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Planet Ladder

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Planet Ladder
Cover of Planet Ladder Vol. 1
GenreFantasy, Science fiction
Manga
Written byYuri Narushima
Published byJapan Sobisha
United States Canada Tokyopop
MagazineCrimson
Original run1998 – 2004
Volumes7

Planet Ladder (プラネット・ラダー, Puranetto Radā) is a Japanese manga created by Yuri Narushima who also wrote and drew the art for Young Magician, a gothic supernatural manga.[1] Planet Ladder was published by Sobisha Inc. and appeared in Crimson from 1998 to 2004. The series consists of seven volumes, the last volume released in Japan in May 2004. It is also licensed in North America by Tokyopop, which has released the English translations of all seven volumes of the manga.

The story focuses on a teenage girl, Kaguya, who is kidnapped from her home on Earth and is sent to a parallel world where she learns of her prophecised destiny as the savior of one of the nine parallel worlds. Kaguya attempts to bring peace to a waring universe while discovering her true identity.

Plot

The story centers around a teenage girl named Kaguya Haruyama who, when about four years of age, was found abandoned looking like a refugee of a war, with no memory of her past. After living with her foster family for many years, strange events occur as she is abducted by Gold, a robot who resembles a boy she only knows from her dreams. Soon, she is swept away to another world, called Telene, where she is referred to as a princess and the 'Girl of Ananai', the only person said to not be influenced by fate. The series chronicles Kaguya's travels through these worlds and her encounters with strange and enigmatic characters in each one, including a woman named Shiina Mol Bamvivrie and an emotionally distant prince named Seeu, as she struggles to find out her self-identity.

Characters

Main article:List of characters in Planet Ladder

Kaguya Haruyama
The protagonist of Planet Ladder. A fourteen-year-old, black haired, blue eyed girl who was the sole survivor of a calamatic war and was adopted by a family on Eden (present day Earth) at the age of four, crying on the side of the road in tattered clothes. Her purpose as the famed "Girl of Ananai" is to choose the planet which will survive, as it is foretold that all nine worlds will collide.[2] Kaguya does not know what to make of this great responsibility and eventually claims she will side with a person who can think of the solution that will save the most lives.
Prince Seeu
Called "the Mad Prince," he is a mysterious ruler who expresses little or no emotion. Because a deadly disease swept across his planet, Asu, when Seeu was young, he was not allowed any contact with his subjects to prevent him from contracting the virus. As time went on, Seeu watched all of his beloved subjects fall victim to the disease. Having some scientific knowledge, he desperately experimented with transferring the souls of his subjects into dolls. These experiments were unsuccessful, and the pain of loss drove Seeu mad. He is the creator of the robotic doll, Gold.
Gold
A doll made by Seeu to resemble Kagami, Kaguya's older brother. Gold wields the Organic Gold, the living weapon of Kagami, and has one of Kagami's arms. Kagami's personality seems to emerge from Gold from time to time, helping Kaguya along the way and yet vanishing moments later.
Shiina Mol Bamvivrie
Also translated as Sheena Moru Banivirie
An attractive blonde woman who is one of Kaguya's companions in her travels. Shiina Mol Bamvivrie is her birthname, but she receives the nickname "Bambi" from her grandfather. Because of her heritage as the genetic descendant of Ragunahaan, she was locked away in a castle on the planet Telene, which she later leaves to assist Kaguya on her travels. Shiina is highly intelligent, which makes her desirable to Kura, who values IQ as much as he does beauty in his lovers.
Kura
The dictator of Geo, the most powerful of all the worlds. The main antagonist of the series, he is selfish and decadent. He is the conqueror of many planets who abuses the subjects of his conquests with his imposing rule. Kura wants to capture Kaguya so that he can use her reputation as "Girl of Ananai" to gain support.

Worlds

In the universe of Planet Ladder, there are nine parallel worlds.[3] To travel between worlds, the characters in Planet Ladder use Collapsers, fictional hourglass-like items that work by creating a bend in the dimensional fabric, to move from one 'world' to the other. The worlds are as follows:

  1. Ancient. This is the first civilized world, and was destroyed a long time ago, leaving behind only oceans [4] .
  2. Asu. Seeu's world, and the most beautiful of all the worlds before it was destroyed by disease. At the start of the series, Asu has disintegrated so much, that it no longer resembles a planet. Seeu is the last survivor of Asu and lives there, in his castle which has also fallen into disrepair.
  3. Eden. Present day Earth, and where Kaguya grew up. Many criminals were sent there, and there is no communication between it and the other worlds.
  4. Telene. Where Kaguya and Gold begin their journey, and where Shiina grew up. This is also the resting place of Ragunahaan. A very small empire which is in the midst of war and is beginning to destroy itself.
  5. The Fifth World. A collection of small countries, each with their own way of thinking and current situation.
  6. Geus. A planet with little civilization, it is relatively calm and is under the control of Geo, the seventh world.
  7. Geo. The most politically powerful of all the worlds in Planet Ladder, and controlled by Kura for over 300 years. The people of Geo believe strongly in the prophecies passed down from Ancient, which forecast the end of the worlds.
  8. Asuraitsu. Rival of Geo.
  9. The Ninth World. It was destroyed in the last war before the start of the series.

