# Gangsta (manga)
**Gangsta.** is a Japanese seinen manga written and illustrated by Kohsuke (コースケ), serialized in Shinchosha's monthly *Comic Bunch* magazine from 2011. Set in the crime-soaked city of Ergastulum, it follows Worick Arcangelo and Nicolas Brown, a duo of freelance "Handymen" who take on dirty jobs for the police, the mafia, and anyone else willing to pay.[1](https://www.viz.com/gangsta) • [2](https://comicbook.com/anime/news/8-years-later-classic-action-manga-returns-from-hiatus-with-new-look/) The series is as well known for its publication history as for its story: repeated hiatuses caused by the author's systemic lupus erythematosus stretched the gap between volumes 8 and 9 to more than eight years, before serialization resumed in July 2026.[3](https://www.crunchyroll.com/pt-pt/news/latest/2026/4/26/gangsta-manga-hiato-retorno-2026) • [4](https://www.shinchosha.co.jp/book/771625/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Author | Kohsuke (Kohske), manga debut in 2009 with the short story "Postman" in Shonen GanGan magazine[1](https://www.viz.com/gangsta) |
| Serialization | Began in 2011 in Shinchosha's Monthly Comic Bunch (the magazine was also branded Comic@Bunch); resumed July 3, 2026 on the web magazine Comic Bunch Kai[1](https://www.viz.com/gangsta) • [5](https://prtimes.jp/main/html/rd/p/000003016.000047877.html) |
| Volumes | Volume 1 released July 8, 2011 (194 pages, B6, 814 yen including tax); volume 8 on May 9, 2018; volume 9 on August 7, 2026 (ISBN 978-4-10-772972-9)[4](https://www.shinchosha.co.jp/book/771625/) • [5](https://prtimes.jp/main/html/rd/p/000003016.000047877.html) |
| English edition | Published by VIZ Media; volumes 1 through 8 available in paperback and digital as of late 2026, with no announced date for volume 9[6](https://horrormangaguide.com/is-gangsta-manga-finished/) |
| Anime | 12-episode TV series aired July 2015, produced by studio Manglobe, the studio's last production before it went bankrupt[4](https://www.shinchosha.co.jp/book/771625/) • [3](https://www.crunchyroll.com/pt-pt/news/latest/2026/4/26/gangsta-manga-hiato-retorno-2026) |
| Spinoff | *Gangsta: Cursed. EP_MARCO ADRIANO*, original story by Kohsuke with art by Shuhei Kamo[7](https://gangsta-project.com/goods_comic.php) |
| Status | Ongoing; Kohsuke remains in treatment and has said releases, especially bound volumes, will be slow and possibly interrupted[5](https://prtimes.jp/main/html/rd/p/000003016.000047877.html) • [3](https://www.crunchyroll.com/pt-pt/news/latest/2026/4/26/gangsta-manga-hiato-retorno-2026) |
## Story and setting
The story is set in Ergastulum, a city saturated with crime, drugs, and prostitution, ruled by the mafia and populated by petty thieves, sex workers, and corrupt police.[4](https://www.shinchosha.co.jp/book/771625/) Worick and Nicolas run a "handyman" business that accepts anything from deliveries to killings, bodyguarding, and finding missing people, and they are respected by both the police and mafia executives while belonging to no organization.[8](https://www.b-ch.com/contents/feat_gangsta2026/)
Nicolas is one of the twilights, people with [superhuman strength](https://www.edgepedia.org/superhuman-strength) and speed who form the city's most powerful factions, such as Families and Guilds, and serve as a means of maintaining the balance of power.[2](https://comicbook.com/anime/news/8-years-later-classic-action-manga-returns-from-hiatus-with-new-look/) The publisher's synopsis for volume 1 pitches the series as a new genre, "mafia fantasy," and the opening assignment is a police request to wipe out a new prostitution group muscling in on a top mafia family's territory, a job that draws the pair into something larger than expected.[4](https://www.shinchosha.co.jp/book/771625/) • [1](https://www.viz.com/gangsta) By the resumed serialization in volume 9, the two former partners had split apart and are fated to kill each other as Ergastulum begins to fracture.[5](https://prtimes.jp/main/html/rd/p/000003016.000047877.html)
