Space Brothers (manga)

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Space Brothers
Uchū Kyōdai japanese manga vol 1.jpg
Cover of first japanese manga volume of Uchū Kyōdai by Kodansha, featuring protagonist Mutta and Hibito Nanba.
宇宙兄弟
(Uchū Kyōdai)
Manga
Written by Chūya Koyama
Published by Kodansha
Demographic Seinen
Magazine Weekly Morning
Original run January 2008 – ongoing
Volumes 20 (List of volumes)
Anime television series
Directed by Ayumu Watanabe
Music by Toshiyuki Gotou
Studio A-1 Pictures
Licensed by Canada United States Sentai Filmworks
Network NNS (ytv)
Original run April 1, 2012 – ongoing
Episodes 54+ TBC (List of episodes)
Live-action film
Directed by Yoshitaka Mori
Produced by Kenzo Abe
Written by Mika Ohmori
Music by Takayuki Hattori
Studio Toho
Released May 5, 2012
Runtime 129 minutes
Portal icon Anime and Manga portal

Space Brothers (宇宙兄弟 Uchū Kyōdai?) is a Japanese manga series by Chūya Koyama which has been serialized in Kodansha's Weekly Morning since January 2008. It has been nominated twice for the Manga Taishō, in 2009 and 2010.[1][2] In 2011, it won the award for best general manga at the 56th Shogakukan Manga Awards[3] and at the Kodansha Manga Award (shared with Chica Umino's March Comes in Like a Lion).[4] An anime adaptation by A-1 Pictures began airing in Japan from April 1, 2012. It was adapted into a live action film that premiered on May 5, 2012.[5][6]

Contents

Story[edit]

The story follows two brothers, Mutta and Hibito Nanba, who, in the summer of 2006, saw a UFO which seemingly flew to the moon. In 2025, as Hibito has managed to become an astronaut set to go to the moon, Mutta has not been so successful in achieving his dream of going to Mars. That is, until he is accepted to join an astronaut training program.

Characters[edit]

Mutta Nanba (南波 六太)

Portrayal Shun Oguri (film), Hiroaki Hirata (anime), Miyuki Sawashiro (anime, young)
The elder Nanba brother who was born on October 28, 1993, when Japan lost the 1994 FIFA World Cup qualification match in Qatar. He has always wanted to stay a step ahead of his younger brother, but ran into trouble after getting fired from his job, for head butting his boss like Zinedine Zidane did to Marco Materazzi in the 2006 FIFA World Cup Final. After Hibito asked their mother to send in his astronaut application to JAXA, he is chosen to join their astronaut recruitment program and overcomes hardships of JAXA's continuous tests.

Hibito Nanba (南波 日々人)

Portrayal Masaki Okada (film), Kenn (anime), Yūko Sanpei (anime, young)
The younger Nanba brother who was born on September 17, 1996, when Hideo Nomo pitches a no-hitter against the Colorado Rockies, leading the Los Angeles Dodgers to a 9-0 victory in Major League Baseball. He is currently the first Japanese astronaut preparing to go on a lunar landing, thus achieving the brothers' childhood dream. He is supportive of Mutta.[7]

Kenji Makabe (真壁 ケンジ)
Portrayal Yoshio Inoue (film), Masayuki Katō (anime)
One of Mutta's fellow applicants in the astronaut program. He resides with his wife and daughter. He is good at guessing people's ages and Mutta's close friend.

Serika Itou (伊東 せりか)
Portrayal Kumiko Aso (film), Miyuki Sawashiro (anime)
One of Mutta's fellow applicants in the astronaut program, who he has a huge crush on. When young, her father developed a rare illness which could not be cured at the time. After he passed away, Serika became motivated to become an astronaut and develop new cures for rare diseases and illnesses aboard the International Space Station.

Sharon Kaneko (金子・シャロン)
Voiced by Masako Ikeda
Sharon is a aerospace scientist, who does research by using a telescope to look up into space. She is a mentor to Mutta and Hibito when they were young. She taught them many things such as English and many life lessons. Mutta and Hibito still look to her for their problems and they share a very close relationship.

Tamura (田村)
Voiced by Mariko Hayashi
Tamura works with Sharon as an assistant who also does research using a telescope.

