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''All You Need Is Kill'' is a Japanese
science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel univers ...
light novel A light novel (, Hepburn: ''raito noberu'') is a style of young adult novel primarily targeting high school and middle school students. The term "light novel" is a '' wasei-eigo'', or a Japanese term formed from words in the English langua ...
by
Hiroshi Sakurazaka is a Japanese author of science fiction and fantasy light novels. He is best known for his novel '' All You Need Is Kill'', which formed the basis of the film ''Edge of Tomorrow'', starring Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt. Life and career Sakurazaka ...
with illustrations by
Yoshitoshi Abe is a Japanese graphic artist who works predominantly in anime and manga. He first gained fame in his work on the avant-garde anime ''Serial Experiments Lain''. He is also responsible for the concept and character design for the series '' NieA_7' ...
. The book was published in Japanese by
Shueisha (lit. "Gathering of Intellect Publishing Co., Ltd.") is a Japanese company headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. The company was established in 1925 as the entertainment-related publishing division of Japanese publisher Shogakukan. The fol ...
under their
Super Dash Bunko is a Shueisha publishing imprint established in July 2000 for publishing light novels aimed at teenage boys. In April 2001, the label inherited a strong lineup from the discontinued Super Fantasy Bunko label, in addition to inheriting all of th ...
imprint in December 2004, and was later released in English by
Viz Media VIZ Media LLC is an American manga publisher, anime distributor and entertainment company headquartered in San Francisco, California. It was founded in 1986 as VIZ LLC. In 2005, VIZ LLC and ShoPro Entertainment merged to form the current VIZ ...
under their '' Haikasoru'' imprint. ''All You Need Is Kill'' follows a soldier named Keiji Kiriya, who, after dying in a battle with
extraterrestrials Extraterrestrial life, colloquially referred to as alien life, is life that may occur outside Earth and which did not originate on Earth. No extraterrestrial life has yet been conclusively detected, although efforts are underway. Such life might ...
, is caught in a
time loop The time loop or temporal loop is a plot device in fiction whereby characters re-experience a span of time which is repeated, sometimes more than once, with some hope of breaking out of the cycle of repetition. The term "time loop" is sometimes u ...
that makes him live the same day repeatedly, allowing Kiriya to improve his fighting skills. A
manga Manga (Japanese: 漫画 ) are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long prehistory in earlier Japanese art. The term ''manga'' is used ...
adaptation, written by Ryōsuke Takeuchi and illustrated by
Takeshi Obata is a Japanese manga artist that usually works as the illustrator in collaboration with a writer. He first gained international attention for ''Hikaru no Go'' (1998–2003) with Yumi Hotta, but is better known for ''Death Note'' (2003–2006) an ...
, was serialized in Shueisha's ''
Weekly Young Jump is a Japanese ''seinen'' manga magazine published by Shueisha. Launched in 1979, it is published under Shueisha's '' Jump'' line of magazines. The chapters of series that run in ''Weekly Young Jump'' are collected and published in ''tankōbon'' ...
'' magazine between January and May 2014 and was also published by Viz Media in its ''
Weekly Shonen Jump Weekly, The Weekly, or variations, may refer to: News media * ''Weekly'' (news magazine), an English-language national news magazine published in Mauritius *Weekly newspaper, any newspaper published on a weekly schedule *Alternative newspaper, als ...
'' magazine. In November 2014, the Viz translation was released in a collected edition that included the entire series. Another manga adaptation, written by
Nick Mamatas Nick Mamatas ( el, Νίκος Μαμματάς) (born February 20, 1972) is an American horror, science fiction and fantasy author and editor for Haikasoru's line of translated Japanese science fiction novels for Viz Media. His fiction has been ...
and illustrated by Lee Ferguson, was released in North America in May 2014. A film adaptation from director
Doug Liman Douglas Eric Liman (; born July 24, 1965) is an American film director and producer. He is known for directing the films '' Swingers'' (1996), '' Go'' (1999), '' The Bourne Identity'' (2002), '' Mr. & Mrs. Smith'' (2005), '' Jumper'' (2008), ''Ed ...
starring
Tom Cruise Thomas Cruise Mapother IV (born July 3, 1962), known professionally as Tom Cruise, is an American actor and producer. One of the world's highest-paid actors, he has received various accolades, including an Honorary Palme d'Or and three Go ...
and
Emily Blunt Emily Olivia Leah Blunt (born 23 February 1983) is a British actress. She is the recipient of several accolades, including a Golden Globe Award and a Screen Actors Guild Award, in addition to nominations for three British Academy Film Awards. ...
, titled ''
Edge of Tomorrow ''Edge of Tomorrow'' (also known as ''Live Die Repeat: Edge of Tomorrow'') is a 2014 American science fiction action film starring Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt with Bill Paxton and Brendan Gleeson in supporting roles. Directed by Doug Liman wit ...
'', was released in May 2014. The English-language film tie-in edition of the novel also uses this title. The novel was Sakurazaka's breakthrough science fiction novel, earning wide praise from fellow novelists including
Yasutaka Tsutsui is a Japanese novelist, science fiction author, and actor. His ''Yumenokizaka bunkiten'' won the Tanizaki Prize in 1987. He has also won the 1981 Izumi Kyoka award, the 1989 Kawabata Yasunari award, and the 1992 Nihon SF Taisho Award. Writin ...
and Chōhei Kanbayashi and was entered in contention for the Best Japanese Long Work in the 36th
Seiun Award The is a Japanese speculative fiction award given each year for the best science fiction works and achievements during the previous calendar year. Organized and overseen by , the awards are given at the annual Japan Science Fiction Convention. ...
s in 2005.


