Section 9’s first post-human target is a pro boxer who kills people with one punch.
ep 09 – “IDENTITY THEFT – The Lonely Struggle”
Hmm.
Section 9 has a mission, resources, and a case, so it’s time for SAC_2045 to show us what is going on with these post-humans. The Major’s first case in Japan deals with Yaguchi, a pro boxer who wanted to promote his fights for the reconstruction of Tokyo. Putting aside all the One Punch Man jokes you can make about the guy, the SAC_2045 episode shows that his personality may still be in his new form. He’s also the first post-human we’ve seen that spoke! Yaguchi had strong feelings about his Japanese nationality, but when he became a post-human, he expressed this motivation by punishing those who committed welfare fraud and identity theft. Japanese reconstruction funds should only be for legal workers. Everyone defrauding the system gets his head exploded in one punch.
How Yaguchi operated as soon as he awakened his post-human powers makes me wonder about Gary Harts and Patrick Huge. A week after Harts became a post-human, he walked into a Nevada ICBM installation and tried to destroy the capital city of Russia. Patrick Huge never officially disappeared, but he holed himself up in his Hollywood Hills estate, paying roving gangs to attack him as he tried to sell off his company. Perhaps these guys never lost their identities but only decided to fulfill their most deeply held convictions when they realized they could. With only three episodes left in SAC_2045’s first season, we don’t have a lot of time left before the season finale moves us onto the second season with the post-human with messy hair.
Using Yaguchi’s nationalistic motives, SAC_2045 had some room to explore the story behind Japan’s first foreign Prime Minister. I thought Teito was a half-Japanese born in America, but he’s a full white guy who married into a keiretsu family after being stationed at the American embassy in Tokyo. According to the official website, Teito’s name is 久利須 大友 帝都, which is Kurisu Ootomo Teito in romaji. Ootomo is his wife’s family name, but it looks like Mr. Chris Tate registered his name in Japan using the kanji for “eternal profit necessary” and “imperial capital” (Ootomo looks like “great friend” which resonates even more). J-List’s senpai Peter Payne did something similar when he moved to Japan. What is important here about Chris Tate is that he convinced an ultra-nationalist post-human that he was Japanese for Japan’s sake. I’m sure that scene moved the Japanese nationals in Section 9 to trust that their Prime Minister was not a leashed dog for the Americans. If he would stop trying to shake their hands every time they met, they would trust him even more.
Heh.
One Puuuunch! Oops, wrong show. This is SAC_2045. Also, what a mess. Interesting. The post-human Yaguchi was invisible to all electronic surveillance, but he couldn’t escape a retro photographer using a film camera. Yaguchi was a 28-year-old boxer, so why does he have a prosthetic arm and hand now? Motoko pronounces the prosthetic “junk.” She’s the expert. Batou just summed up the SAC_2045 episode in one question: “A boxer turns into a post-human and begins a sustainable war against the government with his fist?” Section 9 has a lead — look for One Punch Man victims. Ah, let’s call him One Hit Wonder.
Yay! Tachikomas gossiping is the best kind of gossiping in SAC_2045. Squee! It makes me smile every time they’re so happy to see Batou. Look at them wiggle their butts like they’re dogs wagging their tails. Here comes another one wagging her tail. Is Purin cleared to talk about post-humans? Hoho. She overheard the Tachikomas gossiping about it. Those guys need some discipline.
Why is Purin so interested in 1980’s tech and Batou? How did she find a Walkman with foam still on the earphones in the SAC_2045 world? Hahaha! She made a mixtape for Batou! I’m cringing at my own memories of making mix tapes for girls I liked. Rejected! Batou’s so harsh. Holy moly. The Tachikomas are rooting for her to lose! They don’t want anyone getting in between them and Batou.
Here’s some foreshadowing. Boxers in SAC_2045 shadowbox virtually with other boxers’ data. They call it AR sparring. Yaguchi’s trainer said the promising fighter wanted to become a boxing champion to support the reconstruction of Tokyo. Yaguchi’s trainer says he became ill by overheating his cyberbrain. I’ll file that away for later.
Heehee. Purin hacked into the police database to find One Hit Wonder cases. That’s no big deal for SAC_2045, apparently. She totally belongs on Motoko’s team. She’s so cute. 92 victims? That “small” sustainable war is not so small. Yaguchi targets people defrauding the Tokyo Reconstruction Project. Purin deduced who Yaguchi’s first victim was by finding bits of his flesh with the victim. Ew. His body couldn’t handle his new post-human strength. That explains the cheap prosthetic.
I see it now. The rest of the SAC_2045 episode will show how far up the political power structure Yaguchi intends to go. Oho! The Major is in her military uniform. Uh oh. The post-human is going to drag Prime Minister Tate’s (I’m switching to his American spelling) family into his vendetta. He married into the Ootomo family after selling his micromachine company to the Ootomo conglomerate, becoming a Japanese citizen afterward.
SAC_2045 moves the plot quickly. Section 9 needs to rush over to protect Mr. Ootomo himself. This looks like the same compound where Aramaki requested PM Tate give him the Major’s team for Section 9. It makes sense now how closely tied Japan is to America under Tate. One Hiiiit! This is very humanizing, how Tate and his wife talk to each other. Smith is always on the job. Release disinformation! Spoken just like a Man in Black about aliens.
Section 9 is in pursuit mode now. Oh! This Tate guy has some balls. He’s American, after all. He wants to bait Yaguchi to come after him. Tate seems sincere, but he may have some long game where he’s taking advantage of the post-humans for his own goals in Japan.
Tate is letting Yaguchi get to him at that hospital. Whoa. That’s a new development for SAC_2045. A post-human spoke out loud! Tate convinced Yaguchi of his love for Japan. Hmm. At least long enough for the Major to start whaling on him.
Ooh. Motoko fighting in a miniskirt with a slit up her thigh! Her cyborg body can take Yaguchi’s hits. Oh. She played him into his boxing habits so she and Batou could switch to MMA later. Motoko is all about the kicks. SAC_2045 shows fighting in the dark again, so we can’t see Motoko’s nice legs in action.
Smith has another live post-human to study. Let’s hope his team is better at holding him than the last guy. Tate makes it sound like he’s trying to rebuild an independent Japan but is he telling the truth? Ambiguity is good for SAC_2045.
Ghost in the Shell: SAC_2045 streams on Netflix.
