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Ghost in the Shell

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This article is about the manga and anime franchise. For other uses, see Ghost in the Shell (disambiguation).

Ghost in the Shell (Japanese: 攻殻機動隊, Kōkaku Kidōtai, i.e. Mobile Armored Riot Police), is a Japanese cyberpunk manga created by Masamune Shirow, and first published in 1989 in Young Magazine. A sequel, Ghost in the Shell 2: Man/Machine Interface, was released in 2002.

Over the years, the manga series has been adapted into the following: three anime films — Ghost in the Shell, Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence, and Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex Solid State Society; two anime television series — Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex and Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex 2nd Gig; all produced by Production I.G, along with one PlayStation game, one PlayStation 2 game and one PlayStation Portable game.

Setting

File:Gs026.jpg
Cyborg shell

Ghost in the Shell is a futuristic police thriller dealing with the exploits of Motoko Kusanagi, a member of the covert operations section of the Japanese National Public Safety Commission, Section 9, which specializes in fighting technology-related crime. She may be named after one of the three Imperial Regalia of Japan and Shirow makes reference to them at the end of the second manga. Although supposedly equal to all other members, Kusanagi fills the leadership role in the team, and is usually referred to as "the Major" due to her past rank in the armed forces. She is capable of superhuman feats, and cybernetically specialized for her job — her body is almost completely mechanized; only her brain and a segment of her spinal cord are organic.

The setting of Ghost in the Shell is cyberpunk or postcyberpunk, similar to that of William Gibson's Sprawl trilogy. More than other cyberpunk authors, however, Shirow focuses more on the ethical and philosophical ramifications of the widespread merging of humanity and technology, the development of artificial intelligence and an omnipresent computer network set the stage for a reevaluation of human identity and uniqueness. More so than the films, the manga tackles these questions head on: Kusanagi and her colleagues face external threats and also suffer internal conflict over their own natures.

Works in the series

Ghost in the Shell has different mediums, all of them having a separate and alternate plot. For example, the theatrical movies do not occur on the same timeline as the Stand Alone Complex movie, which is based on the TV series.

Manga

Main articles: Ghost in the Shell (manga), Ghost in the Shell 2: Man/Machine Interface, and Ghost in the Shell 1.5: Human-Error Processor

A continuation of the first manga can be found in the second manga series entitled Ghost in the Shell 2: Man/Machine Interface. Ghost in the Shell 1.5: Human-Error Processor includes a series of stories originally intended to be serialized in the initial print of Ghost in the Shell 2: Man/Machine Interface.

Films

Ghost in the Shell has been adapted into numerous anime adaptations, all of which were produced by Production I.G.

The series was first adapted into a theatrical anime film adaptation in 1995, entitled Ghost in the Shell, directed by Mamoru Oshii. The film was followed by another theatrical movie sequel, Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence, produced in 2004, which was also directed by Oshii and places the character of Batou in the lead role. A third film, Ghost in the Shell: S.A.C. Solid State Society, was created after the TV series and directed by Kenji Kamiyama. This film, however, is based on the TV storyline and does not connect with either of Oshii's works

Television series

The series has also been adapted into an anime television series, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex, which was carried on into a second season, Ghost in the Shell: S.A.C. 2nd GIG, and was followed by a film, Ghost in the Shell: S.A.C. Solid State Society, which premiered on the SKY Perfect satellite television network on September 1, 2006. The Stand Alone Complex series is directed by Kenji Kamiyama, and follows an alternate and separate storyline from that of Oshii's theatrical film adaptations and Masamune's original manga. The TV series expands further on the careers of Motoko Kusanagi and Section 9, and also retains more elements from Masamune Shirow's original manga than Oshii's feature films.

