Fairy Cube
Encyclopedia
is a fantasy gothic shōjo manga written and illustrated by Kaori Yuki
. Appearing as a serial
in the Japanese manga magazine Hana to Yume
from 2005 to 2006, the Fairy Cube chapters were collected into three tankōbon
volumes by Hakusensha
and published from October 2005 to July 2006. Yuki began Fairy Cube with the intent of writing a shorter manga series. Set in modern Japan, the series focuses on Ian Hasumi, who can see fairies, and his childhood friend Rin. After Ian's body is stolen from him, he begins a quest to regain it while stopping the fairies' plan to recapture the earth.
Viz Media
licensed Fairy Cube for an English-language release in North America. It previewed the series in its manga anthology Shojo Beat
and released the series from May 2008 to November 2008. The series received positive reviews. Critics liked the Celtic mythology
, quick pacing, and detailed art of the series. Others criticized Yuki's use of multiple subplots and characters, and inconsistencies in the art.
, returns to the city where he lives. Later, Ian accidentally stumbles onto the scene of a murder; after seeing a man named Kaito retrieve a cube from the victim's body, he follows Kaito back to his antique shop, where Kaito gives him Tokage's fairy cube—the contained spirit of a fairy. However, as a result of being manipulated by Tokage, Ian's father kills him. Tokage then possesses Ian's body and takes over his life, including romancing Rin. As a spirit, Ian goes back to Kaito's shop and after a trip through the Otherworld with a small but vicious fairy named Ainsel, is given the replacement body of a young boy. Ainsel agrees to aid him in his quest to regain his body.
Encountering Tokage again, Ian learns that Tokage grew up in the Otherworld loved but when his village tried to sacrifice him to their god, he slaughtered them and the god escaped. Ian also discovers that Gotoh company, a multi-millionaire land development
company run by a cross-dressing
girl named Shira, plans to take over the world for the fairies under the "Elysium Project".
Meanwhile, Gotoh takes Rin hostage in an attempt to lure Ian back to them. Under the pretense of a beauty contest, the company plans to harvest the energy of the fairy cubes and bystanders to open a door to the Otherworld. Ian rescues Rin and the escaped god is revealed to be inhabiting the body of Shira's father. Ian and Tokage are forced out of the bodies that they are possessing; Ainsel, revealed to be the key to the door, merges with Ian and Ian's host body accepts Tokage. Having been held captive by Gotoh for most of the series, his mother appears and before dying, reveals that Tokage is Ian's twin who died prematurely. Shira is killed after cutting the god's life line. Kaito and Ainsel die together to close the door while Ian and Rin let the people of earth glimpse the fairies.
started Fairy Cube with the goal of writing a short series. When deciding on the ending, Yuki considered having Ian and Rin as the sacrifice to close the demon door, but decided against it, not wanting to "leave a nasty aftertaste". She was also unable to include Ian and Tokage's newfound friendship in the manga since the plot focused on the relationship between Ian and Rin. Yuki later reused Raven, a member of the clan who guards the demon door, and Tokage in the spin-off story "Psycho Knocker", in which they chase down and pacify spirits that have escaped from the demon door.
The chapters of Fairy Cube appeared as a serial
in the Japanese manga magazine Hana to Yume
from 2005 to 2006. Hakusensha
collected the chapters into three tankōbon
volumes. The first was released on October 19, 2005; the last was published on July 19, 2006.
At the 2007 Comic-Con International
, Viz Media
announced that it had licensed Fairy Cube for an English-language release in North America. Viz included a preview of Fairy Cube in the April 2008 issue of its manga anthology Shojo Beat
, and published the series from May 1, 2008 to November 4, 2008. The series is also licensed in Singapore by Chuang Yi
, in Taiwan by Culturecom Comics, in Germany by Carlsen Comics, in Italy by Panini Comics
, and in France by Editions Tonkam.
