Both the manga and anime versions of Emma are unique for being set in a setting seldom visited by either medium without some fantasy or speculative element. The author and illustrator of the manga, Kaoru Mori, is a self-professed Anglophile, and attempted to recreate 1895 London with meticulous detail. The manga has a cult following in Japan, even going as far as opening an Emma-inspired and themed maid café in Shinjuku. Its popularity has sparked an interest in English maid cosplay, even going as far as having the official Emma anime website selling Emma's "costume" for ¥45,000.
Characters
;Emma ;William Jones ;Kelly Stownar ;Hakim Atawari ;Eleanor Campbell ;Tasha ;Monica Mildrake ;Viscount Campbell ;Al ;Sarah ;Stevens ;Hans ;Richard Jones ;Grace Jones ;Vivian Jones
Emma is drawn in a meticulously crosshatched pen and ink style, and Mori is noted for the depth and accuracy of her research in creating the characters and settings. A companion reference called the Emma Victorian Guide has been published to explain many of the unfamiliar and obscure historical references. Emma appears on all the cover of the volumes of the manga series. From volume 3 of the manga on, Kaoru Mori hired a historical consultant, Rico Murakami, to ensure the historical accuracy of the manga. Murakami also became the historical consultant for the anime series. The main story of Emma serialization run in Enterbrain's Comic Beam was between the January 2002 and May 2006 issues, ending at 52 chapters, corresponding to the end of the seventh collected volume. The author has since been creating additional stories in the same setting, focusing on characters beyond Emma and William. These stories were serialized in Comic Beam as Emma: Further Tales between the September 2006 and March 2008 issues, and are collected as additional volumes of Emma. Volume 8 in Japan was released in a special edition that included a DVD.
Other books
Novelizations
The novelisations are written by Saori Kumi, and based upon the original manga.
Volume 1
Volume 2
Victorian Guide
Emma Victorian Guide by Kaoru Mori and Rico Murakami
Animation guides
Emma Animation Guide Vol. 1 by Kaoru Mori and Rico Murakami
Emma Animation Guide Vol. 2 by Kaoru Mori and Rico Murakami
Emma Animation Guide Vol. 3 by Kaoru Mori and Rico Murakami
Anime
The manga was adapted into a TV anime series, entitled Emma – A Victorian Romance, directed by Tsuneo Kobayashi, scripted by Mamiko Ikeda, and produced by Studio Pierrot and TBS. The first season of the anime series premiered between April 2 and June 18, 2005 across Japan on several UHF TV stations, BS-i and the CS TV networkAnimax, who have also later aired the series across its respective networks worldwide, including Hong Kong and Taiwan, also translating and dubbing the series into English for its English language networks in Southeast Asia and South Asia, and other regions. The Japanese title of the anime is written using a couple of kanji from before the adoption of simplified characters after the end of World War II, which reflects the usage of kanji in the time period the story is set in. In modern Japanese 英國戀物語 would be written as 英国恋物語, the characters for country and love being replaced by their modern variants. The series' official English title is Emma - A Victorian Romance. The series' depiction of Victorian England was accurate, with locations such as London's King's Cross station, The Crystal Palace, Covent Garden, Mudie's Lending Library and such vehicles and applications of the era, such as Henson's Aerial Steam Carriage, recreated in meticulous detail. The anime series was continued in a second season, Emma – A Victorian Romance: Second Act, which premiered in Japan on numerous television stations from April 16, 2007. Animated by Ajia-do Animation Works and directed by Tsuneo Kobayashi and written by Mamiko Ikeda, the second season was first announced by the anime's official website in August 2006 and the September 2006 issue of manga publisher Enterbrain's Comic Beam magazine, in which the original manga has been serialized. Both seasons have been licensed in English by Nozomi Entertainment, with a box set of the first season released on June 24, 2008 in English subtitles. On September 18, 2018, Nozomi Entertainment launched a Kickstarter campaign in an attempt to gather funds to produce an English dub for season 1 for $110,000, along with a $180,000 stretch goal for season 2, following their successful Kickstarter campaign in 2017 for Aria. The campaign ended on October 18, 2018 as a success, with a total of $253,834 raised; 130% over the original goal.
Original Soundtracks
Two pieces of theme music are used for both seasons; one opening theme and one ending theme each. The first season's opening theme is "Silhouette of a Breeze" composed and arranged by Kunihiko Ryo, and the ending theme is "Menuet for EMMA" composed by Kunihiko Ryo, arranged by Kenji Kaneko, and performed by the Tokyo Recorder Orchestra. The second season's opening theme is a "Celtic Version" of "Silhouette of a Breeze" and the ending theme is "Rondo of Lilybell". Both "Menuet for EMMA" and "Rondo of Lilybell," are done mostly with a recorder. A "String Quartet Version" of "Silhouette of a Breeze" was the BGM used when introducing the show's sponsors at the beginning and end of each episode. Album: Victorian romance Emma original soundtrack album – Silhouette of a Breeze Release date: June 15, 2005 Track list:
