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Gunnm
Battle Angel Alita
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Alternative Titles

Synonyms: Ganmu

Japanese: 銃夢 GUNNM

Information

Type: Manga

Volumes: 9

Chapters: 53

Status: Finished

Published: Nov 1990 to Mar 1995

Genres: Action, Sci-Fi

Demographic: Seinen

Serialization: Business Jump

Authors: Kishiro, Yukito (Story & Art)

Statistics

Score: 8.41¹ (scored by 27,341 users)

¹ indicates a weighted score.

Ranked: #221²

² based on the top manga page. Please note that 'R18+' titles are excluded.

Popularity: #184

Members: 83,178

Favorites: 4,688

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Reviews

Filtered Results: 29 / 30

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Apr 5, 2008

lonestar6969

Recommended

What a great original story this was. The art is very detailed and clear in the sense that you can actually understand whats going on in the fight scenes. For some fighting manga's it was very difficult to imagine what went on during a fight scene but Alita didnt lose me. I got a sense of excitment following Alita's develpment from innocent cyborg to bounty hunter to elite sportwomen to warrior as there was not a single boring moment. It was a thrill to see what new weapons or body she would get and how she would defeat or catch her enemies.

Not only was the ...

Jun 1, 2014

gilgamesh310

Recommended

When most people think of futuristic sci-fi settings involving cyborgs in anime and manga, the first thing that’s likely to come to their heads is Ghost in the Shell. While the GitS IP is a very accomplished and influential one, it greatly overshadowed another similar but in my opinion superior work. Battle Angel Alita(which goes by the vastly inferior title Gunnm in Japan) was released in 1989 and despite being an excellent manga, it never became particularly successful and only a small portion of it managed to get adapted into an anime.

The story of Battle Angel Alita begins in a scrapyard where a ... scientist named Ido discovers the remains of a cyborg girl. She has lost all her memory and has no identity. He names her Alita, gives her a cyborg body and a reason to live.

The setting is based around a floating city called Tiphares. Most of the action is set outside of the city and on what’s deemed ‘the surface’ where people live off the scraps of the city, but events do eventually lead to the city itself. The artwork starts off as merely serviceable but gradually improves and becomes excellent late. It really brings the world to life. The style invokes a Blade Runner esque feel and manages to be very immersive. The action scenes are also excellently drawn. You can always make out what’s going on clearly and the panels segue into each other in a satisfying way.

What really makes BAA shine however is not its setting or artwork but its characters, or more specifically its main character, Alita(or Gally in Japan). She is easily one of the greatest characters in the medium. She is deep and complex and her character arc is extremely well handled. We see her go from an innocent ‘child’, to an aggressive bounty hunter and racer, to a love struck and contemplative individual, to badass anti-hero, assassin and eventually outright hero. This is all believably handled and very well executed.

While Alita no doubt steals the show, there are plenty of other high quality characters too. Most note-worthy is probably Ido, the scientist who took in Alita as his own and made her what she is. His relationship with Alita is quite deep and complex. He mostly sees her as a daughter and wants her to himself, though there is likely sexual undertones to it as well. He looks after Alita as best he can but tries to keep her as close to him as he can, to the point where he will intervene with her actions if she strays.

The villains are also a very fascinating bunch. Very few of them are portrayed as being outright evil. Even some that initially seem to have no redeeming traits end up being somewhat likeable in the end. They all have their reasons for doing what they are doing and never feel like they are just shoved in to give the protagonist something to fight. A mad scientist does feature but even that trope is averted somewhat. The way they play off of Alita’s personality while she interacts and fights them is very compelling to witness.

The story encompasses a very wide range of themes. It’s based around technology, ethics and philosophy. It’s very contemplative without ever getting bogged down with long winded exposition. The pacing for the whole manga is in fact pitch perfect. Each volume is about something different to the last, both in terms of theme and events. While the old chestnut Amnesia is used to start the story, things change very rapidly to a journey of self discovery, the meaning of life and the follies of man. Rage, sadness, jealousy, compassion, love and hate are all emotions present.

Events change from Bounty hunting, to rollerball, martial arts combat, wartime battlefields and more. Despite the change in tone, everything feels cohesive and well planned out. There is barely a single panel of filler throughout. There are also very few plot holes or inconsistencies throughout. There are a few revelatory plot twists that get introduced. They manage to both shocking yet in no way undermine the narrative that preceded it, like can often be the case with stories that rely on shock value.

Very few manga or stories in general manage to be so well paced and entertaining, while also being deep and contemplative, but BAA succeeds spectacularly. There are only a minor few gripes I had with the story. While I had no problem with the open ended nature of the ending, the build up to the ending did feel a tad rushed. Some events happened a little too quickly and weren’t explained in as much detail I would have liked. There is a follow up to the manga entitled The Last Order which does explain some of these things but that takes it a step too far and just ends up but a bloated mess, which is probably best avoided.