Production

As said in the back of the 1st volume of Planet Ladder, the author has stated that she began the manga with "a dramatic feeling in mind " and wanted to "start off with a comic book for young girls (shōjo manga)." Planet Ladder was inspired by the Japanese folk tale "The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter" about a beautiful girl named Kaguya-Hime who is discovered to be the princess of the moon.[5]

Planet Ladder was serialized in Crimson from 1998 to 2004 in Japan. It was first published in Japanese by Sobisha Inc. The rights to the English translation of Planet Ladder was arranged though Sobisha Inc., and was serialized in Smile Magazine.[6] The English translation of Planet Ladder volume 1 was released on March 2002 by Tokyopop as part of Tokyopop's commitment to "unflopped manga" along with other manga such as Chobits and Dragon Knights.[7]

Promotion

On January 31, 2002, plans were announced for display cases containing four copies each of the new, right to left formatted manga titles: Planet Ladder, Chobits, Cowboy Bebop, Dragon Knights, GTO, Marmalade Boy, Mars, Real Bout High School, and The Skull Man. Tokyopop also placed ads and promotions for its new manga titles in magazines such as Wizard, Animerica, Anime Invasion, and online fan sites.[8]

Reception

In February 2003, Planet Ladder volume 5 reached the 44th spot of the Top 50 Graphic Novels.[9] A year later, Planet Ladder volume 6 reached the 71th place on the Top 100 Graphic Novels, with the sales estimate of 984. [10]

Planet Ladder was recently reviewed in Manga: The Complete Guide which gave Planet Ladder 3 out of 4 stars. It called Planet Ladder "reminiscent of prose science fiction such as Madeleine L'Engle's A Wrinkle in Time and Roger Zelazny's Nine Princes in Amber" and commented that the story is "marked by moments of spookiness and strange imagery". Manga: The Complete Guide remarked that the art of Planet Ladder "is not great, with inconsistent designs, crude faces,and too much greasy looking screentone." [11]

There is an ongoing poll on Anime News Network, to rate Planet Ladder. Currently, it has a median rating of 'good'.

References

  1. ^ "Young Magician(manga)". Anime News Network. Retrieved 2008-02-19.
  2. ^ Shiina: Right now, space is on the brink of destruction. Why you ask? There's a part of the orbit of the space dimension supposedly running parallel to ours. And soon this area of the world will collide with it. It has something to do with Ancient and Geo's theory of "The End."...I was talking about the rescue in the legend wasn't I? There's one young girl. Until she is chosen, she never fails to choose the blank card. When "The End" comes, the girl will choose which world will survive. All the other worlds will destruct. Every last one. Narushima,Yuri (August 1999) Planet Ladder volume 2. Tokyopop ISBN 4-420-17010-7
  3. ^ Shiina:Are you serious? Obviously there are Earths everywhere. There's one for each world.Kaguya: Huh? Why? Shiina: Space has many levels. There are different worlds layered one on top of the other, including the worlds you and I both know. Each one has developed differently. Unfortunately, only nine worlds with evolved races have been discovered so far. Narushima,Yuri (August 1999) Planet Ladder volume 2. Tokyopop ISBN 1-931514-63-1
  4. ^ Shiina:The first world, or the old sea, is called "Ancient". It was the planet with the oldest civilization. But it was mysteriously destroyed long ago. The planet's surface vanished and only the oceans remain. Narushima, Yuri. Planet Ladder volume 2.(August 1999) Tokyopop ISBN 1-931514-63-1.
  5. ^ "Tokyopop::Leading the Manga Revolution for 10 Years and Beyond!::". Tokyopop. Retrieved 2008-01-15.
  6. ^ "Planet Ladder(manga)". Anime News Network. Retrieved 2008-01-15.
  7. ^ "Tokyopop Commits to Unflopped Manga". Anime News Network. 2002-01-29. Retrieved 2008-01-15.
  8. ^ "Tokyopop Plans 'Authentic' Floor Dumps in April". 2002-01-31. Retrieved 2008-01-17.
  9. ^ "Top 50 Graphic Novels--February 2003". ICv2. Retrieved 2008-01-15.
  10. ^ "Top 100 Graphic Novels Actuals--February 2004". ICv2. Retrieved 2008-01-15.
  11. ^ Thompson, Jason. Manga:The Complete Guide, New York: Del Ray Books, c2007 ISBN 0345485904
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