TV – The Ghost in the Shell Episode 5
This week, the 5th episode of the new animated Ghost in the Shell series released on Prime Video. The new animated series is produced by Science SARU, based on Masamune Shirow’s 1989 manga series. The series began airing on 7th July on a simultaneous global release schedule, with weekly episode drops, giving the worldwide community the chance to discuss the series episode by episode.
So far, we’ve had the inception of Section 9, after a bit of a false start, then a couple of cases of mistaken identity with regards to The Puppet Master. The animation has been great, with some good action scenes, and a bit of philosophising over the line between human and non-human, and the nature of the ‘ghosts’ of the title. Recent episodes have drifted away from The Puppet Master arc to be more stand-alone, with last week’s episode 4 possibly the best and most ‘complete’ episode so far.
Episode 5 again focuses on one plot. Section 9 has been monitoring a combat cyborg named Koil, who was travelling on a train. The rookie assigned to watch him, trained by Batou, is slaughtered by Koil. As you might imagine, Batou does not take this well. Kusanagi, who labels herself The Major for the first time in the series, visits an old military contact, a hacker, and the team are pointed in the direction of a company named Sagawa Electronics, who seem to have expanded into an old army base.
Batou, who has been busy training recruits, and testing firearms extensively, visits the morgue with Ishikawa to see the body of the slaughtered recruit, Yano, reaffirming the personal nature of this mission for Batou. They investigate a Sagawa location, and ultimately get into a violent confrontation with Koil, and Batou takes him down. Whilst there, they discover a stockpile of gold. The Major arrives at Sagawa Electronics posing as a photographer, and also gets into a skirmish, before hacking a disc, gaining intel on the company’s illegal activities – it turns out they have been misappropriating public money by moving finance between entities. She then, after a brief struggle, apprehends the former Chief of Far North Special Operations, Colonel Sohei Kagasaki.
If that character’s title is a bit wordy, it’s symbolic of the episode in general. The episodes are short, and have a lot of backstory and exposition to put across with regards to the geopolitical climate, the various government agencies and criminal groups involved, and how they all intersect with each other. There’s enough here for a 45 minute episode of TV, and it all needs to be condensed so much that it is very difficult to fully follow. If you’re a fan of the manga and the IP in general, you probably know enough to not need spoon-feeding, but for the many that are being exposed to these stories for the first time, it’s a lot to take in.
The character development, though, is good, particularly for Batou. We’ve not seen that much of him in the series so far, but he’s all over this. As the training officer, he feels a great sense of responsibility for his recruits, and when Yano is killed, it affects him. He gets vengeance on Koil, but as shown in the final scenes of the episode, that doesn’t make it easier to face the disappointment and anger from the families of the dead. Whether this ends up affecting how he approaches the job is yet to be seen, but it does show the series has stakes rather than just being a fun action romp.
What did you think of episode five? Are you able to follow all the plots, backstory, and exposition, or would you rather they split storylines between a couple of episodes so there’s more time to explain the politics and the nature of the various organisations? Let us know in the comments.
You can watch the new Ghost in the Shell series on Prime Video with a valid subscription, and episodes will be released every Tuesday. You can enjoy the show’s opening sequence below –
Comic – Rust City
The campaign for Rust City Vol 4, the latest issue of Annett Oefner’s cyberpunk dystopian comic about memory, control, manipulation and rebellion, ends today on Kickstarter. As of time of publishing this article, it is still live, so get in quick. Previous Volumes 1-3 have been previously funded through Kickstarter, and you can back now to get Volume 4 there are several tiers with additional bonuses, or if you haven’t picked up the previous issues yet, there is a tier offering all 4 volumes.
From the publisher –
Welcome to Rust City—a brutal cyber-dystopian comic set in the towering mega-city of the Sky Empire, where control is absolute and mercy is extinct. Armed drones patrol the skies, surveillance tightens like a noose, and rebellion festers in the neon-lit shadows of forgotten industrial ruins. At the heart of it all is Drake, a lost soul from District 3, battling amnesia—until his past comes knocking, and the Empire starts to crack. While the brutal Sky Empire keeps its concrete districts under brutal force, a rebellion is rising in the neon-lit underground beneath the city. Drake slowly recovers the memories of his forgotten past and finds himself caught between both sides—a shadow society and the great Empire—as he uncovers a truth that could bring the system to its knees.
