<span class="SFPTagline"> From SCIFIPEDIA </span>

Ghost in the Shell: Standalone Complex is an anime series based on Shirow Masamune's "Ghost in the Shell" Manga/Comic Series.

The first season ran for 26 episodes starting in 2002 in Japan, after which the 2nd season (titled "Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex 2nd GIG") ran for another 26 episodes in Japan starting in 2004.

Ghost in the Shell: SAC is not set in the same continuity as the original Ghost in the Shell film, or its 2004 sequel Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence: the TV series follows the story of the Section 9 counter-terrorism squad as if the events of the movie never happened, and Major Motoko Kusanagi never fused with the Puppet Master.

A third film, "Ghost in the Shell: Solid State Society" was released, however, Solid State Society *is* set in the continuity of the TV series, not the movie series. Essentially, Solid State Society was produced instead of a third season of the TV series, and is not the third entry in the movie series; it is not a sequel to GitS 2: Innocence.

Plot

The series follows the actions of an elite counter-terrorism squad, Public Security Section 9, in Japan starting in 2030. Officially, Section 9 does not exist in the public eye. It is tasked with defeating new incidents of cyber-terrorism in Japan, though it is also tasked with protecting foreign ambassadors, and is sometimes tasked with defeating various other counter-terrorist assignments.

Section 9 is headed by Chief Daisuke Aramaki and composed of seven main field agents in the first TV series / season and part of the first half of the second series, Major Mokoto Kusanagi, Batou, Togusa, Ishikawa, Saito, Pazu, and Borma supported by the Tachikoma Artificial Intelligence light tanks.