BASTARD!! Heavy Metal Dark Fantasy Is Not Finished — The Manga Has Been on Hiatus Since 2010
BASTARD!! by Kazushi Hagiwara began serialization all the way back in March 1988 in Weekly Shōnen Jump under Shueisha’s Jump Comics label — one of the major manga publishing lines in Japan. For readers new to manga, the series was originally published chapter by chapter in a Japanese magazine (a process called serialization) before those chapters were collected into bound books called volumes. Think of volumes as individual books in a series, each containing several chapters of the story.
BASTARD!! ran for 27 volumes in Japanese, with the last new chapter published in May 2010 and the final collected volume releasing in March 2012. Since then — silence. No new chapters, no new volumes, and no formal announcement that the series has ended.
The story remains incomplete. Major plot threads are still unresolved, and the narrative simply stops without a conclusion. This isn’t a case where the author wrapped things up in a rushed ending or gave readers a “good enough” stopping point. The manga is genuinely mid-story.
With a gap of over a decade and counting, BASTARD!! stands as one of the longest-stalled dark fantasy manga out there. It started in 1988, which means the series has technically been “in progress” for over 38 years — though calling it “in progress” at this point requires a generous definition of the term.
For readers who like their series wrapped up neatly, this is an important thing to know upfront. You will not get a definitive ending. What you will get is a wild, heavy-metal-infused dark fantasy ride that many fans consider worth reading even without a conclusion — but only if you go in with your eyes open.
Where the Story Stands After 27 Volumes
Over its multi-decade run, BASTARD!! progressed through multiple story arcs — large sections of the plot that each focus on a particular conflict or set of events — centered on the chaotic sorcerer Dark Schneider. The premise follows Dark Schneider, an absurdly powerful and egotistical wizard who is resurrected into a world overrun by dark armies and demonic forces. He’s technically fighting to save the world, but he’s as likely to cause destruction as prevent it, and the series leans into that chaos with gleeful abandon.
The world itself draws heavily from Western heavy metal music and classic fantasy. In practical terms, that means the artwork features towering, elaborately armored characters, demonic creatures, and battle scenes rendered with an intense, almost album-cover level of detail. Characters are named after real metal bands and albums — for example, characters and attacks take their names from acts like Metallica, Megadeth, and Whitesnake. The tone sits somewhere between a sword-and-sorcery adventure (think wizards, warriors, and ancient evils) and a love letter to 1980s and ’90s metal culture. It’s dramatic, frequently absurd, and entirely its own thing.
By volume 27, the story is mid-arc. It doesn’t trail off vaguely — it just stops. Readers who have made it that far report that the narrative was clearly building toward something bigger, making the hiatus especially frustrating.
The Publishing Gaps Were a Warning Sign
Even before the full hiatus set in, the writing was on the wall. Kazushi Hagiwara had increasingly long gaps between volumes in the later stretch of the series. Early volumes came out at a fairly regular pace, but by the final stretch, individual volumes were releasing years apart from each other. The transition from an active publishing schedule to what amounts to a standstill was gradual rather than sudden.
This pattern is worth noting because it helps set expectations. The series didn’t get abruptly cancelled by its publisher or cut short due to a single event. It slowly wound down over time, with each new installment taking longer and longer to arrive — until they stopped arriving altogether.
Can You Read BASTARD!! in English?
Yes — partially. An English edition was published by VIZ Media covering the first 19 volumes of the series. However, VIZ’s license for the series was discontinued, meaning they no longer have the rights to publish it in English. For readers unfamiliar with how this works: manga published in Japan must be licensed by a separate company in order to be translated and sold in English. When that license ends, the English publisher stops printing the books, and unless a new company picks up the rights, no further English volumes are produced.
That means English-only readers can access roughly the first two-thirds of the existing Japanese material, but the final eight volumes (20 through 27) were never officially translated into English.
The English Volumes Are Out of Print
Because VIZ’s license ended and the volumes are out of print — meaning the publisher is no longer producing new copies — finding physical books can take some effort. You’re mostly looking at used copies through secondhand sellers or specialty manga retailers. Sites like eBay and AbeBooks are common places people find used manga volumes. Prices can vary quite a bit depending on the specific volume and its condition.
If you want to start from the beginning, volume 19 — the last English volume released — is sometimes available through major online retailers. It’s worth checking availability, though don’t be surprised if some earlier volumes in the run are harder to track down than others.
