Boku no Chikyuu wo Mamotte
Please Save My Earth

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Please Save My Earth is a manga about the complexity of human relationships and the seemingly insurmountable burden of sin. A group of high school students, and one younger boy, suddenly begin to experience strange dreams alluding to their past lives as alien scientists stationed on a secret moon base. This sounds like an audacious and almost absurd premise, and it really is audacious, but never once did it strike me as such after I started reading in earnest, which is a testament to the organic storytelling. Over time, these dreamlike memories unravel more and more of an epic tragedy, while also threatening to scrape ... away at the characters' current selves. At first glance, the character introductions may seem a bit overwhelming, and likewise, the story is admittedly hard to follow, but once you wrap your head around the gist of it all, everything starts to flow together seamlessly to the point you that you can't peel your eyes away. As you delve further and further into Saki Hiwatari's rabbit hole of peculiar storytelling devices and such accompanying various interlocking and intertwining twists and turns that would seem capable of confusing even the most astute of readers, the story's essence all at once begins to take a tangible shape, and what was at first bewildering suddenly becomes both unexpectedly congruent and consequential.

In accordance, the science fiction world-building is put forth at a tepid but proper pace, and as with the other plot elements, couldn't be more deceptively appropriate to the grander story at hand. With time, you gradually learn the mechanics and intricacies of a complex alien society. However, the fulcrum of PSME's story is a much more isolated and intimate event, which has a profound impact on each of the scientists' lives, and in turn comes to torment the students' who inherited their memories. It's perhaps a bit difficult to describe because nothing else I've read or seen is quite like it in terms of inordinate narrative structure and layering.

The cast is rich with depth and nuances that drive the series forward. Rin, Alice, and Jinpachi, in particular, along with their past lives, undergo extreme character development as they struggle to come to terms with their mysterious pasts and the overbearing sense of guilt inhabiting their inherited psyches. The flashbacks are layered in PSME, as the story frequently shifts between the characters' current selves, their lives on the moon base, and their upbringings in a distant alien society before becoming scientists destined to study the Earth from its lunar accompaniment. All of these experiences contribute to a perfect storm of complex human interactions that test the boundaries of morality and self-identity. The retroactive approach to unveiling the aforementioned "critical event", and the emotional and societal conditions that precursed it, depict a hauntingly visceral coalescence of love, loathing and regret.

The most integral motif of PSME, or rather, the motif most present and to blame for in this "critical event", is of the encumbrance of loneliness. One of the scientists, Shion, is a war orphan who shuns others out of spite for their innocence. Another, Mokuren, is something of an angelic deity blessed with a supernatural power as well as natural beauty and brilliance. Her immense value to society forces her to lead an isolated childhood, where she struggles to form meaningful interpersonal relationships in a world where she is viewed as a perfect object more than she is a human girl. To Shion, Mokuren embodies everything he hates in the world, and to Mokuren, his coldness towards her is precious proof that she is but a regular woman and not the doll others' perceive her to be. And thus, with this mutual shared loneliness, along with precarious environmental circumstances, the two's fates become intertwined forever. Along with the rest of the cast, these are extremely flawed characters with realistic complexes and coping mechanisms, but that's part of what makes PSME so inherently human. Hiwatari's core characters constantly struggle between magnanimity and transgression under the duress of a moral crucible, and in her narrative artistry, the reader bears witness to both decay and rebirth in a cathartic defiance of the oppressive and incorrigible gravity of the story at large.

It should be noted that the art is a bit dated, and sometimes lacking in the same level of detail present in most modern manga, but it's overwhelmingly artsy and effective at conveying the visuals necessary to complement the entrancing narrative. PSME is an unrelenting emotional roller-coaster lovingly adorned with intricate detail and profound psychological examination of the human sense of self and belonging. It's almost so utterly and inescapably grounded in psychological realism that the sci-fi exterior morphs into something more like a pretense rather than a premise in itself. Upon the most graceful possible descent from this pretense unfurls a majestic and indefatigably heart-wrenching tale of love and loss. It's in this deconstruction and constant blurring of traditional genre lines, tropes and narrative sequencing that PSME's brilliance manifests most strikingly. Hiwatari's highly calculated ensemble of thematic and narrative chaos is spellbinding. Under this anarchic context of a dauntingly large-scale epic of alien civilizations and the fate of the Earth, PSME simultaneously solicits both cutting emotional resonance and deeply philosophical propositions, yet through it all, never loses sight of what it means to be human, and perhaps more intrinsically, and in the authoress's own words, what makes our world so maddeningly beloved.

