Sora yori mo Tooi Basho

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Adapting the anime of the same name, this manga somehow fails to reach the same level as its animated counterpart, which quickly became one of my all-time favourites. It's the same story, but lacks the vibrant energy of the anime, the soundtrack, the colours and, most of all, the characterization of the girls is poorer. It's still moving, but the anime is far superior.

Mari Tamaki (Kimari, as she calls herself) is a high school girl who lives with the desire to do something memorable to enjoy her youth, but at the last moment she feels too insecure to take the step... that is until she ... meets Shirase, a schoolmate who has her own memorable goal: Going to Antarctica! In her case, the reason is quite different: Shirase's mother disappeared three years ago on the frozen continent while taking part in an expedition. Inspired by Shirase, Kimari decides to join her along with two other girls of their age: the lively Hinata and Yuzuki, an adolescent idol. Together they embark on a journey to one of the most isolated and implacable places on the planet. Overcoming the circumstances of an adventure of such magnitude and the incomprehension and mockery of those who think they can not achieve it, they will discover the truth of the saying "it is the journey that matters, not the destination".

This is very humane story that connects with common feelings such as the desire for adventure, friendship, loss and overcoming. Because it is, mainly, a story about feelings, not about a place. The subtitle "A story that leads to Antarctica" refers to the journey itself, to the fact that the core lies in everything that happens to get there and how does it change the protagonists. It is, in essence, a coming of age story that connects with a desire that many of us have experienced, that of living an adventure full of discoveries in a distant and different place to those we know. Within its short duration, "A place further than the Universe" manages to makes us connect with its protagonists and share the emotion of an incredible journey of discovery and overcoming, full of laughter and tears, difficulties and rewards.