What is this genre all about? Beam me up, Scotty! Space stations (think Death Star) also count. Basically, this category is to tell if the setting takes place onboard a spaceship in space. This category is not applicable if the spaceship lies on a planet and never actually gets into space.
We present you the list of Shipboard manga you should read right now.
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Top 19 Shipboard manga you should read right now. [2024 List]
- 19. Mezametara Saikyou Soubi to Uchuusen-mochi Datta no de, Ikkodate Mezashite Youhei Toshite Jiyuu ni Ikitai
- 18. Planetes
- 17. Sidonia no Kishi
- 16. Ginga Eiyuu Densetsu
- 15. Leviathan
- 14. Kanata no Astra
- 13. Uchuu Kyoudai
- 12. Ginga Eiyuu Densetsu
- 11. 11-nin Iru!
- 10. Level E
- 9. Mezametara Saikyou Soubi to Uchuusen-mochi datta no de, Ikkodate Mezashite Youhei Toshite Jiyuu ni Ikitai
- 8. Doraemon Long Stories
- 7. Uchuu Kaizoku Captain Herlock
- 6. Terra e...
- 5. Aegis
- 4. Cobra
- 3. A-A'
- 2. Babylon made wa Nankounen?
- 1. Five Star Stories
19. Mezametara Saikyou Soubi to Uchuusen-mochi Datta no de, Ikkodate Mezashite Youhei Toshite Jiyuu ni Ikitai
When I woke up, I found myself inside a spaceship.
I guess you guys think I’m talking nonsense here, but I also have absolutely no clue about what exactly happened to me.
I was really close to completely losing it, but fortunately, I managed to notice that this place was really similar to the world featured in a game I was playing recently.
Am I dreaming? Nope, it’s no dream. Maybe I actually got sent to a different world or something?
But didn’t those things usually involve getting sent to a magical world with elves, dwarves, dragons and whatnot?
In any case, I don’t know what caused this, but I guess I’ll just have to suck it up and live properly in this world from now on.
It’ll be okay. I got my trusty spaceship so I can probably make some money. It’ll work out! It has to!
This is the story of a man abruptly thrown into space along with his private spaceship. He runs around with it and saves damsels in distress along the way, flirts with said damsels, earns money as a merc-for-hire and uses his gaming knowledge to work his way into living freely and easily.
When I Woke Up, I Got the Strongest Equipment and a Starship, so I Went and Became a Mercenary in Order to Live as I Please while Aiming for a Detached House is currently publishing and has Chapters. It is also Known as: 目覚めたら最強装備と宇宙船持ちだったので、一戸建て目指して傭兵として自由に生きたい, Я очнулся, будучи пилотом сильнейшего космического корабля, а потому решил стать межгалактическим наёмником, When I Woke Up, I Got the Strongest Equipment and a Spaceship, so I Went and Became a Mercenary in Order to Live as I Please while Aiming for a Detached House, Reborn as a Space Mercenary: I Woke Up Piloting the Strongest Starship!
18. Planetes
Haunted by a space flight accident that claimed the life of his beloved wife, Yuri finds himself six years later as part of a team of debris cleaners on a vessel called the Toy Box charged with clearing space junk from space flight paths. The team consists of Hachimaki, a hot shot debris-man with a sailor's affinity for the orbital ocean; Fee, a chain-smoking tomboy beauty with an abrasive edge; and Pops, a veteran orbital mechanic whose avuncular presence soothes the stress of the job.
Planetes has finished publishing and it has 27 Chapters. It is also Known as: プラネテス ΠΛΑΝΗΤΕΣ, Planetes
17. Sidonia no Kishi
Outer space, the far future.
A lone seed ship, the Sidonia, plies the void, ten centuries since the obliteration of the solar system. The massive, nearly indestructible, yet barely sentient alien life forms that destroyed humanity’s home world continue to pose an existential threat.
Nagate Tanikaze has only known life in the vessel’s bowels deep below the sparkling strata where humans have achieved photosynthesis and new genders. Not long after he emerges from the Underground, however, the youth is bequeathed a treasured legacy by the spaceship’s coolheaded female captain.
