Battle Angel Alita

Battle Angel Alita, called GUNNM (銃夢, "Gun-Mu") in Japan, is a manga series created by Yukito Kishiro in 1991. It was originally published in Japan in Shueisha's Ultra Jump magazine until 1995.

Related Topics:
Japan - Manga - Yukito Kishiro - 1991 - Shueisha - Ultra Jump - 1995

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The original title Gunnm ("Gun Dream") was changed to Battle Angel Alita by Viz Communications (now VIZ Media), which imported the manga to North America. The main character Alita (called "Gally" in the original Japanese version, a nickname most likely short for Galatea) is a cyborg with no memory of her past.

Related Topics:
VIZ Media - North America - Galatea

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The nine-volume manga was adapted into two anime Original Video Animations in 1993. They did not sell well in Japan, however, so further animation of the series did not go beyond the planning stages. Although the OVAs were generally considered to be well made, critics pointed out that they failed to reproduce the intricacies of the manga. Fans also said the animated version of Gally/Alita wasn't cute enough. When ADV Films adapted the OVAs to the North American market, they chose to go with the name Battle Angel so that fans would tie it in with the manga version, dropping the "Alita" to avoid a redub of the original Japanese.

Related Topics:
Anime - Original Video Animation - 1993 - ADV Films - Japanese

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Yukito Kishiro was not happy with the end of the series, as he was forced to end it prematurely due to external and personal reasons. A few years later he got the chance to publish the manga GUNNM: Last Order, called ' in North America, which skips the end of the last graphic novel and tells the story as he originally intended. Last Order is also being translated to English by Viz, with four volumes published as of October 2004.

Related Topics:
English - October 2004

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~