Five Star Stories
Encyclopedia
is a manga
series created by Mamoru Nagano, building on his work on the anime
series Heavy Metal L-Gaim
.
The story is staged at an alien cluster
of four major planetary system
s. The God of Light, Amaterasu, the immortal emperor of the Grees Kingdom on the planet Delta Belune, is destined to rule the whole Joker System. He and Lachesis, his bride and fatima, are the main characters of this epic story.
An anime
film adaptation of the first volume, directed by Kazuo Yamazaki, was released in 1989.
is made up of four stars: Eastern, Western, Southern and Northern. The "fifth star" is a large comet
named Stant that passes through that sector of space every 1,500 years pulling with it its own collection of orbiting planet
s. (Note that the term "Star Cluster" is somewhat inappropriate, considering that even the smallest real life clusters typically contain several hundred stars, although it may simply be that the "Five Stars" are the only ones out of a larger cluster that have planets. The Joker area is also frequently referred to as a galaxy
, or even a constellation
, although these descriptions are even less appropriate, constellations only being visible as such when observed from a distance. It is much more likely that Nagano Mamoru is simply unconcerned or unknowing of the minutiae of astrophysics.
In the distant past the Farus Di Kanon Empire, now commonly known as the "Super Empire", controlled all 4 solar systems of the Joker Cluster. They enjoyed a level of technology much higher than is currently known and sent explorers to the far reaches of the Joker Galaxy. Around the year 9000 AD (Ammon Duul) the empire collapsed due to internal strife. The explorers were called home and what remained of civilization focused mainly on survival. Much technology and knowledge was lost by the time the imperial families of Amaterasu, Fillmore and Hathuha gathered and established the JC era. JC stands for "Joker Calendar" and was meant to give a common frame of reference to all nations to help foster a lasting peace. The JC calendar was adopted but the dream of peace was never realized.
The first story of The Five Star Stories begins in JC 2988. At this time interstellar travel is common and genetically engineered "fatimas" are well established as necessary co-pilots of the fearsome mortar headds that dominate the battlefields. Warfare between nations is commonplace and few still hope for peace.
Mortar Headds are the combat mainstays of the Joker Universe. They are mecha
which require superhuman reflexes and skill to control, and are therefore only utilized by headdliners with Fatima copilots. Fatimas are humanoid creatures genetically engineered for a life of service on the battlefield. Fatimas are necessary copilots for mortar headds and mentally merge with the computer systems of these devastating machines to control weapons, communications and other vital processes. As such, Fatimas are designed to have computational skills rivaling any computer.
The major story arcs of the manga are :
, directed by Kazuo Yamazaki, produced by Haruki Kadokawa
, and premiered in Japan on March 11, 1989. It was re-released in 2002 in DVD format. The licensing rights are currently owned by ADV Films, and an English version was released in March 2005.
, reboots of the first three volumes have all ranked within the top 30 best-selling manga of during their release week: Book I at number 11 selling 31,471 copies, book II at number 23 selling 30,958 copies, and book III at number 15 selling 38,437 copies.
Manga
Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...
series created by Mamoru Nagano, building on his work on the anime
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
series Heavy Metal L-Gaim
Heavy Metal L-Gaim
is an anime television series, begun in 1984, which was directed by Yoshiyuki Tomino. Its characters and mecha were designed by Mamoru Nagano, who would later go on to create The Five Star Stories. Heavy Metal L-Gaim takes place in the Pentagona System, a solar system made up of five planets...
.
The story is staged at an alien cluster
Star cluster
Star clusters or star clouds are groups of stars. Two types of star clusters can be distinguished: globular clusters are tight groups of hundreds of thousands of very old stars which are gravitationally bound, while open clusters, more loosely clustered groups of stars, generally contain less than...
of four major planetary system
Planetary system
A planetary system consists of the various non-stellar objects orbiting a star such as planets, dwarf planets , asteroids, meteoroids, comets, and cosmic dust...
s. The God of Light, Amaterasu, the immortal emperor of the Grees Kingdom on the planet Delta Belune, is destined to rule the whole Joker System. He and Lachesis, his bride and fatima, are the main characters of this epic story.
An anime
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
film adaptation of the first volume, directed by Kazuo Yamazaki, was released in 1989.
