Emanon (manga)

Emanon: Memories of Emanon (Japanese: おもいでエマノン, Hepburn: Omoide Emanon) is a Japanese manga series by Kenji Tsuruta, based on a 1983 novel written by Shinji Kajio. It was serialized in Tokuma Shoten's seinen manga magazine Monthly Comic Ryū from September 2006 to January 2008, with its chapters collected in a single wideban volume. Another series, Emanon Wanderer, was serialized in the same magazine from October 2008 to December 2017, with its chapters collected in three volumes. The manga has been licensed for English release in North America by Dark Horse Comics.

Emanon: Memories of Emanon
Emanon: Memories of Emanon volume cover
おもいでエマノン
(Omoide Emanon)
GenreScience fiction[1]
Manga
Written byShinji Kajio
Illustrated byKenji Tsuruta
Published byTokuma Shoten
English publisher
ImprintRyu Comics Special
MagazineMonthly Comic Ryū
DemographicSeinen
Original run19 September 2006 – 19 December 2017
Volumes4
Series titles
  1. Memories of Emanon (2006–2008; 1 volume)
  2. Emanon Wanderer (2008–2017; 3 volumes)

Premise

The series follows the travels of Emanon (エマノン) ("No Name" backwards), a mysterious young woman who possesses a three-billion-year-old memory, dating back to the creation of life. Emanon has been reborn countless times, retaining all the memories and experiences from all her past lives. She wanders around the world with no clear destination in mind, and will continue to do so again and again many times in the future.

Publication

Based on a 1983 novel written by Shinji Kajio,[2] and illustrated by Kenji Tsuruta, Emanon: Memories of Emanon was serialized in Tokuma Shoten's seinen manga magazine Monthly Comic Ryū from 19 September 2006[3][4] to 19 January 2008.[lower-alpha 1] Tokuma Shoten collected its chapters in a single wideban volume released on 20 May 2008.[7]

An adaptation of Kajio's 1992 novel, Emanon Wanderer (さすらいエマノン, Sasurai Emanon), was serialized in Monthly Comic Ryū from 18 October 2008[2] to 19 December 2017.[8] Tokuma Shoten collected its chapters in three volumes, released on 3 April 2012;[9] 30 November 2013;[10] and 26 April 2018.[11]

The series was licensed in North America by Dark Horse Comics in 2018.[12] They released Emanon: Memories of Emanon on 8 May 2019;[13] the first and second volumes of Emanon Wanderer were released on 14 August[14] and 4 December of the same year, respectively;[15] the third volume was released on 20 September 2023.[16]

Reception

Emanon: Memories of Emanon was nominated for the Seiun Award in the Comic category in 2009.[17] In 2019, at the San Diego Comic-Con International, the series was listed in the "Underrated but Awesome Manga" category by the annual "Best and Worst Manga" panel.[18]

Writing for Otaku USA, Jason Thompson made a positive review of Emanon: Memories of Emanon, recommending the volume and commenting: "Beautiful artwork, philosophical sci-fi discussions, and atmospheric wordless sequences make up this tale of life as ferryboat ride."[19] Sean Gaffney of A Case Suitable For Treatment commended the volume as well, adding that it "works very well as a stand-alone [volume] and gets into some of the big questions of how memory works." Gaffney also praised the dialogues and Tsuruta's artwork, concluding: "If you're looking for something introspective and thought-provoking, this is a very good title to pick up."[20] In a more negative review, Demelza of Anime UK News criticized the story and characters, calling them "bland" and with no personality. Demelza, however, commended the artwork, the flow of the panels, and the expressiveness of the characters, and concluded: "The artwork is the only saving grace and even then it's not enough to sell me on the idea of more."[21]

Notes
  1. The series was published until the March issue of 2008,[5] which went on sale on 19 January of the same year.[6]

