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Click here to visit the Official Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex site! It's got the point now when I'm really looking forward to each new volume of Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex, it's been an intriguing and action packed series so far but the melancholy air of the last volume caused me to approach volume 5 with a bit of trepidation. This volume begins with Section 9 chief Aramaki and second in command Motoko Kusanagi taking a trip to fair ol' Blighty for an anti-terrorism conference, where Aramaki is caught up in a robbery when visiting an old friend and ends up being held hostage. Powerless in a foreign land Aramaki and Kusanagi must use their experience and knowledge of each other in order to try and escape and smash a money laundering operation. If this wasn't enough Section 9 also have to thwart an assassination threat to a Korean dignitary and track down a Japanese minister's daughter who seems to have been kidnapped by illegal organ traffickers. With all this on their plate it comes as a bit of a surprise that Togusa has time to delve once more into the Laughing Man case in episode 20! These episodes are a real change of pace from the last volume, and the character focus shifts once more, this time to Section 9's enigmatic commander Aramaki. Because of this the episode 17 and 18 are more brains over brawn, with Aramaki using his wits and intelligence to protect a friend and then demonstrating his political nous in solving a kidnapping plot. What has been clever about this series is how it manages to delve into the characters without compromising on the quality of the story and through them really explore the possibilities of the world Masamune Shirow has created. This volume is no exception, with a diverse range of stories which delve into the relationship Aramaki and Kusanagi share, and a return to the Laughing Man plotline which has strung the seemingly standalone episodes together. It is in the Laughing Man episode, episode 20, that most of the action occurs and the volume ends on a real cliff-hanger which leaves you desperate to see what will happen next. The volume as a whole balances action and intrigue more effectively than most of the previous ones, but again there are a few niggling technical problems that spoiled my enjoyment a bit. The subtitles have changed again, this time they are in italic and are more legible than in volume 4, but they are ruined by being on an black bar which obscures part of the screen. The other annoyance (for me at least) is something that happens in dubbed anime a lot, an episode is set in a foreign land (in this case England), yet all of the characters have American accents. To me this seems shoddy, and you expect more from a series of the quality of Stand Alone Complex, however, I can't blame Manga as they only had the American dub to work with. Despite these niggles the series continues to be excellent, and this volume blends some really intriguing ideas with Ghost in the Shell's trademark action and intelligence. The animation and music continues to be of great quality, and once again I have no problem recommending this. Extras: As usual the DVD contains a bumper pack of extras spread over two discs. The second disc is pretty light on added features, containing only a pretty average quiz on the events of the volume alongside the Japanese and English DTS dubs. The first disc contains far more, including the usual reel of about three million trailers for everything Manga have currently released to DVD, detailed episode descriptions and character profiles and interviews with several staffers. The interviews are interesting, but to be honest I preferred the voice actor interviews of previous volumes to these, which are with the mechanical designers, 3D director and the director of photography, however, they do give a good insight into aspects of anime production that are usually overlooked. Definitely worth checking out after watching the feature. Ratings Feature:
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