Anime

Episodes 1-3 – Ghost in the Shell

Published

22 hours ago

July 22, 2026

the-ghost-in-the-shell-3.9.png — © 2026 Shirow Masamune/KODANSHA/THE GHOST IN THE SHELL COMMITTEE

I’m a little conflicted on whether to recommend Science SARU‘s impressively faithful adaptation of Masamune Shirow‘s 1989 cyberpunk police procedural Ghost in the Shell as a good place to start for new fans, as opposed to previous animated entries in the franchise. For fans of a certain vintage (like me), the manga, as first published in English by Dark Horse, was the obvious starting point, but it was soon followed by Mamoru Oshii‘s tremendously influential movie, which has arguably done more to cement the concept of what Ghost in the Shell is among the general population.

Where Oshii’s movie is cerebral and philosophical, with a deliberately oppressive dark green color scheme, and often blank-faced characters pondering the nature of their own existence, the manga is a far lighter affair, full of silly humor and exaggerated facial expressions. The serious bones of the story are still there, but Oshii stripped them back for his film, succeeding in producing an example of true cinematic art, but perhaps losing a little of its soul in the process.

The differences in approach to the same material between Oshii and new director Mokochan are jarring, even from the first few seconds. Both versions begin with franchise poster girl Major Motoko Kusanagi, a total body cyborg conversion special operative, assassinating a corrupt politician before falling gracefully from an upper skyscraper window, her silhouette vanishing before the eyes of astonished onlookers, concealed by her iconic thermoptic camouflage. Where Oshii’s version is dark and mysterious, enhanced by Kenji Kawai‘s atmospheric score, Mokochan‘s interpretation is bursting with light and color, accompanied by screamingly upbeat jazz. As a statement of intent to fans familiar with the franchise, it couldn’t be more clear: “We’re doing Ghost in the Shell our way, whether you like it or not.”

Thankfully, I like it. A lot. There are some caveats for new viewers, however. Although this adaptation maintains amazing fidelity to the source material, in an attempt to cram almost everything in, from every panel, snippet of dialogue, to even Shirow’s infamously dense infodump footnotes, it’s surely an overwhelming experience for those unfamiliar with the
franchise. Explanations whip past in the blink of an eye, and everything is moving, all of the time. This means it’s one of the most wildly kinetic thrill-rides I’ve ever seen in a TV anime production. The 1995 movie has some amazing action sequences, but Science SARU‘s approach is altogether much looser, their style like the free-form jazz of anime: experimental, wild, and unpredictable. Perhaps that’s why the wonderful soundtrack suits it so well. It’s not limited to jazz either – there are buzz-saw guitars, heavy rock, and symphonic orchestral compositions all thrown into the dizzyingly eclectic mix.

What has kept Ghost in the Shell relevant for almost forty years is its mix of genuinely entertaining characters, a detailed, convincing world full of just-about-plausible future tech, and a heartfelt commitment to exploring the effects of said tech on human beings, whether ground-level civilians or top-class cybernetically enhanced government operatives. It’s a
world where garbage men still patrol the streets clearing up black bags, where people still shop at physical markets, mothers walk their children in strollers, and cops return home totheir families after a hard day’s work. Beneath the high tech veneer of internet-connected cyberbrains, AI-driven multi-ped think tanks, and cyborg bodies, there’s an organic world that carries on, one with continuity to a history not unlike our own (give or take a couple of extra non-nuclear world wars).

Mokochan‘s take on the material rips all of the funny little details from the background of Shirow’s panels and places them directly on screen. Not even Kenji Kamiyama‘s justly celebrated Stand Alone Complex TV series translated Shirow’s world to this extent. What Stand Alone Complex did right, compared to Oshii’s film, was to integrate Public Security Section 9’s brightly-colored AI-powered Think Tanks to animation. Much as in the original manga, they’re known as “Fuchikomas” here, colored red, as opposed to the blue “Tachikomas” in Stand Alone Complex. Regardless, they serve the same purpose, and
function as a way for the story to explore the concepts of artificial intelligence. Major Kusanagi has always expressed a degree of caution towards these machines’ development, and there’s a particularly amusing sketch featuring them in episode three that parodies the idea of robotic insurrection. As usual, the Major is one step ahead of everyone around her, including the AIs.

These first three episodes are quite oddly structured, but that’s a result of slavish fidelity to the manga’s structure. Between them they adapt the first five manga chapters, including the short prologue and two other short skits. That means two full-length chapters, that could probably have been adapted as two episodes, are instead slightly clumsily spread across three. It makes for a somewhat bitty viewing experience that’s better consumed all in one sitting (no matter how overwhelming) rather than weekly. This is only a ten-episode series, so the seven remaining must adapt six full chapters and a short epilogue to
complete the story. Hopefully that can be achieved in a slightly more coherent structure.

