Last Updated: April 2023
GENERAL:
Otherside Picnic (裏世界ピクニック – Urasekai Picnic) is a yuri (F/F) science fiction novel series that began life serialized in a sci-fi magazine. It is often marketed as a light novel series in the west, but they are “true” novels. It was later adapted into an ongoing manga and an anime. So contrary to popular belief, the manga is not the “source” of this series.
BOOKS:
Where do I read Otherside Picnic: your local bookstore may have it, otherwise you can order it on J-Novel Club. Physically you can only buy “omnibus” versions which means that as of right now, you can only read Volume 7 in a digital format.
Is volume eight released: It released in Japan in January but an English translation is not yet available. No we don’t currently have a release date on the translation.
MANGA:
Where can I read the manga: in my experience most places that sell manga have it. The official release is only three volumes so if you want to read what else there is, you can find it scanlated online.
How far along is the manga: scanlated, it’s currently on the Runa arc so it’s somewhere around the end of novel volume three.
I don’t like reading novels, will the manga give me a similar experience: for the most part yes, the manga is very good, but it is also very behind the main story.
ANIME:
Where can I watch the anime: officially, it’s on Crunchyroll.
What does the anime cover: Most of the first volume, but it also jumps around and ends up in later volumes on occasion. There are also two original episodes that feature events that are not in the books.
Is it worth watching: this is up to you, the general consensus is that it leaves a lot out, puts a lot of focus on one of the less interesting storylines, and can be hard to follow if you haven’t already read the manga or novels. If you want explicit yuri the anime will not deliver, there are some cute flirty moments though.
Will there ever be a second season? Probably not.
IORI MIYAZAWA:
Is this the same guy who said all the weird stuff about yuri that tumblr memes about: yes
Has he written any other yuri?: yes, he has written one called Side by Side Dreamers.
OTHER:
Any relation to Roadside Picnic?: Yes, it took some inspiration from the premise, but it is very much its own thing. If you are familiar with other Roadside inspired media such as STALKER you will find some moments familiar.
Is the yuri explicit or just subtext: It’s explicit but most of those moments are in the novels, the manga hasn’t gotten to most of those parts yet.
Was the story originally serialized? In a science fiction magazine, yes.
I’m dying and want volume eight spoilers: we have them in a special channel in the Discord server.
Discord server?: https://discord.gg/othersidepicnic for disclosure, I do not own this server, but I am a moderator.
What is the ship name so I can search for fanart? It’s usually called SoraTori or 空鳥, it is also frequently labeled 🐟🐤 on Twitter.
Why the fish and bird? Sorawo’s name contains the kanji for fish, and Toriko’s name contains the kanji for bird.