Ghost in the Shell : Stand Alone Complex : Episode 005 : Not Equal (2014)

Author: Yu Kinutani | Page Count: 282

“He went too far down the rabbit hole and caught a glimpse of hell…”

I can’t be the only person slightly irked that the manga has been leaving out episodes of the anime. Book 005 gives us one of the missing ones (episode thirteen), but that means the two mediums are now presenting the same stories in a different order. Thankfully, the continuity is intact because a minor reference to a previous adventure that was in the anime has been removed from the manga.

A child that was abducted sixteen years previously by an extremist organisation is recently spotted on a surveillance camera, but she hasn't aged. Logic says that a replacement prosthetic body could explain that easily, but things aren't that simple. A mystery needs to be solved and Section 9 is called in to solve it.

The anime episode was split between exploration and dialogue in the first part and action in the second (of the gung-ho kind for some of the team!). Someone must have thought that needed redressed, so additional action scenes have been added in the first half and, not to be outdone, even more explosive moments squeezed into the already combat-packed finale. It's a little overwhelming.

3 flesh supremacists out of 5

Edit: It’s possible that Episode 005 is the final numbered GitS: SAC manga. The release date given by the press for the next volume has come and gone. I've had two separate orders accepted and subsequently cancelled by sellers. I've contacted a number of suppliers, including Kodansha in the US and the UK, but no one seems to know where the hell Episode 006 is or if it even exists. If anyone knows any different, please let me now. I’ll keep checking and will update if there’s any news. It’s also unknown at this stage whether or not we’ll be getting the Laughing Man mangas translated.

Ghost in the Shell : S.A.C : White Maze (2006)

Author: Junichi Fujisaku  |  Page Count: 220

‘…Kusanagi experienced an uncomfortable sensation, as if insects were swarming over the surface of her consciousness.’

The last in a trilogy of Stand Alone Complex tie-in novels.  It’s based on the TV series but there’s some interesting info about cyberbrains that’s reminiscent of Shirow’s original, meaning it manages to be referential and respectful to both.

There’s something malevolent lurking in the new tech.  Its transmission leaves a victim with two puncture wounds in their neck.  Is it a new virus or is it something very old?  And what have the anti-China faction got to do with anything?  The answer lies in the past.

Major Motoko Kusanagi investigates.  As expected, she meets opposition and is forced to rely on her Section 9 training and her wits to survive.
The story focuses primarily on her but when the others do appear they’re faithful to their TV counterparts.  And Fujisaku places them in situations that play to their strengths.  If you love the Tachikomas as much as I do, there are a couple of scenes that’ll make you literally grin with glee.

The translation is functional but not always enjoyable.  The Japanese language may rely heavily on proper nouns but a more liberal and efficient use of pronouns in the translation would've helped it feel less like it was handled by a machine while the real translator slept.  Yes, I'm suggesting small changes could've been made but in this instance it would've been beneficial, not heretical.  It's a fine line for people who care about such things but a compromise can be found.

Fujisaku mentions in the afterword that he planned to work on another SAC novel but it didn’t appear, and the chances that it ever will are diminished even more now that the Arise anime has replaced the SAC series.  Someone ought to tell Production I.G that light novels like this would be the perfect way to continue the SAC franchise as it was.  I’d buy them.

3 QRS Plugs out of 5

Ghost in the Shell : Stand Alone Complex : Episode 004 : ¥€$ (2013)

Author: Yu Kinutani | Page Count: 256

“Not even the shotgun can stop him?!”

The previous book was a retelling of episode seven from Season One of the SAC Anime. Episode 004 jumps far ahead and recreates episode fourteen.

It sticks to the same plot, but there are some significant differences in how it gets from beginning to end. Kinutani has sexed it up with more suggestive POV angles and gratuitous panty-shots. That kind of thing has no place in SAC, but the changes made in other areas are interesting. The action scenes have been extended, or in some cases added anew, giving the work more immediacy. There’s some aggressive flashbacks that establish a deeper emotional connection and offer up a more sympathetic view of the antagonist.

