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Wandering Island #1
Wandering Island, Vol. 1
First new work by Kenji Tsuruta (Spirit of Wonder) in 20 years!
Mikura Amelia is a free-spirited young woman who lives alone with her cat and operates an air delivery service, flying her vintage seaplane to Japan’s small island communities located hundreds of miles out in the Pacific. When her beloved grandfather passes away, she discovers he left her an undelivered parcel, addressed to an island that doesn’t exist . . . or does it? To answer the question, Mikura flies off in search of the truth behind the Wandering Island!
* Retro flying adventure in the spirit of Hayao Miyazaki.
Mikura Amelia is a free-spirited young woman who lives alone with her cat and operates an air delivery service, flying her vintage seaplane to Japan’s small island communities located hundreds of miles out in the Pacific. When her beloved grandfather passes away, she discovers he left her an undelivered parcel, addressed to an island that doesn’t exist . . . or does it? To answer the question, Mikura flies off in search of the truth behind the Wandering Island!
* Retro flying adventure in the spirit of Hayao Miyazaki.
200 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 21, 2011
8 people are currently reading
595 people want to read
About the author
Kenji Tsuruta
50 books64 followersKenji Tsuruta (in Japanese, 鶴田謙二) is a Japanese manga artist. Among his most famous works is the science fiction series Spirit of Wonder, which has been adapted into an anime series and brought him much acclaim.
During his years in university as a student of optical science, Tsuruta, initially wanting to be a photographer, encountered works of Yukinobu Hoshino, which had inspired him to create manga. Soon after graduating, he wrote numerous dōjinshi and was an assistant to many manga artists, prior to making his debut as a professional manga artist in 1986.
Tsuruta received the 31st, 32nd, and 44th Seiun Awards for outstanding artist of the year in 2000, 2001, and in 2013. He also received the Hayakawa Award for best illustrator in 2000.
During his years in university as a student of optical science, Tsuruta, initially wanting to be a photographer, encountered works of Yukinobu Hoshino, which had inspired him to create manga. Soon after graduating, he wrote numerous dōjinshi and was an assistant to many manga artists, prior to making his debut as a professional manga artist in 1986.
Tsuruta received the 31st, 32nd, and 44th Seiun Awards for outstanding artist of the year in 2000, 2001, and in 2013. He also received the Hayakawa Award for best illustrator in 2000.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 93 reviews
January 24, 2019
This was delightful read despite not much happening. Volume 1 of Wandering island is well written and illustrated, slow burning beginning of an adventure with a strong Ghibli studio vibe. I can't wait to see how this series shapes out.
January 30, 2019
If you're thinking this sounds like a more grown-up version of Miyazaki's Laputa abandon that hope right now. I recommend this far more for someone interested in planes and navigational charts.
This is quite slow-paced; as of the end of volume 1 very little progress has been made regarding the mysterious island and her grandfather's connection to it.
This is quite slow-paced; as of the end of volume 1 very little progress has been made regarding the mysterious island and her grandfather's connection to it.
May 21, 2017
This definitely has my attention. Though its light on action and dialogue and even more of a slow burn in terms of character development Kenji Tsuruta has something special here.
We're introduced to Mikura, a young pilot, who's been left alone to run a cargo transport business following the death/disappearance of her grandfather. She has little to no relationship with her parents but she's determined to carry on his legacy. Following a bizarre run in with an island that shouldn't exist (that almost destroys her plane) she discovers she's also inherited a mysterious quest for this "wandering island" that haunted her grandfather and may be responsible for more than one strange disappearance, including his.
Mikura becomes obsessed with determining the location of the island. It appears seemingly randomly every three years and figuring out where it is before it moves on quickly takes priority over keeping her company afloat and even keeping the lights on in her house.
Mikura wavers between a firm belief that she can complete her grandfather's quest (and perhaps find out what happened to him) and despair that she's on a fools errand but she pulls it together for one last attempt and the final image of this first issue is her clunker of a sea plane gradually growing smaller as she flies straight for the horizon.
I really, really enjoyed this. It totally worked for me that nothing much happens in terms of story here. Tsuruta completely held my interest because Mikura is a really fascinating heroine. She's industrious and not afraid to get down and dirty to find the answers she wants. She has a self possession that you don't often see in female characters in manga. This may be just because I'm limiting myself to a particular kind of manga but her dogged determination and forthrightness is honestly something I'd sooner expect from a male character. What's terrific here is that she remains very feminine. There's a romantic tint to her spirit and she may prefer cargo shorts and t-shirts but she doesn't shy away from showing herself off a bit in a skimpy bikini, again without any kind of ego or really even an awareness of how lovely she is.
She's a refreshing character, complex and running her own life. I really liked that.