Reviewers praised the quick pacing, and use of Celtic mythology
, which is usually not seen in manga. IGN
's A. E. Sparrow liked the series' different view of the faires. Critics also compared Fairy Cube to her other two works licensed in English. Lori Henderson of Comics Village
liked how the series did not feature "long, strung out plots" or the "brooding" protagonist
typical of her works. Writing for School Library Journal
, Cara von Wrangel Kinsey considered the story "more accessible than Yuki's previous works". PopCultureShock's Katherine Dacey commented that Fairy Cube was as "gloriously overripe as the best volumes of Godchild
, but considerably more coherent", and noted the artwork conveyed a "delirious, almost hysterical, quality to it that suits the manga's luridly romantic tone." Jason Thompson
, author of Manga: The Complete Guide
, rated the series three stars out of four and thought the story was "a somewhat more tighter package with more original subject matter" than Angel Sanctuary
. Danielle Van Gorder of Mania Entertainment wrote that the conclusion of the series was less confusing than Angel Sanctuary' s and thought the story was "well-executed". Reviewers also commented on the English-language cover of the first volume of Fairy Cube. Anime News Network
's Casey Brienza praised the color scheme and described it as "hands down the most beautiful of any yet to be published under Viz Media's Shojo Beat imprint", but Gorder worried that the cover would mislead readers into believing that it was "a light and fluffy kind of story" and drive away the target audience. A French reviewer also praised the covers of first and third volumes of the French edition, calling them "magnificant".
Criticism of the series focused on Yuki's use of multiple subplots, introduction of new characters halfway through, and length of the series. Dacey felt that while the series "began promisingly enough" but "started to fly apart at the seams with the introduction of new characters and a new subplot in which fairies plan to take over the world by means of a beauty pageant." One reviewer disliked how quickly the story happened, commenting that the protagonists' personalities were not fully explored as a result. Larry Douresseaux of Coolstreak Cartoons criticized Yuki for using too many subplots and characters, causing the manga to become "somewhat hampered" and felt that the series should have been longer. Inconsistent artwork within the manga was also noted.
Kaori Yuki
is a female Japanese manga artist best known for her gothic manga such as Earl Cain, its sequel Godchild, and Angel Sanctuary. Yuki debuted in 1987 with which ran in the manga anthology Bessatsu Hana to Yume published by Hakusensha. Her work is typically serialized in one of Hakusensha's two shōjo...
. Appearing as a serial
Serial (literature)
In literature, a serial is a publishing format by which a single large work, most often a work of narrative fiction, is presented in contiguous installments—also known as numbers, parts, or fascicles—either issued as separate publications or appearing in sequential issues of a single periodical...
in the Japanese manga magazine Hana to Yume
Hana to Yume
is a semi-monthly Japanese shōjo manga magazine published by Hakusensha.The magazine is published on the 4th and 22nd of every month. It is often nicknamed as among the readers...
from 2005 to 2006, the Fairy Cube chapters were collected into three 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 by Hakusensha
Hakusensha
is a Japanese publishing company. It is headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo.The company mainly publishes manga magazines of various genres and is involved in certain series' productions in their games, original video animation, musical and their animated TV series....
and published from October 2005 to July 2006. Yuki began Fairy Cube with the intent of writing a shorter manga series. Set in modern Japan, the series focuses on Ian Hasumi, who can see fairies, and his childhood friend Rin. After Ian's body is stolen from him, he begins a quest to regain it while stopping the fairies' plan to recapture the earth.
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...
licensed Fairy Cube for an English-language release in North America. It previewed the series in its manga anthology Shojo Beat
Shojo Beat
Shojo Beat is a shōjo manga magazine formerly published in North America by Viz Media. Released in June 2005 as a sister magazine to Shonen Jump, it featured serialized chapters from six manga series, as well as articles on Japanese culture, manga, anime, fashion and beauty...
and released the series from May 2008 to November 2008. The series received positive reviews. Critics liked the Celtic mythology
Celtic mythology
Celtic mythology is the mythology of Celtic polytheism, apparently the religion of the Iron Age Celts. Like other Iron Age Europeans, the early Celts maintained a polytheistic mythology and religious structure...
, quick pacing, and detailed art of the series. Others criticized Yuki's use of multiple subplots and characters, and inconsistencies in the art.
Plot
The series focuses on Ian Hasumi, a timid boy who sees fairies which are invisible to normal people and who is stalked by a vengeful spirit named Tokage. His mother left before the start of the series and as a result, Ian's father burns off the wing marks on Ian's back to prevent him from doing the same. Rin, Ian's abused childhood friend and secret "crush"Puppy love
Puppy love is an informal term for feelings of love or infatuation felt by young people during childhood and adolescence, so-called for its resemblance to the adoring, worshipful affection that may be felt by a puppy. 'Simple infatuation is often called a "crush" or "puppy love"...
