Psycho-Pass - Anime General Discussion

[jeroz]

false first impression

I wonder what other kinds of personal assistants are there, or is Akane the only one we know that uses a visible ones

[MaiNoKen]

Originally Posted by orion

I just noticed that the other guy is reading "1984".

Mental style devices are watching you.

[klare]

i guess that's why Cybil ranked Akane as the most suitable person for this job, she has talent in making the hunting dogs open up to her, by zapping them^^

[mechalord]

Akane... has sort of an apathetic air to her. Does she genuinely care?

As for society... it's definitely rotten to the core. I love the way its all sort of planned out. Pay attention as to how Akane got dressed. Is clothing just a hologram? What's real and what isn't?

This is good scifi. Mental health... big deal these days in America and in Japan too, I assume.

The system in this fictional future fears people and it punishes those it has deemed the most likely to cause trouble. Are they just weeding out the crazies or they also targeting those most likely to rebel against the government?

Are people cracking because of stresses this society places on them and the oppression or because they were born that way?

Akane... she has the sleepy, apathetic air about her.

What's going on? Are things what they seem?

Are cold blooded killers able to cheat the system? Seems like the regret, emotions, and guilt drive people to get cloudy psycho passes. Would someone that regrets nothing. feels nothing, and doesn't let atrocious things torment him or her be able to cheat?

[Roger Rambo]

Originally Posted by LightningZERO

The only slight trouble I have with the episode is that how Shinya casually talked with Akane about all his thoughts. Their conversation was nice but a bit too sudden. From the first episode, I thought Shinya would be the silent, keep to himself type and I was surprised to see the two bond so quickly

Well she DID shoot him. That probably bumped her up a bit in terms of his respect for her. Everyone probably did get the impression that she was a wet blanket when she showed up. So having her be adamant about something is rather impressive.

I mean, Shinya isn't a robot. When his coworker shoots him and try's to talk to him about it, he's not obligated to act like he's got a baton up his ass.

[jeroz]

also remember that from he said, he thought Akane is way better than his previous Inspectors. therefore it's to no surprise that he would be more kind to his future working partner.

[whitecloud]

Originally Posted by jeroz

also remember that from he said, he thought Akane is way better than his previous Inspectors. therefore it's to no surprise that he would be more kind to his future working partner.

it seems that from the way shinya speak the previous inspector dont think much of the enforcer than just a "dog", but akane treat them as "human" plus akane at least still think not just blindly accept order from cybil and as the old guy said "the inspector not supposed to do anything, just watch" so akane is different in that manner that she still think and judge thing herself

[ThereminVox]

Originally Posted by mechalord

As for society... it's definitely rotten to the core. I love the way its all sort of planned out. Pay attention as to how Akane got dressed. Is clothing just a hologram? What's real and what isn't?

What actually gave my stomach a small turn was how the camera lingered in her apartment for a moment after she left. The cheerful holobuddy instantly disappears and her bright and lovely suite melts away to reveal the dark, concrete bunker she actually lives in.

I know that if you really think about it, holo-furnishings are not so different from me buying a ton of physical furniture and decorations to camouflage the filing cabinet of an apartment that I used to live in, but for some reason, that scene was oddly chilling to me.

[Triple_R]

Originally Posted by ThereminVox

What actually gave my stomach a small turn was how the camera lingered in her apartment for a moment after she left. The cheerful holobuddy instantly disappears and her bright and lovely suite melts away to reveal the dark, concrete bunker she actually lives in.

I know that if you really think about it, holo-furnishings are not so different from me buying a ton of physical furniture and decorations to camouflage the filing cabinet of an apartment that I used to live in, but for some reason, that scene was oddly chilling to me.

I found that a bit chilling too. And I think this is much of the reason why - With all of this holographic technology, do architects even bother to try to make buildings naturally beautiful any more? Or do they just do very basic/spartan designs that amount to cold, dark slabs of concrete since what they make can be "papered over" with any desired hologram?

The thought of every beautiful structure being a mere hologram, and all the actual physical structures being drab and basic, is a pretty depressing thought. Holograms and simulations are nice, but there's something to be said for "the real thing".

[mayumi]

akane's room is star trek holodeck. only she isn't on a ship.

does anyone else think someone from the enforcer group messed with her keyboard? i can't help but feel she was basically bullied.

[Roger Rambo]

Originally Posted by mechalord

Akane... has sort of an apathetic air to her. Does she genuinely care?

Uhmmm, wasn't she "apathetic" in episode 2 because she just witnessed a criminal get violently killed, and nearly saw someone she thought of as an innocent victim almost get killed? If Akane was genuinely apathetic, I'd think she'd have just have not raised a fuss.