Tsuruta's art work is another strong selling point. I'm not sure how something can be both spartan looking and highly detailed at the same time but he manages it. Mikura tends to have a very simple, static look. She wears her hair in a long, sloppy braid and favors the color black. She's very long limbed and spends a lot of time lying down or leaning against things languidly rather like her cat, Endeavor, who follows her everywhere and is also mostly black. It makes the moments when she springs into action when she finds a new lead stand out even more. Her expressions also tend to stay very neutral, something that is brought out more by the supporting and background characters who tend to have a lot more hair flying around, craggy faces and much more exaggerated facial expressions. Mikura's immediate world, her office/house, her plane, are all filled to the brim with things. Knicknacks and mementos of her life with her grandfather, endless stacks of disorganized paperwork, maps and machine parts litter the panels. This also does a great deal to ramp up the sense of anxiety and increasing desperation as Mikura hits dead end after dead end. The only time we really get a sense of space in this world is when Mikura is flying her plane and the feeling that this is the one place where she truly feels home and at peace is very strong. There's so much energy infusing these drawings. It really is a perfect marriage between story and illustration.
I absolutely recommend this to anyone who's a fan of dramatic, character driven manga and if you've never tried it before this is definitely a great gateway for first timers. Still waters run very deep here. There's so much to see and even more to just feel your way through.
Greatly looking forward to volume 2.
We're introduced to Mikura, a young pilot, who's been left alone to run a cargo transport business following the death/disappearance of her grandfather. She has little to no relationship with her parents but she's determined to carry on his legacy. Following a bizarre run in with an island that shouldn't exist (that almost destroys her plane) she discovers she's also inherited a mysterious quest for this "wandering island" that haunted her grandfather and may be responsible for more than one strange disappearance, including his.
Mikura becomes obsessed with determining the location of the island. It appears seemingly randomly every three years and figuring out where it is before it moves on quickly takes priority over keeping her company afloat and even keeping the lights on in her house.
Mikura wavers between a firm belief that she can complete her grandfather's quest (and perhaps find out what happened to him) and despair that she's on a fools errand but she pulls it together for one last attempt and the final image of this first issue is her clunker of a sea plane gradually growing smaller as she flies straight for the horizon.
I really, really enjoyed this. It totally worked for me that nothing much happens in terms of story here. Tsuruta completely held my interest because Mikura is a really fascinating heroine. She's industrious and not afraid to get down and dirty to find the answers she wants. She has a self possession that you don't often see in female characters in manga. This may be just because I'm limiting myself to a particular kind of manga but her dogged determination and forthrightness is honestly something I'd sooner expect from a male character. What's terrific here is that she remains very feminine. There's a romantic tint to her spirit and she may prefer cargo shorts and t-shirts but she doesn't shy away from showing herself off a bit in a skimpy bikini, again without any kind of ego or really even an awareness of how lovely she is.
She's a refreshing character, complex and running her own life. I really liked that.
Tsuruta's art work is another strong selling point. I'm not sure how something can be both spartan looking and highly detailed at the same time but he manages it. Mikura tends to have a very simple, static look. She wears her hair in a long, sloppy braid and favors the color black. She's very long limbed and spends a lot of time lying down or leaning against things languidly rather like her cat, Endeavor, who follows her everywhere and is also mostly black. It makes the moments when she springs into action when she finds a new lead stand out even more. Her expressions also tend to stay very neutral, something that is brought out more by the supporting and background characters who tend to have a lot more hair flying around, craggy faces and much more exaggerated facial expressions. Mikura's immediate world, her office/house, her plane, are all filled to the brim with things. Knicknacks and mementos of her life with her grandfather, endless stacks of disorganized paperwork, maps and machine parts litter the panels. This also does a great deal to ramp up the sense of anxiety and increasing desperation as Mikura hits dead end after dead end. The only time we really get a sense of space in this world is when Mikura is flying her plane and the feeling that this is the one place where she truly feels home and at peace is very strong. There's so much energy infusing these drawings. It really is a perfect marriage between story and illustration.
I absolutely recommend this to anyone who's a fan of dramatic, character driven manga and if you've never tried it before this is definitely a great gateway for first timers. Still waters run very deep here. There's so much to see and even more to just feel your way through.
Greatly looking forward to volume 2.
Read
October 12, 2024How nice it can be living by the sea and flying above its blueness. 🌊
August 21, 2016
What stands out in this story is its unique premise: the search for an unanchored island in the Pacific that may or may not exist. Tsuruta does a find job in this first collected volume of establishing this context and teasing out the narrative just enough to get you wanting more. The protagonist, Mikura, is innocent yet believable enough to serve as the reader's proxy into this mystery. This is one of those manga series that has me eagerly anticipating the next volume, and definitely not lackadaisically so.
April 24, 2018
This manga was beautiful. Put aside the fact that the protagonist spent most of the book in bikini, every page of this small book was a work of art. Tsuruta makes every frame of this book a complex and realistic work of art so that the reader feels themselves in the world, rather than having to create it for themselves. The story is beautiful, but for my reading it often felt secondary to the world that Mikura Amelia was inhabiting. Every space she interacted with was filled with detail, whether it was the near constant paperwork that surrounded her, maps & charts, the waves of the ocean, or even the detail of her boat, this book was just real in it's presence and power and the reader is sure to feel that they have witnessed the real world.
This was an incredible adventure story and I can't wait to read more.
This was an incredible adventure story and I can't wait to read more.
October 2, 2016
Loved the art and the details hidden in it. The premise is great and gets you hooked right from the beginning. I really enjoyed the setting too, it's a nice changed from usual mainland Japan that lends the story more authenticity and invokes a sense of nostalgia.
