#psycho pass writing

[frankie-bell]

An Essay Exploring Psycho-Pass's Most Controversial Character

I know I’m opening a huge, slimy can of worms and potentially incurring the wrath of half the Psycho-Pass fandom, but I feel compelled to share my feelings on Mika Shimotsuki and how I believe she serves as a lightning rod for fan culture misogyny. Now, before I start, let me just say that this essay isn’t targeted at any one individual, and it’s just my personal opinion, which you are more than welcome to disagree with. I’d also like to stress that, despite my love for Mika’s character, I’m going to try my very best to approach this topic from an academic standpoint rather than an emotional one. I recently picked Parasocial Relationships and their effect on female celebrities and fictional characters as a thesis for my Gender and Media course, and it really got me thinking about this anime in particular, so here we go…

Let’s tackle the female side of things first, because it’s the one that shocks and disappoints me the most. Don’t get me wrong -- I think fandoms with a strong female presence are awesome, complex, uplifting, and oftentimes incredibly positive and inclusive spaces. I love being a female genre fan and interacting with other female genre fans. That said, I’ve noticed female fandom can sometimes fall prey to online bullying and misogynistic groupthink when it comes to (a) female characters they find arrogant, bossy, mean, etc. and (b) female characters who are positioned as potential love interests for their collective male "blorbos," "husbandos," "faves," whatever the term may be. These two things very often overlap, which I’ll touch on later, but for now, let’s talk about the first point.

There was a big movement online several years ago urging creators to “let women be mean. Let them be angry. Let them be petty and complex and difficult. Let them be messy.” I fully support this idea in both theory and practice and wish it were that simple, but unfortunately, it’s not, because uncomfortably large swaths of fandom don’t like/appreciate unapologetically mean female characters the way they do male characters. Men in fiction are allowed to be cutthroat, selfish, cruel, narcissistic, arrogant, and even evil without garnering even a fraction of the judgement that female characters receive for simply being “difficult” or “unlikable.”

Take, for instance, Shougo Makishima. The Psycho-Pass fandom at large adores this character (myself included), despite the fact that he’s a remorseless sociopath who touts the importance of free will as a wholesale excuse for murder. He is a bad person, full-stop, and yet he garners love -- even sympathy -- in abundance. He’s the subject of fawning fan fiction, chibi art, thirst tweets, and endless Reddit analysis. Fans are capable of seeing him, murderous warts and all, as a product of the warped dystopian society Sibyl has created. But Mika? Nope. Just “a bitch, a whiner, an arrogant little girl who deserves to get slapped in the mouth.” (I am not making this up. These are the type of comments I see *female* fans making left and right about her character). She receives far more hate for giving up the location of Akane’s grandmother as a blackmailed, frightened teenager than Makishima does for slashing Yuki’s throat or blowing up Masaoka. Hell, she catches more heat for Akane’s grandmother than Sakuya Togane, the woman’s actual murderer and -- I can’t stress this enough -- a 41-year-old adult man.

Now, I know what some of you are thinking -- Makishima and Togane are villains, so their personality flaws (putting it lightly) and horrible actions are essential to the narrative and indicative of good storytelling. We’re meant to “love to hate them.” All correct, and yet this doesn’t change or excuse the fact that their standing in the fandom, when compared to the equally complex and emotionally fractured Mika, is textbook pernicious misogyny. But, for the sake of argument, let’s compare Mika to another character ostensibly on the side of good -- Nobuchika Ginoza. [Note: Ginoza is my favorite character in Psycho-Pass, and any commentary regarding his PP1 shittiness is made with pure love and appreciation for him and nuanced character growth in general.]

When we first meet Ginoza, he is rude, terse, unyielding, intellectually smug, and totally unforgiving of those closest to him. He’s a brilliant character, and his behavior, no matter how insufferable and seemingly cruel, is the result of compounded trauma -- the trauma of having his father ripped away when he was only nine, the trauma of being unfairly judged for the “sins” of said latent criminal father, the trauma of his mother numbing her pain with medication and eventually becoming something akin to a human corpse, the trauma of finding a new support system and best friend in Kougami only to once again be “abandoned” for the other side of the law. In many ways, he’s still a hurt child lashing out at the world, unwilling to see it for the complicated, morally gray place that it is, because being mad is easier. Telling himself that Enforcers are nothing more than dogs for him to guide and use as shields is easier. Blindly trusting the judgements handed down by Sibyl is easier.

