Post by valeria:fuji on Oct 9, 2007 21:36:02 GMT -5
Twin Spica (ふたつのスピカ, Futatsu no Supika?) is a science fiction manga series by Kō Yaginuma. It began serialization in the seinen magazine Comic Flapper in January 2001. Twin Spica tells the story of a group of Japanese high school students training to become astronauts.
The manga has been adapted by Group TAC as a 20-episode anime television series that first aired on NHK's BS-2 satellite service between 1 November 2003 and 27 March 2004. The anime has been translated into English and other languages by the anime television network Animax, which has broadcast the series on its networks in several regions, including East Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia and Latin America.
The series title comes from the binary star system Spica. It is the brightest star in the constellation Virgo and one of the brightest stars in the sky. Spica is really two stars that circle each other, though from a distance they appear as one, which parallels the series' running theme of friendship.
The manga has been adapted by Group TAC as a 20-episode anime television series that first aired on NHK's BS-2 satellite service between 1 November 2003 and 27 March 2004. The anime has been translated into English and other languages by the anime television network Animax, which has broadcast the series on its networks in several regions, including East Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia and Latin America.
The series title comes from the binary star system Spica. It is the brightest star in the constellation Virgo and one of the brightest stars in the sky. Spica is really two stars that circle each other, though from a distance they appear as one, which parallels the series' running theme of friendship.
Story
The primary setting of Twin Spica in the near future at the Tokyo Space School, where high school students train to become astronauts. Asumi Kamogawa (鴨川アスミ, Asumi Kamogawa?) has dreamed of going to space since she was a child. Her experiences in school and her relationships with her friends, family and teachers are the central themes of the story. The manga and anime series both have a relaxed, slice of life pace.
Several chapters of the manga and episodes of the anime are flashbacks and explore the childhood of Asumi and some of the other characters. When she was a baby, Japan's first manned rocket (called Shishigō (獅子号, Shishigō?)) crashed into Asumi's hometown of Yuigahama, killing many people and critically injuring her mother, who finally dies after many years in a coma. While trying to accept her mother's death, six year old Asumi meets Lion-san (ライオンさん, Raion-san?), the ghost of a young astronaut who had been on board the rocket. Inspired by Lion-san's stories of space, Asumi makes it her goal to become an astronaut herself.
The storylines of the manga and the anime adaptation are very close together initially, but the anime's diverges to have an ending that is not related to anything published. The anime covers most of the manga's story in volume 1-3 but later takes bits and pieces of the latter volumes.
Characters
Asumi Kamogawa (鴨川アスミ, Kamogawa Asumi?) Voiced by: Akiko Yajima
The story's main character. After her mother died when she was young, she grew up with her father. She is the only one who can see Lion-san, whom she met soon after her mother's death. After meeting Lion-san, she becomes determined to become an astronaut. When her name is written in kanji (her name is in katakana), asu means "tomorrow" (in her cause is interpreted as "future") and mi means "look".
Lion-san (ライオンさん, Raion-san?) Voiced by: Takehito Koyasu
Lion-san meets Asumi when she is young and introduces himself as a ghost. He wears a large lion mask that covers his entire head. He comforts Asumi during the difficult time after her mother's death, and fosters her interest in space.
Marika Ukita (宇喜多万里香, Ukita Marika?) Voiced by: Akiko Kimura
A classmate of Asumi's, she is a loner and generally treats her peers coldly. She justifies her attitude by reflecting on the difficult childhood she endured, which comprised mostly of studying in isolation. Marika's backstory is unusual, but is only touched upon in the anime.
Shinnosuke Fuchūya (府中野新之介, Fuchūya Shinnosuke?) Voiced by: Toshiyuki Toyonaga
Asumi's childhood friend, whose ends up following her to take the astronaut course. He likes Asumi and always looks after her but hasn't really revealed his feelings to her. He is nicknamed Fucchi (ふっち, Fucchi?) by Kei.
Kei Ōmi (近江圭, Ōmi Kei?) Voiced by: Fuyuka Ōura
The first girl Asumi meets during the Space School entrance exam. Sociable, gregarious and frank, she is Asumi's first female friend in the astronaut course.
Shū Suzuki (鈴木秋, Suzuki Shū?) Voiced by: Yuki Kaida
The top student of their course, Shū is often depicted as a laid-back, easy going guy. Despite the facade, he tries his best to reach for his dream—to become an astronaut.