Plot

The story is told from the perspective of Keiji Kiriya, a new recruit in the United Defense Force. Despite equipping its soldiers with
powered exoskeleton A powered exoskeleton, also known as power armor, powered armor, powered suit, cybernetic suit, cybernetic armor, exosuit, hardsuit, exoframe or augmented mobility, is a mobile machine that is wearable over all or part of the human body, provi ...
s, the UDF is losing its fight against the mysterious , extraterrestrials which have laid siege to Earth. Keiji is seemingly killed on his first
sortie A sortie (from the French word meaning ''exit'' or from Latin root ''surgere'' meaning to "rise up") is a deployment or dispatch of one military unit, be it an aircraft, ship, or troops, from a strongpoint. The term originated in siege warfare. ...
after killing an unusual-looking Mimic but, through some inexplicable phenomenon, he wakes and finds that he has returned to the day before the battle. As this process continues, he finds himself caught in a
time loop The time loop or temporal loop is a plot device in fiction whereby characters re-experience a span of time which is repeated, sometimes more than once, with some hope of breaking out of the cycle of repetition. The term "time loop" is sometimes u ...
as his death and resurrection repeat time and time again. Keiji's skill as a soldier grows as he passes through each time loop in a desperate attempt to change his fate. After several dozen loops, he realizes his fate is similar to that of Rita Vrataski, a prominent ace who preferred to use a battle axe rather than a firearm. He uses his knowledge of the day to get close to her and her mechanic, from whom he gets a copy of her massive axe. He learns to use the weapon well; the boltgun that most troops are issued quickly runs out of ammo and jams easily. Realizing that he is a fellow looper, Rita confides in Keiji, telling him of the system the Mimics use: on death, they have the ability to send a signal into the past, allowing them to see the future and change their behaviour to avoid that fate. In each group of Mimics, there is one that acts as a central nexus that can cause the day to loop, as well as several antenna Mimics, all of which signal the loop to reset; Keiji became trapped in the loop as a result of contact with one such antenna. To escape as Rita once did, Keiji must first kill all the antennae and then the nexus. The Mimics constantly adapt to Keiji's attacks. He and Rita manage to eliminate the nexus, only to have the loop reset with Rita forgetting what has transpired. After telling Rita this, she acknowledges that they missed one antenna. On the 160th loop, they proceed to eliminate the antennae again. Rita then attacks Keiji once they are out of sight of allied forces, explaining her hypothesis that being trapped in the loop has modified their brains. In essence, both of them are similar to the antenna Mimics, meaning one of them has to die before killing the nexus; otherwise, the loop will continue indefinitely. Reluctantly, the two battle. Keiji mortally wounds Rita and stays by her side as she dies. Before Rita dies, Keiji confesses his developing feelings for her before she tells him to win the war quickly and prevent anyone else from suffering their fate. He slaughters the remaining Mimics and destroys the nexus. Weeks later, he is hailed as a new hero of the United Defense Forces while he silently reflects on what transpired and the sacrifice needed for them to win the battle. He paints his exoskeleton blue in honor of her memory.


