Manga Entertainment has revealed that it will release Ghost in the Shell: Solid State Society, in regular ($24.98) and limited ($44.98) editions on July 3rd. Manga has denied early reports that the film will be released in the hi-def BluRay format in July, though with its high production values (its budget was 360 million yen), it will be a prime candidate for a high-def release at some point. Produced by Production I.G. and directed by Kenji Kamiyama, the 105-minute anime feature will be the last release in the popular Stand Alone Complex series, which also includes two 26-episode TV seasons and three OAVs (see 'Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex: Solid State Society'). The film will receive its
Solid State Society is set two years after the events in Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex 2nd Gig. Section 9 has been expanded to nearly twenty members and Major Motoko Kusanagi has left -- though when Section 9 investigates the activities of the mysterious Puppeteer, Batou discovers that Kusanagi is conducting her own investigation.
Given the popularity of the Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex franchise and the way that anime features dominated the VideoScan sales charts in 2006, Solid State Society has a good chance of ending up as one of 2007's top anime releases.