One other challenge to audience understanding relates to Amazon‘s limited subtitling software, which frankly isn’t up to the job of successfully translating such an information-dense series. The subtitled version eschews any attempt to translate the myriad on-screen text, which is sadly essential to explain some of the more esoteric technical dialogue. This is less of an issue in the English dub, as the text does receive a (blink-and-you’ll-miss-it) translation. Much like with the original manga, each episode is worth watching twice in order to catch all of the details. Both casts do a great job with their performances. Maaya Sakamoto, who performs as Motoko Kusanagi, also played her in previous series ARISE, and as the child version of Kusanagi in both the 1995 movie and Stand Alone Complex. The English-language cast is entirely new to the franchise, but mostly fit their roles exceedingly well.

Movie fans will recognise many familiar story beats here, from the interactions between the core cast members of Public Security Section 9: capable leader Major Kusanagi, muscular Batou, newbie Togusa, and mature chief Aramaki, to the portentous mentions of the “Puppet Master,” who will definitely remain relevant. Even familiarity with the individual
story components and characters doesn’t mean this is a redundant production. This version of the Major is far more human and emotive, and as a result much more likeable (as well as unpredictable). I’m not too sure about the wisdom of giving the Fuchikomas human-like mouths, as they look kind of silly… and cursed, if I’m honest. The use of Fuchikomas in reference to the Dancing Pug meme in the third episode is hilarious and unexpected, though.

We even get more of a glimpse into Kusanagi’s personal life than we have in any other animated version. She’s canonically bisexual, and while Stand Alone Complex did have her girlfriends Kurutan and Ran cameo, they didn’t feature to quite the same explicit degree as they do here. Episode two features a TV-friendly adaptation of the infamous censored-by-Shirow-himself-in-some-versions VR lesbian threesome scene that somehow remains almost as uncomfortably moist and shiny as the original. I mean, if you’re going to do a full-on faithful Shirow adaptation, you need to include the pervy bits too, I’m afraid.
Ran and Kurutan also show up later in episode three, as Ran gets a new cyborg body with Kusanagi acting as a witness (a legal requirement in this world to ensure continuity of identity during body replacement procedures), and Kurutan as nursing assistant to the oddly blue-skinned doctor. The fetish-adjacent nurse uniforms are also true to the manga. The trio’s later high-spirited conversation delves into unsettling existential depths as Kusanagi expresses concerns about her own (and by extension Ran’s) human identity. Such tonal incongruity is one of the things I love most about Ghost in the Shell, and so far,
this gorgeous adaptation has absolutely nailed it. I’m sure its hyperactive, day-glo, wildly variable tone isn’t for everyone, but as far as I’m concerned, director Mokochan seems to be precision-engineering this anime specifically for me.

Episode 1 Rating:

Episode 2 Rating:

Episode 3 Rating:

The Ghost in the Shell is currently streaming on Prime Video.

The views and opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the views of Anime News Network, its employees, owners, or sponsors.

Anime

Episodes 1-3 – I Want to Love You Till Your Dying Day

Published

40 minutes ago

July 23, 2026

qasimgillani

To quote Ace Ventura, “War is hell.” Anime has been producing shows that highlight the struggles of war and children’s place in them arguably since the medium first began to flourish. It has led to some of the medium’s saddest stories, especially when said stories focus on the lack of humanity in using children to fight those very battles. I Want to Love You Till Your Dying Day seems to be another story that firmly falls into this genre, focusing on a vague magical war going on where young children at an orphanage are raised, seemingly with the sole purpose of going out into battle. Three episodes in, and I barely know anything about this war, like what it’s about or who the enemy is. While I would love to know that information for the sake of world-building, it’s clear that it is arguably not the point. The point is what this war is doing to the students at the school or, more specifically, how it impacts the relationship between Sheena and Mimi.

A lot of the show is a little bit typical, with Sheena being the more soft-spoken, quiet girl who may never be sent onto the front lines because of how weak she is. Therefore, she is forced to struggle with this identity crisis of wanting to be useful, but also acknowledging that dying sucks and thus partially feeling grateful that she is not going to be sent out there like her former roommate was. Then there’s Mimi, who is a little chaotic gremlin who seems to have been manufactured for the purpose of being an ultimate weapon in this war. The first two episodes establish this relationship between the two, with episode three giving the show needed downtime, focusing on the two just spending a day off together to establish that friendship. I like the fact that episode three ignites the genuine friendship between the two, with Sheena coming to terms with the fact that she was rightfully originally put off by Mimi’s presence. After all, no matter how you try to spin it, a young girl being unfazed by the fact that she is drenched in the blood of dozens of enemy soldiers that she went out there to kill shouldn’t be normal. However, what should and shouldn’t be normal is a constant thematic beat that resonates throughout these episodes, as a lot of the students seem to just take the circumstances that they’re in as a natural way of life, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that everybody is happy about it either.

