The Ghost in the Shell Episode 1 Review: Science SARU Begins a New Era Spectacularly

Political conspiracies, cyberbrains, and Motoko Kusanagi take centre stage in The Ghost in the Shell Episode 1.

The Ghost in the Shell Episode 1 Review

Do we get any information on the world of The Ghost in the Shell?

The anime begins with an introduction stating how, in 1998, a neurochip was grown in a place called the Harima Science City. However, as its growth was uncontrollable, its cells kept dying. Plus, we are told that the cyberbrain technology started to move away from larger hardware components to extremely tiny machines or devices. Later, in 2028, neurochips were being used widely in robots and artificial intelligence.  In such a world, there exists a corporate collective state where this story is set.

What was the political background that set the story in motion?

We see that some political leaders gathered together to discuss some pretty damaging things that signal an international conspiracy. However, before a deal could go on between them, police officers conducted a raid on the place. A shoot-out took place, and we learned that the vice minister was compromised. On top of that, he was getting help from some very important people who were not from his nation. That is when our protagonist comes to serve justice and escapes masterfully.

What happens after this woman executed someone without any authority?

We see that she was acting on the permission of the former Prime Minister. This was done to curb crime and deliver justice right away. The same police officer who failed to catch her also becomes one of the people to authorise the formation of her makeshift team. And the name that the woman gave to the officials was Motoko Kusanagi. That is how Motoko ended up working for the internal affairs.

Does Motoko get her own squad?

Motoko only formed a temporary squad with whom she does not work on an official basis. She asked the government to let her make a separate squad, but they keep making excuses. That is when she gets the chance to investigate a care facility where things are supposedly not running properly.

What was wrong at the care facility?

Motoko and her team learn that there could be a ghost-controlling device within the facility. Now, a ghost-controlling device is essentially something that can control someone’s ghost. In this anime, a ghost is something that is more or less related to one’s soul. Here, some humans are cyborgs, meaning their bodies might have artificial parts, yet they are actually humans with a soul or ghost inside. However, some beings are fully robots and do not have that ghost within them. A ghost-controlling device, thus, can control someone forcefully.

Was this remake worth it?

I must admit that this episode was absolutely brilliant. Not only did they keep the original animation alive, but they even enhanced the overall viewing experience with marvellous use of music and gorgeous shots. This was definitely a great remake, and I am just excited to see how it will be in the future.

What worked and what did not work?

There was very little that didn’t work in this episode, making it an impressively strong premiere. While it’s still too early to set expectations too high, Science SARU gives plenty of reason to be optimistic. The opening theme was just another highlight.