Children of the Sea (manga)

Plot

On the first day of summer vacation, Ruka Azumi deliberately injures a playmate who had tripped her up. Excluded from the club for all the holidays, she decides to leave for Tokyo for a day. As night falls, she meets Umi, a strange boy raised by dugongs who dives and disappears into the murky waters of Tokyo Port. She finds him a few days later, requisitioned by his oceanographer father, to work in the aquarium he takes care of. But Umi is no longer alone, he is accompanied by Sora, who also has supernatural aquatic gifts.

Characters

;Ruka Azumi : ;Umi : ;Sora : ;Anglade : ;Masaaki Azumi : ;Kanako Azumi : ;Sensei : ;Jim : ;Dede :

Development

The concept originated from artist Daisuke Igarashi's interest in marine life and his habit of collecting field guides on marine animals. Initially titled Fish Girl, the story was inspired by mermaid mythology and the natural behavior of dugongs, which led Igarashi to imagine children raised by marine creatures. Igarashi sought to balance imaginative storytelling with scientific accuracy, consulting marine mammal researcher Yūko Tajima for factual details, such as the anatomy of sperm whales. Despite being published in a ja manga magazine, the series was created with a female readership in mind.

Media

Manga

Children of the Sea, written and illustrated by Daisuke Igarashi, was serialized in Shōgakukan's seinen magazine Monthly Ikki from December 24, 2005, to September 24, 2011. Shōgakukan compiled its chapters into five ja volumes, released from July 30, 2007, to July 30, 2012.

The manga is licensed in North America by Viz Media, who serialized it online at SigIkki.com and released the five tankōbon volumes from July 21, 2009, to June 18, 2013.

Volumes

• 1. "Ruka"
• 2. "The Day of Thunder"
• 3. "Hitodama"
• 4. "Marine Mammals"
• 5. "Patterns"
• 6. "Ghost of the Sea"
• 7. "Chair"
• 8. "The Realm of the Sea"
• 9. "Isana"
• 10. "A Strong Wind at Sea"
• 11. "Beyond the Tide"
• 12. "Falling Rain Collecting in Pools"
• 13. "Soaked Children"
• 14. "Rakshasa"
• 15. "The Last Day of the Month"
• 16. "Takeoff"
• 17. "Kuroshio Current"
• 18. "Far Out at Sea"
• 19. "Mirage"
• 20. "Dugong"
• 21. "Gondwana"
• 22. "Ripples in the Wave"
• 23. "Trap"
• 24. "Internal Organs"
• 25. "Sea Border"
• 26. "Marine Animals"
• 27. "Pierced Body"
• 28. "Muddied Waters"
• 29. "Sea of the Universe"
• 30. "Pregnancy"
• 31. "Crucible"
• 32. "Interception"
• 33. "Preparation"
• 34. "Venus"
• 35. "Water Demon"
• 36. "Eyelids"
• 37. "Birth Rite I"
• 38. "Birth Rite II"
• 39. "Birth Rite III"
• 40. "Birth Rite IV"
• 41. "Birth Rite V"
• 42. "Iruka"

Film

Main article: Children of the Sea (film)

A Japanese animated film adaptation of the manga was announced by Studio 4°C on July 16, 2018. The film is directed by Ayumu Watanabe, with Kenichi Konishi as character designer, chief supervising animator and unit director and music by Joe Hisaishi. It is produced by Eiko Tanaka. The theme song, "Umi no Yūrei", is written and performed by Kenshi Yonezu.

The film had its world premiere on May 19, 2019 and was released in Japan on June 7, 2019.

Reception

Children of the Sea was nominated for the 12th and 13th Osamu Tezuka Cultural Prize in 2008 and 2009, respectively. Daisuke Igarashi was awarded a Japan Cartoonists Association Awards excellence award for drawing Children of the Sea in 2009. Children of the Sea was the recipient of an Excellence Prize in the Manga Division at the 13th Japan Media Arts Festival in 2009.

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 criticizes the manga for its slow plot which "picks up the pace after a few chapters". *PopCultureShock'''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 criticizes 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 Igarashi'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.

References

References

1. "The Official Website for ''Children of the Sea''". [[Viz Media]].
2. Beasi, Melinda. (June 27, 2009). "Children of the Sea, Vol. 1".
3. Pineda, Rafael. (April 16, 2019). "Children of the Sea Film Recasts Sora, Adds 2 More Cast Members".
4. "Children of the Sea (2020) – English Dub Cast".
5. Morrissy, Kim. (April 19, 2019). "Manga Artist Daisuke Igarashi Shares Inspirations Behind Children of the Sea".
6. link. [[Shogakukan]]
7. link. Natalie]]. Natasha, Inc.. (September 24, 2011)
8. Loo, Egan. (November 21, 2008). "''Ōoku'', ''Detroit Metal City'', More New Manga Listed for Viz". [[Anime News Network]].
9. "Children of the Sea". [[Viz Media]].
10. link. [[Shogakukan]]
11. "Children of the Sea, Vol. 1". [[Viz Media]].
12. link. [[Shogakukan]]
13. "Children of the Sea, Vol. 2". [[Viz Media]].
14. link. [[Shogakukan]]
15. "Children of the Sea, Vol. 3". [[Viz Media]].
16. link. [[Shogakukan]]
17. "Children of the Sea, Vol. 4". [[Viz Media]].
18. link. [[Shogakukan]]
19. "Children of the Sea, Vol. 5". [[Viz Media]].
20. Rafael Antonio Pineda. (July 16, 2018). "''Children of the Sea'' Manga Gets Anime Film by Studio 4°C".
21. "Animēshon eiga ''Kaijū no Kodomo'' kōshiki saito". Children of the Sea Committee.
22. Ressler, Karen. (February 26, 2019). "''Children of the Sea'' Film's Teaser Previews Joe Hisaishi's Music".
23. (April 24, 2019). "主題歌が米津玄師の新曲「海の幽霊」に決定！". Starcast Japan.
24. Sherman, Jennifer. (May 9, 2019). "''Children of the Sea'' Film's 2nd Trailer Previews Kenshi Yonezu Song".
25. (April 26, 2019). "5/19（日）世界最速ワールドプレミア上映会、実施決定！". Starcast Japan.
26. Loo, Egan. (March 14, 2008). "12th Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize Nominees Announced". [[Anime News Network]].
27. Loo, Egan. (March 5, 2009). "13th Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize Nominees Announced". [[Anime News Network]].
28. Loo, Egan. (May 8, 2009). "38th Japan Cartoonist Awards Announced". [[Anime News Network]].
29. Loo, Egan. (December 3, 2009). "Summer Wars, Vinland Saga Win Media Arts Awards". [[Anime News Network]].
30. "Excellence Prize - Children of the Sea". Japan Media Arts Plaza.
31. Aoki, Deb. "''Children of the Sea'' Volume 1". [[About.com]].
32. Kusek, Sam. (June 27, 2009). "''Children of the Sea'', Vol. 1". PopCultureShock.
33. Santos, Carlo. (June 22, 2009). "''Children of the Sea'' GN 1 – Review".
34. Bennet, Steve. (March 23, 2009). "Review of ''Children of the Sea'' Vol. 1 (Manga)".
35. Douresseaux, Leroy. (July 15, 2009). "''Children of the Sea'': Volume 1". Toon Doctor.