Looking at some upcoming shounen/seinen releases from January 2025 and beyond that I find interesting, and maybe you will too!
With the new year ramping up, it's time to look forward to some of the most interesting, new, and anticipated manga releases of 2025. For this roundup, I am only looking at manga that has been serialized or published online and in magazines aimed at boys (shounen) or men (seinen). (Remember shounen and seinen are demographics, not genres.) The following 4 releases are the ones that I am looking forward to most, and maybe you are too, but first, let's talk about Kingdom.
A Word on Kingdom
Alright, I was going to release this list much earlier, but with Viz promising some big announcements late January and early February, I had to hold off. Just to see. And...They did not disappoint me. It's hard to be disappointed when you have zero expectations. In case you haven't been chronically online, Viz has announced the license for Kingdom by Yasuhisa Hara on February 7, 2025. Kingdom is an action historical series spanning 74 volumes and counting. The series has been serialized in Shukkan Young Jump since 2006 and is still ongoing. Viz will release the series as singles monthly, meaning fans will be caught up in ~7 years. Must be nice.
In the wake of this big announcement, shoujosei discourse happened again. At least on X/Twitter where I am still active. With Viz releasing Kingdom, the most ambitious license in years, it calls into question the types of licenses and the lengths that publishers will go for their shounen and seinen fans, many of whom are straight cis male readers compared to the shoujosei audience. Viz has the biggest slice of the manga pie in the North American and broader English language market. Kodansha is trailing second place by a wide margin. If there is any company that can afford to be ambitious right now, it's Viz.
I'm not a Kingdom fan, but I will be keeping a close eye on the series. Kingdom may impact the manga industry here in North America. Not sure how yet. Between Ashita No Joe: Tomorrow's Joe release from Kodansha and now Kingdom from Viz, anything IN PRINT is possible. Time to dream and demand big.
Kingdom aside, let's get down to brass tacks, and talk about the few interesting releases I'm really looking forward to reading.
The List
The Art of Rumiko Takahashi: Colors 1978-2024 (artbook)
Viz announced that it will publish Rumiko Takahashi's newest artbook this fall 2025. As a big Rumiko Takahashi fan, this is an instant Day 1 buy for me.
Viz describes the book:
From the esteemed creator of Ranma 1/2 and Inuyasha comes this deluxe art book with original drawings, a long-form interview, a ribbon bookmark, and an exclusive drawing of Lum from Urusei Yatsura!
Sounds good to me! Now, I just need a coffee table to set it on. Learn more here.
YAIBA: Samurai Legend by Gosho Aoyama (24 volumes, complete)
From the creator of Case Closed (aka Detective Conan) comes an adventure samurai story, and OMG where to begin with this particular announcement. First, Viz was weird in announcing it online. Maybe Viz gave full details at the New York Comic Con panel, but they weren't so clear online. They just announced the brand new anime adaptation first in the social media posting. Then, they mentioned the manga like it was an after thought. No further details about the print release (omnis, singles, what it's about, etc) were given other than the July 2025 release date. Like what the fuck.
Second, Yaiba was clearly licensed because of the shiny new anime adaptation it's receiving, which isn't such a bad thing. It's about damn time we received more of Gosho Aoyama's work. I'm just annoyed that Viz didn't license this story earlier. Admittedly, Gosho Aoyama's catalog of works is short and mostly dominated by Conan. Unlike Conan,Yaiba is an action adventure series (read: broader appeal) and a completed work so I can't really be too mad at Viz about this.
Based on the real-life swordsman Miyamoto Musashi, Yaiba ran in Weekly Shonen Sunday from 1988 to 1993, spanning 24 volumes. The manga was adapted into a 52-episode anime in 1993. The new anime will air in April 2025, and it will feature voice actors from the Case Closed/Detective Conan anime.
Anime News Network describes the story:
Yaiba's whole life has been spent training to be a samurai and he doesn't know about anything else, not even girls. When he returns to Japan, a pair of cursed swords makes life even more exciting...... and hilarious.
Lastly, I wish Viz treated Case Closed and Gosho Aoyama with more care and respect. Gosho Aoyama is to Shonen Sunday like Eiichiro Oda is to Shonen Jump: a big fucking deal. I also wish Viz treated its Shonen Sunday line with more care. Anyway, I am looking forward to reading and watching Yaiba this spring and summer. Per the pre-orders, the first 2-in-1 omnibus volume will be released on July 8, 2025 so mark your calendars!
Stardust Family by Aki Poroyama (2 volumes, complete)
Alright, I couldn't put out a list without including a mystery manga (or two). Serialized in Comic Beam, Stardust Family is a mystery drama set in a future where couples need a license to parent.
Yen Press describes the story:
In a world set in the future, children hold the authority to determine who may become parents. Having children is illegal—unless a couple first passes a strict examination, conducted by a child, that certifies them as capable providers. It is a veritable utopia with no child abuse…or at least, so it may seem. Hikari is one such examiner in this system, spending his days evaluating prospective parents. But one day, he comes across a couple that isn’t quite like the others…
The series will be released as an all-in-one omnibus on May 27, 2025. Check it out here.
Adabana by NON (3 volumes, complete)
So, here's a curveball that I didn't see coming. Dark Horse may have something new for me. Written by the same mangaka of Harem Marriage comes a suspenseful small-town crime drama. Adabana ran in Grand Jump from 2020 to 2021, and it's complete in three volumes.
Dark Horse describes the story:
After the gruesome murder of two small-town residents, a ramen shop owner, and a local student, the community is left shocked. Mizuki Aikawa, the best friend of one of the victims, confesses to the brutal crime. However, nothing is as it seems, and Mizuki's public defenders believe there has to be more to the story. When the truth unravels, they discover a tale of class, exploitation, and the deeper struggles of meeting family expectations.
Having read some of Harem Marriage, I am intrigued. Adabana is definitely a far cry from Harem Marriage! Dark Horse will publish the story in single volumes, and volume 1 will hit store shelves in August 12, 2025. Learn more here. (In the meantime, I can finally complete Harem Marriage. 🙈)
Conclusion
And there you have it! 4 awesome shounen/seinen manga to look forward to besides Kingdom (or Kodansha's re-releases of Mushishi and Dragon Head.) The year is just beginning. So, we will have more new licenses coming our way soon. What are you looking forward to reading this year? What are you hoping publishers will license this year? Let me know.
(NOTE: release dates are subject to change. As of this post, the release dates are accurate.)