Masamune Shirow

Masamune Shirow (士郎 正宗, Shirō Masamune) is a manga artist. He was born on November 23, 1961.

Masamune Shirow is the pen name of Masanori Ota, based on a famous swordsmith, Masamune. He is best known for the manga Ghost in the Shell, which has since been turned into two theatrical anime movies, two anime TV series, an anime TV movie, and several video games. Shirow is also known for creating erotic art.

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 fanzine Atlas. His work caught the eye of Seishinsha President Harumichi Aoki, who offered to publish him.

The result was best-selling 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 (1991)
• Orion (1991)
• Dominion: Conflict 1 (No More Noise) (1995)
• Ghost in the Shell 2: Man-Machine Interface (2001) (released in collected form in America on January 19, 2005)
• Ghost in the Shell 1.5: Human-Error Processor (2003)

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 fictionâ€"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 2001â€"2009)
• 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
• W-Tails Cat 1 (2012)
• W-Tails Cat 2 (2013)

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 fictionâ€"themed)

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

• Wild Wet Quest (A Tomb Raider or Indiana Jonesâ€"style sequel to Wild Wet West)
• Hellcat (Pirate-themed)
• Galhound 2 (Near-future science fictionâ€"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" (fanzine)
• "Yellow Hawk" (1981), published in ATLAS" (fanzine)
• "Colosseum Pick" (1982), published in Funya" (fanzine)
• "Pursuit (Manga)" (1982), published in Kintalion" (fanzine)
• "Opional Orientation" (1984), published in ATLAS" (fanzine)
• "Battle on Mechanism" (1984), published in ATLAS" (fanzine)
• "Metamorphosis in Amazoness" (1984), published in ATLAS" (fanzine)
• "Arice in Jargon" (1984), published in ATLAS" (fanzine)
• "Bike Nut" (1985), published in Dorothy" (fanzine)
• "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" (fanzine)
• Neuro Hard - The planet of a bee (two parts in 1992, four in 1993, four in 1994), published in Comic Dragon

Main source:

Other

• Design of the MAPP1-SM mouse series (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

OVAs

• Black Magic M-66 (1987) by Hiroyuki Kitakubo and Masamune Shirow (this is the only anime Shirow played a direct role in the production of)
• Appleseed (OVA) (1988) by Kazuyoshi Katayama
• Dominion Tank Police (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 S.W.A.T. 01 (2006) by Romanov Higa

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
• Ghost in the Shell: Arise (2013) by Kazuchika Kise (4 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

References

1. ^ MSHD: About Masamune Shirow
2. ^ McCarthy, Helen. 500 Essential Anime Movies: The Ultimate Guide. â€" Harper Design, 2009. â€" P. 42. â€" 528 p. â€" ISBN 978-0061474507
3. ^ shirowledge
4. ^ MAPP1-SM mouse series

Further reading

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

External links

• Masamune Shirow Hyperpage
• Masamune Shirow at the Internet Movie Database
• Masamune Shirow at Anime News Network's encyclopedia
• Shirow Sama (in Spanish)