There's a lot of Ghost in the Shell content out there. But if you're new to the franchise, what order would you tackle them in? Can you skip any? Would you want to? If I was to gather up all that I own and offer it to a friend who had yet to experience anything GitS related, to avoid too much confusion I'd suggest that he/she approach them in the following order. Links to the relevant media's review page(s) will be included, when available. I fully expect that what follows will get a little complicated for people who aren't major fans (bad pun intended).
- BEST STUFF -
BOOK: Ghost in the Shell (1991)
Author + Illustrator: Masamune Shirow | Page Count: 368
The original manga, written and illustrated by Masamune Shirow. It's typical Shirow, meaning it's populated with intricate technology, heavy machinery, and sexy females and can be challenging reading for a manga newbie. But it's the beginning of GitS, so it goes on the list for that reason, if nothing else. Be advised, there's some 'adult content' that earns it an 18 rating - but there are various editions currently available, so the one you get may have those pages removed.
FILM: Ghost in the Shell (1995)
Dir. Mamouri Oshii | Length: 82 mins (approx)
The anime adaptation of the original manga, directed by Mamouri Oshii. It's slick, exciting, and more than a little stiff in places. The characters got a slight redesign to make them less highly sexualised. Along with Akira (1988) and Ninja Scroll (1993), it's one of the most important and defining films of the entire anime medium, imo. Its influence is still apparent today in many cyberpunk works and, thanks to the success of The Matrix (1999), in Hollywood, too. If the friend has had enough by this stage, then it's a good place to stop. But if they want more...
FILM: Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence (2004)
Dir. Mamouri Oshii | Length: 98 mins (approx)
LINK: GitS 2: Innocence (2004)
The second anime isn't an adaptation of the second manga, but it's a thing of equal beauty. The leap in quality in animation and in techniques available to the animators is clear to see. The story is complex, but with an underlying subtlety that can't be fully appreciated until a second viewing. It has a different feel to the first film, so I'd expect a different response, too.
BOOK: GitS 2: Innocence: After the Long Goodbye (2007)
Author: Masaki Yamada | Page Count: 197
A prequel novel to the second film. It's a Batou book from beginning to end. It expands upon the feelings he was left to nurture at the end of the first film and further develops the philosophical questions that were a large part of the second. It's easily the best of the tie-in novels.
TV SERIES: GitS: SAC: Complete 1st + 2nd GIG (2002-05)
Dirs. Kenji Kamiyama | Episodes: 52 (total) | Length: 25 mins each (approx)
A TV series developed by Kenji Kamiyama. Motoko underwent another redesign. She's more feminine but loses none of her inner strength as a result. SAC is the only anime I would recommend the dub over the sub. The extra length the series had to play around with enabled the creators to imbue the world with more depth and the characters with more personality. If the friend is willing to watch that many episodes, then I'd consider them a certified fan.
FILM: Ghost in the Shell: SAC - Solid State Society (2006)
Dir. Kenji Kamiyama | Length: 105 mins (approx)
LINK: GitS: SAC - Solid State Society (2006) [NO ACTIVE POST YET]
A feature-length outing for the SAC team, set after the end of S02. It feels like an extended episode, so if the series was enjoyed, there's no reason to suspect that SSS won't be, too.
If the friend stops after SSS, they'll have experienced the best of what GitS has to offer, imo. Everything that follows this paragraph is for folks that want more.
- MORE STUFF -
BOOK: Ghost in the Shell 1.5: Human-Error Processor (2002)
Author + Illustrator: Masamune Shirow | Page Count: 176
A collection of 'lost' stories that were written and illustrated by Masamune Shirow sometime between the first and second books, but weren't actually released as a collected edition until after Man-Machine Interface (1997) (see below) was in stores. If you're a fan of exposition and tiny text in margins, then you'll squee, probably. It's a thin volume that'll fit snugly on a shelf between the other two books. You could probably skip it if you're not a GitS completist. The English language version lacks the CD that came with the Japanese edition. Thanks, Dark Horse!
BOOK: Ghost in the Shell 2: Man-Machine Interface (1997)
Author + Illustrator: Masamune Shirow | Page Count: 312
The second manga is a difficult and often frustrating reading experience that takes a long time to get to where its going. Some people will struggle.
BOOK: Ghost in the Shell: Light Novels (2004-06)
Author: Junichi Fujisaku | Page Counts: 212 / 204 / 220
A trilogy of light novels penned by Junichi Fujisaku, one of the writers of the Stand Alone Complex TV series. They're available in translation from DH Press (an imprint of Dark Horse). I don't know if they were reprinted, so it's possible they might now be difficult to find new.
The Lost Memory (2004) | Revenge of the Cold Machines (2006) | White Maze (2006)
OVA: GitS: Arise (2013-14)
Dirs. Masahiko Murata [1] / Atsushi Takeuchi [2] / Susumu Kudô [3] / Kazuchika Kise [1,2,3,4] | Length: 57 mins each, approx
LINK: GitS: Arise (2013-14)
Four prequel movies overseen and co-directed by Kazuchika Kise. In the order to watch:
Border 1: Ghost Pain (2013) / Border 2: Ghost Whisper (2013)
Border 3: Ghost Tears (2014) / Border 4: Ghost Stands Alone (2014)
I'd have put Arise in the previous section if not for the fact that the promised 'four' movies were later re-released as a ten episode TV Series titled Arise – Alternative Architecture. It was basically the four movies split in half (Eps 01-08) with two new ones at the end (Eps 09-10). All that pissing-about soured the entire project.
