Marvel is undoubtedly one of the biggest names in the entertainment industry. While their influence in the US is unmatched, with massive names under their belt like Spiderman, Iron Man, among other iconic heroes, the IP is also incredibly popular in other countries, including the land of anime and manga, Japan.
Japan has been leading the comic book industry worldwide with manga, while American comic books take a back step in terms of sales, but despite that, we can find some interesting collaborations between the USA and Japan. Shueisha, Japan’s largest manga company, has had a contract with Marvel for years, leading to the creation of Marvel manga series, and much more. Sadly, it’s officially the end of an era for Marvel in Japan as this contract is now terminated, meaning there will be no more Marvel Manga in the future.
Shueisha and Marvel Officially Terminate Contract in Japan, Leading To An End of All Marvel Collaborations
Marvel Comics is a giant in the comic book publishing industry, and one of the oldest at that as well. The company was started all the way back in the USA in 1939 by Martin Goodman, and since then, it has delivered some of the most iconic media characters of recent times, including legends like Spider-Man, the Avengers, The Fantastic Four, the X-Men, and many others that have led to multi-billion dollar profits over the years. Marvel has become a global phenomenon, especially with the massive success of the MCU, leading to the expansion of the IP as a whole.
This franchise is also very popular in Japan, despite heavy competition from local comic books from various publishers. With that being said, we still saw the rise of a collaboration between Marvel and one of the biggest Japanese manga publishers — Shueisha. In March 2019, Shueisha and Walt Disney went on to officially sign a contract that would allow Shueisha to create and publish manga series featuring the cast of Marvel comics. This led to the creation of some fantastic stories, including Deadpool: Samurai and Secret Reverse, among many others. Sadly, this era of Marvel is officially over as the contract with Shueisha has now been severed. The contract termination comes into full effect in just a couple of months, on September 30, 2026.
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With Shueisha’s Contract Terminated, No More Marvel Manga Will Be Printed Or Created
The termination of the contract between Walt Disney, who owns Marvel, and Shueisha is definitely terrible news to hear. This termination basically means that, moving forward, the creation of manga in Japan based on characters from the Marvel IP will be impossible, unless a new contract between them and another manga publisher is signed. While this is technically not impossible, right now, it seems unlikely. It’s unclear why the contract itself was terminated and not renewed, and for now, there are no further details for us to dive into, so we can only assume that Walt Disney was perhaps unsatisfied with the performance of the manga of their IP in Japan and overseas with international releases.
Either way, this termination has broader implications than simply the end of new Marvel manga creations. This termination also signifies that, past September, no more Marvel Manga will be printed. This could mean that these comic books will become unavailable soon enough, and it also puts into jeopardy some of the series that have yet to be released in English, like Deadpool’s final volume. Whether these series will ever be published or simply left to die out remains to be seen. Any fan interested in one of the Marvel manga should rush to purchase it while possible, as soon enough, prices could increase, and comics could become more scarce due to resellers, with no more reprints available.
While Marvel and Shueisha Have Severed Their Bond, DC-Kodansha Continues On
Marvel and Shueisha had an interesting run that lasted about 7 years and led to the birth of many fan-favorite series that fans grew to love and appreciate. The Japanese take on some of these American stories was definitely interesting to see. But, with that being said, while Marvel’s partnership is over, DC still has one ongoing for the foreseeable future in Japan that fans can look forward to instead.
Instead of Shueisha, DC Comics is in collaboration with another manga publishing giant, Kodansha. This collaboration officially started in December 2020, and it’s been going strong since, with fantastic series coming out of it like Batman: Justice Buster and Joker: One Operation, among others. For now, fans are free to enjoy these stories.