The only other flaw of any genuine worth I recall involves Alita’s relationship with a character called figure 4, who appears later. This character is not very likable yet Alita falls somewhat in love with him rather quickly. I didn’t find this particularly believable.Considering the type of character she was and the fact that he was somewhat of an idiot sapped credibility from the proceedings somewhat. This is fortunately only a small part of the story and doesn’t impede much on events overall.

Battle Angel Alita is perhaps the best sci fi manga I’ve read and one of the greatest sci fi stories in general that I’ve experienced. Despite its lack of popularity, its influence can be seen in works to this day such as the films Elysium and TV show Dark Angel. Regardless of that, the story is simply an excellent tale in its own right and deserves much more recognition than it has.

Mar 12, 2015

Black_Butterfly

Recommended

Nowadays, I seem to find that stories revolving around the nature of heroism, especially within anime, are rather stale. Stories about heroes, or what makes a hero a hero, are filled with protagonists who seem to be invincible, or rather, superficial in the sense that they contain no actual realism towards what makes them a hero. If you take your time to look closely and observe, you’ll find that conflicts within a majority of modern day stories are resolved with simple words of wisdom, or “power-ups” to defeat an obstacle blocking the hero from victory. This causes the heroes that ... we’re supposed to praise and care for to become uninteresting, cardboard characters that we can’t sympathize with, no matter how hard we try. However, if you look into the past, specifically within anime and manga, you will find that a plethora of stories centered on heroism are not only gripping, but they also contain heroes that are believable, flawed, and most of all, unique. One such story is that of Battle Angel Alita, a manga that perfectly grasps the nature of what heroism is, as well as the cost that comes with being a hero.

Within the category of sci-fi action stories, Battle Angel Alita is one of the very best. Written and illustrated by Yukito Kishiro, the story’s setting is the rundown and harsh, desert-like city known as The Scrapyard. This cesspool of a city contains the worst criminals that humanity has to offer, along with cybernetic freaks terrorizing citizens. The protagonist Alita is introduced to us by a caring doctor/engineer named Ido, who finds her body in a local dump within The Scrapyard. After getting her cybernetic body put back together by Ido, Alita almost immediately experiences the horrors of The Scrapyard’s criminal activity and decides to make it her mission to become a Hunter Warrior, a bounty hunter of sorts that acts as a police force within The Scrapyard. As Alita begins her journey to help the innocent people of The Scrapyard, she soon starts to realize that the job of a hero is filled with both tragedy and self-revelation.

What makes this manga have such an exceptionally well-written story is Alita herself. I don’t mean to exaggerate when I say that she is honestly one of the greatest fictional characters ever created within anime and manga. What makes her character so great is the fact that Yukito Kushiro wrote her to be a sort of “symbol” or representation of what it means to be human and the experiences that human beings go through in life (which is a bit ironic considering the fact that Alita herself is not fully human). Throughout the story, we follow Alita through many locales of an apocalypse filled with despair and fear for survival. And although she witnesses many horrifying events and experiences pain, both physically and emotionally, Alita keeps her image as a messiah among those who are weak and need salvation. Alita contains a sort of charm or spirit of a hero that rises up against evil.

Something that also makes Alita such a great character in the story is the element of her backstory and how she suffers from amnesia. Although Alita is constantly viewed as a girl with an immense amount of courage and willpower, she still contains one major weakness throughout the story, which is her past, which is a puzzle that she constantly tries to solve. Because of this obstacle of hers, many moments of the manga brilliantly portray Alita as a damaged and ultimately flawed individual. Her flawed behavior and individuality causes many undesirable outcomes to befall on the other characters of the story. When these events happen, we witness some of the manga’s very best writing, as it shows that Alita must learn from her mistakes and flaws in order to keep the ones that she loves close to her heart.

Not only is Alita a great character, but so are the many people that she comes across throughout the story, especially the villains she encounters. What makes these supporting characters so great is the fact, like Alita, they all contain some sort of aspect or characteristic that makes them feel human. Almost all of the characters within the story have regrets about their pasts, existential feelings of nihilism, love, and thoughts about their own meaning for existence. This allows the reader to not only connect with Alita, but the many others that she meets throughout her adventures, both good and bad. Sadly, there are some characters that are often forgetful throughout the story and stereotypical. However, that is only a minor flaw considering how many other great characters like Alita there are in the story.

Aside from the excellent writing, Battle Angel Alita also has some of the very best artwork that you can find in manga. Kushiro does a brilliant job of conveying the action that we see in the panels as very gritty, dirty, and emotionally resonate with the characters that are fighting one another. The artwork also allows for you to witness the action on an “epic” scale because of the sheer amount of destruction and chaos from environments that are illustrated. What I also found great about the artwork are the breathtaking illustrations of Alita and other characters’ facial expressions and movements, making you think as though the characters were truly real. Everything from technology, body language and postures, expressions, and action are drawn with superb technique from Kushiro.

Battle Angel Alita is a manga that deserves to be read by science fiction, action and drama fans alike. This manga contains some of the best character writing that you will ever find in a manga or any story for that matter. The artwork is outstanding and Yukito Kushiro does an awesome job at portraying the humanity of Alita and other characters. Alita herself is also the perfect representation of how a hero should be written in an action story. Reading this manga will make you feel as though you’ve seen one of the most exciting and explosive action films of all time, only that this is a manga. Battle Angel Alita is a must read for anyone looking for an exceptionally atmospheric action manga, with a protagonist that is not only badass, but is also realistically relatable.

