What does it mean if the status of manuscript changed directly from "editor assigned" to "reviews completed"? I submitted a manuscript to a journal a month ago but the status was changed to "reviews completed" after "editor assigned," with nothing in between. What does that mean?
It means that the reviewers have completed their work and submitted their reviews. The editor will now make a decision based on her judgment as well as the opinions of the reviewers, and you should expect to hear back from the journal shortly.