Mikai Hoshi (meaning Uncivilized Planet) is not a sci fi manga, although it does take place in a futuristic world. It seems to take place in the ghetto of this world; the characters have less technology and modern conveniences than you or I, and the sci fi aspect of the plot mostly serves to give the characters false hope. It is an essentially human story, devoid of gimmicks, raw, and powerful.
Mikai Hoshi, like most Matsumoto Jiro manga, is much more than it appears to be at first glance and is far greater than it would appear to be on a surface level. It actually
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tends to be underrated even among fans of Matsumoto Jiro's manga, for supposedly being more conventional and simple; the truth is that it is absolutely unique, even among his extraordinarily strange manga, and it is utterly fascinating. The art is sketchy and unrestrained, in this mangaka's characteristic style, and could even look slightly amateurish to the untrained eye, but it is astoundingly atmospheric and closer examination will show that it is in fact chaotic, but it is an expertly calculated and purposeful chaos. The plot seems simple and short, but there is far more to it than it would initially seem. For instance, on my first read through I made the fatal mistake of assuming the sex was meant to be erotic (it is absolutely not) and that it was inserted into the plot for the sole purpose of fanservice, but I soon realized that sexual desire, objectification, and corruption is one of the core motifs of this manga, and is important in how it parallels modern society. Mikai Hoshi is a heart-wrenching and tragic tale, but in a very unconventional way that is entirely atypical in classical storytelling. Most of the characters lash out uncontrollably as a result of their suffering, making them intentionally difficult to empathize with. The cast seems doomed from the very beginning, and it's clear to us that there will be no complete happiness or truly happy ending, making this manga more of an affirmation of nihilism than an argument for it. The readers witness a snapshot of several characters' lives, eerily similar to our own, yet exaggeratedly horrible. There is no epic plot, there is no fall from grace, and there is no nobility. There is no grand war, but there is an oppressive, yet cowardly, military force. There is nothing pure, nothing sacred, and all becomes corrupted soon enough. There is no happy present, just an unreachable past plus a seemingly unreachable future. There is nothing but a cesspool, on rock-bottom, populated by dreamers, exploiters, and the exploited; all of them getting by however they can, and the distinction between these three categories being often indiscernible, never clear cut, and constantly overlapping as the plot progresses. Despite this constant and unshakable misery, this sorrowful tale is brought to a compelling and unpredictable conclusion, and it somehow manages to remain an emotional roller-coaster throughout.
The characterization is arguably the strongest aspect, although there are only three central characters. This is one of the best and most intriguing love triangles I have ever read, if their relationship can be considered simple enough to be classified like that at all. The two women in the main character's life go through much development as we learn more about them, as they commit acts of desperation, and as the plot progresses. In the beginning of this manga it seems as if one of the girls is "good" and the other is "bad," but this is quickly changed as the audience's perceptions and ideas of what these words mean are challenged. They both show displays of compassion and malevolence realistically and understandably. You will most likely end up feeling equal parts fascination, sympathy, and animosity towards the pair of them. The main character is a sympathetically meek and artistic space-case (pun unintended) who just wants to live his life, but is never really allowed to. He spends his time and money on people who never appreciate him and who treat him, literally, like dirt. People use him and treat him like an object, rather than an artist or a person. Everyone around him pushes him around and generally makes him miserable, forcing him to take refuge in his daydreams about a small cast of surreal space-adventurers. These bits of fictional comic relief, that took place in his head, contrasted and paralleled with the main plot in a masterful way that actually enhanced the bitterness of the atmosphere rather than clumsily injecting sweetness or humor into such a bleak plot. The main character slowly comes down from this fantasy world, and they eventually connect, as he suffers more and more, and he slowly becomes one of the more self-aware characters in the manga, although that may not be saying much considering the consistently delusional nature exhibited by most of the cast. Character development is universal and every character serves a purpose.
