“Ghost in the Shell: SAC_2045”, ending retained in custom adaptation.

Modern anime seems to struggle between its tradition, new offerings, and the interest to give life to franchises that have already done their best. comes from dragon ballfor example also with other stories like Knights of the Zodiac. These are narratives that, due to commercial interests, have been turned into works that ridicule them or pervert their legacy. Ghost in the Shell: SAC_2045available in Netflixtake this risk.

The examples given are not the only ones. From a commercial point of view, it is clear to the most exciting senses of readers and followers that the stories that marked an era are being preserved. There’s a fan base that’s captured, another that can be brought in, and some material to tap into new aspects or draw on those that have already been covered. What seems like a win-win ends up saturating these franchises, prisoners of their past and without the ability to reinvent themselves in a decent way.

Ghost in armor is one of those franchises that over the years have managed to create their own universe, expanded to various formats, with commercial success and, in some cases, with critical acclaim. In this context, revisiting it is a temptation that, at least in the Netflix series, is not entirely successful; it is even possible that the most loyal followers will be subjected to sharp doubt until they reach the thrilling finale of the season, rich in philosophical key.

depth Ghost in armor

After Ghost in the Shell: Steady Warcompilation of the first season, including animation improvements, the second season Ghost in the Shell: SAC_2045 once again proposes an evolution in terms of its staging. Anime continues to evoke the aesthetics of various console games, even relying on the narrative resources of those formats to draw the viewer into the story at moments of action.

Success makes it possible to write a dynamic story with jumps between different realities, which is a key moment in the story. Ghost in the Shell: SAC_2045 describes the reality people are in constant dialogue with artificial intelligence, up to the possibility of merging with it. The existence of posthumans can be interpreted as a tribute to the future: in a few years, emotions will be controlled to such an extent that only beings will remain capable of acting and reasoning, not paying attention to various issues.

Is that the point of this anime? Can this be understood as a veiled critique of a digital reality that is increasingly hidden in the consumer habits and attitudes that humanity maintains? From this point of view, Ghost in the Shell: SAC_2045 remains true to the potential of its first content. The use of female characters as the axes of one’s speech can also be understood as a tribute to the present.; when you remember that in essence he was like that, you have to look at him from a different point of view, from which he could lead the avant-garde in terms of gender and representation.

Warning, spoilers ahead!

Tension between realities
and poetic ending

Twelve chapters later Ghost in the Shell: SAC_2045 He moves steadily towards his final discovery: the use of dual reality, this departure from the previous argument: humanity is struggling between two planes, one inside the mobile and one on the sidewalk. Motoko Kusanagithe major, the protagonist of the story, struggles with the various impulses that arise between one element and another.

A key detail of the second season of the anime is that it begins to criticize the United States as the master and ruler of the collection of data and information. In its own way, history presents him as an enemy in this dual context. and there is Purine Ezaki, a character who is presented as someone gentle and noble and ends up perverted along the way, as part of that clash between realities that the story picks up. Its ending, acknowledging emotion and opening to tears, conjures up part of the series’ history: behind every machine and reality, there is a mind that feels.

As if this degree of poetry is not enough, there is a final dialogue by Motoko Kusanagi that says:Never forget that we exist in this age“. says it Batowwhile she jumps into the void. Friends of the story disperse without offense, fearing that they will not recognize each other in another reality. But leaving the message clear: the important thing is not what happened or what will happen, but to be aware of the present moment.