(Side Note: 1st manga review!!)

Jan 29, 2018

comiclove

Mixed Feelings

Battle Angel Alita (or Gunnm) was intriguing in the sense that it somewhat defied expectations. I knew virtually nothing about this franchise besides when I watched the OVA + saw the trailer for that weird live-action adaptation, so I'm coming into this like a baby. Ultimately, it's not as great as some people have claimed, but it has redemptive factors that are hopefully expanded upon in the sequel 'Last Order'.

[Story - 6]

Our story follows the adventures of a cyborg named Alita (or Gally) in the post-apocalyptic United States; Specifically, we follow her 'coming of age' as she goes from a cloudcuckoolander amnesiac to a hardened ... wasteland warrior. Along the way, we see her as a bounty hunter, athlete, and a mercenary for the 'elite' citizens of the U.S. (or rather, an atmospheric colony hovering above the industrial sector + scrapyard where the story starts).

While I have issues with the characterization, this story alone is pretty intriguing. It certainly helps that the world-building is exquisite, with details both minute and major being part of the current arc or the much-speculated-about backstories of various events + characters. The characters (well, really Alita and Ido) receive a lot of monologuing; Regardless of my opinions of them, they are well-timed and definitely reflect their growth.

The pacing is pretty solid; 9 volumes might seem a bit short for a story of this magnitude, but it manages to give each arc enough breathing room for adequate plot AND character development. However, the ending is rather infamous for how rushed it is: between a huge infodump, sudden twists primarily for shock value, very little introspective dialogue, and a pointless time-skip of an epilogue, it's no wonder that the mangaka had to retcon it for Last Order to happen. This is what dragged the score for 'Story' down from an '8', unfortunately.

[Art - 7]

The artwork's an interesting aspect. While the settings/backgrounds are grimly realized, with details of destruction and decay rampant all around, some of the character design leans more towards a 'cartoony' aesthetic. The humans/cyborgs are typically a bit 'fluffier' than if they would be rendered more realistically; in other words, they look like Castle in the Sky rejects. Alita, in particular, is noteworthy in that she resembles a doll; This was obviously done for symbolism, but it adds an unsettling factor when you see her in action (especially in the back half of the manga). Even some of the non-human characters (i.e. the various factory bots) look rather goofy, with somewhat-exaggerated facial features.

However, other characters have designs much more suited for the cyberpunk dystopia (for better or worse) - most of the antagonists (Jashugan, Zapan, etc.) have bulky bodies, both natural and modified, with stony expressions and great displays of power. The robots look a bit more menacing than these characters, but they mostly have a stereotypical feel to them. Desty Nova's probably my favourite character in terms of design; While he's definitely human, his design just SCREAMS 'total creep' (which he lives up to rather spectacularly).

The action is pretty well-rendered; Especially during the Motorball arc, it was very clear as to what was happening, along with being visually engaging thanks to the gritty style of the setting. I'm not particularly keen on some of the designs (if that wasn't obvious enough), but the action setpieces and backgrounds saved this aspect.

[Character - 5]

This is where the title failed me, surprisingly. There is definitely substantial development, but it feels WAY too drawn out (like, characters having Big Life Lessons several chapters past when they should have realized (coughDAISUKEIDOANDHISPOSSESSIVENESScough) ); Certain character actions and choices feel really stupid (Den is notorious for this), and not just because of genuine character flaws; Other characters are just way too campy/goofy for their own good sometimes (Desty Nova is the epitome of a mad scientist); And of course, some people are just simply underdeveloped despite an expectation for us to care about them (Makaku, Hugo, Zapan, for example). This is as short as I'll keep it, because otherwise I'll just be whining about how much I loathed Alita up until the very last volume due to her sustained immaturity in the form of brattiness and arrogance.

[Enjoyment/Overall - 6]

To sum it up; it's not as amazing as some people have made it out to be, but it has enough positives that I can see why people feel that way. I'm interested to see how Last Order builds upon this title, both in continuing and changing various elements. I'd recommend this to anyone who wants a cyberpunk title with substantial action and intriguing worldbuilding, despite a lack of appealing AND well-rounded characters.

Feb 14, 2019

kokuborou

Recommended

Let’s talk about a story about existentialism told with the help of our main heroine Alita/Gally. What’s the meaning of being alive? Everybody needs a reason to live and move on. A purpose in that world were the society is divided in two classes: The poor one living in the scrap yard and the ones with a social status living in Thypares . For those from the scrap yard Thypares is a place were many of them aim to go a manifestation of their dreams and hopes it’s like a oasis in a middle of a desert were travelers can rest after their journey.