Akane seems to care a rather lot about this kinda stuff.

Originally Posted by mechalord

Are people cracking because of stresses this society places on them and the oppression or because they were born that way?

You don't exactly need to invent a totalitarian police state to have people who can go over the edge and commit horrible crimes. Perfectly democratic societies have produced examples of people committing horrible acts of mass murder.


There are things obviously wrong with this society, but I can't help but think of Jared Lee Loughner, the guy who shot Senator Gifford in Arizona. He suffered severely from untreated Schizophrenia, and only got treatment for it when the State wanted to put him on trial for the shooting. Only then did he realize the severity of his actions and felt remorse.

We might call this society cruel for mandating universal mental health as a public safety concern to be enforced by law. But is it anymore cruel than a society that won't medicate a person suffering from treatable mental illness until we want to imprison him for life after he committed a horrible crime as consequence to his lack of treatment?

Originally Posted by whitecloud

it seems that from the way shinya speak the previous inspector dont think much of the enforcer than just a "dog", but akane treat them as "human" plus akane at least still think not just blindly accept order from cybil and as the old guy said "the inspector not supposed to do anything, just watch" so akane is different in that manner that she still think and judge thing herself

Obviously the inspector IS expected to do more than just watch. If they didn't need to do anything in the field they wouldn't need to also be armed, nor would they even to go out in the field at all. Nor would inspectors be told that they were allowed to use dominators on their enforcers as a means to enforce control.

Keep in mind that as a more experienced enforcer with a totally newbie inspector, it's in his interest to tell Akane all she has to do is just follow and observe to make their first outing simpler.

[Triple_R]

Originally Posted by Roger Rambo

Akane seems to care a rather lot about this kinda stuff.

Agreed. Akane wasn't apathetic so much as she was feeling slightly depressed (which can be mistaken as apathy from an outsider perspective). Akane took up the job she did precisely because she wants to make a difference, and even more to the point, she wants to make a difference in a way that only she can. Akane was depressed throughout much of Episode 2 because her new job wasn't like what she thought it would be like - She feared she'd just be a mere observer, not making a real difference.

Thankfully, she's learned she can make a real difference.

There are things obviously wrong with this society, but I can't help but think of Jared Lee Loughner, the guy who shot Senator Gifford in Arizona. He suffered severely from untreated Schizophrenia, and only got treatment for it when the State wanted to put him on trial for the shooting. Only then did he realize the severity of his actions and felt remorse.

We might call this society cruel for mandating universal mental health as a public safety concern to be enforced by law. But is it anymore cruel than a society that won't medicate a person suffering from treatable mental illness until we want to imprison him for life after he committed a horrible crime as consequence to his lack of treatment?

I think you're conflating two different issues here.

It's true that, depending on what happens to Obamacare, America lacks a true universal health care system. And yeah, that causes problems.

But some countries do in fact have an universal health care system (as does my own country of Canada). Simply having an universal health care system doesn't necessitate even half of the stuff that we see in Psycho-Pass.

Universal Health Care system vs. what America has is a separate discussion from this Psycho-Pass Sibyl system.

[ThereminVox]

Originally Posted by Triple_R

With all of this holographic technology, do architects even bother to try to make buildings naturally beautiful any more? Or do they just do very basic/spartan designs that amount to cold, dark slabs of concrete since what they make can be "papered over" with any desired hologram?

That's a good point. Sci-fi writers often present us with a future that has either lost interest in or outright banned art as a form of personal expression, but here, with a library of more designs and aesthetics of historical masters than your average person would ever have time to appreciate, I have to wonder if design innovation has just become superfluous. They have their fill of aesthetic options already.

Originally Posted by mayumi

akane's room is star trek holodeck. only she isn't on a ship.

Tonight on Episode 5 of Psycho-Pass: Akane arrives home to find that Lt. Barclay has transformed her home into a holographic pirate ship from which he has just rescued a boundlessly grateful hologram of herself. Kagari must endure the pain of surgery, as well as the humiliation of his new plastic neck-cone until the stitches come out.

Originally Posted by mayumi

does anyone else think someone from the enforcer group messed with her keyboard? i can't help but feel she was basically bullied.

I thought that at first, but since it never really was mentioned again, it may be just part of showing that she's new, and perhaps her work station isn't entirely up to standards yet.

[Roger Rambo]

Originally Posted by Triple_R

I think you're conflating two different issues here.

