Where to start Ghost in the Shell: READ BEFORE POSTING

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###Read this before posting.

#Ghost in the shell has various incarnations, they are not all part of the same timeline, or continuity.

Things to know:

The animations are somewhat adapted from the manga, and somewhat stand alone works.
The films are conceptually, and dialogue heavy.
The television series is somewhat more action based, than the films.
Arise has a younger cast, and is somewhat of a fan service origin story, though arguably unnecessary. It's not recommended to start here.

Before you ask us where to start, answer these questions:

How much time am I willing to put down? 52 episodes for the series, or 180 minutes for the films? etc.
Do I prefer to read the manga or watch? There's nothing wrong with either, you won't be at a loss.
Should I make a thread to ask which is right for me? No.

This is designed to help people who know they're interested in Ghost In The Shell but don't know where to start. Those wanting to know what order things were made in should read the following section. Those wanting to know what order the different stories fit together should skip to the next part.

##GHOST IN THE SHELL - A RELEASE HISTORY

Ghost In The Shell began with a manga by Masamune Shirow. This was 11 chapters, originally published 1989-1991 in Japanese and first translated in 1995.

The collection now known as Ghost In The Shell 1.5: Human-Error Processor is 4 chapters which were originally published at irregular intervals between 1991-1996. It was first released as a set 2003 in Japanese and 2006 in English.

The first adaptation of the story was Ghost In The Shell, a 1995 theatrical animation directed by Mamoru Oshii. This is a different take on the story - slower, more brooding and serious in style, in keeping with Oshii's style - and lacks many of the Manga's sub-plots, while retaining its core plot-line . The next adaptation was the 1997 PlayStation game. This took inspiration from both the manga and movie (but mostly the manga) to create a blended universe, but shouldn't be regarded as canonical to any other storyline.

The manga finishes with Ghost In The Shell 2: Man-Machine Interface, a 6 chapter work originally published 1997 in Japanese and first translated in 2003.

2002 saw the rebirth of the franchise in Ghost In The Shell: Stand Alone Complex, a 26-episode series by animation studio Production I.G. that establishes a totally separate universe. This is closer to the Manga universe but has major differences and many original stories.

Two light novels and a collection of short stories set in this universe, written by Junichi Fujisaku, were also published in 2002 in Japanese. The translations were published in 2006.

A second series, titled Ghost In The Shell: Stand Alone Complex 2nd Gig was shown in 2004. Also released in 2004 was Innocence. This is a sequel to the 1995 movie, also directed by Mamoru Oshii, and has no connection to the Stand Alone Complex universe.

2004 also saw the release of the Ghost In The Shell: Stand Alone Complex game for PlayStation 2. This is a separate storyline from the TV series, set between the first and second series.

The next year, a Ghost In The Shell: Stand Alone Complex game for PlayStation Portable (PSP) was released. This is a totally different game from the PS2 release and is in fact a sequel - although playing the PS2 game is not necessary, the events of that game are referred to in this one.

Also released in 2005 was Ghost In The Shell: Stand Alone Complex - The Laughing Man, a re-edited version of the plot of the first TV series which condenses the story into around a little over 2 hours.

Innocence: After The Long Goodbye, a novel (available in English) was published in 2005.

Ghost In The Shell: Stand Alone Complex - The Individual Eleven is the same thing but for the second series. It was released in 2006.

The TV series was followed by a movie, Ghost In The Shell: Stand Alone Complex: Solid State Society. This premièred on pay-per-view TV but was also given a theatrical release.

In 2008, Ghost In The Shell 2.0 was released directly to DVD - it was a highly re-edited remaster of the original 1995 movie, with re-recorded dialogue and re-animated scenes, including an extensive palette change and a lot of added CGI.

Starting in 2013, Ghost In The Shell: Arise, a new take on the story, began to be released as OVAs (technically theatrical releases, but with very limited distribution and run; most people watched these as Blurays or via pay-per-view TV; they are also only 1 hour long each). This story acts as an origin story that takes elements of the three existing universes to make a fourth.

A 42 chapter manga on the Arise story has been made; this is named Ghost In The Shell: Arise ~~Sleepless Eye~~. This was then adapted into a short TV series named Ghost In The Shell: Arise - Alternative Architecture. To do this each hour-long episode is split into two episodes, losing some details in the process, and two extra episodes (equivalent to nearly a new OVA episode) is attached at the end.

