It is a little disjointed as you start with the squad newly formed then jump to how the pieces of the squad were put together. Saito seems to be asleep in between times when he's shooting people. Motoko is not as pretty as she is in the S.A.C series and the Tachikoma's are Logikoma's in Arise, red instead of blue but reference is made about them being modified to carry a passenger so it is clearly a prototype of the Tachi being referenced.

In all other aspects this is pure story driven Stand Alone content, a little confusing but it is beautifully constructed and entertaining. I have the S.A.C in English dubbing and Arise is in the Japanese with subtitles. Perhaps I just need a dubbed version to help westernise the story a little and unravel the plot better.

Overall though, it is as stunning as all the ghost in the Shell's are and anything that has Motoko Kusanagi in it should be watched. (show less)