Man. Hearing about chapter 8 has me excited, but I also wish that whatever is coming packed with chapter 8 could have been done with 7, since that is usually the chapter first volumes end on. I felt the same way about Barrage. I really like Barrage, but the middle of what will be the first volume is just way to long. When it came to chapter 7 I was desperately hoping he would provide a hook at least to up his tank sales. After reading chapter 7 I was like, "That was a hook. That was a good hook. But. But. But it took way to long to get to this point!" The hook was alright, but ending on chapter 8 would have been way better, actually leaving you to feel slightly more interested and invested in the new character. In the end It didn't even matter since it got canceled before the first tank even came out. When Barrage started I honestly thought it would at least last 4 volumes. I really hope that Takama-Ga-Hara doesn't go down the same road since I am enjoying it a lot more than Barrage, and so far I have not felt that it has been moving slow at all. When I read the 8th chapter, more than anything I will probably just wish they could end the first volume with it, which is not like with Barrage where I think it would have been better without some of the fodder in the middle and ending with 8 instead.
Oh. I love the what-would-be-a two page spread in the 2nd chapter. Splitting the pages and having to turn it knowing what was there, and still getting blindsided again with unexpected face ripples was awesome.
I really wonder though how much Viz talks with the Japanese Jump staff about new series. It is fun reading the comments, which are basically always positive, on new series in the issues, but I wonder if Viz even communicates popularity of the new series let alone comments and other feedback. They said they were thinking of starting a weekly ranking survey for Alpha but never did.
Rankings in general though, get me going on even more rant-tastic thoughts. I know that there is extreme value in what series your readers like most, but if all the readers know this, which I am sure a lot of them don't, then I don't understand why anyone would ever vote for One Piece or Naruto. They will never get cancelled. Of course it is great if they are your favorite series and the only series you read in Jump, but I just can't understand why anyone who has ever had a series they liked cancelled would ever vote for the big series instead of trying to keep newer series they like from cancellation. I am sure a huge part of it is that they really just don't know the rankings determine cancellation, which is what bugs me so much about how Weekly Jump operates. Even in a series like Bakuman, they make it obvious that rankings decide it, but they also make sure to always mention that they "have not meaning at all" and that all cancellations are decided by the editor-in-chief, so you should always vote for what you would honestly put at the top. It seems kind of like an abusive relationship.
I know, I know. Their cut throat publication process is what gets them the top selling series, but at what point can you finally stop looking for only instant cash cows and start looking for series that will become cash cows even if they start out with a "slow burn" as well. I mean, I am pretty sure there will never be a series as popular as One Piece for decades, so if Jump doesn't choose to try and change themselves in any way now, I don't see anywhere down the line where they will try. I really wonder how many successful series would still get published if they were wiped from peoples memories and re-serialized.