Qualia the Purple

Qualia the Purple (紫色のクオリア, Murasakiiro no Qualia) is a yuri science fiction light novel by Hisamitsu Ueo, with illustrations by Shirou Tsunashima. ASCII Media Works first released it in Japan under the Dengeki Bunko imprint on July 10, 2009. Tsunashima also handled the art for a manga adaptation, which ran in Dengeki Daioh from January 27, 2011, and was collected into three tankōbon volumes. Seven Seas Entertainment holds the North American licenses for both the novel and the manga.

The story follows junior high student Marii Yukari, whose purple eyes let her see all humans as robots. Her only friend is Manabu "Gaku" Hatou. After a secret organization recruits Marii to exploit her ability, she ends up caught in dangerous experiments that force Gaku to make a hard choice.

In February 2022, Seven Seas announced it had licensed the light novel and manga for English release in North America. The novel’s English version came out on December 13, 2022. The manga, published as a single omnibus titled *Qualia the Purple: The Complete Manga Collection*, followed on June 13, 2023.

Reviewing the novel for Anime News Network, Christopher Farris praised its plot, characters, and sci-fi elements, advising readers to go in knowing as little as possible about the twists. He called the early chapters "fun in an inoffensive way" and noted the deliberately light tone that sets up darker developments. Farris enjoyed the story overall but thought the dense quantum physics explanations—which might require rereading—and some grim turns could put off certain readers. He found the yuri elements effective and unexpected, calling them "one of the most heartwarming, romantic applications of quantum physics you've yet seen." He also complimented the English translation's prose, saying it "reads very well."

Maria Remivoza of CBR listed the *Qualia the Purple* manga among "10 Best Underrated Sci-Fi Manga." David Heath of Game Rant included it in a list of the best sci-fi light novels without an anime adaptation. Tito W. James of Comicon praised the manga for grounding "high concept quantum mechanics and philosophy in grounded, believable human emotion" and argued it deserves an anime.