The Silent Service

The Silent Service (Japanese: 沈黙の艦隊, Hepburn: Chinmoku no Kantai) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Kaiji Kawaguchi. It was published in Kodansha's Weekly Morning manga magazine from 1988 to 1996 and collected in 32 tankōbon volumes.

This article is about a Japanese manga series. For other uses, see Silent Service.

The Silent Service
Cover of the first tankōbon volume, featuring Shiro Kaieda
沈黙の艦隊
(Chinmoku no Kantai)
Genre
Manga
Written byKaiji Kawaguchi
Published byKodansha
MagazineWeekly Morning
DemographicSeinen
Original run1988 – 1996
Volumes32
Anime television film
Directed byRyōsuke Takahashi
Written bySōji Yoshikawa
Music byAkira Senju
StudioSunrise
Licensed by
Original networkTBS
ReleasedDecember 18, 1995
Runtime100 minutes
Original video animation
Directed byRyōsuke Takahashi
Written bySōji Yoshikawa
Music byAkira Senju
StudioSunrise
Released September 25, 1997 – January 25, 1998
Runtime60 minutes each
Episodes2
Live-action film
Directed byKohei Yoshino
Produced by
Written byHikaru Takai
Licensed byAmazon Prime Video
ReleasedSeptember 29, 2023 (2023-09-29)

The series was adapted into an anime television special and original video animation (OVA) series by Sunrise. The special was released in North America by Central Park Media.

In 1990, The Silent Service won the 14th Kodansha Manga Award for the general manga category. It has over 25 million copies in circulation, making it one of the best-selling manga series.

A live-action film adaptation premiered in Japanese theaters in September 2023.

Plot

During the Cold War, the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force jointly developed a nuclear submarine with the United States Navy. On its maiden voyage, the captain of the submarine, Shiro Kaieda, declares the submarine to be an independent state, "Yamato". Kaieda attempts to attend a UN summit in order to be recognized as an independent nation. However, many forces such as the United States Navy and the Soviet Navy try to stop Kaieda and his crew from reaching New York.

Characters
Shiro Kaieda (海江田四郎, Kaieda Shiro)
Portrayed by: Takao Osawa
He was captain of the diesel submarine "Yamanami". Later, he was selected as captain of the first Japanese nuclear submarine, "Seabat". During a test with the U.S. Navy, he orders his crews to fire a torpedo against the U.S. Navy submarines and sneaks away from the area. Later, Kaieda declares that his submarine is an independent state and he names his state "Yamato".
Hiroshi Fukamachi (深町洋, Fukamachi Hiroshi)
Portrayed by: Hiroshi Tamaki
CO of the Japanese Diesel submarine "Tsunami". Friend and rival of Kaieda. Kaieda and Fukamachi graduated from the National Defense Academy of Japan in the same year. Fukamachi was a captain candidate for the new nuclear submarine "Seabat". He tries to figure out what Kaieda is up to.
Yamanaka Eiji (山中栄治, Eiji Yamanaka)
Portrayed by: Aoi Nakamura
Executive Officer of the "Yamato". He worked with Kaieda for 10 years. The two trust each other's abilities.
Utsumi (内海)
Navigation Officer of the submarine 'Yamato'.
Takuo Migoguchi (溝口拓男, Migoguchi Takuo)
Sonar Specialist of the "Yamato".

