The situation surrounding Shihei Lin and Jump Plus has only grown more muddled as contracts are broken and remade.

In a statement published on September 30, the Shonen Jump Plus editorial department stated that it had terminated its outsourcing contract with Mix Green and Shihei Lin effective July 23. Lin launched Mix Green in 2024 following his departure from Shueisha in 2022, but continued to act as a manga editor on a freelance basis. His portfolio also happens to include some of the platform's most popular hits, including SPY x FAMILY by Tatsuya Endo and Dandadan by Yukinobu Tatsu.

With this in mind, fans were naturally worried about the possible ramifications this could have for their favorite manga. Not only did Shueisha specify that these serializations would continue for the foreseeable future, Lin clarified in a subsequent statement that his company had already formed separate contracts with each individual manga artist to continue editorial work. The Mix Green website includes several sub-editors for Chainsaw Man, SPY x FAMILY and Dandadan, so this could be part of a wider organizational change.

At the same time, critics have been quick to point out that Mix Green's close association with Jump Plus has muddied the waters for prospective creators. Putting aside the fact that Lin was remarkably late in announcing his departure from Shueisha, a new manga award launched at the beginning of the month could very well be seen as a direct attack on the publisher. In a call for new applicants, Lin was forthright in declaring his desire to "create manga media for the next generation."

Mess with the bull, you get the horns.