Orb: On the Movements of the Earth

Template:Nihongo is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Template:Ill. It was serialized in Shogakukan's [[Seinen manga|Template:Transliteration manga]] magazine Weekly Big Comic Spirits from September 2020 to April 2022, with its chapters collected in eight Template:Transliteration volumes. An anime television series adaptation produced by Madhouse premiered in October 2024.

Plot

The manga is set in 15th century "P Kingdom". People who suggest ideas in opposition to the teachings of the "C religion", such as that the Earth revolves around the Sun, are considered heretics, and are tortured or burned at the stake. Rafal, a child prodigy with an interest in astronomy, is forced by Hubert, a scholar and heretic, to assist him in his research for the "about the movement of the Earth" theory. When Nowak, an inquisitor, finds a diagram drawn by Rafal showing a heliocentric model, Hubert claims responsibility and is executed, leaving Rafal a spherical pendant. Rafal uses the pendant to find Hubert's hidden research materials on the theory. Rafal continues Hubert's research, but is informed on by his foster father, Potocki. At his inquisition, Rafal refuses to denounce the theory, committing suicide by ingesting poppy seeds.

Ten years later, Okgi and Gallus, two duelists, are assigned to guard a heretic during transportation. The heretic reveals the location of the research to them, dying to protect Okgi from Nowak. The pair decide to seek out a demoted priest, Badeni, to help make sense of the material. While on a bridge, it collapses, and Gallus entrusts their mission and the pendant to Okgi before dying. Okgi meets Badeni, who agrees to look at the materials in exchange for Okgi continuing Gallus' astronomical observations. Badeni finds the materials to be incomplete and requiring the use of more records. They post a problem at public boards in the city and find a girl, Jolanta, answering it on the same day. Jolanta, a researcher, agrees to cooperate with them by introducing them to Piast, an ardent advocate of the Ptolemaic model. After Okgi observes Venus waxing, Piast agrees to give the group access to his records. Using Piast's records, Badeni finishes the theory. Nowak catches on to the group, inspecting Badeni's cabin and noticing the pendant. Okgi holds off the inquisitors, but him and Badeni are captured. Nowak tortures Okgi, forcing Badeni to divulge the location of the research materials, and the two are executed. Antoni, a rival of Nowak, attempts to get Jolanta, Nowak's daughter, convicted as a heretic, but she is freed by an inquisitor. Cklamovski, a priest at Badeni's church, discovers that Badeni had transcribed a diary written by Okgi onto the heads of the local vagabonds.

Twenty-five years later, Schmitt, the captain of the Heretic Liberation Force, retrieves Okgi's book under Jolanta's orders, but is forced to leave it in an abandoned village. Draka, a Romani, comes across the book and, seeing an opportunity to profit, burns it, forcing Schmitt to take her along. Draka, in exchange for being allowed to use their printing press, recites the contents of the book to Jolanta. When the group is found by the inquisitors, Jolanta stays behind, blowing herself up.

Characters

Part 1

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A young prodigy who skipped a grade and entered university at the age of 12. Rafal has always excelled by making rational decisions. However, his interest was piqued by the beauty of the heliocentric theory, leading him to delve into extensive research on the subject.

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An inquisitor and the main antagonist. He lacks a specific ideology, but believes it is his duty to protect the peace of the world, including his daughter, even if it means resorting to cruel actions.

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A heretic is imprisoned for his forbidden research. In order to be released and continue his work, he feigned a change of heart. However, after meeting Rafal, Hubert revealed the truth about his research; the heliocentric theory.

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Rafal's foster father was the one who asked him to give up studying astronomy and instead focus on theology when he entered university.

Part 2

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A champion fighter with excellent eyesight, but a fear of looking at the sky. His mindset is overwhelmingly negative, with no expectations for the world and a desire to reach heaven as soon as possible.

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Oczy's comrade. Unlike with Oczy, his outlook is overwhelmingly positive even in times of despair, which he attributes to his fascination with Mars.

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A monk sets out on a quest to find the "best moment of his life". In his pursuit of knowledge, he disregards the rules of the church, leading to his eyes being burned and his subsequent banishment to a rural village.

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A research assistant in the field of astronomy, she was accepted into a facility led by a renowned cosmologist. However, she is currently feeling disheartened as she is not given the opportunity to conduct research to her full potential due to her gender. She is revealed to be Nowak's daughter, and she is unaware that Nowak is an inquisitor.

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An astronomer who leads the research group Jolenta belongs to. Despite being a believer in geocentrism, he has devoted his life to learning the truth about the universe.

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Media

Manga

Written and illustrated by Template:Ill, Orb: On the Movements of the Earth was serialized in Shogakukan's [[Seinen manga|Template:Transliteration manga]] magazine Weekly Big Comic Spirits from September 14, 2020, to April 18, 2022. Shogakukan collected its chapters in eight Template:Transliteration, released from December 11, 2020, to June 30, 2022.

Seven Seas Entertainment has licensed the manga for English publication, releasing the manga in a 2-in-1 omnibus edition.

Anime

In June 2022, an anime adaptation produced by Madhouse was announced. It was later revealed to be a television series directed by Kenichi Shimizu and written by Shingo Irie, with Masanori Shino designing the characters and Kensuke Ushio composing the music. The series premiered on October 5, 2024, on NHK General TV; it is set to run for 25 episodes, for two consecutive cours for a half-year run. The opening theme song is Template:Nihongo, performed by Sakanaction, while the ending theme song is Template:Nihongo, performed by Yorushika.

Netflix licensed the series for worldwide simulcast.

Other

The manga was featured in the music video for Amazarashi's song "1.0" on March 30, 2022, with the video showing lyrics using letterpress printing on art from the series. It was also featured in the music video for Amazarashi's song Template:Nihongo, released on June 30, 2022, with characters from the series and their dialogue being projected onto the planetarium of the Itabashi Science and Education Museum in Tokyo.

Reception

The manga was recommended by manga artists Hitoshi Iwaaki and Shin Takahashi. Chi was nominated for the 14th Manga Taishō in 2021 and placed second with 67 points; it was nominated for the 15th edition in 2022 and placed fifth with 59 points. It was nominated for the Next Manga Award in 2021 and placed tenth in the print category. The series ranked 37th on the 2021 "Book of the Year" list by Da Vinci magazine; it ranked 21st on the 2022 list. It ranked second on Takarajimasha's Kono Manga ga Sugoi! 2022 list of best manga for male readers. It won the Mandō Kobayashi Manga Grand Prix 2021, created by comedian and manga enthusiast Kendo Kobayashi. The manga was nominated for the 67th Shogakukan Manga Award in the general category in 2021; it was also nominated for the 68th edition in the same category in 2022. The series ranked fifth on the Nationwide Bookstore Employees' Recommended Comics of 2022. The manga was nominated for the 46th Kodansha Manga Award in the general category in 2022. The series won the 26th Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize in 2022. The manga won the 54th Seiun Award in the Best Comic category in 2023.

See also

• Hyakuemu, another manga series by the same author

Further reading

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External links

• Template:Official website Template:In lang
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• Template:Anime News Network