Spanning four volumes and more than 450 pages, Rust City is a descent into the darkest corners of the human mind. Through morally grey characters, it explores oppression, manipulation, and rebellion in a world where truth is manufactured and freedom comes at a price. It invites readers to think beyond the page—and to confront a single question: What would you sacrifice to be free?
The art for Rust City is unique and beautiful. The different locations have distinct visual styles, with colour palettes that set the mood for the specific environments, including some great background detail. Rust City is set in a richly drawn dystopian world, where a brutal, totalitarian regime tightly controls the populace. As all great stories must, Rust City has a strikingly designed villain, and a sympathetic hero that’s easy to root for, along with a host of other compelling characters.
Annett Oefner, a full-time comic artist from Germany, is the writer and artist behind Rust City, along with Midnight Rush Volume 1. You can see more from Annett on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/annett_oefner
You can read more about Rust City, and the different tiers available, on Kickstarter –
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/annett/rust-city-volume-1-4
Comic – Blade Runner Black Lotus: Las Vegas
If you are too late for the Rust City Kickstarter, this week saw the release of Blade Runner Black Lotus: Las Vegas, and there’s no time limit on this comic. Writer Nancy A. Collins and artist Jesús Hervás combine on this new story, published by Titan Comics. This release is a collection of all four issues of the Blade Runner Black Lotus: Las Vegas comic.
From the publisher –
Following the events of BLACK LOTUS: LEAVING L.A. This all-new adventure sees the deadly Replicant combat model Elle – aka The Black Lotus Killer, still searching for answers to her mysterious past. Her quest takes her to the irradiated city of Las Vegas, now a ghost-town following the detonation of a dirty bomb.
There she finds a community of Replicants who once serviced the casinos as the living embodiments of ancient Egyptians and Romans. Meanwhile Niander Wallace, inheritor of the Replicant technology of Eldon Tyrell, has dispatched a battle-hardened squad of mercenaries to track her and bring her back dead or alive.
Titan Comics’ series of Blade Runner comics has been keeping the franchise alive since their first series, Blade Runner 2019, was published in, yes, 2019. Set in the same canon as the 1982 Blade Runner movie, and Denis Villeneuve’s Blade Runner 2049. The future of the franchise is looking healthy, with several more Blade Runner comics on Titan Comics’ slate, including Blade Runner: Tokyo Nexus: To Lose is to Win #4, due to be released on 12th August.
There is also a TV series, Blade Runner 2099, heading to Amazon Prime Video, which is expected to premiere in 2027. Here in the Cyberstopia bunker we’re anxiously waiting for more info on the TV show, and thankful to Titan Comics that we’ve got plenty of Blade Runner stories to keep us entertained in the meantime.
You can buy Blade Runner Black Lotus: Las Vegas wherever good comics can be bought.
Book – The Infinite State
If you’re looking for a longer read, The Infinite State, Richard Swan’s dystopian science fiction novel, was published by Tor Books this week. Experienced British genre writer Swan this time brings us a story filled with politics, betrayal, and manipulation, in a totalitarian regime.
From the publisher –
THE INFINITE STATE begins at a flashpoint in the lives of a widowed party member, a disgraced investigator, and a hypersled pilot—entangled in a plot to escape the suffocating authority of a fascist state.
WHO GIVES YOU LIFE?
PATER AETERNUS.
Katherine Fuller’s husband is dead. As an esteemed member of Pater Aeternus—governing party of the fascist, galaxy-spanning Decurion Empire—he has left behind an estate of immeasurable wealth. And Katherine is going to inherit it.
WHO GIVES YOU PURPOSE?
PATER AETERNUS.
Life under the Eternal Father is rigidly stratified, surveilled, and controlled—each new day to be endured, not lived. But with Katherine’s newfound fortune, she is presented with a rare and dangerous opportunity: purchase a virgin world, and create a better, fairer society.
WHO GIVES YOU JOY?
PATER AETERNUS.
But the Empire cannot allow its wayward daughter to succeed. And as Katherine works in secret, recruiting allies she’s not even sure she can trust, she will discover exactly how far Pater Aeternus is willing to go to stop her. Because Katherine is going to create something nobody has seen for many years.
