Review of Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex 2nd Gig Vol. 3

Introduction

The anticipation for each new volume of this acclaimed series gets more intense each time, and Volume 3 couldn`t arrive too soon. Ghost In The Shell: Stand Alone Complex is one of the best anime series around in my estimation, and it boasts an intricate and involving story that just oozes atmosphere and style. To make things better, Manga Entertainments appear to be continuing the glitch free releases for this second series.

Ghost In The Shell inhabits one of those strange new worlds we often hear tell of. Set in the not too distant future, the divisions between man and machine are blurring. AI is a reality, and life like androids do the menial jobs that humans used to. It isn`t unusual for the average citizen to be enhanced in some way with implants or prosthetics. For some the enhancements are to such a degree that little of the original human remains. Major Motoko Kusanagi of Section 9 is one such person, who since the age of 6 has been equipped with a totally cybernetic body. The only biological component left is her brain. The differences between man and machine becomes ever more meaningless when machines can develop personality. It also opens up a whole new area of criminal activity, when cybernetically enhanced senses can be fooled by an enterprising hacker, or worse their brains themselves can be hacked into, subverting the innocent by reprogramming their `ghosts`. In the light of such terrifying possibilities, a special unit is created to head off the threat of such cyber-crime. Section 9 led by Aramaki is at the forefront of combating the new cyber criminals.

As we approach the mid point of the series, Section 9 increasingly finds itself on the back foot, trying to keep up with the pace of events as the refugee crisis threatens to spiral out of control. Worse, clandestine groups seem to be working directly against Section 9, with their vulnerabilities being targeted. Just as before, Manga Entertainment releases Ghost In The Shell on 2 discs. Disc 1 contains four episodes and the bulk of the extras, as well as DD 2.0 and DD 5.1 soundtracks. Disc 2 contains the same episodes, but with DTS soundtracks.

9. Ambivalence
The Individual Eleven`s actions against the refugees and those supporting them couldn`t continue without a backlash, and now Batou and Togusa have to deal with a campaign of suicide bombings against their properties and associates by a militant faction among the refugees. 5 such bombs have been threatened in Niihama, and it`s a race against time to stop them all. Meanwhile, the Major is hacking into Gohda`s files, to uncover who this machiavellian figure is, and what links him to the Individual Eleven.

10. Trial
While driving home from work, Togusa stops to help a woman in jeopardy fleeing a homicidal cyborg. He`s unable to save her life, but manages to apprehend the murderer. But when it comes to the trial, Togusa finds that he is being treated more as the accused than a witness, and the defence counsel seems more intent on investigating Section 9 than defending his client. While Aramaki and the others advise being circumspect while they uncover the architect behind the witch-hunt, Togusa may pre-empt that with his hotheaded, naïve belief in justice.

11. Affection
While on a training exercise with potential new recruits for Section 9, the Major is distracted in a back alley market when she is hacked into, cutting off all outside contact. She continues exploring the market and ends up in an old curio shop, full of other people`s memories. Unexpectedly, she finds some memories of her own.

12. Selecon
Ishikawa, Borma and Togusa continue to try and hack into Gohda`s files, searching for the virus responsible for the Individual Eleven. It`s a dangerous hack that puts Borma`s cyberbrain at risk. Meanwhile, the Major and Batou get a lead on Kuze, the would-be Prime-Ministerial assassin, and track him to Nagasaki. The Individual Eleven have a new atrocity planned, but in an odd development, copies of their manifesto begin to vanish.

Every episode is followed by a short Tachikomatic Days animation.

Video

Ghost In The Shell Stand Alone Complex gets an anamorphic 1.85:1 transfer that is sharp, clear and vivid. The image quality is of greater clarity than the best of Season 1 if anything, with even the colour banding usually associated with animation reduced to a minor degree here. There were a few minor compression artefacts around fast and dynamic motion such as explosions, but otherwise the transfer was as good as anime gets in the UK, with the usual NTSC-PAL niggles. Ghost In The Shell is a dynamic and brilliantly animated show. The character design remains of high quality, again improving on Season 1, and the action is striking and dynamic, with both the 2D and 3D imagery used effectively to tell the stories.

The world of Ghost In The Shell grows as well in the second series. Season 1 was about the technology; it was all about the machines, and the new world. Everything was bright and shiny and wondrous. 2nd Gig goes about painting the background to this world, and introduces a much more tangible sense of age, of grime and of decrepitude. It also feels much larger in scope. We are taken into the darker niches of society, and the colour palette consequently becomes grimmer and more subdued. This series makes much greater use of light and shade in comparison to the first outing. It also still marries 2D animation to 3D CGI in a way that works brilliantly. In almost every way, the new series is step up from the first. A stunning moment occurs in Ambivalence, where the Major is trying to hack Gohda`s files, and the 3D computer world she enters is almost up to the quality of the Innocence movie.

Yet again, the only issue that I had with the authoring was the layer change in the middle of episode 3.

