So I was getting a bit of deja vu while reading this but I think that's only because I had read the Dr.Stone books and this really is the father, Byakuya, side of everything from when the petrification took place to trying to see his son and getting things in order because its now a new world they are living in. But I did like getting this story but the real star is that robot he created. I loved that little robot so much seeing that care he had and missing Byakuya wondering when he'll be back. Until the day he'd see Byakuya he would do everything he can to make sure that space station was in tip top shape. Overall this was such a cute addition I enjoyed it.

Way too overly dramatic in he Dragon Ball / yu-gi-oh way, and treats science as a motivation rather than an experimental process, but it's got some entertaining engineering and a robot you can really root for. Not gripping enough for me to want to explore the main series.

A space epic featuring one lonely robot.

In an alternative world from the Dr.Stone universe, as described by the author, Byakuya Ishigami has created an intelligent A.I. who accompanies him on his mission in space. However, after the petrification beam goes off on earth, the astronauts prepare to return home. Byakuya enlists the help of his robotic A.I. Rei to help them get home and wait on the space station for his return. Thus Rei spends many millennia maintaining the space station and protecting the earth!

A fun and creative story with a touch of humanity and humor. Rei is a creative character who will appeal to fans of the Dr. Stone universe with her many inventions and daring calculations. There is the blend of the story readers are familiar with focusing on the astronauts with a twist from Rei's perspective. The illustrations are what readers should expect from the series, full of emotion and dynamic. The text is balanced with the illustrations and descriptive.

I really enjoyed this reboot and hope the manga gets an OVA!

To enjoy Dr. Stone reboot: Byakuya, I don’t think you need any prior knowledge of the series. Instead, I believe it is for any who have a general interest in space and science. Further than that, author Boichi really takes a chance by having a single robot carry the second half of the volume. This release is a creative and daring manga that pushes engineering and realistic imagination to the corners of the universe.

Dr. Stone reboot: Byakuya begins with Byakuya Ishigami introducing his robot creation Rei to his adopted son Senku Ishigami. Fans have become used to flashback style panels of the two characters interacting, but this takes place in the present time during this spin-off. After space training, Byakuya makes his way to space with a crew of astronauts. While they are in orbit, the petrification event occurs, and they must plan out their next steps.

The first half of the manga is dedicated to the crew pretty much rolling with the punches. Whatever could go wrong goes wrong, but they still push forward. This gives us an idea of the kind of man that Byakuya is when he’s not being projected to us through a flashback. He’s witty and caring and carries some of the best moments of character interaction during these conversations.

Byakuya makes it clear how much he respects his son and knows that somehow he’ll make it out alive. However, he still plots a trip back to Earth. These moments of scientific jargon and fed the reader with clear delivery so that even those who don’t have a firm grasp of these themes could understand. When all was said and done, I felt a little smarter.

The second half of the manga is all about Rei’s adventure in space. This had me a little scared, given that this is one non-human character carrying the last few chapters. However, not an ounce of charm and imagination is lost in these chapters. Instead, they are probably the best thing that happened to this spin-off. I didn’t feel emotionally attached to any of the crew members besides Byakuya, which had me wishing that the crew size was downscaled to Three.

Rei is full of imagination when it comes to keeping up with the ship’s operations. These creative scenes show an impulsive robot acting as her creator would act, and it creates some wonderful moments of storytelling. Although it’s akin to a Magic the Schoolbus episode’s believability, the things Rei accomplishes could technically be done, I think.

The illustrations depict all the scenes brilliantly. There’s even a beautiful moment shared between the crew before their mission back home where a song takes place. The spotlight on Rei is also well documented in the panels, as the humor plays with your emotions as you witness what the robot has to deal with.

Dr. Stone reboot: Byakuya is an amazing spin-off and a most own for any fan of the Dr. Stone series. It may not be technically canon, but it really gives fans a sense of what some people had to go through to ensure the survival of the human race. It’s a manga full of emotion and moments of humor that makes it an easy read, even with the scientific jargon on every page.