## Publication history
Kohsuke began the series in the monthly *Comic Bunch* in 2011, where it became an immediate hit.[1](https://www.viz.com/gangsta) Volume releases were steady through the early 2010s: volume 2 in January 2012, volume 3 in July 2012, and volumes 4 through 7 roughly twice a year through July 2015, several accompanied by limited editions.[4](https://www.shinchosha.co.jp/book/771625/)
**Health-related hiatuses.** In November 2015 the series paused for the first time because of the author's health, resuming in May 2017.[9](https://www.jbox.com.br/2026/04/28/apos-5-anos-gangsta-volta-a-ser-publicado-no-proximo-mes-de-julho/) The *Comic Bunch* announcement of the return states plainly that Kohsuke suffers from systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), a chronic autoimmune disease in which the immune system attacks the body's own tissues; the disease cost her an eye in 2021 and causes paralysis in her fingers.[3](https://www.crunchyroll.com/pt-pt/news/latest/2026/4/26/gangsta-manga-hiato-retorno-2026) The English-language sources differ on when the final, longest break began: one fan-facing guide dates it to December 2020, stopping after chapter 56,[10](https://darkfantasymanga.com/2026/08/16/gangsta-manga-volumes/) while the Brazilian outlet JBox reports the series was suspended from 2021 and Crunchyroll News says it had been stalled since 2022.[9](https://www.jbox.com.br/2026/04/28/apos-5-anos-gangsta-volta-a-ser-publicado-no-proximo-mes-de-julho/) • [3](https://www.crunchyroll.com/pt-pt/news/latest/2026/4/26/gangsta-manga-hiato-retorno-2026) All agree that the last published volume before the return was volume 8 in May 2018.[4](https://www.shinchosha.co.jp/book/771625/)
**The 2026 return.** Shinchosha announced in April 2026 that the series would resume on July 3, 2026, in the web magazine Comic Bunch Kai, and that a new chapter would be published at noon that day.[5](https://prtimes.jp/main/html/rd/p/000003016.000047877.html) • [3](https://www.crunchyroll.com/pt-pt/news/latest/2026/4/26/gangsta-manga-hiato-retorno-2026) To mark the restart, all episodes of *Gangsta.* and the spinoff *GANGSTA:CURSED.* were streamed free for one week, from July 3 to July 10, 2026.[5](https://prtimes.jp/main/html/rd/p/000003016.000047877.html) Kohsuke confirmed in her own post that serialization will likely be interrupted from time to time and that bound volumes will come out slowly while she looks for a less punishing way to draw.[11](https://www.manga-news.com/index.php/actus/2026/07/20/Le-manga-Gangsta-est-de-retour)
Volume 9, the first new volume since 2018, was released on August 7, 2026.[5](https://prtimes.jp/main/html/rd/p/000003016.000047877.html) The ComicBook.com report notes the new cover's art style has changed somewhat, a difference the author herself acknowledged, and expects an English edition in 2027.[2](https://comicbook.com/anime/news/8-years-later-classic-action-manga-returns-from-hiatus-with-new-look/) An English release date for volume 9 had not been announced as of late September 2026.[6](https://horrormangaguide.com/is-gangsta-manga-finished/)
## Related works and adaptations
A spinoff manga, *GANGSTA:CURSED. EP_MARCO ADRIANO*, was produced with Kohsuke credited for the original story and Shuhei Kamo (鴨修平) on art.[7](https://gangsta-project.com/goods_comic.php) An original novel, written by Junichi Kawabata with Kohsuke credited for the original work, was also released.[7](https://gangsta-project.com/goods_comic.php)