Meticulously drawn, peppered with clipped humor, but also unusually attentive to plot and structure for the international cult favorite, Knights of Sidonia may be Tsutomu Nihei’s most accessible work to date even as it hits notes of tragic grandeur as a hopeless struggle for survival unfolds.
Knights of Sidonia has finished publishing and it has 78 Chapters. It is also Known as: シドニアの騎士, Knights of Cydonia, Cydonia no Kishi
16. Ginga Eiyuu Densetsu
In humanity's distant future, two interstellar states—the monarchic Galactic Empire and the democratic Free Planets Alliance—are embroiled in a never-ending war. The story focuses on the exploits of rivals Reinhard von Müsel and Yang Wen Li as they rise to power and fame in the Galactic Empire and the Free Planets Alliance.
Legend of the Galactic Heroes is currently publishing and has Chapters. It is also Known as: 銀河英雄伝説, Legend of the Galactic Heroes, LotGH
15. Leviathan
In the depth of galaxy, the Leviathan, a huge spaceship, floats adrift. When wreckstrippers get isnide, they find a diary of a schoolboy, Kazuma, relating the events that happenned in the guts of the ship... While reading it something seems obvious : a survivor from the disaster is hiding somewhere in the maze of the ruins !
Years before, the young Kazuma was in a middle of a schooltrip to Earth. The party comes to an end when unknown explosions destroy a part of the hull of the vessel ! Now the passengers are trapped in the middle of nowhere... The teenager and his friend Fubata then assist to a conversation between their teacher and a maintenance robot : the supplies in oxygen is not enough to make it until help arrives... The only hope for survival is a cryogenic chamber in the heart of the metal giant. However, it wan only contain one person... Unfortunately for the students, the teacher quickly understands that he has been heard. It is the beginning of a bloody fight to keep the secret !
Leviathan has finished publishing and it has 15 Chapters. It is also Known as: リバイアサン, Leviathan (KUROI Shiro)
14. Kanata no Astra
What starts as a pleasant class trip to a planet five light-years away becomes a nightmare survival trip to get back home.
In the year 2063, interstellar space travel has become the norm. What sort of adventure awaits on the new frontier?
It's the first day of Planet Camp, and Aries Spring couldn't be more excited! She, along with eight other strangers, leave for Planet McPa for a weeklong excursion. Soon after they arrive, however, a mysterious orb appears and transports them into the depths of space, where they find an empty floating spaceship…
Astra Lost in Space has finished publishing and it has 49 Chapters. It is also Known as: 彼方のアストラ, Kanata no Astra
13. Uchuu Kyoudai
One night in 2006, when they were young, the two brothers Mutta (born 1993) and Hibito (born 1996) saw what appeared to be a UFO heading for the moon. They decided that night to both become astronauts and travel out into space.
In 2025, Hibito has become an astronaut, and he's going to go to the moon. Mutta ended up following a more traditional career path with an auto development company; however, Mutta just ruined his career through a violent altercation with his boss. Now, not only has he lost his job, he appears to be blacklisted in the entire industry. Maybe this is a rare opportunity for Mutta to once again chase his childhood dream and become an astronaut like his little brother!
Space Brothers is currently publishing and has Chapters. It is also Known as: 宇宙兄弟, Uchu Kyodai
12. Ginga Eiyuu Densetsu
The story is staged in the distant future within our own Milky Way Galaxy, approximately in the 35th century. Unlike other science fiction stories, there are no alien civilizations. A portion of the galaxy is filled with terraformed worlds inhabited by interstellar traveling human beings. For 150 years two mighty space powers have intermittently warred with each other: the Galactic Empire and the Free Planets Alliance.
Within the Galactic Empire, based on 19th century Prussia, an ambitious military genius, Reinhard von Müsel, is rising to power. He is driven by the desire to free his sister Annerose, who was taken by the Kaiser as a concubine. Later, he wants not only to end the corrupt Goldenbaum dynasty but also to defeat the Free Planets Alliance and to unify the whole galaxy under his rule.
