Sui Ishida’sTokyo Ghoulwas one of the 2010s most popular anime and manga franchises,introducing countless new fans to the mediumwhile receiving acclaim from nearly every direction. Serializing during a time dominated by works likeAttack on TitanandHunter x Hunter, both of which enjoyed massive booms in popularity due to their anime adaptations,Tokyo Ghoulseemed primed to become anime and manga’s next big thing. Receiving an anime adaptation of its own in 2014, the series cemented itself as a can’t miss story.
Author Sui Ishida has gone on to enjoy continuous success followingTokyo Ghoul’s completion, writing a sequel series titledTokyo Ghoul: re, as well as thecurrently ongoing and popularChoujin X. To this day,Tokyo Ghoulremains a series recommended to new anime and manga fans, as an entry point into the art form. Ishida, however,does not seem to regard his modern classic manga as highly asTokyo Ghoul’s countless fans do.
In a 2023 interview published in the German magazine,Animania, the artist sat down to discussChoujin X, before revealing his surprising thoughts on his breakout series. He said, “As far as the story is concerned,I don’t really considerTokyo Ghoula success. For me, success is the feeling I get when I have drawn something good.” Given the overwhelming popularity of both the manga and anime versions of the series, the interview came as a surprise to the many fans of Sui Ishida’s work.
Tokyo Ghoul Was a Commercial Success, but its Author Isn’t Satisfied
Tokyo Ghoul Is One of the Most Successful Anime and Manga Franchises Ever
Tokyo Ghoulwasn’t only a recipient of widespread acclaim,the series also enjoyed incredible commercial success, being the fourth best-selling manga series of 2014. Following the premiere of the anime adaptation, sales skyrocketed, andTokyo GhoulalongsideTokyo Ghoul: reare currently estimated to have nearly 50 million copies in circulation. Not many anime and manga series have achieved comparable numbers, and the series has only continued to generate revenue over a decade since its premiere.
Sui Ishida, however, does not care much for how his work is received, and doesn’t take popularity to mean success. Continuing on what he stated earlier in the interview, he said, “Thinking it through, I don’t actually need for the work to be well-received by society or that people even like it.” Regardless of the commercial or critical acclaim thatTokyo Ghoulhas received,the work did not meet the artist’s own standards.
Later in the interview, Ishida clarified his statements, suggesting thathe might have focused a bit too much on his readershipwhile creatingTokyo Ghoul, and attempted to play to an audience he didn’t quite understand. While drawingChoujin X, the author claimed that he was focusing on overcoming his own artistic challenges, and if the readers enjoyed the work, then he would be happy. Ishida then said that, for the first time, he felt as though he was truly connecting with his audience.
Millions of Fans Disagree With Sui Ishida
An artist growing to dislike their work or becoming dissatisfied with their past creative endeavors isn’t really all that rare. Hideaki Anno, the creator of one of the most influential anime series of all time inNeon Genesis Evangelion,famously struggled with his own feelings towards his creation. A series which not so subtly critiqued anime and otaku culture,Evangelionwent on to define that very same culture for decades, andAnno would spend years remaking his own workuntil he was satisfied his message came across.
Sui Ishida might harbor similar feelings toward his own quintessential series,Tokyo Ghoul, yet much likeNeon Genesis Evangelionbefore it,its success cannot be denied. The story of Ken Kaneki fighting to hold onto his humanity amidst a volatile social climate, which sees ghouls and humans struggling to coexist, has stolen the attention and adoration of readers for over a decade. Fans have identified with the series' not-so-subtle themes of the dangers of racial oppression and morality, and have only continued singing the manga’s praises.
Tokyo Ghoul Fans Disappointed by Season 2 Need To Read the Manga
Tokyo Ghoul’s manga is different from the anime in a way that far better communicates the meaning of Kaneki and Hide’s relationship.
Criticisms towardsTokyo Ghoulare somewhat common, as they are with any other wildly popular product. Some take issue with the story’s conclusion, believing it to have been somewhat rushed. Others, however, believe it to have been perfect from start to finish. Nothing will ever be universally liked, thoughTokyo Ghoul’s sales and widespread critical acclaim suggest that more are happy with it than not. Its anime adaptation, on the other hand,is a bit of a different story.
Tokyo Ghoul’s Anime Adaptation Left Viewers Unhappy
Fans Are Still Calling for a Tokyo Ghoul Anime Remake Years Later
A large portion ofTokyo Ghoul’s successcan be attributed to its anime adaptation by Studio Pierrot, which began airing in 2014. Bursting its way into the spotlight and catapulting the series to an absurdly high level of popularity, the series helped to shape the landscape of anime during the mid 2010s. Countless fans joined the bandwagon by the first season’s finale, and could hardly wait for the second season to air the following year.
What they were met with in Season Two ofTokyo Ghoul, however, permanently altered the public perception of the anime series going forward. Like many unfortunate adaptations before and since,theTokyo Ghoulanime strayed from the source material in its follow-up run, eventually telling a story so separate from the original manga that a large portion of the fan base walked away frustrated and confused. By the timeTokyo Ghoul: repremiered, it no longer coherently fit within the universeTokyo GhoulSeason Two created.
To this day, fans are calling for the series to receive theFullmetal Alchemisttreatment, which saw an additional series titledBrotherhoodfix its prior anime adaptation’s mistakes years down the line. Regardless of the success of its anime,Tokyo Ghoulis one of the most successful manga franchises ever, whether its creator believes so or not. Perhapsa remake of the animecould return Sui Ishida’s attention to his past work and change his mind, though for now, fans will have to enjoy the series despite its creator’s comments.
Tokyo Ghoul
Cast
Tokyo Ghoul is a live-action adaptation of the acclaimed manga series. Released in 2014, it follows Ken Kaneki, a college student who becomes embroiled in the secret world of flesh-eating ghouls after an encounter with a girl named Rize. The film explores themes of identity and survival in a ghoul-infested Tokyo.
