Please Save My Earth, sometimes abbreviated Bokutama, is a shōjo science
fiction manga by Saki Hiwatari. It was published by Hakusensha from 1986 to
1994 in the magazine Hana to Yume and collected in 21 volumes. The series was
adapted as a six-part original video animation in 1993. It is about six
teenagers and a seven-year-old boy who share common dreams about their past
lives as alien scientists who observed the Earth from the Moon. Both the anime
OVA and manga are licensed for distribution in North America by Viz
Media. A sequel manga, Embraced by the
Moonlight, was serialized in the bimonthly Hana to Yume as well as the
special edition magazine, Hana to Yume Plus. It has since been followed by I
Sing with the Earth. Plot
The story centers around high-school student Alice Sakaguchi, her
seven-year-old neighbor Rin Kobayashi, and five other teenage students who have
recurring collective dreams about a group of alien scientists stationed on
the moon observing and collecting data about the Earth.
Initially, when Alice learns that classmates Jinpachi and Issei have been
having common recurring dreams since middle school, she thinks nothing of it
until she has one of these "moon dreams" herself. Because of the nature of these
dreams, the way Issei always dreams as the same person, and Jinpachi as well,
now that Alice has provided a third perspective, they start to believe that
people who dream as the other four scientists in their "moon dreams" can
each be found. Almost like it's a game, the three make
plans to seek these other people out in the hopes of making sense of these
dreams. After a suggestion from Issei, and a little bit of time and luck, they
are finally able to make contact with the other four people. But as the six
teenagers and one child start to piece together the timeline and content of
their dreams, they began to realize that their "dreams" are not simply dreams,
but rather suppressed memories of their past incarnations that ended tragically.
And now, as their "game" begins to unravel, the kids must strive to come to
terms with what happened in their past lives, as they struggle to prevent their
past incarnations' rivalries, jealousies, and dubious actions from
taking over their new ones. Development
Please Save My Earth, like early manga series that suddenly become popular for
many different manga artists careers', is an illustration of the development
and transition of Hiwatari Saki from a novice to an experienced manga artist.
The difference in art style between the volume 1 and volume 21 of the manga is
quite drastic, as illustrated in the image to the right.
The series features a number of homages to anime and manga throughout the manga.
Manga volume 5 Issei's sister Kyoko's character design
is noted here as being influenced by Osamu Tezuka and is a homage to classic
style shōjo manga artists such as Miyako Maki, Makoto Takahashi, Hideko Mizuno,
and Shotaro Ishinomori. From volume 16 and on, the "Editor's
Comments" section was omitted from the English-language adaptation by Viz
Media, as P. Duffield, the editor and one responsible for them, was no longer
working on the project, as mentioned in the final segment of the "Editor's
Comments" in volume 15. Media
= Manga = Please Save My Earth was written and
drawn by Saki Hiwatari. The series was serialized by Hakusensha in the monthly
shōjo manga magazine Hana to Yume from 1987 to 1994. The serial installments
were collected, without chapter divisions, in 21 tankōbon volumes. The
series was later reissued in 12 bunkoban volumes in 1998. It is licensed in
English in North America by Viz Media, with all volumes translated.
= OVA = Please Save My Earth was adapted as an
original video animation directed by Kazuo Yamazaki and produced by
Production I.G. The six-episode OVA anime covers roughly the first half of
the manga storyline. It is licensed in English by Viz Media. As of September
2007, it is out of print. Please Save My Earth Sōshūhen Kanzenban:
Alice kara, Rin Kun e is a 99 minute compilation OVA narrated by Alice,
reminiscing on the events of the main OVA as she is on her way to meet with
Rin in a park. The "present day" scenes of Alice and Rin from the movie add
scenes that were not present in the manga.
Please Save My Earth Music Image Video: Kin'iro no Toki Nagarete contains six
music videos with footage not seen in the main OVA and scenes taken from the
manga, as well as a slightly different version of the OVA ending sequence, and
the ending credits for the image videos. Reception
As of 2006, over 15 million copies of Please Save My Earth volumes had sold in
Japan, making it one of the best-selling shōjo manga ever.
Starting in volume 8 of the manga, a disclaimer appeared at the bottom of the
first page of every compilation volume, stating that the story was entirely
fictional. This was due to disturbing letters to Hiwatari received from people
who were convinced that they had been part of the moon scientist's society and
had been reborn on Earth. These disclaimers have since appeared in her
others works, most notably on the first pages of each volume of Global Garden.
Several manga artists have cited Please Save My Earth as an influence on them,
including Naoko Takeuchi and Bisco Hatori.
See also The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter - Japanese
folktale with elements similar to Please Save My Earth
References External links
Official Viz Media manga website Please Save My Earth at Anime News
Network's encyclopedia Please Save My Earth at Anime-Online
Plot summaries of OVA episodes "Shojo Manga Pick of the Month"