In the Free Planets Alliance is another genius, Yang Wen-li. He originally aspired to become a historian, and joined the military only because he needed money for tuition. He was rapidly promoted to an admiral because of his demonstrated excellence in military strategy. He becomes the archrival of Reinhard, though they highly respect one another.
As a historian, Yang often narrates the rich history of his world and comments on it. One of his famous quotes is: "There are few wars between good and evil; most are between one good and another good."
Besides the two main heroes, the story is full of vivid characters and intricate politics. All types of characters, from high nobility, admirals and politicians, to common soldiers and farmers, are interwoven into the story. There is a third neutral power nominally attached to the Galactic Empire called the Phezzan Dominion, a planet-state (city-state on a galactic scale) which trades with both warring powers. There is also a Terraism cult, which claims that humans should go back to Earth, gaining popularity throughout the galaxy. The story frequently switches away from the main heroes to the Unknown Soldier fighting for his life on the battlefield.
Contains 10 main volumes and 4 prequel volumes, as well as 5 uncollected short stories.
Volumes 1-10 are entitled: Dawn (黎明篇); Ambition (野望篇); Biding His Time (雌伏篇); Strategem (策謀篇); A Hero's Chance (風雲篇); Soaring High (飛翔篇); Great Upheaval (怒濤篇); Chaos (乱離篇); Resurgence of Power (回天篇); Sunset (落日篇) (unofficial English translations, edited by MAL)
Prequel Volumes 1-4 entitled: The Star Crusher (星を砕く者); Julian's Iserlohn Diary (ユリアンのイゼルローン日記); Hundred Billion Stars, Hundred Billion Lights (千億の星、千億の光); Spiral Labyrinth (螺旋迷宮)
Short Stories:
The Record of the Battle of Dagon (ダゴン星域会戦記)
The Silver Valley (白銀の谷)
Disgrace (汚名)
Morning's Dream, Evening's Song (朝の夢、夜の歌)
Golden Wings
Won Seiun Award (Japanese science fiction award voted by fans) for Best Novel of the Year 1988.
(Wikipedia)
Legend of the Galactic Heroes has finished publishing and it has 132 Chapters. It is also Known as: 銀河英雄伝説, LoGH, LotGH, GinEiDen
11. 11-nin Iru!
The elite Cosmo Academy attracts applicants from every stellar nation in the galaxy. One young hopeful is Tadatos Lane, an orphan esper from Terra. The final stage of the academy's entrance exam is a perilous mission simulation aboard an actual derelict starship. The applicants depart for the ships in groups of ten, but when Tada's crew arrives on the Esperanza, they are horrified to discover that they now number eleven. As the test progresses, things go awry and the atmosphere grows increasingly tense. The crew members begin to suspect sabotage, and Tada appears to be the likely culprit.
They Were 11 has finished publishing and it has 4 Chapters. It is also Known as: 11人いる!, They Were Eleven!, Juuichinin Iru!, Unicorn no Yume, 6-gatsu no Koe, 10-gatsu no Shoujo-tachi
10. Level E
Tsutsui Yukitaka was a freshman who had just entered a high school, and he was hoped to be a good baseball player. When he moved to a new apartment, there was a man in the room. He said he was an alien and lost his memory.
Actually, he was the first prince of Planet Dogra, and he was the man who had the best brain and the worst nature.
Level E has finished publishing and it has 16 Chapters. It is also Known as: レベルE, Level E
9. Mezametara Saikyou Soubi to Uchuusen-mochi datta no de, Ikkodate Mezashite Youhei Toshite Jiyuu ni Ikitai
Sato Takahiro was an ordinary office worker and hobbyist gamer until the day he woke up on a spaceship–one that strangely resembled a craft from a favorite space-shooter game. With a decked-out ship, a crew full of babes, and a fantastic universe to explore, he’s going to make the most of his good luck and create the life he’s always dreamed of!
