Final Fantasy Lost Stranger
Japanese manga series
Final Fantasy Lost Stranger
First tankōbon volume cover
Genre
Manga
Written byHazuki Minase
Illustrated byItsuki Kameya
Published bySquare Enix
English publisher
MagazineMonthly Shōnen Gangan
Original runJuly 12, 2017 – present
Volumes13

Final Fantasy Lost Stranger[a] is a Japanese manga series written by Hazuki Minase and illustrated by Itsuki Kameya. It began serialization in Square Enix's shōnen manga magazine Monthly Shōnen Gangan in July 2017. The series features an original story set in the world of Final Fantasy.

Synopsis

The series focuses on Square Enix employee Shogo Sasaki, who has been a fan of Final Fantasy since his childhood and dreams of one day making his own game in the franchise. One day, he and his sister Yuko were killed in a collision with a truck. They later woke up in another world reminiscent of that of Final Fantasy.

Production

Final Fantasy Lost Stranger is written by Hazuki Minase and illustrated by Itsuki Kameya and is based on the Final Fantasy video game franchise from Square Enix. The manga was announced during the 30th anniversary of the series as an original story combining elements from the Final Fantasy universe with the popular isekai genre.[4] Minase previously wrote the light novel series C³ and penned scripts for the Fate/kaleid liner Prisma Illya television adaptations.[5] Kameya previously authored the manga Kaidan Tochuu no Big Noise and was an illustrator on the mobile game Star Ocean: Anamnesis, also published by Square Enix.[6] She was told about her former managing editor about a contest held by Square Enix to illustrate for the new manga. Kameya is large fan of the games with her favorites being Final Fantasy V, VII and X.[4][6][7] Kameya entered the competition and won first place.[4][6]

The monthly production of Lost Stranger involves Minase and Kameya working remotely from one another with their managing editor acting as a liaison.[7] Dropbox and Skype are used for their communication.[8] Minase sends the script to the editor who next forwards it to Kameya. The artist then drafts storyboards and adds its manga elements for about ten days. After ensuring the story looks proper in manga format, Kameya corresponds with the editor until it is delivered back to Minase. If the writers agrees, the work is put through a validation process by Naoki Yoshida and other staff at Square Enix for about five days before Kameya then finalizes it at the end of the month.[4][6]

According to Kameya, most of her storyboards are accepted by Yoshida, but he will sometimes ask her to specify certain elements for readers who may be unfamiliar with the games. Kameya largely has free rein on the character designs, although the publisher has requested she revise some of them.[6] She largely completes the designs herself and delegates the drawing to assistants.[8] She references Final Fantasy XIV for monster designs and to ensure character jobs have the appropriate equipment and costumes.[6][7] Kameya stated that the manga's protagonist Shogo is based on the default male Hyur avatar from Final Fantasy XIV to make him more identifiable to readers.[4] She has used the manga Fullmetal Alchemist as a reference for both character and set designs as well as for alternating between serious and comedic tones in Lost Stranger.[4][6] Other sources of inspiration outside the franchise include Czech artist Alphonse Mucha, natural landscapes, and European cities such as Paris.[6] She exclusively utilizes digital tools, notably Clip Studio Paint, for both black-and-white and color illustrations.[7][8]

Publication

Final Fantasy Lost Stranger was first announced during the 30th anniversary event of the Final Fantasy franchise on January 31, 2017. The series was announced to be the first manga of the franchise to have an original story not connected to previous games.[5] It began serialization in Square Enix's shōnen manga magazine Monthly Shōnen Gangan on July 12, 2017.[9] Its chapters have been compiled into thirteen tankōbon volumes as of August 2025.[10]

During Anime Expo 2017, Yen Press announced at their panel that they would begin simultaneously publishing its chapters in English.[11] Crunchyroll later announced at their panel that they would also begin simultaneously publishing its chapters in English.[12]

No. Original release date Original ISBN North American release date North American ISBN
1 November 22, 2017[13]978-4-7575-5520-4August 28, 2018[3]978-1-9753-8090-8
2 May 22, 2018[14]978-4-7575-5719-2March 5, 2019[15]978-1-9753-0307-5
3 January 22, 2019[16]978-4-7575-5975-2September 3, 2019[17]978-1-9753-8498-2
4 June 12, 2019[18]978-4-7575-6155-7January 28, 2020[19]978-1-9753-3293-8
5 January 11, 2020[20]978-4-7575-6463-3November 3, 2020[21]978-1-9753-1679-2
6 November 12, 2020[22]978-4-7575-6891-4December 7, 2021[23]978-1-9753-3575-5
7 May 12, 2021[24]978-4-7575-7149-5May 24, 2022[25]978-1-9753-4481-8
8 December 12, 2021[26]978-4-7575-7624-7February 21, 2023[27]978-1-9753-6125-9
9 July 12, 2022[28]978-4-7575-8025-1July 18, 2023[29]978-1-9753-7159-3
10 March 10, 2023[30]978-4-7575-8466-2October 15, 2024[31]979-8-8554-0211-7
11 January 12, 2024[32]978-4-7575-9002-1December 24, 2024[33]979-8-8554-0213-1
12 November 12, 2024[34]978-4-7575-9510-1September 23, 2025[35]979-8-8554-2049-4
13 August 8, 2025[10]978-4-3010-0002-0——

See also

  • C3, a light novel series also written by Hazuki Minase

Notes

  1. ^ Japanese: ファイナルファンタジー ロスト・ストレンジャー, Hepburn: Fainaru Fantajī Rosuto Sutorenjā

