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Edens Zero

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Edens Zero
First volume of Edens Zero, released by Kodansha on September 14, 2018, in Japan
Genre
Manga
Written byHiro Mashima
Published byKodansha
English publisher
ImprintShōnen Magazine Comics
MagazineWeekly Shōnen Magazine
DemographicShōnen
Original runJune 27, 2018 – June 26, 2024
Volumes33 (List of volumes)
Anime television series
Directed by
Written byMitsutaka Hirota
Music byYoshihisa Hirano
StudioJ.C.Staff
Licensed by
Original networkNNS (Nippon TV)
Original run April 11, 2021 – October 1, 2023
Episodes50 (List of episodes)
Video game
Edens Zero Pocket Galaxy
DeveloperKonami
GenreAction role-playing game
PlatformiOS, Android
ReleasedFebruary 24, 2022
icon Anime and manga portal

Edens Zero (stylized in all caps) is a Japanese science fantasy manga series written and illustrated by Hiro Mashima. It was serialized in Kodansha's Weekly Shōnen Magazine from June 2018 to June 2024, with its chapters collected into thirty-three tankōbon volumes. Set in a fictional spacefaring universe, the story follows Shiki Granbell, a boy with gravity powers who embarks on a voyage aboard the titular starship in search of a cosmic entity named Mother.

The manga is published digitally in six other languages as they are released in Japan, with Kodansha USA licensing the series for English publication in North America on Crunchyroll Manga, Comixology, and Amazon Kindle. An anime television series adaptation produced by J.C.Staff aired from April to October 2021. A second season aired from April to October 2023. A video game adaptation by Konami was also released.

Plot

Main article: List of Edens Zero characters

Shiki Granbell, a human boy, lives among robots on the deserted theme park planet Granbell in the Sakura Cosmos. His adoptive grandfather, the benevolent "Demon King" robot Ziggy, teaches him to control gravity with a superhuman power called Ether Gear. Ten years after Ziggy's death, the park is visited by spacefaring content creators Rebecca Bluegarden and Happy, whom Shiki befriends when the dying robots force the three off Granbell before expending their vital Ether energy.

Seeking new friends and adventure, the three set out in search of Mother, the fabled goddess of the cosmos. Early on, they receive the interstellar warship Edens Zero from space pirate Elsie Crimson as Shiki's inheritance from Ziggy. Shiki prepares for the voyage by assembling a crew from Ziggy's android companions, the Four Shining Stars, as well as others he befriends: Weisz Steiner, a criminal from an alternate history created by a time-eating Chronophage; E.M. Pino, a memory-impaired EMP android built by Ziggy who wishes to become human; and Homura Kôgetsu, a young swordswoman and pupil of the deceased Shining Star Valkyrie Yuna. Meanwhile, Rebecca develops her own Ether Gear ability to reverse time and travel between parallel universes to save Shiki after he is killed by the crime lord Drakken Joe.

Before leaving the Sakura Cosmos, the Edens Zero crew encounters a revived, malevolent Ziggy, who aims to ensure Mother's death in the near future, which would trigger an extinction event for all human life. Captaining the Edens One, an upgraded version of the Edens Zero, Ziggy draws Shiki's crew into a war with the neighboring Aoi Cosmos's empire, where he detonates the empire's arsenal of 20,000 antimatter bombs to kill them. Shiki leads the crew to escape, although the Shining Star Witch Regret sacrifices herself to protect the ship.

Three years later, Shiki discovers Ziggy's identity as his own alternate self who tried stopping the bombs, an act resulting in his and Rebecca's Ether Gear creating a spacetime distortion that sent them 20,000 years into the future. Ziggy reveals that the Edens Zero was built for him to prevent Mother's multiversal deaths by using Etherion—the ship's hidden time travel function made from the future Rebecca's Ether—to reach Universe Zero, the convergence point of all universes. Pino realizes Ziggy is being controlled when he discreetly repairs her memory, allowing her to access an empowered Overdrive state and free him with her EMP. At Ziggy's urging, Shiki destroys him to thwart his controller, the artificially intelligent Edens One.

With Mother's death imminent, the crew activates Etherion to travel to Universe Zero, which imparts the crew's memories and abilities onto their past selves in this world. Reuniting, the crew finds Universe Zero to be an idyllic world where many deceased figures such as Witch, Valkyrie, and Ziggy are alive and various misfortunes such as the Granbell robots' Ether shortage have never occurred. The Edens Zero traces Mother to an uncharted region of space, where Ziggy joins them in destroying the Edens One and its new android avatar, Void, whose consciousness Ziggy recognizes as that of his and Rebecca's unborn future son.