I was introduced to Please Save My Earth by the anime- which isn't even close to being as good as the manga is. And I loved it. The manga is probably the best Shoujo manga I've ever read- the plot keeps readers guessing, the characters are all interesting, and all have very intricated and deep pasts(In the past lives, anyway- the present day characters are interesting too, though.)
The only flaw with this series is that the artwork's a bit dated- but honestly, it doesn't really matter. The series is just THAT good to get past it's artwork. I highly recommend this series, and if you ... love shoujo, buy this series now.

This story had so much potential, but it has two MAJOR issues that can’t be overlooked. What I’m about to write are, of course, spoilers - but I feel like people should know about these things before going into the story. I really wish I did so that I didn’t waste so much time reading this garbage. (All of my sarcasm in this review is referring to how things were presented in the story.)


1. The romanticisation of rape. The main couple in this story is initiated by rape. Yes, you read that right. Shion rapes Mokuren and ‘defiles’ her (his words), because she’s just sooo ... perfect and he hates her for it. And you know what she does?, she forgives him. She forgives him even though she cried throughout it happening, and announces that they’re engaged to cover for him. Then they actually grow to love eachother.

But that's okay because he's just a damaged hot boy, right guys?. And Mokuren is just too empathetic, what a boundaryless sweetheart!1. Forbidden love and the ideal woman is right here! <3

If the first point wasn't enough to turn you off, maybe Shion and Mokuren’s reincarnated relationship will be.

Their love transcended to another lifetime - where they’re now known as Rin and Alice. Rin is 8 and Alice is a high schooler, and they’re engaged. At first it was a forced engagement (typical Shion, manipulating and forcing Mokuren into things even in another lifetime!) - but don’t worry, because they really get engaged in the end. Yes, Rin who’s 12 by the end marries Alice who’s an adult. But that's alright too guys, because Rin is mature and tall for his age. Not to mention, that Alice also felt romantically drawn to Rin while he was 8.. you know, because he was Shion.

Both of these plot points are major in the story and are sickening. I couldn’t care for the other qualities of PSME. 'Complex relationships' don't mean shit in the face of rape and pedophilia. Not to mention that Shion/Rin and Mokuren/Alice's relationships were extremely toxic in both lifetimes. Shion continued to lie and manipulate Mokuren in their reincarnation, so the author did a great job of romanticising abusive relationships as well.

If you care about these issues, I don’t recommend that you read this manga. There are plenty of good manga out there that don't perpetuate the garbage that this story does.

PSME is hands down one of the best manga I've read so far and even the anime, which is not nearly as good because it leaves out much of the original story line, outshines most other anime I've seen in the last few years.
It is has just the right amount of "typical shoujo" elements, sci-fi and drama. There are quite a few characters to keep track of though and that can be a bit confusing at first, but shouldn't be a problem anymore after a few chapters. All the characters (past and "present" forms of the main cast as well as other characters joining in ... as the series goes on) are interesting and to some extant relatable. Everyone should be able to pick a favourite and you really feel for them while reading and learning more about their past and present situation.
I highly recommend this series to everyone who enjoys shoujo as well as sci-fi stories and likes being surprised by a series - because (for me at least) PSME is full of surprises and turns.
I rated the artwork with "good" (while everything else with "outstanding") because this series was published in the 80s and 90s and... you can tell by the artowrk. Especially in the first few issues. But it is very interesting to see how Hiwatari Saki's skill as a mangaka improved a lot while she worked on this series.