A democracy.
The multi-POV novel has been well received so far. At time of writing, it has 4.33 stars from 188 ratings on Goodreads, with readers praising the extensive world-building, making the story very immersive, with fast-paced action. There is also an audiobook which benefits from multicast narration.
The Infinite State is Richard Swan’s first entry in a new series, The Decurion Saga. He has previously written a series of fantasy novels, the Empire of the Wolf trilogy, as well as the Art of War military space opera trilogy, amongst others. He has also written in the Warhammer universe for Black Library.
The Infinite State is available in Hardcover, Digital, and audiobook formats, from all good book retailers.
Books – July Roundup
If you’re wondering what books you missed last month, you can find our round-up here – https://cyberstopia.com/books-july-roundup/
Videogame – Cyberpunk Inquisitor
Going more interactive, randomly-generated cyberpunk murder mystery game Cyberpunk Inquisitor is now available for PC via Steam. This point and click rogue-lite game calls for you to interrogate witnesses, search for clues, and evaluate evidence in an attempt to track down the murderer.
From the publisher –
Dive into this neon-lit, dystopian world as a detective unravelling the mystery behind a series of murders. This game is the first of its kind: a thrilling fusion of rogue-lite randomization and a traditional murder mystery investigation!
Every case is set in a sprawling high-density Megabuilding, where you will meet and question various Citizens in order to uncover the truth. Explore each floor of the Megabuilding, from grimy bars to futuristic Habitation Pods, in search of clues and suspects. With each playthrough, face new challenges and unpredictable twists, ensuring no two investigations are ever the same.
Utilize your wits and gather evidence to crack the case before time runs out and corruption consumes the city. Can you navigate this unpredictable, treacherous world and bring some justice to its oppressed Citizens?
Cyberpunk Inquisitor was developed and published by Nerdook Productions, who previously developed Rogue AI Simulator and Rogue AI: Idle Domination. The game is currently available with an introductory 10% discount until 9th August. You can test it out by downloading a demo on the Steam page here https://store.steampowered.com/app/2957350/Cyberpunk_Inquisitor/
You can check out the trailer below.
Videogames – Steam Cyberpunk Fest 2026
And if cyberpunk videogames are your thing, the Steam Cyberpunk Fest is still on, with a wide range of cyberpunk PC games selling at discounted prices on Steam.
The Steam Cyberpunk Event runs from August 3 through to August 10, so you still have time to get involved. Check your wishlists for all those cyberpunk games you never got around to buying, because there’s sure to be something in the sale that you’ve wanted, but haven’t got around to buying.
Steam have released a trailer for the event –
You can find the page for the cyberpunk games on Steam below. There are some big cyberpunk titles included in the sale, including Cyberpunk 2077 and its expansion, Robocop: Rogue City and its expansion, Ghostrunner 1&2, Ruiner, and loads more. Let us know in the comments what the best deal you found is.
https://store.steampowered.com/category/cyberpunk
PODCAST – HOST IN THE SHELL EPISODE 63:
The latest episode of Hosts in the Shell is available now. This week, hosts Jon Richter and Matt Adcock
The Hosts in the Shell podcast is a cyberpunk podcast where Jon and Matt discuss the genre’s greatest work, often alongside a notable guest, and they have over 50 episodes available. You can find the Hosts in the Shell podcast at the link below, and all good podcast platforms.
https://www.buzzsprout.com/1930485?client_source=oembed&iframe=true#?secret=t5rHcOBU45
As well as being podcasters, Jon and Matt are also authors with cyberpunk related titles amongst their novels.
You can find out more about Jon’s work here –
You can find out more about Matt’s work here – www.completedarknessnovel.com/
CYBERSTOPIA – Discord
Cyberstopia now has a Discord server! Please join us and build a community for cyberpunk and dystopia discussion.
https://discord.gg/ETgkwzHQ5
For more of the latest news on cyberpunk and dystopia media, stay tuned to Cyberstopia here on Substack, and across social media. If you have a Cyberstopian project or release, or there’s something you think we should be covering, please let us know here in the comments, on your social media platform of choice, or at our website www.cyberstopia.com
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