When Shiki reaches Mother, she reveals herself as the Overdrive form of a dying planet Earth, Shiki's homeworld, where Ziggy first found him while Mother was temporarily reverted to her planetary state by the Chronophage fifteen years earlier. Learning that allowing Mother to die in Universe Zero would continue the survival of those who died in the previous world, Shiki does so with the intent to lure the Chronophage into restoring Earth. He succeeds after subduing the Chronophage's true form, the amnesiac future Rebecca. The crew then uses their technology to revitalize Earth, while Pino deactivates from a fatal malfunction. Some time later, Shiki and Rebecca settle on Granbell and have a daughter. As the crew's reward from Mother for saving her, Pino is reactivated—declining the chance to be reborn as this human daughter—and reunites with her friends.

Production

Following the conclusion of his series Fairy Tail on July 26, 2017, Hiro Mashima posted a Tweet on December 31, 2017, promising to start a new series sometime in 2018.[3] After his visit to the Angoulême International Comics Festival in France, Mashima revealed that the new series would be "a new form of fantasy", and that the character Plue from his earlier series Rave Master would appear in the manga.[4] On May 14, 2018, Mashima commented on Twitter that he was becoming "a little confused" due to working simultaneously on this series, a Fairy Tail continuation, and another "secret" project. He also stated that he was coming up with new ideas for the series "one after another".[5] On May 30, 2018, Weekly Shōnen Magazine revealed that the series was tentatively titled Eden's Zero.[6] Although the title is the name of the main characters' spaceship, Mashima revealed that he thought of a deeper meaning for it, but that its usage would depend on future developments of the story.[7]

When developing the idea for his next series, Mashima originally anticipated using another sword and sorcery setting similar to his previous manga, but decided on creating a "space fantasy" adventure due to a lack of such contemporary shōnen manga; he coined the term "space fantasy" from his own misinterpretation of "SF", the abbreviation of science fiction in Japan, as a child.[8] He also cited the genre's unpopularity in shōnen manga as an influence, viewing it as a challenge he wanted to overcome.[9] Mashima has described his approach to writing Edens Zero as being in between those of Rave Master and Fairy Tail, combining predetermined story elements with ideas that he draws "just from momentum" while writing on a weekly basis to give the manga a "real time" feeling.[7] He also expressed an intention to end Edens Zero when its number of collected volumes is in between those of the two previous series.[9] In 2021, Mashima stated that Edens Zero would continue the themes of friendship, family, and battles from Fairy Tail, but that it may change slightly by the end when the mystery of the character Mother is revealed.[10]

Media

Manga

Main article: List of Edens Zero chapters

Edens Zero is written and illustrated by Hiro Mashima. The series began in Kodansha's shōnen manga magazine Weekly Shōnen Magazine on June 27, 2018,[11][12] and ended on June 26, 2024.[13] Kodansha has collected its chapters into thirty-three individual tankōbon volumes released from September 14, 2018 through August 16, 2024.[14][15]

The series was published simultaneously in seven languages: English, French, Chinese, Korean, Thai, German and Brazilian Portuguese.[6][16] North American publisher Kodansha USA has released chapters of the series on digital platforms such as Crunchyroll Manga and Amazon Kindle.[6] This was replaced with the K Manga app service that was released on May 10, 2023.[17]

Anime

See also: List of Edens Zero episodes

On June 12, 2020, Mashima announced on Twitter that the manga would be adapted into an anime television series.[18] At the Tokyo Game Show livestream on September 26, 2020, it was revealed that the anime would be produced by J.C.Staff and directed by Yūji Suzuki, with Shinji Ishihira serving as chief director, Mitsutaka Hirota overseeing scripts, Yurika Sako designing the characters, and Yoshihisa Hirano composing the music.[19] The series aired on Nippon Television and other channels from April 11 to October 3, 2021.[20][21][a] Netflix acquired streaming rights to the series, which was released globally on August 26, 2021.[22] The opening theme is "Eden Through the Rough" by Takanori Nishikawa, and the ending theme is "Bōken no Vlog"[Jp. 1] by CHiCO with HoneyWorks.[23] The second opening theme is "Forever" by L'Arc-en-Ciel, and the second ending theme is "Sekai no Himitsu"[Jp. 2] by Sayuri.[24]

