![Ghost Divers - [S1E4] Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex, eps. 14–19](https://storage.googleapis.com/goodpods-images-bucket/episode_images/e0b55b87a7d709b960a26c3e252ee3cc880bcbda31c0f215ce8983340ed35f89.avif)
[S1E4] Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex, eps. 14–19
Explicit content warning
01/08/21 • -1 min
Episode Notes
We decide that this is just going to be podcast with some long ass episodes and really dig into episodes 14 through 19 of Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex. Before we even get into the episodes, we already have a lot to say about the series and how it relates to the current political reality of when we recorded this episode—which was the day news outlets declared Biden the winner of the 2020 American Presidential election.
Okay, look, I cut out a lot of our election discussion, so just like... know it could’ve been worse, okay?
Anyway, after front-loading this conversation with some political talk, we used it to jump into Major Kusanagi’s need for Section 9 to maintain her body, the capitalist view of the economy as a game you can win, Section 9’s complicity in upholding the injustice of capitalism, the Tachikomas awakening to class consciousness, Batou’s relationship to gender (Gender: It’s Not Just For The Major) and toxic masculinity, the patriarchal hegemony on the gendered expression of emotions, Aramaki’s relationship with the Major, Japanese nationalism and nationalist violence, cycles of revenge and the inscription of revenge narratives into a national identity, the potential value and danger of the merging of consciousnesses and creation of new identities, and the tension between efficacy and righteousness in Section 9’s fulfilling of their role as government agents.
Also, apologies for some of the weird audio on this one. It turns out Discord was really laggy (and variably so) for us and Niamh’s mic volume got fucked up at one point. Fae had a hell of time trying to get things sounding okay. ‧o·( ̊ ˃̣̣̥⌓˂̣̣̥ )‧o· ̊
Write into our Question Bucket at ghostdiverspod[at]gmail and follow us on Twitter!
@ghostdiverspod
@foxmomnia
@rabbleais
Works Cited in this Discussion
“Ghost in the Shell: the Major’s Body (3)” by Claire Napier (full series: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
“The Work of Art in the Age of Its Technological Reproducibility” by Walter Benjamin
“Beyond the Image in Benjamin and Bazin: The Aura of the Event” by Monica Dall’Asta, published in Opening Bazin: Postwar Film Theory and Its Afterlife
“Entomology of the Pinup Girl” from What is Cinema?, vol. 2 by André Bazin
“The Ontology of the Photographic Image” from What is Cinema?, vol. 1 by André Bazin
Content Warnings for this Discussion
Racism
Classism
Deformation and Weaponization of the Body
Alcohol
Ableism
War Crimes
Nationalist Violence
Kidnapping & Organ Harvesting
Find out more at https://ghost-divers.pinecast.co
Episode Notes
We decide that this is just going to be podcast with some long ass episodes and really dig into episodes 14 through 19 of Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex. Before we even get into the episodes, we already have a lot to say about the series and how it relates to the current political reality of when we recorded this episode—which was the day news outlets declared Biden the winner of the 2020 American Presidential election.
Okay, look, I cut out a lot of our election discussion, so just like... know it could’ve been worse, okay?
Anyway, after front-loading this conversation with some political talk, we used it to jump into Major Kusanagi’s need for Section 9 to maintain her body, the capitalist view of the economy as a game you can win, Section 9’s complicity in upholding the injustice of capitalism, the Tachikomas awakening to class consciousness, Batou’s relationship to gender (Gender: It’s Not Just For The Major) and toxic masculinity, the patriarchal hegemony on the gendered expression of emotions, Aramaki’s relationship with the Major, Japanese nationalism and nationalist violence, cycles of revenge and the inscription of revenge narratives into a national identity, the potential value and danger of the merging of consciousnesses and creation of new identities, and the tension between efficacy and righteousness in Section 9’s fulfilling of their role as government agents.
Also, apologies for some of the weird audio on this one. It turns out Discord was really laggy (and variably so) for us and Niamh’s mic volume got fucked up at one point. Fae had a hell of time trying to get things sounding okay. ‧o·( ̊ ˃̣̣̥⌓˂̣̣̥ )‧o· ̊
Write into our Question Bucket at ghostdiverspod[at]gmail and follow us on Twitter!
@ghostdiverspod
@foxmomnia
@rabbleais
Works Cited in this Discussion
“Ghost in the Shell: the Major’s Body (3)” by Claire Napier (full series: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
“The Work of Art in the Age of Its Technological Reproducibility” by Walter Benjamin
“Beyond the Image in Benjamin and Bazin: The Aura of the Event” by Monica Dall’Asta, published in Opening Bazin: Postwar Film Theory and Its Afterlife
“Entomology of the Pinup Girl” from What is Cinema?, vol. 2 by André Bazin
“The Ontology of the Photographic Image” from What is Cinema?, vol. 1 by André Bazin
Content Warnings for this Discussion
Racism
Classism
Deformation and Weaponization of the Body
Alcohol
Ableism
War Crimes
Nationalist Violence
Kidnapping & Organ Harvesting
Find out more at https://ghost-divers.pinecast.co
Previous Episode
![undefined - [S1E3] Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex, eps. 7–13](https://storage.googleapis.com/goodpods-images-bucket/episode_images/df746356071b28ca27717d74f01de5bb772600ad54b7e8a727594d13718ddbed.avif)
[S1E3] Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex, eps. 7–13
Episode Notes
This week, we get deep into episodes 7 through 13 of Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex. We try a little harder this time at doing some recaps but Niamh gets distracted getting right into faer bullshit from the beginning. Connor makes his case for episode 10, but if you are trying to avoid this one, which has some of the roughest content of the series, just know we discuss it from approximately 1:24:54 to 1:32:27.