In this way, he and Mika are remarkably similar. When she first joins the MWPSB, she’s a 17-year-old minor whose best friend (and probably first love) was dismembered by a latent criminal under the direction of a serial killer disguising himself as a teacher -- a trusted authority figure. She’s filled with guilt and self-loathing over her failure to act, and the easiest way for her to sort out her feelings and ensure the same thing doesn’t happen again is to harden herself to all latent criminals. Distrusting them, treating them as “other,” is her form of self-preservation. Yes, it makes her come across as mean, as closed-minded, as unlikable, but that’s not a bad thing. It’s good storytelling, and it presents her with plenty of potential for growth, which she is certainly given.

[Upon discovering that her best friend, fellow Oso Academy student Kagami Kawarazaki, has been murdered by Rikako Oryo, Mika breaks down in tears, blaming herself for the tragedy. This is the moment her distrust of latent criminals is solidified.]

But, unlike Ginoza (a 28-year-old adult man), over half the fandom decided that Mika was so awful, so totally unforgivable, such a “heinous cunt,” that they were unwilling to allow her the time and space to grow beyond her trauma and immaturity. But why? Is it because we’ve been taught to judge women, even fictional ones, based on a different set of criteria than men? I think the answer is obvious, and I urge fans who dislike Mika’s character with such intensity to seriously examine their reasoning. I don’t mean to say that she’s infallible (hardly) or that it’s wrong to dislike her. Everyone is entitled to their opinion, and no one person’s take is more valid than another’s, but it’s definitely something to think about in the larger conversation that is media analysis.

Which brings me to Akane Tsunemori, someone who fits all the abovementioned criteria for a “likeable” female character. [Another note: I love Akane, and none of this is meant to disparage her. I am simply trying to point out that she’s a more easily digestible female when viewed through the patriarchal lens of pop culture.] She’s smart but not arrogant about it, strong-willed but never disagreeable, empathetic but not easily led by her emotions, and most importantly, she’s always kind to the fandom’s male faves. She is, in almost every way, trademark "Best Girl" material, and Mika is her foil (at least in PP2). She’s set up to be the anti-Akane, both in personality and narrative function. If Akane trusts someone, Mika doesn’t. If Akane wants to bend the rules, Mika is rigid in upholding them. If Akane isn’t afraid of clouding her Hue, Mika is downright terrified.

Though it’s never stated outright, she probably hoped her senior Inspector would serve as a mentor figure, yet we see none of that from Akane, who often abandons Mika to chase down seemingly wild leads and appears to be stuck in the past, yearning for the original Division 01. (Mika even says as much to Ginoza in a novelization of the first film.) On top of that, I think it’s important to remember that we’re predisposed to side with Akane, as she is both our POV protagonist *and* the hero of the narrative. We have unprecedented access to her private moments, motivations, and methodology. We know she means well and trust that her unconventional strategy will pay off in the end. Mika does not. All she knows is that her direct superior is habitually breaking the rules, overloading her team with what feels like excessive busywork, and ignoring the more bureaucratic side of the job in favor of unconventional/unsanctioned detective work. If I’m being perfectly honest, I would also be submitting concerned reports to my boss.

[When Akane blatantly disregards Sibyl's judgement of bomber Akira Kitazawa, talking him down from a Crime Coefficient of 302 to 299, Mika confronts her for putting both their colleagues and nearby civilians in danger. This later proves to be the right call, as Kitazawa attacks Inspector Risa Aoyanagi and escapes police custody.]

[While investigating Kirito Kamui, Akane keeps her suspicions/theories close to the chest, leaving Mika and the rest of Division 01 in the dark as to her game plan.]

[Although Akane's decision to entrust Hinakawa with all 185 Halos proves to be the right one, it's understandable why Mika is taken aback by her placing so much responsibility on a single subordinate -- especially one with Hinakawa's history.]