The worldbuilding ... is fantastic in Gunnm. As the story progresses we found out more about the people from the scrap yard their lifestyle their hopes that they cling to them every day , the corruption and the ones who suffer from it and finally the environment they live their daily lives. What is another stunning factor is the care the author explained each element from that world into his manga panels who have a limited amount of space.
The manga is so detailed and every new element introduced is explained. For the art I must praise the author for its effort and talent. Every chapter is rich in content and the backgrounds of each panel are very detailed. The black -white contrast style is well balanced and the fights are well drawn making it easy for the reader to distinguish the small details. Nowadays manga uses to much black for the fights which ruins the quality.

The story is beautiful and emotional. Through each chapter our heroine Alita discovers through her experience and encounters the meaning of being alive. Each character gives a lesson about being alive for Alita and each experience is used for her further battles in the future. Some arcs may be boring but their slow pace has a purpose for the story later so don’t get fooled by that, everything has a meaning in Gunnm nothing is left untouched.

What I enjoyed and liked from this manga was Alita. She is one of the best girls from a work of fiction, because of her personality, her caring for everyone and helping them how she can despite her own circumstances. I love her ideals her thoughts her perception about the world her every word that she exchanged during her encounters and fights, from the bottom of my heart and she always will be my number one girl.

In conclusion the 53 chapters are just pure art. Yes pure art my friends in which the author poured all his soul and emotions. From each story there is a lesson to learn for its readers, a lesson about life and the meaning of being alive of leaving something to be remembered by others in this world which let’s be honest we all struggle to do that in our own society. FANTASTIC!

Aug 3, 2011

old_boy22

Recommended

Synopsis

Gun Dream is the sci fi cyberpunk story of an empty shell character Gally (U.S. translation "Alita") coming into a world and evolving into its own person, ultimately seeking a place for them self in life. It is set several hundred years from the present (in the 2500's) in a dystopian Midwestern United States. The story unfolds over the span of fourteen years and owns a diverse and intriguing cast of characters. Many get side tracked by the action in the series but the ultimate point to Gun Dream is Gally's journey of finding herself and her definition of life.

Review

... The author Yukito Kishiro was not only able to create a rich story for its length of nine volumes, but managed two things that really grabbed my attention that most anime and manga are incapable of reaching: one learns early on that there is always a realistic gravity of consequence behind any choices characters make which makes the story arcs never become dull or repetitive. They all unfold very differently and believably offer diverse outcomes until their conclusions. However one of the story's strengths is that characters may come and go permanently just like real life. This could be considered one of its few possible weaknesses; you'll really miss some of those guys. The only other thing I might be able to concede as a flaw to the story is it actually does have a rushed ending. The author has admitted to this but personally I liked the ending to the story very much and was not bothered by the face it came fairly abruptly.

To better explain my positive viewpoints I shall elaborate: Each story arc is very different because of Gally's ultimate goal of defining life and her own being. I loved this because life is diverse and will ultimately take you through many different twists and turns or "phases" that may drastically change who you are, what you believe in or value, how you look and dress, what your main focus and goals are or even simply where you are geographically hanging around. I'm flat out bored when all the change a character has in a story is they "mature" by realizing they have to suck it up or become more responsible. Tired to death tropes in the vast majority of anime and manga. In Gun Dream characters may have drastic personality changes as their role in the story changes. Many even have changes in their prominence in the story change multiple times. I found such things very life like and enchanting as a reader.

Most series lose the intensity or "edge" of whenever their characters are faced with life and death situations or even just failure. Either characters just never die and you can always expect the character to at least get away from whatever is threatening them, or even worse to always succeed at whatever they are doing. Gun Dream establishes to the reader fairly early on that characters both can fail and even die forever, regardless of their importance to the story of Gally. Even the likeable guys aren't immune to this. Big plus to me who's become very jaded with the always-succeed-no-one-dies stories.

Onto more generic and mundane review stuff. I found the artwork mostly intricate and highly detailed, though occasionally it went through rare rough patches of clearly lower quality drawing in comparison to the rest of itself. A pet peeve of mine I generally have to let slide with nearly everything anime/manga I read or watch is that all the characters look the same. They have the same dimensions, they have the same builds, they have the same facial structures etc. Only little things like the color of their eyes or their hair style, or outfits to make them identifiable from each other. I say outfits jokingly as most anime and manga characters' outfits are school uniforms. Yukito Kishiro Hey!..goes the distance and does not only make characters look very different from each other neck and below, people actually have different shaped faces and heads.I'm fairly suspicious this being the first manga series I ever read and collected ended up spoiling me on many things that have later developed into pet peeves, this being one of them.

The characters I've already said were done very well. They had a tendency to be a lot more complex and diverse than in most series I have read even in the Seinen demographic. Though sometimes a character would not be terribly fleshed out because of the lack of importance of their role in the story or Gally's life. However I don't feel to this day that this occurred often enough or became any kind of hindrance so I don't hold this against Gun Dream.

The pacing was generally on the faster side. Hell it starts out pretty fast with a short mystery/thriller plot right out the gate. The pacing does slow sometimes but being it's about Gally's journey through life and finding herself, it's a necessity. You don't want it to be lightning fast the whole way and her development to be glossed over. As a warning though I generally am a lot more patient with a story's pacing than most people as long as the story and characters interest me enough.

