is a series by Kunihiko Ikuhara. It is composed of a two-volume novel by Ikuhara with artwork by Mamoru Nagano, and , a

concept album A concept album is an album whose tracks hold a larger purpose or meaning collectively than they do individually. This is typically achieved through a single central narrative or theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, or lyrical. Som ...

composed by

Tenpei Sato is a video game composer and voice actor. His most notable works are his soundtracks for Nippon Ichi Software games, such as ''Disgaea'' and ''Phantom Brave''. He also provides voice-over for games and movies. Biography Sato was born in 1975 in ...

with vocals from Ikuhara and Maria Kawamura.

Synopsis

As a result of gene manipulation, society is segregated by genes into "Majors" – intersex humans who maintain a monopoly on stronger genetic material – and lesser dual-sex "Minors". (Ikuhara stated that he chose to make the Majors intersex because he wished to create "a race which combines the good parts of both women and men.") Protagonist Ors Break is hired by the intergalactic trading company Balt Liner Corporation to pilot a schell, a bio-organic mecha, by claiming to be a Major. When the truth of his Minor status is revealed, he comes to an agreement with his superior, a Major named Delbee Ibus, to continue working for the organization.

Production

''Schell Bullet'' was published by Ikuhara following the release of '' Adolescence of Utena'', the film sequel to the anime series '' Revolutionary Girl Utena'', and shortly prior to his relocation from Tokyo to Los Angeles. The novel was Ikuhara's first project released during his twelve-year hiatus from directing anime, which spanned from the conclusion of ''Utena'' in 1999 to the release of '' Penguindrum'' in 2011. Ikuhara and Nagano promoted the novel at an event held by '' Newtype'' by

cosplay Cosplay, a portmanteau of "costume play", is an activity and performance art in which participants called cosplayers wear costumes and fashion accessories to represent a specific character. Cosplayers often interact to create a subculture, ...

ing as characters Sailor Mars and Sailor Venus from the TV series ''

Sailor Moon is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Naoko Takeuchi. It was originally serialized in Kodansha's ''shōjo'' manga magazine ''Nakayoshi'' from 1991 to 1997; the 52 individual chapters were published in 18 volumes. The seri ...

'', of which Ikuhara was a director and series director. Though Ikuhara stated that he received offers to adapt the novel into an anime, an anime adaptation never transpired.

Media

Novel

''Schell Bullet'' was published by

Kadokawa Shoten , formerly , is a Japanese publisher and division of Kadokawa Future Publishing based in Tokyo, Japan. It became an internal division of Kadokawa Corporation on October 1, 2013. Kadokawa publishes manga, light novels, manga anthology magazines su ...

. The novel was released in two volumes: ''Aden Arabie'', published in 1999, and ''Abraxas'', published in 2000. The novels include illustrations by Nakano of the novel's characters and settings, as well as diagrams of the schells.

Album

for the novel, , was composed by

, and features vocals from Ikuhara and Maria Kawamura. The liner notes for the album famously feature a photograph of Ikuhara wearing a leather bodysuit with a spiked

corset A corset is a support garment commonly worn to hold and train the torso into a desired shape, traditionally a smaller waist or larger bottom, for aesthetic or medical purposes (either for the duration of wearing it or with a more lasting effe ...

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Schell Bullet 2000 albums Book series introduced in 1999 Japanese science fiction novels Japanese-language albums Literature about intersex Novel series