"It is a time when, even if nets were to guide all consciousness that had been converted to photons and electrons toward coalescing, standalone individuals have not yet been converted into data to the extent that they can form unique components of a larger complex."
Dive into Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex!
Write into our Question Bucket at ghostdiverspod[at]gmail and follow us on Twitter!
@ghostdiverspod
@foxmomnia
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[S1E1] Intro: November 27, 2020
[S1E2] Eps. 1–6: December 11, 2020
[S1E3] Eps. 7–13: December 25, 2020
[S1E4] Eps. 14–19: January 8, 2021
[S1E5] Eps. 20-26: January 22, 2021
[S1E6] Question Bucket: February 5, 2021
“Ghost in the Shell: the Major’s Body (3)” by Claire Napier (full series: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
“The Work of Art in the Age of Its Technological Reproducibility” by Walter Benjamin
“Beyond the Image in Benjamin and Bazin: The Aura of the Event” by Monica Dall’Asta, published in Opening Bazin: Postwar Film Theory and Its Afterlife
“Entomology of the Pinup Girl” from What is Cinema?, vol. 2 by André Bazin
“The Ontology of the Photographic Image” from What is Cinema?, vol. 1 by André Bazin
The Ghost in the Machine by Arthur Koestler
Kino-Eye by Dziga Vertov
The Political Unconscious by Fredric Jameson
Gore / Head Trauma
Violence / State Violence
Suicide (esp. Eps. 3 & 22)
Torture / Violence Against Women / Snuff Films / Terrorism (esp. Ep. 10)
Sexual Harassment / Abuse / Rape in a Medical Context (esp. Ep. 22)
Dyadism / Sexism
Sexuality / Partial Nudity
Cloning
Ableism (esp. Ep. 11)
Rapid Flashing / Loud Noises / Rapid Gunfire
Find out more at https://ghost-divers.pinecast.co
Connor and Niamh discuss episodes 1 through 6 of the first season of Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex. We get into some of the core themes of the show, including the dyadic separation of mind and body, the development of AI sapience, gender and the trans resonance of Major Kusanagi, the dystopia underlying the sheen of GitS:SAC's Japan, a peak at the bleakness of the series overall, its thoughts about the possibility for revolution suggested in the world of the show, and an introduction to Niamh’s film theory bullshit.
We also forget to do literally any sort of episode recaps, but as apology, Niamh left in all the times faer cats tried to join the podcast from outside faer closet door. So you’re welcome for that, I guess.
Write into our Question Bucket at ghostdiverspod[at]gmail and follow us on Twitter!
@ghostdiverspod
@foxmomnia
@rabbleais
“Ghost in the Shell: the Major’s Body (3)” by Claire Napier (full series: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
“The Work of Art in the Age of Its Technological Reproducibility” by Walter Benjamin
“Beyond the Image in Benjamin and Bazin: The Aura of the Event” by Monica Dall’Asta, published in Opening Bazin: Postwar Film Theory and Its Afterlife
Police Brutality
Head Trauma
Dyadism
Suicide (esp. 00:35:11-37:50)
Sexuality
Find out more at https://ghost-divers.pinecast.co
This week, we get deep into episodes 7 through 13 of Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex. We try a little harder this time at doing some recaps but Niamh gets distracted getting right into faer bullshit from the beginning. Connor makes his case for episode 10, but if you are trying to avoid this one, which has some of the roughest content of the series, just know we discuss it from approximately 1:24:54 to 1:32:27.
We talk about the sexualization of Major Kusanagi, the aura of the ghost in the age of its technological reproducibility, how the reproduced object can be reconstructed to produce a new aura with a purpose that can be revelatory just as easily as it can be fascistic, reality and unreality, the societal view of binary gender as “Default Male” and “Other”, choosing to be queer and trans, capitalism’s ability to co-opt that which opposes it, cycles of nationalized violence, the development of AI sapience and individuality, escapism and utopia, and our first big reminder in a few episodes that Section 9 is just a bunch of shitty cops.
Write into our Question Bucket at ghostdiverspod[at]gmail and follow us on Twitter!