August 16, 2016
Beautiful art and packaging. Intrigue abounds. Cliffhanger ending. Hopefully more to follow.
January 4, 2017
I really dug this. This was really beautiful and meditative.
Young Mikura helps her grandfather run an air delivery service among some islands off the Japanese coast. When grandpa passes away, Mikura stumbles upon some diaries he had been writing and finds out that he was searching for "Electricity Island", a tiny island that appears to never stay in the same place. When Mikura has a near-death encounter with the island shortly after, she becomes obsessed with finding it again and finishing her grandfather's work.
It sounds like this would be a real swashbuckling adventure, but what we get instead is a beautiful and languorous story that's more interested in setting the tone and setting than delivering a high stakes hunt. There are a lot of wordless pages with beautifully detailed artwork that really establish the island and coastal settings. Readers mostly follow Mikura's hunt for information to help her find the island which makes for very leisurely pacing - between that and the meticulous artwork, the work feels very otherworldly, despite being set in the real world (all the islands featured in the story are real places too!)
I'm very pleased with how Dark Horse packaged this as well. The paperback has nice French flaps and the cover art wraps around the entire cover. There's also several pages of full-colour artwork which was amaziinnggg. I really appreciated the afterword which included a lot of notes about the setting and the planes featured in the story - it provided some nice context that enrichens the story.
Sadly, I failed to notice that this has a "1" slapped on the bottom-right corner so I got to that cliff-hanger ending and almost lost my mind. *siiiiiigh* I also can't seem to find mention of a volume 2 anywhere. Woe. I really hope there's more!
Young Mikura helps her grandfather run an air delivery service among some islands off the Japanese coast. When grandpa passes away, Mikura stumbles upon some diaries he had been writing and finds out that he was searching for "Electricity Island", a tiny island that appears to never stay in the same place. When Mikura has a near-death encounter with the island shortly after, she becomes obsessed with finding it again and finishing her grandfather's work.
It sounds like this would be a real swashbuckling adventure, but what we get instead is a beautiful and languorous story that's more interested in setting the tone and setting than delivering a high stakes hunt. There are a lot of wordless pages with beautifully detailed artwork that really establish the island and coastal settings. Readers mostly follow Mikura's hunt for information to help her find the island which makes for very leisurely pacing - between that and the meticulous artwork, the work feels very otherworldly, despite being set in the real world (all the islands featured in the story are real places too!)
I'm very pleased with how Dark Horse packaged this as well. The paperback has nice French flaps and the cover art wraps around the entire cover. There's also several pages of full-colour artwork which was amaziinnggg. I really appreciated the afterword which included a lot of notes about the setting and the planes featured in the story - it provided some nice context that enrichens the story.
Sadly, I failed to notice that this has a "1" slapped on the bottom-right corner so I got to that cliff-hanger ending and almost lost my mind. *siiiiiigh* I also can't seem to find mention of a volume 2 anywhere. Woe. I really hope there's more!
March 8, 2020
Chasse au trésor fascinante menée par une attachante aventurière, animée d'une soif de découverte très communicative.
December 10, 2018
Wow, I loved this. The art is just GORGEOUS, and the story-line is so meditative and mellow.
Mikura is a young woman who lives alone with her cat on a sparsely populated island off the coast of mainland Japan. After her grandfather's death, she is single-handedly running the family delivery business, flying packages from island to island on her small plane. She soon becomes obsessed with finding the elusive Electric Island, which her grandfather was also searching for before his death.
It's kind of like Kiki's Delivery Service but with an airplane instead of a broom.
I loved the sea-side setting and the fact that our heroine is a girl pilot. Docking one star because she's always in her bikini (even while flying her plane?!) and there are a LOT of scenes where her body is depicted from a man's point of view. I know that's a recurring theme in manga, but still.
I used to read manga all the time, and this book made me remember why I loved manga as a middle- and high-school student. Wandering Island is just perfect. I found it unexpectedly at the library, where it was on display near the YA books (I'm assuming it was being displayed because the next volume comes out in January 2019... what a turnaround time), and I am so glad I checked it out. I'll definitely keep an eye out for the next book in January!
Mikura is a young woman who lives alone with her cat on a sparsely populated island off the coast of mainland Japan. After her grandfather's death, she is single-handedly running the family delivery business, flying packages from island to island on her small plane. She soon becomes obsessed with finding the elusive Electric Island, which her grandfather was also searching for before his death.
It's kind of like Kiki's Delivery Service but with an airplane instead of a broom.
I loved the sea-side setting and the fact that our heroine is a girl pilot. Docking one star because she's always in her bikini (even while flying her plane?!) and there are a LOT of scenes where her body is depicted from a man's point of view. I know that's a recurring theme in manga, but still.
I used to read manga all the time, and this book made me remember why I loved manga as a middle- and high-school student. Wandering Island is just perfect. I found it unexpectedly at the library, where it was on display near the YA books (I'm assuming it was being displayed because the next volume comes out in January 2019... what a turnaround time), and I am so glad I checked it out. I'll definitely keep an eye out for the next book in January!
