On Monday, the official Twitter account for Shueisha’s
Jump SQ. magazine announced that the “ Rurouni Kenshin: Hokkaido Arc ” manga,
written by Nobuhiro Watsuki and his wife Kaoru Kurosaki, will be going on an
indefinite hiatus due to the author’s health issues. This hiatus
began in the magazine’s May issue this year, when Jump SQ. reported that the
manga would not have a new chapter in June. However, the manga has not been
published in the July, August, or September issues either.
Watsuki and Kurosaki launched “Rurouni Kenshin:
Hokkaido Arc” in September 2017, but the manga had already faced a suspension
in December of the same year when Watsuki was accused of possessing adult
material starring minors. Despite this scandal, the manga resumed
publication in June 2018, sparking a huge controversy among fans, some of whom
have yet to forgive the author for his legal actions.
“Rurouni Kenshin,” an iconic work that began
publication in 1994 in Weekly Shonen Jump magazine, has amassed more than 72
million copies in circulation worldwide. The story follows Kenshin
Himura, a deadly former Meiji-era assassin who seeks to leave violence behind
and find a new purpose in life.
Over the years, “Rurouni Kenshin” has been adapted
into a 95-episode anime series, an anime film, three OVA projects, five
live-action films, and even a stage musical. Despite the controversy
surrounding the author, the franchise is still going strong, with the new
television anime project based on the original manga premiering in July 2023. This
anime, which has had a total of 24 episodes to date, will continue its
broadcast on October 3 and will extend for two consecutive cours, that is, half
a year more.
However, the indefinite suspension of the manga and
Watsuki's health problems have generated uncertainty among the work's
fans, many of whom remain divided between the legacy of Rurouni Kenshin
and the author's dark past.
Source: OfficialTwitter Account