The television anime adaptation aired in July 2015 and ran 12 episodes.[4](https://www.shinchosha.co.jp/book/771625/) • [3](https://www.crunchyroll.com/pt-pt/news/latest/2026/4/26/gangsta-manga-hiato-retorno-2026) It was produced by Manglobe, which went bankrupt the same year, and the 12 episodes were the studio's final production.[3](https://www.crunchyroll.com/pt-pt/news/latest/2026/4/26/gangsta-manga-hiato-retorno-2026) The anime covers only a portion of the manga, ends without resolving the plot, and because its studio no longer exists, a continuation is considered extremely unlikely without a new studio.[6](https://horrormangaguide.com/is-gangsta-manga-finished/) A notable feature of the adaptation is Nicolas's use of sign language, which a scholarly lecture on the series describes as forcing a unified viewing experience across a global audience, since the unfamiliar element is the signing itself rather than the conventions of anime.[12](https://imrc.jp/images/upload/lecture/data/STEVIE_ENG.pdf)
## Themes and reception
The series is a seinen manga (aimed at adult readers) carrying a mature rating, and its themes are organized crime, systemic oppression, drug dependency, and the cost of violence on those who live inside it.[6](https://horrormangaguide.com/is-gangsta-manga-finished/) Kohsuke has described her creative philosophy around the twilight species as a vision in which people of different kinds living together, somehow, is simply the norm.[13](https://realsound.jp/book/2026/08/post-2448161.html) The return announcement in April 2026 drew an immediate large reaction on social media after roughly eight years of waiting.[2](https://comicbook.com/anime/news/8-years-later-classic-action-manga-returns-from-hiatus-with-new-look/)
## References
1. [Gangsta. series page, VIZ Media](https://www.viz.com/gangsta)
2. ["8 Years Later, Classic Action Manga Returns From Hiatus With New Look," ComicBook.com, July 4, 2026](https://comicbook.com/anime/news/8-years-later-classic-action-manga-returns-from-hiatus-with-new-look/)
3. ["GANGSTA. volta a ser publicado em julho deste ano," Crunchyroll News, April 26, 2026](https://www.crunchyroll.com/pt-pt/news/latest/2026/4/26/gangsta-manga-hiato-retorno-2026)
4. [『GANGSTA. 1巻』 コースケ, Shinchosha book page](https://www.shinchosha.co.jp/book/771625/)
5. [『GANGSTA.』連載再開！コミックバンチKaiで7月3日より最新話掲載、コミックス第9巻は8月7日発売, Shinchosha press release, June 12, 2026](https://prtimes.jp/main/html/rd/p/000003016.000047877.html)
6. ["Is GANGSTA. Manga Finished? Status Update (2026)," Horror Manga Guide, September 25, 2026](https://horrormangaguide.com/is-gangsta-manga-finished/)
7. [TVアニメ『GANGSTA.』公式サイト GOODS-COMIC page](https://gangsta-project.com/goods_comic.php)
8. [『GANGSTA.』特集ページ, Bandai Channel](https://www.b-ch.com/contents/feat_gangsta2026/)
9. [Após 5 anos, ‘GANGSTA’ volta a ser publicado no próximo mês de julho | JBox](https://www.jbox.com.br/2026/04/28/apos-5-anos-gangsta-volta-a-ser-publicado-no-proximo-mes-de-julho/)
10. ["GANGSTA. Manga Volumes: All 8 Books Guide (2026)," Dark Fantasy Manga](https://darkfantasymanga.com/2026/08/16/gangsta-manga-volumes/)
11. ["Le manga Gangsta est de retour !," Manga news, July 20, 2026](https://www.manga-news.com/index.php/actus/2026/07/20/Le-manga-Gangsta-est-de-retour)
12. ["Gangsta" anime and sign language lecture, IMRC](https://imrc.jp/images/upload/lecture/data/STEVIE_ENG.pdf)
13. [コースケが明かす、「黄昏種」に込めた創作哲学, Real Sound, August 2026](https://realsound.jp/book/2026/08/post-2448161.html)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Series and fictional screen worlds › Anime and manga › Manga titles, publishers, and magazines › Seinen and josei manga titles › Action and dark fantasy seinen*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 18, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 18, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license