Gunnm

Gunnm is a series of Manga of Yukito Kishiro, published in French with the editions Glénat.

Titrate Japanese: 銃夢 ( Gunnm ) pronunciation gan driven , the pronunciation gun' N m contraction of gun and dream is also accepted. (the kanji " gan" is a voluntary homophony with the English word " gun" , and that of " mu" mean " rêve")

Presentation

Gunnm is the series which made leave Yukito Kishiro the shade, finding its public with the Japan and meeting a real success abroad. Gunnm , of the consent even of the author, is articulated around two main axes. The first is survival in a world of an extreme blackness, oppressing and violent one, which brings it closer to the futuristic visions of the movement Cyberpunk. The second is a glorious humanity which passes by the hope and the research of happiness.

Gunnm is an atypical work with Japan, country or the interior market as regards cartoon is enormous, because it is abroad that the series meets the most success. One allots this bizarrery to the fact that Gunnm is one of rare the Manga S not to almost contain any typically Japanese reference, the author cultivating even a certain cosmopolitanism in the references (German, Indian, African); with the relative unpopularity of the universes Cyberpunk to Japan; and mainly with the fact that Gunnm , does not respect the principal codes of the shōnen (and would thus correspond more to the seinen): indeed the hero is not a young boy to which should be identified the reader, the characters are complex and there is no bright victory. The series however approaches the main themes of the shōnen without to conform to one of its kinds (sport, combat, dredger, matched, etc), which disconcerted the Japanese reader very attached to these codes.

The blackness of this manga is very quickly discovered. The inhabitants of the discharge represent the extremes of humanity. The majority of these people is " cybernétisée" to become more resistant. The flights of bodies are currency, as well as plunderings, the massacres and other murders ultra-violent one. The philosophy of the " each one for soi" is queen, the probability of being made roll being very important. But this blackness is also visible in the behavior of the inhabitants of Zalem, the suspended city. Firstly, the ground and their inhabitants are their discharge. They do not worry at all about the " people of in bas". Zalem draws its resources on Earth and rejects its waste on the inhabitants.

The hope is present all the same in this world. It is when one is in bottoms funds which one can appreciate the light. People as Gally is thirsty for life and manages to transmit all around them kindness and respect. The love, the dream, the beauty are also present in this history.

There is a very precarious balance between the life and death, the joy and misfortune. One can find this balance in the personality of Gally: sometimes soft, sometimes aggressive.

The series Gunnm knows a continuation, proposing a fine alternative: Gunnm Last Order .

Gunnm is often quoted at the side of Akira like reference as regards manga by the readers.

Symbolic system

There is a certain dimension symbolic system and philosophical in Gunnm which one could draw much from subjects like the reflection on the heart, the definition of the human being, the world, the future, the image of Zalem and the discharge resembles that of the " country of Nord" and of the third world, the way in which people of the discharge dream of Zalem and disillusion of the reader when one knows some more about the city. The main character, Gally, gather also several characteristics; with the wire of the progression of the history, one sees in it successively a child startled and curious about the world, a rebellious teenager and in the search of it even and a rêveuse woman who wants to remain human. It incarnates at the same time the sister, the girl, the friend and the mother. For that one cannot give him a given age. Finally the image of the angel which it even gives itself it (" black angel of Zalem" , " angel of the mort" " angel rouillé") he entrust a fuzzy side. The rate/rhythm of the history is that of the life, one is delayed more at the sad time but the small joys become thus of true oxygen puffs.

Synopsis

This synopsis does not reveal any information suitable for waste the discovery of work.

Zalem, the mysterious flying city, overhangs a city in ruins populated of Cyborg S and of bet which survive thanks to the waste poured by the gigantic flying city. In the middle of Kuzutetsu, the discharge, Ido, a Cybernetic doctor in , discovers the remainders of an young girl. He it fore-mentioned Gally, offers a new mechanical body to him and the draft like his own daughter. But the idylle is of short duration because Ido has another activity much less noble than that of doctor, and Gally has strange capacities resulting from the reminiscences of a remote past.

