First Look: Amazon’s ‘The Ghost in the Shell’ (2026 Series)

I recently took a dive into Amazon’s take on Masamune Shirow’s legendary work via animation studio Science SARU, and oh boy, it did not disappoint. This highly polished production of the renowned cyberpunk property gets a lot right. And the praise it has received for being the closest thing to the original 1989 manga was not exaggerated hype.  As of the writing of this article all we got was one episode released on July 07, 2026, but the hook was enough for me.

This show is 90s anime nostalgia perfectly packaged for the 2020s. 

The first episode hooks us with a classic introduction to Motoko Kusanagi as she executes an operation against a target during a law enforcement sting. She’s a mysterious, lethally competent operative who impresses Daisuke Aramaki, convincing him to bring her on board—the seeds of Section 9 are planted. There’s more to the episode of course, but I will refrain from other spoilers as this show is truly must see.

For those who only know of the future Section 9’s demeanors via the 1995 Ghost in the Shell movie, Stand Alone Complex , or even the 2017 version with Scarlett Johansson, you may be thrown a little off. Indeed, in the manga, Motoko Kusanagi is a bit more sarcastic, goofy, and has a dark sense of humor compared to the sardonic stoicism of her other iterations. The other team members like Batou, do have moments where they clown, but when the chips fall they get down to business.

If you’re familiar with Masamune Shirow’s other work Dominion Tank Police (1988) you’ll be at home. So far it doesn’t lean too heavily on the slapstick comedy, but it has just enough so that we aren’t taken out of the darker themes, especially when the show tackles darker topics like child slavery or dystopian governments. Now some may like their cyberpunk dystopia to be super serious, but for myself, it was a refreshing change. Your mileage may vary.

Directed by Moko-chan (Touma Kimura), who worked on Dandadan (another good anime), and animated by Science SARU and support from Bandai Namco Filmworks, knocked it out of the park with this show. They managed to bring the manga to life on the screen, blending CGI models and digital animation seamlessly. The action scenes were beautifully animated in all their visceral and stylized glory. This show doesn’t hold back on the violence either, cybernetic or otherwise. Everything from the technology, guns, backgrounds, the cyberpunk tech screens and interfaces are all rendered with such detail that it’s just worth it to pause and admire it. Seriously. I cannot hype the animation enough. 

Composers Taisei Iwasaki, Ryo Konishi, and Yuki Kanesaka step in after legends like Yoko Kanno, and, aside from a tiny caveat, they’re worthy successors. The soundtrack swings between techno, hip-hop, rock, and jazz with an eclectic swagger. The opening theme “Go Ghost” by King Gnu hasn’t fully landed for me yet; it reads a bit like a K-pop-ish crooner boy band fit for a brighter pop anime, not this grit. But the ending theme “Blue” by Millenium Parade clicks much more clearly with the show’s mood. Again, mileage will vary.

As far as the voice work is concerned, you won’t go wrong with either the English dub or the original Japanese audio. Be aware that some subtitles zip by pretty quick. That’s been one of my gripes with anime on Amazon. There’s some variance between the Japanese subs and the English dialogue, but so far I haven’t seen or heard anything egregiously out of context.

Time is precious for working adults, and it’s always a win when you find a show worth spending that time on. Ghost in the Shell (2026) is definitely one of those. I’ve got high hopes for this one and so far this has been pretty faithful to the manga, almost beat for beat. If they keep up this level of quality, it’s a cinch this will land among the best modern anime projects. They’ve got a lot of fertile ground to mine.

Definitely a recommend.

The Ghost in the Shell (2026) available to watch on Amazon Prime Video here. 

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