Story and Art by Tennoji Kitsune
Copyright © 1995-1999 Tennoji Kitsune

In the previous issue of EX (issue 4.4) Ivevei Upatkoon reviewed the EDEN'S BOwY anime and, as mentioned, there is also a manga. The stories are sufficiently different, and while I like to believe that the jury is still out on the anime, the manga sets a environment engaging enough to warrant a review of its own.
The story starts with two mysterious people leaving a flying city on a mission involving a god-killer (kamigoroshi). Yorun (which the author romanizes as Jornne) is one of the four sons of a man named Gastini. However, Yorun is adopted and the two older brothers give him a fair amount of grief over it. Yorun's problems with his siblings leads him to sleep in a separate building. One night, after working late on the sword he is making, he has a visitor who literally lands on his stomach. So enters Elisiss. She is unconscious from her fall and Yorun covers her with his blanket, and he falls asleep while watching over her. He is reminded of his mother, and wakes up calling her name, only to find Elisiss sitting watching over him. Yorun is immediately at a loss for words.
From a distance, they are being observed by the two people who left the floating city. Yorun tells Elisiss to hide so his brothers will not see her. He sneaks food out to her at night, but she is discovered by two of his brothers—Moes and Mieru. They find Elisiss and begin making comments that drive Yorun into a rage during which he manages to cut the younger Mieru's leg and scare off the older brother.
Moes flees and is intercepted by the duo from Eden (all of the floating cities are called "Eden.") Apparently, they have a use for Moes' body and they kill him.
After Elisiss heals Mieru and Yorun, they discover that the main house is burning. Yorun tells Elisiss to stay behind and he runs with Mieru to the house. Here Yorun's journey begins.
A number of elements are the same as in the anime; there is a very similar feel to the story. However, quite a few elements are different—both small elements and fairly major ones. The minor differences have to do with things that are short in length compared to the whole story. For instance, Yorun is not an only son as he was in the anime. How he meets Elisiss is a lot stranger, and you know she is "from the sky" (but that is pretty obvious in the anime as well.) A major difference is that Enefeaa, Elisiss' sister, plays a much larger role early on. Another major difference lies in the warriors/magicians from Yanuesu: they are not bumbling fools, rather they are deadly, vicious, and they hold grudges.
The pacing in the manga is a lot tighter than within the anime where several episodes do little but fill in background information, or make you wonder what their point really is (the fishing episode with the mecha cow for instance.) And, even though key plot elements take two volumes, you get the feeling that the manga is rushed. That intermediate parts of the story are being skipped over so that the author can get to the battle sequences (such as why Fennis and apparently most of Yurugaha side over with Yorun.)
As someone who enjoys a rather wide range of stories, I am particularly a sucker for stories with tragic undertones and lots of unresolved plot lines. This leads me to watch or read a great number of stories that fail to either wrap up the plot lines sufficiently, or that fail to resolve the relationships. So far, the EDEN'S BOwY manga is doing quite well at maintaining the angst and tragedy. It is also doing a decent job wrapping up most of the plot elements, as well as opening up new ones that demand to be resolved. By the end of volume 6, the world has changed and you want to know what happens next.
An added bonus in the story, for those who like happy moments, is that it has its share of minor comic relief. Luckily, it does not get too heavy-handed as in the anime. Especially amusing is the relationship between "oyaji" (the wandering swordsman) and Fennis from Yurugaha.
The art itself is rather consistent through the series. It undergoes a smooth evolution from the earliest work in 1995 to more detail and a better expressive feel in 1999.
Overall, it is an enjoyable and engaging story. Naturally, it reuses a lot of existing themes, so while it is not the most original story out there, it is engaging nonetheless.

Published by Kadokawa Shoten (Kadokawa Comics A)
6 volumes, ongoing
190 ~ 200 pages, b&w, some color pages
Vol. 1: ISBN4-04-713107-5
Vol. 2: ISBN4-04-713133-4
Vol. 3: ISBN4-04-713170-9
Vol. 4: ISBN4-04-713205-5
Vol. 5: ISBN4-04-713264-0
Vol. 6: ISBN4-04-713276-4

¥540 - ¥560
Available now in Japan
Where to buy