Uchuu no Swan (translated in America as Swans in Space) is an obscure manga written and illustrated by Lun Lun Yamamoto. It has three volumes and ran from 2006 to 2007.
The story centers around Corona Hoshino, a sixth-grade student at the Cosmos Institute. She's the Class President, is on the honor roll, and generally performs well within school. One day, she crosses paths with Lan Tsukishima, who is quiet, reserved, and a huge fangirl of Space Patrol, a Show Within a Show aimed towards young children. Unfortunately, Lan's spacey attitude gives her a reputation as the "weird" girl, which causes most people to either avoid or make fun of her.
On that fateful day, Corona sticks up for Lan when a pair of boys make fun of her interest in Space Patrol. When Corona follows around Lan in an attempt to cheer her up, Corona tries to cheer up Lan by saying positive things about Space Patrol. In turn, Lan gives Corona a Space Patrol-brand watch as a gift.
That night, Corona is mulling over the watch when suddenly, it teleports her to a strange simulation room. From there, Corona discovers that Space Patrol isn't just a Show Within a Show, it's real! The exploits of the Space Patrol members are real, and the TV show is a dramatization of their missions. Aided by their instructor (named Instructor), Corona and Lan must work together as employees of the Space Patrol Earth Division.
Tropes relating to Swans in Space:
- All of the Other Reindeer: Due to Lan's reserved attitude, many of the other kids either avoid her or poke fun at her.
- Alpha Bitch: Vega and Luna fit this bill. They mock Lan for reporting under Instructor, and Corona for being her friend.
- Cartoon Creature: Lan and Corona's instructor looks vaguely like a teddy bear cosplaying as Cyrus from Animal Crossing.
- Comic Books Are Real: The exploits of Space Patrol employees are later acted out and broadcasted to Earth as a method of picking up new recruits.
- Even the Girls Want Her: Lan notes how Corona is well-liked by both boys and girls. True to her word, two girls can be seen blushing in Corona's direction during the first volume.
- Manchild:
- Instructor spends most of his time playing video games on the job.
- Corona's father counts as well. He is obsessed with the Space Patrol show, which is targeted towards young children.
- Odd Friendship: The relationship between the outgoing, popular Corona and the reserved, nerdy Lan is what defines most of the manga.
- Some Call Me "Tim": Instructor's real name is rendered as "¥ø∆¨•¶§∞£¢§". He tells Corona to just call him "Instructor", as Earthlings find his name hard to pronounce.
- Space "X": Lan can be seen snacking on Space Chips in some pieces of artwork.
- Surprisingly Realistic Outcome: Corona spends time stressing over her duties as class president and job as a member of Space Patrol. The pressure of someone so young dealing with multiple jobs literally causes her to stress herself sick.
- Year Inside, Hour Outside: Downplayed. When the girls use their watches to teleport to Space Patrol HQ, every hour spent in space is just one minute on Earth.
- World of Technicolor Hair: Corona has blue hair. Several other characters have oddly colored hair such as Corona's father, as well as Vega and Luna, and nobody ever comments on it.
