Battle Angel Alita, known as GUNNM (銃夢, "Gun-Mu") around Japan, is a manga series created by Yukito Kishiro in 1991. It was originally published around Japan within Shueisha's Ultra Jump magazine until 1995.

A original title Gunnm ("Gun Dream") was changed to Battle Angel Alita by Viz Communications (today VIZ Media), which imported the manga to North America. A independent character Alita (known as "Gally" in the original Japanese version, the nickname virtually all in all likelihood short for Galatea) is a bionic man by owning there is no memory of her past.

A nine-volume manga was adapted into deuce anime Original Video Animations in 1993. It did non sell swell around Japan, but, thus farther animation of a series did non last beyond the planning stages. Although a OVAs were typically considered to become swell manufactured, critics pointed out that it failed to reproduce a involution of the manga. Fans too said a alive version of Gally/Alita wasn't cute sufficiency. While ADV Films adapted a OVAs to the Northward Western market, it chose to last sustaining the title Battle Angel and then that fans would tie it around sustaining a manga version, dropping a "Alita" to make sure your not the redub of the original Japanese.

Yukito Kishiro wwhen non happy by having a prevent of the series, as he was forced to prevent it prematurely due to external & private reasons. Two or three years late he had a risk to publish a manga GUNNM: Go Sequentially, known as Battle Angel Alita: Last Order in North Us, which skips a prevent of a survive graphic novel & tells the story when he originally meant. Go Sequentially is too existence translated to English by Viz, with 4 volumes published when of October 2004.

Setting

Battle Angel Alita requires place within the extremely futurist dystopian world, reflected in its fully Japanese title GUNNM: Hyper First Vision. A Discarded Front yard (Kuzutetsu, "scrap iron") occurs as straggly expanse of buildings & more structures centered in the massive discarded heap. A heap consists of detritus ejected from either a swimming city of Tiphares (Zalem), which is anchored to the ground by brobdingnagian cables which too help when supply tubes. A sole law is Manufactory Law: system contrived to protect Tipharean interests around food & basic resources that come supplied from either a Manufactory in the image below. E.g., air travel in close proximity to Tiphares (this includes two human mass produced objects & fleshly life) is prohibited. Anything that breaches this particular law is shot down per swimming city's defence system.

A Discarded Front yard reflects a cyberpunk ethos. Numbers of dweller own turn into cyborgs working for the manufactory, when others utilize cybernetics to enhance their physical abilities. Piece come outlawed; non-projectile weapons come permitted & survive around nifty kind. Public amusement is of the violent nature and severity; Motorball's fusion of racing and gladiatorial combat is a prime example. Fights erupt spontaneously on the streets. Violent criminals lurk in shadowy alleyways and through the tremendous extent of the sewers.

Hunter-Warriors are the enforcers of Factory Law in the Scrap Yard. Mercenaries in essence, they respond to "wanted" notices posted by the Factory, looking to collect the bounties offered. Hunter-Warriors are required to register with the Factory, and are uniquely identified with a brain pattern.

Outside the Scrap Yard is desert, with some oasis-like locations called Farm Factories for resource production.

Story
Book 1: Rusty Angel

Daisuke Ido, a cybermedic expert searching for some useful scrap, finds the head and upper torso of a female cyborg in a suspended animation state. Amazed by his discovery, Ido quickly returns home and works to revive her. Upon finding that the girl has lost her memory, Ido names her Alita (Gally), being the name of his recent deceased male cat.

Ido builds Alita a new cyborg body, but she suspects that the parts have been obtained by violence. She follows him one night, hoping to discover the true nature of his late-night activities. She watches him lie in wait for what appears to be an approaching woman, and intervenes. The woman turns out to be a berserk mutant woman with a bounty on her head. She attacks Alita and Ido.

Alita fights the woman, suddenly delivering a killing blow by instinct. Ido recognizes the technique as an ancient Martian Martial Arts known as Panzer Kunst ("panoplied arts"). Ido reveals he is a Hunter-Warrior, and after some argument, she decides to become one as well. This begins Alita's quest to discover her true identity.

One evening, Alita encounters her first criminal called Makaku. His constant hunger for endorphins leads him to prey on victims' brains. Alita attempts to defeat Makaku, but fails and nearly dies. Ido arrives to her rescue and fends off Makaku, sustaining a severe injury in the process. Beaten, but not destroyed, the criminal vows revenge on the two and flees.

Ido struggles back to his clinic with Alita and dresses his wounds with the help of his assistant Gonzu. He decides that with Alita's broken body and the threat of Makaku, there remains no other choice but to give her a Berserker body. After a lengthy operation, Alita awakens to find herself restored in a new and powerful body.

Filled with resolve, Alita and Ido decide to seek the help of other hunter-warriors in hopes of stopping Makaku. Much to their dismay, no one in the Scrapyard wants to risk facing Makaku. The other hunter-warriors scoff at the notion, leaving only Alita to pursue the rampant criminal.

Before Alita can leave to seek out Makaku, he confronts her in a newly acquired body and proceeds to wreak havoc around her. Their fight winds its way into the sewers and kindles hidden instincts within Alita. Facing almost certain death, Makaku decides to incinerate both of them atop a massive cistern. However, Alita's newfound abilities of the Berserker body allow her to control the flames and she holds them back as Makaku recounts his sad origin at the hands of scientist Desty Nova before he dies.

After the experience, Alita changes in attitude and becomes more determined to discover her own origins. Her journeys take her across the scrapyard and surrounding areas, as she remembers more and more about her past.

BOOK 2: -summary coming soon-

BOOK 3: -summary coming soon-

BOOK 4: -summary coming soon-

BOOK 5: -summary coming soon-

BOOK 6:- summary coming soon-

BOOK 7: -summary coming soon-

Live-action movie
Ain't It Cool News has reported that James Cameron has been working on a feature length film version of Battle Angel Alita. It is currently in pre production, with Fox expected to green light the project by December 2005. The agreement between James Cameron and Yukito Kishiro had been previously confirmed by the author of Gunnm. The music will be done by John Williams (Jaws, Star Wars, E.T., Jurassic Park). The only other confirmed member of production (as of October 2005) is Vince Pace, who will be the Director of photography: second unit. The current release date is set for the second half of 2007. The film will be presented in Dolby Digital 3-D Projection, and will be the first major Hollywood film to be distributed this way. James Cameron said in an interview in 2005 that the film will get a strict PG-13 rating. Shortly after, he updated this to a full 'R' rating, due to the Manga series' violent nature. The film will encompass the first 3 books of the series, and, if the first movie is successful, will make two further movies, encompassing the rest of the series. The current estimated budget is $200 000 000, with filming expected to start between December and February 2005/6.

Related works
GUNNM Gaiden, a collection of sides stories of Gunnm; Haisha, a.k.a. Ashen Victor in the United States, a prequel set a decade before the beginning of Gunnm. It primarily tells the story of a Motorball player and it sets the evolution of the game into what it becomes in the main story. GUNNM: Last Order a.k.a. Battle Angel Alita: Last Order, a sequel published monthly in Ultra Jump. GUNNM: Memories of Mars, an RPG videogame by Banpresto.