(L) Deca-Dence

[4th Dimension]

As far as I can see, a PART of the fighters are actual humans. It's probably the ones that aren't blue (though customization allows fro non blue tinges) and we see them actually mourning those that fell in a fight.

I also think that it's less JUST entertainment for the aliens, given that they are owned by the Corp, and more that they gamified work. By playing they seem able to earn oxytone which can be used to stave off being scrapped. And them playing the game is probably a part of alien oxytone harvesting operation. Though not the main one.

So while fighting is not a direct threat to K, there are many other threat to him from Corporate side. The main one now being the fact that he is hiding a MAJOR BUG in the system.

I have to wonder in that shot of the commercial where they show the large ship above the shield what is the red stuff... is it all Gadol? Or something else...

[Anh_Minh]

Originally Posted by Irenesharda

Well, they got me.

That's usually not something a show can do, so kudos to you Deca-dence. I totally did not see this twist coming.

No wonder the first episode was super generic. It was all set up for this twist!

So, we got some weird chibi mechanical alien race that's using Earth as its playground, as sort of real life video game. And all the humans are being controlled and don't realize that they've become real life NPCs, while the people they think are "Gears" and the warriors of the race, are actually these aliens in disguise hiding as human avatars. No wonder the Boss guy told the girl it's useless. It's all a game. The world she lives in is a big fat lie. I wonder if her "Dad" was human or a Gear who rebooted?

Are they mechanical... or virtual? I thought they were just AI programs in a computer somewhere and Deca-Dence is a way for them to experience physical existence.

[Irenesharda]

Originally Posted by 4th Dimension

As far as I can see, a PART of the fighters are actual humans. It's probably the ones that aren't blue (though customization allows fro non blue tinges) and we see them actually mourning those that fell in a fight.

I also think that it's less JUST entertainment for the aliens, given that they are owned by the Corp, and more that they gamified work. By playing they seem able to earn oxytone which can be used to stave off being scrapped. And them playing the game is probably a part of alien oxytone harvesting operation. Though not the main one.

So while fighting is not a direct threat to K, there are many other threat to him from Corporate side. The main one now being the fact that he is hiding a MAJOR BUG in the system.

I have to wonder in that shot of the commercial where they show the large ship above the shield what is the red stuff... is it all Gadol? Or something else...

I don't think any of the "Gears" are human, remember they can change the look of their skin. They also specifically said that the humans are the ones who are "tankers" the non-fighters.

From the way they advertised it, it's mainly a game as its not something the aliens have to do to eat. Many of them just wonder about it and some don't play. However, playing could probably gain you income?

Originally Posted by Anh_Minh

Are they mechanical... or virtual? I thought they were just AI programs in a computer somewhere and Deca-Dence is a way for them to experience physical existence.

A think they actually have some form of physical presence, or else they wouldn't talk about losing limbs and pain and such as something that could happen to them outside of the Deca-dence game. Also, when they scrapped one, it looked like they were cutting it apart with lasers and removing its core. So I'm going with more mechanical. Like robots or AI.

[4th Dimension]

Yeah, most likely they actually exist as shown on that ship of theirs. Though since they are robots that entire world of theirs could be VR on the servers on that ship. But it being real makes more sense. Also in ep1 Natsumi's dad seemingly found the remains of one similar robot.

Well, we see at the end of this episode that Karasagi was right at the end of his lifespan moments before being scrapped, when he finally decided to take that oxytone shot. And 7 years ago he seems to have had 175 years to go. So it seems those oxytone shots are very important and high quality can be earned by being a popular Gear.

For me it's too much a coincidence that robots seem to need oxytone, and gears and deca dence is collecting and storing it. It might be that their tech just has to run on it.
Yes Gears can change their skin, but we also see some of th fighters actually mourning. They wouldn't do that since death just seems to reset their character. Well there might be secondary problems to loosing a character (dropping in the rankings leading to less oxytone) but they won't just die to be mourned by others. Unless those robots were roleplaying or something.

[LG-MAX 2.o]

Anyone who is curious about the companies that produced the anime.

Deca-Dence production committee.
AT-X
Nippon BS Broadcasting Corporation
Kadokawa
Kadokawa Media House
NewGin
NUT

https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/enc...e.php?id=22721

[Kanon]

That was a really nice twist. I'm guessing the reason Natsume is registered as dead is as simple as her chip having been in her arm. How come she's been able to live a normal life until now though? I guess the humans have some degree of self-governance.

[Blueknight78]

Originally Posted by Kanon

That was a really nice twist. I'm guessing the reason Natsume is registered as dead is as simple as her chip having been in her arm. How come she's been able to live a normal life until now though? I guess the humans have some degree of self-governance.

i'm pretty sure which the "humans don't know what is happening", for mankind that type or color"gears" are just "special peoples" helping then to fight the monsters, they sure don't know about the "whole" game stuff, and probably they also don't know about that "big dome and ship around them to.

They just don't know which they are being used in a "big game", probably that "monsters" also are creation from that "alien corp." as part of the game.

[orion]

Originally Posted by Kanon

That was a really nice twist. I'm guessing the reason Natsume is registered as dead is as simple as her chip having been in her arm. How come she's been able to live a normal life until now though? I guess the humans have some degree of self-governance.

The "game" prob created a management system with the robot civilization at the top. For example "Minato" is prob administration. I bet that everyone with their names in quotes are the robotic players or "game" administrators.

