English Dub Review: The Ghost in the Shell “DUMB BARTER”
Overview
Major Kusanagi and her boyfriend are rushed to the hospital after being attacked without warning. They suspect Toru Soma, a terrorist with whom Kusanagi has a shared history. Kusanagi and Togusa leave the hospital, and after leading their pursuers on a chase, they find themselves in a fierce battle against an armed group in an abandoned factory.
Our Take
Picking up from the previous episode, this installment puts Motoko Kusanagi in the middle of another dangerous situation when she and her boyfriend are suddenly targeted by an unexpected attack. With Motoko and Togusa forced to investigate, the episode quickly develops into a tense pursuit involving Toru Soma, a terrorist with a personal history with the Major. The story wastes little time raising the stakes, creating an intense atmosphere while still leaving room for some of the series’ trademark humor.
What makes this episode especially interesting is how it gives us a different perspective on Motoko by exploring her personal life alongside her work as a government operative. Her relationship with her boyfriend adds another layer to her character, while Soma’s connection to her past creates an intriguing source of conflict without making the story overly complicated. The action is also a major highlight, with the Think Tank sequence standing out as an impressive showcase of Science SARU’s animation and sound design, making the combat feel chaotic and brutal. Meanwhile, Batou provides some much-needed comic relief with a hilarious subplot involving a certain car.
Overall, this was one of the strongest episodes so far, delivering a great balance of action, suspense, character development, and comedy without becoming as technically dense as some of the earlier installments. Motoko remains the standout thanks to her confidence, ruthlessness, and morally complicated nature, while exploring her personal life makes her feel more layered than before. It’s another fast-paced and thoroughly entertaining episode that packs plenty into its runtime, and be sure to stick around after the credits for a fun little comedy bit that provides one last laugh before the episode ends.
