There might unironically be more mongolians than japanese people by the point we are even capable of interstellar travel, if these ethnic groups even exist at all! I don't see why japan would be uniquely capable and responsible for this mission.
It could’ve been American and the question would’ve been the same, because who actually deserves to represent earth?
I think the likely answer has to do with the fact authors usually self insert themselves in some capacity when writing, since it allows them to draw from personal experience and add depth to characters. If they were trying to writing from an American’s perspective, the character would be even less believable as the author likely lacks the personal experience and emotional connection to make the “Hito” seem relatable.
In truth, anyone could’ve been the representative so long as they hailed from a developed country where space travel made sense. The manga is translated from Japanese and originally meant for a Japanese audience. Assume that every single character in any manga you read is Japanese unless stated otherwise since it’s easier to explain Japanese mannerisms as a Japanese person.
… If we're going off of this, why does he not have tools that allow him to send messages back and computers/ai. In particulat assisting him with communicating with these creatures.
Where are the other humans? A species capable of interstellar travel shpuld have been capable of colonizing other planets.
These two are tied into each other. At the end of chapter 3 the ape scientist theorizes that Hito’s civilization is probably already gone, hence the gratitude he showed for attempting to save his mother language.
Furthermore, the Milky Way is 100,000 light years across. In the story they hint at the fact he could be from a “far-flung galaxy,” but I find it extremely improbable that the “closest” galaxy (Canis Major dwarf galaxy—still 25,000 light years away) is where the story takes place, nor is it the closest major galaxy (Andromeda—2.5 million light years).
There’s technically other close satellite galaxies, but it’s safe to assume that for the sake of storytelling the ape was being dramatic and it occurs in a some part of the Milky Way.
All of this is to say that communication, if there’s even anyone alive to receive it, would take literal thousands of years to reach earth. I’m sure a message was sent anyways in the off-chance civilization was still alive, but that’s something that wouldn’t be confirmed in anyone’s lifetime. So far he’s completely isolated unless he was apart of a group of colonizers who he can make contact with (and knowing manga logic, he’ll meet them by sheer coincidence).
Other issues are related to how advanced the beastkin civilization is. They have written language and trains, but are not at flight or space travel apparently. They're also presented as less intelligent, which would make such things less possible.
My guess is that they developed technology based around their own abilities. It seems like although they gained bipedalism and speech, they still retained their animal traits and features.
Perhaps they never felt the need to conquer nature as humans did because some beasts were just born with wings and others with gills. Maybe they never had a world war to accelerate technology?
It’s a good question. I’m not sure why their world is as developed as we are, but only in certain facets. I assume that it would have something to do with their diverse traits if anything.
Language acquisition is hard and I am relatively unconvinced by him being able to pick up writing in the language based on what was shown so far.
Would have to suspend your disbelief for that one, but at least in the first chapter they show him attempting to construct rudimentary sentences within 6 days of his arrival. In the third chapter they reveal that it had been several months since his confinement so we can estimate he’s been a resident for over half a year now.
It’s generally understood by linguistic experts that many languages can be fully acquired in a few months, and total immersion is one of the most efficient methods for doing so; the US Army actually teaches language in 36-64 weeks that way at the DLI.
Bilinguals acquire languages faster than monolinguals, and we know that he can at least recite the plot of Star Wars in English, so it’s not completely unrealistic for him to show a propensity for language learning when he’s been imprisoned with scientists with nothing to do besides learning. I would definitely assume that being able to learn new languages was a requirement for such a mission.
We currently may see a permanent outpost on the moon in our lifetime but leaving the oort cloud is not yet possible with current technology.
This is the case for most interstellar sci-fi stories tbh. Another fact you’ll have to suspend your disbelief for, because the author is clearly more interested in the relationships between humankind and an alien species rather than the feasibility of it actually happening. Maybe the entire universe just rotates around his spacecraft à la Futurama.
There’s definitely science fiction writers who have thought about the question more deeply than the guy drawing cats girls wearing glasses.
But it's a manga so it's not that important. Would still like to see care put into these things but it is what it is.
Probably