Characters

; :A new recruit in the United Defense Force. He finds himself caught in a time loop where he wakes up one day in the past after having been killed on the battlefield. Through the training and battles he experiences in these loops he comes into his own as a soldier. After the death of Rita and his elevation to hero of the United Army, he is given the moniker, "Killer Cage" and has his armored exoskeleton painted blue in honor of Rita's memory. :In the ''Edge of Tomorrow'' film adaptation, his counterpart is an American named William Cage, played by
Tom Cruise Thomas Cruise Mapother IV (born July 3, 1962), known professionally as Tom Cruise, is an American actor and producer. One of the world's highest-paid actors, he has received various accolades, including an Honorary Palme d'Or and three Go ...
. ; :A U.S. special forces soldier. Highly decorated and peerless in battle, she is seen as a hero by the entire world and known as the "Full Metal Bitch" to other soldiers. Her name is a false identity she used to join the UDF at a young age after her parents were killed by Mimics. Like Keiji, she has also been through a loop of her own, from which she gained her experience and reputation, and comes to assist Keiji after learning of his loops. She was noted to hate the color red while favoring blue. However, she chose to paint her armored exoskeleton red in order to draw attention from the enemy in combat. While mortally wounded, she revealed that she knew that their final battle was bound to happen once they met and knew of her eventual fate. :In ''Edge of Tomorrow'', she is played by
Emily Blunt Emily Olivia Leah Blunt (born 23 February 1983) is a British actress. She is the recipient of several accolades, including a Golden Globe Award and a Screen Actors Guild Award, in addition to nominations for three British Academy Film Awards. ...
, with her nationality changed to British. ; :Rita's mechanic, a bespectacled Native American woman who collects
Gashapon , also called , is a trademark of Bandai. Among the variety of vending machine-dispensed capsule toys that originated in the 1960s, it became popular in Japan and elsewhere. "Gashapon" is onomatopoeic from the two sounds "gasha" (or "gacha") fo ...
. She is the developer of a large battleaxe used by Rita, and later by Keiji. :In ''Edge of Tomorrow'', the character was adapted into the male Dr. Carter played by
Noah Taylor Noah George Taylor (born 4 September 1969) is a British-born Australian actor. He is best known for his roles as teenage David Helfgott in '' Shine'', Locke in the HBO series '' Game of Thrones'', Darby Sabini in the BBC One series ''Peaky ...
. ; :Keiji's platoon sergeant. An overly fitness-conscious man of Brazilian and Japanese descent who takes care of his subordinates. :In ''Edge of Tomorrow'', his character is changed to that of an American played by
Bill Paxton William Paxton (May 17, 1955 – February 25, 2017) was an American actor and filmmaker. He appeared in films such as '' Weird Science'' (1985), '' Aliens'' (1986), ''Near Dark'' (1987), '' Tombstone'' (1993), ''True Lies'' (1994), ''Apollo 13 ...
. ; :A well-endowed canteen lady, known to have good rapport among the soldiers for her good cooking and looks.