Art is great as usual except for the occasional elongated limb that’s very unlike Kinutani. It’s the kind of thing you’d expect from inbetweeners on a bad day.

The Tachikomatic Days episodes return. Yay. We get a double dose that makes up for their absence last time.

3 ghostless dolls out of 5

Edit: Fixed an error (see comments).  Thanks, Borderline.

Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex: Official Log 1 (2005)

Authors: Various | Editors: Various | Page Count: 148

The Official Log is a book + dvd combo that offers a deeper insight into the expansive Ghost in the Shell world.  Or does it?

The Book:  It gives a history of the franchise, beginning with Masamune Shirow’s original manga (1989) and ending with Season 1 of the S.A.C TV Series.  It even covers the video games, which was a nice addition.
Then there are some character profiles.  Have you ever wanted to know how tall Motoko was?  Now you can.  The excitement never ends.
Next up are plot summaries of each episode -- watch the series instead.
It then delves into background info, design, and the technology featured in each episode, up to ep 19.  A second log was released that milks your wallet for the remaining 7 episodes.  Within that section are concept drawings that show the evolution from Shirow’s unique style to the style settled on for the TV show.  I found that part fascinating.

The DVD: The disc lasts 90 mins.  Content is split into 3 parts.
1. A 37 min overview of the series that offers nothing new.
2. 33 minutes of interviews with staff.  There are some words from Dir. Kenji Kamiyama but mostly it’s drivel from voice actors.  I mean, voice actors?!  They turn up, they read some lines, and they get paid.  What can they tell you about the deeper intricacies of plot development?  Nothing.
3. A 20 minutes look into the work of Production I.G.  This is the only part that didn’t have me nodding off.  It could have the opposite effect on many people.

The packaging is interesting.  The dvd is embedded in a cut-out section of the book (See Here).  It’s exciting until you decide to take it out.  You have to remove the wraparound plastic dust jacket to get near the disc, then carefully pop it out and hope to Jebus you don’t pop out the thing that holds it in place too.  It’s maybe a good thing that it's only worth watching once.

2½ incomplete volumes out of 5

Note: A link to a review of the Stand Alone Complex TV Series is included above but you can also find spoiler-free, mini-reviews of some of the Ghost in the Shell feature films at our sister site, In a Nutshell.

Ghost in the Shell : Stand Alone Complex : Episode 003 : Idolater (2012)

Author: Yu Kinutani | Page Count: 208

“This is a pain in the ass!  Why not do a ghost hack and find out for sure?”

Books 001 and 002 of the manga were episodes one and two of the anime, respectively. I'd expected that to continue and 003 to be a retelling of episode three, but it isn't. Instead it’s a retelling of episode seven. For those of you that watched the anime it's the episode with Marcelo Jarti.

Marcelo Jarti the Jenoma revolutionary leader, drug dealer and one of the most wanted men in the world is in Japan. He’s been visiting periodically for a number of years. Section 9 want to find out why and if he poses a threat, so the Major and her team tail him and discover something very unexpected, forcing them to make a difficult decision.

Yu has been drawing the Major for so long that she and the rest of the team are represented perfectly. The lines are drawn with almost machinelike precision. If being too perfect can be considered a criticism then it qualifies.

I have a few other problems with this one. The story isn't as well suited to the manga form as the previous two volumes. There's a lot of action that gives rise to an excessive use of speed lines that get irritating after a while. It gives Jarti a new scene but overall suffers from not having enough dialogue throughout.

2½ jumping out of windows is fun out of 5

Ghost in the Shell : S.A.C : Revenge of the Cold Machines (2006)

Author: Junichi Fujisaku | Page Count: 204 Pages

'Kusanagi's body soared through the air.  She crashed through the lounge's glass wall, tumbling out into the sky.'

The second in a trilogy of Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex tie-in novels.
This time we get three short stories that are thematically tied together; they also tie in with episode 6 of the GitS: SAC: 2nd GIG anime TV series (episode titled: Excavation) but it’s not necessary to have seen it to read the book.  The three stories are stand alone but when viewed together tell a larger story.  The middle one is a Tachikoma story, told from their POV.  It’s fun.  The two that bookend it are more suited to being an actual episode starting point.

