Kaijuu no Kodomo
Children of the Sea

Edit

What would you like to edit?

SynopsisBackgroundAlternative TitlesPictureChapters/VolumesPublishing DatesRelationsTypeExternal Links  

First thing first the art for the character is can be crude at times. But after reading it for a while, you get suck in to the character designs. And not to mention the beautiful art for the ocean and sea creatures! The story is not for everyone because it takes detours for shot side-story's, so it can talk about the mystery's of the sea. The story is also these leave it up to the reader to decide.

It's defiantly not a story for these with weak stomachs it talks about human biology in great details like showing humans organs in a diagram.

I was stunned at the lack of reviews for this manga and, as a result, I wrote my own. To sum up my opinion of 'Children of the Sea' in one sentence: It is one of the best mangas I have ever read. Ever. And that's saying something.

The manga is about a girl named Ruka, a girl who's better at using her fists to explain herself rather then her mouth. The result? She's kicked off the school handball team. In an attempt to run away from everything, she goes on a short trip to Tokyo and tries to find the ocean. There she meets ... Umi, a boy who was raised by dugongs.

What this beginning leads to is a brilliant, almost surreal story of fantasy, mystery, and adventure, yet it's portrayed in such a way that you could almost believe it (and if you're like me, hope for it) to be real. It draws inspiration from folk tales and myths all around the world to create an atmosphere much like the one found in Hayao Miyazaki's films. In other words, if you like Miyazaki's films then you'll definitely like this. The story is a quest of trying to answer one of the most intriguing questions in the world today: "How was the world made?" And it does it in a way that makes it both breath taking, fun, and a wonder to look at.

On that note, the Art is wonderful. The style the mangaka (Igrarashi) uses is one full of sketch-like lines, with lots of cross hatching and shading in the process. It's not glossy or cute and the proportions aren't always perfect, but that doesn't matter. The art fits the story. The marine world under water and the small coastal town Ruka lives in are perfectly portrayed by Igrashi's detailed drawings of fish, natural scenery, and towns. There are many times when you'll simply stare at one panel on the page, soaking up all the marvelous detail in. An incredible world is created in those pages, and the art just sucks you into the story, letting you smell the ocean breeze, feel the waves, and simply live it all.

The characters aren't neglected either. On the contrary, they're all quite memorable, even the minor ones. They all hold a certain charm, Ruka, the girl who's not good at using words; Umi, the rather strange and cheerful boy; Sora, the sickly and sarcastic wanderer; and Jim, the old surfer dude covered in tattoos who takes care of Umi and Sora. Even the sea creatures have their own appeal.

In conclusion, if you haven't read 'Children of the Sea', read it. Now. The only bad thing about the series is it's languid pace, but even that is part of its charm. You'll definitely be set onto a journey that will take you all throughout the seven seas, and by the time you finish one volume you'll be wondering to yourself whether the world is really how it seems to be. That and you'll want to go swimming.

Out of 100 Nobles watching...
100 were impressed! Really!

Here we have a perfect storm. I have a very big soft spot for anything Ocean/Aquatic themed on top of the fact that the realistic sketchy ink and watercolor art style of this work being something very similar to my own personal style when I pursued traditional 2d art when I was younger.

It may seem from the get-go I am biased to praise this Manga but even without a natural fit for my own tastes the story of Children of the Sea is something that is so unique and interesting it really stands out as a one of ... a kind work of art. That said if you don't like lots of dialogue this may not be for you (though I would ask why you're reading books if not for dialogue).

The main character Ruka is a refreshing female protagonist with her own flaws and feelings that make her feel very real and believable; something that a lot of anime and manga lack in their characters. The author Daisuke Igarashi's attention to detail with his environments and depiction of wildlife as well as the dialogue itself really shows that he put in his research for this project and as a result has caused me to add him to my list of favorite people so I will remember to look into his other works.

No matter how good something is I tend to be at least a little critical for the sake of being so. Generally something will turn me off that won't ruin my experience, but will leave a lasting enough impression to make a work come a few points short of 100. That is not the case with Children of the Sea // Kaijuu no Kodomo.

Last Bit: Fun Kanji Note

The title 海獣の子供 uses 海獣 here for kaijyuu meaning a marine mammal such as a seal or whale rather than 怪獣 kaijyuu meaning a monster making the translation I tend to see of Sea Monster Children seem maybe a little off and maybe it should more accurately be Sea Mammal Children (which is fitting given the context of the story)? My Japanese is at a grade school level though so I'll try not to be a scholar about it...