OVA: GitS: Arise: Pyrophoric Cult (2015)
Dirs. Kazuchika Kise / Masaki Tachibana | Length: 46 mins (approx)
Arise: Pyrophoric Cult is an OVA Movie version of the two new individual Alternative Architecture episodes that I mentioned above. They received a limited standalone release for anyone who bought the Arise movies, but afaik it was in Japan and France only, and I don't know if either has English subtitles. Basically, we got screwed. And what's worse is that you need to have seen those two episodes before watching GitS: The New Movie (see below).
FILM: GitS: The New Movie (2015)
Dirs. Kazuchika Kise / Kazuya Nomura | Length: 100 mins (approx)
Another part of the 'four-part' Arise version of GitS and a sequel to Pyrophoric Cult (2015).
Authors: Toh Enjoe / Gakuto Mikumo / Kafka Asagiri / Yoshinobu Akita / Tow Ubukata | Translation: Unknown | Page Count: 187
Five. New. Short. Stories. Obviously.
OVA: GitS: SAC: The Laughing Man (2007)
Dirs: Various | Length: 154 mins (approx)
[Scroll to the bottom of that page.]
A 154 minute edit culled from 300+ minutes of 'Complex' episodes of the first season of SAC. It's useful for screening on TV, but is a poor substitute for the full series.
OVA: GitS: SAC: Individual Eleven (2007)
Dirs: Various | Length: 162 mins (approx)
[Scroll to the bottom of that page.]
The same idea as above, except it's the second season's story condensed.
BOOK: GitS: SAC: Manga (2010-14)
Author + Illustrator: Yu Kinutani | Page Count: Varies
Manga adaptations of various episodes from the first season of the SAC TV Series. Five volumes received an English language translation; the four subsequent books didn't.
Everything that follows this paragraph is for folks that want more, regardless of quality. Some of it is absolute crap, but different strokes for different folks, and all that. In no particular order:
- EVEN MORE STUFF -
FILM: Ghost in the Shell 2.0 (2008)
Dir. Mamoru Oshii | Length: 82 mins (approx)
A rejigged version of the first film. It's not quite an abomination, but it's not far off.
FILM: Ghost in the Shell (2017)
Dir. Rupert Sanders | Length: 107 mins (approx)
The Hollywood movie is its own continuity, so can be easily ignored, and it should be.
BOOK: GitS: The Official Movie Novelization (2017)
Authors: James Swallow + Abbie Bernstein | Based on the Screenplay by Jamie Moss + Ehren Ktuger | Page Count: 234
LINK: GitS: The Official Movie Novelization (2017) [NO ACTIVE POST YET]
Like the title says, it's a novelisation of the movie. It's no better than the source.
BOOK: Ghost in the Shell: SAC: Official Log 1 (2005)
Authors: Various | Page Count: 148
LINK: GitS: SAC: Official Log 1 (2005) [NO ACTIVE POST YET]
A book and DVD combo that functions as an overview of the franchise from its beginnings to its eventual change into SAC. There's character profiles, episode synopses and concept drawings. Unfortunately, it only covers the first nineteen episodes. A second log was released that milks your wallet for the remaining seven episodes, but, as far as I know, Log 2 didn't get an English translation. It's probably for the best because most of Log 1 isn't very good.
BOOK: GitS README: 1995-2017 (2017)
Author: (?) | Page Count: 160
A tie-in book from Kodansha that contains information on the plots of the various filmed versions of Shirow's original manga. It's a waste of shelf space.
BOOK: The GitS: Global Neural Network (2018)
Authors: Various | Illustrators: Various | Page Count: 160
A HB format comic book anthology of four individual stories from mostly US authors exploring GitS from a 'global' perspective. Unsurprisingly, it reads like the marketing idea that it is.
ONA: GitS: SAC_2045: Seasons One (2020) + Two (2022)
Dirs. Kenji Kamiyama / Shinji Aramaki | Episodes: 24 (total) | Length: 24 mins (approx)
It continues the SAC continuity, but SAC_2045 is a travesty that's not worthy of the name. It's GitS for the Netflix generation, with watered-down concepts and an empty world. Like SAC did with its two story arcs, SAC_2045 had two OVA compilations. the first of them is titled GitS: SAC_2045: Sustainable War. The second is GitS: SAC_2045: The Last Human.
There's more GitS media out there, but I'm only including stuff that I own personally, besides SAC_2045, which I watched online and have no desire to own. I also have all current English language volumes of Ghost in the Shell: The Human Algorithm, but haven't read them yet. I'll slot them into the relevant section when I know which one they belong in.
Hopefully all of the given links go to where they're supposed to. If you notice any that are askew, please leave a comment with info and I'll amend them. Thanks.
- Motoko Kusanagi, as she looks in some of the aforementioned versions -
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