#Spring2021
Edens Zero (stylized as EDENS ZERO) is a Japanese science fiction manga series written and illustrated by Hiro Mashima. It has been serialized in Kodansha’s Weekly Shōnen Magazine since June 2018, with its chapters collected into thirteen tankōbon volumes as of January 2021. The story follows a boy named Shiki Granbell who embarks on a voyage aboard the titular starship across different planets in search of a cosmic goddess known as “Mother”. The manga is published digitally in six other languages as they are released in Japan, with Kodansha USA licensing the series for English publication in North America on Crunchyroll, Comixology, and Amazon Kindle. An anime television series adaptation produced by J.C.Staff is scheduled to premiere in April 2021. A video game adaptation has also been announced.
Synopsis Edit
Main article: List of Edens Zero characters
Setting Edit
Edens Zero takes place in a fictional spacefaring universe inhabited by humans, aliens, and sentient robots. The universe is divided into smaller “cosmoses”, with the Sakura Cosmos[Jp. 1] serving as the primary setting. Most planets and locations have futuristic elements, some of which are combined with classic fantasy.Ch. 1 All technology in the series runs on a magical power source called Ether, which forms the basis of the story’s “fantasy” aspect;Vol. 1 afterword one recurring device is the B-Cube,[Jp. 2] a video recorder that allows content creators, called “B-Cubers”, to access a same-named video sharing website based on YouTube.Ch. 2[4] Ether also causes a variety of planetary phenomena such as airborne rivers of water,Ch. 2 clouds that produce crystal pillars,Ch. 4 and the growth of gargantuan trees visible from space.Ch. 20 Several characters directly harness the Ether in their bodies with Ether Gear,[Jp. 3] a power from the universe’s dark ages that grants its users superhuman abilities,Ch. 1 which are further enhanced by a transformative “Overdrive”[Jp. 4] state achieved by pushing their Ether past its critical point.Ch. 81 The universe is also home to various cosmic entities, such as cybernetic dragons that swarm in a sector bordering the Sakura Cosmos called Dragonfall,Ch. 15 and a Chronophage[Jp. 5] that devours planets and permanently rewinds their time, creating alternate histories without causing time paradoxes.Ch. 11
Plot Edit
Shiki Granbell is a human Ether Gear user who lives among robots on the planet Granbell, a deserted theme park world in the Sakura Cosmos. One day, the park is visited by two space traveling B-Cubers – Rebecca Bluegarden and her cybernetic cat companion Happy – whom Shiki befriends while they are there recording videos for their online account, Aoneko Channel. After the park’s robots force them off the planet to save Shiki from being stranded before their batteries die, Shiki, Rebecca, and Happy set out to explore the universe by searching for Mother, the fabled goddess of the cosmos. In the process, Shiki obtains the interstellar warship Edens Zero, which was captained by his grandfather figure, the mechanical Demon King Ziggy, during a previous search for Mother.
Following the conclusion of his series Fairy Tail on July 26, 2017, Hiro Mashima posted a Tweet on December 31, 2017 promising to start a new series sometime in 2018. After his visit to the Angoulême International Comics Festival in France, Mashima revealed that the new series would be “a new form of fantasy”, and that the character Plue from his earlier series Rave Master would appear in the manga. On May 14, 2018, Mashima commented on Twitter that he was becoming “a little confused” due to working simultaneously on this series, a Fairy Tail continuation, and another “secret” project. He also stated that he was coming up with new ideas for the series “one after another”. On May 30, 2018, Weekly Shōnen Magazine revealed that the series was tentatively titled Eden’s Zero.
Media Edit
Main article: List of Edens Zero chapters
The series launched in 2018’s 30th issue of Kodansha’s shōnen manga magazine Weekly Shōnen Magazine on June 27, 2018.The series is published simultaneously in six languages: English, French, Chinese, Korean, Thai, and Brazilian Portuguese.North American publisher Kodansha USA has released chapters of the series on digital platforms such as Crunchyroll Manga, ComiXology, and Amazon Kindle.The first tankōbon volume was released on September 14, 2018. As of August 17, 2020, 11 volumes have been released.
Anime Edit
On June 12, 2020, Mashima announced on Twitter that the manga would be adapted into an anime television series. At the Tokyo Game Show livestream on September 26, 2020, it was revealed that the anime would be produced by J.C.Staff and directed by Yūshi Suzuki, with Shinji Ishihara serving as chief director, Mitsutaka Hirota overseeing scripts, and Yurika Sako designing the characters. Yoshihisa Hirano will compose the music.The series will premiere on Nippon TV and other channels on April 11, 2021.