Does anyone know how much of Reign/Alexander Senki was taken from Hiroshi Aramata's novel(s)? I'm writing a review, and I don't know whether to say it was adapted from Aramata's work, or inspired by it. I have ordered the novels but have yet to get them -- and I'm still taking Japanese, so I'm sure that they will be beyond my ability for a while!

I'm hoping that much of what made it into the series was drawn from the books. I really found the story to be compelling, and it was interesting to see which scholars' versions of Alexander's life were incorporated into what wound up on screen.

Any info will be greatly appreciated!

Aimee

-- Aimee Powell (arpowell@cox.net), December 02, 2003

Answers

Where did you buy the novels from? Did they have the animation style drawings on the cover? Thanks.

-- Igniz (lead-o@excite.com), December 03, 2003.

I bought them at Fujisan, though they can be found a few places (Amazon Japan has good prices, and you can get them used there for a pittance). This site is in both Japanese and English. When you do a search, type "Arekusanda Senki," or Aramata's name.

The edition I bought had the best cover art, assumably by Peter (?). Be careful, however, because there are three editions: the original edition, dated 1997, an edition printed in 1999, and one printed in 2000. The last two editions have cover art from the series, but the 1999 edition is far superior. Here are the ISBNs to look for:

4894564548 4894565749 4894565862

This is a three-volume set. Fujisan also lists a "Chronicle" that contains character profiles and the like. I think this book is actually out of print. I wonder if they can still get access to copies...? That book is on my Christmas list!

Let me know if you need more help (like the Japanese text to search for).

Aimee

-- Aimee Powell (arpowell@cox.net), December 03, 2003.

Oops, the art/character profile book is titled _Alexander Senki -- Chronology_, not Chronicle... Sorry about that. Also, it appears that Fujisan has the soundtrack CD, but it's quite expensive.

-- Aimee Powell (arpowell@cox.net), December 05, 2003.