I have never read a manga series as good as this one, the characters seemed so real and the story was just so outstanding. For years I've seen this manga on different manga websites but skipped over it because the art which didn't look really good. Then boredom set in and I was willing to read anything to get over it so I decided to give the series a try. I soon got over my boredom quickly and soon become entranced in Saki Hiwatari"s story about seven scientists who all become reincarnated on earth. The story was so good I didn't even notice the old ... art and soon the art started to become really good. All the characters were really deep and learning about each character's past was so interesting and entrancing especially the pasts of the two main charters Arisu and Rin. I came close to crying many times due to the tragedy of the scientist's pasts, the ending was really good and cleared up all loose ends.I became so addicted to it that I finished the long series in only two days. For those who have skipped over this amazing series because of the art I advice you rethink your choice and read this awesome manga and you won't regret it. :D

Don't be fooled by it's sci-fi genre because this manga is far more realistic than most of your typical manga in terms of the complexity of human nature and relationships.

This has got to be one of those treasures long forgotten throughout time. Nothing is ever rushed in this manga. It takes its time to unravel each of the character's past and leaves us readers to decide what exactly the truth is. Unlike many present day mangas, PSME is very realistic in terms of the raw emotions the story centres around, and you'd be surprised at how much these emotions govern the story itself, where you're ... drawn into each characters past and finally know what they were thinking during certain events.

At first we are shown the tragic side of this manga and you would think that that would be the climatic point of this story and the end all of all tragic events, which is true, however it is after this "climatic" point that you begin to realise that it is not the actual event that makes it tragic but how the characters think, feel and interact that you begin to understand the urgency and true sadness the author is trying to convey. Don't get me wrong, you won't be plunged into depression after reading this, it's more one that you will enjoy with its twists and turns and shocking revelations.

I dunno how many of you out there know about Please Save My Earth, I expect not many unless you're into 90's shoujo, considering the age of this series. Well, I'm here to try to change that and make you read it! ~(＾◇^)/

Simply put, because of its age, this series does have some flaws in the art department. At times you can tell it's both old and wasn't very good/was still rough, but the characters and story far than make up for it. But the art does improve as time goes on, so it's a great to watch a mangaka grow, so props to Saki ... Hiwatari for improving!

This isn't a typical love story. I'm not even sure if it's a love story, so much as it happens to have some romance. The MC, Alice, is a young girl of 16 that starts having dreams in space with people she does not know. From there it quickly evolves into being one of the most compelling shoujos I've ever read, rivaled only by X/1999 from CLAMP in terms of content and handling of it. Do beware this series will fuck with your feelings!

I'm not about to spoil, mostly because I don't remember everything 100% and this is one of the series I can't reread because it's too deeply inside me, just like Alive - The Final Evolution, another manga that I do want to talk about but it's hard for me to.

Safe to say that this manga has characters just like I love them: realistic, human, flawed, make mistakes and can be stupid, naive and will get punished for it, but never in a mean sort of way. In fact, I found it tackled a lot of subjects I wasn't expecting, and one of the main casts is even gay.

Aside the characters, what I love loved about this was how the plot was so well thought out, and introduced. Mysteries start small and grow, evolving to big proportions, until finally it culminates into one of the most gripping climaxes I've experienced. I was crying by the end of this manga, I was so very touched by the sacrifice and pain and heart of these characters, how could I not?

/sighs lovingly

The ending is hopeful, and feels like a big warm hug after a tough fight of epic proportions, and I could not be happier that this series exists. It's a pity more people don't know it, and it got a pretty heavily condensed OVA that did not make it justice. If I could campaign for a series to get an anime adaptation, this would be the one!

Well, and After School Nightmare...and a lot of others, but you get my feelings! （＾＿－）≡★

I'll say this also covers a very interesting Sci-Fi element that I do not usually see in shoujo, and it's superb.

If you like a good plot heavy series, with good characters that grow and learn and evolve, then definitely pick this one a go! Plus the romance was both tragic and so sweet, how could anyone not like this???! Get on it! ヽ(*⌒∇⌒*)ﾉ