Audio

This release comes with a full selection of soundtracks, as per usual for a Manga Entertainment release. Disc 1 has soundtracks in DD 2.0 English and Japanese Stereo, as well as DD 5.1 English and Japanese, whereas Disc 2 allows you to watch the show with DTS 5.1 English and Japanese (encoded at 754kbps), as well as a repeat of the DD 2.0 English Stereo track.

The surround is excellent and there is ample action that makes full use of the soundstage, with plenty of futuristic machinery and vehicles. 2nd Gig also provides some all new Yoko Kanno tunes, including the theme tunes. The music of Ghost In The Shell has always been an exemplary accompaniment to the show, and these all-new tunes are just as immersing. My preference will probably always be for the original language, but the English dub is better than most. That`s high praise when you consider that most recent anime dubs have been of good quality. Here the character voices are perfectly suited, and the actor performances capture the emotion of the scenes well. The translated English subtitles are legible throughout.

Features

Once again the menus follow a simple holographic theme, but this time they are blue and showcase clips from the episodes. It`s pretty nifty to look at, user-friendly and lacks the occasional colour-clash of season 1.

On Disc 1 you get episode synopses. There are also two interviews. The first is with Kenichi Takeshika and Toshiyuki Kono who are both animation directors. They talk about their role on the show and how they work, with focus on their episodes, Ambivalence and Trial. The second interview is with Series Director Kenji Kamiyama, and he talks about the direction of the show thus far, with emphasis on episodes 27 to 38. There`s a little reference to the first series as well as a couple of spoilers for the rest of the 2nd Gig. The interviews run 12 and 13 minutes respectively.

The trailers get shunted to Disc 2.

Just as before, there is no Play All option, but this time each episode is preceded by an IDT Entertainment logo, which adds 10 seconds of inescapable CGI before we get to the good stuff. At the end of the final episode on the disc, you can see the English dub cast in an extra credit sequence.

Conclusion

If you have been reading my reviews of Ghost In The Shell Stand Alone Complex so far, what comes next will be no surprise. This is another awesome volume to an already outstanding anime series. If you`re looking to get aboard this series however, you`ve missed the boat somewhat, as we are truly into the middle of a convoluted storyline. At the end of the last volume, what impressed me was the changes in emphasis, the realisation that events were now truly beyond the control or even comprehension of Section 9, and that the characters were now being forced to react rather then dictate events. This trend is more than borne out by the episodes on this disc.

We kick off with Ambivalence, with the refugee crisis beginning to spiral out of control. With the Individual Eleven working to remove the refugee blight from the country, the refugees begin to fight back, with suicide bombings targeting the Individual Eleven. For a work of fiction, there is a painful parallel with reality, as the episode tries to fathom the reasons behind terrorist acts, the disaffection with society, and the feelings of persecution. One of the strengths of 2nd Gig is that it very much is a story for our times. The refugee question that drives the story can easily be applied to our own society, and while the technology and effects are purely fictional, the character motivations and actions are disturbingly realistic. Fortunately I wouldn`t credit any of our governments as being as capable of conspiracy as the shadowy organisations in this series, as the Major attempts to hack Gohda`s files and finds that he is behind much of what is happening. Yet Gohda seems curiously unconcerned by the violation.

Trial increases the isolation of Section 9, as one of their number is put on trial. Togusa is supposed to be a witness, but the powers behind the conspiracy decide to use the opportunity to discredit Section 9 and once again bring their activities out into the open. The solution to the problem is a little contrived, but the coda demonstrates that Section 9 isn`t beyond breaking a few laws to serve its own ends, reminding us that they too are a dark shadowy secret organisation. Affection serves the same purpose in 2nd Gig that Escape From did in the first series. In Escape From, one of the Tachikomas had an adventure with a little girl looking for her lost dog. I then remarked that it was a touch of Miyazaki in a cyberpunk universe. Affection has the same effect in breaking up a dark storyline with something lighter and more heart-warming. It also has the added advantage in filling in some of the Major`s past, as we see the event that shaped her life. Beautifully animated, with the magical design of the Memory shop a highlight, this episode provides a much-needed insight into the show`s central character.

We get back to business with Selecon, and it seems that this show has an infinity of gears, as it is always shifting up one, and never down. The intensity is tangible, as Section 9 races against the clock to stop the next Individual Eleven atrocity. The answer may lie in Gohda`s files, but the virus responsible for the Individual Eleven turns out to be dangerously insidious. The Major is led astray by red herrings, and no one is prepared for what the Individual Eleven will do next to get their message across. When that message does come, it is brutal and shocking.

On reflection, the Second Gig is much more convoluted than the first. There is a greater emphasis on plot, on philosophy and ideas, and less on action and eye-candy. It`s odd saying that as there is actually more of both in this series, it`s just that there has been a greater level of thought into the message that this series hopes to get across. I find myself having to put more in to the series to appreciate it. But it`s the kind of effort that I have no qualms about making, as this series of Ghost In The Shell is eminently rewarding.