August 3, 2017
Did it help that I read this on holiday in a barely-inhabited Greek island? Oh yes. Would I have enjoyed it anyway? Certainly. Kenji Tsuruta's delicate, detailed artwork is perfect at capturing the island life of Southern Japan and the romance of aviation. As the volume's backmatter confirms, everything is thought-through and drawn-to-life. Even limber heroine Mikura's reluctance to wear more than a swimsuit doesn't feel entirely gratuitous.
The central mystery - a floating island circling the Pacific - is intriguing but Tsuruta's real gift is capturing nuance on the face. Generally in stories with obsessed dream-chasing protagonists, it's clear from the start that they have it right and their concerned doubters will be proven wrong. So it is in Wandering Island, but the degrees of exhaustion and obsession that Tsuruta captures on Mikura's face mean for once you can feel their worry viscerally. It makes for a manga that's deeply involving as well as gorgeous to look at.
The central mystery - a floating island circling the Pacific - is intriguing but Tsuruta's real gift is capturing nuance on the face. Generally in stories with obsessed dream-chasing protagonists, it's clear from the start that they have it right and their concerned doubters will be proven wrong. So it is in Wandering Island, but the degrees of exhaustion and obsession that Tsuruta captures on Mikura's face mean for once you can feel their worry viscerally. It makes for a manga that's deeply involving as well as gorgeous to look at.
September 10, 2018
The story/storytelling is interesting but good lord the male gaze in some of the panels is ridiculous. I think in Anime/Manga we fined some kind of contrived, torturous explanations for why the main character *had* to be mapping out this island right after showering and before putting on literally any clothes... but there's no plot reason for it. And I'm just imagining this 57 year old man drawing this young female character who just happens to be lounging around naked and it creeps me out.
February 6, 2017
كانت بادية واعدة عن فتاة تبحث عن جزيرة مذكورة في مذاكرت جدها
تعيش الفتاة وحدها مع قطتها وتعمل علي توصيل الطرود بالطائرة البر مائية بس كدا خلاص!! القصة خلصت فضلنا كتير واخدنا وقت كتير ف الجزء اللي ف النص من غير تطور غير مرة ولا حاجة بس مفيش اي تطور للقصة ولا للاحداث ولا للشخصيات ولا اي حاجة
مش بشعه بس يعني انا اقرأ 200 صفحة ليه ومفيش شئ بيحصل او حتي يعني قادر احسه او اتفاعل معاه؟
تعيش الفتاة وحدها مع قطتها وتعمل علي توصيل الطرود بالطائرة البر مائية بس كدا خلاص!! القصة خلصت فضلنا كتير واخدنا وقت كتير ف الجزء اللي ف النص من غير تطور غير مرة ولا حاجة بس مفيش اي تطور للقصة ولا للاحداث ولا للشخصيات ولا اي حاجة
مش بشعه بس يعني انا اقرأ 200 صفحة ليه ومفيش شئ بيحصل او حتي يعني قادر احسه او اتفاعل معاه؟
April 15, 2019
Preso per lo sconto del 25%.
Me l'aveva consigliato il fumettaio di PN. Ho aspettato e poi l'ho comprato.
La storia è lentissima ed è anche probabile che mi sia persa un po' con la linea temporale. Specialmente tra la morte del nonno della protagonista (No, non è uno spoiler: succede a pagina 5!) e quando lei si mette alla ricerca di questa misteriosa isola.
C'è questa giovane donna che continua il lavoro del nonno, ovvero consegna pacchi tra le isole minori del Giappone con il suo aereo. Poi, tra le carte del nonno, scopre tutte le info che l'uomo aveva raccolto su una misteriosa isola che non sta mai ferma. Si decide così di mettersi alla sua ricerca. Cerca di seguire le orme del nonno che la portano da altri personaggi ma alla fine è sempre lei, con il gatto, che sembra quasi ossessionata dall'isola.
La cosa che mi ha stupito, all'inizio, sono stati i disegni. Così poco manga! O, forse, son talmente abituata a leggere shojo che un tratto diverso mi manda in confusione. Però belli e molto dettagliati. Lei è magrissima è slanciata, quasi sempre in costume da bagno. Aerei e cartine sono perfetti e verosimili.
Adesso non mi resta che aspettare il secondo volume e sperare che sia all'altezza di questo!
Me l'aveva consigliato il fumettaio di PN. Ho aspettato e poi l'ho comprato.
La storia è lentissima ed è anche probabile che mi sia persa un po' con la linea temporale. Specialmente tra la morte del nonno della protagonista (No, non è uno spoiler: succede a pagina 5!) e quando lei si mette alla ricerca di questa misteriosa isola.
C'è questa giovane donna che continua il lavoro del nonno, ovvero consegna pacchi tra le isole minori del Giappone con il suo aereo. Poi, tra le carte del nonno, scopre tutte le info che l'uomo aveva raccolto su una misteriosa isola che non sta mai ferma. Si decide così di mettersi alla sua ricerca. Cerca di seguire le orme del nonno che la portano da altri personaggi ma alla fine è sempre lei, con il gatto, che sembra quasi ossessionata dall'isola.