Plot
The Five Star Stories takes its name from the Joker Star Cluster where the stories take place. The star clusterStar cluster
Star clusters or star clouds are groups of stars. Two types of star clusters can be distinguished: globular clusters are tight groups of hundreds of thousands of very old stars which are gravitationally bound, while open clusters, more loosely clustered groups of stars, generally contain less than...
is made up of four stars: Eastern, Western, Southern and Northern. The "fifth star" is a large comet
Comet
A comet is an icy small Solar System body that, when close enough to the Sun, displays a visible coma and sometimes also a tail. These phenomena are both due to the effects of solar radiation and the solar wind upon the nucleus of the comet...
named Stant that passes through that sector of space every 1,500 years pulling with it its own collection of orbiting planet
Planet
A planet is a celestial body orbiting a star or stellar remnant that is massive enough to be rounded by its own gravity, is not massive enough to cause thermonuclear fusion, and has cleared its neighbouring region of planetesimals.The term planet is ancient, with ties to history, science,...
s. (Note that the term "Star Cluster" is somewhat inappropriate, considering that even the smallest real life clusters typically contain several hundred stars, although it may simply be that the "Five Stars" are the only ones out of a larger cluster that have planets. The Joker area is also frequently referred to as a galaxy
Galaxy
A galaxy is a massive, gravitationally bound system that consists of stars and stellar remnants, an interstellar medium of gas and dust, and an important but poorly understood component tentatively dubbed dark matter. The word galaxy is derived from the Greek galaxias , literally "milky", a...
, or even a constellation
Constellation
In modern astronomy, a constellation is an internationally defined area of the celestial sphere. These areas are grouped around asterisms, patterns formed by prominent stars within apparent proximity to one another on Earth's night sky....
, although these descriptions are even less appropriate, constellations only being visible as such when observed from a distance. It is much more likely that Nagano Mamoru is simply unconcerned or unknowing of the minutiae of astrophysics.
In the distant past the Farus Di Kanon Empire, now commonly known as the "Super Empire", controlled all 4 solar systems of the Joker Cluster. They enjoyed a level of technology much higher than is currently known and sent explorers to the far reaches of the Joker Galaxy. Around the year 9000 AD (Ammon Duul) the empire collapsed due to internal strife. The explorers were called home and what remained of civilization focused mainly on survival. Much technology and knowledge was lost by the time the imperial families of Amaterasu, Fillmore and Hathuha gathered and established the JC era. JC stands for "Joker Calendar" and was meant to give a common frame of reference to all nations to help foster a lasting peace. The JC calendar was adopted but the dream of peace was never realized.
The first story of The Five Star Stories begins in JC 2988. At this time interstellar travel is common and genetically engineered "fatimas" are well established as necessary co-pilots of the fearsome mortar headds that dominate the battlefields. Warfare between nations is commonplace and few still hope for peace.
Mortar Headds are the combat mainstays of the Joker Universe. They are mecha
Mecha
A mech , is a science fiction term for a large walking bipedal tank or robot, including ones on treads and animal shapes.-Characteristics:...
which require superhuman reflexes and skill to control, and are therefore only utilized by headdliners with Fatima copilots. Fatimas are humanoid creatures genetically engineered for a life of service on the battlefield. Fatimas are necessary copilots for mortar headds and mentally merge with the computer systems of these devastating machines to control weapons, communications and other vital processes. As such, Fatimas are designed to have computational skills rivaling any computer.
Manga
So far, 12 volumes of manga have been published since 1986. There is an English version of the manga available, published by Toyspress, a company co-founded by the author. Each volume of the English version contained approximately 1/3 to 1/2 of the equivalent Japanese volumes. To date, 26 volumes of the English version have been produced, covering Japanese volumes 1 through 10. Volumes 11 and 12 have yet to be translated and the status of future English versions is unknown at this time.The major story arcs of the manga are :
| Story Arc | Japanese Books | English Volumes |
|---|---|---|
| Destiny Three Fates Lachesis | I | 1-3 |
| Destiny Three Fates Clotho the Sleeping Witch | II - III | 4-8 |
| Trafficks 1 | IV - V | 9-12 |
| Destiny Three Fates Wandering Atropos | VI - VIII | 13 - 20 |
| The Chivaleries | IX - X | 21 - 26 |
| The Majestic Stand | XI - XII | Not translated |
Film
A film adaptation of The Five Star Stories covers the events in the first arc of the manga, Destiny Three Fates: Lachesis. It was created by SunriseSunrise (company)
is a Japanese animation studio and production enterprise. It is a subsidiary of Namco Bandai Holdings. Its former name was Nippon Sunrise, and prior to that, Sunrise Studios...
, directed by Kazuo Yamazaki, produced by Haruki Kadokawa
Haruki Kadokawa
is a Japanese publisher, film producer, director and screenwriter. He was the son of Genyoshi Kadokawa and inherited the position of president of the publishing house Kadokawa Shoten in 1975. Under his guidance, the company soon branched into film production, and by 1994 Kadokawa had produced close...
, and premiered in Japan on March 11, 1989. It was re-released in 2002 in DVD format. The licensing rights are currently owned by ADV Films, and an English version was released in March 2005.
Reception
According to OriconOricon
, established in 1999, is the holding company at the head of a Japanese corporate group that supplies statistics and information on music and the music industry in Japan. It started as , which was founded by Sōkō Koike in November 1967 and became known for its music charts. Oricon Inc...
, reboots of the first three volumes have all ranked within the top 30 best-selling manga of during their release week: Book I at number 11 selling 31,471 copies, book II at number 23 selling 30,958 copies, and book III at number 15 selling 38,437 copies.