Reborn as a Space Mercenary: I Woke Up Piloting the Strongest Starship! is currently publishing and has Chapters. It is also Known as: 目覚めたら最強装備と宇宙船持ちだったので、一戸建て目指して傭兵として自由に生きたい, When I Woke Up, I Got the Strongest Equipment and a Spaceship, so I Went and Became a Mercenary in Order to Live as I Please While Aiming for a Detached House
8. Doraemon Long Stories
"Doraemon" is a series about a robotic cat named Doraemon, who travels back in time from the 22nd century to help a schoolboy named Nobita Nobi. Aside from the normal manga books, their great adventures to different places are specially described in Doraemon Long Stories books.
Doraemon Long Stories has finished publishing and it has 126 Chapters. It is also Known as: Daichouhen Doraemon, 大長編ドラえもん, The Adventure of Doraemon
7. Uchuu Kaizoku Captain Herlock
In the future, humanity has achieved a vast starfaring civilization, but is slowly and steadily succumbing to ennui or despair, often due to defeat and subjugation by a foreign invader. Rising against the general apathy, Herlock denies defeat and leads an outlaw crew aboard his starship Arcadia to undertake daring raids against Earth's oppressors. Their primary oppressors are the Mazone, a race of organic plant-based alien women who explored Earth in the mythic past and are now back to reclaim it.
Captain Harlock: The Classic Collection has finished publishing and it has 25 Chapters. It is also Known as: 宇宙海賊キャプテンハーロック, Space Pirate Captain Harlock
6. Terra e...
In the far future, humans have destroyed their homeplanet, Terra, by carelessly messing with the enviorement. In order to preserve the life of their homeland, Terra, humans have evacuated this world in order to spread life unto other planets. Humanity, now ruled by a super computer that controls the birth of children, sees the emergence of a new human race called the "Mu," whose telepathic powers have alarmed the System running all of humanity. The Mu, now hidden from the rest of humanity, have one dream, to return home, to Terra...
To Terra... has finished publishing and it has 28 Chapters. It is also Known as: 地球へ…, Toward the Terra..., Towards the Terra..., Terra he...
5. Aegis
A grand-scale masterpiece of life in a dystopian future, Aegis paints a picture of the love and friendship between orphans Jino and Izare. Having gained independence from Revro, the earth secretly trains an army of boys. Jino and Izare are abandoned to the camp, and Izare silently sacrifices himself to keep his promise to Maria that he'd look after Jino. But Jino escapes the soul-killing cruelty of the camp. With Jino in his heart, Izare remains to become an ultimate weapon. The boy's lives, and the secrets of the mysterious Maria, gradually unravel in this epic Sci-Fi drama.
For Earth, can peace and utopia be won?
(SOurce: Netcomics)
Aegis has finished publishing and it has Chapters. It is also Known as: AEGIS 이지스, Aegis God of Armor, Ijisu Shin eui Bangpae
4. Cobra
The series features the infamous space-pirate Cobra who was once forced to hide from enemies by surgically altering his face and erasing his own memory. At the start of the story he is living an ordinary life but after using a dream-machine he starts to regain his memories. Reunited with his android partner Lady Armaroid and his old ship Tortuga, he now faces foes both old and new. The first, and most well-known of the manga stories sees him encountering the Royal sisters whose bodies hold the map to a great treasure.
Cobra has finished publishing and it has Chapters. It is also Known as: コブラ, Space Adventure Cobra
3. A-A'
A volume of short sci-fi shoujo stories all featuring a new race of humans called Unicorns. The major theme in all of the stories are about human emotions. As the characters in the story try to interact and relate to these Unicorns who lack a lot of the natural emotions humans normally feel.
A, A Prime has finished publishing and it has 4 Chapters. It is also Known as: A-Prime, A, A Prime, A Dash, A'
2. Babylon made wa Nankounen?
Follow the intergalactic adventures of a man traveling the stars with a mission: to bone the hottest girls the universe has to offer while uncovering the mysteries of his forgotten past.
(Source MU)
How many light-years to Babylon? has finished publishing and it has 32 Chapters. It is also Known as: バビロンまでは何光年？, Babylon made wa Nankounen?
1. Five Star Stories
The Five Star Stories takes its name from the Joker Star Cluster where the stories take place. The star cluster 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 planets.
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.
Five Star Stories is currently publishing and has Chapters. It is also Known as: ファイブスター物語, FSS, Five Star Monogatari
