SixShooter

This is a spoiler-free review. That being said, there may be some spoilers related to the original 1995 movie. You should watch the movie anyway before viewing SAC.

This is going to be more detailed than my usual reviews due to my potentially controversial opinion.

Overall: 8.25/10 - Ghost in the Shell SAC is a series that still lives up to modern standards despite its age. Animation and sound are well above most series and the overall story is excellent. The society is entirely believable and the atmosphere is great. That being said, it is not without flaws. Cyberbrain hacking crimes can get repetitive over time and the gaps in between Laughing Man episodes make it hard to remember the information in them. Moral and ethical issues are presented, but rarely explored and the backstories of the characters are barely touched on. Even so, Ghost in the Shell SAC is a great series with an engaging storyline that is a must-watch for all cyberpunk fans.

Recommended for: Everybody who like science fiction, cyberpunk, and crime shows.

Breakdown:

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Story: 8.5/10-Very good

Creativity/uniqueness bonus points: +.5 The basic concepts aren't particularly unique, but the implementation was interesting.

Humour bonus points: Most humour didn't really work for me.

General Plot and Structure 3.5/4 - Ghost in the Shell SAC is primarily episodic, with an overlying mystery about a terrorist known as The Laughing Man. Most episodes in the show are dedicated to a single case each. These can be varied, though the most common theme is "cyberbrain hacking" which is basically hacking a person's brain implants to control them and/or steal their memories. Some are interesting and some can get repetitive. One issue here is that these cases rarely span more than one episode and they are more about Section 9 figuring the case out than they are about the audience having a chance to solve them, which makes it a little less engaging.

There are episodes here and there in the beginning and middle of the show that each involve a different Laughing Man incident, but it is difficult to remember the details because these episodes are sandwhiched between all of the other cases. The culmination of the Laughing Man case occurs in the last seven episodes and was by far the best part of the show, elevating it from mediocrity.

Probably the biggest issue with SAC is that it takes the polar opposite approach of the movie in philosophical presentation. In the movie, rather pretentious and unnatural segues are used to narrate the philosophical issues of the society. In SAC, however, we are presented with a significant number of moral and ethical issues that are shown and then sidelined. While the characters don't need to go on ten minute speeches to talk about their feelings on these issues, it would have been nice if they were discussed a little bit more.

Pacing 2/2 - Pacing was good, the individual cases were fast without being overwhelming. The final arch was just right.

Emotional impact: 1.5/3 - Emotional impact varied, but was usually pretty mild. There were some fairly disturbing cases.

Conclusion 1/1 - The ending was excellent in all areas.

Annoying/mindset-breaking negative points - None 

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Animation: 8.5/10-Very good

Artwork 2.5/3 - The artwork looks about average compared to modern anime, but was outstanding for the time.

Character Designs 2.75/3 -Character designs were very good, all of them were easily differentiated.

Action Animation 1.5/2 - While not as good as the breathtaking animation in the movie, the fighting scenes are solid. CGI is excellent for the time, but can look a little jarring on occasion.

Other animation 1.75/2 - Animation outside of battles is good.

------------------------------ ------------------------------ ------------------------------ -------------------

Characters: 7/10-Good

Personality 2.5/3 - Personalities of all major characters are great, however there is a near-total lack of backstories to any of them. Questions like how a seemingly normal detective ended up working for Section 9 and what made Motoko and Batou who they are are left unexplored.

Development 1.5/3 - Development was very mild.

Uniqueness 3/4 - Motoko is very unique, the other characters are somewhat unique.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sound: 8.75/10-Excellent

Voice Acting (Dub) 2.75/3 - Motoko's voice took a little getting used to, but they were all quite good.

Music 5/6 - The music is fitting to it and both the ending and opening are very nice. I particularly like the ending.

Sound Effects 1/1 - Excellent