Now, that’s not to say Mika’s feelings about Akane are purely altruistic. She’s definitely jealous of her senior Inspector and resents her standing within the Bureau, which makes her behave in ways both petty and vindictive. But I’d argue that this, too, is understandable, if not wholly forgivable, when viewed through Mika’s eyes. Picture this: You’re the youngest-ever recruit to a highly coveted position. You follow protocol to a T, are deferential to your superiors, and show a genuine aptitude for the job. Even your callousness toward the Enforcers (again, your childhood best friend was butchered by a latent criminal) is in accordance with Sybil’s will. Shitty, yes, but standard for someone raised within the Orwellian hellscape of 2100s Japan. And yet, everyone around you prefers your senior Inspector. Your subordinates defer to her when you’re the officer in charge (Hinakawa) and even help her game the system (Ginoza). The Chief tells you you’re boring, but displays obvious favoritism toward her. This severely harms your self-esteem and colors the way you interact with everyone around you. After all, it’s hard to feel like a valued member of the team when you’re being undermined and lectured at every turn. This doesn’t excuse Mika’s behavior, and if she didn’t evolve, I might understand some of the hate, but she does evolve. Spectacularly. She’s just not Akane, and that’s okay.

[While dealing with the hostage situation in PP2, Mika notices Hinakawa working on something off to the side. When she confronts him about it, he admits that he's acting on Akane's orders, even though Mika is technically the officer in charge.]

[A similar incident occurs in Sinners of the System: Case. 1, when Ginoza shoots down Mika's (admittedly ridiculous) plan, which she interprets as him once again siding with Akane over her.]

Again, this is good storytelling at work, and you can acknowledge that these two women are diametrically opposed and still appreciate -- hell, even like -- both of them for the well-written characters they are. After all, most Psycho-Pass fans like both Kougami and Ginoza in PP1 despite their many differences, not to mention the fact that Ginoza is (and I say this with love) a giant asshole. Let’s not forget, he was *this close* to microwaving Kougami at Chief Kasei’s behest. You can tell yourself he wouldn’t have, but are you sure? Are you really sure? But we forgive him, because he’s a man. Anyway, back to Akane and Mika. For reasons I’ll never understand, many fans find it borderline impossible to love two women with beef, whether it’s one-sided or mutual. There can only be one Best Girl, and everyone better be on her team. It reminds me of the Sansa vs. Daenerys discourse that gripped the Game of Thrones fandom in its last few seasons. This is doubly ridiculous in Psycho-Pass’s case, because Akane and Mika come to trust, respect, and depend on each other. But people decided to hate this 19-year-old forever, so none of that matters.

[Notice how Ginoza's gaze narrows ominously in the last frame, suggesting he might actually have pulled the trigger, thereby killing his best friend, had Akane not intervened.]

Now, let’s return to my earlier point about certain fans irrationally hating any female character they deem unworthy of their blorbo, husbando, etc. This is where Parasocial Relationships become extremely interesting. As mentioned above, Ginoza is my favorite character in Psycho-Pass, which I think is pretty common. While I myself have never been one for self-insertion or creating OCs to pair with my favorite characters, I understand that it’s a popular trend, and if you enjoy it, more power to you. It becomes problematic, however, when those who engage in self-shipping/OC-shipping decide to collectively gang up on the female character creators have paired (or hinted at pairing) with the object of their affection. Enter GinoMika. Now, I know what you’re thinking -- “But Mika’s a lesbian!” I don’t necessarily agree. Do I think she was in love with her best friend at Oso Academy? Yes. Do I think she had a crush on Yayoi at the beginning of PP2? Yes. Do I also think it’s obvious she currently has feelings for Ginoza, which have been steadily growing since Sinners of the System? Absolutely. For this reason, I interpret her as being both bisexual and demisexual. But that’s beside the point --

