Anime Books

If you are a FMA fan...this is a must have for your collection! it has lots of cool graphics from the anime...and some "just for fun" pictures.
I think that you are not a fan without this in you collection! ^_^

If you are a fan of the serie this is an excelent add to your collection, showing the first years off production on the FMA, I really enjoy my copy

This is a gorgeous book that any fan of the anime will love, but it didn't contain what I had expected.
This book has full color illustrations in the anime style. In other words, what you have seen on posters, wallscrolls and the like. There isn't anything like screenshots, but original art in the anime style.

What I HAD been expecting where character, background, and item reference art, such as what would have been used in the production of the anime. The closest to that is a small section with lineart from art in the book, as well as a 'how they do it' section on the steps they take to make the images.

This is a book every Fullmetal fan will love, but I was just expecting a little more from the production aspect of the show, not just images they use in calanders and such.

eh...I wanted to give 4 1/2 stars but you can't do that on amazon. I like Castle in the sky, a lot. I muchly prefered it over other Miyazaki movies. Of course not as popular as oh say, Princess Mononoke or Spirited Away (both just as wonderful). The mangas are very good, the movie was also very good. Kids enjoy it. Adults (like my mother) enjoy it. Miyazaki is so brilliant.

with the original sound effects (at least in my version) it has a very nice storyline and the art is very nice! elegable for thke whole family to watch and read ^_^

Hayao Miyazaki of Studio Ghibli is the most beloved animator in Japan and when his film "Spirited Away" won the 2002 Academy Award for Best Animated Feature Film, there were plenty of people on this side of the Pacific who were interested in seeing his earlier films, which included "Princess Mononoke," "Kiki's Delivery Service," "My Neighbor Totoro," and "Castle in the Sky." The last is retold in a four-part series of graphic novels that are printed and intended to be read in the original Japanese right-to-left format (although you can get in a couple of dozen pages starting from the "front" before you are clearly on the wrong track).

"Castle in the Sky" ("Tenkû no shiro Rapyuta") is the story of Sheeta, a young girl who wears a mysterious blue crystal around her neck that allows her to defy gravity, and Pazu, a young orphan and apprentice miner who is pretty inventive. They meet when pirates after a treasure and government secret agents hungry for power start chasing Sheeta and Pazu saves her when she falls out of an airship (he catches her when she floats down out of the sky). Muska has been assigned by the Special Agency to obtain the levitation stone while Dola is the captain of the pirate's airship. The stone has been in Sheeta's family forever and there is clearly a secret connection between it and the mythical Laputa, a floating city built by a lost race of people. This is probably my least favorite Miyazaki film, but is still well worth watching, or, in this case reading.

For those who have read what photo-novels of movies are like before, you are not really going to be prepared for what they will find in this graphic novel (it really is more like a comic book). Whether you have seen "Castle in the Sky" or not you will find this an interesting story and there is even a cliffhanger at the end of volume 1 to inspire you to move on to the next part. When you make the mistake of opening to the "front" of the book look over the guide to "Castle in the Sky" sound effects used in the "manga" (comic book) style adaptation of the actual anime (animated movie). The sound effects are usually written in the phonetic characters called "katakana." If the instructions are too complicated do not worry because there are three pages of annotations (three column per page) translating every sound from "whoor whoor whoor" to the final "kaasboom."

I read the first edition, which came out around 6 months to a year before the second edition. It combines a history of anime (with a slant towards American releases), a genre guide, the reviews from past issues of Animerica of titles released in the US, and a section on anime fandom. A fairly good reference for the beginning anime fan but not very in-depth. The "complete" part of the title is somewhat of a misnomer.

