November 17th 2005

• Artist
• ISBN
• Published

• Price
• Dimension

• Amano Yoshitaka
• 4-87188-338-8
• 1994

• ¥ 2913
• 8.25x10"

This book is a left to right formatted art book which was a tad surprising. I open the book to see a semi-transparent page and the word "Japan" in what looks like gold paint. The book starts with a few posters ranging from black and white to bright gold. At the back of the book, there features what seems to be an interview with the artist. The book is separated into three different sections - Final Fantasy VI, Final Fantasy V, and Lithographs. There seems to be a backward progression of the book making even the format definitely unique.

Amano's artwork is definitely one of a kind. The thin brushtrokes and the thick outlines of several characters on the pages of the book accentuate the background design. Some designs are created only in black and white, while others range from a very bold selection of colors. Some of the images do not manage to pull a "creative" design while others just blow me away.

A major portion of this book is dedicated to the characters of the Final Fantasy V and VI series. Since I have played this game in its original form (Final Fantasy II and III, respectively, on the Super NES) I am quite familiar with the story names and characters. When I bought this art book, I bought it as a means to reminisce about my early childhood. These familiar images are exactly what you see in the game. Granted that some are a bit digitally enhanced to make it into art book form (since the NES was not exactly the best known for graphics) all in all, this art book is definitely worth your money.

On one hand, this art book is definitely unique. On the other hand, Yoshitaka Amano has many art books in the market these days. I have seen some scans from websites featuring his other artworks and I definitely see a huge contrast. You can see where and how Amano started the foundation of his artwork. Landscapes are not exactly his strong points, but he managed to create an imaginary world through the use of the cooler and warmer colors.

All in all, this art book is definitely worth your money if you are an Amano fan. If you are not, I'd have to tell you that if you do not like the old school Final Fantasy series, to not buy it. Some of this artwork is way too old for some "Final Fantasy beginners." Even veterans will find that there is a huge contrast between say Ceres Chere and Yuna. Squaresoft's creativity has sunk in exchange for the better graphics. Amano's artwork is certainly one of the more creative Final Fantasy artworks.