The work is a lot less cold and technical than the previous book which makes it easier to read but also highlights how empty the prose is at times.
It sets out to give fans some new Section 9 adventures and it succeeds but don't sell your grandma to afford it because it's not that essential.

2½ sorry I ruined your little Minipat out of 5

Ghost in the Shell : Stand Alone Complex : Episode 002 : Testation (2010)

Author: Yu Kinutani | Page Count: 277

"Don't come crying to me if it kicks your ass!"

A heavy-assault multi-ped tank goes crazy and escapes from a testing facility with live ammunition equipped. The tank’s designer is initially suspected, but he died a week earlier. Section 9 must somehow stop the tank before it can reach a heavily populated civilian area.

Episode 002 is the second episode of the GitS: SAC anime in manga form. If they give each episode its own book there'll be twenty-six volumes in all. However, at the current rate of releases of just two books a year it’ll take over a decade to finish. Perhaps they’ll skip the complex Laughing Man case because breaking it up over such a long time would be a bad idea. Who knows at this stage?

It’s illustrated well and like the first book is full of dynamic panels and crazy sound effects. The action is punctuated with some minor back-story that was absent from the anime, offering a welcome break from the tank moments.

Unlike Voluume One there's no unique Tachikomatic Days episode at the end. I'd hoped they'd be a regular addition.

3 experience points from getting shot to shit out of 5

Ghost in the Shell : Stand Alone Complex : Episode 001 : Section 9 (2010)

Author: Yu Kinutani | Page Count: 248

"...we've determined the contents of the brain are fake.  So where's the real one?"

The manga of the anime inspired by the film of the manga. A number of cyborg Geishas have taken clients hostage, among them a high-ranking government official who was engaging in some odd activities with the pretend ladies. The Prime Minister summons Public Security Section 9, their best counter-terrorist unit. Led by the cybernetically enhanced Major Kusanagi the team are called upon to not only resolve the situation but to find out who's behind it and why.

It's the entire first episode of the GitS: SAC anime in manga form; it’s almost verbatim except for some minor changes in the action scenes that don’t alter the main storyline one bit. It’s less fun than watching the anime, so is recommended for super-fans only.

Artwork is good and it's well-paced. The characterisation could've been handled better, but it's a successful transition otherwise.

It has its own unique brief Tachikomatic Days at the end but without the audible infectious curiosity of their animated counterparts it’s far from essential.

3 silly sound effects out of 5

Ghost in the Shell : S.A.C : The Lost Memory (2004)

Author: Junichi Fujisaku | Page Count: 212 Pages

“We still don’t know what their purpose is but I sense they have an aim of some kind, something different from that of the Laughing Man phenomenon.”

The first in a trilogy of Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex tie-in novels. A group of revolutionaries calling themselves the Good Morning Terrorists are hacking cyberbrains and forcing the hapless victim to carry out acts of terrorism against the State. Major Motoko Kusanagi and her team of experts in Public Security Section 9 intervene to find the perpetrators.

Junichi Fujisaku had previously penned a number of episodes of the TV series, so was a good choice to carry the series into a different medium. However, despite giving a list of characters on page one with a brief description of their role, the text offers little in the way of characterisation, so it helps if you’re already familiar with the series. (If you're not, you're missing out.) Readers new to the franchise may well be left scratching themselves.

Fujisaku gets overly technical when describing hardware, so unless you’re a weapons tech junkie it can get tedious to read. The prose was very rigid and clinical, but is translated from Japanese, so I'm unsure if that was due to the translation or simply Junichi Fujisaku’s style. Strip away all the tech-talk and make allowances for the translation and the main story is interesting. If it was filmed it would easily fit the twenty-five minutes template of the show, so can be thought of as a standalone episode without the visuals.

If you want another GitS: SAC adventure and like me are impatient for Kenji Kamiyama to make a third season then it’s worth a read.

2½ sexy cyberbrain augmentations out of 5