I was waiting for the show to reveal what exactly Mimi was and was a little surprised that it starts getting into that around episode three. I like the implication that part of the reason why Mimi shows up covered in blood and mangled clothes is that she always seems to come back from the front lines in pieces. The first two episodes actually cleverly foreshadow that, as even amongst the magical capabilities of a lot of the girls in the show, she is distinctly unique in having enough magic to just regenerate lost limbs. It also explains why she’s so carefree and reckless, being able to recover from whatever damage her body sustains. I’m sure future episodes will explain what she is, but if I were to hazard a guess, she might be a reanimated human. Maybe she can’t die because she doesn’t have a soul and therefore she can’t necessarily pass on to the next world? That would explain why the show has a slight religious angle, such as the communal services that happened whenever students failed to make it back to the school after being deployed. I wonder if the show is going to take the angle of Mimi being a monster or if she is just another existence entirely.

Come to think of it, the reveal in episode three does potentially recontextualize the very title of the show itself. The idea of wanting to love someone until their dying day takes a whole new meaning when one of the characters involved in that love cannot die. The show has definitely teased a romantic development between Sheena and Mimi, or at the very least is open to the idea of having genuine lesbian romances. Whether or not she will take that angle or if it’s going to go for more of a familial friendship love is yet to be seen. I also wonder if the show’s title itself is foreshadowing something greater. Only time will tell, but so far, this has a lot of solid hooks to keep me engaged, even if this is technically a story I’ve seen a dozen times before.

Rating:

Bolts also streams regularly on Twitch as the indie VtuberBolts The Mechanic where they talk about and play retro media!

I Want to Love You Till Your Dying Day is currently streaming on
Crunchyroll.

Disclosure: Kadokawa World Entertainment (KWE), a wholly owned subsidiary of Kadokawa Corporation, is the majority owner of Anime News Network, LLC. One or more of the companies mentioned in this article are part of the Kadokawa Group of Companies.

The views and opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the views of Anime News Network, its employees, owners, or sponsors.

Anime

Episodes 1-3 – Clevatess Season 2

Published

1 hour ago

July 23, 2026

qasimgillani

© Yuji Iwahara/LDF/CLEVATESSⅡ Project” Production Committee.

The first season of Clevatess was one of my favorite series of 2025, and as you can read even more about in my Summer 2026 Preview Guide coverage of this follow-up’s first two episodes, Clevvie and Alicia haven’t missed a beat in their transition to more scholarly adventures. After the dark and thrilling quest of the first season, I honestly wasn’t sure of what to make of this new mission to uncover Drel’s secrets at Solesin Academy. I’ve seen enough fantasy school anime that wallow in lame cliches and stagnant storytelling to last a few lifetimes, thank you very much. Of course, I ought to have put my faith in the Dark Lord of the Beasts and his Adorably Undead Servant. Clevatess II is off to a great start.

When we last left our heroes, the Academy had been rocked by Nathan’s transformation into a dark and dangerous beast of mysterious magics. Determined to make some headway into the investigation, Alicia begins Episode 3 by making some alliances and scouting for clues by herself, since Clevatess has left her high and dry for unknown reasons. If our trusty heroine is going to play the role of gumshoe and solve Drel’s mystery, she will have to rely on her wits, her guile, and her deep wellspring of…er, charm? Sure, let’s call it “charm.” There’s obviously something going on at Solsein Academy that’s keeping all of the students mum, so Alicia is forced to fall back on that trusty old strategy of putting the screws to Naie, the terminally anxious frenemy she made last season.

With how action- and exposition-heavy the last few episodes of Season One were, I’ve appreciated that this new story arc has given Clevatess II the opportunity to slow things down and spend some time with our characters as we ruminate on all the new mysteries. Alicia is one of my favorite anime protagonists to come around in a while, so getting to see her awkwardly flail around in her attempt to approximate quality detective work is a treat, even if I do miss the screwed-up undead family dynamic that the crew had going for them before. I suppose Alicia’s fragile alliances with the school’s resident Blowjob Brothers and its least qualified instructor will have to do, for now.

I truly admire the lengths to which Clevatess II is going to flesh out its world and establish the political stakes of Team Clevatess‘ mission, what with all of the conspiratorial meetings and brand new characters who represent the respective (and incompatible) goals of the three competing kingdoms. The only real downside to this approach is that the show is juggling even more plates than it tossed up into the air the first time around, which means each thread of the story only gets so much time to develop before we cut to the next one. Even the cute check-in with Luna and Nelluru serves as a reminder of just how potentially overambitious this new plotline is, since you just know that this delightful pair won’t get nearly enough screentime.