Recommendation

This is one of my top five favorite series. I'm not a big sci fi or cyberpunk type of feline but that didn't matter. I felt that Gun Dream was just that good the whole way through. While the science is always present in the setting and even in the story progression, the general focus of the different arcs are the different stages of life Gally travels through as she evolves from blank character into her own person. I really loved it. I own the complete series. It's the first series I've ever completed in my collection and I reread it every one or two years since I completed it back in '03. My love and high regard for Gun Dream may be sentimentality since it's the series my first love used to introduce me to the world of manga, but I'm sure you'll find the reason is more likely that it's just that good even if you don't like science fiction or cyberpunk. I personally had and still have very little interest in either but greatly love the story.

Recommended for: It's not a bad story to get your feet wet with manga or seinen stories. It's not terribly long and has overall superior quality. The lead is not some lucky dumb ass, is not some two-piece lingerie wearing ditz with no sense of modesty, or some big, muscular and unstoppable delinquent. An atypical story for those searching for something different. You want to see a strong female protagonist? Gally's your champion.
Recommended against: While there's plenty of fighting in it I'd recommend against people who want to see mostly fighting (or in other words a "battle" series). Read Last Order for that if you're stuck on a sci fi or cyberpunk battle stories. Reading the original Gun Dream is actually not necessary to pick up Last Order and start reading. Also recommend it against those who yearn for fan service and ecchi humor in their stories, or are squeamish toward visceral imagery as there actually is a decent amount of it the series. Nothing as outrageous as Ichi The Killer but it's there and fairly graphic when it pops up. While especially early on Gally is something like a young girl in her mentality, I would not recommend the series to those who enjoy shoujo exclusively (especially shoujo romance). Josei..I still probably wouldn't, though I could see some josei enthusiasts enjoying it. I mean the protagonist is a woman after all, I'd hope some gals regardless of age would enjoy it.

Oct 23, 2021

teraphIl1000

Mixed Feelings

Gunnm is a succession of interesting concepts, none of which are original in sci-fi, but all of which are treated attentively and with obvious passion. The problem is that concepts alone don't make for a good story, you also need a strong plot and, arguably, even stronger characters. Gunnm has a strong protagonist, but every supporting player, much like the ideas explored, comes in and out of the story at a moment's notice. The plot, despite a few moments of brilliance, is repetitive and scattershot, never offering much to the reader in the way of constancy.

The art is very good, both in its gripping action ...

May 16, 2017

Hussin

Recommended

warning! this is not good long review. this is short review. my first ever review. take it easy on me please.

i just finished the first manga. Holly shit , how did i miss this gem all these?! well maybe b/c this is my first manga.

-my impressions of the manga-

gunnm is great storytelling of a cyberpunk world, mainly about a girl named Alita or gally or Yoko. who lost her memories after her revival by a cyber doctor called Ido.
throughout the story, the character wants to solve several puzzles about her self and world and what is the meaning of humanity. she encounter some interesting events ...

Feb 9, 2018

usaking

Recommended

There's really only one way to describe Battle Angel Alita - EPIC. This is one of the greatest sci-fi / action adventure stories I've ever read. Love, horror, happiness, sadness, etc... - this is what Battle Angel Alita has to offer and thensome.

Although I could be wrong, I feel like a lot of Battle Angel Alita was inspired by Hollywood movies of the 80's. In particular, the manga feels like a mix of Blade Runner and Mad Max. Certain areas have a wasteland type of feel, while others are more futuristic and full of sci-fi elements. There's a ton of action in Battle Angel ... Alita. Lots of blood and gore for those who are into that type of stuff. Of course, when there's also slower chapters that spend time developing characters. I loved that the manga was able to mix both of these and create such a humanistic story. In particular, one scene near the end was quite touching and got me teary eyed. It just feels good to know that Battle Angel Alita is not just an action manga. It has heart.
The only problem I had with the story is that a small part of the manga gets a bit slow. It had to do with Alita "finding herself". While important to the rest of the story, I would've told it in a different fashion than what was presented in the manga.

The artwork here is fantastic. When battles are going on, you really feel every jump, kick, punch, and cut. It's brutal, but fun at the same time. During the slower moments, the artwork is able to capture the beauty of the world that Battle Angel Alita takes place in. It's one of those things where the world is ugly, but beautiful at the same time (if you know what I mean). Characters are drawn quite well, although Alita has the best artwork of any character. She feels real. Her expressions, whether happy, sad, or angry, create a character that is fully fleshed out (animation-wise).

