Emanon: Emanon Wanderer

The journey of Emanon is quite a unique one. It was a journey of life, or rather, the journey of the history of life. As you go along on Emanon's journey with her, it will draw you in her experiences, her life on the move, and her unique circumstances. From every generation she is born into, her fate has already been sealed. When she's old enough to survive on her own, she would leave her family, travel the world, and eventually when she gives birth to her own daughter, her memories will be wiped clean and she will become a blank state, transferring all her experiences and memoriesto the daughter, who would then repeat the cycle again and again. This is the fate of the wandering Emanon, they say a person is defined by their memories, so in a sense, she is immortal, though her physical body may die, her memories will be passed down each generation, allowing her to view life as an observer. Emanon is without a doubt, one of the best slice-of-life characters out there, and this series is something that will stick with you for years to come.

The only reason why this manga doesn't have a much higher rating is due to the fact that it has never been properly developed by the author. The story of Sasurai Emanon's project was fragmented across time and failed to be taken seriously. Nevertheless the premise is fascinating and the art is simply the greatest Manga genre has to offer. This is a manga for mature people with a truly inspiring concept. For those who know the movie "Man of Earth" it is hard to not see the similarities between the stories. The movie came out one year before the Manga started to be published. Coincidence? Readingthis manga has gotten me wondering about universal consciousness and the unity of the universe. The way Emanon relates with people is also very real as this is a "real conversation" kind of manga. This adds to our will to believe that Emanon's story might very well be true in some sort of way. Finally, this is the sort of Manga you hand out to that friend who's too good for Manga and always dismiss this art as being childish and shallow. I would absolutely love to see an in depth series as it does give some "Mushishi" vibes.

If you've read Memories of Emanon you know what you're going to get into. Beautiful art, coupled with a meandering, but thought-provoking narrative about a person's place in the world, the importance of memory, and a de-anthropocentric ideology that decentres people as the centre of the world. In years to come, rocks and soil will probably outlive the human race. I loved Memories of Emanon, and Sasurai Emanon continues this lineage with a more personal take to this theme and tone (albiet repeating itself a few times). We no longer see our mysterious main character, Emanon through the eyes of another, but she is nowour protagonist. Her thoughts, emotions are all privy to us. There's also an over-arching narrative about espers and the like. However, you'll find that contrary to Memories, the writing is not as focused as Memories of Emanon, most likely attributed to the non-linear structure. Plot points come and go, some stories aren't even finished, only hinted at, foreboded but never told. I think the idea is intriguing, especially poignant thematically, but its execution feels haphazard, especially when these are stories that have a narrative thrust. What's up with the espers? What's going to happen to her brother? The man who wants to wed her? With narrative threads that intriguing, you can't just end on the note of - I've yet to discover them, they are the in the future... Still, the tonality of the story, and the art is fantastic. It's just such a shame that the story ended in such an inconclusive, and unfinished way. Perhaps the reason why Emanon captures the spirit of wandering so well is because the mangaka has the same aimless spirit, constantly wandering to the next project and only revisiting when inspiration strikes. Ok, but jokes aside, it's a shame that the publisher dropped the project. Even if I could understand that it was ongoing for a tad too long. Still, considering what we have right now, even if I think the story won't hit the same highs as the end of Memories of Emanon, it would've been nice to see Emanon's story of wandering through. I sure hope that another publisher picks this up, or it continues as a Doujinshi.

Short review of the whole series: The story of Emanon is a pretty unique and beautiful one, with an abundance of mysteries and emotions. I have to say that I enjoyed the first part (Omoide Emanon) way more than the second one (Sasurai Emanon). I felt the first part more impactful ,while the Sasurai Emanon gave me a weaker and more mild impression overall . Nonetheless both were really interesting. The art is pretty and unique .I also consider important to refer that the way the enviroment is drawn is mesmerizing. That's all ,I would totally recommend giving a read to the Emanon series as it's really good ,fast toread and short