Director Yūji Suzuki died on September 9, 2021, before the series' broadcast was completed.[25] Although he had worked in the industry as a key animator and episode director since the mid-2000s, Edens Zero was the first and only full series Suzuki directed.[26]

On February 9, 2022, it was announced that the series would receive a second season,[27] which aired from April 2 to October 1, 2023,[b] with Toshinori Watanabe replacing Suzuki as the director.[29][30] The opening theme is "Never say Never" by Takanori Nishikawa, and the ending theme is "Rinne"[Jp. 3] by Asca.[28][31] The second opening theme of season 2 is "Kaibutsu"[Jp. 4] performed by Tani Yuuki, and the second ending theme is "My Star" by Lozareena.[32][33] The second season was licensed internationally by Mediatoon Distribution and streamed by Crunchyroll in various regions.[34][35] A 72-minute recap original net animation of the first season aired in Japan on the same day as the second season premiere, and was streamed by Crunchyroll from April 29, 2023.[36]

Video games

On September 16, 2020, Konami announced that they are developing an Edens Zero video game.[37] It was later revealed at the Tokyo Game Show 2020 livestream that two separate action role-playing games were being developed, one being a 3D game for consoles, and the other being a top-down game for mobile devices.[38] In February 2022, the latter was revealed as Edens Zero Pocket Galaxy and was released on February 24 for iOS and Android.[39][40] however the game ended its service on February 29, 2024.[41]

On December 17, 2021, Mashima announced that he was developing an Edens Zero video game by himself using RPG Maker. Describing it as a "hobby project" that he worked on in his free time, he released the game, Rebecca to Kikai no Yōkan,[Jp. 5] for free on PC on March 16, 2022.[42][43][44]

Reception

Sales

In Japan, the first volume of Edens Zero reached 13th place on the weekly Oricon chart with 30,178 copies sold.[45] The second volume ranked 16th with 41,506 copies sold,[46] and the third volume at 18th place with 31,316 copies.[47]

Critical response

The first volume received a mixed response from critics on Anime News Network, where it was rated on a 1 to 5 scale. Amy McNulty gave the volume a 3.5 rating, calling it a "solid start" and praising the story's pacing, characters, and art, while adding that it "may not blow anyone away". McNulty also commented on Mashima's similar visual and design choices to Fairy Tail – which she noted could be taken negatively – but opined that the manga could benefit from readers' familiarity with Fairy Tail, and found it accessible to new readers of Mashima's work. Rebecca Silverman, who also rated it 3.5, considered the manga to be Mashima's darkest work, and praised him for using themes that "helped make his previous series Fairy Tail work so well", citing Shiki and Rebecca's complementary backgrounds as orphans as an example. However, she expressed slight concerns over the story potentially becoming confusing for readers with the volume's implications of time travel and flash-forward cliffhanger. Faye Hopper, who gave the volume a 3 rating, found that the shift from "high fantasy pastiche to Star Wars reminiscent sci-fi" helped enrich the story, but criticized Mashima's humor and adherence to shōnen manga conventions. Teresa Navarro gave it a 2 rating, finding the characters and art style to be nearly identical to those in Fairy Tail, but considering its potential to gain a cult following from fans of the shōnen genre.[2]

Notes

General
  1. ^ The series premiered on April 10, 2021, at 24:55 (effectively, April 11 at 12:55 a.m. JST).
  2. ^ The series premiered on April 1, 2023, at 24:55 (effectively, April 2 at 12:55 a.m. JST).[28]
Translations
  1. ^ 冒険のVLOG, lit. "A Vlog of the Journey"
  2. ^ 世界の秘密, lit. "Secret of the World"
  3. ^ リンネ, lit. "Reincarnation Cycle"
  4. ^ 械物, a Japanese portmanteau of kai (械, "machine") and kaibutsu (怪物, "monster")
  5. ^ レベッカと機械ノ洋館, Rebekka to Kikai no Yōkan, lit. "Rebecca and the Mansion of Machines"