This is especially evident with our title character himself. The episode begins with a tantalizing tease of Clevatess‘ ancient past where we get a glimpse of Zavthier of Phantasms, Lord of the Dark Beasts. After that, though, our anti-heroic hound (in his human disguise of “Klen”) doesn’t even get to take the spotlight until close to the end of the episode, and even then we’ve still got to work through the big twist of Sarasa being the next Queen of the Orggites who has the power to summon Zavthier herself. This turn of events barely has time to register before we learn that Edison is actually a host to the roaming demonic hivemind Rathwell of Azure, the Eastern Lord of the Dark Beasts.

Don’t get me wrong, this is all mighty entertaining, but we just added several new characters and motivations to keep up with, never mind Alicia suddenly getting trapped in a jar by some eldritch ghoul giant, and we’re only on Episode Three! Still, if I was going to bet on any modern dark fantasy anime that could pull off all of this complex world-building and mystery-making, it would be this one. The first season of the show already went a long way towards crafting one of the finest dark fantasy tales that we’ve seen around these parts in a long time, and by the looks of it, Clevatess is only just getting warmed up.

Episode 1 Rating:

Episode 2 Rating:

Episode 3 Rating:

Clevatess Season 2 is currently streaming on
Crunchyroll.

James is a writer with many thoughts and feelings about anime and other pop-culture, which can also be found on BlueSky, his blog, and his podcast.

The views and opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the views of Anime News Network, its employees, owners, or sponsors.

Anime

Shikiso Utsuzawa’s ‘Because I, the True Saint, was Banished, that Country is Done For!’ Novels Get TV Anime in 2027 – News

Published

1 hour ago

July 23, 2026

qasimgillani

A website opened on Thursday to announce the television anime adaptation of Shikiso Utsuzawa‘s Because I, the True Saint, was Banished, that Country is Done For! (Shin no Seijo de Aru Watashi wa Tsuihō Saremashita) light novel series, slated for debut in 2027. The website also revealed the anime’s teaser visual, and main cast and staff members.

done — Image via Because I, the True Saint, was Banished, that Country is Done For! anime’s X/Twitter account

The novels’ original character designer Pukyunosuke and the manga adaptation’s artist Mokuba Matsu both drew illustrations to celebrate the announcement:

donenovel — Image via Because I, the True Saint, was Banished, that Country is Done For! anime’s X/Twitter website

doneman — Image via Because I, the True Saint, was Banished, that Country is Done For! anime’s X/Twitter website

The anime will star:

Masumi Tazawa as Eliane

done1 — Image via Because I, the True Saint, was Banished, that Country is Done For! anime’s X/Twitter account

Taku Yashiro as Nigel

done2 — Image via Because I, the True Saint, was Banished, that Country is Done For! anime’s X/Twitter account

Tsukasa Sakurai (The Disastrous Life of Saiki K., Golden Time, Little Witch Academia episode animation director) is directing the anime at Tsumugi Akita Anime Lab. Naoki Tozuka (I Was Reincarnated as the 7th Prince two seasons, Meiji Gekken: 1874) is in charge of series scripts, and Naru Nishikōri (I Was Reincarnated as the 7th Prince two seasons, Meiji Gekken: 1874) is designing the characters.

Kodansha USA Publishing started releasing Matsu’s manga adaptation in English digitally in 2024. The company released the manga’s first volume physically on March 31, and will release the third volume on July 28. Kodansha USA describes the story:

Ever since she was a child, Eliane has been the saint and protector of the Kingdom of Belkheim, warding off monsters and ensuring bountiful harvests with her prayers. But when a pretender saint beguiles the foolish prince—to whom she is engaged—into believing she is nothing but a fraud, he calls off the marriage and banishes her from the kingdom. Homeless and penniless but free to chart her own course for the first time in her life, Eliane decides to make for the neighboring kingdom, where she hopes to blend in as a commoner and lead a quiet life…but a chance encounter on the road will totally upend her modest plans.

Utsuzawa launched the story on the Shōsetsuka ni Narō website in June 2020. Kodansha began publishing the light novels with illustrations by Pukyunosuke in January 2021. The seventh volume shipped in Japan in December 2024.

Matsu’s manga adaptation debuted April 2021 in Kodansha‘s Palcy app. Kodansha will release the manga’s 13th compiled book volume on July 30. K MANGA is also publishing the manga in English.

Sources: Because I, the True Saint, was Banished, that Country is Done For! anime’s website, Comic Natalie