By facing many adversaries and while launching out in a epic adventure, Gally fights above all for its humanity.

Publication

Prépublié by the Shueisha in the semi-monthly “Jump Business” between 1990 and 1995, the series was published in Japan in 9 volumes connected format pocket. The French edition was one of the first distributed by Glénat, pioneer of the edition of Manga S in French. There exist three French versions published in the Glénat editions:

the first edition format pocket in 9 volumes (1995). The adaptation having been made starting from the American version, it suffers from some errors and inconsistencies due to the double translation.
an edition large size, nearer to the version Japanese in 6 volumes, decorated various no-claims bonus and short stories, but expurgée of the end of volume 9 at the request of the author, for a better continuity with Gunnm Last Order (2000). The adaptation was remade starting from the boards and of the Japanese texts, but by preoccupations with a coherence certain errors of the first adaptation were preserved.
the 2nd edition format pocket in 9 volumes, equipped with a jacket (2001). The adaptation is identical to the edition large size and thus has an end different from the first edition.

Glénat also used Gunnm at the time of an operation test in 1998 in the points presses Ile-de-France in the shape of small booklets format pocket corresponding to two chapters of a volume (either 4 booklets per volume). This operation was a failure; booklets being of bad quality and relatively expensive.

Derivative products

Mangas

Gunnm Last Order : Fine alternative and continuation of Gunnm . Published in France at Glénat

News

Gunnm Gaiden : Collection of news published in 1997 only in Japanese. The various news is present in volumes 1, " 3 and 4 of the edition in 6 volumes.

Film

the realizer James Cameron has held for a few years the rights of Gunnm for a film adaptation. Its realization owed according to the rumor being planned for 2007, actually it is the project 880 “Misadventure” which should be carried out for this date. Battle angel the draft amendment of Gunnm in three dimension being pushed back for June 2009.

Animated series

1993 : Gunnm . Cartoon in the form of two OAV. Available in France at Mangamania in VHS (1998) and DVD (2001). This adaptation recovers the first two volumes of the manga. : She was very criticized as well by Yukito as by the amateurs of the series.

Video game

1998 : Gunnm Martian Memory on Playstation. Left only with the Japan in 1998. Developed by Yukito Products, published by Banpresto.

Main characters

Gally (appearance volume 1): heroin of Gunnm;
Ido Daisuke (appearance volume 1): adoptive father of Gally, cybernetician of his state;
Yugo (appearance volume 2): first love of Gally;
Makaku (appearance volume 1): first adversary of size of Gally;
Zapan (appearance volume 1): hunter of premium and rival of Gally;
Jashugan (appearance volume 3): uncontested champion of the Motorball;
Desty Nova (appearance volume 1): scientist with the ambiguous personality, specialist in the Nanotechnology S;
Fogia Furnace (appearance volume 4): adventurer of passage and second love of Gally;
Koyomi (appearance volume 1): girl of the barman of the Kansas;
Lou Hakes (appearance volume 5): operator of the tuned nº 1 (Gally);
Kaos (appearance volume 5): founder of a radio operator rebel who has the gift of psychometry.
Den (appearance volume 5): founder of Barjack.

The volumes are those of the edition large size.

Principal places

Kuzutetsu : City discharges, chaotic city where Gally will be shortly after high its discovery by Doctor Ido. This place knows only violence, destruction, corruption and murder.
Zalem : Flying city which overhangs Kuzutetsu. It is maintained in the air by an immense column which is lost in the sky, this column seems to act as space Ascenseur. It is made the assumption that there exists a counterweight city, with the other end of the elevator. Zalem pours a constant flow of waste on Kuzutetsu.
Kansas : Bar den of the bargain hunters working on behalf of the factories.