References

  1. ^ "Edens Zero". Kodansha. Kodansha USA. Retrieved June 12, 2020. It's here! The creator of Fairy Tail, manga superstar Hiro Mashima, is back with a high-flying space adventure!
  2. ^ a b Bertschy, Zac (November 29, 2018). "Edens Zero - The Fall 2018 Manga Guide". Anime News Network. Retrieved April 2, 2020.
  3. ^ Sherman, Jennifer (December 31, 2017). "Fairy Tail Creator Hiro Mashima: 'I'll Work Hard to Launch a New Manga Next Year'". Anime News Network. Retrieved June 1, 2018.
  4. ^ Hodgkins, Crystalyn (January 28, 2018). "Hiro Mashima Teases More Details About Planned New Work". Anime News Network. Retrieved June 1, 2018.
  5. ^ Sherman, Jennifer (May 14, 2018). "Fairy Tail Manga's Hiro Mashima Teases 'Secret' Project". Anime News Network. Retrieved June 1, 2018.
  6. ^ a b c Hodgkins, Crystalyn (May 29, 2018). "Hiro Mashima's New Manga Gets Tentative Title, Simultaneous Release in 5 Languages". Anime News Network. Retrieved June 1, 2018.
  7. ^ a b Mashima, Hiro (June 4, 2019). "Afterword". Edens Zero, Volume 3. Kodansha. ISBN 978-1-63-236758-7.
  8. ^ Mashima, Hiro (November 6, 2018). "Afterword". Edens Zero, Volume 1. Kodansha. ISBN 978-1-63-236756-3.
  9. ^ a b 迷ったら読者を取れ――漫画家・真島ヒロを「仕事の鬼」に変えたクリエイティブの原点. Livedoor (in Japanese). February 28, 2020. Retrieved March 18, 2021.
  10. ^ 『EDENS ZERO』アニメ化記念 原作者・真島ヒロ先生インタビュー (in Japanese). Animate Times. January 14, 2021. Retrieved March 18, 2021.
  11. ^ Hodgkins, Crystalyn (April 5, 2018). "Hiro Mashima Launches New Manga on June 27, Also Plans Fairy Tail Sequel & Spinoff Manga". Anime News Network. Retrieved June 1, 2018.
  12. ^ 真島ヒロ最新作「EDENS ZERO」が週マガで始動、6カ国語で世界同時配信. Natalie (in Japanese). Natasha, Inc. June 27, 2018. Retrieved March 12, 2021.
  13. ^ Mateo, Alex (May 21, 2024). "Edens Zero Manga Ends in 5 Chapters". Anime News Network. Retrieved May 21, 2024.
  14. ^ EDENS ZERO (1). Kodansha (in Japanese). Retrieved September 8, 2018.
  15. ^ EDENS ZERO (33). Kodansha (in Japanese). Retrieved August 16, 2024.
  16. ^ "#NovidadeJBC: Edens Zero!!! - Henshin". Henshin (in Brazilian Portuguese). June 22, 2018. Retrieved July 26, 2018.
  17. ^ Hazra, Adriana (May 10, 2023). "Kodansha's New 'K Manga' App Reveals Tickets, Points System for Accessing Manga Chapters". Anime News Network. Retrieved May 21, 2024.
  18. ^ Hodgkins, Crystalyn (June 12, 2020). "Hiro Mashima's Edens Zero Manga Gets TV Anime". Anime News Network. Retrieved June 12, 2020.
  19. ^ Pineda, Rafael (January 12, 2021). "Edens Zero Anime's Teaser Video Reveals More Staff". Anime News Network. Retrieved January 13, 2021.
  20. ^ Hodgkins, Crystalyn (September 26, 2020). "J.C. Staff Produces Edens Zero TV Anime for April 2021 Debut". Anime News Network. Retrieved September 26, 2020.
  21. ^ Pineda, Rafael (January 12, 2021). "Edens Zero Anime Premieres on April 10". Anime News Network. Retrieved January 13, 2021.
  22. ^ Mateo, Alex (June 10, 2021). "Netflix Streams Edens Zero Anime Outside Japan on August 26". Anime News Network. Retrieved June 10, 2021.
  23. ^ Pineda, Rafael (March 11, 2021). "Edens Zero Anime's Video Reveals More Cast, T.M.Revolution Song, Netflix 2021 Streaming". Anime News Network. Retrieved March 11, 2021.
  24. ^ Mateo, Alex (June 29, 2021). "Edens Zero Anime Reveals New Cast Member, 2nd Ending Theme Song". Anime News Network. Retrieved June 29, 2021.
