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A review by villyidol
The Ghost in the Shell Vol. 1 by Masamune Shirow
3.0
This manga has some very cool aspects as well as some very annoying ones. But ultimately it was a disappointment for me.
Let’s start with the cool stuff.
It has a kick-ass female main character that exudes a tremendous amount of confidence.
There are some interesting concepts about artificial intelligence and what it takes for something (someone?) to be deemed alive.
It also has some very cool settings and great style.
The artwork is inconsistent, though.
The colored parts are mostly great, with many nice details. But there are some blurry panels as well. The black and white parts aren't always that good. Some of the panels even seemed a bit lazy.
Overall I liked the art. But I was still annoyed by the constant change in quality.
A few examples of the good and the bad (I mixed it up to make it a little more challenging for you to figure out what is what. Just kidding. I think it’s pretty clear):
So yeah, lots of ups and downs.
With the story it‘s no different. But it falls more on the down side of the spectrum. It's episodic and often hard to follow. I really didn't like that aspect of the book. It‘s simply annoyingly incoherent.
Some interesting concepts here and there. And a few chapters were quite entertaining. But for the most part there's a feeling of detachment created by the diffuse storytelling.
Overall I think this is just an okay manga, with lots of unrealized potential. A very frustrating read for me.
2.5 stars, rounded up.
Let’s start with the cool stuff.
It has a kick-ass female main character that exudes a tremendous amount of confidence.
There are some interesting concepts about artificial intelligence and what it takes for something (someone?) to be deemed alive.
It also has some very cool settings and great style.
The artwork is inconsistent, though.
The colored parts are mostly great, with many nice details. But there are some blurry panels as well. The black and white parts aren't always that good. Some of the panels even seemed a bit lazy.
Overall I liked the art. But I was still annoyed by the constant change in quality.
A few examples of the good and the bad (I mixed it up to make it a little more challenging for you to figure out what is what. Just kidding. I think it’s pretty clear):
So yeah, lots of ups and downs.
With the story it‘s no different. But it falls more on the down side of the spectrum. It's episodic and often hard to follow. I really didn't like that aspect of the book. It‘s simply annoyingly incoherent.
Some interesting concepts here and there. And a few chapters were quite entertaining. But for the most part there's a feeling of detachment created by the diffuse storytelling.
Overall I think this is just an okay manga, with lots of unrealized potential. A very frustrating read for me.
2.5 stars, rounded up.