Hiraeth wa Tabiji no Hate (Hiraeth: The End of the Journey)

What lies beyond death? Mika Kashima, an energetic teenage girl, will soon discover the answer for herself. Struggling to overcome the loss of her best friend, Mika ceases to find meaning in her life and decides to die by suicide in an effort to chase after her friend in death. However, her fate takes an unexpected turn when an immortal human, accompanied by a god, prevents her from dying.

After learning about the existence of the afterlife from the god, Mika determines a new goal: to join the two eccentric individuals on a journey to the world of the dead—in hopes of seeing her best friend once more.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Edit
Background

Hiraeth wa Tabiji no Hate was published digitally in English as Hiraeth: The End of the Journey by Kodansha USA from March 29, 2022, to February 21, 2023. It was also released in Spanish as Hiraeth, el final de la travesía by Distrito Manga from September 8, 2022, to January 12, 2023.

More characters
Characters

Hibino, Yamato

Main

Hani

Main

Kashima, Mika

Main

Awashima, Chihiro

Supporting

Yatagarasu

Supporting

Reviews

Oct 12, 2022

Kosteh

Recommended

I found this manga out of no where and im really glad i did.
This is a short story about death, its meaning and themes. It really gets you to think what it means to die and psychology behind it. The story is only around 17 chapters but it manages to capture a lot of deep feelings. This manga made me rethink what it means to pass away and the philosophy behind it. I loved the main characters and their interactions. You grow to understand each characters and their ideals. The author really did a great job portaying the themes of passing away. I will for ...

Open

Gift

Apr 1, 2023

scaps

Mixed Feelings

Well-written

About a year ago, I wrote a preliminary review gushing about the English release of Hiraeth: The End of the Journey’s first volume. It resonated with my own views on life and death in a way that seemed rare (since then, I watched A24’s Everything Everywhere All at Once, which scratched a similar yet different itch). This past February, the final English volume—volume three—of Hiraeth released, and despite ending much sooner than I wanted it to, I appreciated the whole run all the same, and maintained my 9/10 rating.

You surely noticed that I’ve got a “Mixed Feelings” tag on this review. Well, I read through ...

Open

Gift

Sep 26, 2024

Yemi_Hikari

Not Recommended

I've majorly mixed feelings about recommending this one, feelings that lean towards actually not recommending the Manga. On one side, I'm quite understanding why this particular series ended up recommended for the "You Should Read This Manga 2024" list, which is, in turn, why I ended up reading this one in the first place. Whoever recommended it for the unique art and story wasn't lying, and for that, I must admit I did enjoy those aspects of the series.

On the same side, I can see this series appealing to anyone looking for characters whose sexual orientation isn't heterosexual.

The problem is -- ugh.

I can't get past ... this thought in my head that if a non-heterosexual teenager approached me asking for a series that involved non-heterosexual characters, this wouldn't be it. And yes, I know this series is Seinen, but that doesn't preclude teens from picking this up. The reason why I wouldn't recommend it for a non-heterosexual teenager is the same reason I wouldn't recommend this for a non-heterosexual adult I knew to have mental health issues, particularly if the mental health issues regarding their sexual orientation, such as having family reject them for their sexuality.

We are, after all, talking here about a series that dives into the topic of suicide, something thankfully alluded at in the summary here on MAL, so those going into the series are undoubtedly well-informed of the fact the Manga delves into the topic, but on the flip side there is absolutely no warning regarding the other part, of what the characters sexuality is, and alarm bells kept going off in my head regarding the message being sent, but by this I don't mean the endgame message which I do consider a positive message, but instead some of the unintentional messaging going on in here.

For example, how am I, the reader, supposed to interpret what is meant by soulmate at the end, given what we learn about the actual soulmate and why they're soulmates? What am I to think of the ambiguity of the main character's sexuality, given I felt the main character's feelings towards their dead friend could be interpreted as romantic rather than platonic? And what kind of message does that send, her going on a journey to meet her friend, as the summary suggests? What about the fact that her friend died is either non-existent or so obscure that I blinked and missed it, leaving even more questions that, as much as I'd love to recommend this, I've also found myself super conscious of who I'd recommend this to.

