Ad Astra: Scipio to Hannibal

Many prejudices weigh on the world of anime-manga, some baseless hold by people with little knowledge of this medium-space, others believed even by anime-manga enjoyers themselves.
One of those prejudices is that the content of this medium is reduced to the typical fantasy-adventure story. And everything that falls outside that parameter "doesn't feel like an anime/manga." Examples of this are evident when comments or opinions arise that say that very old anime should no longer fall into the category of "anime." This, because it is already outside the aesthetic-narrative configuration of today's average anime-manga.
But this only responds to a case of excess of a certain type of stories being largely popular and consumed. But when we dive a little we find broader things. Ad Astra: Scipio to Hannibal is one of them.
Historical manga continues to be an underground genre, with notable exceptions such as Vinland Saga, Kingdom, Vagavond.
But few of the popular historical mangas are really appreciated for their historical aspect, as they are more appreciated for their "adaptation" to the anime-manga language.
Ad Astra: Scipio to Hannibal is one of those mangas, as is Cesare Hakai no Souzousha, that is there just for the history. And although that may sound restrictive, it is in fact a refreshing world with other paths little traveled.

Set in the Second Punic War, a war between the Roman Republic and Carthage, it faithfully follows the events of this war, revolving around the legendary Hannibal Barca and his crossing of the Alps with his army and Scipion, and his young Roman adversary. Everything that happens here, broadly speaking, happened. It is faithful to history and historical figures. And there it makes much of its brilliance. The history itself is exciting.
Of course, there are many things typical of what I call "anime language", that is, an ethical, aesthetic standard of how to act and react. What you would call "typical anime stuff." There are many moments where you listen to the mangaka instead of the historical figures and there are clearly moments where some things were messed around were changed for projection reasons, but without distorting what actually happened.
One of those changes that is most noticeable is how the author handled the whole drama of Sophonisba, Masinissa, Syphax.
In short, Sophonisba was a princess of Carthage who committed suicide with dignity with the help of her husband Masinissa so as not to be given to Rome as a trophy. In addition, she was a politically influential woman. But how was that shown in the magna? A clear case of Japanese projection, Sophonisba is presented as a submissive, hopeless woman who commits suicide not out of dignity, without spoiling, but for a pathetic reason and her husband Masinissa is not a noble man but your typical anime-manga teenager . Not even mentioning some very strange portraits like that of Syphax.
But what is most criticizable is the author's obvious position regarding the Second Punic War. A deeply pro-Roman position.

It is not difficult to notice that the author stands for the Romans. They are all presented as naturally inclined more toward nobility, while throughout the manga the Carthaginians are presented as vengeful savages. Anyone who is even a little bit immersed in history and historiography knows that everyone has naturally always admired Carthage rather than Rome. A weakness for the underdog. Hannibal Barca could be said to have been a proto anti imperialist but here he is portrayed as a villain. Another strange thing about the manga is how the Roman plebs are presented, always ugly, wild, ignorant and stupid, while the patricians are presented as wiser, calmer, and good. Again, Japanese projection. But beyond the strangeness, this manga shows us that the historical genre is very rich and a sea to explore and experience. There is more than meets the eye. As final comments, it is a great manga to enter the world of the historical genre, it is a great manga to learn about the history of the Second Punic War and those involved in it. I especially appreciate it for including Silenus Calatinus, but it would have been interesting to see Hannibal' wife Imilce, and his fierce elephant Surus. In short, a manga that reminds us that there is much more to explore in this medium.