@ghostdiverspod
@foxmomnia
@rabbleais
“Entomology of the Pinup Girl” from What is Cinema?, vol. 2 by André Bazin
“The Work of Art in the Age of Its Technological Reproducibility” by Walter Benjamin
“Beyond the Image in Benjamin and Bazin: The Aura of the Event” by Monica Dall’Asta, published in Opening Bazin: Postwar Film Theory and Its Afterlife
“The Ontology of the Photographic Image” from What is Cinema?, vol. 1 by André Bazin
“Ghost in the Shell: the Major’s Body (3)” by Claire Napier (full series: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
Sexuality
Reference to Alcohol
Gore / Organ Transplants / Organ Theft
Dyadism / Sexism
Violence Against Women / Torture / Snuff Films / Terrorism (esp. 1:24:54 to 1:32:27)
Ableism in an Institutional Context
Cloning
Police Violence
Brief Mentions of Suicide
Find out more at https://ghost-divers.pinecast.co
We decide that this is just going to be podcast with some long ass episodes and really dig into episodes 14 through 19 of Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex. Before we even get into the episodes, we already have a lot to say about the series and how it relates to the current political reality of when we recorded this episode—which was the day news outlets declared Biden the winner of the 2020 American Presidential election.
Okay, look, I cut out a lot of our election discussion, so just like… know it could’ve been worse, okay?
Anyway, after front-loading this conversation with some political talk, we used it to jump into Major Kusanagi’s need for Section 9 to maintain her body, the capitalist view of the economy as a game you can win, Section 9’s complicity in upholding the injustice of capitalism, the Tachikomas awakening to class consciousness, Batou’s relationship to gender (Gender: It’s Not Just For The Major) and toxic masculinity, the patriarchal hegemony on the gendered expression of emotions, Aramaki’s relationship with the Major, Japanese nationalism and nationalist violence, cycles of revenge and the inscription of revenge narratives into a national identity, the potential value and danger of the merging of consciousnesses and creation of new identities, and the tension between efficacy and righteousness in Section 9’s fulfilling of their role as government agents.
Also, apologies for some of the weird audio on this one. It turns out Discord was really laggy (and variably so) for us and Niamh’s mic volume got fucked up at one point. Fae had a hell of time trying to get things sounding okay. ‧º·(˚ ˃̣̣̥⌓˂̣̣̥ )‧º·˚
Write into our Question Bucket at ghostdiverspod[at]gmail and follow us on Twitter!
@ghostdiverspod
@foxmomnia
@rabbleais
“Ghost in the Shell: the Major’s Body (3)” by Claire Napier (full series: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
“The Work of Art in the Age of Its Technological Reproducibility” by Walter Benjamin
“Beyond the Image in Benjamin and Bazin: The Aura of the Event” by Monica Dall’Asta, published in Opening Bazin: Postwar Film Theory and Its Afterlife
“Entomology of the Pinup Girl” from What is Cinema?, vol. 2 by André Bazin
“The Ontology of the Photographic Image” from What is Cinema?, vol. 1 by André Bazin
Racism
Classism
Deformation and Weaponization of the Body
Alcohol
Ableism
War Crimes
Nationalist Violence
Kidnapping & Organ Harvesting
Find out more at https://ghost-divers.pinecast.co
It’s time to finish out our episode discussions with our breakdown of episodes 20 through 26. We get right into this with high energy because we recorded [S0E1] Welcome to Ghost Divers immediately prior to this recording, so Niamh is already fully on one. Thankfully Connor is here to rein fem in.
We start the discussion by trying to put a bow on Niamh’s theory bullshit with Benjamin and Bazin while Connor gets on his own theory bullshit train with Koestler’s The Ghost in the Machine. Throughout the episode, we cover the tension between individual and society, Aoi the individual as distinct from the Laughing Man, Aoi’s reverence to the original and the truth, the Major’s rage as she fights for her body and her need for control, demedicalization and bodily autonomy as part of trans liberationism, the value of the individual vs. the value of the team, the theoretical origins of the ghost in the shell, the similarities and distinctions between Aoi and the Major, the culpability of individuals in institutions and the need for individuals to break with the institutional imperative in order to create change, the tension between individualism and collectivism, the conversations between Batou and the Major relating to her body and why she chose it, the final act of self sacrifice by the Tachikomas, Batou’s own struggles with gender and oppressive systems, and ultimate finish by teasing out some of the quotes provided by the Major and Aoi in the show’s own version of a Works Cited.
Also sorry, we had a few audio issues again but Niamh thinks fae figured out the main issues so it should be better going forward.
Lastly, don't forget that we will be recording the Question Bucket soon. The deadline to write into our Question Bucket for this series is January 30, 2020. You can write into ghostdiverspod[at]gmail and follow us on Twitter!
