Space Brothers Review: It's Never Too Late to Chase the Dream You Abandoned

Quick Take

• A 32-year-old man who was fired from his job follows his childhood dream and applies to JAXA — the Japanese space program — to become an astronaut, years after his younger brother already went to space
• The most grounded and human manga about space exploration — realistic, detailed, and genuinely inspiring
• 44+ volumes, ongoing, with an anime adaptation and a devoted readership

Who Is This Manga For?

• Readers who love space exploration and want manga that treats it with realistic detail
• Anyone who has set aside a dream and wonders if it's still possible
• Fans of drama with genuine stakes and adult characters making adult decisions
• Readers who want long-form manga with exceptional craft

Content Warnings & Age Rating

Age Rating: T (Teen) Content Warnings: Themes of professional failure and recovery, realistic depiction of astronaut selection process

Very accessible. One of the most emotionally positive manga in this guide.

Yu's Rating

Category	Score
Story Depth	★★★★★
Art Style	★★★★☆
Character Development	★★★★★
Accessibility for Non-Japanese Readers	★★★★☆
Reread Value	★★★★★

Story Overview

Mutta Nanba, at 32, is working at an automotive company and quietly failing. As a child, he and his younger brother Hibito promised to become astronauts. Hibito kept the promise — he is about to become the first Japanese astronaut to walk on the moon. Mutta got distracted by life and let the dream slip.

After being fired (for headbutting his boss who insulted Hibito), Mutta applies to JAXA's astronaut candidate program, encouraged by his mother who secretly submitted his application. What follows is the most detailed and realistic portrayal of astronaut selection in manga: group evaluation where everyone watches everyone, isolation tests, technical training, and the constant question of whether Mutta's specific combination of traits — gifted, late-blooming, fundamentally decent — is what the space program needs.

Characters

Mutta Nanba — One of manga's most fully realized adult protagonists. His self-doubt is real, his competence is genuine, and his specific way of thinking about problems — pattern recognition, encyclopedic memory, tendency to catastrophize before solving — is consistently portrayed with accuracy and warmth.

Hibito Nanba — The younger brother whose success is not a source of rivalry but of complicated love. His own arc, particularly after a crisis on the moon, develops him into a full person rather than a benchmark.

The Selection Candidates — The group of people competing alongside Mutta for limited slots; each becomes fully realized through the extended selection process.

Art Style

Koyama's art is realistic rather than stylized — the astronaut training sequences are rendered with documentary attention to detail, and the human characters are drawn with the expressive subtlety that emotional drama requires. The space sequences are appropriately awe-inspiring.

Cultural Context

Space Brothers is rooted in real JAXA history and procedures — the astronaut selection process, the psychological evaluation methods, and the technical requirements are depicted with genuine research. For Japanese readers, the manga has a patriotic resonance connected to Japan's actual space program. For Western readers, the universal human elements — age anxiety, professional failure, sibling relationships — translate completely.

What I Love About It

Mutta's specific intelligence. He does not win through conventional achievement. He wins through the kind of mind that sees connections others miss, that remembers everything and uses it in the right moment, that is chronically underestimated because it does not present as typical brilliance. That specificity — drawing a character whose gifts are real but unusual — is what makes Space Brothers exceptional.

The manga is also genuinely funny. Mutta's internal monologue, his social anxiety, and his relationship with his fellow candidates provide consistent warmth and humor alongside the drama.

What English-Speaking Fans Say

Space Brothers has a devoted Western following among readers interested in space and adult drama. The anime adaptation (77 episodes) is considered one of the better realistic drama anime. Western readers praise the realistic depiction of the space program and Mutta's character as one of manga's best adult protagonists.

Memorable Scene ⚠️ Spoiler Warning

Mutta's realization during the isolation test that he has been unconsciously solving the selection's hidden challenge — that his specific way of thinking has been the right approach all along — is the first major payoff of the manga and the moment readers fully commit to his arc.

Similar Manga

• Planetes — Realistic space, similar attention to human detail
• Vinland Saga — Adult protagonist, similar long-form patience
• Silver Spoon — Realistic setting, similar character development
• Bakuman — Adult dream-chasing, similar warmth

Reading Order / Where to Start

Volume 1. The selection arc that begins in volume 1 is where the manga proves its quality.

Official English Translation Status

Kodansha USA is publishing the series. Currently 20 volumes available in English (the series is much further ahead in Japan).

Pros & Cons

Pros

• Mutta is one of manga's great adult protagonists
• Realistic space program detail that is fascinating rather than dry
• Genuinely inspiring without being saccharine
• The ensemble cast is excellent

Cons

• Ongoing with significant gap between Japanese and English releases
• The realistic pacing means some story arcs develop slowly
• 20 English volumes is a commitment before reaching the Japanese current point

Format Comparison

Format	Notes
Individual Volumes	Standard Kodansha USA release
Digital	Works well
Physical	Fine

Where to Buy

Get Space Brothers Vol. 1 on Amazon →

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