“Psycho-Pass” Is Packed With Potential

Fresh artwork of Psycho-Pass’ heroine, among others, has become available – looking solid enough that one is left to truly hope Gen Urobuchi’s presence is a force more powerful than Production IG’s capability to fail.

A Paradox Of Fall

Last year, same season of autumn, Production IG debuted a series on the “noitaminA” segment which went on to be so sickeningly atrocious, its level of awful was not something which could be encompassed within any conceivable term of the English language – or any other system of communication for that matter. And thus, it was thereafter appointed a rank of its own – a grade worse than merely “failure”, Guilty Crown.

Last year, same season of autumn, the writings of a man known as “Urobuchi Gen” launched in the form of a completely groundbreaking and unprecedented animation by Ufotable dubbed “Fate/Zero” – the subsequent result was total domination and success on every frontier, be it in sales, or actual series quality. Similarly to Guilty Crown, a word did not exist to most appropriately describe this series – yet unlike Guilty Crown however, the reason for this was that Fate/Zero was too phenomenal to summarize in any single item of vocabulary.

This year, same season of autumn, the mastermind of one of the single greatest works of art ever devised, Urobuchi Gen, now allies with the creators of an incomprehensible mess worse than failure itself, Production IG, to deliver a series for the famed and renowned noitaminA timeslot.

It’s as if all the planets are aligning, along with space rubble and asteroids getting engulfed in between – and this will either mean world destruction, or the unveiling of something so unparalleled, it goes down in history. Given the players on the team, an elite master and expert of depressing fiction, paired alongside a holy regime dominating the region of terrible animation, it is highly doubtful that Psycho-Pass will be one of those “in-between” series.

Heaven Or Hell

When the final second of wait disappears, and the announcer proclaims “let’s rock!”, this series is either going to heaven or hell – and whilst of course none will know the outcome till the faithful date, one can still assess the chances of survival this series has based on the content currently available.

Character designs happen to be an aspect unsurprisingly exquisite with this series – the dark colors, met with heavy shadows and thick lines, topped with seriously intense glaring white highlights, give off a feeling which surely could not be any more fitting. They, as well as the artwork in general, provide a grunge outlook – with the highlights and other more vivaciously lit portions contributing to the sci-fi feel.

There’s also something of an “anti-establishment” mood prevalent – although such goes to show a detail very specific, and requires a basic understanding of the plot before continuing.

This series is centric around a time in the future where individuals are scaled and recorded in their cognition and persona – that information is managed in a metric known as “Psycho-Pass”, and the tale initiates by tagging along with an officer of the post-modern era, Shinya Kougami, as he combats crime within this realm where people are examined at their very being of existence.

One can safely assume that society was not always such a way within the universe of Psycho-Pass – and this means the sense of “anti-establishment” stems from perhaps a corruption or decline in society, or some other rough shift which suffocated the place into its current heavy aura state where drastic measures are necessary to ensure the place doesn’t totally self-destruct.

Rather evident as it may be, it’s worth still pointing out how each of the characters seem to either be of the sorrowful sort, or the “kill ‘em all” type – and also note they pack quite a bit of heat. These are all clear indicators of both an oppressive force, be it an entity of some sort or perhaps even an unforgettable horror of the past – as well as an expansion of society’s immorality, as otherwise, it wouldn’t require such grand force to sustain order.

Of course, what then comes is the usual rounds of questioning – one has to wonder if this series will be a collective of many episodic escapades, or one with a struggle in the spotlight of it all. Another obvious yet integral question, who is the enemy? If our protagonists will be dealing with petty threats on a regular basis – then likely, a more potent foe will be bubbling in the background.

Lastly, it’s also inevitable to wish for the answer of how the characters relate – what is it which brought them together, what motivates them, and why do they stand on the same stage? The characters could also certainly be elaborated upon further with any manner of plot twist, ideals, personality, or history – which then further could go numerous different directions depending on what the series attempts to acheive.

The potential is there – required is merely the ability to make use of it.

Mind & Music

Now moving past the characters, below is the latest PV:

Forgetting the visuals entirely and focusing solely on the theme, the tune plays out to the strumming of an invigorated guitar – with a prominent quick tempo, and some other computerized or instrumental sounds in the background. The music implies a “rock your mind” ordeal – the fast and acoustic aspect of the song give it a straightforward feel as if the crew of protagonists dash in somewhere, Miami Vice style, and start wrecking the place. Yet the techno tones offer a more tactical essence – whilst also filling the air with an obscurity, an unknown vibe of mystery.

Assembling one’s thoughts based on music and all, a fair presumption is that Psycho-Pass may have rapid action sequences, with some gradual detective work leading towards plot escalation – or for those who prefer to have something for comparison, Jormungand with a side of Un-Go. Note however, this is merely in reference to an attempt at figuring what formula this series will employ – as for anything else, beyond what one can currently see, it’s still anyone’s game at this point.

Psycho-Pass will make its first appearance upon the beginning of October – preferably, as a spectacular series.

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