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© VIZ Media
Mania Grade: A-
Story and art by: Osamu Tezuka
Publisher: Viz
Rating: Older Teen (16+)
Price: $16.99
Buy it now!
Story and art by: Osamu Tezuka
Publisher: Viz
Rating: Older Teen (16+)
Price: $16.99
Buy it now!
PHOENIX, Volume 6 (Nostalgia)
By: Nadia OxfordReview Date: Saturday, July 07, 2007
Osamu Tezuka, the God of Manga, rarely penned a work in which he didn't tackle multiple--and often controversial--themes. His opus, the multi-volume Phoenix series, includes some of the richest and most memorable stories available to comic and manga fans. Volume six of Phoenix, subtitled Nostalgia, is an excellent example of Tezuka adding his own spin to the worked-over science fiction genre.
In the thousands of space-themed novels available on bookshelves worldwide, humans are often portrayed as a hardy race of star-spelunking expansionists whose ancestors left Earth long ago without so much as a glance backwards. Nostalgia's story sets up a similar scenario as the Phoenix--the mysterious bird-like embodiment of Life and the Cosmos--narrates a legend about two reckless Earth-born youths who fled their home world for the stars and founded a race.
George and Romy, both Wanted criminals back on Earth, are scammed into buying their own planet called "Eden 17" in the far reaches of space. When it quickly becomes apparent the planet is arid and contains no surface water, George tries to extract it from underground. He's successful, but he's fatally injured during the process and Romy is left alone to give birth to their baby son, Cain. Armed with an unorthodox plan to build a civilization, Romy puts herself in suspended animation until Cain is old enough to mate with her and produce children.
Nostalgia's story moves quickly and covers a great deal of territory in its 400 pages, including, but not exclusively, the rise and fall of an entire planet. With the Phoenix's help, Romy's descendents eventually overcome some of the troubles associated with inbreeding and soon a powerful, peaceful race thrives on the formally barren Eden. With the help of technology, Romy defies death and watches over her world. However, she's eventually overcome by an uncontrollable urge to see Earth again. With the help of a small crew, Romy attempts to visit her home planet.
Romy's cross-universe journey presents some interesting philosophies about the make-up of the Cosmos (Can an entire planet be carnivorous? Does the universe have an end? Are the mysteries of life beyond human understanding, or does God sometimes make stupidly useless creatures for the hell of it?), but the most interesting theme the manga explores is the one it's named for--Nostalgia and homesickness. Romy soon learns that humanity has the technology needed to populate other worlds, but intergalactic pioneers eventually come wandering home after feeling experiencing an intense longing for Earth.
Every volume of the Phoenix series links in a zigzagging timeline. Volume two, Future, narrates the end of humankind. Four volumes later, Nostalgia touches on homesickness being one of the main reasons for the race's failure. With no drive to populate worlds beyond Earth, humans soon find themselves lacking resources on their overtaxed planet.
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