Houseki no Kuni

Long ago, Earth was struck by six meteorites, creating six moons and leaving a lone island in their wake. Those who could not make it to the island sank to the bottom of the ocean, where, over time, they slowly turned to crystal. As countless millennia passed, 28 of these crystallized lifeforms, known as the Lustrous, rose from the depths and resided on the island. Led by the wise Kongou-sensei, they must defend themselves against the seemingly infinite number of Lunarians, inhabitants of the moons who seek to harvest their valuable bodies for crafting weapons and jewelry.

Houseki no Kuni centers around Phosphophyllite, a young gem about to turn three hundred years old. Clumsy, extremely fragile, and having no visible talent, they are one of the weakest gems around, unable to help in the fight against the Lunarians in any meaningful way. But as the battle with the otherworldly invaders rages on, they soon learn that power comes at a cost that no one should have to pay.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

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Background

Houseki no Kuni ranked 10th in the 2015 Kono Manga ga Sugoi! for the Male Readers division.

The series has been published in English as Land of the Lustrous by Kodansha Comics USA since June 27, 2017. It has also been released in Spanish as La Tierra de las Gemas by ECC Ediciones since September 17, 2019; and in Brazilian Portuguese as Terra das Gemas by NewPOP Editora since November 5, 2021.

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Adaptation:

Houseki no Kuni, Houseki no Kuni PV

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Characters

Phosphophyllite

Main

Antarcticite

Supporting

Diamond

Supporting

Cinnabar

Supporting

Padparadscha

Supporting

Bort

Supporting

Lapis Lazuli

Supporting

Yellow Diamond

Supporting

Rutile

Supporting

Alexandrite

Supporting

Reviews

May 5, 2024

Biisoo

Recommended

Well well well. This was hands down one of The most unique manga I've read. From it's artstyle to it's execution and even upto it's ending. It was all truly a one of a kind experience. So unique that after finishing the final chapter, I was lost for words. When a work makes you feel lost (in a good way) that's how you know it was done incredibly well.

The story starts very basic-ish, The Protagonist Phos is also very different in the sense that not only does he not have any lofty aspirations, He just wants to be useful and loved by others. If ... there ever was a simple wish then that would be it. What Phos goes through in the span of this manga is nothing short of inconceivable, tragic, hopeful and depressing. All at once.

The art (although at first it was a bit hard to grasp what was going on sometimes but it evolved very intricately throughout the series) is a highlight here. Like seriously, it's stellar and compliments the story perfectly. Another thing to highlight is the excellent use of black and white that the author Ichikawa Haruko managed to accomplish here.

The one standout point of this manga is that there's no good or evil here. You look at some characters and you're like, They are very clearly evil but that's where you're wrong. There's no clear good or evil line to be crossed here and this series tricks you alot into thinking that. Definitely made me feel very polarized as to whose side I should take. Making the reader question themselves is a sign of good story telling.

The ending, while not the best definitely seemed like the best that the author could come up with and for that, I respect the author very much. Actually having a conclusion to a series as beautiful as this is very satisfying. Many people might not be fond of poetic endings but the ending is certainly on the good side, atleast for me.

The themes are also very thought provoking, like for say what if there were no humans, or there was everlasting happiness? Will we get bored of living forever. The series has so many tonal shifts, it goes from a happy adventurous vibe to a chaotic all hell loose vibe while also retaining it's charm. It goes through so many developments from start to finish and even the protagonist goes through so much that it's honestly a surreal experience.

I'll conclude my review by saying that this is definitely a one of a kind manga that deserves all the praise and should be read by more and more people, You may not like it at first but it will gradually suck you in and you'll be left feeling either, Happy or Sad at the end of it.

Thanks for reading.

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Oct 10, 2023

Gantle

Mixed Feelings

Preliminary (103/108 eps)

First of all, I wanna make clear that this manga is very enjoayble, I literally read almost all of it in 1 day, of how good it was to read. BUT, it has a lot of problems(to me) that makes it not as good as I would like it to be.The first problem is, the characters. It would be a lie if i say they're "empty" or something like that, but, for me it's pretty clear of how most of them just exists in order to develop Phos, more than themselves(like Antarcticite). Dia was the one that i was looking for big development but as ...

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Jan 1, 2024

almeidaalajoel

Not Recommended

Funny

Preliminary (1/108 eps)

Spoiler

[Spoilers]

Seriously, seriously, don't read this. It starts off strong, with an intriguing setting and a loveable main character (Phos). The character interactions are fantastic and there is a sense of mystery and melancholy to the whole story. There are various relationships Phos makes that are set up such for future development in different directions. However... (massive spoilers below)

At a certain point within the story, the author decides that Phos needs to suffer and that everyone should turn on them, and makes no effort to make this happening believable. Every single character who Phos has interacted with, befriended, had fun with, fought with, bonded over lost ...

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Manga 'Houseki no Kuni' Concludes Serialization

Haruko Ichikawa's Houseki no Kuni (Land of the Lustrous) manga will end in the June issue of Afternoon on April 25, according to the May issue released on Mond...read more

Mar 25, 9:36 PM by Vindstot | Discuss (30 comments)

North American Anime & Manga Releases for August

Here are the North American anime, manga, and light novel releases for August. Week 1: August 1 - 7 Anime Releases Dragon Ball Z Season 1-9 Collection Blu-ray [2023 ...read more

Aug 10, 2023 8:49 AM by Aiimee | Discuss (1 comment)

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Poll: Houseki no Kuni Chapter 108 Discussion ( 1 2 ) kizumi91 - Apr 24	89 replies	by Biisoo »» 1 hour ago
Manga actually ended in chapter 98, everything after is nonsense otacobell - May 4	6 replies	by Catcusxo »» 3 hours ago
Poll: Houseki no Kuni Chapter 99 Discussion ( 1 2 ) possession - Nov 24, 2022	59 replies	by Biisoo »» 3 hours ago
Poll: Houseki no Kuni Chapter 7 Discussion Stark700 - Jul 21, 2014	3 replies	by Rhae »» 4 hours ago
Poll: Houseki no Kuni Chapter 6 Discussion Stark700 - Jul 20, 2014	4 replies	by Rhae »» 4 hours ago

Houseki no Kuni
Land of the Lustrous
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