La cosa che mi ha stupito, all'inizio, sono stati i disegni. Così poco manga! O, forse, son talmente abituata a leggere shojo che un tratto diverso mi manda in confusione. Però belli e molto dettagliati. Lei è magrissima è slanciata, quasi sempre in costume da bagno. Aerei e cartine sono perfetti e verosimili.
Adesso non mi resta che aspettare il secondo volume e sperare che sia all'altezza di questo!
June 5, 2018
Really like between 3 and 4 but far closer to 4. This is the first manga I have ever read or purchased. Normally when I try to read a manga or just pick up and go through it. It stresses me out, immensely. It is not the right to left reading but the visual layout. Usually, mangas are laid out where my brain just cannot process what it is seeing. Wandering Island was not like that at all. I love the premise and I cannot wait to see what happens next. The layout and illustration is simple but detailed. I'm really excited about Volume 2 and that I found a manga that I could engage with. Definitely going to check out the authors other works as well as the publishers list.
March 4, 2019
Une version réaliste, ou tout de même aussi proche de la réalité que cela peut l'être, de l'île errante de Hayao Miyazaki et aussi, par le soulevement des questions plus "adultes" de l'écoresponsabilité et des relations dans les familles adoptives - donc par la critique sociale près-ce qu'invisible - proche du celle, originelle, écrite par Jonathan Swift. Une aventure estivale touchante et intelligente, commençe dans ce premier volume.
March 6, 2018
The thing that really stood out about this story to me was the very interesting art style.
It reminded me a lot of a Miyazaki movie in that the visuals are stunning, the environments and main character interesting, but the story is more gentle and less fast paced.
An interesting first volume, I will be keeping an eye out for volume 2.
It reminded me a lot of a Miyazaki movie in that the visuals are stunning, the environments and main character interesting, but the story is more gentle and less fast paced.
An interesting first volume, I will be keeping an eye out for volume 2.
June 18, 2019
An interesting little series about a headstrong young woman tracking down a mysterious floating island despite the seeming impossibility of her task.
I mostly enjoyed the art, especially the backgrounds, and the story was interesting, but I found the sameface/samebody of all of the young women offputting (especially in contrast the detailed, differentiated men!), and the constant state of undress of the protagonist was unnecessary. There was a brief shot of her chest with a strap between her breasts and the outline of her nipples visible through her shirt - what purpose does that serve for the story? That panel could have been framed in many other ways, yet he chose that one. Ugh.
I will still read the second volume if I can get my hands on it - I want to know more about the floating island.
ETA: Oh, so this author also did La Pomme Prisonnière, which.... opens with a series of uncomfortable, sexualized images of nude women, some of which are obviously high school students. The main character in that looks EXACTLY like the girl in Wandering Island. Sigh!
I mostly enjoyed the art, especially the backgrounds, and the story was interesting, but I found the sameface/samebody of all of the young women offputting (especially in contrast the detailed, differentiated men!), and the constant state of undress of the protagonist was unnecessary. There was a brief shot of her chest with a strap between her breasts and the outline of her nipples visible through her shirt - what purpose does that serve for the story? That panel could have been framed in many other ways, yet he chose that one. Ugh.
I will still read the second volume if I can get my hands on it - I want to know more about the floating island.
ETA: Oh, so this author also did La Pomme Prisonnière, which.... opens with a series of uncomfortable, sexualized images of nude women, some of which are obviously high school students. The main character in that looks EXACTLY like the girl in Wandering Island. Sigh!
October 16, 2016
A jovem Mikura voa, num antiquado biplano, entre as ilhas mais dispersas do Japão como piloto de um serviço de correio aéreo. Quando o seu avô morre, descobre - se herdeira de um segredo e de uma missão: localizar uma ilha misteriosa, que parece andar à deriva nas correntes oceânicas do Pacífico. Consegue um vislumbre da ilha, num dos seus voos, quase morrendo por isso. Obcecada, dedica-se às buscas pela localização da ilha à deriva, lenda de pescadores que o seu avô apelidou de ilha eléctrica. Se esta premissa é interessante, o grande ponto alto da série é o estilo gráfico de Kenji Tsuruta. Dá à iconografia do Mangá uma curiosa vertente expressiva, apesar de muitas vinhetas que retratam com rigor a ruralidade das ilhas de um. Japão distante da imagem moderna de Tóquio. São fantásticas as suas paisagens oceânicas, com o pequeno biplano no ar.
July 15, 2023
3 stars. Although the art is good and the story intriguing, there is almost no character development and we really need to mention the fan service. At first I just let it go but then it kept happening. Here's Mikuru in a tiny bikini. And again. And again, even though there's no real reason for her to be wearing a bikini. And here's Mikuru with her legs open. And again. And here's Mikuru's butt in the middle of the panel for absolutely no reason. Here's Mikuru doing stuff naked; again, no reason. A little fan service isn't an issue but when you start noticing it and it gets worse, that crosses a line.
Without the fan service, I may have given this 4 stars, but I can't overlook it.
Without the fan service, I may have given this 4 stars, but I can't overlook it.