As the title suggests `The Complete Anime Guide' is a `Japanese Animation Film Directory and Resource Guide,' or more specifically a comprehensive guide to Japanese Animation is currently available in America on domestic release videos. The Guide, co-written by Trish Ledoux, editor of the `Animerica' film guide magazine, far surpasses the 1st edition which was much criticised as being a glorified catalogue rather than a resource guide. Now in its second incarnation the Guide provides detailed information on each of the available Anime titles ranging from production data, release dates, to episode summaries and subjective comments. The Guide even provides a unique classification of Anime titles in the form of symbols to represent content for violence, nudity, comedy, profanity, etc..., on suitability of titles for specific audiences. In addition the Guide also has a comprehensive list of Anime publishing houses, distributors in America and even a list Anime Magazines. It even goes as far as to include URLS for Anime resources on the World Wide Web. The most interesting aspect of the Guide is the section written by Noboru Ishiguro, a mover in the field of anime, on his observations on the history of Animation in Japan and in America. The 2nd edition Guide is a must have for all anime fans, at least until the 3rd edition is released.

The Complete Anime Guide is a very well made book which composes one of the best intro's I have read. The book goes in great depth from the very first re-writing the history of anime, which is very helpful for people starting off, or people who would like to learn more about the history of anime. Although it could now use an update, it has a very large number of anime titles which are currently available in the United States. The only two things I disgress about the book are a better made index, consisting of the anime titles alone, much like The Anime Movie Guide written by Helen Mcarthy. Another thing I dislike was the use of only American titles. I wanted to see many of Hayoa Miyazaki when it only included one. It is fairly brief in reviews, although it goes into depth mentioning each OVA which is very nice. It also gives slight background on a few words of japanese. I prefer to use this book to find out about a title briefly or to gather history from anime backgrounds.

Natsu has challenged Taro to a fight to win the blessing of his relationship to Kajitsu, the girl he grew up with who he always thought of as his sister. Will the younger brother be able to triumph in matters of the heart?

*Sigh* The series ended just how I expected it too, though it wasn't necessarily what I was hoping for. I kind of wanted to be surprised, blown away... shocked. I wasn't wholly shocked by the ending. Still, it's a great series, and I will try to hand sell the hell out of it. I am overwhelmed by how good it is. Read it. It's so good.

This manga was a beautiful end to a beautiful series. In the end, they address every unsolved issue and even go as far as to show you what happens in the future to the main characters, not to mention there is a pleasant surprise to see an unexpected person fall in love with Taro. I cried at certain points in the series and i have to admit that this volume was not the best of the 7, but if you have read the rest, i advise you to read this one.

It's a wonderful end to one of my favorite mangas. Kajitsu and Natsu are the best couple I've seen in a while in shojo manga. Crossroad deals with real issues in day to day life, it's about self realization and courage to deal with the troubles these teenagers went through on a day to day basis. It also shows that through love you don't need to be blood related to make a family.
Congrats to GoComi for bringing this magnificent comic to the states.
This manga ends great for our starring couple and big brother Taro also gets some loving from the most unexpected character.

This is the profile book for the ANIME only (as the title proves). There is a profile book for the manga characters in existance as well so if that what you want you're at the wrong place.

That said the book provides a good overview of the entire anime series. The information does allow fans of the series to recall some facts and details that may be only be recalled by actually watching the series. However, most of the facts presented fans would already know such as how Ed and Al are related to one another (their brothers). Yes, there are flaws perhaps the most grevious is the misprint about the length of Greed's captivity. Still they do not detract from the overall profile for each character.

However, the pages also contain sections on each character that is fun. For instance in Ed's profile it presents his dislikes (milk) and some quotes from his comebacks to short comments or in Mustang's profile it presents a recap of his "work" day.

The entire book is printed on full color pages with tons of pictures for each character - even if some of them are quite small. The major characters each have roughly 3 to 4 pages (such as Ed, Al, Winry, Mustang) while "less" main characters have about 1 to 2 pages (Riza, Armstrong). There are also profiles on very minor characters such as Clause which share space with other minor characters (about four characters to a two page spread).

Lastly, there is a diagram in the back locating the appearance of each and every character (no matter how minor) in accordance to the episode. A good example here would be the fact that you can see that Ed and Al appeared in every episode except for episode 37 with Wherehouse 13.

