There have been thousands of distinct manga created in the realm of Japanese manga, spanning a wide range of genres and themes. Some works like Jujutsu Kaisen, Chainsaw Man, One Piece, and more have shot to the top of the charts, regardless of when they started, how long they’ve run, or how many volumes have been produced. Their success is usually determined by the number of sales the manga has accomplished.
Although One Piece by Eiichiro Oda typically tops these lists, it appears that Jujutsu Kaisen, the magnum opus of Gege Akutami, has eclipsed it as the most popular manga, accounting for 7 of the Top 15 volumes sold in the United States in January 2024. This speaks for the wave Jujutsu Kaisen has created since its release.
Although the cultural impact of Akutami’s manga is difficult to measure, Jujutsu Kaisen manga’s overall success can be inferred from the raw sales figures. While both One Piece and Jujutsu Kaisen had a great month in terms of the overall success of the series in general, Jujutsu Kaisen seems to be leading the race.
Gege Akutami’s Jujutsu Kaisen Overthrows Eiichiro Oda’s One Piece
On February 19, 2024, POS tracking company Circana BookScan released its list of the top 20 Adult graphic novel bestsellers for the entire month of January 2024 which was shared by Anime News Network. Manga volumes accounted for 18 of the top 20 slots. This itself speaks for the increasing craze for the manga industry even in countries like the USA.
The best-selling list for January 2024 featured the thirteenth volume of Tatsuki Fujimoto’s Chainsaw Man at the top, subsequently followed by the twenty-first volume of Jujutsu Kaisen by Gege Akutami at number two. While Chainsaw Man topped the chart with only two volumes, Jujutsu Kaisen had seven volumes among the top 15 most-sold manga volumes in the United States in January.
This is a startling accomplishment since it clarifies the uproar that the series has brought about after bringing out one of the best narratives the manga community has ever seen. Gege Akutami’s manga series which was released in 2018 has managed to accomplish such a big feat in a matter of few years.
Jujutsu Kaisen is Dominating Manga Sales
Ever since its release, Jujutsu Kaisen has been dominating not only the anime world but also the manga industry. By January 2024, the Jujutsu Kaisen manga had over 90 million copies in print, including companion novels, digital versions, and Jujutsu Kaisen 0, making it one of the best-selling manga series of all time.
Jujutsu Kaisen was also ranked in the top fifteen on the New York Times’ monthly Graphic Books and Manga bestseller list in early February 2024. The majority of sales are for manga volumes, which primarily include arcs and storylines following the Shibuya Incident arc. These include the infamous Culling games arc which in itself is one of the best storylines in the entire anime history.
Although the series is nearing its conclusion, there are still some manga volumes left to be released. They majorly focus on fights between Sukuna, Yuta, and Yuji Itadori and might also feature the return of characters like Megumi Fushiguro and Nobara Kugisaki, thus it is already destined to break its previous records too.
You can watch Jujutsu Kaisen on Crunchyroll, and read the manga on Viz Media’s official website and Shueisha’s MANGA Plus website.