January 30, 2019
Excellent story in an excellent package - I love it when they include extras like a map, a history of obscure Japanese islands and WWII planes, and that beautiful soft cover with wraparound art all the way to the French flaps. The adventure story itself is half-silent and is simultaneously gripping and meditative.
September 19, 2016
The art in this manga is just amazing. It's a real shame that the author is notoriously slow working and we are likely to not see a second volume for quite a while. Nevertheless I enjoyed it very much.
August 12, 2021
A journey that starts with a package to an island that is thought to not exist.
As close as family can be Mikura Amelia and her grandfather ran a delivery service with the help of a Fairey Swordfish airplaine (or so I have been lead to believe.) However as the story begins we discover Mikura's grandfather has passed away and as stubborn as she is decides to keep their delivery service going in honor to him and in thanks for all he did to help her learn how to fly. However a package Mikura discovers reminds her of stories she heard of a wandering island and begins searching for the island that has eluded her grandfather till the end. What follows is a beautifully drawn story that although it does offer quite a bit of fan service as Mikura tries to make sense of the clues left behind by those who sought the island before her. With her cat Endevour, Mikura lets curiosity turn into obsession to the point of forgetting important everyday things as we follow her in hopes that someday her goals will be in reach of her at last.
With that said the book is not full of action with the exception of one incident in her plane but the details of the work are absolutely stunning whether showing the airplanes used in the story or even just a wide open sky reminiscent of one pf Studio Ghibli's famed sky shots in their movies. In addition there is a section at the end of the manga explaining things you might not have noticed in the book (like the type of plane I mentioned earlier) as well as some notes on geology and history which I really enjoyed seeing that not only was the art full of details but certain sorta hidden eggs were included such as references to Treasure Island and Gulliver's Travels. However the notes also explain that although amazingly talented and respected Kenji Tsuruta is not the most...proliferous of mangaka due to his work in other fields such as a science-fiction illustrator making the for releases of this series a long waiting time such as the 6 years between volumes 1 and 2. Needless to say I have not read volume 2 yet so I don't know if it is going to be a short series but at the steady pace of the first volume I have the feeling there is potential for a very long series that might never come to a finish if it becomes so complex even the talents of Kenji Tsuruta will be unable to handle it.
As close as family can be Mikura Amelia and her grandfather ran a delivery service with the help of a Fairey Swordfish airplaine (or so I have been lead to believe.) However as the story begins we discover Mikura's grandfather has passed away and as stubborn as she is decides to keep their delivery service going in honor to him and in thanks for all he did to help her learn how to fly. However a package Mikura discovers reminds her of stories she heard of a wandering island and begins searching for the island that has eluded her grandfather till the end. What follows is a beautifully drawn story that although it does offer quite a bit of fan service as Mikura tries to make sense of the clues left behind by those who sought the island before her. With her cat Endevour, Mikura lets curiosity turn into obsession to the point of forgetting important everyday things as we follow her in hopes that someday her goals will be in reach of her at last.
With that said the book is not full of action with the exception of one incident in her plane but the details of the work are absolutely stunning whether showing the airplanes used in the story or even just a wide open sky reminiscent of one pf Studio Ghibli's famed sky shots in their movies. In addition there is a section at the end of the manga explaining things you might not have noticed in the book (like the type of plane I mentioned earlier) as well as some notes on geology and history which I really enjoyed seeing that not only was the art full of details but certain sorta hidden eggs were included such as references to Treasure Island and Gulliver's Travels. However the notes also explain that although amazingly talented and respected Kenji Tsuruta is not the most...proliferous of mangaka due to his work in other fields such as a science-fiction illustrator making the for releases of this series a long waiting time such as the 6 years between volumes 1 and 2. Needless to say I have not read volume 2 yet so I don't know if it is going to be a short series but at the steady pace of the first volume I have the feeling there is potential for a very long series that might never come to a finish if it becomes so complex even the talents of Kenji Tsuruta will be unable to handle it.
February 21, 2022
3.75 / 5
Premetto che questo è il primo manga che leggo dopo anni che non ne toccavo.. quindi mi limiterò a recensire la storia.
Anche perché sulle illustrazioni c'è poco da dire se non che sono meravigliose.
La narrazione segue Mikura, una ragazza che vive su di un'isola giapponese nel pacifico. Mikura ed il nonno hanno messo in piedi un'attività di consegne aeree di corrispondenza, e questo porta la ragazza (che è il pilota della compagnia) a viaggi continui.
L'avventura inizia quando Mikura scopre della morte del nonno, di cui non avremo dettagli, e conseguentemente della sua ricerca dell'isola errante. Ovviamente Mikura decide di prendere in mano le ricerche del nonno come omaggio alla sua vita.
Ho acquistato il cofanetto con i due volumi (per ora solo questi sono usciti in Italia) sia perché mi ha da subito attirato l'illustrazione del box (quella del secondo volume), ed anche perché mi ha fatto venire in mente il castello errante di Howl.. quindi non ho potuto resistere.
Ovviamente non c'entra niente con il castello errante, sia chiaro.. è stata solo una sensazione.
