I can't believe this is a debut manga! Dynamic artwork accompanies a sophisticated near-future SF story that's part space adventure, part slice-of-life comic.

Seriously, this is so beautifully drawn. After I finish Planetes, I'm looking forward to checking out Vinland Saga. ( )

***Who sucked me in***
BiblioNyan in her August Reading Wrap-Up published on the 5th of September 2017.

I discovered this by luck, and I was very pleased. The only reason I did not give it 5 stars is that some small parts of the story were things I did not particularly like (I tend to dislike bratty younger siblings of main characters, for instance). However, that small detail aside, this is an excellent manga with a very strong hard science fiction element. The premise is very good as well. Space exploration is a given. It has left a lot of trash and debris in space, and someone has to pick it up. Our protagonist is one of those space garbage men. The author writes very good stories of this character and his team mates. There are moving moments, some action, and it is all presented in a good science fictional setting that pays attention to the science as we learn a bit about astronauts and how space affects them mentally and physically.

On investigating a bit, I learned this manga is out of print, so I may have to scour a bit to find the other four volumes in the series. This is a series I definitely want to continue following. Even if you do not like mangas, if you like science fiction, this is a pretty good series. Definitely a very pleasant discovery for me. ( )

Story: 4 Stars, Art: 4 Stars

I liked the faces and the facial expressions. I have book 2, and was hoping to get the rest of the series... but I see they are rare and expensive. So, for now, "wishlist". ( )

Three space debris clean-up workers, one of whom lost his wife tragically, one of whom is an ambitious young man, and one of whom becomes a hero because she very very much wants to smoke a cigarette, try to figure out what they want out of life (at least the first two do; the woman has a family back on Earth and seems to know exactly what she wants) and struggle with the constant physical dangers of space. There was a fair amount about the Meaning of Life and the virtue of Striving, but this manga wasn’t for me. ( )