SPACE BROTHERS
Uchuu Kyoudai drawn by Chuya Koyama is one of Japan’s most popular ongoing manga serials. In the story, two brothers vow to become fellow astronauts someday in the future. As promised, the younger brother Hibito becomes an astronaut, but in the meantime, the elder brother Mutta is fired by a company and left unemployed. The manga is about Mutta, who struggles to become the astronaut he once dreamed of being. Uchuu Kyoudai stirred public sympathy and became popular for the resounding truths often expressed by its unique manga characters. In a real-world incident, the fictional tale inspired a reader to actually pass the entrance exams for JAXA, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency. In Japan, this manga not only became an anime series but also a live-action movie. Uchuu Kyoudai is a serialized manga still in progress, continuing to inspire dreams.
This drawing was used as a cover illustration for an issue of Weekly Morning magazine, in which the first installment of Uchuu Kyoudai appeared. The younger brother Hibito wears a full spacesuit while the elder brother Mutta wears a half-suit, symbolizing one brother who realizes his dream while the other cannot yet fulfill his destiny.
“I believe that I have to love the character whenever I create one, even if the character is sort of a villain. Unless you like the personality or appearance of a character, you can’t enjoy drawing that character.”
“When I drew Mutta and Hibito, I felt stronger love than ever before. That feeling seemed to be shared by many readers.”
First installment of Uchuu Kyoudai (English)
Other than in Japan, Uchuu Kyoudai is available in Taiwan, South Korea, Italy, and Thailand.
Electronic book copies of English and French translations are scheduled for publication in July and October 2013 respectively.
Here we can show the first installment of the English translation, courtesy of the author.
