In terms of iconic anime franchises, it’s hard to get much bigger than
Ghost in the Shell. Though originally a manga series by
Masamune Shirow, the perhaps better-known 1995 anime film adaptation directed by
Mamoru Oshii proved heavily influential and is widely recognised as one of animation’s greatest offerings. The film also spawned a sequel, as well as
Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex – a separate continuity television series that ran for seasons and had a few movies of its own. Partly in celebration of the 25th anniversary of the franchise,
Production I.G. produced
Ghost in the Shell: Arise, a brand new retelling by
Tow Ubukata (who created the similarly cyberpunk
Mardock Scramble) spanning four OVA films. These films were also re-released as a 12-episode series bearing the name
Ghost in the Shell: Arise – Alternative Architecture, featuring two brand new episodes to lead into yet another movie – this time simply bearing the name
Ghost in the Shell: The New Movie.
