ほしのこえ

HOSHI NO KOE

MANGA

STATUS
COMPLETE
VOLUMES
1
RELEASE
December 25, 2004
CHAPTERS
10

DESCRIPTION

To what distance would you go for your one true love? In the midst of an alien invasion, Mikako joins the resistance, leaving behind the one young man she loves. As she goes deeper into space, Mikako's only connection with her boyfriend is through cell-phone text messages. The war rages on and years pass, but Mikako barely ages in the timelessness of space while Noboru grows old. How can the love of two people, torn apart by war, survive?

(Source: Tokyopop)

CAST

Mikako Nagamine
Noboru Terao

CHAPTERS

RELATED TO HOSHI NO KOE

OVA DramaHoshi no Koe

REVIEWS

TheAnimeSage
90/100
Casual thoughts of Voices of a Distant Star
I watched the OVA version of this story some years ago and liked it, but i always thought it was kind of a shame that the story didn't get the time it needed to breath and really flesh things out. I am happy to say that i think the manga did a damn good job at fleshing out the story, characters and relationships.

Its a story about how people grow apart with distance and time, and how we forget those who aren't with us anymore. Bonds and connections fade with time, which(to me at least) is a tragic part of the human experience. I doubt there are many people who don't want to keep the bonds they like forever. But relationships do tend to end. What i like about this manga, which is essentially a love story, is how it shows that sometimes people don't let those bonds go. The male protagonist(sorry, i really am shit with names) tries to move on with his life, and forget about his love for the female protagonist, but he just cant. Sometimes love for somebody makes you not want to let go. Considering the circumstance, it makes sense. The tragic becomes hopeful by the end, and i liked that transition.

I liked how we see visually that his memories of her become fuzzy over time. We see the panels of flashbacks become darker and darker as they fade from his memory. But her final text to him brought it all back after years of not really thinking about her.

The framing of the story works well too, how both distance apart affects time between communication. In the modern world, you couldn't really tell that story on earth because of all the technology that exists now. The more science fiction setting of the story works in that regard, it allows for a situation where the characters naturally stop communicating(they technically still do, it just takes longer for messages to be received) while also maintaining the idea that they do want to be together and communicate. The fact that she is on this mission also gives a good reason why she would leave anyway, the mission she is on sounds really interesting/exciting. I like how the male protagonist begins to doubt the foundation of their relationship. She found out she was going and didn't tell the male protagonist for a while. Given their inability to communicate, its also not something he could realistically follow up on.

I do think they could have been a little more specific on the limitations of the texting. We understand that it takes longer and longer for texts to be received, but i wish they would have explained why they don't just spam texts to each other all the time. I assume there is a limit to how much she can send over at a time, but they never clarify that. A bit of a plot hole, but not a big problem for me. I also liked the mech and character designs. Though there definitely were some panels where i thought 'the fuck am i even looking at', so there was occasionally bad shot composition.

I think the 'make it or break it' aspect of this story will be the ending and the shift in tone near the end. As i said before, the story goes from being tragic to hopeful at the end. I am the kind of person who likes hopeful stories, but i imagine the person who really likes tragic endings will be disappointed. The idea of just telling a story about two people growing apart then staying apart is appealing to people. So the fact that they don't stay apart might make them dislike the story. I wont say they are wrong for feeling this way, i think it honestly could have gone either way and still worked for me.

I am happy i read this.
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deli000
90/100
We are two lovers... separated by time and space.
Hoshi no Koe - also known as Voices of a Distant Star - is a manga about time and space, told through the perspective of a delicate romance between two separated lovers. It is a manga that, despite its short length, manages to capture deep subject matter regarding life and love. Even with all of its melancholy, it clings to the power of hope and patience, giving a bittersweet ending that is hopeful and optimistic but still fitting naturally into the manga's pensive story.

We are two lovers... separated by time and space.

Hoshi no Koe details the delicate romance between two lovers, Mikako and Noboru, while also being wrapped around a sci-fi premise. Despite this, the manga chooses to approach its story in a realistic manner, focusing more on its human characteristics with the emotions and thoughts of its two central characters. Both Mikako and Noboru are interesting individuals that are easy to sympathise and relate to, and it is fairly easy to put yourself in the shoes of both of them as they deal with their own issues. Their inner conflicts, concerning problems with being forgotten, thinking about the future, and being aimless in life, are nuanced issues that are delivered excellently and given a layer of realism that makes this manga tug even deeper into your emotional heartstrings. The manga does a great job at creating characters alongside a story you can invest easily and deeply in, and it does not make that investment a disappointment as its ending is a perfect way to conclude its melancholic story. The ending brings a more hopeful and optimistic light onto the table, and it fits well as a natural conclusion.

Despite the manga focusing more on its human characteristics, its own sci-fi premise does a lot to picture interesting thoughts surrounding the pursuit of space and knowledge. Many of the people participating in the space mission are young and have their future seemingly taken away from them because of the pursuit of the beyond. While ten chapters is not enough to fully delve into these aspects of the story, they are still wonderfully told and are given a lot of intricate thought to them. They are merely short musings, but they capture the state of the members onboard, giving the manga an even stronger sense of personality and life.

The manga's art style reflects perfectly the melancholic tone of this romance story, giving way to beautiful illustrations that do its job at conveying the emotional weight of the topics it touches on. Characters are drawn nicely, and their issues and struggles are portrayed clearly and smoothly by subtle gestures of behavior. Things such as gazing into the painful and fleeting moments of the past or being drifted away into a never-ending melancholic state are conveyed such that it makes this manga a captivating read as it perfectly illustrates the emotional weight of its themes.

Hoshi no Koe is a short manga that manages to do so much despite its length. Its themes surrounding life and love through the lens of a sci-fi premise - and its delicate and perfect execution of these themes through its story and characters - manages to pave the way for a manga that leaves an outstanding lasting impression, an impression that makes it nothing short of amazing. It is a short yet thoughtful work of fiction that leaves you gazing at the sky above, distant and detached from the world around you.
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