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Garm Wars has finally been published as a novel written by Mamoru Oshii
Garm Wars is a cult hit among film fans. The film welcomes internationally renowned director Mamoru Oshii and is a sci-fi space epic. The project for this epic film began 15 years ago in the ‘90s and included those in the film industry overseas, but the project was put on hold due to its enormous scale. After this, the project fell off the map for quite some time, but things have picked up once again through a joint production effort with Canada. In 2014, Garm Wars: The Last Druid was completed. Its world premiere was held at the Tokyo International Film Festival.
Garm Wars: Shirogane no Shinmonkan, another story in the Garm Wars series presented as a novel, was published by Kadokawa on April 4. The story was penned by director Oshii himself. Director Oshii has organized the novel as a separate story than that of the film. Seeing as the novel was released ahead of the domestic release of the film, it may be a good idea to enjoy the novel first.
The story of Garm Wars takes place on a planet embroiled in a long-running war among tribes called Garm. During battle, the Garm wear masks, have mechanized bodies, transfer their memories to data, and transfigure into battle-specialized soldiers. In the midst of this, they endeavour to solve the mystery of “Cell,” which came down from the sky in search of the planet’s lost history. The film Garm Wars: The Last Druid presents a sci-fi fantasy from a different perspective. The novel is one fans of Oshii won’t be able to put down.
Director Mamoru Oshii was born in Tokyo in 1951. He became bathed in the spotlight with the TV anime Urusei Yatsura and the film Urusei Yatsura 2 Beautiful Dreamer. After this, he fired out such hits as Mobile Police Patlabor: The Movie. However, what made Oshii a name well known overseas was the 1995 series Ghost in the Shell. He gained worldwide acclaim in 2004 with Innocence. His live-action films including Avalon are also standout works.
Oshii isn’t just a director, he is active in a wide variety of areas including writing novels and essays. He has many fans for his unique worlds that can be difficult to understand at times. Garm Wars: Shirogane no Shinmonkan is one such work. The back of the novel includes a glossary of characters, military concepts, and world concepts. This as well is not to be missed, and is no doubt material to help understand the story. The novel costs 1,700 yen (plus tax).
Garm Wars: Shirogane no Shinmonkan
Author: Mamoru Oshii
Release Date: April 4, 2015
Price: 1,700 yen + tax
Publisher: Kadokawa
[Table of Contents]
Chapter 1: Advent
Chapter 2: Vocation
Chapter 3: Inquisition - Khara
Chapter 4: Inquisition - Skellig
Chapter 5: Inquisition - Scathach
Chapter 6: Inquisition - Wydo
Chapter 7: Malak’s Nest
Glossary
Source: animeanime