Rakuen: Le Paradis, the manga magazine that runs Spotted Flower by Kio Shimoku, announced that it will be ending in February with its 50th issue, with its web supplements going to March.  While nothing is definite forSpotted Flower, the chances of it allso ending then are pretty high.

Rakuen has been a truly unorthodox publication. Rather than running weekly or even monthly, issues are released every quarter. The content is intended for mature readers, but that idea really runs the gamut. It’s been home to sexually charged adult dramas such as Spotted Flower, but also visually experimental works from panpanya (Guyabano Holiday), fetish territory like that of Kurosaki Rendou, and even gentle high school romances. In terms of different demographics as genres, Rakuen really defies easy categorization.

I hope that a spiritual successor emerges in some form. Just having something that takes the idea of “adult manga” and embraces all possible definitions of the idea was a real breath of fresh air.