Speaking of characters, they're all great here. The shining star in Battle Angel Alita is the main character, Alita. To say that Alita is a strong female character who has the strength and intelligence of a goddess would be an understatement, but perhaps that's the only way to describe her. Whenever she is seen preparing for battle, it is clear that Alita will do whatever it takes to succeed. Of course, she also has a softer side. Her relationship with Daisuke Ido, the person who found her in the first place, is often explored. Daisuke Ido has feelings for Alita, but has trouble telling her about him when they first meet. He's not a bad guy, yet, I wouldn't classify him as necessarily good ether. I would argue that he has two sides to his character. Each one is just as important as the other. It's clear that Daisuke and Alita are close to one another and feel deeply about how each one chooses to live. Some of the most touching moments in Battle Angel Alita are between them.
There are other characters that play a big role in the story as well, but most of them deal with certain plot points that I can't go into. One thing that kinda annoyed me was that certain characters kept switching from bad to good and vice versa. This happened constantly, which made me assume that every character met along Alita's journey was going to end up opposite of where they started. Not too big of a deal, yet, I thought it was worth cautioning readers beforehand.

Overall, I enjoyed Battle Angel Alita more than I thought I was going to. Beforehand, I assumed this was going to be some dumb action manga with not much else going on, but what I got was a touching story that dealt with love, friendship, and what it means to be human. While it has a few minor flaws here and there, the pros far outweigh the cons. This is an epic that deserves to be read by anyone interested in sci fi, action, adventure, or romance.

May 28, 2013

Byrdman

Recommended

BBA was an amazing series from start to finish. I have truly enjoyed reading it and immersing myself into its fantastic world.

Story:

The story is excellent... I love the different themes that were constantly being presented, like what it is to live, moving on, doubt, love etc. and how the main character overcomes her problems.. The death race arc is my favourite one in the story .

Art:
The art is impressive... some of the best I seen recently. Love how every character was drawn with uniqueness and the action scenes were handle with professionalism with the panel space.

Characters: They were pretty impressive and easily relate-able although ...

Jul 12, 2017

NVHp

Mixed Feelings

Gunnm is a cyberpunk visual novel with a cartoonist look. By that, I mean the unique character designs. But don't let it fools you, the author can really draw some mess up stuff.

Overall, I enjoyed the story and the adorable characters. But there're 3 problems I have with Gunnm

1. Death has no weight
Why? Because Alita casually killed villains and everybody is a cyborg. Firstly, Alita presents herself to be on the good side, even stopping Ido when she thinks he is doing something wrong. But when she and anybody she cared about life is in danger, Alia don't mind killing at all. This ...

Dec 16, 2015

ItIsIDio

Mixed Feelings

Preliminary (6/53 chp)

This review applies only for the first 6 chapters of the manga and it will not constitute the overall value of the manga and will instead focus on the aspects you might dislike, or like, in the first 6 chapters. If you happen to not consider anything as bad points or the good outweighing the bad, you should check the manga, because the manga itself wasn't the greatest pick for me but rather something I might've possibly liked on the whim of a friend, despite it being set in a world that isn't likely I would be the fan of. So I gave it a ... try.

What you might dislike about the story is the fact that it is set in a post-apocalyptic looking future with cyberpunk-ish elements. Personally, I am not a fan of any of these aspects so immediately going in I wasn't a big fan. Then the story of these 6 chapters start with Alita's unconcious head (she's a cyborg) being found by a doctor specialized in cyborg repairs and then the way Alita progresses through the story is gonna be through her remembering bits of her past and unlocking the potential of her new battlebody, which seems to be unknown. This gave the story a very shounen-ish feel, as she will have to unlock the potential of her body and mind in order to become more poweful. I dislike shounen in general and the post apocalyptic looking world didn't exactly draw me in, so if you also dislike these aspects, this will be a hard read for you.

The art of the manga is really good looking, as it does the look of a dirty futuristic world really well. Some mangas that draw this type of world make it look clustered and overly dirty, but Gunnm does it justice and doesn't flood it with any details it does not need and still manages to encapture that look really well. The fights so far in the 6 chapters looked really well and there's some gore-ish parts. Don't expect anything too over the top looking from the gore side so far, but it's still at a decent level. There's gonna be brains and lost limbs. That's basically what you should expect, it shouldn't be too extreme. I really liked the art myself, and I don't think I could find room to criticize on this matter. The only thing you might dislike here is the style of the world itself and the fact that it can be gore-ish. Those aspects were a plus for me, but they might be a negative for you.

The characters themselves are somewhat interesting, the doctor that saved her doesn't want her to see the fact that he enjoys his nighttime job and both see each other as someone really special, the doctor sees her as an innocent angel, while she wonders that if she is an angel what that makes him. It is an interesting dynamic, I'll give it that. There is another character that you might find interesting as a villain so far, but they didn't shine much light on me. Alita is basically has the overall personality of a cheerful innocent person that is gonna go bash the brains in of any monster and evil being she comes across, determined to do what's right, which is something that I find kinda generic. The relationship dynamic between her and the doctor is not something that drew me in too much and the villain that was there wasn't too interesting or didn't have enough time to become that, but they don't seem like the type of character I'd like. If you're not a fan of the kind of character Alita is you might dislike her, and seeing as she is the main character, that is a big factor. There's the possibility of change in her overall considering that she lost her memories, so maybe she will completely change after these 6 chapters, so you might gun for that if you want. The characters have some room and setup for good development, so there seems to be potential that they might grow. Even the villain that didn't really get me going had some interesting bits to themselves and a weird life which could draw in some people to want to find more about them.