@ghostdiverspod
@foxmomnia
@rabbleais
“The Ontology of the Photographic Image” from What is Cinema?, vol. 1 by André Bazin
“Beyond the Image in Benjamin and Bazin: The Aura of the Event” by Monica Dall’Asta, published in Opening Bazin: Postwar Film Theory and Its Afterlife
“The Work of Art in the Age of Its Technological Reproducibility” by Walter Benjamin
The Ghost in the Machine by Arthur Koestler
Kino-Eye by Dziga Vertov
The Political Unconscious by Fredric Jameson
Sexism
Intense Violence / Gore / Head Trauma / Suffocation
Drugs
Sexual Harassment / Abuse / Rape in a Medical Context (40:36-41:38)
Threats to Autonomy
Transphobia / Having Conversation With Cis People As A Trans Person
Self Sacrifice
Alcohol
Find out more at https://ghost-divers.pinecast.co
Hello and welcome to this very focused and concise Question Bucket episode. We only got two emails, so we definitely didn’t somehow record for four hours straight in a delirious frenzy of topics.
Anyway, we start with an attempt to encapsulate our read on Major Kusanagi and how it relates to our political worldview, bringing in and diverging toward other topics like Iceland’s Nobel Laureate Halldór Laxness, the way public policies funnel those suffering from poverty into the military, the anarchist utopianism of Zhuangzi, reparative justice, Major Kusanagi’s ideological attachment to Section 9 and the power it provides her, and finally an answer to a question about micro machines.
We then answer a question about foundational media for us (Chrono Cross and Icelandic music for Niamh, Prince and James Joyce’s Ulysses for Connor) before diving headfirst into the “non-anime” topics we brought. Niamh is talking about Persona 3 Portable and how its portrayal of self-harm, savior complexes, and kink are deeply hurtful and honestly just fucked. As Niamh says in the cold opening disclaimer for this episode, this part of our discussion in particular gets pretty heavy, so please be careful around the Content Warnings for this episode if you may be triggered or affected by discussions of things like self-harm, abusive relationships, biting and blood kinks, etc.
Connor tries as best he can to follow that up with a look back at The Knife’s Shaking the Habitual and its position as an abrasive album that engages with the music that came before it and also might point towards some of the queer music that came after.
We finish out answering a question about how to survive grad school, and how maybe our perspective on grad school is uniquely bleak because of the particular cruelty of the program we both attended.
Sorry for being a downer.
“If you want to understand me better as a person, play Chrono Cross” by our very own Niamh
“A Better Lover” also by our very own Niamh, published by ZEAL
Brief Mentions of Online Harassment
Discussion of Abusers in Queer Communities and Breaking Cycles of Abuse
In-Depth Discussion of Self-Harm, Trauma, Abuse, and Savior Complexes (2:12:44 to 2:23:20)
In-Depth Discussion of Kink, Teeth, Biting, Bloodplay, Painplay, the Erotics of Negotiation, and Consent (2:23:20 to 2:42:46)
Discussion of the Pressures of Grad School
Find out more at https://ghost-divers.pinecast.co
Dear Listeners Booting Up This Episode On Their Podcast App of Choice:
The guys that appear in this anime are delinquents. So, please do not, under any circumstances, imitate what you see in this anime.
Dive into Sakigake!! Cromartie High School!
Write into our Question Bucket at ghostdiverspod[at]gmail and follow us on Twitter!
@ghostdiverspod
@foxmomnia
@rabbleais
[S2E1] Intro: February 5, 2021
[S2E2] Eps. 1–13: February 19, 2021
[S2E3] Eps. 14–26: March 5, 2021
[S2E4] Question Bucket: March 19, 2021
Gabriel Gundaker talking about the Coinstar not working
“The Yakuza Film: An Introduction” by Keiko Iwai McDonald, published in Reframing Japanese Cinema: Authorship, Genre, History
“On Ninkyo” by Sato Tadao, Shisō no kagaku
Ableist and Sexist Language (Note: The dub is worse in this regard, including use of the f-slur)
Find out more at https://ghost-divers.pinecast.co
Connor and Niamh can’t remember the name of a song that’s stuck in their heads, so they try to distract themselves by discussing episodes 1 through 13 of the first season of Sakigake!! Cromartie High School.