, returns to the city where he lives. Later, Ian accidentally stumbles onto the scene of a murder; after seeing a man named Kaito retrieve a cube from the victim's body, he follows Kaito back to his antique shop, where Kaito gives him Tokage's fairy cube—the contained spirit of a fairy. However, as a result of being manipulated by Tokage, Ian's father kills him. Tokage then possesses Ian's body and takes over his life, including romancing Rin. As a spirit, Ian goes back to Kaito's shop and after a trip through the Otherworld with a small but vicious fairy named Ainsel, is given the replacement body of a young boy. Ainsel agrees to aid him in his quest to regain his body.
Encountering Tokage again, Ian learns that Tokage grew up in the Otherworld loved but when his village tried to sacrifice him to their god, he slaughtered them and the god escaped. Ian also discovers that Gotoh company, a multi-millionaire land development
Land development
Land development refers to altering the landscape in any number of ways such as:* changing landforms from a natural or semi-natural state for a purpose such as agriculture or housing...
company run by a cross-dressing
Cross-dressing
Cross-dressing is the wearing of clothing and other accoutrement commonly associated with a gender within a particular society that is seen as different than the one usually presented by the dresser...
girl named Shira, plans to take over the world for the fairies under the "Elysium Project".
Meanwhile, Gotoh takes Rin hostage in an attempt to lure Ian back to them. Under the pretense of a beauty contest, the company plans to harvest the energy of the fairy cubes and bystanders to open a door to the Otherworld. Ian rescues Rin and the escaped god is revealed to be inhabiting the body of Shira's father. Ian and Tokage are forced out of the bodies that they are possessing; Ainsel, revealed to be the key to the door, merges with Ian and Ian's host body accepts Tokage. Having been held captive by Gotoh for most of the series, his mother appears and before dying, reveals that Tokage is Ian's twin who died prematurely. Shira is killed after cutting the god's life line. Kaito and Ainsel die together to close the door while Ian and Rin let the people of earth glimpse the fairies.
Production
Kaori YukiKaori Yuki
is a female Japanese manga artist best known for her gothic manga such as Earl Cain, its sequel Godchild, and Angel Sanctuary. Yuki debuted in 1987 with which ran in the manga anthology Bessatsu Hana to Yume published by Hakusensha. Her work is typically serialized in one of Hakusensha's two shōjo...
started Fairy Cube with the goal of writing a short series. When deciding on the ending, Yuki considered having Ian and Rin as the sacrifice to close the demon door, but decided against it, not wanting to "leave a nasty aftertaste". She was also unable to include Ian and Tokage's newfound friendship in the manga since the plot focused on the relationship between Ian and Rin. Yuki later reused Raven, a member of the clan who guards the demon door, and Tokage in the spin-off story "Psycho Knocker", in which they chase down and pacify spirits that have escaped from the demon door.
The chapters of Fairy Cube appeared as a serial
Serial (literature)
In literature, a serial is a publishing format by which a single large work, most often a work of narrative fiction, is presented in contiguous installments—also known as numbers, parts, or fascicles—either issued as separate publications or appearing in sequential issues of a single periodical...
in the Japanese manga magazine Hana to Yume
Hana to Yume
is a semi-monthly Japanese shōjo manga magazine published by Hakusensha.The magazine is published on the 4th and 22nd of every month. It is often nicknamed as among the readers...
from 2005 to 2006. Hakusensha
Hakusensha
is a Japanese publishing company. It is headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo.The company mainly publishes manga magazines of various genres and is involved in certain series' productions in their games, original video animation, musical and their animated TV series....
collected the chapters into three 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. The first was released on October 19, 2005; the last was published on July 19, 2006.
At the 2007 Comic-Con International
Comic-Con International
San Diego Comic-Con International, also known as Comic-Con International: San Diego , and commonly known as Comic-Con or the San Diego Comic-Con, was founded as the Golden State Comic Book Convention and later the San Diego Comic Book Convention in 1970 by Shel Dorf and a group of San Diegans...
, 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...
announced that it had licensed Fairy Cube for an English-language release in North America. Viz included a preview of Fairy Cube in the April 2008 issue of its manga anthology Shojo Beat
Shojo Beat
Shojo Beat is a shōjo manga magazine formerly published in North America by Viz Media. Released in June 2005 as a sister magazine to Shonen Jump, it featured serialized chapters from six manga series, as well as articles on Japanese culture, manga, anime, fashion and beauty...
