With the way the previous volume ended, I could hardly wait to catch up with these final three episodes of Stand Alone Complex. Emotions were frayed, metal was twisted and I was on the edge of my seat through out this bitter sweet finale. The innocent Tachikoma tanks finally get the credit they deserve in a particularly heart tugging moment of self sacrifice and we are dragged through some heavy emotional turmoil as Section 9 is brutally wedged apart, and yet the series still has the time to ponder some interesting prospects for the future.

Stand Alone Complex is obviously brilliant science fiction; a series that willingly melds warm human comradely with the cold, hard light of a world drowning in soulless technology. The likes of Ghost in the Shell often question, in this case through Motoko, what defines a human soul. Can machines ever attain a ghost? The Tachikoma tanks are curious automatons, they can build friendships and sacrifice themselves for the ones they love, and so have they attained lives of their own?
Philosophically, Ghost in the Shell has always been a thought provoking story but rarely does it present answers, only ponders on questions, it is down to you to ultimately decide whether or not the human soul is a birth right; indelibly connected to your flesh and blood, or is as easily transferred into a lifeless doll as one would move a computer file.

I have gone off on a bit of a tangent there, but this is a fine example of the kind of thoughts Ghost in the Shell (in its many incarnations) has always provoked.
That said, the reason Stand Alone Complex is arguably preferred to Mamoru Oshii's artistic movies is because the likes of Batou and Togusa have warm personalities and appear to exist for more reasons than to emphasize philosophy. There is humanity behind the technology.

We left the last volume on a knife edge of intrigue as Motoko seemed to be taking the terrorism reigns from the Laughing Man and moving ahead with his plans to destroy the Serano company. Unfortunately for her (and as is the typical of Ghost in the Shell) the political undercurrent rages out of control; the Japanese prime minister on the eve of his important re-election fears a government farce (corrupt officials are getting fat on Serano pay cheques) and decides to scapegoat Section 9 for kidnapping and tricking the Serano chairman and hence passes a bill that forces the dissolution of Section 9- it is now everyone for themselves and headed by Motoko, the Section 9 team disolve and slink away into the Japanese underground.
They are soon being hunted by an elite military force with powerful mobile suits and other latest technologies at their disposal; and so for not the first time in this exciting series, it is all out war on the streets of Tokyo.

It is hard to come up with a review that accurately comments on every aspect of this confident and fulfilling season finale. It is somewhat unsettling that most memorable of all for me was the touching final stand of the loveable Tachikomas. To see them put up such a fight, after even being sent for deactivation, really brings home this series titular conflict of emotions between man and machine.

The several fire fights involving heavy machinery have to be seen to be believed and of course Production I.G.'s animation is brilliant, but what really stands out here are the extremely stylish military designs; despite being placed firmly in the realms of science fiction, the faceless military armour and sleek robotic illustrations really caught my eye. It is all steeped in enough gritty realism to suit the realistic setting but still interesting enough to capture my imagination.

In Summary

As you would expect from a series as highly anticipated as Stand Alone Complex, this exciting finale climaxes in all the right places, being a story with thought provoking and philosophical overtones that also packs a knock out visual punch. The friendship and comradely between Section 9 is there for all to see and never has it been stronger than in this last volume.

Above and beyond all this emotional stuff though is a stunning visual approach; the action scenes held within this volume are brilliant and full of exciting twists and turns yet still capture the essence of complex and provoking science fiction; from the neon lit landscapes and stylish characters to the neat robotic design, I was utterly engrossed in this final volume and (for science fiction fans in particular) I can't recommend this series enough.