We start out with the first and really only bit of theory bullshit by talking about the yakuza and yankii genre convention of the giri-ninjo conflict and how it relates to the comedy of Cro High, which we then use to launch into how much Cro High actually operates as a genre parody vs. absurdism, Kamiyama as a protagonist, the process of adaptation from manga to anime, the character of Yamaguchi as the comedian who tries to metatextually analyze the comedy of the show in which he himself is a character, the all-encompassing scope of the comedy of the show, the show within a show that is Pootan, the way Cro High continues to develop expectations in order to subvert them, and more.
Niamh also has an (at this point no longer secret) announcement that faer comedy video art series Today’s Garfield Read Aloud has returned as a Twitter account, @GarfReadAloud.
Write into our Question Bucket at ghostdiverspod[at]gmail and follow us on Twitter!
@ghostdiverspod
@FoxmomNia
@rabbleais
@GarfReadAloud
“The Yakuza Film: An Introduction” by Keiko Iwai McDonald, published in Reframing Japanese Cinema: Authorship, Genre, History
“On Ninkyo” by Sato Tadao, published in the journal Shisō no kagaku (Science of Thought)
Mention of Alcohol (After the outro when Niamh and Connor are joking around)
Find out more at https://ghost-divers.pinecast.co
Niamh and Niamh’s Cohost discuss episodes 14 through 26 of the first season of Sakigake!! Cromartie High School.
We take a slightly more synopsis-laden approach this time to try to ground ourselves in the rapidly escalating and (d)evolving world of Cro High, bounding off of topics like Cro High’s use of manzai forms, the literalization of the punchline, the stretching and decontextualization of recurring jokes, Yamaguchi’s failure to fully understand the humor of the show in which he is a character, and our conclusion that the show is ultimately mocking us personally as a podcast that is trying to analyze it.
Niamh also thinks fae's really fuckin funny with the editing on this one.
Also, don't forget that we will be recording the Question Bucket soon. The deadline to write into our Question Bucket for this series is March 13. You can write into ghostdiverspod[at]gmail and follow us on Twitter!
@ghostdiverspod
@foxmomnia
@rabbleais
@GarfReadAloud
Brief Discussion of Shock Violence (Regarding Adult Swim)
Find out more at https://ghost-divers.pinecast.co
In what is most certainly the rowdiest, most chaotic episode yet, the Ghost Divers are joined by special guest and person who is hosting this podcast on their network in the first place so how is Niamh ever going to say no to them, Autumn Blake!
But before Autumn hops on the call, Niamh and Connor start out with just the regular amount of rowdiness and chaos and get right into the Cro High questions. We start out talking about some of our favorite bits from the show, get waylaid by Niamh’s laundry tips, and then dive into the gender happening in Cro High, vibes you get as a trans person about whether or not a creator would hate you, Takashi Miike’s Dead or Alive trilogy, Cro High’s potential debt to Utena, our favorite cuss word, finding a shared sense of humor with others, etc.
Then Autumn joins for our discussion of Final Fantasy 8 and things immediately escalate into a rollicking discussion touching on NORG, which Gundam characters would kiss the homies goodnight, which FF8 characters would kiss the homies goodnight, which Eva characters would kiss the homies goodnight, Niamh’s FF7 OTP, the era of PS1 JRPGs and why they could be weirder back then, how you used to be able to just make bad games and movies, memories of watching friends play Final Fantasy games, the overwhelming adolescence of FF8, more of Niamh’s OTPs, the merciless systems of FF8, breaking JRPGs, the era of guidebooks, etc.
We eventually move on to talking about Gaylord Phoenix, 100 Crushes, and queer alt comics in general, especially around themes like the inadequacy of language to talk about queerness and different approaches to trying to talk about this inadequacy anyway, revisiting queer books from the year you came out, Connor’s ongoing role as Niamh’s token cis straight white dude friend, the value of libraries, how to try to get into queer comics, etc.
Anyway, go buy the unofficial official shirt of Ghost Divers:
https://shop.grapevine.is/products/milf-short-sleeve-unisex-t-shirt
You can write into future Question Buckets at [email protected] and don’t forget to follow us on Twitter!
The Show: @ghostdiverspod
Niamh: @FoxmomNia
Connor: @rabbleais
Autumn: @Autumnal_Coffee
Garfield Read Aloud: @GarfReadAloud
I don’t read theory not even Marx I have never even heard of Hegelian dialectics.
Brief mentions of self-harm
Mention of bedbugs
Discussions vaguely around transphobia
Just lots and lots of swearing in this one
Including Niamh saying the f-slur a bunch because fae reclaims it
Sexual references
Mention of bodies being destroyed
Alcohol
Find out more at https://ghost-divers.pinecast.co