Magazine, Shonen Sunday Mark 50th Anniversary (Updated)". Anime News Network. March 18, 2008. Retrieved February 1, 2021.
  4. ^ Thompson, Jason (February 2, 2012). "Jason Thompson's House of 1000 Manga - Harlem Beat". Anime News Network. Retrieved April 14, 2020.
  5. ^ 2008 circulation figures:
  6. ^ 2009 circulation figures:
  7. ^ 2010 circulation figures:
  8. ^ 2011 circulation figures:
  9. ^ 2012 circulation figures:
  10. ^ 2013 circulation figures:
  11. ^ Jump up to: a b "Top Manga Magazines' Circulation Dropped 10%+ in 1 Year". Anime News Network. April 28, 2015. Retrieved August 13, 2016.
  12. ^ 2015 circulation figures
  13. ^ Jump up to: a b c d "Circulation figures "Boy's Manga" January-March, 2016". Japanese Magazine Publishers Association. Retrieved August 10, 2018.
  14. ^ "Weekly Shonen Magazine Circulation Drops Under 2M".
  15. ^ Shonen Magazine, Shonen Sunday Mark 50th Anniversary (Updated) - Anime News Network

External links[]

Retrieved from ""