Overall, some information may be obvious to the dedicated fan, but still is interesting to read. The facial experessions alone from Ed made me want the book espeically since it is in color. If you are a fan of the series you'd probably want this book - I just wouldn't be in a rush to buy it.

My son who is 14 and loves anime, loved the book and read it in one day.

I purchased this book when I first saw it had come out in stores. I instantly fell in love with it. It's the perfect guide for fans who love the Fullmetal Alchemist anime. It has complete lists of everyone's favorite characters, including minor ones that only appear once during the series.
However, I have noticed that the editing is done poorly. There are several common errors that should have been easily fixed. An example is where they used "ane" instead of "and". Some of the character spellings are questionable, as well as the information. (ex. In the anime, Greed says he was imprisoned for 130 years, but this book says it was 140.)
Apart from these, I absolutely loved the book, especially the episode guide it includes. I would highly recommend purchasing this.

This is probably the best installment to date. It adds more characters but tells us little about them, only adding to the evergrowing shroud of mystery that surrounds the Elric brothers. King Bradley, leader of the military, has revealed himself as a homunclus working for a mysterious "father" whose true identity is yet to be unveiled. A small girl named Mei, and a prince named Lin, both hail from the country of Xing and wish to learn alchemy from Edward Elric. These are all characters that we've only touched upon and are sure to go deeper into their character as more volumes arise. I for one, couldn't be more overjoyed by that fact.

Fullmetal Alchemist is arguably one of the best titles out right now, and the story in this particular volume is when it starts to really take off. The only problem, and the one I knocked a star off because of, is the fact that Viz decided to quietly censor the content of this book for religious imagery, a fact they do not mention in this release. It's a relatively minor edit, but stains an otherwise perfect release.

As Volume 8 opens, Greed and his chimerae continue to be wiped out by military forces led by King Bradley, who appears to be a Homunculus himself. Is even Greed's carbon "Ultimate Shield" up to the task of defeating Bradley's flashing swords and "Ultimate Eye"? And which side will Ed and Al be on as they see all this blood being spilled around them? Meanwhile, Mustang and his crew get a break into their investigation into secret military experiments as they capture Barry the Chopper, a former serial killer whose soul was bonded to a suit of armor much like Alphonse. Two new characters emerge on the scene out of the far eastern country of Xing from two different walks of life. Both of them claim to be seeking the secret of immortality. Mei-Chan is a young girl whose skill with alchemy seems on a par with Ed and is accompanied by a miniature panda bear! The other is a prince named Ling, who travels in the company of fighting ninja and claims to be after the Philosopher's Stone, even though he doesn't know anything about alchemy.

What I like about this series now is that since last volume it has completely branched off from the anime series, so this storyline and characters are something I haven't seen. The mysterious mechanations of the Homunculi becomes more and more suspenseful as I wonder what their real plans are and how all these conflicts are going to end, especially with them in control of everything the military is doing. It's kinda like an Emperor Palpatine situation a la Revenge of the Sith, where the real enemy is actually running the whole show. I think one of the strengths of this manga is the humor. Arakawa never takes her book too seriously. The anime at times fills itself up with too much angst and tragedy while the manga takes a more balanced approach. The art is great and I'm excited to find out how the new Eastern characters are going to fit into the plot.

Buy the book- you'll know why after you're finished! It's simply complex...

trippy tech, sci-fi. there's a kewl assassin chick and a courrier who runs info on holograms. this guys onto something interesting.
-J

At first I was expecting another cyber-punkish novel that presented a somewhat even more twisted view of the future through another hero/antagonist's eyes, but shortly after reading past the extreme quickness and madness of chapter one, I found myself in a novel which got very mental in the sense that I felt as if I was in the 'mind' of the main character "Mickey Priest," who is a courrier of information.

I got to a point in which I couldn't put it down, presenting the idea of cosmic coincindence and divine guidance- possibly put forth by spirits in the web- conscious beings that are comprised primarily of information that seeks to connect with humanity in a self governing, more personal way.

