For fans looking into get into anime for the first time, free streaming service Tubi is honestly one of the best places to start. Although Tubi's anime collection isn't quite as big as what's available on designated anime streamers like Crunchyroll or HIDIVE, there's a library of eclectic anime series to stream.
In addition to recent series like One-Punch Man, JoJo's Bizarre Adventure, and My Deer Friend Noko-tan, there's an especially impressive collection of anime from the 1990s and early 2000s: the original Japanese version of series like Sailor Moon and Cardcaptor Sakura that were never made available in English at the time they originally aired in North America, the cult classic English dub of the original Yu-Gi-Oh! and other classic series including Inuyasha, Naruto, Death Note and Appleseed (based, incidentally, on a manga by the same creator as the original Ghost in the Shell).
One of the major gems available for free streaming on Tubi is the iconic and influential 1995 cyberpunk anime movie Ghost in the Shell. The first anime adaptation of the original 1989-1990 manga by writer and artist Masamune Shirow, the 1995 Ghost in the Shell follows the cybernetic detective Motoko Kusanagi investigating a string of hackings affecting cybernetically enhanced humans carried out by a criminal known as the Puppet Master.
Ghost in the Shell is essential viewing in anime history
Like several other iconic anime movies including Ninja Scroll and the first Lupin III movie The Castle of Cagliostro (directed by Hayao Miyazaki of Studio Ghibli fame), Ghost in the Shell was originally dubbed and distributed by Manga Entertainment. The company no longer exists as a separate entity and is now a division of Lionsgate. Anime hadn't quite broken through in the mainstream in North America like it would even just a few years later, but it found an audience with several Hollywood filmmakers who would be heavily influenced by Ghost in the Shell's visuals and themes.
The influences of Ghost in the Shell on The Matrix are obvious even at a glance. The movie's opening credits, for example, take the form of scrolling green lines of computer code. Beyond the superficial similarities, Ghost in the Shell also shares much of its thematic and philosophical outlook with The Matrix. The phrase "Ghost in the Shell" refers to the fact that humans in the movie's setting are able to upload their consciousness (the "ghost") into artifical, cybernetic bodies (the "shell). It's not quite the same philosophical issue as The Matrix's simulated reality, but it does allow for a surprisingly deep examination of existential issues of humanity, individuality and personhood. In fact, the 1995 movie actually de-emphasizes the manga's action and humor to have more time for high-level philosophical debate.
Things sort of came full circle with the 2017 live-action Hollywood adaptation of Ghost in the Shell starring Scarlett Johansson. The 2017 movie ended up as a box office bomb, partly because of casting choices and partly because it was widely regarded as being overly derivative of The Matrix. Despite this, it actually performed pretty well within Japan and had the approval of Mamoru Oshii, the director of the 1995 anime movie.
Incidentally, thanks to its North American distribution by Manga Entertainment, Ninja Scroll is also on record as a major influence on the development of The Matrix.
In addition to streaming free with ads on Tubi, Ghost in the Shell is also free with ads on YouTube. Additionally, the largely unrelated 2010s series Ghost in the Shell: Arise is streaming on Crunchyroll and the 2020 CGI anime series is a Netflix Original series. A new anime series was announced in 2024 and is currently slated for a 2026 debut.
As always, keep following the Bam Smack Pow time as we bring you the latest anime news and recommendations, along with our ongoing coverage of the Marvel and DC universes.