The point is that many Ginoza fans who ship him with themselves, their OCs, or Akane (remember, she’s Best Girl) seem to enjoy trashing on Mika like it’s an Olympic sport. And when I say “trashing,” I don’t mean your normal yet still disappointing level of ship nonsense; I mean unhinged, violent rhetoric that makes me feel like the Internet is a place where women can never win. And why? Because she was mean to him when she first started working for the MWPSB? As if he was oh-so-kind to the Enforcers who worked under him. I seem to recall him screaming at his father and threatening to “make him pay” for visiting his sick wife without permission. Oh, and then there was the time he introduced Akane to her new colleagues by telling her, “Don’t think that the guys you’re about to meet are humans like us.” But yes, Mika once told him that she didn’t want his opinion as a latent criminal, which is so much worse. And before you can say that she’s still a bitch to him, let me point out that she is a textbook tsundere. That’s how she flirts, shows affection, etc. She can never come right out and say what she means, because that would make her vulnerable. But she can surreptitiously tell Ginoza he better come back alive by insisting he return her special Dominator. You know, because it would be a real hassle if she had to replace that thing.

[The language Ginoza uses when introducing Akane to the Enforcers, including his own best friend and father, is deeply dehumanizing.]

[When Aoyanagi takes Masaoka to visit his estranged wife, Ginoza reacts with explosive anger, reprimanding his father in front of their colleagues and threatening to retaliate should he do it again.]

Which brings us, at long last, to the male portion of the fandom. While many female fans like to call Mika out for her more negative character traits, completely ignoring any and all growth she’s experienced since PP2, male fans tend to direct their anger, dislike, etc. in a much more aggressive manner. I wish I was exaggerating when I say that I’ve seen multiple posts praying for Mika’s rape and subsequent murder. You can’t dive into a single “Season 4 Wish List” thread without finding at least one person wishing extreme ill on Mika Shimotsuki. It's pure misogyny, classic “I’ll fuck the bitch right out of her” rhetoric, and it has no place in this fandom or any other. You would never see a male character being talked about in these terms. Consider this: There’s more fan fiction featuring Mika being raped or coerced into sex by her tormentor, Sakuya Togane, than her having a positive, consensual experience with any other character. Love her or hate her, that is extremely fucked up. We as a fandom need to do better, because once this type of misogyny can be weaponized against fictional characters, it becomes much easier to use against real people. Fan culture, though it might seem trivial, says a lot about us and our values.

[This is just a sampling of the comments you'll find on Twitter, Tumblr, Reddit, and other social media sites.]

That said, I’d like to end this essay on a more positive note, so let’s take a look at all the ways in which Mika has become a better, more compassionate human being over the course of the series...

By PP3, she shows obvious concern for her Enforcers, values their opinions, and treats them like integral members of her team. In an especially cute scene, she even fist-bumps Tenma Todoroki after they work seamlessly to defeat Koichi Azusawa’s henchmen. She also makes a point to attend the party thrown in the Enforcers’ quarters, as she now longs to be part of the gang -- a gang she would have actively shunned in PP2. 

[During First Inspector, Mika shows time and again that she's willing to work with and for her Enforcers.]

[As Chief, Mika realizes that Enforcers deserve respect and gratitude from their superiors. They are no longer dogs to her.]

[In PP2, Mika tells Ginoza she doesn't care what the Enforcers think of her. By PP3, however, we see her display concern that her team might find her dull. She wants to be liked and accepted by them.]

She becomes far more flexible with her co-workers, allowing Inspectors Arata Shindo and Kei Mikhail Ignatov plenty of freedom to conduct investigations as they see fit. Yes, she consistently scolds them (textbook tsundere behavior), but this is done in a manner far more humorous than anything else. We know she actually trusts them and has their best interests at heart; she just can’t bring herself to say it aloud. She also repeatedly takes heat from Chief Hosorogi on their behalf and is genuinely worried for Arata when it seems like Sibyl might “eliminate” him. The palpable relief on her face when she finds out he’s allowed to remain an Inspector speaks volumes.

[Throughout PP3, Mika allows Kei and Arata to play to their individual strengths, even if it means bending the rules -- something she would never have done in PP2 or the first film.]

[Just look at that excited face. No caption necessary.]