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What About Volumes 20–27?
For the eight Japanese volumes that were never officially translated, English-speaking readers are unfortunately out of luck when it comes to legitimate options. There’s no announced plan to re-license the series or complete the English translation. Given that the manga itself is on indefinite hiatus, the chances of a new English publisher picking it up are slim — though it’s not impossible, since the manga industry has seen unexpected revivals before.
Should You Still Read It?
This is entirely a personal call. If you’re the kind of reader who needs closure, BASTARD!! will likely frustrate you. But if you’re comfortable enjoying the journey even without a destination, there’s a lot to appreciate here. The art is distinctive, the action is genuinely exciting, and the heavy metal aesthetic gives it a personality that’s hard to find anywhere else in manga. Plenty of readers who’ve gone through the available volumes say the experience was worth it on its own terms, unfinished story and all.
The 19 English volumes give you a substantial chunk of story — enough to get a real sense of whether the series clicks with you. Just go in knowing exactly what you’re getting — and what you’re not.
What Happened to Creator Kazushi Hagiwara?
This is the question that comes up constantly in fan discussions, and the honest answer is that there’s very little concrete information available.
Kazushi Hagiwara has not publicly announced a permanent cancellation of BASTARD!!. He also hasn’t announced a return. The series exists in a kind of limbo — not officially over, not officially continuing. No public statement confirming either outcome has surfaced.
What we do know is that the publishing gaps grew longer and longer throughout the series’ run, suggesting that the slowdown was a sustained pattern rather than a sudden event. Whether the cause is health-related, motivational, creative, contractual, or some combination of factors, Hagiwara hasn’t shared publicly.
Other Readers Keep Hoping
Despite the long silence, there’s still a dedicated community of BASTARD!! readers who hold out hope for a return. Every few years, a rumor or a vague social media signal gets people buzzing — but so far, nothing has materialized into actual new manga chapters.
It’s worth being realistic here. A hiatus of this length, with no official communication, means the most likely outcome is that the manga remains unfinished. But “most likely” isn’t the same as “certain,” and readers aren’t wrong to keep a small flame of hope alive. Series have come back from longer absences before — it’s just rare.
What About the Anime?
An animated adaptation (anime) of BASTARD!! does exist. For readers who are new to manga and anime, an anime is essentially an animated TV series or film based on the source material — in this case, the manga. The BASTARD!! anime is available on Netflix across two seasons — Season 1 (24 episodes, 2022) and Season 2 (15 episodes, 2023) — and covers only a portion of the manga’s story.
This means the anime won’t give you the full narrative either, and it doesn’t advance the story beyond what’s in the manga. However, it can be a useful way to sample the series’ tone, visual style, and characters before committing to hunting down physical volumes. If you watch the anime and the heavy metal fantasy vibe clicks with you, that’s a good sign the manga is worth pursuing. If it doesn’t land, you’ve saved yourself the effort of tracking down out-of-print books.
Whether the anime’s coverage extends into material beyond the English volumes is not definitively confirmed, so it may not help English-only readers access the untranslated portion of the story.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many volumes of BASTARD!! exist?
There are 27 volumes in Japanese. The final volume came out in March 2012. In English, 19 volumes were published by VIZ Media before the license was discontinued. The remaining eight volumes (20–27) have never been officially released in English.
Will BASTARD!! ever be finished?
There’s no official word either way. The series remains on indefinite hiatus with no announced return date and no formal cancellation. Creator Kazushi Hagiwara has not made public statements about the future of the manga. At this point, it’s genuinely uncertain whether the story will ever receive a conclusion.
Is the manga worth reading even though it’s unfinished?
That depends entirely on your tolerance for open-ended stories. BASTARD!! has devoted readers for good reason — the art is striking, the heavy metal aesthetic is unique in manga, and the action sequences are genuinely thrilling. If you can enjoy a series for the ride rather than the destination, there’s a lot here to love. If an unresolved ending would ruin the whole experience for you, it might be better to admire this one from a distance.
Where can I buy the English volumes?
The English volumes are out of print, so your best bet is checking major online retailers for remaining stock or looking for used copies through secondhand sellers on sites like eBay or AbeBooks. Availability and pricing will vary, especially for earlier volumes in the run. Volume 19 — the final English release — pops up from time to time and is worth grabbing if you’re building the collection.