For anyone who follows manga serialization, it's common practice for manga to get a few tweaks between its magazine run and its collected tankobon release, and you probably don't bat an eye.
But recently, something truly wild went down at Kodansha's "Weekly Shonen Magazine". Natsume Genri's new series, "Yoru no Kane no Kito", pulled off something unprecedented. Instead of just a standard collection, the entire first volume was "redrawn from scratch", leaving the editorial team absolutely stunned and calling it "unheard of!"
Sure, manga often gets some touch-ups or refinements when it goes from magazine chapters to tankobon. But Natsume-sensei didn't just touch things up; they essentially scrapped the *entire* first volume and started fresh. The editorial team admitted, "It's incredibly rare for an entire volume to be redrawn from start to finish like this."
Seriously, juggling an ongoing serialization while redrawing a whole volume? That's a hellish challenge. The editors initially tried to talk them down, suggesting, "Couldn't you just make a few minor fixes?" But Natsume-sensei was adamant about redrawing the entire thing and eventually got the green light. The editorial team even joked, "We were genuinely worried Natsume-sensei wouldn't make it... And we'd like to kindly ask other artists *not* to try anything this extreme!"
Natsume Genri-sensei openly confessed, "When the first chapter dropped, a lot of readers said it was 'hard to read'. I was absolutely crushed. I felt like I wasn't good enough and truly apologized to everyone. Even as a professional manga artist, I almost gave up then."
But then, many other readers commented on how much they loved the series. Natsume-sensei explained, "Seeing people enjoy my story, I felt it would be incredibly disrespectful to everyone if I just gave up. It was a huge ask, but I pleaded with the editorial department to let me redraw the entire volume, promising that the serialization wouldn't be interrupted. I knew it would cause a lot of trouble and costs, but I got it done. I'm truly thankful to everyone who helped."
Natsume-sensei also shared that before becoming a manga artist, they worked as an actor and even a funeral director. Their journey into manga began after receiving a letter that simply said, "I want to read your original story." They emotionally stated, "From receiving that letter, to drawing my first one-shot, starting serialization, brainstorming plots with my editor, having a designer create my logo, all the comments from readers, the help from my assistants, the birth of these characters and this world... To me, all of it has been the greatest miracle of my life."
▼ In fact, "Yoru no Kane no Kito" itself started as a one-shot and only officially became a serialized series after racking up tons of positive feedback.
As for "Yoru no Kane no Kito", the series kicked off its serialization on May 20, 2025. The story follows Roan, a magician who once endured a life worse than slavery in a circus. One day, Roan encounters the eccentric spirit Kito, only to discover they are both magic-users feared and shunned by the world. To complicate matters, Kito is also a member of the infamous vigilante group, "Yoru no Kane".
While it's common for tankobon releases to fix minor errors or rushed art from their magazine runs, a full-on redraw like this is practically unheard of. If this wild story has piqued your interest, why not check out "Yoru no Kane no Kito" and see if it's your cup of tea?
