I've been a Battle Angel Alita fan ever since I was knee high to a grasshopper (I'm now 39 so that's a fair amount of time) and when the movie dropped it was with a sense of trepidation that I watched it in the cinema. I went in expecting the worst as Hollywood hadn't done manga and anime adaptations any favours. Often they were notoriously bad (just think of Death Note, Blood: The Last Vampire, Priest and Dragon Ball Evolution *shudders*) or merely passable (think Ghost in the Shell), however I was pleasantly surprised when Alita: Battle Angel was really rather good and remained true to the source material.
I have the entire collection but the eagle eyes among you might notice the ‘Mars Chronicle’ series missing… it’s in storage and I don’t have a picture to hand but I do have them. Check the review of the series in the links below.
So it was with a renewed sense of optimism that I approached 'The Iron City' by Pat Cadigan which is the prequel novel of the movie. Now this isn't the novelisation of the movie but rather events before the movie takes place. Some details are taken from the graphic novel series and stitched together into more a more concisely readable, cohesive whole for those who may be unfamiliar with Yukito Kishiro's sprawling Gunnm series (which has over 30 graphic novels as of Oct 2020). I have all the graphic novels but as the series is nearly 30 years old even I can't remember all the details and so this novel is a good primer for old guard Alita’s Army fans like me but also for a newer audience who may only have met the character on the silver screen or maybe seen the one off OVA from the late 80s.
Cadigan is obviously a fan of the comic series and from the huge cast of characters focuses on Vector, Hugo, Shirin and Ido. The main story here deals with Hugo's crew stealing Ido's super chip which reduces lag between the brain signal and robotic parts. Cadigan looks at the hierarchy that exists within the Scrapyard and details the machinations of corruption and influence as we see how Vector is able to control and maintain influence, he's a fixer and can get what you want... at a price.
In this dog eat dog world we get a deeper insight into Hugo’s motivations. He aspires to ascend to Tiphares/ Zalem, the floating city due to a tragic backstory that is deftly handled. His role as the de facto gang leader who is trying to get a million credits to buy his way to the floating city is an interesting journey to follow but it is how Cadigan handles Ido that deserves special mention. We get to hear his inner turmoil about doing the right thing whilst having regret about his frayed relationship with his wife, Shirin. Other peripheral characters from the comics are given a chance to shine too and some have their roles and relationships tweaked but it still makes sense in this world.
Cadigan does a great job of recreating an immersive world from the huge comic series and making it palatable for a YAA audience. As a reader of Haruki Murakami and David Mitchel (Cloud Atlas) don't go in expecting florid magical surrealist flights of fancy or florid language or prose but the novel is effective and well worth a read as it adds to the larger tapestry of Kishiro’s world.
LINK- Alita: Battle Angel Movie Review
LINK- Battle Angel Alita: Mars Chronicle Vol. 3- Comic Review
LINK- Battle Angel Alita: Mars Chronicle Vol. 2- Comic Review
LINK- Battle Angel Alita: Mars Chronicle Vol. 1- Comic Review
LINK- Battle Angel Alita: And So It Ends
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LINK- Inspector Gadget Retro Soundtrack Review
LINK- Ulysses 31 Retro Soundtrack Review
LINK- The Mysterious Cities of Gold Retro Soundtrack Review
LINK- Sonic Mania Video Game Vinyl Soundtrack