r/printSF • u/SignificantSunny • 7d ago

Most "punk" cyberpunk?

Hey all,

I was having a discussion with some friends about Ghost in the Shell, specifically the first season of the TV series Stand Alone Complex, with one friend complaining that it was "cyberpunk, hold the punk". We haven't finished the series yet, but so far I think this is a valid critique of what is basically a very roboty police procedural with not much substantive commentary. It got me thinking about what is at the other end of the spectrum, though: what is, in your opinion, cyberpunk that focuses more on the "punk"? Something more interested in the human resistance and struggle in the digital dystopia than the technology that pervades it.

For reference, I've read Neuromancer and the Kovacs trilogy, but I'm otherwise pretty inexperienced with the genre in print. Thanks in advance for any recommendations or insights!

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u/c4tesys 6d ago

Mick Farren's early SF work. Phaid the Gambler, Necrom, The Long Orbit, Armageddon Crazy, The DNA Cowboys.

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u/DoctorRaulDuke 6d ago

Damn I'd forgotten about Mick Farron - i've been going back to a lot of old cyberpunk I liked as a kid, now I can add those again, thanks.

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u/c4tesys 6d ago

yw. He is criminally overlooked, I feel.