References
  1. 鶴田謙二「さすらいエマノン」雑誌未掲載話をWEB公開. Comic Natalie (in Japanese). Natasha, Inc. 2 November 2011. Archived from the original on 6 December 2022. Retrieved 6 December 2022.
  2. Loo, Egan (21 October 2008). "Spirit of Wonder's Tsuruta Draws Sasurai Emanon Manga". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on 6 December 2022. Retrieved 6 December 2022.
  3. 第22回「エマノンのこと」. hakutake.co.jp (in Japanese). 4 September 2006. Archived from the original on 6 December 2022. Retrieved 6 December 2022.
  4. Macdonald, Christopher (22 September 2006). "New Manga Magazine from Tokuma Shoten". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on 6 December 2022. Retrieved 6 December 2022.
  5. 月刊COMICリュウ 2008年(平成20年)03 月号 (in Japanese). Mandarake Inc. Archived from the original on 6 December 2022. Retrieved 6 December 2022. 最終回 2本立て [おもいでエマノン] 梶尾真治×鶴田謙
  6. アニメ＆コミック　コミック(週刊) 雑誌一覧. Jbook (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 6 February 2008. Retrieved 6 December 2022. 2008/01/19 ＣＯＭＩＣ リュウ３月号［魔夜峰央／奥田ひとし］
  7. おもいでエマノン (in Japanese). Tokuma Shoten. Archived from the original on 6 December 2022. Retrieved 6 December 2022.
  8. 月刊ＣＯＭＩＣリュウ （２０１８年２月号） (in Japanese). Kinokuniya. Archived from the original on 6 December 2022. Retrieved 6 December 2022.
  9. 鶴田謙二「さすらいエマノン」カラー収録＆加筆し単行本化. Comic Natalie (in Japanese). Natasha, Inc. 3 April 2012. Archived from the original on 6 December 2022. Retrieved 6 December 2022.
  10. 鶴田謙二「さすらいエマノン」続刊発売！イラスト特典も. Comic Natalie (in Japanese). Natasha, Inc. 30 November 2013. Archived from the original on 6 December 2022. Retrieved 6 December 2022.
  11. 鶴田謙二「續々さすらいエマノン」発売、約4年半ぶりの最新シリーズ. Comic Natalie (in Japanese). Natasha, Inc. 26 April 2012. Archived from the original on 6 December 2022. Retrieved 6 December 2022.
  12. Ressler, Karen (10 August 2018). "Dark Horse Licenses Shinji Kajio, Kenji Tsuruta's Emanon Manga". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on 6 December 2022. Retrieved 6 December 2022.
  13. Sherman, Jennifer (7 May 2019). "North American Anime, Manga Releases, May 5-11". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on 6 December 2022. Retrieved 6 December 2022.
  14. Sherman, Jennifer (13 August 2019). "North American Anime, Manga Releases, August 11-17". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on 13 January 2022. Retrieved 6 December 2022.
  15. Sherman, Jennifer (4 December 2019). "North American Anime, Manga Releases, December 1-7". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on 6 December 2022. Retrieved 6 December 2022.
  16. "Emanon Volume 4: Emanon Wanderer Part Three TPB". Dark Horse Comics. Archived from the original on 31 July 2023. Retrieved 14 August 2023.
  17. Loo, Egan (14 April 2009). "Japanese Science Fiction Con Award Nominees Revealed". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on 13 July 2019. Retrieved 6 December 2022.
  18. Loveridge, Lynzee (22 July 2019). "Best and Worst Manga of 2019 Results - Comic-Con International". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on 9 May 2021. Retrieved 6 December 2022.
  19. Thompson, Jason (29 August 2019). "[Review] Emanon: Memories of Emanon". Otaku USA. Archived from the original on 9 August 2022. Retrieved 6 December 2022.
  20. Gaffney, Sean (29 May 2019). "Emanon, Vol. 1: Memories of Emanon". A Case Suitable For Treatment. Archived from the original on 5 January 2022. Retrieved 6 December 2022.
  21. Demelza (21 May 2019). "Emanon Volume 1 Review". Anime UK News. Archived from the original on 26 June 2022. Retrieved 6 December 2022.

Further reading
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