Masamune Shirow

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Masamune Shirow (士郎 正宗, Shirō Masamune, born November 23, 1961) is the pen name^[1] of Japanese manga artist Masanori Ota. The pen name is derived from the legendary sword-smith Masamune. Shirow is best known for the manga Ghost in the Shell, which has since been turned into two theatrical anime movies, two anime television series, an anime television movie, an anime OVA series, a theatrical live action movie, and several video games. Shirow is also known for creating erotic art.

Career

Born in the Hyōgo Prefecture capital city of Kobe, he studied oil painting at Osaka University of Arts. While in college, he developed an interest in manga, which led him to create his own complete work, Black Magic, which was published in the manga dōjinshi Atlas. His work caught the eye of Seishinsha President Harumichi Aoki, who offered to publish him.

The result was best-selling^[2] manga Appleseed, a full volume of densely plotted drama taking place in an ambiguous future. The story was a sensation, and won the 1986 Seiun Award for Best Manga. After a professional reprint of Black Magic and a second volume of Appleseed, he released Dominion in 1986. Two more volumes of Appleseed followed before he began work on Ghost in the Shell.

In 2007, he collaborated again with Production I.G to co-create the original concept for the anime television series Shinreigari/Ghost Hound, Production I.G's 20th year anniversary project. A further original collaboration with Production I.G began airing in April 2008, titled Real Drive.

Bibliography

Manga

• Black Magic (1983)
• Appleseed (1985)
• Dominion (1986)
• Ghost in the Shell (1989; English translation 1995)
• Orion (1991)
• Dominion C1 Conflict (1995)
• Ghost in the Shell 2: Man-Machine Interface (2001; English translation 2005)
• Ghost in the Shell 1.5: Human-Error Processor (2003; English translation 2007)
• Pandora in the Crimson Shell: Ghost Urn (2012, concept)

Art books

A substantial amount of Shirow's work has been released in art book or poster book format. The following is an incomplete list.

• Intron Depot 1 (1992) (science fiction–themed color illustration art book collecting his work from 1981 to 1991)
• Intron Depot 2: Blades (1998) (fantasy-themed color illustration art book featuring female characters with armor and edged weapons)
• Cybergirls Portfolio (2000)
• Intron Depot 3: Ballistics (2003) (military-themed color illustration and CG art book featuring female characters with guns)
• Intron Depot 4: Bullets (2004) (color illustration art book collecting his work between 1995 and 1999)
• Intron Depot 5: Battalion (2012) (game & animation artwork covering the period 2001–2009)
• Intron Depot 6: Barb Wire 01 (2013) (illustrations for novels 2007–2010)
• Intron Depot 7: Barb Wire 02 (2013) (illustrations for novels 2007–2010)
• Kokin Toguihime Zowshi Shu (2009)
• Pieces 1 (2009) - Premium Gallery
• Pieces 2 (2010) - Phantom Cats
• Pieces 3 (2010) - Wild Wet Quest
• Pieces 4 (2010) - Hell Hound 01
• Pieces 5 (2011) - Hell Hound 02
• Pieces 6 (2011) - Hell Cat
• Pieces 7 (2011) - Hell Hound 01 & 02
• Pieces 8 (2012) - Wild Wet West
• Pieces 9 (2012) - Kokon Otogizoshi Shu Hiden
• Pieces GEM 01 (2014) - The Ghost in The Shell Data
• Pieces GEM 02 (2015) - Neuro Hard
• W-Tails Cat 1 (2012)
• W-Tails Cat 2 (2013)
• W-Tails Cat 3 (2016)
• Greaseberries 1 (2014)
• Greaseberries 2 (2014)

Galgrease

Galgrease (published in Uppers Magazine, 2002) is the collected name of several erotic manga and poster books by Shirow. The name comes from the fact that the women depicted often look "greased".

The first series of Galgrease booklets included four issues each in the following settings:

• Wild Wet West (Wild West-themed)
• Hellhound (Horror-themed)
• Galhound (Near-future science fiction–themed)

The second series included another run of 12 booklets in the following worlds:

• Wild Wet Quest (A Tomb Raider or Indiana Jones–style sequel to Wild Wet West)
• Hellcat (Pirate-themed)
• Galhound 2 (Near-future science fiction–themed)

After each regular series, there were one or more bonus poster books that revisited the existing characters and settings.