Activities

Hunter Warriors : the town of Kuzutetsu at the time being deprived of police force, the factories manage the maintenance of law and order by offering premiums on the head of the criminals and leave those attracted by the lure of gain and sufficiently forts to take care of work. These bargain hunters are called Hunter-Warrior, they must be duly recorded to exert their trade. No revolt of Hunter-Warrior is authorized, this crime being judged among most serious. If Hunter-Warrior rebels, it is immediately destroyed by the missiles ultra-precis of the factories, which locates it with its own cerebral waves, which were recorded by the terminals.

Motorball : violent ultra futuristic sport. The participants assembled on roller skates must carry out a certain number of turn on a closed track, they dispute a witness called Motorball. The winner is that which crosses the finishing line of the last turn Motorball in hand. This play and the passages of the manga being referred (volumes 3&4) are strongly inspired to it by film of anticipation Rollerball of Norman Jewison (1975), but also more surprisingly of B film the warriors of the sun () (1986) of Alan Johnson. The Graffiti S of the cover of volume 3 of it are an obvious proof.

See detailed article: Motorball

Wink

One can find many references and wink in Gunnm in particular with the Hard rock and also has YES. Gally plays of aillor " Big Generators" in Kansas Bar.

has Judas Priest

the titles of each volume of Gunnm would have been influenced by the album Angel off Remuneration .
boots of Sechs doors the inscriptions " Blood Red Skies" and " You won' T station-wagon me" under its soles. Who are reference to the refrain of " Blood Red Skies".

has Blue Öyster Cult

the character of Zapan has the logo of the group tattooed on the face.
the name of Desty Nova is a reference to " Desdinova" , one of the characters in " I amndt the one you warned me of" of Blue Öyster Cult and " Astronomy" of Metallica.
the new body of Gally the Imaginos, bears the name of an album of the group.

the mascote of Iron Maiden, Eddie appears among the customers of Kansas in the first volume.

One of the alcohol bottles of volume 1 comprises the name and the logo of the group Heaven' S Gate.

the name of the group of German metal " Running Wild ", appears taggé on one of the walls of an arena of Motorball.

One can see the logos of Scorpions and Megadeth as sponsor at the time of a race of Motorball. In a chapter entitled Headbangers Ball in reference has an emission of Heavy Metal of MTV2.

the mascot of Megadeth, Vic Rattlehead appears in the public of a race of Motorball

the character of Kaos seems inspired of one of the characters of the album Radio K.A.O.S., of Roger Waters. Both being young men being able to communicate only by radio.

the robot Robby of prohibited Planet, as well as a Daleks are stored in the boxroom of Ido.

the den of Desty Nova, the " Granite house" is a reference to the mysterious Island of Jules Verne (This reference suffered from the double translation in the first edition seeing itself renamed " Inn" granite; in the English version translated from Japanese, then " the inn of granite" in the French version).

Several allusions are made to the group Alan Parsons Project.

When Gally faces Zapan for the first time, that occurs in Ammonia Avenue, which is a title of album of the group. (volume 2)
Kaos itself interprets a song of the group: Inside looking out. (volume 7)
the discharge and its decorations make think of the small pocket of the album Ammonia Avenue.
When Zapan assimilates the body of Berserker, the design of this creature takes as a starting point various topics: the small pocket of Ammonia Which occurred, the Cry of Edward Munch, like Alien de Ridley Scott.
the representation of the Ouroboros corresponds to that of the small pocket of Vulture Culture .

List volumes

Volume 1 03/1995 ISBN 2-7234-1900-2 Glénat
Volume 2 04/1995 ISBN 2-7234-1906-1 Glénat
Volume 3 07/1995 ISBN 2-7234-1947-9 Glénat
Volume 4 10/1995 ISBN 2-7234-1942-8 Glénat
Volume 5 03/1996 ISBN 2-7234-1974-6 Glénat
Volume 6 06/1996 ISBN 2-7234-2119-8 Glénat
Volume 7 01/1997 ISBN 2-7234-2120-1 Glénat
Volume 8 09/1997 ISBN 2-7234-2121-X Glénat
Volume 9 04/1998 ISBN 2-7234-2430-8 Glénat