Mother Nanba (南波母)
Voiced by Mayumi Tanaka
She is the mother of Hibito and Mutta. She is a very caring and enthusiastic person.

Nanba Father (南波父)
Voiced by Chō
He is the father of Hibito and Mutta. He has fun doing various impersonations and voices.

Ozzy Smith (オジー・スミス)
Voiced by Tadashi Nakamura
He is a middle-aged man who enjoys casual gambling and is friends with Hibito in Houston. He and his wife helps walk Hibito's dog Apo.

Mrs. Smith (スミス夫人)
Voiced by Tamaki Taura
She is a middle-aged woman and Ozzy Smith's wife.

Tadashi Hoshika (星加　正)
Voiced by Show Ryuzanji
He is an employee at JAXA who initially wanted to become an astronaut but wasn't lucky enough. He inspired Mutta and Hibito when they were young and is fascinated by Mutta. He personally interviewed Mutta's colleagues about the headbutting incident when the issue was raised by JAXA's selection committee.

Jennifer (ジェニファー)
Voiced by Yuko Tachibana
She is Mutta's guide around NASA when he visits. She is very talkative and is knowledgeable of NASA and astronaut training and gave Mutta many tips.

Fumi Aotake (青竹フミ)
Voiced by Toa Yukinari
She is an aspiring astronaut who becomes friends with Serika during the examination process. She drops out after the second exam.

Reiji Nitta (新田零次)
Voiced by Takanori Hoshino
He was one of Mutta's fellow applicants in the astronaut program and one of the few that passed the third exam. Nitta was in the same "A" team as Mutta during the third exam. He is a sharp, smart and a calm man. He studied sports medicine at the University of Tsukaba and he also enjoys playing kendo.

Yasushi Furuya (古谷やすし)
Voiced by Ryo Naito
He was one of Mutta's fellow applicants in the astronaut program and was in the same "A" team as Mutta during the third exam. He is a biology student from Kyoto. He is a young man with a quick temper and is often quick to point out errors and has no problem speaking his mind.

Naoto Fukuda (福田直人)
Voiced by Naoki Bandou
He was one of Mutta's fellow applicants in the astronaut program and was in the same "A" team as Mutta during the third exam. He is a middle-aged man who worked on rocket development. He is following his dreams after "losing" his daughter when he was an absent father due to his rocket work. He is friendly and talkative.

Shigeo Nasuda (茄子田シゲオ)
Voiced by Yutaka Aoyama
He is the director at JAXA. He is rather quirky and upbeat and is very much interested in Mutta. His name is a play on NASDA, and his character design is based on Chiaki Mukai's husband Dr. Makio Mukai.

Tsurumi (鶴見)
Voiced by Eiji Ito
He is a JAXA staff member who helps manage the third exam. He is strict and to the point.

Yamato Mizoguchi (溝口大和)
Voiced by Shintaro Asanuma
One of Mutta's fellow applicants in the astronaut program and was in the same "B" team as Kenji during the third exam. He was one of the few that passed the third exam.

Ena Kitamura (北村絵名)
Voiced by Yuko Sanpei
One of Mutta's fellow applicants in the astronaut program and was in the same "B" team as Kenji during the third exam. She was one of the few that passed the third exam.

Ryunosuke Tomii (富井竜之介)
Voiced by Shigeyuki Susaki
One of Mutta's fellow applicants in the astronaut program and was in the same "B" team as Kenji during the third exam. He is smart and spends a lot of time playing with a Rubik's cube that he carries around. He is rather shy and is the youngest member of Team B.

Yuuri Teshima (手島有利)
Voiced by Masayasu Nagata
One of Mutta's fellow applicants in the astronaut program and was in the same "B" team as Kenji during the third exam. He was one of the few that passed the third exam. However since the start of the exam he has been very nervous and can usually be seen shaking his leg or looking worried. He joined the program because his father wanted him to become an astronaut. He is named after Soviet Union astronaut Yuri Gagarin. He has a huge interest on extra-terrestrial life forms research.

Manabu Sawaki (沢木 学)
Voiced by Takeshi Ohba
One of Mutta's fellow applicants in the astronaut program and was in the "C" team during the third exam. He is very athletic and is often seen with Yamato.

Lowry Cuomo (ローリー・クオモ)
Voiced by Ryosuke Sakamaki
He is an American astronaut, who likes Japanese things like sushi. He is Hibito's backup on the upcoming mission to the moon.