Over the past five years, Dr. STONE has become a mainstay of Weekly Shonen Jump’s lineup. Senku’s ambitious adventure to revive humanity has enthralled manga fans, and it’s tid-bits of science have given the series a unique perspective. Back in 2019, Dr. STONE fans got an extra helping of the franchise for nine weeks with the spin-off prequel Dr. STONE Reboot: Byakuya. Written and drawn by Dr. STONE artist Boichi, this spin-off details the story of Senku’s father Byakuya and his space team’s repopulation of Earth after the petrification.

The early chapters of Reboot: Byakuya retread the known history of the main series, showing how Byakuya and his fellow astronauts avoided humanity’s petrification. That said, this story further contextualizes their reactions to the event through Byakuya’s own perspective. Byakuya’s skills as a leader are immediately apparent, quickly grasping the situation and focusing his team’s attention on sustaining humanity. Byakuya’s determination makes him a compelling lead for the story, which is further cemented by his faith in his son Senku. Byakuya wholeheartedly believes that Senku’s genius is the key to reviving humanity, and is willing to sacrifice his own dreams of exploring space if he can reunite with him. This makes Byakuya’s decision in Chapter 4 all the more brutal, forcing him to choose between saving his friends or finding Senku’s body. Despite these hurdles though, Byakuya remains hopeful about humanity’s future and that he and Senku will connect once again. Reboot: Byakuya further humanizes Byakuya, showing why he is a father worthy of Senku’s respect.

While the first four chapters of Reboot: Byakuya are centered on Byakuya himself, the remainder of the spin-off shifts its focus to Rei, Byakuya’s robot companion that he brought along to outer-space. After Byakuya and his crew leave for Earth, Rei is left alone at the International Space Station, hoping for their creator’s eventual return. Rei spends their days attempting to keep the space station operational, dedicating years of time to excavating vital resources for the station’s development. While largely separated from the events on Earth, Rei’s adventures embrace the problem-solving format of Dr. STONE. In the vein of Senku, Rei builds multifaceted strategies based on scientific fundamentals. One of Rei’s most ambitious plans even involves protecting Earth from a giant asteroid, using a series of remote-controlled hydrogen bombs. While it may feel far outside the usual scope of Dr. STONE, the story’s familiar and gradual build up to these grand events feel natural. Just like Byakuya, Rei’s story is optimistic of humanity’s future and their numerous challenges.


To say Boichi is a good artist is an understatement. The sheer amount of detail in his artwork is astounding, and his quick drawing speed has allowed him to work on multiple serializations at once. As such, it’s no surprise that Reboot: Byakuya is just as breathtaking as the main series. Since Reboot: Byakuya takes place primarily in outer-space, Boichi uses it to showcase the sheer scale of the environment. You can constantly see the speckles of stars in the backgrounds of panels and Boichi draws many two-page spreads to help visualize the massive size of the surrounding planets and the space station itself. If you find yourself gazing in awe at Dr. STONE already, this might just blow you away.

Dr. STONE Reboot: Byakuya is a solid spin-off that embraces the tone of the main series, while also exploring new territory. It’s clear that this story will play a larger role in Dr. STONE down the line, and it will be interesting to see readers make those connections. Until then, this is one hundred million percent worth reading!

Can a father’s love transcend time? Can it transcend thousands of years into a future where he won’t exist? Well, Dr. STONE Reboot: Byakuya aims to answer that question by offering fans of the series a peek into Senku’s father’s life, as well as a different side to the stone apocalypse.

Dr. STONE Reboot: Byakuya is a manga from the original writer, Riichiro Inagaki, and the original artist, Boichi. However, rather than being a mainline story, this is a spin-off of sorts. This volume is being translated by Caleb Cook, with touch-up and lettering by Brandon Bovia. Readers might know that I’m a big Brandon Bovia fan; it’s nice to see him handling this entry in the Dr. STONE franchise. Additionally, Julian “JR” Robinson will be handling design. Finally, Alexis Kirsch will serve as this volume’s editor

Dr. STONE Reboot: Byakuya follows the titular Byakuya and the survivors of the International Space Station after the initial events of Dr. STONE. Now a full-fledged astronaut, Byakuya heads to the stars on the Soyuz rocket only to be one of six survivors in a post-stone world. Overall, this single volume is a special side story to the main series, filling in the gaps of how Byakuya and crew turned a bad situation around.

