Oh man…this was good from the get go and is surprisingly getting better. Everything that worked with last weeks premiere continued to work and improvements were made in some of the more troubled angles. And was it me or did Shimotsuki actually show signs of likeability at long last? Honestly, in even beginning this review, im finding myself hard pressed to think of things I didn’t like right off the bat. Everything just clicked: the new Unit 01, the likeable front runners for Governor of Tokyo, the action, the pacing, the return of Yayoi and the revelation that someone from Psycho Pass is living a pretty nice life outside of the Public Security Bureau.
Both episodes this week focused on the Election storyline set up in the previous episode. Thankfully, there was no finishing this and then attempting to force in the next story arc into the second half of the latter episode. No this was the first time that the 45min runtime worked for both episodes this week. Everything was packed tightly but with plenty of room to breathe. This also meant there was plenty of time to explore the ever growing cast of character first and foremost. After being introduced rather lackluster like in the premire, Enforcers Irei and Temma both got time to open up to Arata and Kei respectively. Both became Enforcers for very different reasons: Temma because he was born with a bad Psycho Pass that never improved and then being kicked out by his family right before his mother died; and Irei…well we don’t know the exact details but we know that Akane and Mika both had a hand in getting him out of his lawless zone and into the Bureau. We did get to look at Irei’s interactions with his old stomping grounds, but it’s that last tidbit about Akane and Mika working together that’s piqued my interest about him more so.
YAYOI!!! Man, whenever I think about her I always think back to how I thought she was kind of wasted space at the beginning of the series and how much I wanna hit my past self for thinking that. Yayoi has always been one of the more better developed characters across the series and I’m happy to see that she actually managed to get her hue under control and be returned to civilian life. I’m curious how life as a journalist is treating her…but lets face it, there’s a bigger thrill in watching her kick ass with the new crew (and looking so damn hot in the process). Her interactions with Mika, Karanamori and Sho highlight how none of the original cast has lost their touch or chemistry with time. Also, I gotta say I liked the two guest Governor candidates for this set of episodes. Former Pro Wrestler Yakushiji’s mentality of “a healthy mind requires a healthy body” was great and I loved how he literally beat that motto into Temma. It was a good start for the latter to finally start working his way to becoming likeable. And though she was caught using an AI to boost her appeal, I do believe that Karina is gonna do a good job as the Governor of Tokyo thanks to a kind heart that believes in our society…granted Sybil did favor her so here’s hoping she can beat the unseen odds. Plus I liked her scenes with Arata, they’re easily a potential cute couple.
Speaking of the unseen odds, Arata and Kei both continue to tow the line of how much they can get away with and look cool while doing so. Kei got suspended for punching Temma’s brother after he insulted their dead mother…hell yes that was awesome and it got Temma to finally accept his new partner fully. Also Kei continues to show true Kogame levels of bad assery as he took on a legion of freeze dried pro wrestler assassins and a combat cyborg. Arata continues to showcase strange optimism in a dark future and his parkour skills still need to be seen to be believed, especially when he saved Karina from the combat cyborg…like freaking what? These two continue to steal the season, whether together or separately. There is the teeny little added wrinkle that Arata’s father killed Kei’s brother before he and Arata’s mother both died themselves. And Sybil doesn’t think they should be paired together. And yet Akane has had a hand in them teaming up, which begs a few dozen questions at once. At the very least, I’m really rolling with Arata and Kei’s motto “More than the System”. It’s the first real sense of hope ive had for this troubled society since first meeting Akane Tsunemori.
There still the overlying mystery of Bifrost and the Trinity of gamblers pulling the strings. It looks like theyre out to replace Sybil in their own way and tampering with Government elections and state economics is a definite way to stoke some chaos in the flames. Somehow I don’t think they know what Sybil itself is, which continues the nice change of pace. I also like that they’re finding ways to circumvent Sybil’s detection systems by placing people into roles so spread out that when it comes time to commit a crime, they aren’t even aware of what theyre about to do, thus keeping their hues hidden enough to avoid detection, maybe even avoid getting shot by a Dominator…nah to that last bit cause some of those Wrestlers blew up real good. Still, it’s Bifrost and it’s Casino Royale Gambling Game Vs. Sybil…and only one will come out on top.
For a sophomore week of storytelling, Psycho Pass 3 is stepping up its game steadily and doing a great job at being a solid sequel to the First Season and The Movie. Will Bifrost get unveiled? Will we learn what truly put Akane in prison and who’s in on whatever she’s working on behind bars…you know besides Kogame, Gino, Mika, Soga and Irie? I will say, I think next time it should be Mao Kisiragi’s turn in the backstory spotlight. We got back to back character explorations with Irei and Temma this week. It’s only fair that Mao, the sole female Enforcer of Unit 01, gets her due too. Halfway through the season and still got a lot of ground to cover. But it’s good to have a good feeling about Psycho Pass once again. See ya next week everyone.
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