[Triple_R]

Originally Posted by Roger Rambo

I mean...the way Latent criminals are treated IS a somewhat eye raising situation, and when you think about it, leads to a bit of a catch 22 setup.

Your idea of latent criminal communes is an interesting one, and yes, it's definitely more humane than what's basically solitary confinement for life.

But I think I know why Sybil didn't go with that.

In order for people to buy into the Sybil system when it was first introduced, it was probably necessary to make most of them believe that recovery from a bad Psycho-Pass rating or a cloudy hue was a decent possibility. And so people with a bad Psycho-Pass reading are treated like people that need to be locked away in an asylum for treatment. No doubt the official story is that they "get better" there.

Of course, anybody paying attention probably notices that successful rehabilitations are very rare. But then, lots of people probably don't pay such close attention, as we saw with how Yayoi really did think she would one day be successfully rehabilitated and eventually continue her musician dream.

Now, if Sibyl had communes set-up for latent criminals, then it feels less like treating the mentally ill and more like something akin to apartheid (i.e. creating a permanent, segregated subclass of humans). It would basically make the "These people have almost no hope of getting better" fact a bit too obvious and transparent to the general populace. At least that's probably what Sibyl thinks.

One of the big problems with Sibyl is that perception is everything to Sibyl. Treating people humanely is very much secondary to that, if a consideration at all.

So yes, you're right. Sibyl is fragile. Anything that relies completely on a false image is very fragile. Most governments have their dirty secrets of course, but few hide anything on par with what Sibyl hides.

Originally Posted by Quadratic

To be fair, the explanation back then (and even now) falls in a weird chicken & egg situation (how can the initial members get such a reading when said system didn't exist in the first place?), but I'll concede to it since they aren't really going to explain beyond that.

I know what you mean here. Incorporating members who "can't be judged" does admittedly strike me as a clever way of dealing with system loopholes. The system deals with all such loopholes by literally absorbing them.

But yeah, what exactly was Sibyl before it noticed the first loophole? I think I would have preferred it if Sibyl was explained to have originally been an AI-based system, but it switched to the multiple brain system after it started running into a lot of loopholes. Eventually, the AI system morphed into an entirely human one.

But on the contrary, even Akane reluctantly agrees that the system brought peace and order, taking the common idea of the ends justifies the means (not saying that she agrees with their approach).

Originally Posted by Kirarakim

Right and this I think is what Urobuchi wants us to get out of this that the sybil system might be beneficial in some ways (although I think the series did a poor job of conveying this).

I kind of agree with Auria that the dystopia aspect and world building in general is a bit weak but I do enjoy the characters and all their different philosophies.

I agree with both of you that Sybil is supposed to come across as making Japan more peaceful, more orderly, and less crime-ridden than what most societies are. Perhaps it's even supposed to appear truly exceptional in these areas.

Here is where I think Gen's limitations as a writer undermine things a bit.

Psycho-Pass really would have benefited from a lowkey "Day Off" episode. Yes, a beach/hot springs episode, basically. More precisely, an episode dedicated to showing the good sides of Sibyl Japan. Lots of happy people, lots of smiling faces, lots of peace and order. Maybe end it off with a cliffhanger where Makishima is shown plotting his next move just so the episode doesn't feel totally fluffy.

But then, I'm not sure if Gen is good at writing this sort of light and fluffy material.

Although we can say most of the ideas and philosophies come from other sources, I do enjoy how Urobuchi made the characters mouth pieces for many different ideas (even if they are not his own) but it's a good way to introduce ideas and arguments into a narrative.

I agree with you there. I think Gen is very good at presenting a wide variety of character types and personalities, each representing distinct viewpoints. Things are never completely binary in a Gen work. There's always more than two perspectives or two basic personality types slightly tweaked over and over.

Kougami, Akane, Gino, Kagari, Tomomi, Yayoi, Makishima, and Sibyl itself all have different viewpoints on Sibyl, and all have different viewpoints on the conflicts seen throughout this anime's narrative. No two characters are in 100% agreement, but it's also pretty rare for two characters to be in 100% disagreement (the closest here is ironically Makishima and Sibyl itself; ironic since Sibyl apparently wants to add oil to its water).