-great read!

I purchased this book as a Christmas gift for my daughter, who is now a big fan of Naruto. Since I just started really watching the show with her, I flipped through the book myself to learn more about the program. I recommend it to new fans as it will give you a good background on the characters and a brief description of the episodes. Plus, the copy I purchased included a poster of a grown up Sakura, Sasuke and Naruto that my kid loves.

With anime being a part of our culture for some time now, I'm surprised that a guide book for a series wasn't made sooner. In a nutshell, one could call this book an encyclopedia companion for the first 37 episodes of the Naruto anime.

Similar to daizenshuu (Japanese guide books to anime), this book covers a good number of facts about the series until episode 37. This includes character profiles (current age, zodiac sign, blood type, etc.), overviews of each anime episode, and even interviews with the American voice actors of several main characters. There are even character designs and sketches of certain areas in the Naruto Universe, drawn by creator Masashi Kishimoto himself, not to mention a page or two with some cheesy little puzzles or quizzes.

Although the book is meant to cover what happens in each episode, don't expect in depth summaries. The book relies a lot on vibrant drawings as well as screencaps from the corresponding episode with bits of character quotes and a sentence or three describing what happened in that episode. So in that sense, this book is really a companion to watching the episodes and not a replacement for them (which is really what the manga is for, since it came before the anime anyways). Regardless, it's still fun to flip through the pages just to look back at all the adventures the gang of ninjas have gone through so far.

That's what it is, essentially--a picture book with a couple of captions here and there. Don't get me wrong, though, there is plenty of information to keep a fan of the series preoccupied for some time. And since it's a guide book, it doesn't even have to be read in order, unless you seriously forgot what happened in the series so far. To make a comparison, this book is a lot like those DK titles that published guide books on everything from countries to Star Wars, except the price is a little more affordable, especially when keeping in mind how much information is actually covered in the book.

You should also keep in mind that the screencaps are as they are seen in the edited Naruto anime, changing all the kanji into romanized English, and removing some of the excessive blood loss by some people. For the most part, though, that's for the benefit of the reader, who's most likely not going to understand Japanese. It's not a problem, it's just something I noticed.

Although not covering every nook and cranny of each episode, this book is a great companion to the series and I can't wait for the next release to cover another chunk of the series.

Okay I admit it.

The Naruto anime is awfully awesome ! There's loads of action and lots more in this impressive show. And this book has more than enough information on the TV series to go around.

Inside this book, there are charater introductions and profiles, episode listings and descriptions, interviews, concept art, and even a full-color pullout just for you. This book is even jam-packed with screenshots and colorful pictures from the show, too ! Every little description has quite the nitty-gritty on what's what within the anime series - inside the world of Naruto and outside in real life with the creator, voice overs, and show staff.

If you're a current, or uppencoming (like me) fan of all things Naruto, this book is a real must have. And look for new episodes on Cartoon Network on TV and the new Toonami Jetstream on cartoonnetwork.com.

(As I may borrow a phrase from Naruto himself...) "Believe it !"

I have read all 32 volumes of the original Japanese Shaman King story, and have also followed the English translations since my brother started subscribing to the English translation of the Shonen Jump magazine. I must say that I find the English editions completely satisfactory, besides the fact that they don't have the original sound effects (fine by me). Having said that, here are some opinions on this volume of the manga.