While Dr. STONE Reboot: Byakuya is a standalone volume, readers will need prior knowledge of the Dr. STONE series before picking it up. I suggest watching season one of Dr. STONE or reading chapters 1 through 60 via the Shonen Jump App. Either route will offer enough context for you to dive right into Dr. STONE Reboot: Byakuya. That being said, let’s get into the meat of this standalone volume.

As said above, Dr. STONE Reboot: Byakuya focuses on Byakuya, one of the survivors in a world turned to stone. Much like Dr. STONE, the story takes place across different periods of time, though the main story is focused on the post-stone apocalypse that’s shown in the manga and anime. It just so happens that for Byakuya, that’s dozens of hours after the initial event versus Senku’s thousands.

The stories contained within this standalone volume are really engaging, but I think that’s to be expected from Dr. STONE in general. Still, seeing Byakuya take center stage ahead of the events of the main story. His approach to science and puzzling out problems is markedly different from Senku, offering a more down-to-earth approach to unraveling all the elements that make up every process in the world.

Readers also get to meet Rei Ishigami, a super-powered AI who dwells on the space station. Just like Senku and Byakuya, they heavily rely on sciencing everything to figure out a solution. And just like Senku and Hyakuya, their love for humanity can’t be matched. Rei is willing to strive to preserve humanity as much as they can. While Rei wasn’t featured in the anime or the main manga, they’re still a delight. In fact, I found myself rooting for the little robot, especially knowing what I do from watching the anime and bingeing the manga on the Shonen Jump app.

There are also loads of easter eggs in this volume for readers who’ve either watched the anime or read ahead in the manga. While I’ll leave those up to you to discover, I will say that they’re all fun little references that add to the world of Dr. STONE. There’s also plenty of world-building, which is interesting seeing as this is our Earth, just with a strange, but plausible, scientific event. Still, I really loved being able to dig a bit deeper into new snippets of science. That’s ultimately what makes Dr. STONE so darn enjoyable.

The most beautiful thing about Dr. STONE Reboot: Byakuya is honestly the man himself. Byakuya’s love for his son Senku truly transcends time. Everything he does in this volume is specifically for the sake of his son, as well as all of humanity. At the core of his survival is a love for his son that cannot be matched by any other father in all of manga. Byakuya’s earnest, heartfelt, genuine love for his child is just that strong. Truly, every shounen lead needs a father like Byakuya—a passionate, caring, clever, and inexplicably hot dad. Mind you, the hot part? That’s for us readers. (Or maybe, it’s just for me.)

All in all, I found Dr. STONE Reboot: Byakuya to be a really good spin-off volume about a valuable character. Byakuya is an incredibly likable character, as are the crew members of the Soyuz. Rei is a cute addition to the wide, wide world of Dr. STONE, and honestly, is the star of this standalone volume. Definitely snag a copy of this if you’re any level of Dr. STONE fan. You won’t regret it.

Dr Stone Reboot:Byakuya takes a look at the events leading up to the Dr Stone series. This nine-chapter manga is an alternate universe prequel. While there has been some debate online, it has been confirmed that this is not canon.

Interestingly this manga isn’t written by Riichiro Inagaki, the writer of the Dr Stone series and other titles, including Eyeshield 21 – a personal favorite. He does supervise the character dialogue and his name does appear on the cover. Instead, it’s written by Boichi, who illustrates the series. While Bochi is mostly known as an illustrator, he also wrote Sun-Ken Rock.

Story - Byakuya

The story opens with Byakuya Ishigami, Senku’s adoptive father showing a robot that he had built and setting the scene. It shows how Senku encouraged him to become an astronaut and go up to the space station, then soon skips to when that happens.

