7 Best 2000s Shonen Manga That Weren’t in Shonen Jump

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Weekly Shonen Jump is famous for publishing many incredibly popular manga and anime series that many people grew up with. However, it’s not the only magazine in Japan that features this kind of content.

While Weekly Shonen Jump is known for its many popular manga, other magazines also published some of the most memorable series of the 2000s. Here are some of the best shonen manga that didn’t start in Jump during that decade.

A Town Where You Live

Magazine: Weekly Shonen Magazine

Kouji Seo is a popular manga artist who’s been creating comics since the early 2000s. He’s known for his romantic stories, which range from funny and sweet to serious and emotional. His 2008 series, A Town Where You Live, is one of his more dramatic works.

This series leans towards being overly dramatic, which some viewers might not enjoy. However, it’s full of satisfying romantic moments. The story really focuses on how the characters develop and change, showing their struggles, flaws, and the complexities of their relationships.

Fairy Tail

Magazine: Weekly Shonen Magazine

While it doesn’t always get the same level of praise as popular series like Naruto and One Piece, Fairy Tail was a huge hit in manga and anime during the 2000s. The anime had a lot of filler episodes that some fans didn’t enjoy, but the original manga remains a really enjoyable read.

Fairy Tail’s greatest strength is its huge number of characters. While this sometimes means individual characters aren’t explored in great depth, it provides a wide variety of personalities for readers to enjoy and support. Hiro Mashima’s art style is very recognizable, and although some feel it became repetitive over time, his earlier work is particularly striking.

The World God Only Knows

Magazine: Weekly Shonen Sunday

The 2000s saw a lot of harem manga and anime, but the quality varied greatly. Many of these shows felt repetitive, simply repeating tired clichés. While The World God Only Knows doesn’t completely reinvent the genre, it offers a refreshing take and introduces some unique elements as the story progresses.

The show is funny, but it truly stands out in how it handles the many love interests common in this type of series. The main character, Keima, has to win over lots of girls because of magical events, and he uses his extensive knowledge of dating games to do it. While the story introduces heroines quickly at first, it builds to a satisfying and memorable conclusion that feels truly earned.

Magi: The Labyrinth of Magic

Magazine: Weekly Shonen Sunday

Many people miss out on the fantastic series, Magi: The Labyrinth of Magic, which started airing in the late 2000s and really gained popularity in the following decade. While creator Shinobu Ohtaka had some success with her earlier work, Sumomomo, Momomo, Magi was the series that truly made her well-known.

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Magi is praised for its detailed and immersive world, tackling complex themes and creating a truly captivating story. The dynamic between Aladdin, Alibaba, and Morgiana is a highlight, as each character grows and evolves throughout the series. While the anime adaptation didn’t cover the entire manga, the manga itself offers the complete and best way to enjoy the story.

Soul Eater

Magazine: Monthly Shonen Gangan

Soul Eater is a fantastic series from the 2000s that doesn’t get enough attention. With the anime adaptation of Atsushi Ohkubo’s other popular manga, Fire Force, recently finished, fans are hoping Soul Eater might get a remake similar to the Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood anime. Even without a new adaptation, Soul Eater remains one of the best manga from that era that wasn’t published in Weekly Shonen Jump.

Ohkubo excels at building captivating worlds and developing characters that readers genuinely care about. Like Soul Eater, their work features a strong, memorable cast, and the story consistently improves as it progresses. The manga’s art style is distinctive and eye-catching, and despite being over two decades old, it remains an enjoyable series that deserves to reach a wider audience.

Attack on Titan

Magazine: Bessatsu Shonen Magazine

Attack on Titan first appeared in a new magazine called Bessatsu Shonen Magazine—a sister publication to the well-known Weekly Shonen Magazine—in September 2009. It quickly became hugely popular throughout the 2010s, selling millions of copies and leading to an anime series that is widely considered a classic.

This series was remarkable for its grim atmosphere and richly detailed world. It immersed readers in a bleak, post-apocalyptic landscape where danger felt constant, and gradually unveiled layers of story and character development that changed how you understood events. The manga concluded in 2021, and its ending continues to be a popular topic of discussion among anime and manga fans.

Fullmetal Alchemist

Magazine: Monthly Shonen Gangan

I’ve always been impressed by the two anime versions of Fullmetal Alchemist, but honestly, nothing quite compares to the original manga. Hiromu Arakawa has created a lot of great series, and I’m enjoying her newest anime, Daemons of the Shadow Realm, which is currently airing. Still, Fullmetal Alchemist remains her most iconic work – it’s really something special.

Fullmetal Alchemist is a truly compelling series. Its world is richly detailed, the many mysteries introduced throughout the story are satisfyingly resolved, and at its heart is a deeply moving relationship between brothers Edward and Alphonse – arguably one of the best portrayals of siblinghood in shonen manga. The story follows their quest to restore their bodies after a failed attempt to bring their mother back to life. It’s an emotionally powerful journey, but what really stands out is how flawlessly everything connects by the end. Every character and plot thread comes together, giving the fantastic cast a chance to truly shine.

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2026-04-18 17:09