Gosho Aoyama, the creator of Detective Conan, has just confirmed a piece of news that has stirred fans: he has finished a rough storyboard for the manga’s final chapter. He shared this while appearing in a special program ahead of Japan’s 24-Hour Television charity broadcast.
No content or end date yet
Although he confirmed the draft exists, Aoyama did not reveal any plot details, the identity of the head of the Black Organization, or the specific time the series will end. He also recalled a conversation with One Piece author Eiichiro Oda, noting that the two are among the few manga artists whose long-running series are simultaneously adapted into long-running anime while they still have to write new material alongside the anime.
Why has this news caused such a stir? Detective Conan follows Shinichi Kudo, a high-school detective who is poisoned by a mysterious criminal syndicate, the Black Organization, and turned into a child’s body. He is forced to live in hiding as Conan Edogawa while continuing to solve cases and quietly investigating the very organization that harmed him. After more than three decades, the true identity and motive of the Black Organization’s leader remain among the longest-awaited mysteries for fans of Japanese detective manga, so any sign that the author has pictured the ending immediately becomes the center of attention.
Having a storyboard does not mean the end is near
Conan has been serialized continuously in Shogakukan’s Weekly Shonen Sunday since January 1994, reaching 108 tankobon volumes as of April 2026, and it remains one of the most important franchises for both the magazine and the publisher. The annual Conan films continue to earn high box office numbers in Japan each summer, showing the franchise’s appeal has not faded after 33 years.
OtaHub’s take
The way Aoyama disclosed this, mentioning that a storyboard exists but declining to reveal any details, is a familiar tactic for authors of long-running manga at a sensitive stage: it reassures fans that the ending has been carefully planned rather than left open, while avoiding time pressure on himself as the franchise still generates considerable revenue through films and the long-running anime. His mention of the conversation with Eiichiro Oda also shows the shared pressure on authors whose work is adapted while they are still creating it: unlike many shorter manga that can be completed before an anime is made, both Conan and One Piece have to keep writing while the anime follows close behind, making the decision of “when to end” both an artistic and a business problem.
Follow more on the latest news page and the Anime section. Source: Anime News Network.