ほしのこえ

VOICES OF A DISTANT STAR

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 VOICES OF A DISTANT STAR

OVA DramaVoices of a Distant Star

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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tsujigiri
80/100
Some Distances Are Impossible to Overcome
The most compelling aspect of Voices of a Distant Star lies in its familiar premise and the resulting melancholy. This is not merely a tale of two people divided by astronomical distance. Rather, the bond between two people separated by such distance enables the story. It centers less on space or the struggle for it than on two individuals holding onto each other as their lives gradually unravel and drift apart.

The main attraction of the manga is Mikako and Noboru. They are just like any other teenagers, suddenly thrust into situations they have little control over, and it's their inability to cope with the distance that really gives the story its emotional heft. The further Mikako gets from the Earth the longer it takes for her message to reach Noboru. A simple text message is a reminder of the amount they miss out on just by being apart. The farther they get from each other, the more difficult it is for them to have any sort of meaningful relationship.

I consider this the most compelling part of the narrative. Their feelings persist, and time does not pause simply because they are separated. While Mikako enters a new environment, Noboru continues his life on Earth. When they reflect on one another, they do not share the same experience simultaneously. This carries a quiet sadness, since neither must abandon their affection for the bond to grow harder to sustain.

Credit also belongs to Mizu Sahara’s manga adaptation for how it conveys this emotional core. Her art introduces a more personal tone that avoids excess, reinforcing the concept’s isolation. The scale of space contrasts with the private feelings at the narrative’s center. Although the setting may render characters insignificant, the manga returns repeatedly to their relationship and the distance between them. This adds intimacy that occasionally deepens the somber mood.

However, I believe the manga isn't perfect. The one thing it lacks is its rapidity in moving through its ideas. The idea is intriguing enough for me to want to spend more time with the characters, seeing their interactions unfold beyond the situation that keeps them apart. There are some emotional beats that needed more space to breathe and the story sometimes feels as if it's trying to go for a feeling it hasn't been given enough time for. The characters are easy to comprehend, but not as fully developed as they might have been to make the story even more so.

I also think the manga functions better as an emotional narrative than as science fiction. The world is not especially complex; instead, the setting creates the conditions required for the relationship to emerge. This is not a flaw, since the story centers on emotional elements, but readers seeking a broader exploration of science fiction may find it somewhat limited.

However, I like what Voices of a Distant Star is attempting to do here. The concept of drifting away from people, but not wishing it to happen, is very familiar. Not every relationship ends due to the lack of affection. Things change, life progresses and the bond you need to keep is no longer as easy to hold on to. The premise of the science fiction is extreme, yet the emotions under the surface are so much closer to what one might experience and therefore have more resonance than the story.

It's not just that space is the only thing separating Mikako and Noboru in the manga. It's that the gap between them turns into a gap between their experiences, their lives, and their comprehension of each other's current life. They may still be able to communicate, but it's not the same. However sincere they might feel, they can never get back the time they are missing out on each other.

In conclusion, Voices of a Distant Star is a brief and poignant manga, valued more for its premise and setting than for deeply developed characters. I might have preferred more development, yet I cannot fault the premise or its melancholy. It is a story of wanting to remain close to someone while circumstances pull apart, along with the awkward realization that you may wish to stay near someone but cannot.

The most heart-wrenching aspect of being away from someone is not knowing how far away they are. It's knowing that life goes on and on for both of you, even when it's all you want: to live it together.
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