Manga 'Houseki no Kuni' Concludes Serialization

by Vindstot
Mar 25, 9:36 PM | 30 Comments

Haruko Ichikawa's Houseki no Kuni (Land of the Lustrous) manga will end in the June issue of Afternoon on April 25, according to the May issue released on Monday. The 108th and final chapter will conclude the manga's nearly 12-year-run.

Ichikawa began the action fantasy manga in Afternoon in October 2012. Despite two hiatuses, from December 2020 to June 2022 and from October 2023 until resuming on February 24, the manga has retained a dedicated following. Kodansha published the 12th volume in November 2022 (pictured above).

The series inspired a 12-episode television anime by 3DCG animation studio Orange, airing in Fall 2017. Sentai Filmworks licensed the anime series and streamed it on Amazon's now-defunct streaming platform Anime Strike. HIDIVE later added the title to their catalog for North American streaming. The company also released the anime on home video with both English subtitles and dub in May 2019.

Kodansha USA licensed the manga in English in October 2016 and shipped the 12th volume on August 22 last year. The manga has also been published in multiple foreign languages, including Spanish, German, French, Italian, Polish, Portuguese, and Chinese.

Houseki no Kuni placed tenth in the male readers' division in the 2014 Kono Manga ga Sugoi! rankings, and was nominated for the 8th Manga Taisho Awards.

Synopsis
Long ago, Earth was struck by six meteorites, creating six moons and leaving a lone island in their wake. Those who could not make it to the island sank to the bottom of the ocean, where, over time, they slowly turned to crystal. As countless millennia passed, 28 of these crystallized lifeforms, known as the Lustrous, rose from the depths and resided on the island. Led by the wise Kongou-sensei, they must defend themselves against the seemingly infinite number of Lunarians, inhabitants of the moons who seek to harvest their valuable bodies for crafting weapons and jewelry.

Houseki no Kuni centers around Phosphophyllite, a young gem about to turn three hundred years old. Clumsy, extremely fragile, and having no visible talent, they are one of the weakest gems around, unable to help in the fight against the Lunarians in any meaningful way. But as the battle with the otherworldly invaders rages on, they soon learn that power comes at a cost that no one should have to pay. [Written by MAL Rewrite]

Manga official site: https://afternoon.kodansha.co.jp/c/housekinokuni.html
Magazine official X (Twitter): @afternoon_manga

Source: Comic Natalie

Series End

20 of 30 Comments Recent Comments

I had always been planning to read it eventually but I had remained hopeful the anime would eventually continue, perhaps after the Beastars adaption finished. I suppose this is as good a time as any to just get into the manga then.

Mar 27, 7:18 AM by GL_

Welp, I should finally start reading this.

Mar 26, 7:00 PM by malvarez1

If they were actually being risky, they'd just make original anime, adaptations only exist to promote the source material and thus are easy money sources. Even very artistic anime like Ghost in the Shell was born off this kind of greedy mentality, so it's not like it can't be good, just that it's 100% for money.

Mar 26, 6:28 PM by Ionliosite2

@Ionliosite2 ah yes adapting several works that are damn near the dirt in popularity is greed for sure....... taking a risk is definitely greed for the industry for sure......... being edgy or cynicla is not cool just for you to know

Mar 26, 6:20 PM by 3inPunisher

@3inPunisher oh 100% haha. Even super niche shows from the early 2000s like Boogiepop and Kino’s Journey got new anime adaptations a while back. And Trigun Stampede coming out last year too? These studios chose to revive these old anime when there really wasn’t any high demand for them at all. Like, Trigun was popular for its time but I didn’t really see people today say “I NEED more Trigun NOW.” And then they just kinda decided to make a new Trigun anime anyway haha. It’s reasons like these where I’m not scared of an anime not coming back anymore. It just takes some time haha.

Mar 26, 6:15 PM by Phlaryx

Honestly for real.....

nooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!

Mar 26, 6:10 PM by Enivlens

There was a Ichikawa Haruko's interview on a Japanese website called cakes, but it closed in 2022.
https://web.archive.org/web/20220829061410/https://cakes.mu/posts/5370
Even in a place called "paradise," where "everything" is saved, I vaguely thought that jewelry is only for decoration.

Mar 26, 6:08 PM by GinIonSui

@3inPunisher Yes, the amount of manga and novels getting adapted are very telling of how greedy the industry is, thanks for showing me that the number of series made purely out of greed is at an all time high.

Mar 26, 6:07 PM by Ionliosite2

@Phlaryx rumors that tokyo ghoul may get a reboot, one piece getting a reboot, 24 episode shows popping in, passion projects etc, A1 pictures being respectable studio nowadays, a whole ass studio dedicating their time too one project (moshoku tensei), more season 2 news, Tell any of this news to an anime fan 2015-2017, they will call you delusional.

Mar 26, 5:57 PM by 3inPunisher

@Ionliosite2 while yes greed is a thing, no expection for the anime industry, at the end of the day, the amount of Mangas or Light novels that have been adapted that no one has heard of in the past like I believe 2-3 yrs is telling, undead unlucky, bocchi the rock, Heavenly delusion, undead murder farce, onimai, etc. Being cynical to everything is not always the option lol

Mar 26, 5:50 PM by 3inPunisher

@3inPunisher yeah I agree! So many anime get sequels these days and even come back for reboots. Like devil is a part timer came back. Classroom of the elite came back. Freaking spice and wolf came back. If those came back why can’t land of the lustrous come back too? Some of the other people in this thread don’t get what I’m trying to say here haha. What I’ve been trying to say this whole time is that anything feels possible now.

Mar 26, 5:42 PM by Phlaryx

@Ionliosite2 lol this conversion is going no where it’s like I’m talking to a bunch of brick walls. You people act like money is the only reason for an anime to get greenlit again when I’ve already stated a million times that I think it’s not JUST money. Whatever. I’m done here. Have a good day.

Mar 26, 5:39 PM by Phlaryx

@3inPunisher Bro there was more experimental anime in 1985 alone than in the last 5 years, things are going harder and harder towards greed in every industry with every passing year, anime is no exception.

Mar 26, 5:25 PM by Ionliosite2

@Phlaryx Yeah, and what you described is word for word how the anime industry is, your description is exactly what's already happening, so thanks for proving my point?

Mar 26, 5:22 PM by Ionliosite2

@Phlaryx Indeed, back in the day you could say that the industry was all about money and/or revenue, but nowadays it both are even swinging to the passion side of things, there some animes today that would not get a season 2 back then like( undead unluck and that toture princes season that just aired) and etc.

Mar 26, 5:21 PM by 3inPunisher

@Ionliosite2 yeah money is an important factor but what I’m saying is that money isn’t the ONLY factor. Like I already said some anime can just be passion projects too not just cash grabs. Like, why would most studios take risks in making original anime if it could end up being a flop? Why make experimental anime with weird animation techniques? Why not just only adapt popular manga?

Mar 26, 5:07 PM by Phlaryx

Phlaryx said:
Not everything has to be about sales numbers

Everything is about money in the industry.

Mar 26, 2:48 PM by Ionliosite2

Sayonara Phos. One last chapter to go.

Mar 26, 2:03 PM by MegamiRem

That's for the best, tbh. I mean the gaps between the chapters made it almost impossible to keep track of everything, or more like anything.

Mar 26, 1:03 PM by Softhenic03

@meyve Thank u,guess i need to start reading the manga now :3.

Mar 26, 8:20 AM by B2004x

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