Shangri-La English Website, Details Abound

Yep, back to writing about Shangri-La yet again, in what is starting to feel like a daily routine; a rather enjoyable one, at that. Following our recent packs of artworks and screenshots, it's now time to delve deeper into the neo-futuristic story and world of Gonzo's upcoming anime. Conveniently enough, the official Shangri-La website has just opened its English version today, so my "job" really comes down to shameless copy-pasting.



But before I begin, I'll draw your attention to a few more images added to the anime's local gallery. Crappy scans originally, but I did my best to make them more presentable. Anyway, on with the story.

"The story is set in a neo-futuristic age, in which Tokyo has turned into the world's largest "jungle-polis" that absorbs carbon dioxide. A tower city called Atlas houses the rich and privileged, and is the object of yearning of all that are not allowed to enter. But Atlas also has ancient secrets which cause a sudden whirl of events. Festooned by colorful characters such as a riotous teenage girl, a child genius, a juvenile princess, a drag queen, a female doctor, an army major, and an elderly gentleman and lady, Shangri-La's hard-core world view plays out as an anime action saga.

A striking vision of Earth's future from some of Japan's foremost creative talents, Shangri-La is a tale of greed and division vs. bravery and the human spirit. Set against the backdrop of a Tokyo cityscape turned into a teeming jungle by runaway global warming, with the elite living in the comfort of the tower city, Atlas, and the less-privileged masses struggling in the squalor in the jungle - only one girl, Kuniko Hojo, and her band of guerrillas can find a way to preserve the future for everyone."

The band of guerrillas mentioned above is called Metal-age, and its leader Kuniko Hojo is an "18-year-old girl clad in school uniform. Gifted with incredible athleticism and reflex, she is a daredevil who would defy any adversities in high spirit". She's also the anime's lead character, in case it wasn't obvious enough.

As for that creepy heterochromic loli that caught my attention yesterday, it turns out she is "a mysterious 8-year-old girl of aristocratic class residing in Atlas. She is a fragile soul stricken with disease by which she cannot be exposed to sunlight".

You can read about the other characters and other stuff on the afore mentioned English website. The only thing missing now is a trailer. Well, that and the real thing - which will start airing in just a few weeks, on April 5.