Mashiro is a middle schooler who has no plans for his future who just happened to be good at drawing. However when a classmate named Takagi asks him to draw his manga for him he is very reluncant. This is due to his uncles passing. His uncle had a manga in Jump and after it got canceled he did everything he could to get a new series. This stress led him to death. With some budging and words from his father Mashiro decides to commit to becoming a mangaka with Takgai. Mashiro as the artist and Takagi as the writer.
While the story is meant to be realistic, you must suspend your belief for parts of the story. The start of the series starts very romance centric with Mashiro's love interest being introduced and agreeing not to get married until they complete their dreams. This part of the story while slow is still rather interesting and sets up a great foundation for the good (yet predictable) ending arc of the series. Mashiro wants his work to be turned into an anime and for Miho to voice the female lead.
Early on in the manga Mashiro and Takagi take a break to figure out a new story. In this time Mashiro works as an assistant for teen prodigy Eiji Nizuma. Eiji from this point on acts as the main rival in the series and absolutely pushes the narrative along. As he works as an assistant we meet more of the side cast including Fukuda who is also working as an assistant. This building of the side cast heavvily helps the story build up its somewhat lackluster cast in the for 30 or so chapters.
Mashiro and Takagi's story of rising through Jump is a very inspiring one. The characters in this story are most certainly the bright point of this manga. The mangaka that make up Muto Ashirogi (Mashiro and Takagi) are both brilliant and go through their own personal battles unlike anything you would read in a battle manga. Mashiro's being hospitalized but refusing to stop working on Trap (their first Jump series) is a high point in the manga. He shows such determination to continue his series over his own health, but his motivation only half stems from succeeding for himself. Mashiro wants to continue Trap knowing if it went on hiatus it would be the end of the series, which would mean Takagi is writing and he is no closer to working for his dream with Miho. The editor in chief decides it would be best if Trap went on hiatus however the Fukuda Group (Fukuda, Eiji, and others who worked as assistants) decide they will all strike if Trap goes on break. These moments make the series truly special in my eyes.
Eiji Nizuma is another brilliant character. The rival of the series - Eiji constantly pushes Muto Ashirogi to better their work. Eiji is so talented at such a young age he becomes the first mangaka in Jump to take on two series at once. This relationship boost the competitive nature of the series and is a great addition.
Throughout the series we get more information of Mashiro's uncle. One piece of information we learn is that he was never able to get #1 in the survey rankings. This inspires Mashiro even more to do what his uncle couldn't and prove how talented he is. This leads to the best moment in the series. After some struggles in Jump Muto Ashirogi decide to make a new series. With the series debut they finally hit the #1 ranking in the surveys. Something his uncle was never able to do, but it was something that drove him forward. Mashiro asks his editor Hattori for a print of it but is told the final prints can not be shared as other series are displayed. Mashiro gets a copy that only shows their manga. Takagi assumes this is to show Miho, who has been slyly keeping in touch with Mashiro, but in a turn of events the setting changes to a cemetery. In this moment we the reader understand who Mashiro wanted to show the ranking - his late uncle Nobuhiro Mashiro. This scene is very emotional and brilliantly shows the groups growth as they have made their way up the rankings.
This manga is a great read for anyone who wants to know more about the industry and want a change in pace compared to the normal battle shonen released around this time.