Adaptations


Novel

The original novel, written by
Hiroshi Sakurazaka is a Japanese author of science fiction and fantasy light novels. He is best known for his novel '' All You Need Is Kill'', which formed the basis of the film ''Edge of Tomorrow'', starring Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt. Life and career Sakurazaka ...
and illustrated by
Yoshitoshi ABe is a Japanese graphic artist who works predominantly in anime and manga. He first gained fame in his work on the avant-garde anime ''Serial Experiments Lain''. He is also responsible for the concept and character design for the series '' NieA_7' ...
, was first published by
Shueisha (lit. "Gathering of Intellect Publishing Co., Ltd.") is a Japanese company headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. The company was established in 1925 as the entertainment-related publishing division of Japanese publisher Shogakukan. The fol ...
under its
Super Dash Bunko is a Shueisha publishing imprint established in July 2000 for publishing light novels aimed at teenage boys. In April 2001, the label inherited a strong lineup from the discontinued Super Fantasy Bunko label, in addition to inheriting all of th ...
imprint on December 18, 2004. A republished version was released on June 19, 2014 (). Sakurazaka was inspired by an online account written by a
video game Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device to generate visual feedback. This feedback m ...
player, where comments on how restarting the game after the
playable character A player character (also known as a playable character or PC) is a fictional character in a video game or tabletop role-playing game whose actions are controlled by a player rather than the rules of the game. The characters that are not control ...
's death allowed for
trial and error Trial and error is a fundamental method of problem-solving characterized by repeated, varied attempts which are continued until success, or until the practicer stops trying. According to W.H. Thorpe, the term was devised by C. Lloyd Morgan ( ...
improvement made the writer conceive a story where a hero wound up "being played over and over". Prior to writing, Sakurazaka consulted other
time loop The time loop or temporal loop is a plot device in fiction whereby characters re-experience a span of time which is repeated, sometimes more than once, with some hope of breaking out of the cycle of repetition. The term "time loop" is sometimes u ...
-based fiction such as the film ''
Groundhog Day Groundhog Day ( pdc, Grund'sau dåk, , , ; Nova Scotia: Daks Day) is a popular North American tradition observed in the United States and Canada on February 2. It derives from the Pennsylvania Dutch superstition that if a groundhog emerges from ...
''. ''Haikasoru'' released an English-language translation trade paperback of the novel as ''All You Need Is Kill'' on July 21, 2009.
Viz Media VIZ Media LLC is an American manga publisher, anime distributor and entertainment company headquartered in San Francisco, California. It was founded in 1986 as VIZ LLC. In 2005, VIZ LLC and ShoPro Entertainment merged to form the current VIZ ...
re-released the novel in North America under the title ''Edge of Tomorrow'' on April 29, 2014.


Manga and graphic novel

A
manga Manga (Japanese: 漫画 ) are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long prehistory in earlier Japanese art. The term ''manga'' is used ...
adaptation of ''All You Need Is Kill'' with illustrations by
Takeshi Obata is a Japanese manga artist that usually works as the illustrator in collaboration with a writer. He first gained international attention for ''Hikaru no Go'' (1998–2003) with Yumi Hotta, but is better known for ''Death Note'' (2003–2006) an ...
, storyboards by Ryōsuke Takeuchi, and character designs by
Yoshitoshi ABe is a Japanese graphic artist who works predominantly in anime and manga. He first gained fame in his work on the avant-garde anime ''Serial Experiments Lain''. He is also responsible for the concept and character design for the series '' NieA_7' ...
was serialized in Japanese in Shueisha's ''
Weekly Young Jump is a Japanese ''seinen'' manga magazine published by Shueisha. Launched in 1979, it is published under Shueisha's '' Jump'' line of magazines. The chapters of series that run in ''Weekly Young Jump'' are collected and published in ''tankōbon'' ...
''; and English in ''
Weekly Shonen Jump Weekly, The Weekly, or variations, may refer to: News media * ''Weekly'' (news magazine), an English-language national news magazine published in Mauritius *Weekly newspaper, any newspaper published on a weekly schedule *Alternative newspaper, als ...
'' in January 2014. The series was compiled into two
tankōbon is the Japanese term for a book that is not part of an anthology or corpus. In modern Japanese, the term is most often used in reference to individual volumes of a manga series: most series first appear as individual chapters in a weekly or m ...
volumes on June 19, 2014. An American
graphic novel A graphic novel is a long-form, fictional work of sequential art. The term ''graphic novel'' is often applied broadly, including fiction, non-fiction, and anthologized work, though this practice is highly contested by comic scholars and industry ...
adaptation of the novel, written by
Nick Mamatas Nick Mamatas ( el, Νίκος Μαμματάς) (born February 20, 1972) is an American horror, science fiction and fantasy author and editor for Haikasoru's line of translated Japanese science fiction novels for Viz Media. His fiction has been ...
and illustrated by Lee Ferguson, was released on Viz Media's ''Haikasoru'' imprint on , 2014.


