Astra (manga)

Astra is an 8-part manga mini-series collaboration between American Golden Age Batman artist Jerry Robinson and American singer/songwriter Sidra Cohn along with Japanese mangaka Shojin Tanaka and Ken-ichi Oishi. Astra was originally conceived as a theatrical musical and represents one of the few instances of Americans collaborating with Japanese to create a true manga, as opposed to Amerimanga, which is Americans drawing in the manga style.

Plot
Astra is a girl from the planet of Eros whose Amazonian race of women have evolved to the point where they only bear females. The entire male population having been wiped out for centuries and their sperm supply running out, she must set off to Earth to find a sperm donor.

It should be pointed out that, despite the storyline, Astra is not an H manga.

American release
The American release of Astra #1 had two different covers which were shipped in equal amounts. The original cover was drawn by Shojin Tanaka and the alternate cover was drawn by American Jim Balent. Additionally, there were 500 limited edition copies signed by Jerry Robinson that retailed for $29.95 (the normal editions were $2.95).

While the American release consisted of eight standard comic books, the Japanese version was released in a single tankōbon.

Astra was turned into an American off-Broadway musical of the same name that ran in summer of 2007.