Takio Azuma (吾妻滝生)
Voiced by Kenji Nomura
He is an astronaut at JAXA. He is the Japanese astronaut who has spent the most time working in space, having done several missions on the ISS. It seems that he has a grudge against Hibito for being chosen over him to go on an upcoming lunar landing mission.

Deniel Young (デニール・ヤング)
Portrayal Taro Ishida (anime), Buzz Aldrin (film)
NASA's eccentric veteran flight trainer that enjoys Ice Breakers Sours. In the live action movie his role is taken by Buzz Aldrin.

[8]

Media[edit]

Manga[edit]

Volume list[edit]

No. Release date ISBN
1 March 21, 2008[9] ISBN 978-4-06-372674-9
2 June 23, 2008[10] ISBN 978-4-06-372711-1
3 September 22, 2008[11] ISBN 978-4-06-372732-6
4 December 22, 2008[12] ISBN 978-4-06-372763-0
5 March 23, 2009[13] ISBN 978-4-06-372782-1
6 June 23, 2009[14] ISBN 978-4-06-372802-6
7 September 23, 2009[15] ISBN 978-4-06-372832-3
8 December 22, 2009[16] ISBN 978-4-06-372858-3
9 March 23, 2010[17] ISBN 978-4-06-372883-5
10 June 23, 2010[18] ISBN 978-4-06-372909-2
11 September 22, 2010[19] ISBN 978-4-06-372939-9
12 December 22, 2010[20] ISBN 978-4-06-372961-0
13 March 23, 2011[21] ISBN 978-4-06-372981-8
14 June 23, 2011[22] ISBN 978-4-06-387006-0
15 September 23, 2011[23] ISBN 978-4-06-387038-1
16 December 22, 2011[24] ISBN 978-4-06-387065-7
17 March 23, 2012[25] ISBN 978-4-06-387090-9
18 June 22, 2012[25] ISBN 978-4-06-387118-0
20 February 22, 2013 ISBN 978-4-06-387149-4

Anime[edit]

See also: List of Space Brothers episodes

An anime adaptation by A-1 Pictures began airing in Japan on April 1, 2012 and is being simulcast by Crunchyroll.[26] The series has been licensed by Sentai Filmworks in North America.[27] The 31st episode, which aired on November 4, 2012, features the first piece of voice acting to be recorded in space, performed by astronaut Akihiko Hoshide aboard the International Space Station.[28] A special episode titled "Planetarium: Space Brothers ~One Point of Light~" (プラネタリウム　宇宙兄弟～一点のひかり～ Puranetariumu Uchū Kyōdai ~Itten no Hikari~?) was screened in planetariums during Summer 2012 and was released on DVD with the 20th manga volume on February 22, 2013.[29]

Themes[edit]

Opening themes
  1. "Feel So Moon" by Unicorn (ep 1-13)
  2. "Eureka" (ユリーカ Yurīka?) by Sukima Switch (ep 14-26)
  3. "Yumemiru Sekai" (夢見る世界?, lit. "Dream-like World") by DOES (ep 27-38)
  4. "Small World" by Fujifabric (ep 39-51)
  5. "Kienai e" (消えない絵?, lit. "Non-Disappearing Drawing") by Magokoro Brothers (ep 52 - )
Ending themes
  1. "Subarashiki Sekai" (素晴らしき世界?, lit. "This Wonderful World") by Rake (ep 1-13)
  2. "Kokuhaku" (告白?, lit. "Confession") by Angela Aki (ep 14-26)
  3. "Tete" (テテ?, lit. "Hands") by Akihisa Kondō (ep 27-38)
  4. "Goodbye Issac" (グッバイ・アイザック Gubbai Aizakku?) by Motohiro Hata (ep 39-51)
  5. "Beyond" by Miho Fukuhara (ep 52 - )

Film[edit]

