As the physical English release of JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Part 6, Stone Ocean is set to debut its first manga volume on November 28, 2023, IGN India talked to Viz Media’s Weekly Shonen Jump editor, Rae First, to understand the impact of the JoJo anime on the manga’s reception.
The anime adaptation of JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure has played a big role in rekindling interest in the manga across various formats. Its success also paved the way for inventive publication approaches, encouraging interesting prospects for the franchise’s future.
First highlighted how the anime’s success has played a very important role in revitalising interest among established fans while also attracting a new wave of fans. “The anime’s success has definitely helped the manga in a lot of ways,” he said. “It re-sparked interest with existing fans, and the fantastic animation starting from Part 1 that really captures the manga experience created a whole group of new fans. And there continues to be people who stumble upon this franchise or their friends rave about it, and they give it a go, and the popularity continues to grow.”
First also shed light on the various opportunities that arose from this resurgence, mentioning the success of hardcover editions and the introduction of new publication strategies for Viz Media. “Our hardcover editions have done really well for us, and the anime’s success allowed us to try our hands at this really fancy, hardcover edition. With the continued success of the series, it also allowed us to try releasing the chapters once a week like we do with our regular simul publications.”
Cover reveal! 🗿 🌊JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Part 6–Stone Ocean, Vol. 1 releases November 28, 2023.Pre-order now: https://t.co/uOzGcBfBW6 pic.twitter.com/p71OE7ivJP
— VIZ (@VIZMedia) June 24, 2023
Part 6: Stone Ocean had its run in Japan from 1999 to 2003, and it was collected in 17 volumes. The manga only made it outside its home country in English in January 2022, when it received a digital release on Viz Media’s Shonen Jump service. “Obviously we are a bit off the mark with 1999 being the run time to call it a simul release, but it has opened avenues for us to try new things and capitalise on the success of the anime, and the momentum seems to continue with each new part,” First stated.
The physical release of JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Part–Stone Ocean is in progress, and the first volume is available for pre-order.
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Rayan Sayyed is a staff writer for IGN India with a primary focus on Asian entertainment spanning from anime, manga, games to films and dramas from the East. You can reach out to him at rayan_sayyed@ign.com, or find him on Twitter @rayanaver and Instagram @rayansayyed.