This, in turn, is the reason behind writing the review -- I think those picking up the series should be at least somewhat aware of before picking up this series that they may pick up on some narrative messages the original creator didn't intend to may make readers uncomfortable, which in turn may be a turn off for some, but for others may be what they need to enjoy this particular series.

Open

Gift

More stacks

Interest Stacks

unexpected manga bangers

by tizzytinks

11 Entries · 6 Restacks

Transgender Mangakas part 1

by Keizakomu

49 Entries · 74 Restacks

Pansexual Manga

by Keizakomu

26 Entries · 21 Restacks

More recommendations
Recommendations

More news
Recent News

North American Anime & Manga Releases for February

Here are the North American anime, manga, and light novel releases for February. Week 1: February 7 - 13 Anime Releases Horimiya Complete Season Blu-ray & DVD Co...read more

Feb 14, 2023 4:00 PM by Aiimee | Discuss (0 comments)

North American Anime & Manga Releases for July

Here are the North American anime, manga, and light novel releases for July. Week 1: July 5 - 11 Anime Releases Amnesia Complete Collection Blu-ray [2022 Re-release]...read more

Jul 6, 2022 5:57 AM by Aiimee | Discuss (7 comments)

More discussions
Recent Forum Discussion

Poll: Hiraeth wa Tabiji no Hate Chapter 17 Discussion FuMomo-kun - Dec 14, 2022	2 replies	by Merra_ »» Apr 22, 1:48 AM
Poll: Hiraeth wa Tabiji no Hate Chapter 11 Discussion FuMomo-kun - Dec 14, 2022	1 replies	by MickeyMinaj »» Mar 2, 4:50 AM
Poll: Hiraeth wa Tabiji no Hate Chapter 16 Discussion FuMomo-kun - Dec 14, 2022	0 replies	by FuMomo-kun »» Dec 14, 2022 7:51 PM
Poll: Hiraeth wa Tabiji no Hate Chapter 15 Discussion FuMomo-kun - Dec 14, 2022	0 replies	by FuMomo-kun »» Dec 14, 2022 7:37 PM
Poll: Hiraeth wa Tabiji no Hate Chapter 1 Discussion Misaorin - Oct 23, 2022	0 replies	by Misaorin »» Oct 23, 2022 2:49 PM

Hiraeth wa Tabiji no Hate
Hiraeth: The End of the Journey
Edit

What would you like to edit?

Alternative Titles

Information

Statistics

Available At

Resources

Edit
Synopsis

Edit
Background

Visit MALxJapan
MALxJapan -More than just anime-

More characters
Characters

Reviews

Interest Stacks

More recommendations
Recommendations

More news
Recent News

More discussions
Recent Forum Discussion

MoreTop Anime

MoreTop Airing Anime

MoreMost Popular Characters

Hiraeth wa Tabiji no HateHiraeth: The End of the Journey Edit What would you like to edit? SynopsisBackgroundAlternative TitlesPictureChapters/VolumesPublishing DatesRelationsTypeExternal Links

Alternative Titles

Information

Statistics

Available At

Resources

EditSynopsis

EditBackground

Visit MALxJapan MALxJapan -More than just anime-

More charactersCharacters

Reviews

Interest Stacks

More recommendations Recommendations

More newsRecent News

More discussionsRecent Forum Discussion

MoreTop Anime

MoreTop Airing Anime

MoreMost Popular Characters

Hiraeth wa Tabiji no Hate
Hiraeth: The End of the Journey
Edit

What would you like to edit?

Edit
Synopsis

Edit
Background

Visit MALxJapan
MALxJapan -More than just anime-

More characters
Characters

More recommendations
Recommendations

More news
Recent News

More discussions
Recent Forum Discussion