Mikai Hoshi is saturated with symbolism and demands much attention (perhaps a couple readings as well) for full appreciation, even during the disturbing, depressing, and difficult to look at scenes that this manga is so full of. It has just about everything that I look for in a manga, and it is easily Matsumoto Jiro's strongest non-one-shot work. It takes most of the best ideas that are explored in his one shots and expands on them, thematically and atmospherically; it does this in a somber way and, as mentioned earlier, all humor only serves to make the plot darker. It contains more profound and intelligent, if simpler, societal commentary than all 82 chapters of Freesia, while never losing focus, and it feels a lot less aimless than Netsutai no Citron. Mikai Hoshi is a multifaceted, cynical, and supremely nihilistic story that just about anybody who isn't overly sensitive to sexual themes or tragic plots will most likely appreciate in some way or another.
 Alternative TitlesSynonyms: Mikai no Wakusei, Savage Planet Japanese: 未開の惑星〈ほし〉 More titlesInformationType: Manga
Volumes: 2
Chapters: 11
Status: Finished
Published: Dec 20, 2003
Theme:
Psychological
Serialization:
Manga Erotics F Authors:
Matsumoto, Jiro (Story & Art) Statistics Ranked: #94392 2 based on the top manga page. Please note that 'R18+' titles are excluded. Popularity: #3858
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Favorites: 82 | Reviews
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Jul 12, 2013
Mikai Hoshi (meaning Uncivilized Planet) is not a sci fi manga, although it does take place in a futuristic world. It seems to take place in the ghetto of this world; the characters have less technology and modern conveniences than you or I, and the sci fi aspect of the plot mostly serves to give the characters false hope. It is an essentially human story, devoid of gimmicks, raw, and powerful.
Mikai Hoshi, like most Matsumoto Jiro manga, is much more than it appears to be at first glance and is far greater than it would appear to be on a surface level. It actually ... 
Jan 7, 2009
This is a pretty interesting tale by Jiro Matsumoto, containing all of his trademark style and ambition yet lacking a little in the art, story and humour department compared to his other works. Yet the story is what makes the manga most interesting, even though it is a composite of conventional narrative beats, it's still a strange animal of its own and remains unique compared to other manga.
Contrary to appearances this is not a sci-fi tale, but it is interestingly set during a vague war that Matusomoto continually returns to in nearly all of his manga, even throwing in a cameo appearance of two ... 
Jul 14, 2020
To me, Jiro is one of the most important author in Japanese comic. Unfortunately, to the Japanese, Jiro is faux avant-garde, hence his sales number and empty trophy spots.
You should read this is you really like Japanese comic and think it is a wonderful medium, worthy of being considered art. Who am I kidding, you are not here because you want to know if it's worthy buying and reading. You are here because you are either like me, a fan of Jiro works, or you have read it and wonder what people think of it. Personally, I think it is the most memorable of his ... 
May 26, 2023
In my 'Fire Punch' Review, I said that 'Fire Punch' was the most underrated Manga on MAL. I've found at least two that exceed that one so far, and 'Uncivilized Planet' is one of them.
So far I've only read two of Jiro Matsumoto's Manga, this and [i]Freesia[/i]. It seems many prefer the latter (and other Matsumoto works) for how unconventional it is compared to this one. I find this strange, however. While it is true that 'Freesia' has very unique characters and an interesting premise, 'Uncivilized Planet' has a far more unique setting and presentation. The World our characters occupy is futuristic and sci-fi in ... 
Jun 28, 2022
To be honest, I didn't know what to expect of this one at first sight, but considering its recommendations and synopsis, I could figure out it was one of those "niche" mangas. Written by Jiro Matsumoto, it tells the story of three childhood friends, called Nicolo, Cookie and Naomi. They live in an "uncivilized planet", where its natives are constantly at war, and guess what? They are just like humans! There you can see that this is just a metaphor for how humans are evil, and all those kind of stuff you read and watched in thousands of different medias. Nothing new here.
The story ... |
