Earth Expansion Volume 1 Review
Earlier this month I reviewed the first of Panini Publishing’s new series and today I’m here to look at their other title: Earth Expansion. Unlike romance Our Dating Story: The Experienced You and the Inexperienced Me, this manga promises a fantasy tale filled with action and adventure. Does it deliver an entertaining read? Let’s find out!
The story takes place on Earth, in Japan, which is very different from the one we’re used to. Set 50 years after a strange phenomenon caused the Earth to expand to an estimated several thousand times its normal size, the lay of the land has changed significantly. Those in Tokyo have no idea where their neighbouring prefectures like Saitama have gone and there’s currently no way to work out how to get overseas. And if that wasn’t bad enough, due to the event, monsters now roam the Earth making exploration difficult for the average person.
The only way to fend off these monsters is with powers granted by using special crystals. Those who successively gain these abilities are known as Pioneers and are tasked with exploring the world, hoping to defeat the monsters and reclaim the land lost during the expansion. Maybe along the way, they’ll rediscover the towns, cities and villages that have been lost.
Protagonist Ryusei Kuroki is what’s known as a ‘Second-Glass Pioneer’. He isn’t lucky enough to have gained powers that allow him to fight the monsters, so he’s limited to surveying areas that have already been cleared of the threat. Alongside his canine companion Pomukichi, the two spend their days exploring. But Kuroki can’t let go of his dreams to see the world and desperately wishes he could awaken to a power of his own so he, too, could work on the frontlines.
It’s one day while out surveying that Kuroki stumbles across a new kind of crystal, although at first it shows no signs of awakening anything within him. However, when Kuroki and First-Grade Pioneer Kohane Kanzaki (who is in the area) find themselves under attack from a powerful foe, Kuroki suddenly finds himself transforming into a powerful monster in his desperation to stay alive! With a new power under his belt and Kohane and Pomukichi by his side, what does fate have in store for our hero?
I have to start by saying that several elements of this remind me of Kaiju #8. We have a protagonist who is in his 30s and with the ability to transform into a monster and a world filled with monsters. Having started serialisation after Kaiju #8, I’d think that was a big inspiration if not for the fact that author Yosshaa!’s light novels all share similar concepts (this manga isn’t based on one by the way). Still, if you’re into that popular shonen series then you are sure to enjoy Earth Expansion.
I appreciated that while there are a few obvious video game or isekai inspirations here, Yosshaa! has managed to avoid the common trappings of the tropes. There are no stat screens in sight and although Kuroki’s ability is powerful, he is not overpowered thanks to only being able to use it for a limited time before it needs to ‘recharge’. The concept of the Earth expanding is also relatively original and avoids the new common concept that Dungeons have appeared, unleashing monsters upon the world.
The other big thing I took away from this is how much the cast and artwork remind me of a Hiromu Arakawa series. While Yosshaa! is on writing duties, the artwork is handled by Hajime Yamamoto and this appears to be their first series. While the cover and premise give off the impression this could be a darker fantasy, Yamamoto keeps the atmosphere light-hearted with plenty of comical reactions from Kuroki and Kohane. I feel the balance the artwork strikes is very similar to how Arakawa has handled stories like Fullmetal Alchemist and more recently Daemons of the Shadow Realm.
And of course, there’s Pomukichi too, who is adorable and gets plenty of page time. He’s not only a cute companion but also reasonably useful as a Pioneer in his own right thanks to a storage ability that lets him keep anything up to the size of a small car hidden away.
Being an action series, the battles and monster designs are of course of great importance and I’m happy to say Yamamoto has done a great job in that department too. There are several intense two-page spreads that are very striking. It’s cool, flashy and ultimately does the job really well.
As mentioned earlier, Earth Expansion Volume 1 comes to the UK through Panini Publishing under their manga imprint. Like with Our Dating Story, this release includes colour pages and a lot of profile/information pages between chapters that help us better understand the cast and the world they live in which makes it a good value for the £10 price tag. The translation is credited to CCC International LLC and reads well throughout. Again like the other release, there is no digital version of this available and surprisingly it’s not on MANGA UP! either despite being a Square Enix-published title in Japan.
The series is complete in Japan with four volumes total, which does make me somewhat weary that it was forced to wrap up prematurely. The premise is certainly broad enough that it feels like it should have gone on for some time. Here in English, Volume 2 is scheduled for a release in late February, so not too far off.
Overall, while Earth Expansion shares quite a bit in common with a popular shonen series, I think it has successfully differentiated itself. There’s plenty to like here, from the adorably doggy companion Pomukichi to the high-stakes fights against monsters and world exploration. We’re off to a good start!
Our review copy from Panini was supplied by Turnaround Comics (Turnaround Publisher Services).
