Ah, finally a news story which covers why I created this site. So, first, you need to read up on the latest news. And of course, I’m talking about Ultimo’s move into Jump SQ 19. You can read about that here: http://shamanking-nation.com/english/japan-release/ultimo-to-move-to-jump-sq-19/
Thanks for doing that. Now to discuss!
Actually, I’m happy for this news. First of all, it validates my “sixth sense” for Takei related news. For some reason, I had a strong feeling that I was going to post on Patch Cafe today, and that there was some piece of news. And poof! I found it. It was short and quick, and I didn’t need to do alot of research. Awesome.
Second of all, I beat the other Japanese Takei-centric sites to the punch. Ok, that’s kind of shallow. But look at it this way, you’ve got the news first. That’s kinda cool in it’s own way.
And third of all (is that even right?), this is probably the best result for Takei and the Ultimo series. Ultimo had about a year left in it. At that point it should be concluded. That was going to be it’s natural progression. The “powers that be” have basically moved on from this project and have accepted that it will not grow and further than it’s current state. The decline of the series (in terms of sales) is now in full swing. Blame Jumbor and Shaman King. But it’s also it’s natural progression. This shouldn’t be a shock.
Blaming Jumbor and Shaman King, is also in part what really speeds this up. Jumbor, though I haven’t talked about it here yet, is really, really good right now. Both Dit and I look at the new chapters coming out and are like “I want to read that story! This is looking really good!” But, Takei has taken two breaks from Jumbor this past year. Maybe his contract is only for 10 chapters a year, but more than likely… he’s overworked. Three series, at around 40 pages a series… puts him well over 120 pages a month. He’s really only done that one month so far. One of his series takes a break, or gets a reduced page count (from 40 pages to 20 pages).
But from looking at a series-centric view… it means that Ultimo needs to speed up to it’s conclusion. Quarterly releases doesn’t help it’s plot, it’s not designed that way. It’s too confusing, and doesn’t lend itself to a “pick up and read” style. As such, the end for the series is near. Whatever it takes to finish up another volume of sales will be what it will be. Will that be a disappointing end? Maybe. Will we get another “KZB” re-release of Ultimo in the next 5 years with a new ending? It’s Takei, so of course we will.
