The Art of Angel Sanctuary: Angel Cage

By Kaori Yuki and Aamna Qureshi

Beautiful artwork, most pages are full page illustrations. Also includes some text: background on the characters. This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1421501570
• ISBN13: 9781421501574
• Release Date: August 2005
• Publisher: Viz Media
• Length: 80 Pages
• Weight: 1.70 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 9.1" x 12.1"

Customer Reviews

Incredible art, amazing story!!

Finally, America is starting to wise up and realize the value of translating artbooks-- common in Japan -- so that we can enjoy the lush color and technique that is usually edited to a blurry black and white copy when it makes its way stateside. Kaori Yuki is no less than a genius, and her work truly shines when you see the depth of her artwork. Angels and devils; not all beautiful, not all ugly, but all seriously intriguing and entertaining. This is a must see!!

Beautiful art from a beautiful series!

If you are a fan of Angel Sanctuary or Kaori Yuki, then this artbook is a must-have. If you've read any of her manga, then you already know what an amazing artist Kaori Yuki is, but these pictures look even better because they are in full-color! These stunning, intricately detailed pictures show many of the different characters in Angel Sanctuary, sometimes amidst poignant imagery and symbolism, sometimes posing with other characters, and sometimes just by themselves, but even then their facial expressions are so real that no other details are needed. Like the series, the mood of the artbook ranges from happy and laid-back to dark and depressing to creepy and mysterious. But having such varied themes doesn't make the book seem disjointed, it actually makes it seem more complete. Of course this book would be worth buying for the beautiful artwork alone, but it also includes a really helpful reference guide for the Angel Sanctuary series, including brief descriptions of nearly 40 important characters and where they rank in the hierarchy of heaven or hell, and explanations of different places and events from the manga. Considering how complex the series is, I think it's great to have such an easily accessible guide sitting next to my bed when I'm reading, in case I need to refresh my memory. The artbook also contains an extensive interview with Kaori Yuki (in English, don't worry) that's both interesting and informative. The gorgeous art and all the cool extras that come with it are more than worth this book's price. Even if you aren't a fan of Kaori Yuki or her work, after looking through Angel Cage, you probably will be.

A book to be treasured

The intricate, well researched tale of Angel Sanctuary has always been a shojo favorite. The detailed art, disturbing concepts, religous imagery, and tragic love that circle the storyline are all exceptional and this book only makes it more amazing. At the beginning of the manga, we see two "evils" retrieve the crystalized body of the beautiful organic angel Alexiel so they can return her soul to it before the battle between heaven and hell. It seems that in the past, manly ALexiel rebelled against Adam Kaddamon, God's ultimate creation. Because of the rebellion, she was crystalized and is supposed to be reincarmated over and over until her new body untaps her powers and destroys themself. THis si the story of her current incarnate, the mixed up and ignored teenager Setsuna Mudo, whom only wants to live his life as an almost normal teenager. Kaori Yuki's spintinglingly gorgeous artwork from both Angel Sanctuary and Count cain (as well as some others) is truly wonderful, and she may be the most skilled creatr I have come across. There is also an interview with her in the back of the book, and a calendar she created based on Lewis Carroll's Alice and Wonderland. If you are hesitating, stop it. This book should be treasured by all true manga fans.

THE BEAUTIFUL ART OF ANGEL SANCTUARY

The Art of Angel Sanctuary: Angel Cage is a simply dazzling collection of art from the Manga series created by Yuki Kaori. As a relatively new reader of Manga over just the past year or so I've long admired many of the artists but always lamented the fact that the books I read are in black & white unlike the color comics we've all become used to. Thankfully VIZ has addressed this with this wonderful collection of art from Angel Sanctuary. Angel Sanctuary is an acclaimed and hugely popular Manga created by Yuki Kaori in Hana to Yume, a bi-weekly shoujo manga magazine published by Hakusensha and now being published in America by VIZ Media. Based somewhat loosely on the biblical New Testament, it deals with Evil striking one of the corridors of heaven and taking back the body of the fallen angel Alexiel in preparation for the coming battle between Heaven and Hell. Alexiel's body has been sealed in a crystal for her rebelling against God. As Punishment for her defiance, Her soul is reincarnated as a human being over and over in a never ending loop where she dies violently, always at a young age. As the story begins Alexiel has been reincarnated as a teenager named, Setsuna Mudou who is the Messiah prophesied to save humanity in the Black Book of Revelation. This beautifully illustrated hardcover book shows off Kaori's amazing talent as a digest sized, black & white book simply cannot do. Filled with the characters from the story, Kaori's stunning use of color makes these full page, and two-page illustrations suitable for framing (but don't tear up your book!) The illustrations run the gamut from dark gothic, to deeply sad, to wryly humorous as Kaori is able to evoke all of these emotions through her wonderfully expressive art. In addition to the art, there is a reference section in the middle detailing all the main characters of Angel Santuary, broken down by both Heaven and Hell. Also included are cutaway diagrams of the upper and lower planes and the hierarchy of angels. Finally, there is a lengthy interview with Kaori where she discusses her work as well as her influences. Kaori reveals her love for Lewis Carroll's original Alice in Wonderland story, particularly Carroll's rather moody art, which is far different than what is displayed in the animated versions of his tale. Included is the calendar that she created based on Alice in Wonderland. Kaori also reveals her thoughts on ghosts and things spiritual and makes for a nice accompaniment to the art. It's a gorgeous book that includes a gold-lettered front cover. Simply a must have for fans of Angel Sanctuary or any fan of Manga art. Reviewed by Tim Janson

It's Kaori Yuki- how Could You Think Twice?

Once this book came out I was itching to get my hands on it. When I saw it on the shelf at Waldenbooks, I grabbed it, barely flipped through it, and bought it. It was damn well worth the money. I always have and will be a fan of Angel Sanctuary as well as Kaori Yuki's gorgeous art. For any fan of AS, this book is an essential! The material of the book is good quality, and the pictures are astounding. The great thing about this book is that the style of art varies. It's not just dark gothic art or happy pictures, but a combination of both. Plus, it's got an interesting chart in the middle of the book that gives detailed information on the legions of heaven and the layers of hell. Another plus is an interview with Kaori Yuki in the back of the book talking about Angel Sanctuary, her British influences, and an Alice in Wonderland calendar she created. I really don't think anyone needs to hesitate on buying Angel Cage.