Minor works

• "Areopagus Arther" (1980), published in ATLAS" (dōjinshi)
• "Yellow Hawk" (1981), published in ATLAS" (dōjinshi)
• "Colosseum Pick" (1982), published in Funya" (dōjinshi)
• "Pursuit (Manga)" (1982), published in Kintalion" (dōjinshi)
• "Opional Orientation" (1984), published in ATLAS" (dōjinshi)
• "Battle on Mechanism" (1984), published in ATLAS" (dōjinshi)
• "Metamorphosis in Amazoness" (1984), published in ATLAS" (dōjinshi)
• "Arice in Jargon" (1984), published in ATLAS" (dōjinshi)
• "Bike Nut" (1985), published in Dorothy" (dōjinshi)
• "Gun Dancing" (1986), published in Young Magazine Kaizokuban
• "Pile Up" (manga, two parts) (1987), published in Young Magazine Kaizokuban
• "Colosseum Pick" (1990), published in Comic Fusion Atpas" (dōjinshi)
• Neuro Hard - The planet of a bee (two parts in 1992, four in 1993, four in 1994), published in Comic Dragon

Main source:^[3]

Other

• Design of the MAPP1-SM mouse series^[4] (2002, commissioned by Elecom)

Anime

Film

• Ghost in the Shell (1995) by Mamoru Oshii
• Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence (2004) by Mamoru Oshii
• Appleseed (2004) by Shinji Aramaki
• Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex - Solid State Society (2006) by Kenji Kamiyama
• Appleseed Ex Machina (2007) by Shinji Aramaki and John Woo
• Appleseed Alpha (2014) by Shinji Aramaki and Joseph Chou
• Ghost in the Shell: The New Movie (2016)

OVAs

• Black Magic M-66 (1987) by Hiroyuki Kitakubo and Masamune Shirow (this is the only anime in which Shirow played a direct role in the production)
• Appleseed (1988) by Kazuyoshi Katayama
• Dominion (1988) by Takaaki Ishiyama and Kôichi Mashimo
• New Dominion Tank Police (1990) by Noboru Furuse and Junichi Sakai
• Landlock (1995) by Yasuhiro Matsumura (character and mecha designs only)
• Gundress (1999) by Junichi Sakai (character and mecha designs only)
• Tank Police Team: Tank S.W.A.T. 01 (2006) by Romanov Higa
• Kakuko no Pandora - Ghost Urn (2015)^[5]

Television

• Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex (2003) by Kenji Kamiyama (26 25-minute episodes; also called Alone on Earth or GitS:SAC)
• Ghost in the Shell: S.A.C. 2nd GIG (2004) by Kenji Kamiyama (26 25-minute episodes; second season of GitS:SAC)
• Shinreigari/Ghost Hound (2007); original concept in collaboration with Production I.G
• Real Drive (2008); original concept in collaboration with Production I.G
• Appleseed XIII (2011)
• Ghost in the Shell: Arise (2013) by Kazuchika Kise (1 hour-long episodes)

Video games

Arcade

• Horned Owl (lightgun shooting game)

PC Engine

• Toshi Tensou Keikaku: Eternal City (action platformer)

Super Famicom

• Appleseed

Nintendo DS

• Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon (Strategy RPG)

PlayStation

• Ghost in the Shell
• Yarudora Series Vol. 3: Sampaguita
• Project Horned Owl
• Gundress

PlayStation 2

• Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex
• Appleseed EX (Japan-only release)

PlayStation Portable

• Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex
• Yarudora Series Vol. 3: Sampaguita

Microsoft Windows

• Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex - First Assault Online

References

1. ↑ MSHD: About Masamune Shirow
2. ↑ McCarthy, Helen. 500 Essential Anime Movies: The Ultimate Guide. — Harper Design, 2009. — P. 42. — 528 p. — ISBN 978-0061474507
3. ↑ shirowledge
4. ↑ MAPP1-SM mouse series
5. ↑ "Pandora in the Crimson Shell Manga Gets Event Anime in December". Anime News Network. October 23, 2015. 

Further reading

• Schodt, Frederik L. (January 28, 1998). "An Interview With Masamune Shirow". JAI2, The World of Frederik L. Schodt. 

External links

• Official website
• Masamune Shirow at Anime News Network's encyclopedia
• Masamune Shirow on IMDb
• Masamune Shirow at Media Arts Database (in Japanese)