, and published the series from May 1, 2008 to November 4, 2008. The series is also licensed in Singapore by Chuang Yi
Chuang Yi
Chuang Yi Publishing Pte Ltd. is a publishing company based in Singapore that specializes in producing domestic and imported comics and comics-related merchandise, in English and simplified Chinese. Chuang Yi distributes all or some of its products in Singapore, Malaysia, India, and the Philippines...
, in Taiwan by Culturecom Comics, in Germany by Carlsen Comics, in Italy by Panini Comics
Panini Comics
Panini Comics is an Italian comic book publisher. A division of Panini Group, best known for their collectible stickers, it is headquartered in Modena, Italy...
, and in France by Editions Tonkam.
Volume list
Reception
In November 2008, the final Fairy Cube volume debuted at the 221st spot of the list of 300 best-selling graphic novels with an estimated 516 copies sold.Reviewers praised the quick pacing, and use of Celtic mythology
Celtic mythology
Celtic mythology is the mythology of Celtic polytheism, apparently the religion of the Iron Age Celts. Like other Iron Age Europeans, the early Celts maintained a polytheistic mythology and religious structure...
, which is usually not seen in manga. IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
's A. E. Sparrow liked the series' different view of the faires. Critics also compared Fairy Cube to her other two works licensed in English. Lori Henderson of Comics Village
Comics Village
Comics Village is a UK based comics website launched in November 2007 and predominantly aimed at publicizing non-mainstream comics. Over time, it has extended its remit into other forms of pop culture, into providing a different take on the so-called mainstream than that provided by the...
liked how the series did not feature "long, strung out plots" or the "brooding" protagonist
Protagonist
A protagonist is the main character of a literary, theatrical, cinematic, or musical narrative, around whom the events of the narrative's plot revolve and with whom the audience is intended to most identify...
typical of her works. Writing for School Library Journal
School Library Journal
The School Library Journal is a monthly magazine with articles and reviews for school librarians, media specialists, and public librarians who work with young people. Articles cover a wide variety of topics, with a focus on technology and multimedia. Reviews are included for preschool to 4th grade,...
, Cara von Wrangel Kinsey considered the story "more accessible than Yuki's previous works". PopCultureShock's Katherine Dacey commented that Fairy Cube was as "gloriously overripe as the best volumes of Godchild
Earl Cain
, also known as Count Cain, is a gothic shōjo manga series written and illustrated by Kaori Yuki. Earl Cain consists of five parts or "Series": , , , , and the sequel series ....
, but considerably more coherent", and noted the artwork conveyed a "delirious, almost hysterical, quality to it that suits the manga's luridly romantic tone." Jason Thompson
Jason Thompson (writer)
Jason Thompson is a manga critic, journalist, writer and comics artist.-Life and career:...
, author of Manga: The Complete Guide
Manga: The Complete Guide
Manga: The Complete Guide is a 2007 encyclopedia written by Jason Thompson and published by Del Rey which provides basic details and short reviews of over 1000 Japanese manga titles that have been translated and released in English in North America...
, rated the series three stars out of four and thought the story was "a somewhat more tighter package with more original subject matter" than Angel Sanctuary
Angel Sanctuary
is a shōjo manga series written and illustrated by Kaori Yuki. Originally serialized in Hana to Yume from February 1995 to February 2001, the chapters were collected and published in twenty tankōbon volumes by Hakusensha; the first volume was released in 1997 and the final volume was published in...
. Danielle Van Gorder of Mania Entertainment wrote that the conclusion of the series was less confusing than Angel Sanctuary
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 Casey Brienza praised the color scheme and described it as "hands down the most beautiful of any yet to be published under Viz Media's Shojo Beat imprint", but Gorder worried that the cover would mislead readers into believing that it was "a light and fluffy kind of story" and drive away the target audience. A French reviewer also praised the covers of first and third volumes of the French edition, calling them "magnificant".
Criticism of the series focused on Yuki's use of multiple subplots, introduction of new characters halfway through, and length of the series. Dacey felt that while the series "began promisingly enough" but "started to fly apart at the seams with the introduction of new characters and a new subplot in which fairies plan to take over the world by means of a beauty pageant." One reviewer disliked how quickly the story happened, commenting that the protagonists' personalities were not fully explored as a result. Larry Douresseaux of Coolstreak Cartoons criticized Yuki for using too many subplots and characters, causing the manga to become "somewhat hampered" and felt that the series should have been longer. Inconsistent artwork within the manga was also noted.
External links
- Fairy Cube at Viz Media's website