Is the original ghost in the shell, the best?
Was that the movie that started japanese on their quest to create the perfect sex robot?
In my opinion, the original 1995 film is the best. It's really fucking good, incredible animation and a great plot. Watch it with subtitles.
I've read the manga that inspired it, I've also watched the second film (GitS 2: Innocence) and both series of the anime that came after (Stand Alone Complex & SAC 2nd Gig).
They're all pretty good, but the original film is the gem in my opinion. There was some more stuff made after SAC (Arise?) but they weren't so great.
As for the sex robots, well I think that idea predated the GitS series by hundreds of years, philosophers have pondered this question a lot. That's actually one of the interesting concepts in the film, the "Major" appears to be a sexualized, feminine character at first, but as the film progresses we learn that she is really just a normal person, albeit with the capabilities of an advanced cyborg. One of the final scenes portrays her facing off against a weaponized tank, and it's gut-wrenchingly emotive and extremely compelling - can this "woman" overcome a mass of armoured metal and guns, even with her supreme cyborg abilities?
I would recommend watching the original 1995 film, then if you enjoy it (you will), watch "GitS 2: Innocence". The sequel has beautiful animation but a weaker plot, and gets up its own ass philosophically (much like The Matrix sequels). The series' are good too, they incorporate some other elements from the manga, such as the self-aware Tachikoma tanks and some of the secondary character's backgrounds.