To start off with, the art is very good. Takei's style is highly stylized and angular, with some freakish characters that may turn off a few readers. Otherwise, the crisp, sharply contrasting black-and-white artwork is original and applied with skill.
If you are jumping into the story with this volume, you may be a bit confused. I recommend starting the series from the beginning. I'll assume here that you have read everything previous or at least know the main characters:
The story in this volume begins a dramatic turning point in the story. After the resolution of the conflict between Ren and his father (I won't spoil what happens!), Yoh and his shaman friends prepare for their trip to America for the second round of the Shaman Fight.
A highlight of this volume for those of you who are reading/have read the Japanese version as well is that it contains a controversial, perplexing scene involving Yoh and Anna. While only slightly suggestive of anything, some fans speculate that it proves Anna to be the mother of Hana Asakura (Yoh's son in a short story created by Hiroyuki Takei). Otherwise, most of the time fans will tell you that the short story points directly to Tamao Tamamura as the mother. Completely interesting topic.
Then, after these preparations and the last night with friends and loved ones, the shaman depart for the U.S. You'll be happy to see the comical, brief appearance of Silva and the rest of the Patch tribe in this volume, and to become aqcuaintanced with HAO HIMSELF!
The collection of chapters closes with an ending that hungers for the next volume, and ends completely with a cute little short showing Manta Oyamada after his best friend(s) leave for America.

Overall, I recommend this book to anyone even slightly curious about Shaman King. This series, stopped short in Japan for questionable reasons, well deserved to go on. It is complex--full of lovable characters representing many cultures, packed with satisfactory action and humor, and at times, it is even a beautiful, thought-provoking story. Read the story from the beginning, and you'll be happy you did.

This is one of the most amazing books i have ever read! i liked the art and the story. I have read all of shaman king books but this is one of the most coolest ones. So don't hesitate to buy it whether you are a shaman king fan or not.

P.S. In this volume yoh and anna finally have a good sex!!! WOW

Okay I haven't read the book yet but I've read most of the stories in it because I read shonen Jump (which awsome) I'm definatly going to buy it when it comes out. EVERYONE SHOULD READ SHAMAN KING BOOKS!!!!!!!!

A wonderfully deep book that finely examines anime across all genres to explore the anime itself and what influenced it.

The author discusses the different anime genres (Mecha, fairy tales, fantasy, Sci fi, shojo, history, pornography etc). She examines the common themes like metamorphosis, merging of humans and machines, gender panics, masculine crisis, identity, disappearing shojos and the role of young heroins (shojos) across different animes. She attempts to explain how these themes fit into Japanese society, identity and culture both traditional and new. She uses examples from many different animes to illustrate her arguments. Animes used in the discussion includes Evangelion, Ghost in a Shell, Akira, Twin Dolls, Inuyasha, Wolve's Rain, Rouroni Kenshin, Ranma ½, Utena, Grave of the Fireflies and Miyazaki's work just to name a few. If you watch these animes, you might want to read this book to better understand Japanese anime in general. One whole chapter is devoted to pornographic anime. Since I am not allowed to watch these anime due to religious restrictions, I found her writing very informative. Dr Napier gave good explanations of the themes and genres in the context of Japanese culture and issues that challenge modern day Japanese society. I would recommend this book to anime lovers, students and researchers who have an interest in Japanese culture and literature.

One star has been taken out because:

1. Japanese anime is a lot more than what was covered in this book.

2. I greatly admire Rumiko Takahashi, the author of Inuyasha for her definition of the word "demon". Through Inuyasha, the author demonstrated the very abstract post modern notion that a word (eg demon) has a fixed meaning in our minds only because humans/man defined it as such, our understanding of a word can be re-defined. I did not like Dr Napier's short and superficial analysis of Inuyasha although I agreed with her views.

3. I think at times, the author was so carried away summarizing the animes that the point she is trying to make becomes unclear.

4. My favourite animes in order of preference: Inuyasha, 12 Kingdoms, Samurai 7, Last Exile, Escaflowne, Evangelion, Gundam, etc most of which are not selected for discussion in the book.

If you are die hard Miyazaki fan, you should love this book because a lot of focus is put on Princess Mononoke, Spirited Away, Nausicaa etc.

Due to the omission of Ono Fuyumi's 12 Kingdoms, I wanted to give this book a 2 star rating. However, I'm grateful that Dr Napier wrote a very well researched book on Japanese anime, giving us an insight into different themes and how these fit into Japanese society and culture.

"Napier Draws a rather complete picture of Japanese animation as a legitimate art form, and uses anime as a key to the culture that created it" Entertainment Weekly.