So if you read what I've written so far you will have a pretty good idea of what you're getting yourself into. The reason I quit the manga is because I didn't find the characters interesting enough to continue and in the style of world that this is and the way it is built, there had to be a driving force to keep me invested in the manga. If none of the elements that I've presented can keep you invested and you found them as negatives, it's possible that you might end up not enjoying it either. However, if none or some of what of the things I said here aren't a problem or are elements you're actually looking for, by all means, you should check the manga and see how it is in its actual entirety, since there indeed is potential regardless of everything I said.

Aug 1, 2015

Whalelala

Recommended

When Yukito Kishiro first created Gunnm (Battle Angel), he started with the world. It's basically future post-apocalyptic, but it's well thought out, and perfectly feasible. He even has little notes here and there throughout the book giving details on some of the new (or old) technology. Like most manga, the artwork is fairly simple, but beautiful. Vehicles, landscapes, character designs.. you name it. All of it has that futuristic dirty feel to it that the original Star Wars movies have, with more than a bit of Mad Max thrown in. But, the characters are where it's at. The main character starts at the bottom. She ...

Feb 21, 2013

Shura-shurato

Recommended

MOTORBALL IS THE NAME OF THE GAME! one of the best and essential thing´s that make´s the alita manga a cyberpunk Gem! the story , like the 2 ova´s starts great has an great number of chara, side chara with each an important, dark, filthy cyber backstory or past! With an animation thats fitting like hell and totally shows its true potential at the mecha design drawings wich made me melt , TOTALLY! as the story progresses further than the anime, with more about tiphares, the scrapyard that once was called earth, Alita´s past and the involvement with the cyberdoctors. Violence here ...

Feb 13, 2019

Foxtrot_67

Recommended

Was debating whether or not to read this for a while, then I saw the new fox trailer and thought "might as well", and I have to say I was not disappointed. I don't wanna spoil to much, but definitely check this one out.
Can say that I am a little scared to see the movie, since live actions are never good, but I am still very excited. If you're interested learning more about Alita, and what the movie is changing, I suggest you check out Cya.live's Gundam showing tonight. They're going in depth of the differences between movie and the mange. https://www.cya.live/event/277.html

Sep 7, 2012

tlne

Recommended

Battle Angel Alita (or GUNNM) is a dystopia featuring Alita’s (or Gally, in some translations) journey as a moral, conscious being in the Scrapyard --a ruthless world that resides underneath the god-like Tiphares. What is right and wrong? And when is someone considered truly “human”? Battle Angel Alita delves into the realm of consciousness, morals, and staying true to yourself. As a manga, it's very, very good. Still, Battle Angel Alita is a far cry from a masterpiece.

The setting in Battle Angel Alita was one of the story’s most important features, keeping the reader engaged in it’s mysteries. Comparable to something like Nausicaa, it has ... a certain post-apocalyptic atmosphere. And along with it’s very picturesque, imaginative setting, it creates something that recent mangas seem to ignore nowadays. Though parts of the worlds may seem whimsical and airy, there is definitely something depressing. The setting itself (almost) never changes. Instead, in this static setting, Alita changes. The setting itself makes a perfect foil to Alita’s character; her change and growth, and her reactions in the environment. The two come together very neatly, and I must say, I am very impressed because it was as if she was actually living in that world.

I can’t say the same for Alita, however, or any of the characters.
The story dealt a lot about personal morals, and even though we did get to see some angst over Alita, we never actually saw any of her standpoints. I really can’t discuss this in further detail without spoiling a lot, but I can say that Alita doesn’t know the dividing line between friends and foes, the innocent and the criminal. Whenever something groundbreaking happens, her beliefs and ideals are completely thrown into another direction, making her a very clumsy, dynamic character (who unfortunately, isn't as complex as people like to think). Another thing: characters were introduced for the sole sake of the plot. If there was nothing propelling the story forward, then you could guarantee that a new character would appear, and coincidentally have ties with the main story. Those characters all fell flat, and there was absolutely no development on the original characters. The characters were a huge disappointment because a realistic setting and characters are the foundation for an excellent manga.

The narration throughout the manga was very fluid, keeping a certain level of intrigue and sub-plot mystery at the same time. I found that some parts were more boring and slow than others, and after an arc, nothing was really motivating me to start the next one. I could walk away from it for days, but it was easily picked up again, without any struggles. The story itself was a very captivating one, however, it did have it’s clique shounen moments (even though it’s a seinen) when a new villain would appear after every so chapters. There were some plot holes, but they were so insignificant it wouldn’t matter anyways. The ending was excellently done (no I won’t spoil), and it wrapped up everything nicely. It was probably the greatest part about this manga. There was this one, little thing I had a problem with it. Since Alita is practically immortal (still no spoilers, you learn that in chapter 1), you couldn’t see the effects of time. A few chapters may go by before you see a certain character again, their first remark is, “I haven’t seen you in ___ years!”. At the beginning, the mangaka does help the reader understand how much time has past, but later on she seems to neglect it, making some parts (and transitions between arcs) confusing. Other than that little thing that happened only a handful of times, it was an excellent story, and like I said before, it touches on topics such as what humanity really is, and the moral consciousness.