Detto ciò l'unica cosa che mi ha un po' confuso durante la lettura è la linea temporale. Questo è anche l'unico motivo per cui non do al volume più di 3.75 stelle... 3.5 sono poche, 4 (PER ME) sono troppe proprio per questo.
Durante la lettura ci troviamo spesso davanti a salti temporali, che in un manga (o più in generale un fumetto) ci stanno, altrimenti ci troveremmo davanti a volumi enormi. Solo che qui non sono segnalati... cioè io ho capito di non essere più nella linea temporale dell'inizio del volume quando, quasi a metà, la protagonista parla degli eventi di poche pagine prima dicendo: 3 anni fa è successo..
Questo mi ha lasciata un po' interdetta, non so se è una scelta concia dell'autore oppure no, ma mi ha portato più volte a rileggere delle parti.
Tutto sommato è un ottimo manga, una storia molto originale e molto carina. Ha un po' quella vibe da film di Studio Ghibli.
Premetto che questo è il primo manga che leggo dopo anni che non ne toccavo.. quindi mi limiterò a recensire la storia.
Anche perché sulle illustrazioni c'è poco da dire se non che sono meravigliose.
La narrazione segue Mikura, una ragazza che vive su di un'isola giapponese nel pacifico. Mikura ed il nonno hanno messo in piedi un'attività di consegne aeree di corrispondenza, e questo porta la ragazza (che è il pilota della compagnia) a viaggi continui.
L'avventura inizia quando Mikura scopre della morte del nonno, di cui non avremo dettagli, e conseguentemente della sua ricerca dell'isola errante. Ovviamente Mikura decide di prendere in mano le ricerche del nonno come omaggio alla sua vita.
Ho acquistato il cofanetto con i due volumi (per ora solo questi sono usciti in Italia) sia perché mi ha da subito attirato l'illustrazione del box (quella del secondo volume), ed anche perché mi ha fatto venire in mente il castello errante di Howl.. quindi non ho potuto resistere.
Ovviamente non c'entra niente con il castello errante, sia chiaro.. è stata solo una sensazione.
Detto ciò l'unica cosa che mi ha un po' confuso durante la lettura è la linea temporale. Questo è anche l'unico motivo per cui non do al volume più di 3.75 stelle... 3.5 sono poche, 4 (PER ME) sono troppe proprio per questo.
Durante la lettura ci troviamo spesso davanti a salti temporali, che in un manga (o più in generale un fumetto) ci stanno, altrimenti ci troveremmo davanti a volumi enormi. Solo che qui non sono segnalati... cioè io ho capito di non essere più nella linea temporale dell'inizio del volume quando, quasi a metà, la protagonista parla degli eventi di poche pagine prima dicendo: 3 anni fa è successo..
Questo mi ha lasciata un po' interdetta, non so se è una scelta concia dell'autore oppure no, ma mi ha portato più volte a rileggere delle parti.
Tutto sommato è un ottimo manga, una storia molto originale e molto carina. Ha un po' quella vibe da film di Studio Ghibli.
July 14, 2021
This is what I needed after getting through the horrendous 'United States of Captain America', #1. This volume also proves chuck Dixon's point that the U.S. comics have created a vacuum creating books for themselves. This book is wonderful with it's historical premise and refreshing story telling.
The most important part of this book is tagged at the end. It's the historical background was to the reason of the story. That part should have been in the front. not the back. i get that putting it in the front would've scared a potential buyer. Reading reviews here, seems the historical explanation wasn't read. That's unfortunate. Choice nuggets of history included!
The story is pure manga in presentation and pacing. There's years of times covered and the story paces slowly for that. But the pacing is a bit much. Better would've been a caption of '3 years later'. Instead there are far too many panels of the main character in various scenes of undress. That sells this to men, but stops the storytelling. A good editor could've controlled this.
Also staggering the tale appears to be some translation issues. Because of so many Japanese names and locations, I was never sure what might be misspelled or mis-translated. This got me lost at times as to what was going on. Again not helping was the history in the back. If it had been in the front, I would've better understood context and intent.
The artwork is fine. Though, I'm not crazy about the enormous amount of tracing that occurred. Then there is the too often naked girl throughout. Wonder what I'll find in the much delayed 'Volume 2' whenever I get that...'cause I will.
Despite my troubles, this is an impressive book and night and day to what the Big Two are creating now. The Big Two should take note.
Bottom line: i recommend this book: 7 out of ten points.
The most important part of this book is tagged at the end. It's the historical background was to the reason of the story. That part should have been in the front. not the back. i get that putting it in the front would've scared a potential buyer. Reading reviews here, seems the historical explanation wasn't read. That's unfortunate. Choice nuggets of history included!
The story is pure manga in presentation and pacing. There's years of times covered and the story paces slowly for that. But the pacing is a bit much. Better would've been a caption of '3 years later'. Instead there are far too many panels of the main character in various scenes of undress. That sells this to men, but stops the storytelling. A good editor could've controlled this.
Also staggering the tale appears to be some translation issues. Because of so many Japanese names and locations, I was never sure what might be misspelled or mis-translated. This got me lost at times as to what was going on. Again not helping was the history in the back. If it had been in the front, I would've better understood context and intent.
