Suffers from a too complex complex

// Synopsis: In a neo-Japan (is there any other kind?), Section 9 is a covert special ops unit called on for delicate or hush hush missions. They stumble upon a national political conspiracy that goes all of the way to the top. At the center is the Laughing Man, a class A hacker that has been underground for a decade who suddenly surfaces. What started off as an investigation deemed a wild goose chase, becomes much more than any member of Section 9 bargained for.

// Review: Half of the episodes are “Stand Alone,” while the other are “Complex” that continue the Laughing Man mythology. In the stand alone episodes, they engage in some uninteresting missions that try to give the viewer an “a-so” X-Files-ish thought provoking ending. I found that the pay off wasn’t worth the 20 minutes I had just spent.

/ Several of the complex episodes are just plain boring. They have the elements of a political thriller without any of the thrill. There is a ton of rhetoric explaining the nature of particular cover ups, black mailing, government hypocrisy, the merging of man with machine, copy cat crimes, business espionage/sabotage, AI becoming self-aware, etc. It watches exactly how that last sentence reads. I found myself mildly interested until episode 23 of 25, when pretty much all of Section 9 is thrown under the bus. But then it ends like the Ghost in the Shell movie: just as it was finally getting good; very abrupt without a very satisfying conclusion. Both times I found myself saying, “Is that it? There has to be more.”

/ I also couldn’t get into any of the characters. I don’t know if they were going for the CSI idea that the story is the character and not the people themselves. Motoko is obviously the star, but she is pretty much the dutiful stoic soldier throughout the entire series. All of the rest are just there, and besides Bato I couldn’t even remember any of the other peripheral characters’ names. They were pretty forgettable. The only person we get any insight on is Chief Aramaki. You get a sense that this calculating architect of Section 9 is struggling as he wades through all of the political beauracracy and conspiracies that threaten to burn his team. We even get an episode focused solely on him and learn that the old codger is a lot more formidable than just an old frail suit.

// Wrap up: The intro/closing songs really grew on me. The animation was average, but the dubs were excellent. It was kind of cool seeing each member, who specialzes in something, be really good at their jobs. In the end this title may have been too smart for its own good, or I was too stupid. I am willing to concede either.

Entertainment rating: 2.5