On Thursday, June 20, 2024, Naoya Matsumoto’s original Kaiju No. 8 manga series released its 109th chapter, earning a number 6 ranking on MANGA Plus. This marked a significant achievement for the series, as it had rarely, if ever, made it into the top ten prior to this week. It now sits just below popular titles such as My Hero Academia, One Piece, Boruto: Two Blue Vortex, Jujutsu Kaisen, and Chainsaw Man.
The five series on MANGA Plus, including Kaiju No. 8, have a total range of 240 thousand to just over 570 thousand reads. As of this writing, Kaiju No. 8 has 167,452 reads, solidifying its position as the lowest-ranking series among the five. Interestingly, this significant achievement for the manga coincides with crucial developments in both the manga and the ongoing television anime adaptation.
Kaiju No. 8 Manga Capitalizes on Anime’s Popularity and Reaches the Climax of the Last Wave Arc
The Kaiju No. 8 manga has played a significant role in achieving the record high on MANGA Plus. The series is currently reaching its climax in the Last Wave arc, which started with the release of chapter 95 in late 2023. After the Second Wave arc concluded, fans witnessed the beginning of the Last Wave arc as No. 9 strategized to capture Mina Ashiro and exploit her to weaken humanity’s defenses and create a new breed of formidable Kaiju.
Episode 10 concluded the Raid on Tachikawa Base arc in the anime, with Kafka revealing his abilities to his fellow members of the Third Division. However, the episode ended without providing any resolution, causing many fans who only follow the anime to switch to the manga. Additionally, with the first three chapters of the manga always available for free on MANGA Plus, it is likely that many anime-only fans initially started reading the series on this platform, contributing to its rise in popularity.
Although it is challenging to determine the exact factor that has contributed most to the manga’s success in this situation, it is evident that both have played a crucial role in propelling the franchise to greater heights. The anime’s involvement is particularly thrilling, as both Shueisha and Crunchyroll made a concerted effort to promote the series prior to its premiere in the Spring 2024 anime season. This included hosting livestreams on X/Twitter, offering same-day dubs on Crunchyroll, and other promotional activities.
The popular manga series Kaiju No. 8 by Matsumoto was first published on Shueisha’s Shonen Jump+ digital platform in July 2020 and is still being regularly serialized on this platform. As of this moment, 97 out of the 109 chapters that have been released are included in 12 compilation volumes, with 10 of those available in English. The 13th volume is expected to be released in Japan on Thursday, July 4, 2024.
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