The artwork is fine. Though, I'm not crazy about the enormous amount of tracing that occurred. Then there is the too often naked girl throughout. Wonder what I'll find in the much delayed 'Volume 2' whenever I get that...'cause I will.
Despite my troubles, this is an impressive book and night and day to what the Big Two are creating now. The Big Two should take note.
Bottom line: i recommend this book: 7 out of ten points.
December 19, 2019
This was absolutely a cover buy, if you must know. Something about the raw, traditional feeling of the cover art on this manga just hit me right in the Ghibli nostalgia, and the premise of it felt like something I would absolutely see as a film from Studio Ghibli, so I had to pick it up. And the art on the inside is also very incredible and just so nice to look at. There is so much effort and work and love poured into it, and that shows.
The story itself feels vaguely underdeveloped, but part of that is probably due to the limited information we receive in this volume, and when you combine it with the fact a lot of the story isn't told through dialogue or exposition, but instead there is more of a focus on the art. This isn't necessarily terrible, because again, the art is absolutely amazing and so nice to look at...but the more I think on what I've read here, the more it feels as though we have received very, very little in the way of exposition or depth regarding the main character's personal history, driving goals, passions, or anything beyond And while what we have is also not terrible, it feels very skeletal in terms of a plot, and we have little besides regarding any history or depth to the character or the worldbuilding of the manga's setting.
All that being said, I think this was still an enjoyable read and I would like to pick up the second volume in the future to see where this goes.
The story itself feels vaguely underdeveloped, but part of that is probably due to the limited information we receive in this volume, and when you combine it with the fact a lot of the story isn't told through dialogue or exposition, but instead there is more of a focus on the art. This isn't necessarily terrible, because again, the art is absolutely amazing and so nice to look at...but the more I think on what I've read here, the more it feels as though we have received very, very little in the way of exposition or depth regarding the main character's personal history, driving goals, passions, or anything beyond And while what we have is also not terrible, it feels very skeletal in terms of a plot, and we have little besides regarding any history or depth to the character or the worldbuilding of the manga's setting.
All that being said, I think this was still an enjoyable read and I would like to pick up the second volume in the future to see where this goes.
January 19, 2021
Mikura es una joven que trabaja en el negocio de su abuelo: reparte mensajería y paquetes entre las islas en un avión acuático. Sorpresivamente, su abuelo muere y ella queda sola y encargada del negocio. Es entonces que la casualidad la lleva a descubrir un secreto de su abuelo. Durante años, este ha buscado información y datos sobre una extraña isla errante, que algunos han visto, pero que siempre ha desaparecido y que reaparece cada tres años. Mikura queda obsesionada por la idea de encontrar la isla, y entonces, durante un vuelo: ahí está, debajo de ella, una isla pequeña con casas y otras construcciones pero extrañamente abandonada.
Para su desgracia, Mikura sufre un accidente y la isla se vuelve a perder en la nada. Mikura hará todo lo posible por volver a encontrarla y demostrarse que no está loca, que lo que ella vio en el mar es una realidad física y palpable.
Este hermoso manga de Kenji Tsuruta, es, más que nada, el disfrute estético de las imágenes, en una historia atmosférica y bucólica, donde casi puede escucharse el silencio, el mar y las cigarras. El arte de Tsuruta de verdad que se pule en este trabajo donde las escenas del día a día están cargadas de emotividad y vida.
Para su desgracia, Mikura sufre un accidente y la isla se vuelve a perder en la nada. Mikura hará todo lo posible por volver a encontrarla y demostrarse que no está loca, que lo que ella vio en el mar es una realidad física y palpable.
Este hermoso manga de Kenji Tsuruta, es, más que nada, el disfrute estético de las imágenes, en una historia atmosférica y bucólica, donde casi puede escucharse el silencio, el mar y las cigarras. El arte de Tsuruta de verdad que se pule en este trabajo donde las escenas del día a día están cargadas de emotividad y vida.
November 27, 2021
The lead character of this manga fits in with that great tradition of women in literature who are self-possessed, inspired and not distracted by their own sexuality. Mikura wears bikinis a lot but it's because she's a sea plane pilot who likes to jump in the ocean every chance she gets. Her constant companion is a cat named Endeavor. And when her grandfather dies, she becomes obsessed with finding a "wandering" island that appears now and then in the long chain of 400 islands that make up Japan.
The art is what takes this book to a higher level. I have no idea if the author spent the whole 20 years since his previous book to conceive this, but he could've. It's beautiful. There's a wholesomeness to its realism that has been missing in the many dark manga I've read recently. It's like a dash of Hayao Miyazaki was sprinkled throughout. There's a panel with a cat staring out the door of a bungalow that I lingered over a long time.
Can't wait to read Wandering Island Volume 2!
The art is what takes this book to a higher level. I have no idea if the author spent the whole 20 years since his previous book to conceive this, but he could've. It's beautiful. There's a wholesomeness to its realism that has been missing in the many dark manga I've read recently. It's like a dash of Hayao Miyazaki was sprinkled throughout. There's a panel with a cat staring out the door of a bungalow that I lingered over a long time.
Can't wait to read Wandering Island Volume 2!
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