Novels

Video games

Main articles: Ghost in the Shell (video game) and Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex (video game)

A PlayStation game was released in 1997, developed by Exact and published by THQ. A second game bearing the anime TV series title Stand Alone Complex was released in November 2004 on PlayStation 2, developed by SCEJ and Cavia and published by Bandai. A game of the same name developed by G-Artists and published by Bandai was released in 2005 for PlayStation Portable, but this is a sequel to the PlayStation 2 game, with a completely different storyline, setting and gameplay.

Anime Timeline

The movies and TV series are set in alternate universes. Ghost in the Shell is set in 2029 AD and Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence takes place 3 years after in 2032 AD. The television series starts off in the year 2030 AD. This also explains why the two movies are located in Hong Kong and the TV series in Japan. However, the third film Ghost in the Shell: S.A.C. Solid State Society follows up on many of the events that ended the second season Ghost in the Shell: S.A.C. 2nd GIG.

Impact and influence

File:Gits-katsuragi-camouflage.jpeg
Major Kusanagi using thermal-optical camouflage (from Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex)

The Matrix, a 1999 sci-fi action movie, contains imagery strongly influenced by Ghost in the Shell (as well as other anime). For example, the Matrix digital rain (the falling patterns of green text that represent the code of the Matrix) resembles the opening of the first 1995 Ghost in the Shell film. During the opening scene in which Trinity flees the Agents, the shot of the Agent landing on the roof is almost identical to a shot of Kusanagi during the pursuit of the first 'puppet' in the first film.[1] Also, the shot in which the first puppet is fleeing Batou in the market in the first Ghost in the Shell film and a similar scene where Neo is fleeing a trio of the Agents in a real life market are linked by exploding watermelons and terrified civilians amongst crossfire (although Neo is not harmed). The famous lobby shootout features Neo and Trinity taking cover behind stone pillars, just as Kusanagi does during the battle with a tank. There is also a clear relation between the conception of the Matrix and the cybernetically enhanced brains of Ghost in the Shell. There are similarities between the plots of both movies. In the Ghost in the Shell film, Kusanagi is first searching for the Puppet Master to arrest him, while in the end of the movie, it turns out that the Puppet Master was looking for Kusanagi to merge with her. In The Matrix, Neo is first searching for Morpheus. When Neo finally finds Morpheus, Morpheus states that he was searching his entire life for 'The One' (Neo). Both series draw themes and archetypes from William Gibson's book Neuromancer and some of his other short stories.

The Wachowski brothers, makers of the Matrix trilogy, acknowledged the influence of Ghost in the Shell in an interview.[2] Producer Joel Silver also admitted in an interview on the Animatrix DVD that he was shown the Ghost in the Shell movie during a pitch from the Wachowski brothers to indicate the style and look of the film they wanted for The Matrix.

The videogame Oni by Bungie Software was inspired by Ghost in the Shell and shares a number of similarities, especially the main character, Konoko. Deus Ex is not as tightly coupled, but shares the concept of merging human and artificial minds, along with weapons and technologies somewhat similar to those in the Ghost in the Shell universe. Although not part of the official Deus Ex canon, a fan-created mod called Deus Ex: Zodiac has a scenario where the player helps a version of Motoko merge with the Puppet Master. It is also notable that the Gunther Hermann character looks very similar to Ghost in the Shell's Batou, likely a reference. In Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Trials and Tribulations (released in Japan as Gyakuten Saiban 3), Phoenix Wright meets a woman named Lisa Basil, who bears some resemblance to Kusanagi. When he finds out she's the director of the company he says "D-Director!? (Sh-She's human!? She seems more like a ghost in a shell.)"

Academic influence

Ghost in the Shell was analyzed together with William Gibson's book Neuromancer in chapter 4 "Orienting the Future" of Wendy Hui Kyong Chun's book "Control and Freedom - Power and Paranoia in the Age of Fiber Optics" (2006, The MIT Press). She looks at the aspect of high-tech Orientalism put forth in both works.

References

  1. ^ http://www.mig81.com/matrixgits/
  2. ^ Interview with the Wachowski Brothers, Warner Brothers Studios, Official Website.
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