Over the past 30 years, a number of sports manga have taken the global anime and manga fandom by storm, although it’s arguable that no series is as iconic as Takehiko Inoue’s Slam Dunk. During the first run-in Weekly Shonen JumpJapan’s most prolific manga magazine, published the series alongside legendary titles such as Dragon Ball and YuYu Hakushoyet it had little trouble topping both in popularity polls at various times throughout history.
More than two decades after their healthy competition, Dragon Ball‘s Akira Toriyama and Slam Dunk‘s Takehiko Inoue sat down for an interviewwhere both artists expressed deep admiration for each other’s work. In Toriyama’s case, having been an artist who famously didn’t read much manga, his praise for Inoue carried extra weight. Inoue who debuted when Dragon Ball was already a huge success, admitted that he looked up to the manga legend.
Today, Slam Dunk remains one of the most successful manga and anime franchises in history, and considering the immense popularity of the latest theatrical film, The first Slam Dunkthat doesn’t look set to change in the coming years. However, Takehiko Inoue’s original manga has been hard to come by in North America for some time. Although the series has remained in print, it’s been rare for stores to be able to add it to their inventory, and even rarer for fans to get their hands on it. Although that is about to change with a new, final release of the Slam Dunk.
A new, definitive edition of Slam Dunk is set to arrive in the US
The most iconic sports manga of all time returns in style
Friday, June 12, along with a number of other revelations, VIZ Media announced a new deluxe edition of Slam Dunkwith exclusive color pages from the original serialization, new binding covers and a rearranged binding structure. The new, definitive English version of the series will be released in spring 2027 and will finally give fans of the series a fair chance to collect and own Slam Dunk in its entirety.
Despite its combined worldwide sales of 150 million copies, the series has been hard to find in recent years, prompting fans to take to social media to plead with VIZ Media for a re-release. Now it seems that fans’ cries have been heard and VIZ is taking the opportunity to re-release Slam Dunk with style. The new color pages have never before been made available to English-speaking readers, and the new cover designs will showcase Takehiko Inoue’s wildly impressive artwork.
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It is currently unknown how many volumes will be released, but based on VIZ Media’s latest X entry, the new edition of Slam Dunk will be long lasting. Although the series ended three decades ago in June, Slam Dunkthe action is just as exciting today as it was during its first run, and the basketball journey of protagonist Hanamichi Sakuragi is still wildly endearing. Fans will not want to miss their chance to experience Slam Dunk as it was meant to be read.
Slam Dunk’s enduring success is a testament to its incredible quality
When modern anime and manga fans delve into older titles to experience, many have trouble really connecting with subject matter, writing styles, or art styles that today might be considered dated. But those fans were hesitant to give Slam Dunk a shot based on its age doesn’t have to worry about any of that. Takehiko Inoue is a legend in the manga industry for a reason, and his art and storytelling remain captivating three decades later Slam Dunk‘s conclusion.
The new deluxe edition of Slam Dunk is slated to arrive in the US in spring 2027, and it’s a release that longtime fans of the series, fans of sports mangaor even fans of manga who know nothing about the sport of basketball will not want to miss out.
- Publication date
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1993 – 1996
- Directors
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Nobutaka Nishizawa
- Authors
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Nobuaki Kishima, Yoshiyuki Suga
- Franchise(s)
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Slam Dunk
