Voices of a Distant Star (Hoshi no Koe)
adapted by Mizu Sahara
created by Makoto Shinkai


Everyday the same message, no message.  In 2002 Makoto Sinkai released his first epic full lengh movie, Voices of a Distant Star.  Shinkai wrote, animated, produced, and directed the entire film over the course of a year and a half on his home computer.  Although only 25 minutes, Shinkai paints a marvelous world of two lovers who are seperated by time and space.  In this new manga adapation, Shinkai's world is retold in bold black and white imagery with a handful of new characters.  Although preserving the essential elements of the story, this adaptation does not fully live up to original story.

Mikako and Noboru are preparing for their high school entrance exams and falling in love with each other at the same time.  When Mikako announces that she'll be heading into space to take place on a research team aboard the Lysithea, both their lives change.  When the lifeforms known as the Tarsians were found in ruins on Mars, the scientific community used their data to enhance their own technology by thousands of years in a short time.  Humans fear what they do not know and so went out into space to hunt the Tarsians.  This is the mission Mikako was sent on.  At first Noboru and Mikako exhange their lives with each other through text messages but the farther the Lysithea travels from earth, the longer it takes to receive text messages.  What first took days to receive now takes months, years, and finally the last message  8 years.  Noboru used to check his phone daily for new messages but after his second year in high school decided that it may be a waste of time.  He tries to move on with his life, join the kendo club, go out with girls, but Mikako's absense constantly weighs on him.   Just when he decides to forget, he receives his first message from Mikako in years and realizes that she's the only thing that matters to him.

In this adaptation, we have a more definite and different ending.  When Noboru receives the last message in his junior year of high school, he decides to go to an auronautical school so that he can meet Mikako in space one day.  At the end the Lysithea receives critical damage after a Tarsian attack and Noboru decides to join in the rescue mission to meet his love yet again.  Mikako reads his name on the list of volunteers the exact same moment Noboru receives her message written over 8 years ago.   "To the 25 year old Noboru, this is your 16 year old Mikako."  Due to space travel, Mikako has rarely aged since she first joined.  Although there is now a major age gap between them, nothing can seperate them now.  Their love remains the same no matter the time or distance.

Although lacking the beautiful orchestral soundtrack of the film, this adaptation holds its own to the original.  This version relies less on space battles but more on the relationships Mikako and Noboru formed during their absence from each other.  Encountering many reasons to forget each other, they decide that their love is more important and can span the gap in time and space.

M.G. Rating:  B