While the Skip Beat anime can't compare in terms of its airtime to shounen shows like One Piece, Hunter x Hunter, and Bleach, the story's source material, as a shoujo romantic-comedy manga series, does rival these primetime giants in terms of survivability and likability in the shoujo manga industry. Manga series tend to vary in genre, length, and runtime, and only a few of them specifically in the shoujo genre see success in the form of anime adaptations, movie deals, and video games. Skip Beat is one of these success stories as evident in its continued existence.
To give a brief summary of manga history, the style of manga dates back all the way back to the mid-12th century with the creation of the Chōjū-jinbutsu-giga, a Japanese art scroll that depicted anthropomorphic animals who were the satirical representations of the shoddy politics and corrupted nobles of the era. Moving forward in history, the popularity of modern-day manga and anime can be traced back and attributed to Osamu Tezuka, the creator of Astro Boy, a popular sci-fi anime that opened up the western world to the Japanese animation form.
The Story of Skip Beat
Skip Beat revolves around Kyōko Mogami, a down-on-her-luck teenage girl who came to Tokyo, Japan, to support her singer-boyfriend, Sho Fuwa. Overhearing a conversation between Sho and a staff member at his company, Kyoko realizes that her boyfriend was using her as a servant to pay his rent and cook his food for him. While many people may have chosen to return home after such a shock, she decided to exact revenge on him by entering showbiz.
Entering into the Love Me Section at LME, she works alongside her friend, Kanae Kotonami, and overcomes all obstacles that come her way in the form of uncooperative actors, annoying coworkers, and pesky pursuers. All the while she is flip-flopping back and forth between admiration and fear with Ren Tsuruga, an experienced actor in LME, and her secret childhood friend, Kuon. Like many shoujo series, there are many tropes that take the story for a spin.
The Never-Ending Manga
Like Hunter x Hunter, One Piece, and Bleach, Skip Beat has a long-lasting legacy in the manga industry. The manga series currently holds a semi-permanent spot on Viz Media's Shojo Beat running from February 2002 to April 2022. As of April 2022, the manga series has a total of 46 volumes to its title and shows no signs of stopping.
The theme of the never-ending manga is not new. Several popular manga series, specifically in Shonen Jump, seem to publish more and more chapters without an end in sight. Eiichiro Oda's One Piece, for example, is a prime example of a manga series that has reached an almost god-like status in the industry, since the setup for the final season has taken years to reach. Even now, the manga series is on hiatus until the author feels like it's time to conclude the story.
There are some other cases when the manga series might be delayed or extended, but the main reason is health issues. Such as in the case of Yoshihiro Togashi, the creator of Hunter x Hunter, who has struggled with chronic back issues for many years. Taking a 4-year-long hiatus, there is no telling when the series will end. Even Yoshiki Nakamura, the author of Skip Beat, took a month-long hiatus in October 2022 due to her health concerns.
Money, Manga, and Market
Whether readers like it or not, the manga industry is a moneymaker. Depending on the popularity of a manga series, the publishers might promote the manga series more aggressively, push the author to create more manga content, or prompt the author to sign off on profitable deals across the entertainment industry. To date, Skip Beat has one anime adaptation, one live-action adaptation, one novelization, one video game, and eight drama CDs.
Another factor in Skip Beat's successful survival in the manga industry is its likability. A manga series that fits into the never-ending manga category must have a lovable or relatable main character who readers want to support. Attachment is crucial when it comes to if a story sells or not, as many fans of Skip Beat enjoy reading about Kyōko Mogami more so than the other supporting cast members, except for Ren Tsuruga, the heartthrob of the series.
Source(s): PSJ, AnimeNewsNetwork 1, AnimeNewsNetwork 2, AnimeNewsNetwork 3, CNRS News, & VIZ.