Season 2 of “Ghost In The Shell_2045” is back with a more dramatic plot than Season 1. With a better-paced storyline, it would have already left the viewers scratching their heads in wonder. Directed by Kenji Kamiyama and Shinji Aramaki, the highly awaited second season of “Ghost In The Shell_2045” was finally released on May the 23rd, 2022. The film had already set the hype for the season by releasing some of the scenes and ending with a montage. Suffice to say, the season did not disappoint; however, it has created an effective confusion among its viewers though ending on a happy note. This season seems to be the last season of this series.
‘Ghost In The Shell_2045’ Season 2: Plot Summary
In season 1, Major Kusanagi and her team found out about post-humans. The team had been detained while being unknowingly sent to apprehend one of the post-humans by the American government. Major and her team were later rescued by Chief Aramaki and their previous teammate, Togusa. After successfully returning to Section 9, the team set about finding the whereabouts of the remaining post-humans. They managed to apprehend the boxer while the Prime Minister acted as bait. However, the season ends with the disappearance of Shizuka Mizukane, Takashi Shimamura, who are post-humans, and Togusa.
“Ghost In The Shell_2045” Season 2 begins with the looming threat of the post-humans on the loose and a Russian national, Philip Kukushkin, boasting about his knowledge of post-humans to the Indian officials. Major divides the team; Batou and Purin are sent to capture Philip, while the rest focus on finding a missing Togusa and further investigating the post-humans. Meanwhile, Togusa arrives in Tokyo and finds out that millions of citizens have gathered for the cause of “N.” Togusa, confused by the surroundings, navigates through the city and comes across a payphone. He calls the team to update them about his whereabouts. They immediately venture out to help Togusa, while Major takes two members and follows post-human Mizukane, who pops up on the radar.
Major Spoilers Ahead
See More: ‘Ghost in the Shell SAC_2045’ Season 1: Ending & Characters, Explained
Did Purin Die? How Did The Post-Humans Come Into Being?
While Major had sent in her team to find Togusa and apprehend Mizukane, Purin was tasked with extracting information from the code that the team got from Philip’s disconnected brain. Purin finds out that the AI 1A84 was created by the NSA to provide a landslide profit to America while other economies may find themselves at war. This resulted in the creation of the Sustainable War to sustain the economic fall, creating a paradox that did not help America. The NSA decided to shut down the AI because it could not fulfill its orders. The AI, before getting shut down, planted some of its sequences in the brains of chosen humans, effectively turning them into post-humans. Meanwhile, Major, who had suspicions that Purin might be a post-human, confirmed it due to the conversation between Purin and the AI.
Purin was quarantined effectively by the Major, yet she accessed the files to hack her way out when she was unable to report to Ishikawa. While accessing the files, however, Purin found out that the Prime Minister seemed to be in danger due to John Smith’s hired assassin posing as his bodyguard. Purin immediately vacated the premises to save the Prime Minister. However, when she pointed a gun at the bodyguard and opened fire, she was shot down as the rest of the bodyguards perceived her as a threat. She was killed on the spot, and her innocence was later proven by the Tachikomas.
Purin’s past came to light when the Tachikomas tried to find out about her innocence. Batou finally recognized the girl he had consoled when a Major murderer killed her entire family. Due to his helping hand, Purin had designated her life to help others and follow Batou into Section 9. This explained her obsession with Batou and why she was hellbent on joining Section 9. Major then pulled some strings and, with the help of the tachikomas, updated Purin’s brain online and gave her a full prosthetic body to download her cyber brain. Purin is dead. However, she retains her emotions, personality, and memories through her cyber brain, effectively being reborn as an AI.
‘Ghost In The Shell_2045’ Season 2: Ending Explained – Did The Major Leave?
Mizukane and Takashi had effectively hijacked a nuclear submarine. Takashi had found out about the plans of America and was planning ahead. This was discovered by the Major in the last episode after she found herself stuck in a brain maze. Before the Major was stuck in a loop, where everything seemed normal, Japan faced a Major crisis. America, hellbent on annexing Japan and destroying the post-humans, planned on launching a smart gas. This gas killed people while lulling them to sleep. They launched this after Takashi had hijacked the nuclear submarine. The Americans refused to take a risk and ordered a massacre so that 7 million people would be dead, effectively shutting down any threat of nuclear warfare. Purin found out this information while Major and the entire team of Section 9 were on their way to apprehend both Mizukane and Takashi. The NSA sent in robots to kill them both too. They successfully killed Mizukane while Togusa and the others tried to save Takashi. Purin was then sent to Mizukane’s base, where she rested to find out more information. While Purin reported her findings to the Major, Takashi woke up. The group had tried to arrest them when the Post-humans had to take a 15-minute nap to function for 24 hours. Talk about a power nap that energizes them instantly. After he woke up, Takashi made the decision to transfer the button to launch the missiles to people with the lowest possibility of ever clicking the button. He then leaves after converting one of the tachikomas to his cause.
Takashi fills in Purin about his plan when he confronts her at the base, while the tachikomas also side with him. Purin decides to follow his plan. In a stand-off against Takashi and Purin after their discussion, Batou, Borma, Saitou, and Ishikawa all get killed in action. Major loses her teammates and shoots Takashi. She blacks out while the Americans effectively launch their aircraft and detonate the Smart Gas.
After the Major finds out about the dream sequence, which is a brain loop, she wakes up at an amphitheater filled with pods similar to the one she was in. She is confronted by Purin, who takes her to Takashi. Takashi explains the double-think phenomenon and how he wants an equal world where everything is back to normal with no hint of war. This phenomenon started right around the time Togusa disappeared. Therefore, he hints that the incidents that had occurred had not occurred as well. People are in a real-world with no conflict, but the incidents have also occurred in the real world with conflict. Takashi was still connected to the wires while he was spreading the double-think phenomenon to create a conflict-free equal world. He also offered the Major a chance to pull off the wires if she wanted. The Major then introduces Purin back to Section 9, where the teammates do not remember her and welcome her as a new member with open arms. Major must have asked Takashi to format the team’s cyber brain to effectively create a space for Purin so that she can live her life and not worry about her guilt of siding with AI. Later on, the Major leaves the team once again after promising Batou a code word, Code 1A84, to remember and recognize the team when they meet again. The Major performs another cyber jump into the cyber verse to set the other factors right and delve into a mission of her own.
The world regained normalcy due to Takashi and the major working together. Major left her team to search for more discrepancies. In a world where politics is involved, corrupted individuals will always search for opportunities to gain profit for themselves. Countries will always try to establish each other over the other. In the series, counter-measures to stop these processes to establish peace were taken, however, it will not be long before another individual decides to take hold of the power. Equality is achieved by Takashi’s double-think yet the reality remains the same. The series is absolutely addicting with its unraveling plots and gives a clean view into how the power struggles and technology might change the society in the future. With the advent of high end technology and individuals eyeing the hierarchy of power it will be of no surprise if the future did turn out exactly as the series predicted.
“Ghost In The Shell_2045” Season 2 is streaming on Netflix.
