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Japanese manga lovers vote for top five shonen manga with the best endings

Shannon Jul 27, 2021
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Because it’s the ending of a manga that gives you all the feels.

Whether it’s a plot twist or a happy ending, the last volume of a manga can hit the readers harder than any other part of a story, especially if it’s one that the author has been planning since the very beginning.

But out of all the manga out there, which ones have the best endings?

That’s what Goo Ranking wanted to find out in their survey of 2,758 Japanese netizens between January and February 2021. They asked everyone to vote for the shonen manga series that had the best endings, and here are the top five summarized for you.

Spoiler warning for all of the series below!

5. Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba — 200 votes

This masterpiece manga by Koyoharu Gotouge ran in Weekly Shonen Jump from 2016 to 2020, making it the one of the most recently published series in the top five. The story follows young protagonist Tanjiro Kamado, trying to slay a demon that slaughtered his family and turned his own sister into a demon.

The final chapter of the series is actually a leap forward in time from the second-to-last chapter, where the great-grandchild of Zenitsu, one of Tanjiro’s companions, reads a book titled “The Legend of Zenitsu.” The child’s conclusion is that everyone who fought demons and died for peace would be reincarnated into a happier life, and the series ends with introductions of the main characters’ reincarnations. Happy tears.

4. Haikyu!! — 221 votes

Another recent series, Haikyu!! by Haruichi Furudate ran as a series in Weekly Shonen Jump from 2012 to 2020. The dream of main character Shoyo Hinata to become a great volleyball player stole the hearts of many, and its ending was just as good, according to 221 people surveyed.

Haikyu!!‘s finale has a similar tone to Kimetsu no Yaiba, in which the last chapter is structured like an epilogue. It showcases what the main characters are up to several years after graduating high school, including whether any of them were still playing volleyball.

3. Touch — 355 votes

With a rather large jump in votes from fourth place is Mitsuru Adachi’s Touch, which ran from 1981 to 1986 in Weekly Shonen Sunday. This real-life series follows the journey of twin brothers Kazuya and Tatsuya Uesugi as they aim to make it to the year’s biggest and most legendary high-school baseball championship, Koshien. Despite the manga first being published 30 years ago, its ending remains popular with Japanese netizens to this day.

The ending of Touch has the brothers’ team win the Koshien game, and Tatsuya confesses his feelings to his series-long crush Minami. What happens to the pair afterward is uncertain, but the victory is enough to give readers all the feels.

2. Fullmetal Alchemist — 410 votes

Coming in at number two is Fullmetal Alchemist by Hiromu Arakawa*,* which ran in Weekly Shonen Gangan between 2001 and 2010. The story follows alchemist brothers Edward and Alphonse Elric in the fictional country of Amestris as they search for the mythical Philosopher’s Stone.

In the final chapter of Fullmetal Alchemist, Edward fights and wins against his nemesis Father, then sacrifices the source of his Alchemy powers to face Truth. This exchange wins him back his younger brother Alphonse, who had previously sacrificed himself. Edward and Winry also confess their feelings for each other, end up marrying, and have a happy family with two children.

1. Inuyasha — 472 votes

And finally, good old Inuyasha by Rumiko Takahashi, which stole first place with 472 votes from netizens. That’s almost 20 percent of the votes!

Though some may question its categorization as a shonen manga, it actually ran from 1996 to 2008 in the Weekly Shonen Sunday anthology. The manga tells the fantastical story of 15-year-old Kagome Higurashi falling into a well and time traveling to the past, taking readers on a whirlwind of a journey as well.

The final chapter is a perfect romantic ending, with Kagome deciding to live forever in the feudal era, choosing it over the modern world in order to be with Inuyasha. The two marry and live happily ever after. The ending of this manga series is even more exciting considering there will be a sequel series coming out soon!

Also on the list of over 60 titles were YuYu Hakusho, Gintama, Death Note, and more. Their lower ranking doesn’t mean any of their endings are bad, just that theirs didn’t have quite as much of an impact on netizens as others.

Plus there are still so many manga out there that have yet to even get to their endings yet. No one can deny One Piece‘s power as the best (still ongoing) manga of all time, so we’re hopeful that it will have an amazing ending as well.

Sources: Goo Ranking via My Game News Flash
Top image: Pakutaso
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