The first few chapters introduce the astronauts and cover their perspective of the petrification event happening on Earth. It doesn’t really explain much of what happened on Earth, but as this manga is targeted at people who are already familiar with the main series. I didn’t find this to be an issue.

It kept the tension high by throwing problem after problem for the astronauts to solve. It made it clear that the task was near impossible. This was effective, but perhaps not as much as it could have been. Anyone familiar with the series will know what happened. Still, I certainly appreciated the expanded story of the challenges faced.

I thought it did quite a good job at showing the personality of Byakuya here. He shows an obvious similarity to Senku's love of science and discovery. You can see where Senku has picked up some of his famous catchphrases and some of his riskier behavior too. It’s summed up by a line he says: “Moving forward, even in the face of danger is what defines humanity”.

The dialogue between the astronauts was used well to add in humorous moments. Despite the dire situation that they found themselves in, it was kept fairly light due to this.

I did think it was a pity that we didn't see more of the other astronauts. Particularly Lilian who becomes so important in the main Dr Stone series. This section of the story was quite short, so I can understand that there was only so much they could do though.

Story – Rei

After a certain event happens, the perspective switches to Rei. This is a version of the robot that Byakuya had built. Rei ends up waiting alone for Byakuya to return. Dr Stone Reboot:Byakuya feels like it’s split into two parts despite being contained within a single book and this is where the second part starts.

I actually found this part more interesting, which I found surprising. It’s all new from here, where in the previous part I already knew what was going to happen for the most part. Still, this is primarily a one-character story from this point, so the interaction between characters and the dialogue where they play off each other was missing.

Similar to in the first part of the story, several problems came up for Rei to solve with high risks. It was perhaps more effective since we hadn’t already seen how it turned out, at least not completely. This section follows a similar theme to Dr Stone, in which a problem occurs and then needs to be solved through several crafting tasks that all connect together. It even had one of the charts flash up, similar to the main series.

Despite being a robot, Rei seemed very human. It shows them waiting endlessly for Byakuya’s return and despite knowing what would happen, it made me sympathize with the character. It even had little humorous moments like taking a small act of revenge on one of the scientists who slighted Byakuya in the past. Things like this helped to show Rei’s connection to Byakuya.

While I won’t spoil the ending, I’ll just say that I enjoyed the events that led up to it. It concluded in quite an emotional way and I certainly enjoyed it.

Art

The art style of Dr Stone Reboot:Byakuya is unusual in some ways, much like in Dr Stone. The way certain characters are drawn won’t be to everyone’s taste. When I first came to this series, it felt a bit offputting, but it’s certainly not low quality. It’s just a stylistic preference against aspects such as the eyes being very wide apart or lips jutting out for some characters.

Switches between more realistic and detailed panels to simplified and stylized ones are used to help denote when a scene is serious or comedic. It adds in quite a few visual gags, such as the robot Rei using little robotic arms to hold a book as a human would. There are also a fair few Dragon Ball reference jokes, like a little person with a scouter saying how high Rei’s computational power is. These little jokes worked well, especially in the Rei section, where they can only talk to themselves.

Overall I liked the art, despite feeling that a few details were odd. It was certainly used well to set the scene.

Verdict

Dr Stone Reboot:Byakuya was a bit of a surprise to me. From the title alone, I would’ve thought it mostly focused on Byakuya himself. Instead, I found it to mostly follow Rei, though Byakuya was certainly where Rei’s focus was. It was a story that I already knew, but it was an interesting read on how it might’ve happened.

I enjoyed it quite a bit and found that it made a good companion to the Dr Stone series. While it is a prequel, I’d suggest that people do watch the first season of the anime or read up to chapter 60 of the Dr Stone manga first. It’s more of an expansion than a standalone story.

DR STONE: REBOOT BYAKUYA IS RECOMMENDED
Purchase: Viz Media, Amazon (Physical or eBook)

At the time of writing, you can read the first three chapters for free on Viz Media's website.

Looking for some more reading? How about checking out our visual novel reviews?

Many thanks go to Viz Media who provided an early review copy of this title.