Honestly, I’m not going to even talk about the art. If you can’t get over early 90’s art (people have called it ugly before), then don’t read it. It’s artstyle visually enhances the setting and characters, and personally, I found it really fitting to the story. Sometimes it’s details/anatomy would be awkward, but it was perfect for Battle Angel Alita.

So all in all, it was a really great read, but it didn’t live up to the hype and expectations. It only had little problems, but the fact that it had so many of them was kind of disappointing. Not only that, but I felt it wasn't as mature as seinens go, and definitely not as mature as other reviews lead you to believe. Battle Angel Alita has a great premise that could’ve potentially been a 10, but it’s problems here and there took it to an 8.5. Though there are some characterization problems with Alita, her growth in the series was the most important thing. Battle Angel Alita is extremely interesting, and the way it presents it’s ideas in symbols sometimes are kinda neat to find. It deserves a 8.5. It wasn't a masterpiece, but it was very good.

★★★★★★★★☆☆

Mar 7, 2022

CrumbSteak

Recommended

Amnesiac protagonists are tricky. In the worst cases, they are used for gotcha moments or insane contrivances that do the narrative no favors. On the opposite end, they can be used as fresh perspectives to introduce the audience to settings, characters, and ideologies in a way that doesn't seem overbearing or amateurish. Gunnm doesn't always stick the landing, but it falls into the latter category more often than not.

The story structure is free-form: you see Alita partake in numerous jobs, varying in danger and rewards, all the while watching her grow up. In this way it combines genre to both widen its scope and heighten ... the stakes in exciting fashions: bounty hunting, romance, sports, and many other threads crossing over the course of the story. It's a thrilling ride from start to finish, and watching Alita stumble then succeed in her various occupations never gets old. The best parts of Gunnm are when Alita’s numerous jobs inform the reader about the setting, painting a picture of a desolate world divided by class. Working in tandem with this are the motivations of each occupation’s villain - most of the time, their motives are related to the injustice of the setting, making them understandable if not a little sympathetic. Exempt from this is the manga’s final villain, which lets Gunnm down somewhat.

A good chunk of the cast are archetypes, but their execution and moments outshined their origin in my eyes, e.g. the regretful old pro in the Motorball arc, the young kid saving up cash to go to the big city, the grizzled soldier with a heart of gold, etc. This is all well and good, but an issue arises when an archetype begins dominating a story despite their flatness - such is the problem with the manga’s final villain. Without spoiling anything, he lacked the charisma of prior antagonists, and his link with the setting was underutilized in my view. Add this with the fact that he's undoubtedly the flattest archetype of the lot, and the last two volumes of Gunnm feel like a bit of a slog compared to its high energy beginnings. Alita herself is handled remarkably well, providing a fish out of water perspective that allows the reader to learn about the world in a natural manner. This makes her journey to maturity even more satisfying, as the reader sees her start from nothing and fight for her place in the world. Her amnesia is overall a net positive for the story, despite some slipups near the end. As it stands, Alita is a great protagonist and fits the story just fine.

Gunnm's art is of remarkably high quality. The characters look bouncy and detailed, with shapes being stretched and exaggerated to great effect. The action is paneled fantastically and rarely if ever hard to follow, and is tied with Alita herself as the best part of the series. The setting is perfectly realized, and color (or lack thereof) is perfectly distributed. Gunnm is one of the few manga where I cannot imagine ever reading it in color - it is a testament to the power of black and white, and is worth reading for that alone.

In short, Alita is awesome, the art is next level, and the setting is cool. Give it a try.

Nov 18, 2020

TheDarkhorse

Recommended

Finished a long time ago.

First read and completed all 9 Vol at 2005 or 06,

then watched the OVA, saw the movie on 2019 (its was good, could be better),

and it made me reread all 9 vol again.

I can't say I'm a mega fan, since I have not read The Last Order yet.
I know, it's a problem, I'll fix it.
...

Jan 10, 2019

WampaStompa

Recommended

A great read! I think my favorite thing about Gunnm is Alita herself. She's incredibly well written, she's fun, and you want to root for her. Of all the comics and manga I've read, she's probably my favorite female protagonist, and definitely in my Top 5 overall.

Between all the action, there are some pretty good life lessons, such as growing up, your first heartbreak, trusting your parental figures, dealing with loss, and remembering that your value isn't tied to what you've won and lost.

I bought the Hardcover additions that Kondansha is currently running, so if you are looking to get into this series, buy ...

Jan 8, 2022

BakaBoysClub

Recommended

This is a cult-hard classic. Basically the manga equivalent to Patlabor: The Movie for anime. You read/watch it when you start getting into manga/anime and you start seeking out the old classics. And in this case, the title "cult-hard classic" is deserved in every way.

I have made a whole quality video review on this, if you feel like it, you can check it out from the link in my profile.

Starting off the review with:

Story - 9
The whole progression and everything that is happening feels very natural. It doesn't overexplain the setting or the events - it just lets you take in the action and the ...