It's true that, depending on what happens to Obamacare, America lacks a true universal health care system. And yeah, that causes problems.

But some countries do in fact have an universal health care system (as does my own country of Canada). Simply having an universal health care system doesn't necessitate even half of the stuff that we see in Psycho-Pass.

Universal Health Care system vs. what America has is a separate discussion from this Psycho-Pass Sibyl system.

True true. Remember I'm a filthy American and I don't acknowledge the existence of anything existing outside of my country.


Mind. A series like Psycho-pass DOES bring up the question of the states responsibility to both address the well being of individuals and a society as a whole. Especially when you do have the technology to measure and treat most peoples mental ailments, but also to identify individuals who aren't treatable.

What is the responsibility of the state when it can be clinically determined who is most at risk of becoming a violent criminal? Does it ignore them until they commit a crime? Is this fair to any potential victims, or even the perpetrator if they were treatable?


We're probably going to take a closer look at this society, and find out that MANY things about it are not clear cut. And w'ell probably see that it's a pretty authoritarian setup to. But at this point I'm not gonna dismiss the system as being inherently evil.


Because if this really was 1984, somebody like Akane would never have ended up on the Thought Police.

[mechalord]

Originally Posted by Roger Rambo

Uhmmm, wasn't she "apathetic" in episode 2 because she just witnessed a criminal get violently killed, and nearly saw someone she thought of as an innocent victim almost get killed? If Akane was genuinely apathetic, I'd think she'd have just have not raised a fuss.

Akane seems to care a rather lot about this kinda stuff.

You don't exactly need to invent a totalitarian police state to have people who can go over the edge and commit horrible crimes. Perfectly democratic societies have produced examples of people committing horrible acts of mass murder.


There are things obviously wrong with this society, but I can't help but think of Jared Lee Loughner, the guy who shot Senator Gifford in Arizona. He suffered severely from untreated Schizophrenia, and only got treatment for it when the State wanted to put him on trial for the shooting. Only then did he realize the severity of his actions and felt remorse.

We might call this society cruel for mandating universal mental health as a public safety concern to be enforced by law. But is it anymore cruel than a society that won't medicate a person suffering from treatable mental illness until we want to imprison him for life after he committed a horrible crime as consequence to his lack of treatment?


Obviously the inspector IS expected to do more than just watch. If they didn't need to do anything in the field they wouldn't need to also be armed, nor would they even to go out in the field at all. Nor would inspectors be told that they were allowed to use dominators on their enforcers as a means to enforce control.

Keep in mind that as a more experienced enforcer with a totally newbie inspector, it's in his interest to tell Akane all she has to do is just follow and observe to make their first outing simpler.

Here's the thing the society in psycho pass executes people executes people who haven't committed crimes. They have very little sympathy or tolerance for people on the edge.

As for Akane, yeah she sort of cares but then she just seems to be just going through the motions of life. She's not sure why she became a mental health cop. She doesn't seem to have real goals or ambitions.

Anyhow, her character design... so cute but still perfect for an anime psycho face. Will she snap? Is she capable of snapping?

[kk2extreme]

So is everyone just practically walking around naked?

[Anh_Minh]

The holographic decor doesn't bother me. The clothes, OTOH... What if it rains? How solid are they? And do they every break down, leaving their wearers naked?

Originally Posted by mechalord

Here's the thing the society in psycho pass executes people executes people who haven't committed crimes. They have very little sympathy or tolerance for people on the edge.

As for Akane, yeah she sort of cares but then she just seems to be just going through the motions of life. She's not sure why she became a mental health cop. She doesn't seem to have real goals or ambitions.

And yet - out of all the possibilities open before her, she took one of the most demanding, least glamorous.

[desrtsku]

About the clothes ... I'm pretty sure she's actually wearing a real suit (which is then camouflaged with the holographic clothing afterwards). Also, it did rain during the first episode IIRC and her suit was fine.

[Dark Wing]

Originally Posted by desrtsku

About the clothes ... I'm pretty sure she's actually wearing a real suit (which is then camouflaged with the holographic clothing afterwards). Also, it did rain during the first episode IIRC and her suit was fine.

Yea I got this impression as well when the old guy was asking why she was so uncomfortable since her generation should be used to wearing holo-suits.

maybe wearing two at once makes you feel kind of stuffy?

[Anh_Minh]

Originally Posted by desrtsku

About the clothes ... I'm pretty sure she's actually wearing a real suit (which is then camouflaged with the holographic clothing afterwards). Also, it did rain during the first episode IIRC and her suit was fine.

I'm sure it can take some water. The question is, does it actually protect them from the weather?