Submarine 707 Review: The Submarine Manga That Made the Ocean a Battlefield
by Satoru Ozawa
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What if submarine warfare had its own manga — one that actually understood how submarines work?
Quick Take
- Satoru Ozawa's naval combat manga — detailed, authentic, and genuinely exciting about underwater warfare
- One of the first manga to treat submarine tactics as a serious subject worthy of careful depiction
- Compact at 7 volumes and foundational for naval action manga that followed
Who Is This Manga For?
- Naval history and military fiction fans who want manga treatment of submarine warfare
- Readers of classic action manga who want an unusual setting
- Anyone interested in manga history — this is foundational for the naval action genre
- Fans of submarine fiction (Das Boot, Hunt for Red October) who want the manga equivalent
Content Warnings & Age Rating
Age Rating: T (Teen) Content Warnings: Naval combat. Submarine action themes. Appropriate for the rating.
Suitable for teen readers.
Yu's Rating
| Category | Score |
|---|---|
| Story Depth | ★★★★☆ |
| Art Style | ★★★★☆ |
| Character Development | ★★★★☆ |
| Accessibility for Non-Japanese Readers | ★★★★☆ |
| Reread Value | ★★★★☆ |
Story Overview
Submarine 707 is a Japanese Self-Defense Force vessel tasked with responding to threats against international maritime security. The crew — commanded by an experienced captain whose expertise is the series' center — operates in the specific conditions of submarine warfare: limited information, three-dimensional battlespace, communication restrictions, and the constant pressure of an environment that is immediately lethal if anything goes wrong.
Ozawa depicts submarine warfare with genuine technical understanding: the use of sonar, the management of depth and pressure, the mechanics of torpedo combat, and the psychological conditions of extended underwater operation. The series is action-focused but grounded in what submarines actually are and how they actually work.
The antagonist force — a powerful and well-equipped enemy threatening shipping lanes — is presented as a credible military threat, and the confrontations are tactical rather than simply heroic.
Characters
The captain of 707: A commander whose expertise is the series' primary asset — his decisions are explained and his reasoning is legible. The series treats naval command as a discipline with its own logic, and the captain is the embodiment of that discipline.
The crew: Supporting characters defined by their roles — sonar operator, weapons officer, engineering — who give the submarine its human dimension.
Art Style
Ozawa's art handles the technical challenges of depicting submarine interiors, underwater environments, and naval combat with care. The panel layout conveys the claustrophobia of submarine operation and the spatial complexity of underwater combat effectively.
Cultural Context
Submarine 707 ran in Weekly Shonen Sunday in the early 1960s — during the period when manga was establishing its capacity for adventure fiction beyond simple action. Ozawa's technical approach was unusual for the time and influenced subsequent naval manga.
The series has been adapted multiple times, including anime adaptations that helped keep the franchise visible.
What I Love About It
I love the claustrophobia as a storytelling tool.
Submarine interiors are small, pressurized, and cut off from the outside world. Ozawa uses these physical constraints as narrative constraints — the crew cannot simply retreat or regroup; they are committed to their operational depth and their mission. Every tactical decision has immediate physical consequences. This is action storytelling that uses its setting's actual properties.
What English-Speaking Fans Say
Not known in English-speaking markets. Among readers of naval fiction and military manga in Japan, Submarine 707 is recognized as a foundational work — the manga that established what serious naval action could look like and influenced everything from Legend of the Galactic Heroes to later naval series.
Memorable Scene ⚠️ Spoiler Warning
A scene depicting a battle between 707 and an enemy submarine in which both vessels are operating at depth — where the combat is conducted through sonar, positioning, and the management of silence rather than direct exchange. The scene demonstrates what submarine combat actually looks like from inside, and it is more tense than any conventional surface battle.
Similar Manga
- Silent Service: Later submarine manga — more politically complex, same tradition
- Legend of the Galactic Heroes: Space naval combat — different setting, similar tactical emphasis
- Area 88: Same era, military aviation — similar technical approach
Reading Order / Where to Start
Volume 1. The series is compact and sequential.
Official English Translation Status
Submarine 707 has no official English translation.
Pros & Cons
Pros
- Genuine technical authenticity about submarine warfare
- Complete and compact at 7 volumes
- Foundational for naval manga as a genre
- The tactical approach gives the action depth
Cons
- No English translation
- Technical detail may be demanding for casual readers
- The naval setting is specialized
Format Comparison
| Format | Notes |
|---|---|
| Physical | Japanese editions available |
| Digital | Available in Japanese |
| Omnibus | Collected editions available |
Where to Buy
No English release yet. That just means you find it before everyone else does.
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Written by
Yu
Manga Enthusiast from Japan
I grew up in Japan and manga literally saved me during a tough time in elementary school. My English isn't perfect, but my love for manga is real — and I want to share it with you.