Manga volumes


Live-action film

''Edge of Tomorrow'' is a 2014 American science fiction action film based on the novel. The film, directed by
Doug Liman Douglas Eric Liman (; born July 24, 1965) is an American film director and producer. He is known for directing the films '' Swingers'' (1996), '' Go'' (1999), '' The Bourne Identity'' (2002), '' Mr. & Mrs. Smith'' (2005), '' Jumper'' (2008), ''Ed ...
and produced by
Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...
and
Village Roadshow Village Roadshow Limited is an Australian company which operates cinemas and theme parks, and produces and distributes films. Before being acquired by private equity company BGH Capital, the company was listed on the Australian Securities Ex ...
, stars
Tom Cruise Thomas Cruise Mapother IV (born July 3, 1962), known professionally as Tom Cruise, is an American actor and producer. One of the world's highest-paid actors, he has received various accolades, including an Honorary Palme d'Or and three Go ...
as William Cage (the film's counterpart to Keiji Kiriya) and
Emily Blunt Emily Olivia Leah Blunt (born 23 February 1983) is a British actress. She is the recipient of several accolades, including a Golden Globe Award and a Screen Actors Guild Award, in addition to nominations for three British Academy Film Awards. ...
as Rita Vrataski. The setting is changed to Western Europe, with the battle being a strike into
Normandy Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...
that begins at
Heathrow Airport Heathrow Airport (), called ''London Airport'' until 1966 and now known as London Heathrow , is a major international airport in London, England. It is the largest of the six international airports in the London airport system (the others bei ...
. The ending is also significantly different from the original novel the film is based on. The film was released in theaters on May 30, 2014, in the United Kingdom, June 6, 2014, in North America, and July 4, 2014, in Japan.


Reception

''All You Need Is Kill'' was nominated for the Best Japanese Long Work category at the 36th Seiun Awards in 2005. The manga was nominated for the " Best U.S. Edition of International Material—Asia" category at the 2015
Eisner Award The Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, commonly shortened to the Eisner Awards, are prizes given for creative achievement in American comic books, sometimes referred to as the comics industry's equivalent of the Academy Awards. They are named in ...
s.


See also

* ''
Moriarty the Patriot is a Japanese mystery manga series written by Ryōsuke Takeuchi and illustrated by Hikaru Miyoshi, based on Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's ''Sherlock Holmes'' series. It focuses on the youth of Holmes' nemesis, William James Moriarty. An anime t ...
'', a manga series written by Ryōsuke Takeuchi * '' St&rs'', a manga series written by Ryosuke Takeuchi


References


External links

* on
Shueisha (lit. "Gathering of Intellect Publishing Co., Ltd.") is a Japanese company headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. The company was established in 1925 as the entertainment-related publishing division of Japanese publisher Shogakukan. The fol ...
's
Super Dash Bunko is a Shueisha publishing imprint established in July 2000 for publishing light novels aimed at teenage boys. In April 2001, the label inherited a strong lineup from the discontinued Super Fantasy Bunko label, in addition to inheriting all of th ...
* on
Shueisha (lit. "Gathering of Intellect Publishing Co., Ltd.") is a Japanese company headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. The company was established in 1925 as the entertainment-related publishing division of Japanese publisher Shogakukan. The fol ...
's
Weekly Young Jump is a Japanese ''seinen'' manga magazine published by Shueisha. Launched in 1979, it is published under Shueisha's '' Jump'' line of magazines. The chapters of series that run in ''Weekly Young Jump'' are collected and published in ''tankōbon'' ...
* * * {{Weekly Young Jump - 2010–2019 2004 science fiction novels 2004 Japanese novels 2014 graphic novels 2014 manga Adventure anime and manga Japanese novels adapted into films Japanese science fiction novels Light novels Science fiction anime and manga Time loop anime and manga Seinen manga Shueisha manga Super Dash Bunko Takeshi Obata Novels about time travel Viz Media manga Viz Media novels