Anime News Network’s Japanese Correspondent, Mori Yuji, provided the following translations of Yukito Kishiro’s announcement of the new Gunmu [the phonetic translation of Gunnm]:<\/p>\n
The 27th and last episode of Suichu-Kishi (Aqua Knight), appears in the September 2000 issue of Ultra Jump.<\/p>\n
To Aqua Knight fans, I’m sorry to suspend the story, however I am going to re-start AK in the future. Please wait and look forward to it.<\/p>\n
Gunmu: Last Order (LO): the new Gunmu series will start serialization in the December 2000 issue. Gunmu: Last Order is the sequel to Gunmu, which was serialized in Business Jump. I have drawn three supplementary stories for Gunmu in the past [which have appeared only in the large size Gunnm manga re-print books], but LO is the actual sequel. The LO story continues from the episode of the earlier series where Gally revived at Zallem, not the final episode.<\/p>\n
I began drawing Gunmu in November 1990 and finished drawing the final episode in March 1995. The reason I discontinued the story was that a personal accident had occurred in February of 1994 and I was too hurt to continue the story. In the summer 1994, I met with the editor-in-chief and other editors and told them that I was no longer able to draw Gunmu and would like to end it in the beginning of the next year.<\/p>\n
You see, the Play Station video game Kasei no Kioku (“The Memory of Mars”) was made based on the story I would have shown you in the series if I had been able to continue it.<\/p>\n
Late in 1999, I personally told Tomita, editor of Ultra Jump, that I would like to re-start Gunmu. Even if you have played the game version, I believe you’ll enjoy the new story. Honestly speaking, I’m not sure what how LO will end. I hope that you will appreciate my effort; it would make me very happy.<\/p>\n