A live-action film adaptation of Space Brothers was produced by Toho and released in Japanese theatres on May 5, 2012, later being screened at the Japanese Film Festival in Australia later that year.[30] The adaptation was written by Chuya Koyama and directed by Yoshitaka Mori, with Shun Oguri and Masaki Okada playing the roles of Mutta and Hibito respectively. Real life astronaut Buzz Aldrin plays a cameo in the film as himself. The theme song for the movie is British pop band Coldplay's "Every Teardrop Is a Waterfall" (from the album Mylo Xyloto). The film won the 'Best of Puchon' and 'NH Nonghyup Citizen's Choice' awards at the 16th Puchon International Fantastic Film Festival.[31]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "10 Titles Nominated for 2nd Manga Taisho Awards". Anime News Network. January 18, 2009. Retrieved 2010-09-30. 
  2. ^ "10 Titles Nominated for 3rd Manga Taisho Awards". Anime News Network. January 18, 2010. Retrieved 2010-09-30. 
  3. ^ "News: 56th Shogakukan Manga Award Winners Announced (Updated)". Anime News Network. 2011-01-21. Retrieved 2011-01-22. 
  4. ^ "March comes in like a lion, Space Bros. Win Kodansha Manga Awards". Anime News Network. 2011-05-12. Retrieved 2011-05-15. 
  5. ^ "Rock Band Coldplay Does Space Bros./Uchū Kyōdai Film Theme". Anime News Network. 2011-11-08. Retrieved 2011-11-11. 
  6. ^ "TV Anime Uchū Kyōdai". Yomiuri TV. Retrieved February 4, 2012. 
  7. ^ http://www.animevice.com/uchuu-kyoudai/10-1329/characters/
  8. ^ http://www.animevice.com/uchuu-kyoudai/10-1329/characters/
  9. ^ "宇宙兄弟 （１）" (in Japanese). Kodansha. Retrieved September 30, 2010. 
  10. ^ "宇宙兄弟 （２）" (in Japanese). Kodansha. Retrieved September 30, 2010. 
  11. ^ "宇宙兄弟 （３）" (in Japanese). Kodansha. Retrieved September 30, 2010. 
  12. ^ "宇宙兄弟 （４）" (in Japanese). Kodansha. Retrieved September 30, 2010. 
  13. ^ "宇宙兄弟 （５）" (in Japanese). Kodansha. Retrieved September 30, 2010. 
  14. ^ "宇宙兄弟 （６）" (in Japanese). Kodansha. Retrieved September 30, 2010. 
  15. ^ "宇宙兄弟 （７）" (in Japanese). Kodansha. Retrieved September 30, 2010. 
  16. ^ "宇宙兄弟 （８）" (in Japanese). Kodansha. Retrieved September 30, 2010. 
  17. ^ "宇宙兄弟 （９）" (in Japanese). Kodansha. Retrieved September 30, 2010. 
  18. ^ "宇宙兄弟 （１０）" (in Japanese). Kodansha. Retrieved September 30, 2010. 
  19. ^ "宇宙兄弟 （１１）" (in Japanese). Kodansha. Retrieved September 30, 2010. 
  20. ^ "宇宙兄弟 （１２）" (in Japanese). Kodansha. Retrieved September 9, 2011. 
  21. ^ "宇宙兄弟 （１３）" (in Japanese). Kodansha. Retrieved September 9, 2011. 
  22. ^ "宇宙兄弟 （１４）" (in Japanese). Kodansha. Retrieved September 9, 2011. 
  23. ^ "宇宙兄弟 （１５）" (in Japanese). Kodansha. Retrieved January 28, 2012. 
  24. ^ "宇宙兄弟 （１６）" (in Japanese). Kodansha. Retrieved January 28, 2012. 
  25. ^ a b "宇宙兄弟 （１7）" (in Japanese). Kodansha. Retrieved June 9, 2012. 
  26. ^ "Crunchyroll to Stream Space Brothers TV Anime". Anime News Network. 
  27. ^ "Sentai Filmworks Licenses Space Brothers TV Anime". Anime News Network. Retrieved 1 July 2012. 
  28. ^ "Astronaut Successfully Dubs Space Brothers Anime From Space". Anime News Network. 2012-10-08. Retrieved 2012-10-09. 
  29. ^ http://www.animenewsnetwork.co.uk/news/2013-01-22/space-brothers-manga-to-bundle-planetarium-anime-dvd
  30. ^ http://www.animenewsnetwork.co.uk/news/2012-07-31/live-action-space-brothers-plays-in-australia
  31. ^ http://www.animenewsnetwork.co.uk/news/2012-07-30/live-action-space-brothers-wins-awards-at-puchon-film-fest

External links[edit]

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