Children of the Sea (manga)
Encyclopedia
is an ongoing Japanese seinen adventure manga
series written and illustrated by Daisuke Igarashi
, and serialized in Shogakukan
's monthly seinen manga magazine Ikki
. Shogakukan has released four tankōbon
volumes so far, between July 30, 2007 and August 4, 2009. The manga is licensed in North America by Viz Media
, who is serializing it online at Sigikki.com and who released the first tankōbon volume on July 21, 2009, and the second volume on December 15, 2009.
. It is serialized in Shogakukan
's seinen magazine Ikki
. Shogakukan has released four tankōbon
volumes so far, between July 30, 2007 and August 4, 2009. The manga is licensed in North America by Viz Media
, who is serializing it online at Sigikki.com and who released the first tankōbon volume on July 21, 2009, and the second volume on December 15, 2009.
was awarded a Japan Cartoonist Awards excellence award for drawing Children of the Sea in 2009. Children of the Sea was the recipient of an Excellence Prize from the Japan Media Arts Awards at the 2009 Japan Media Arts Festival
.
About.com
's Deb Aoki commends the manga for its "vibrant, detailed artwork that takes its inspiration from nature, real people and real places" but criticises the manga for its slow plot which "picks up the pace after a few chapters". Pop Culture Shock's Sam Kusek comments on the interactions between the main characters, saying, "[Umi, Sora and Ruka] all share something in common, the fact that they are outsiders from the norm. Ruka is not your normal girl. As athletic as she is, her attitude and aggression towards her teammates leave her high and dry for the summer. Consistently throughout the book, people are badmouthing her as she passes them on the street. Umi and Sora are obviously outsiders due to their extreme circumstances, wearing large robes to cover a majority of their skin and having to constantly bathe in water. Sora especially has a frail constitution, spending most of the book in and out of a hospital. All three are young children, and that is shown throughout the book, but they also have a unique sense of maturity that sets them apart not only from other children but most adults." Anime News Network
's Carlo Santos commends the manga for its "subtle, seamless storytelling and first-class artistry combine to form a fascinating tale of the sea" but criticises it for "mundane events and superfluous scenes sometimes slow down the plot". ICv2's Steve Bennett commends the manga for "the art is rich with photorealistic details which help to give the fantasy a solid grounding in reality, and has strong, emotionally honest characters which should make this young adult fantasy appeal to both fans of epic fantasy and contemporary teen dramas." Coolstreak Comics' Leroy Douresseaux comments that he is reminded of the "1980s ecological sci-fi comic book, The Puma Blues
" when reading the manga. He also commends on the manga artist
's "earthy art, with its busy line work and crosshatching and unsophisticated figure drawing, grounds this series in reality, which makes the moments of enchantment all the more breathtaking." He also recommends the manga to those who liked Inio Asano
's Solanin
.
Manga
Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...
series written and illustrated by Daisuke Igarashi
Daisuke Igarashi
is a critically acclaimed manga artist born in Saitama , Japan. He began his professional career in 1993. Igarashi is known among manga fans for his bold, detailed art style and innovative storytelling...
, and serialized in Shogakukan
Shogakukan
is a Japanese publisher of dictionaries, literature, manga, non-fiction, DVDs, and other media in Japan.Shogakukan founded Shueisha which founded Hakusensha. These are three separate companies, but are together called the Hitotsubashi Group, one of the largest publishing groups in Japan...
's monthly seinen manga magazine Ikki
Ikki (magazine)
is a monthly seinen manga magazine published by Shogakukan. It tends to specialize in underground or alternative manga, but has had its share of major hits as well. Notably, both Bokurano and Ride Back have received anime adaptations....
. Shogakukan has released four tankōbon
Tankobon
, with a literal meaning close to "independently appearing book", is the Japanese term for a book that is complete in itself and is not part of a series , though the manga industry uses it for volumes which may be in a series...
volumes so far, between July 30, 2007 and August 4, 2009. The manga is licensed in North America by Viz Media
VIZ Media
VIZ Media, LLC, headquartered in San Francisco, is an anime, manga, and Japanese entertainment company. It was founded in 1986 as VIZ LLC. In 2005, VIZ LLC and ShoPro Entertainment merged to form the current VIZ Media LLC, which is jointly owned by Japanese publishers Shogakukan and Shueisha, and...
, who is serializing it online at Sigikki.com and who released the first tankōbon volume on July 21, 2009, and the second volume on December 15, 2009.
Manga
Children of the Sea is written and illustrated by Daisuke IgarashiDaisuke Igarashi
is a critically acclaimed manga artist born in Saitama , Japan. He began his professional career in 1993. Igarashi is known among manga fans for his bold, detailed art style and innovative storytelling...
. It is serialized in Shogakukan
Shogakukan
is a Japanese publisher of dictionaries, literature, manga, non-fiction, DVDs, and other media in Japan.Shogakukan founded Shueisha which founded Hakusensha. These are three separate companies, but are together called the Hitotsubashi Group, one of the largest publishing groups in Japan...
