While these shows were still aimed at kids and were still designed to sell toys, in model magazines of the era their more realistic designs were seized upon by modelers who combined them with military aesthetics. The popularity of Gundam spurred the creation of what we’d now call the “real robot” genre, leading to shows like Super Dimension Fortress Macross and Armored Trooper VOTOMS, which diverged considerably from the “super robot” stylings of the 1970s. Many otaku favored grittier, more realistic sci-fi with plenty of real-life military influences, a trend that can trace its roots back to the original “realistic” giant robot anime, Mobile Suit Gundam. Shirow came to prominence in an era when militarism and mechanical designs were a major draw to otaku. Not helping the matter is the fact that Shirow’s manga work feels decidedly dated, and while the animated iterations have updated his core ideas with more modern approaches, his manga is very much a product of the era within which it was created. At this point it seems safe to say that the animated versions of both of these franchises have completely eclipsed their manga forebears, largely because Shirow withdrew from the manga industry over a decade ago. This summer alone we’ve seen two new films based on Shirow’s work: Appleseed Alpha and the latest in the Ghost in the Shell: ARISE series. His most popular titles, Appleseed, Dominion Tank Police and Ghost in the Shell, would all be adapted into anime films, OVAs and TV series, despite Shirow’s creative output dropping off drastically in the late ‘90s. First breaking into professional manga in the ’80s, the one-time art teacher wrote and illustrated a number of sci-fi manga featuring strong female leads a formula that soon became his trademark. Though he’s been out of the manga game for well over a decade, Masamune Shirow’s work continues to be tapped for adaption by the Japanese animation industry. Though it’s almost been overshadowed by the various anime adaptations, the Ghost in the Shell that appeared 25 years ago and serves as the template for every Ghost in the Shell anime, novel, and video game is the original manga, illustrated and written by reclusive artist Masamune Shirow.

This month, an exhibition rolling through Japan is celebrating the 25th anniversary of Ghost in the Shell.

Ghost in the Shell by Masamune Shirow