References

  1. ^ "FINAL FANTASY Lost Stranger". Manga Up! Global. Square Enix. Retrieved March 10, 2025.
  2. ^ FF好きのスクエニ社員が異世界転生!シリーズ30周年記念、ガンガンで新連載. Comic Natalie (in Japanese). Natasha, Inc. July 12, 2017. Retrieved March 9, 2025.
  3. ^ a b "Final Fantasy Lost Stranger, Vol. 1". Yen Press. Retrieved March 9, 2025.
  4. ^ a b c d e f Jeuxvideo staff (August 15, 2018). "Interview de Itsuki Kameya, dessinatrice sur le projet" [Interview with Itsuki Kameya, illustrator on the project]. Jeuxvideo.com (in French). Archived from the original on June 3, 2019. Retrieved November 27, 2025.
  5. ^ a b Sherman, Jennifer (February 8, 2017). "Final Fantasy's 1st Original Manga Marks Franchise's 30th Anniversary (Updated)". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on April 25, 2025. Retrieved November 27, 2025.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h Finaland; Radio Campus Paris; Les Illuminati (July 15, 2018). "Interview de Itsuki Kameya (FF Lost Stranger)" [Interview with Itsuki Kameya (FF Lost Stranger)]. Finaland (in French). Archived from the original on October 5, 2024. Retrieved November 27, 2025.
  7. ^ a b c d Takato (April 4, 2019). "Kameya Itsuki: Interview de l'auteur" [Kameya Itsuki: Interview with the Author]. Manga-News.com (in French). Archived from the original on March 8, 2023. Retrieved November 27, 2025.
  8. ^ a b c Aubertin, Enguerrand (July 17, 2018). "Japan Expo 2018 : Interview Itsuki Kameya". GamingWay.fr (in French). Archived from the original on August 22, 2018. Retrieved November 27, 2025.
  9. ^ Hodgkins, Crystalyn (June 11, 2017). "New Final Fantasy Manga Follows Square Enix Employee Who Dies, is Reborn in Final Fantasy World". Anime News Network. Retrieved March 9, 2025.
  10. ^ a b FINAL FANTASY LOST STRANGER 13 (in Japanese). Square Enix. Retrieved July 26, 2025.
  11. ^ Ressler, Karen (July 1, 2017). "Yen Press Licenses Silver Spoon, Kemono Friends Manga, A Sister's All You Need, Reborn as a Vending Machine Light Novels, More". Anime News Network. Retrieved March 10, 2025.
  12. ^ Ressler, Karen (July 2, 2017). "Crunchyroll to Publish Final Fantasy: Lost Stranger, Knight's & Magic, Restaurant to Another World Manga Simultaneously With Japan". Anime News Network. Retrieved March 10, 2025.
  13. ^ FINAL FANTASY LOST STRANGER 1 (in Japanese). Square Enix. Retrieved March 9, 2025.
  14. ^ FINAL FANTASY LOST STRANGER 2 (in Japanese). Square Enix. Retrieved March 10, 2025.
  15. ^ "Final Fantasy Lost Stranger, Vol. 2". Yen Press. Retrieved March 10, 2025.
  16. ^ FINAL FANTASY LOST STRANGER 3 (in Japanese). Square Enix. Retrieved March 10, 2025.
  17. ^ "Final Fantasy Lost Stranger, Vol. 3". Yen Press. Retrieved March 10, 2025.
  18. ^ FINAL FANTASY LOST STRANGER 4 (in Japanese). Square Enix. Retrieved March 10, 2025.
  19. ^ "Final Fantasy Lost Stranger, Vol. 4". Yen Press. Retrieved March 10, 2025.
  20. ^ FINAL FANTASY LOST STRANGER 5 (in Japanese). Square Enix. Retrieved March 10, 2025.
  21. ^ "Final Fantasy Lost Stranger, Vol. 5". Yen Press. Retrieved March 10, 2025.
  22. ^ FINAL FANTASY LOST STRANGER 6 (in Japanese). Square Enix. Retrieved March 10, 2025.
  23. ^ "Final Fantasy Lost Stranger, Vol. 6". Yen Press. Retrieved March 10, 2025.
  24. ^ FINAL FANTASY LOST STRANGER 7 (in Japanese). Square Enix. Retrieved March 10, 2025.
  25. ^ "Final Fantasy Lost Stranger, Vol. 7". Yen Press. Retrieved March 10, 2025.
  26. ^ FINAL FANTASY LOST STRANGER 8 (in Japanese). Square Enix. Retrieved March 10, 2025.
  27. ^ "Final Fantasy Lost Stranger, Vol. 8". Yen Press. Retrieved March 10, 2025.
  28. ^ FINAL FANTASY LOST STRANGER 9 (in Japanese). Square Enix. Retrieved March 10, 2025.
  29. ^ "Final Fantasy Lost Stranger, Vol. 9". Yen Press. Retrieved March 10, 2025.
  30. ^ FINAL FANTASY LOST STRANGER 10 (in Japanese). Square Enix. Retrieved March 10, 2025.
  31. ^ "Final Fantasy Lost Stranger, Vol. 10". Yen Press. Retrieved March 10, 2025.
  32. ^ FINAL FANTASY LOST STRANGER 11 (in Japanese). Square Enix. Retrieved March 10, 2025.
  33. ^ "Final Fantasy Lost Stranger, Vol. 11". Yen Press. Retrieved March 10, 2025.
  34. ^ FINAL FANTASY LOST STRANGER 12 (in Japanese). Square Enix. Retrieved March 10, 2025.
  35. ^ "Final Fantasy Lost Stranger, Vol. 12". Yen Press. Retrieved April 11, 2025.
  • Official manga website (in Japanese)
  • Final Fantasy Lost Stranger (manga) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia
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