In 2015 a theatrical movie was also released, set in the same universe as Arise, Ghost In The Shell: The New Movie.

THUS

There are four distinct universes/continuities; in order of creation, these are: Manga, Movie, SAC and Arise.

##By Universe/Continuity, in story chronological order:

NOTE: a number by itself denotes a major part of the series. A number with a, b, c, etc. denotes a non-core work.

#MANGA

1: Ghost In The Shell 11 chapters, originally published 1989-1991 in Japanese and first translated in 1995
1a: Ghost In The Shell 1.5: Human-Error Processor 4 chapters, originally published 1991-1996, first released as a set 2003 in Japanese and 2006 in English
2: Ghost In The Shell 2: Man-Machine Interface 6 chapters, originally published 1997 in Japanese and first translated in 2003
2a: Ghost In The Shell 1997 PlayStation Game

#MOVIE

1: Ghost In The Shell - 1995 theatrical animated film, Directed by Mamoru Oshii
1a: Ghost In The Shell 2.0 2008 remaster of original 1995 movie with extensive visual changes, new Japanese voice track and tweaked script, old English Dub, remastered music and new sound effects
1b: After the Long Goodbye 2005 novel, by Masaki Yamada
2: Ghost In The Shell 2: Innocence 2004 theatrical animated film, Directed by Mamoru Oshii

#STAND ALONE COMPLEX

1: Ghost In The Shell: Stand Alone Complex 2002 TV series, 26 episodes
1a: Ghost In The Shell: Stand Alone Complex - The Laughing Man re-edited version of first series main storyline, TV movie
1b: Ghost In The Shell: Stand Alone Complex 2004 PlayStation 2 game
1c: Ghost In The Shell: Stand Alone Complex 2005 PlayStation Portable game
1d: Ghost In The Shell: Stand Alone Complex - The Lost Memory 2002 novel, by Junichi Fujisaku
1e: Ghost In The Shell: Stand Alone Complex - Revenge of the Cold Machines 2002 short story collection, by Junichi Fujisaku
1f: Ghost In The Shell: Stand Alone Complex - White Maze 2002 novel, by Junichi Fujisaku
2: Ghost In The Shell: Stand Alone Complex 2nd Gig 2004 TV series, 26 episodes
2a: Ghost In The Shell: Stand Alone Complex 2nd Gig - The Individual Eleven re-edited version of second series main storyline, TV movie
3: Ghost In The Shell: Stand Alone Complex: Solid State Society 2006 theatrical animated film

#ARISE

1: Ghost In The Shell: Arise - borders 1-4 2013-2014 OVA series, 4 episodes
1a: Ghost In The Shell: Arise ~~Sleepless Eye~~ 7 volumes, 42 chapters. Manga
1b: Ghost In The Shell: Arise - Alternative Architecture 2014 TV series, 10 episodes (8 episodes re-edited from OVA with 2 episodes added for TV broadcast of OVA)
2: Ghost In The Shell: Shin Gekijouban 2015 theatrical animated film

Frequently answered questions:

Where can I watch/read? We probably won't google it for you, ask the store clerk, or take the initiative on your behalf.
Which should I watch first? This will help you decide.
Where can I find more information? The side bar on the sub is full of the stuff. You can also ask around.
What do the community think I should watch first? Check the Community Recommendations section below.

Community Recommendations:

Many thanks to the once u/SecretCatPolicy for the work provided to this community.

All this information can also be found in the side bar marked "Ghost in the Shell: How to watch FAQ."

Feel free to ask, or answer, any questions in the comments here. Rather than make a new post. Thanks. ~ r/Ghost_in_the_Shell mods

If the community has any points, faqs, or changes that they feel should be made in update 1.4, include the phrase "update 1.4" into your comment. I will ctrl+F for them in the future. You can also contact via modmail.

^^^EDITS:

^^^1.0 ^^^- ^^^Formatting. ^^^how2reedit

^^^1.1 ^^^- ^^^Spelling ^^^and ^^^grammar. ^^^We ^^^english ^^^well.

^^^1.2^^^- ^^^Titles ^^^and ^^^update. ^^^community ^^^decision

^^^1.3^^^- ^^^Titles ^^^and ^^^format. ^^^requested.

^^^1.4^^^- ^^^Community ^^^recommendations. ^^^Fool-proofing

Posted Feb 15, 2017, 10:04 PM UTC · edited

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