The seas are fascinating, and have always held a special place in mankind’s history.

Beautiful yet also turbulent and treacherous, they have divided or bridged cultures and destroyed or benefited civilizations in equal measure. Mythologies and sailors’ superstitions are among the most prominent examples of mankind recognizing the seas’ majesty.

Kaijuu no Kodomo pays homage to this, but is also a unique sample of ecological storytelling, although Daisuke Igarashi is following an approach different of say, Hayao Miyazaki.


[1. Beginning with the story…]

Taking place at a typical modern setting by the seaside in Japan, the story begins during summer. The protagonist is Ruka, a teenage girl with divorced ... parents. Her father works in an aquarium, where she gets acquainted with two mysterious boys named Umi and Sora.

At this point, readers are introduced to supernatural mystery. And gradually, more and more anomalies connected to the sea occur, which baffle marine biologists. However, Daisuke Igarashi does not limit his scope here. Instead, he expands the mystery towards a bigger picture and connects human condition with nature, from which mankind attempts to detach, but in reality remains but a thread of a grand tapestry. This is not unlike what is expressed in the Nausicaä manga.

Retracing to the introduction however, I mentioned how his approach differs from Miyazaki’s. The latter connects in Nausicaä many ideas from social and natural sciences with personal tales to forge a big picture, and the setting covers the land environment. On the other hand, Igarashi connects marine biology, mythology and cosmology with personal “testimonies” connected to the sea.

The result is simply put, unorthodox. I could summarize it as “abstract and monistic, sensual and symbolical”. Some chapters are dialogue-heavy, whereas others go for “show, don’t tell”. Questions are left unanswered, the story has a lot of disbelief to suspend and interpretation is more recommended rather than taking it at face value.


[2. Continuing with characters…]

Ruka is a not-too-ordinary teenage girl. She is quite athletic, independent and mature but also highly introverted and dismissive/aggressive towards her peers. Overall, she gives off the impression of being a true person, warts and all.

The main trio is composed of her and the titular “children of the sea/marine mammals”, Umi and Sora. They too are mature yet detached from their peers but also much more unusual, for they were raised in the sea under unusual circumstances. Their origins drive the narrative, whereas Ruka and the rest of the cast act as observers. The rest also help bridge human condition with the bigger picture, by being part of “personal testimonies” connected to the sea. No true antagonist exists, only humans with conflicting views and different pasts, influenced by the sea in their own ways.


[3. And concluding with the artwork...]

Character designs are realistic if somewhat crude and odd-proportioned at times, but sufficient for the goals of this manga.

The true stars however are the depictions of landscapes and of wildlife and the textures. Oceanic and land environments and marine wildlife - be it e.g. starfish, cetaceans or manta - are brought to life by meticulous (almost photorealistic) sketchy drawing, characterized by rough yet rich linework.

There are also colored (and some colorless) pages whose textures and shading resembles watercolor, adding to the already unique artwork.

Artwork is at its finest during the “show, don’t tell” moments of the narrative, when it becomes purely visual and lets nature do the talk in the place of the characters. Mythological elements are also portrayed quite vividly.

Hope you enjoyed my review!

With the movie adaptation of this coming out in the next couple of months, I might as well insert my five yen on the manga. Which I read almost a year ago. ...Fortuantely, I know what I thought of it then, and I know what I think of it now! And hoo boy, what an amazing manga this is!
~~~~~~~~~
Story- ACTUALLY Deep/10

There are a lot of works of fiction that people consider deep that I... don't. To a lot of people, human life is unequivocally fascinating and complex. Personally, I find human life to be overrated, and this manga's speaking my language! What starts out as ... a supernatural mystery manga is actually a profound love letter to the beauty and majesty of the Earth and its oceans. And when I say profound, I mean profound.

To be fair, the esoteric glarble I mentioned just now is merely my interpretation of the story. But the way this is crafted makes me want to believe that it was the author's utmost intention and why I'm willing to give the accuracy of the manga's marine biology factoids the benefit of the doubt.

This manga gives us a simple wake-up call: We ain't special. There are a lot of really cynical works of fiction that do tell that point, but those almost come off as even more melodramatic and pretentious than a teen romance. Kaijuu no Kodomo gets the message across plain and simple. We are part of a grand and beautiful tapestry of life, and most of us have been ignoring it becuase of our own superfluous issues. Heck, we know more about the vacuum of space than we do about our oceans!

However, this story has a lot of disbelief to suspend. Stuff just 'happens' because 'reasons', and we have to deal with it (to put it in a spoiler-free manner). I personally interpret it as a m-m-metaphor (that word is so poisonous to me these days) for how we, humankind, are too small-minded to comprehend the massive beauty of nature.
~~~~~~~~~~
Characters- 7/10

The characters aren't as important as the main story. Like us, a lot of these people are just along for the ride. The most interesting characters are the titular children, Umi and Sora, without a doubt. They're the ones who drive mainly drive the narrative along, while the main character, Ruka, just passively follows them. The tattoo guy is a bizarre take on a main 'antagonist' who instead comes off as... just a guy.

