Weekly Shonen Jump is one of the most iconic and well-known manga magazines in all of Japan. Over the years, this magazine has seen the serialization of many of manga’s most iconic series, such as Dragon Ball, Naruto, One Piece, Bleach, My Hero Academia, and Jujutsu Kaisen, among many other big hits.
Last year, however, Weekly Shonen Jump suffered a major blow when Jujutsu Kaisen and My Hero Academia ended back-to-back. The magazine has yet to fully recover from this, but it’s already setting up the next big three of manga. The Big Three, originally referring to the trio of One Piece, Bleach, and Naruto, has since changed. The future Big Three of Weekly Shonen Jump will be One Piece, Kagurabachi, and Ichi the Witch. These three series will be the new pillars of the magazine and will fill the gap left behind by JJK and MHA.
Shonen Jump’s New Big Three Are One Piece, Ichi the Witch, and Kagurabachi
The Big Three isn’t an official term used by Weekly Shonen Jump, but among fans in the West, it’s often utilized to point out the 4 best shonen manga in the Jump magazine. Originally, the Big Three term was used to refer to the three most popular series of Weekly Shonen Jump in the 2000s and early 2010s. These three series were One Piece, Naruto, and Bleach. Since then, however, Naruto and Bleach have both ended, so in that sense, the Big Three was broken up long ago.
After the ending of Naruto and Bleach, it could be said that My Hero Academia and Jujutsu Kaisen rose up to carry the weight of Weekly Shonen Jump, along with One Piece. In a way, these three were the new Big 3 of Weekly Shonen Jump during the late 2010s and early 2020s. However, now once again, One Piece stands alone. In 2024, both Jujutsu Kaisen and My Hero Academia reached their end, which was a huge blow to the magazine.
Now, Weekly Shonen Jump seems to have found the perfect replacements for JJK and MHA to carry on with One Piece. These new series are Ichi the Witch and Kagurabachi. Both of these new shonen series are still in their early phases and have yet to blow up, but they have the potential to become the new Big Three of Shonen Jump, alongside One Piece.
Kagurabachi And Ichi the Witch Have Established Themselves As The New Big Hits
Kagurabachi, by Takeru Hokazono, started in 2023. This manga has over 100 chapters at the moment, and delivers great quality as a great battle-centered story featuring sorcerers and incredible sword fights. This manga is very reminiscent of Jujutsu Kaisen. Meanwhile, Ichi the Witch is newer, having started just last year, in 2025. The manga, at the moment, has over 60 chapters. The story of Ichi the Witch is all about magic and fantasy. It’s more lighthearted, but still features some serious moments when it needs to. This series is easily comparable to My Hero Academia in terms of tone and even the power system.
These two series stand as two of the biggest new stories for Weekly Shonen Jump, and the magazine knows that. Weekly Shonen Jump has been purposefully advertising both series together, so much so that they were given an official combination nickname — Ichikabachika.
Shonen Jump Has Entered A New Era With A New Big Three
Weekly Shonen Jump marked the end of an era with the end of My Hero Academia and Jujutsu Kaisen. When One Piece was ongoing with Jujutsu Kaisen and My Hero Academia, the sales were incredible. Weekly Shonen Jump has now entered a new era, and while there is no guarantee that Kagurabachi and Ichi the Witch will blow up to the levels of their predecessors, they bear tremendous potential.
Fans will have to see how the two new series are received once they finally get an anime adaptation. For Kagurabachi, a new anime could come as early as 2026. However, Ichi the Witch will definitely take longer, at least until 2027.
- Release Date
- October 20, 1999
- Network
- Fuji TV
- Directors
- Hiroaki Miyamoto, Konosuke Uda, Junji Shimizu, Satoshi Itō, Munehisa Sakai, Katsumi Tokoro, Yutaka Nakajima, Yoshihiro Ueda, Kenichi Takeshita, Yoko Ikeda, Ryota Nakamura, Hiroyuki Kakudou, Takahiro Imamura, Toshihiro Maeya, Yûji Endô, Nozomu Shishido, Hidehiko Kadota, Sumio Watanabe, Harume Kosaka, Yasuhiro Tanabe, Yukihiko Nakao, Keisuke Onishi, Junichi Fujise, Hiroyuki Satou
Cast
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Mayumi TanakaMonkey D. Luffy (voice) -
Kazuya NakaiRoronoa Zoro (voice)
WHERE TO WATCH
- Studio
- Toei Animation
- Creator
- Eiichiro Oda
- Streaming Service(s)
- Crunchyroll, Netflix, Hulu, Pluto TV