The humans were described as "rare". They were prob bred off-site, transported into the game as a sealed population and had their memories altered. Their numbers grow and decline according to an algorithm. Chips prob kill human bugs and have to be retrieved with the data to be examined so that future humans don't deviate from the "game" norm.

It's pretty much looking like a reversed Westworld imo.

[serenade_beta]

Spoiler for ep2:

...Hmm, I thought they would let us, you know, spend a bit more time thinking about the mysterious alien-ish stuff in Ep1.
But they just literally reveal everything in the beginning of the episode.

All that is left is... where Natsume's chip went (probably just her arm anyways) and... maybe a big fight against the true baddy running the alien society?

Well, I think it is good enough for now, but what is important now is how they plan to proceed and close the anime. I'm assuming this isn't just some friendship story between the alien guy and Natsume.

Originally Posted by LG-MAX 2.o

Anyone who is curious about the companies that produced the anime.

Deca-Dence production committee.
AT-X
Nippon BS Broadcasting Corporation
Kadokawa
Kadokawa Media House
NewGin
NUT

https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/enc...e.php?id=22721

To be honest, not sure why anyone would want to know. These committees literally only exist so none of these companies loose money when they produce a bad anime.
I think it is more important to focus on the people actually making the anime.

[Wandering Soul]

That was a well-done twist. Most other anime would wait until the final stretch to reveal something like that, so it was pretty surprising. It makes me glad this anime is anime original as I'm sure this twist would have been spoiled or "hinted" at by source readers if this was an adaptation.

It seems like some sort of matrix-style scenario where Natsume is sort of like the Neo of the story. Not to mention the even aliens entering the scenario have people they answer to and obey.

[Obelisk ze Tormentor]

Originally Posted by Obelisk ze Tormentor

I still have high hopes for this show.

Great. Looks like my high hopes is not wasted so far. Episode 2 just made this show ten times more interesting!

I'm not gonna say much or throw a bunch of theories. I'll just go with the flow & enjoy the show, unless there's some real big problem I found within the story.

[magnumcyclonex]

Going into episode 2, I was so looking forward to Natsume and her boss developing more of their relationship from episode 1. Then the episode starts and I'm scratching my head thinking...is this the right show? Is this a commercial, but wait, it's already started...what's this giant dome covering parts of Earth? Who are these chibi digital life forms (I'll never understand Japan's obsession with this art style), and holy smokes...THEY are the main characters and humans are just their "pets" so to speak.

I think I'd be ok for the twist if it weren't for the chibi digital life art style. I'm just not a fan of it. The concept was truly mind blowing. It's not ever been done before so it's fresh, new, and tantalizing. I'll probably have to power through because curiosity at the moment trumps whatever disdain I have for the artwork unless the story takes a drastic nosedive later on.

[Obelisk ze Tormentor]

Originally Posted by magnumcyclonex

The concept was truly mind blowing. It's not ever been done before so it's fresh, new, and tantalizing.

The concept is pretty old actually. The classic noir movie Dark City has explored the theme pretty well in 1998:

YouTube

https://youtu.be/gt9HkO-cGGo

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Then The Matrix came out one year later with a curiously similar concept, but they also fused it with Ghost in the Shell and a little bit of Terminator.

[magnumcyclonex]

Oh, ok. So it's not entirely new. But rarely done this way. Most of the time it's the other way around with humans being the dominant species in the beginning.

[Obelisk ze Tormentor]

Originally Posted by magnumcyclonex

Oh, ok. So it's not entirely new. But rarely done this way. Most of the time it's the other way around with humans being the dominant species in the beginning.

It also doesn't have to be about alien-species playing with humanity. The concept has been and can still be explored in different & interesting ways:

YouTube

https://youtu.be/dlnmQbPGuls

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YouTube

https://youtu.be/yiOUwl0vm9o

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YouTube

https://youtu.be/X2m-08cOAbc

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[magnumcyclonex]

Originally Posted by Obelisk ze Tormentor

It also doesn't have to be about alien-species playing with humanity. The concept has been and can still be explored in different & interesting ways:

Wow! Great info and links to trailers! I've seen The Truman Show and loved it. That movie when I first saw it was very eye opening at how EVERYONE, even the little kids were all playing their part to fool Truman. And that slow realization as he began to understand what his life was really about was fascinating to watch. Though it didn't have an ending with a great resolution imo, the concept was done well.

One thing I can mention is Yu-Gi-Oh! where Atem plays against Bakura's evil possessor on the capsule monster like board during the Pharaoh's Memories Arc and little Yugi duels Yami Bakura. A game within a game so to speak.

I ought to see the others you've posted. Thanks! =)

[Applehell]

Dunno know how I feel about the twist. It's such a hardcore narrative shift which does nothing to ease you into it

[Obelisk ze Tormentor]

Now that we have characters named Donatello & Mikey, I'm expecting Raph & Leo somewhere in the show (if I didn't already missed it). Someone is clearly a fan of the Ninja Turtles .

[Tenzen12]

.... or renaissance artists?

[4th Dimension]

Originally Posted by orion

The "game" prob created a management system with the robot civilization at the top. For example "Minato" is prob administration. I bet that everyone with their names in quotes are the robotic players or "game" administrators.

There is a bit in the intro with a bunch of characters in pairs are scrolled in divided by one of those injections and the final pair is Natsume and "male" lead.

Right/Natsume group seem to be all and probably humans, which implies the left group Kasagiri (whatever his name is) group are all robot/aliens. And yes two of those are the commander of deca-dence and a woman in command staff uniform. So yes, probably all of command is aliens.