Also, Ruka's mom has it going on. Just sayin' (sorry).
~~~~~~~~~~
Art- 9/10

This manga is beautiful in a weird way. There are a lot of times where the characters aren't anatomically correct, but it makes up for it with gorgeous landscape shots and detailed textures. This is a visual manga, having a lot of chapters with almost no dialogue. Who needs it? Let nature tell the story sometimes.

Some people will probably find the movie more visually pleasing out of personal preference, but nothing's beating the occasional color pages of the manga, which have a (no pun intended) WATERcolor motif to their shading and textures.
~~~~~~~~~
Overall- 9/10

This is one of the most beautiful manga I have ever read. Its message is simple and powerful while also not pretentious. I would have rated it a 10/10 if it weren't for the semi-loose ending.

But as much praise as I have given this, I can't safely recommend it to you. It all depends on the kind of person you are. I know a lot of people will find this to be utter nonesense, sadly. There isn't even a real conflict in the narrative!

The only basis through which I can recommend Kaijuu no Kodomo is- oddly enough- the Rivers of Light at Walt Disney World's Animal Kingdom (plus, the tattoo guy reminds me of Joe Rhoades). That performance tries to touch the soul with its homage to land-based life similarly to how this manga does with marine life. If you love that show, then this manga is 100% up your ally! But if you at least have an open mind going into it, then it should be a profound experience.

This is a very unique manga with amazing, tranquil art. I've never come across a story with such an interesting plot, and was enchanted. I can't say I loved it, however, because of a few things. One, it doesn't feel as short as it is. Although its only about forty chapters, the slow/relaxed pacing makes it feel longer. I also have to admit that there are quite a bit of chapters that talk about scientific topics that I found hard to follow. The art truly is so beautiful and this is storyline that you'll probably never come across elsewhere in terms of manga, so I ... do recommend giving this s read.

First of all this work deserves more readers! It's a full-on 10 for me but I can't decide on the wimp of emotion.
Igarashi did a phenomenal job by crafting this based on countless myths around the world and amalgamating it into such an extraordinary story. I liked the way the story takes place with a normal day-to-day life of an ordinary girl but suddenly this normal world transforms into a journey to a world unknown and unheard of for a millennium. I liked the suspense of how the character little by little enclosed the secrets of the world with countless myths and testimonies around ... the world. And the character like Angaled and Jim did a great job by holding the story without interfering with the plot, Igarashi did a good job by focusing very little on these characters though they hold the very focal point of the whole story.

And what to say about the Art, it was phenomenal! I did feel that the ocean came to me from millions of kilometers into my world of cubism. And the way he worked on the sea creatures is so extraordinary.

The reason why this work needs more viewers is that it isn't a normal day-to-day story of a normal being, yet the whole story follows the trials of normal people, it deals with the Truth of the world, how everything is related to everything, how the so-called 'Our world' is far for being to be called 'Our', it is 'Us' that belongs to this unnatural world, the very essence of the reason behind our existence.
Please try to dwell in the not-so-ordinary world of Igarashi and believe in what nature holds to its core the Truth of the world.

STORY - 9
This is an amazing and unique story. Not only does it explore a fresh and new philosophy, it extends into an interesting world. It flows amazingly and I found myself obsessing over what would come next. The conclusion was done extremely well in my opinion.

ART-10
The way this is drawn, it is art in every sense of the word. It's unique, captivating, interesting.
Some people may not like its style, just because its not how manga is normally drawn but personally I found it to be gorgeous.

CHARACTER - 8
The characters are interesting and develop alongside the story. I found myself ... looking at the MC and thinking about how much she had changed without me realising. The other characters Umi and Sora, are gorgeously done. I fell in love with them all.

ENJOYMENT - 10
I personally enjoyed this manga, I come from a town by the sea and study marine science so maybe I'm biased ahah. But I found myself shifting while I read this, I found myself not only enjoying the story but relating to so many things about it. I don't think ill ever stop thinking about this series.

OVERALL - 9