  25. ^ @EDENSZERO_PJ (October 2, 2021). 【大切なおしらせ】アニメ「EDENS ZERO」の鈴木勇士監督がお亡くなりになりました。謹んでご冥福をお祈り申し上げると共に、ご遺族の方には心よりお悔やみを申し上げます。 [[Important News] Director Yūji Suzuki of the anime "EDENS ZERO" has passed away. We sincerely pray for the souls and extend our deepest condolences to the bereaved family.] (Tweet). Retrieved October 2, 2021 – via Twitter.
  26. ^ Loo, Egan (October 2, 2021). "Edens Zero Anime Director Yūshi Suzuki Passes Away". Anime News Network. Retrieved October 2, 2021.
  27. ^ Hodgkins, Crystalyn (February 8, 2022). "Edens Zero Anime Gets 2nd Season". Anime News Network. Retrieved February 8, 2022.
  28. ^ a b 「EDENS ZERO」第2期追加キャストに八代拓・大久保瑠美ら、OPテーマは西川貴教. Natalie (in Japanese). Natasha, Inc. February 15, 2023. Retrieved February 15, 2023.
  29. ^ Pineda, Rafael Antonio (September 16, 2022). "Edens Zero Anime Season 2's Teaser Reveals April 2023 Premiere". Anime News Network. Retrieved September 16, 2022.
  30. ^ アニメ「EDENS ZERO」第2期のティザー映像到着、放送は来年4月から. Natalie (in Japanese). Natasha, Inc. September 16, 2022. Retrieved September 16, 2022.
  31. ^ Pineda, Rafael Antonio (March 13, 2023). "ASCA Performs Ending Song for Edens Zero Anime Season 2". Anime News Network. Retrieved March 13, 2023.
  32. ^ Mateo, Alex (June 2, 2023). "Tani Yuuki Performs New Opening Theme Song for Edens Zero Anime Season 2". Retrieved June 10, 2023.
  33. ^ Mateo, Alex (June 16, 2023). "Lozareena Performs New Ending Theme Song for Edens Zero Anime Season 2". Retrieved June 16, 2023.
  34. ^ Mateo, Alex (April 7, 2023). "Crunchyroll Streams Edens Zero Anime Season 2". Anime News Network. Retrieved April 7, 2023.
  35. ^ Hazra, Adriana (April 1, 2023). "France's Mediatoon Acquires Edens Zero Anime Season 2's Global Rights". Anime News Network. Retrieved April 1, 2023.
  36. ^ Mateo, Alex (April 28, 2023). "Crunchyroll Adds Edens Zero Anime's 1st Season Recap Movie". Anime News Network. Retrieved April 28, 2023.
  37. ^ Romano, Sal (September 16, 2020). "Konami announces Edens Zero game". Gematsu. Retrieved September 16, 2020.
  38. ^ Hodgkins, Crystalyn (September 26, 2020). "Edens Zero Game Project Includes Both 3D Action RPG for Consoles, Mobile RPG". Anime News Network. Retrieved September 26, 2020.
  39. ^ Mateo, Alex (February 10, 2022). "Edens Zero: Pocket Galaxy Smartphone Game's Trailer Reveals February 24 Launch". Anime News Network. Retrieved February 10, 2022.
  40. ^ "Edens Zero Pocket Galaxy First Impressions – Gearing up for an Adventure". February 24, 2022.
  41. ^ "EDENS ZERO Pocket Galaxy".
  42. ^ "Second Season of Edens Zero Anime Announced". February 9, 2022.
  43. ^ "Edens Zero Manga Creator Hiro Mashima Reveals Rebecca & Happy RPG". DualShockers. December 21, 2021. Retrieved January 7, 2022.
  44. ^ "Free Edens Zero Game Created by Hiro Mashima Himself Released". twinfinite.net. March 16, 2022. Retrieved April 16, 2022.
  45. ^ Ressler, Karen (September 19, 2018). "Japanese Comic Ranking, September 10–16". Anime News Network. Retrieved July 2, 2020.
  46. ^ Ressler, Karen (November 21, 2018). "Japanese Comic Ranking, November 12–18". Anime News Network. Retrieved July 2, 2020.
  47. ^ Loo, Egan (February 27, 2019). "Japanese Comic Ranking, February 11-17". Anime News Network. Retrieved January 21, 2024.
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