's seinen magazine Ikki
Ikki (magazine)
is a monthly seinen manga magazine published by Shogakukan. It tends to specialize in underground or alternative manga, but has had its share of major hits as well. Notably, both Bokurano and Ride Back have received anime adaptations....
. Shogakukan has released four tankōbon
Tankobon
, with a literal meaning close to "independently appearing book", is the Japanese term for a book that is complete in itself and is not part of a series , though the manga industry uses it for volumes which may be in a series...
volumes so far, between July 30, 2007 and August 4, 2009. The manga is licensed in North America by Viz Media
VIZ Media
VIZ Media, LLC, headquartered in San Francisco, is an anime, manga, and Japanese entertainment company. It was founded in 1986 as VIZ LLC. In 2005, VIZ LLC and ShoPro Entertainment merged to form the current VIZ Media LLC, which is jointly owned by Japanese publishers Shogakukan and Shueisha, and...
, who is serializing it online at Sigikki.com and who released the first tankōbon volume on July 21, 2009, and the second volume on December 15, 2009.
Chapter listing
Reception
Children of the Sea was nominated for the 2008 and 2009 Osamu Tezuka Cultural Prize. Daisuke IgarashiDaisuke Igarashi
is a critically acclaimed manga artist born in Saitama , Japan. He began his professional career in 1993. Igarashi is known among manga fans for his bold, detailed art style and innovative storytelling...
was awarded a Japan Cartoonist Awards excellence award for drawing Children of the Sea in 2009. Children of the Sea was the recipient of an Excellence Prize from the Japan Media Arts Awards at the 2009 Japan Media Arts Festival
Japan Media Arts Festival
The Japan Media Arts Festival is an annual festival held by Japan's Agency for Cultural Affairs since 1997. The festival for a nominal year was usually held during February or March next year, rather than at the end of the nominal year. For instance, the 2010 Japan Media Arts Festival, where...
.
About.com
About.com
About.com is an online source for original information and advice. It is written in English, and is aimed primarily at North Americans. It is owned by The New York Times Company....
's Deb Aoki commends the manga for its "vibrant, detailed artwork that takes its inspiration from nature, real people and real places" but criticises the manga for its slow plot which "picks up the pace after a few chapters". Pop Culture Shock's Sam Kusek comments on the interactions between the main characters, saying, "[Umi, Sora and Ruka] all share something in common, the fact that they are outsiders from the norm. Ruka is not your normal girl. As athletic as she is, her attitude and aggression towards her teammates leave her high and dry for the summer. Consistently throughout the book, people are badmouthing her as she passes them on the street. Umi and Sora are obviously outsiders due to their extreme circumstances, wearing large robes to cover a majority of their skin and having to constantly bathe in water. Sora especially has a frail constitution, spending most of the book in and out of a hospital. All three are young children, and that is shown throughout the book, but they also have a unique sense of maturity that sets them apart not only from other children but most adults." Anime News Network
Anime News Network
Anime News Network is an anime industry news website that reports on the status of anime, manga, Japanese popular music and other otaku-related culture within North America, Australia and Japan. Additionally, it sometimes features similar happenings throughout the Anglosphere and elsewhere in the...
's Carlo Santos commends the manga for its "subtle, seamless storytelling and first-class artistry combine to form a fascinating tale of the sea" but criticises it for "mundane events and superfluous scenes sometimes slow down the plot". ICv2's Steve Bennett commends the manga for "the art is rich with photorealistic details which help to give the fantasy a solid grounding in reality, and has strong, emotionally honest characters which should make this young adult fantasy appeal to both fans of epic fantasy and contemporary teen dramas." Coolstreak Comics' Leroy Douresseaux comments that he is reminded of the "1980s ecological sci-fi comic book, The Puma Blues
The Puma Blues
The Puma Blues was a comic book written by Stephen Murphy and drawn by Michael Zulli. It ran from October 1986 to somewhere in the beginning of 1989, stretching over 23 regular issues and a single "half-issue" minicomic....
" when reading the manga. He also commends on the manga artist
Mangaka
is the Japanese word for a comic artist or cartoonist. Outside of Japan, manga usually refers to a Japanese comic book and mangaka refers to the author of the manga, who is usually Japanese...
's "earthy art, with its busy line work and crosshatching and unsophisticated figure drawing, grounds this series in reality, which makes the moments of enchantment all the more breathtaking." He also recommends the manga to those who liked Inio Asano
Inio Asano
is a Japanese manga author. Asano created the acclaimed manga Solanin which was released as a feature film in Japan in April 2010, starring Aoi Miyazaki. He is known for his character driven, realist stories that range from slice of life stories to psychological horror...
's Solanin
Solanin
is a Japanese manga written and illustrated by Inio Asano. It was serialised in Shogakukan's Weekly Young Sunday from 2005 to 2006. The manga is licensed and published in English by Viz Media, in French by Kana and in Taiwanese by Taiwan Tohan. The manga was nominated for the 2009 Eisner Award for...
.