Media

Manga

The Silent Service is written and illustrated by Kaiji Kawaguchi. It was serialized in Kodansha's seinen manga magazine Weekly Morning from 1988 to 1996. Kodansha compiled its individual chapters into thirty-two tankōbon volumes, published from December 15, 1989 to June 19, 1996.[4][5]

Anime

The manga was first adapted as an anime television special by Sunrise, first released on video on December 18, 1995 and later broadcast on TBS on March 3, 1996.[6] A two-episode original video animation (OVA) produced by Sunrise was released from September 25, 1997 to January 25, 1998.[7][8]

In North America, Central Park Media's US Manga Corps dubbed the special,[1] and released it on VHS on July 7, 1998.[9] It was later released on DVD on January 9, 2001.[3]

Video games
PlayStation
Silent Service, released by Kodansha, September 28, 2000.[10]
Windows
Silent Service, released by SystemSoft Alpha, May 12, 2000.[11]
Silent Service 2, released by SystemSoft Alpha, October 14, 2005.[12]

Film

A live-action film adaptation was announced on January 25, 2023. The film is directed by Kohei Yoshino, with scripts written by Hikaru Takai, and Shinzō Matsuhashi and Takao Osawa serving as producers. Osawa will also play the lead role as Shiro Kaieda. The film was released by Toho and premiered in Japanese theaters on September 29, 2023, and was streamed on Amazon Prime Video.[13]

Reception

The Silent Service won the 14th Kodansha Manga Award in the General manga category in 1990.[14] The first 29 volumes sold over 22 million copies.[15] It has sold over 25 million copies.[16]

Some international readers and viewers were uncomfortable with the storyline. There were many arguments among international critics that the series promoted the idea of militarism.[17] The manga was discussed in the Japanese Diet and was popular with the Self-Defense Force.[15]

Legacy

The Silent Service inspired the Korean movie Phantom: The Submarine released in 1999. Especially, the story behind how Republic of Korea Navy obtains Sierra-class submarine and the scene where they use communication buoy cable against the JMSDF submarine.[17]

See also

References
  1. Toole, Mike (September 4, 2017). "Alternate History Makers". The Mike Toole Show. Anime News Network. Retrieved January 6, 2020.
  2. Patten, Fred (April 1, 2001). "New from Japan: Anime Film Reviews". Animation World Network. Archived from the original on May 25, 2020. Retrieved May 25, 2020.
  3. Beveridge, Chris (January 9, 2001). "Silent Service". AnimeOnDVD. Archived from the original on November 1, 2006. Retrieved May 25, 2020.
  4. 沈黙の艦隊（１） (in Japanese). Kodansha. Retrieved May 24, 2020.
  5. 沈黙の艦隊（３２）＜完＞ (in Japanese). Kodansha. Retrieved May 24, 2020.
  6. 沈黙の艦隊 (in Japanese). Sunrise. Retrieved April 21, 2018.
  7. 沈黙の艦隊 VOYAGE 2 (in Japanese). Sunrise. Retrieved April 21, 2018.
  8. 沈黙の艦隊 VOYAGE 3 (in Japanese). Sunrise. Retrieved April 21, 2018.
  9. McCarter, Charles. "The Silent Service". ex.org. Archived from the original on August 6, 2011. Retrieved May 25, 2020.
  10. 沈黙の艦隊. Sony Japan. Sony. Retrieved April 21, 2018.
  11. 沈黙の艦隊. SystemSoft Alpha Corporation. Retrieved April 21, 2018.
  12. 沈黙の艦隊2: The Silent Service. SystemSoft Alpha Corporation. Retrieved April 21, 2018.
  13. Cayanan, Joanna (January 25, 2023). "Kaiji Kawaguchi's The Silent Service Manga Gets Live-Action Film on Amazon Prime". Anime News Network. Retrieved January 25, 2023.
  14. Joel Hahn. "Kodansha Manga Awards". Comic Book Awards Almanac. Archived from the original on August 16, 2007. Retrieved August 21, 2007.
  15. Schodt, Frederik L. (June 15, 2013). Dreamland Japan: Writings on Modern Manga. Stone Bridge Press. p. 166. ISBN 9781611725537.
  16. "歴代発行部数ランキング". Manga Zenkan. Retrieved September 6, 2022.
  17. 박, 형준 (February 15, 2006). 묵직한 해상전투를 그리며 우리를 유혹한다. The Hankyoreh (in Korean). Retrieved April 21, 2018.

Further reading
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