Warning, the following contains spoilers for The Hunters Guild: Red Hood Chapter 17, "Holograms," by Yuki Kawaguchi, available in English through Viz Media.
Shonen Jump's Hunters Guild: Red Hood is coming up on its 18th chapter. Sadly, like many before it, this is likely where the series will approach its premature end. All signs point to this series getting the dreaded ax of cancellation.
Despite Red Hood ending early, its mangaka Yuki Kawaguchi is seemingly intent on ending the manga on their own terms. Chapter 17, "Holograms," is packed with meta-commentary on the nature of writing for Shonen Jump, but it's not exactly a positive reflection. Kawaguchi's manga may be ending, but that doesn't mean they're going to lie down and take it.
It's a shame to think that Red Hood is through. It has good art, fun characters, deep worldbuilding and a unique take on fairy tales. Were it allowed to continue and flesh everything out, Red Hood could have make for an entertaining long-running series.
Unfortunately, every recent development in Red Hood indicates that it's getting cut. Several key plot points, twists and characters have been revealed at a breakneck pace within the last three chapters. Even if the series somehow goes lives on, it would have to change course significantly.
These surprises immediately follow the main characters passing their exam to become Hunters. This introductory arc should be where things ramp up, but it's going much too fast. The series is transitioning from one of its first story arcs straight into its endgame.
Chapter 17 fully reveals that everything we've seen in the series are all representations of facets of the writing process. The head of the Hunters Guild, the original Red Hood, explains that the Guild must use The True Book to write out the history of the world. The Book contains worldbuilding elements, character designs and scenarios that are meant to be played out in the Hunters Guild story and world -- it's a story bible within the story it's for.
It's when the Red Hood brings up the "Readers" that the authorial intent becomes obvious -- and a bit contentious. The True Book is even written in Japanese, "The Language of the Gods." This direct reference to the audience is Kawaguchi's way of saying that this is all part of the planned story, but it's also a way of relaying what's going on behind the scenes.
Once it's established that the final chapters are a message, more parallels can be drawn. The gods watching the story of Hunters Guild are "the Readers" and are directly referred to as such. The Hunters Guild represents the writing staff, with the Red Hood being the "Scrivener" -- the lead writer. The True Book is likely the initial pitch submitted to Shonen Jump, containing everything that would become Hunter's Guild: Red Hood. The primary antagonist, Ludwig Geppetto, whose goal is to simply end everything, clearly represents the cutthroat Shonen Jump higher-ups deciding to cancel the series.
The parallels are also used to explain what dictates how a series either continues or ends in Shonen Jump. According to the Red Hood, the Readers must constantly be fed entertaining stories through The True Book or else their divine wrath will bring about the end of the world. Likewise, if a manga doesn't rank highly in the reader polls or if volume releases don't sell well, Shonen Jump will only allow the writer a limited number of chapters to wrap things up before cancellation. This is why so many major developments occur all at once around the end of a canceled series. Shonen Jump is infamous for canceling promising series before they can really take off.
Not everything is bleak in the face of oblivion. The main Characters of Hunters Guild are currently fighting hard against Ludwig's end to all things. They won't settle for going out with obvious cancellation. The final battle is now a fight to get the appropriate, happy ending they deserve. Their efforts could be Kawaguchi's way of saying that even if the series dies, it will be in glorious fashion on their own terms.