We talk about the sexualization of Major Kusanagi, the aura of the ghost in the age of its technological reproducibility, how the reproduced object can be reconstructed to produce a new aura with a purpose that can be revelatory just as easily as it can be fascistic, reality and unreality, the societal view of binary gender as “Default Male” and “Other”, choosing to be queer and trans, capitalism’s ability to co-opt that which opposes it, cycles of nationalized violence, the development of AI sapience and individuality, escapism and utopia, and our first big reminder in a few episodes that Section 9 is just a bunch of shitty cops.
Write into our Question Bucket at ghostdiverspod[at]gmail and follow us on Twitter!
@ghostdiverspod
@foxmomnia
@rabbleais
Works Cited in this Discussion
“Entomology of the Pinup Girl” from What is Cinema?, vol. 2 by André Bazin
“The Work of Art in the Age of Its Technological Reproducibility” by Walter Benjamin
“Beyond the Image in Benjamin and Bazin: The Aura of the Event” by Monica Dall’Asta, published in Opening Bazin: Postwar Film Theory and Its Afterlife
“The Ontology of the Photographic Image” from What is Cinema?, vol. 1 by André Bazin
“Ghost in the Shell: the Major’s Body (3)” by Claire Napier (full series: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
Content Warnings for this Discussion
Sexuality
Reference to Alcohol
Gore / Organ Transplants / Organ Theft
Dyadism / Sexism
Violence Against Women / Torture / Snuff Films / Terrorism (esp. 1:24:54 to 1:32:27)
Ableism in an Institutional Context
Cloning
Police Violence
Brief Mentions of Suicide
Find out more at https://ghost-divers.pinecast.co
Next Episode
![undefined - [S1E5] Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex, eps. 20–26](https://storage.googleapis.com/goodpods-images-bucket/episode_images/2fbdcf91d3f4cd6ae5ea4eb95d0d5d2e69726e75ff11383b1341087cf39bb1f5.avif)
[S1E5] Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex, eps. 20–26
Episode Notes
It’s time to finish out our episode discussions with our breakdown of episodes 20 through 26. We get right into this with high energy because we recorded [S0E1] Welcome to Ghost Divers immediately prior to this recording, so Niamh is already fully on one. Thankfully Connor is here to rein fem in.
We start the discussion by trying to put a bow on Niamh’s theory bullshit with Benjamin and Bazin while Connor gets on his own theory bullshit train with Koestler’s The Ghost in the Machine. Throughout the episode, we cover the tension between individual and society, Aoi the individual as distinct from the Laughing Man, Aoi’s reverence to the original and the truth, the Major’s rage as she fights for her body and her need for control, demedicalization and bodily autonomy as part of trans liberationism, the value of the individual vs. the value of the team, the theoretical origins of the ghost in the shell, the similarities and distinctions between Aoi and the Major, the culpability of individuals in institutions and the need for individuals to break with the institutional imperative in order to create change, the tension between individualism and collectivism, the conversations between Batou and the Major relating to her body and why she chose it, the final act of self sacrifice by the Tachikomas, Batou’s own struggles with gender and oppressive systems, and ultimate finish by teasing out some of the quotes provided by the Major and Aoi in the show’s own version of a Works Cited.
Also sorry, we had a few audio issues again but Niamh thinks fae figured out the main issues so it should be better going forward.
Lastly, don't forget that we will be recording the Question Bucket soon. The deadline to write into our Question Bucket for this series is January 30, 2020. You can write into ghostdiverspod[at]gmail and follow us on Twitter!
@ghostdiverspod
@foxmomnia
@rabbleais
Works Cited in this Discussion
“The Ontology of the Photographic Image” from What is Cinema?, vol. 1 by André Bazin
“Beyond the Image in Benjamin and Bazin: The Aura of the Event” by Monica Dall’Asta, published in Opening Bazin: Postwar Film Theory and Its Afterlife
“The Work of Art in the Age of Its Technological Reproducibility” by Walter Benjamin
The Ghost in the Machine by Arthur Koestler
Kino-Eye by Dziga Vertov
The Political Unconscious by Fredric Jameson
Content Warnings for this Discussion
Sexism
Intense Violence / Gore / Head Trauma / Suffocation
Drugs
Sexual Harassment / Abuse / Rape in a Medical Context (40:36-41:38)
Threats to Autonomy
Transphobia / Having Conversation With Cis People As A Trans Person
Self Sacrifice
Alcohol
Find out more at https://ghost-divers.pinecast.co
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