2029: A female cybernetic government agent, Major Motoko Kusanagi, and the Internal Bureau of Investigations are hot on the trail of “The Puppet Master,” a mysterious and threatening computer virus capable of infiltrating human hosts. Together with her fellow agents from Section 9, Kusanagi embarks on a high-tech race against time to capture the omnipresent entity. 
 
(Source: Lionsgate Films)

The year is 2032. With the advancement of medical technology humanity has grown into a more technologically driven creature, creating a breed of cyborg citizen. Along with the development of cybernetics the world has seen rapid development in the field of artificial intelligence, making androids a commercially viable venture. 
 
A recent string of murders perpetrated by a prototype female android has drawn the attention of Section 9, a unit specializing in counter cyber-terrorism. With none of the victims' families pressing charges, suspicions arise regarding the nature of the androids and their production. 
 
Months have passed since the end of the Puppet Master incident, and with the Major still missing investigative duties fall to her cyborg commando partner Batou and his newly recruited biological partner, Togusa. Can the two overcome their differences and discover the truth behind this string of murders? 
 
(Source: Bandai Entertainment)

Deep into the twenty-first century, the line between man and machine has been inexorably blurred as humans rely on the enhancement of mechanical implants and robots are upgraded with human tissue. In this rapidly converging landscape, cyborg superagent Major Motoko Kusanagi is charged to track down the craftiest and most dangerous terrorists and cybercriminals, including "ghost hackers" who are capable of exploiting the human/machine interface and reprogramming humans to become puppets to carry out the hackers' criminal ends. When Major Kusanagi tracks the cybertrail of one such master hacker, the Puppeteer, her quest leads her into a world beyond information and technology where the very nature of consciousness and the human soul are turned upside down.
 
(Source: Kodansha USA)

In the year 2029, the world is made borderless by the net; augmented humans live in virtual environments, watched over by law enforcement that is able to download themselves into super-powered, crime busting mecha. The ultimate secret agent of the future is not human, has no physical body, and can freely travel the information highways of the world, hacking and manipulating whatever and whenever required. 
 
Note: Ghost in the Shell 2.0 is a renewed version of the 1995 film produced as part of celebration for the release of The Sky Crawlers in 2008. For the Version 2.0, all the animation was re-produced using the latest technology such as 3D-CGI, and the soundtrack was also remastered. All the voices were re-recorded. Notably, the voice actor of the "Puppet Master" was changed from Kayumi Iemasa to that of Sakakibara Yoshiko, and some dialogues were changed from the original. Kawai Kenji remixed the music with 6.1 channel surround, and Randy Thom of Skywalker Sound joined as Sound Designer to improve the sound. 
 
(Source: AniDB)

In the not so distant future, mankind has advanced to a state where complete body transplants from flesh to machine is possible. This allows for great increases in both physical and cybernetic prowess and blurring the lines between the two worlds. However, criminals can also make full use of such technology, leading to new and sometimes, very dangerous crimes. In response to such innovative new methods, the Japanese Government has established Section 9, an independently operating police unit which deals with such highly sensitive crimes. 
Led by Daisuke Aramaki and Motoko Kusanagi, Section 9 deals with such crimes over the entire social spectrum, usually with success. However, when faced with a new A level hacker nicknamed “The Laughing Man”, the team is thrown into a dangerous cat and mouse game, following the hacker’s trail as it leaves its mark on Japan. 
(Source: MyAnimeList)

The first movie of Ghost in the Shell: Arise. 

The anime's story is set in 2027, one year after the end of the fourth non-nuclear war. New Port City is still reeling from the war's aftermath when it suffers a bombing caused by a self-propelled mine. Then, a military member implicated in arms-dealing bribes is gunned down. 
During the investigation, Public Security Section's Daisuke Aramaki encounters Motoko Kusanagi, the cyborg wizard-level hacker assigned to the military's 501st Secret Unit. Batou, a man with the "eye that does not sleep," suspects that Kusanagi is the one behind the bombing. The Niihama Prefectural Police detective Togusa is pursuing his own dual cases of the shooting death and a prostitute's murder. Motoko herself is being watched by the 501st Secret Unit's head Kurutsu and cyborg agents.
 
(Source: Anime News Network)

Bandai Namco Filmworks announced that the Ghost in the Shell franchise is getting a new television anime series in 2026. Science SARU will produce the anime, as its titled Koukaku Kidoutai THE GHOST IN THE SHELL. Bandai Namco Filmworks, Kodansha, Science SARU, and Production I.G are on the production committee for the series. 
(Source: Anime News Network, edited)

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