Kusamori was responsible for landscape depictions in films such as Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence (created by Masamune Shirow, directed by Mamoru Oshii), Metropolis (created by Osamu Tezuka, written by Katsuhiro Ōtomo, directed by Rintarō), X (created by CLAMP, directed by Rintarō), which are said to be the pinnacle of Japanese animation art, along with the PSYCHO-PASS series. These works are not reproductions of real cityscapes or nature, but rather were painted as imaginary landscapes to show the world of science fiction and fantasy. Kusamori Shuichi has expressed a fictional world with overwhelming realism. This is the first art book to gather a comprehensive collection of Kusamori Shuichi's animation works over the past 40 years. In addition to art from a wide range of works including Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence, Metropolis, X, the PSYCHO-PASS series, Infini-T Force, Divine Gate, Patlabor: The Movie and GHOST IN THE SHELL, the book also includes cover illustrations for novels and original, newly drawn illustrations.

KUSAMORI Shuichi Animation Artworks has art by Shūichi Kusamori. Published by PIE International (December 2, 2025).

Rebecca Silverman
Rating:

Backgrounds are often overlooked, especially when it comes to artbooks. Just look at the other artbooks in this Guide – most of them are character-focused, with three specifically zeroing in on cute girls. But Kusamori Shuichi Animation Artworks is all about the backgrounds. From Metropolis through Pluto, this impressive book covers Kusamori's detailed, intense backdrops, making a real case for the settings being characters in their own right.

The most impressive element of this book is the sheer level of detail. Although most of the works are in color, the few black and white sketches we get show how dense Kusamori's art is. You can barely make out the individual lines in the sketches as buildings and towers crowd in, making for an almost Escher-like density that defies the rules of common sense and possibly physics. It's only when color is added that everything becomes clear, but there's still an overwhelming feeling of claustrophobia. These are clearly man-made monstrosities of urban living, and it feels like they're going to somehow reach out and pull you into their worlds.

Every image feels lived in, which makes them also a bit uncanny, as only the very last sections of the volume have any people in them. If you're familiar with the series, you can easily picture the characters walking into the backdrops (for me, this was with Infini-T Force), but the sense of sudden abandonment is eerie. To be clear, this is a good thing, because it amply showcases Kusamori's skill. Every place drawn here is a living place, and that's not easy to pull off.

Along with backgrounds from various anime series, this collection also contains book covers and new artwork not from any particular place. These are still mostly landscapes and cityscapes (and one exquisite picture of a space trolley in bright, bold colors), and a few of these have a late 20th century fantasy art feel to them, an aesthetic some may remember from the 1970s-1990s. (Fewer underdressed barbarians, though.) It's simply a remarkable book, and more than worth the exorbitant cover price. Even if you've never thought much about backgrounds or cityscapes, this is a capital-A Artbook that's a joy to peruse.