There is one thing I can say against Ex Machina; it's not the motion capture style bluescreen recording that it's predecessor was. It's purely CG and character movement can be a little quick and jerky. That's about it. Well that and we didn't get a soundtrack here in the states. Otherwise we have a well executed Shirow Masamune mecha film with the best duo in the genre: Deunan and Briareos. Like most of the franchise it's not directly attached to any other title except through source material, so it's meant to stand on its own. This also continued the trend fora less humorous and more action oriented Appleseed story, and I ate it up.

Story wise we have a plot to turn the latest tech product against it's customers, for a unique method of zombifying people. But Briareos is a target as well, and Deunan is given a new partner wearing his old face. Ghosts of the past in a scifi future, fast paced landmate combat. Old school Shirow.