She goes out of her way to make sure the immigrant prostitutes saved by religious leader Joseph Auma are protected following his death. This is an especially big deal, since many of these individuals are latent criminals, and Mika is forced to ask her newfound nemesis, Frederica Hanashiro, for a favor in order to secure their safety. When she tries to pretend it’s no big deal, Frederica calls her bluff by pointing out that no one would stoop to asking someone they hate for help in order to protect people whose fates they don’t care about.

[Even though Mika detests Frederica, she puts the well-being of the immigrants before her own pride.]

In Sinners of the System: Case. 1, her distrust of latent criminals is permanently altered after dealing with Izumi Yasaka, whom she works tirelessly to rescue and comes to view as brave, capable, and worthy of reintegration into society. She also displays genuine concern for and lack of discrimination toward Takeya Kukuri, the young son of a latent criminal, and is horrified to discover that the latent criminal inmates at Sanctuary are being used as disposable tools to move nuclear waste canisters.

[Sinners of the System: Case. 1 marks a decided shift in the way Mika views latent criminals. Instead of lumping them all together, she begins to see them as individuals who deserve basic human rights.]

[Even though Mika is unable to save all the latent criminals at Sanctuary, she does everything in her power to ensure Yasaka and Takeya walk away clean.]

When Enforcer Mao Kisaragi turns out to be the “fox within the CID,” Mika and the rest of Division 01 are united in supporting her claim of innocence. Mika trusts (without concrete proof, mind you) that she’s telling the truth about being an unwitting accomplice, something she never would have done in PP2 or even the first film.  

[While the old Mika would have been the first person to distrust Kisaragi, here we see her standing up for the beleaguered Enforcer.]

She comes to respect Division 01 (Akane, Ginoza, Sugo, Hinakawa, Kunizuka, and Shion), views them as a surrogate family, and misses them once their unit is disbanded. In Sinners of the System: Case. 3, Frederica Hanashiro, who temporarily worked as part of their unit, says, “CID Division 01… They’re not just capable; they have a rare teamwork that overcomes the barrier between Inspectors and Enforcers.” Yes, this is mostly due to Akane’s guiding influence, but it’s clear Frederica is talking about the whole team. It’s taken Mika years to get there, but she is now definitely part of the group, not a jealous outsider looking in. In fact, even Mika’s obvious dislike of Frederica in PP3 is a clear result of this affection. After finally finding a place to belong, she feels as though Frederica swooped in and stole her found family, leaving her right back where she started -- on the outside.

[Though she'll never admit it, Mika views Ginoza as both a mentor and a friend. When he leaves the PSB to join SAD/MOFA, she misses having him around.]

[During her lowest moment in PP2, a jealous Mika actually hopes that Akane's Hue will darken. In Sinners of the System: Case. 2, she pleads with her to take her own safety more seriously. It's clear a big change has occurred in the intervening years.]

[Instead of feeling constant competition with Akane, by PP3, Mika is finally able to give her her due. It's clear they trust and respect each other despite their many differences.]

She’s grown from an immature young woman who couldn’t bring herself to take responsibility for her failures -- most notably her involvement in Akane’s grandmother’s murder -- to a responsible PSB Chief who holds herself accountable for anything that goes wrong with her Inspectors and Enforcers. This is most evident in her reaction to Koichi Azusawa taking control of Nona Tower and subsequently endangering the lives of MWPSB faculty and agents. We first see inklings of this change near the end of PP2, when Kunizuka tells Mika she’ll never forgive the person who gave up Aoi Tsunemori’s location, and Mika responds in kind. It’s clear that she’s not merely parroting a response to save her own skin but is deeply troubled and filled with regret over her own actions.

[In PP2, Mika is constantly blaming others for her mistakes. By First Inspector, she's owning mistakes she didn't even make.]

[Mika trusts her team so much, she's willing to put her job on the line.]

[Although Mika doesn't come clean to Kunizuka about her role in Aoi Tsunemori's death, it's clear she’s haunted by it. Later, when she confesses the truth to Ginoza, he admits to feeling a similar guilt over the way he treated his late father, telling Mika they'll have to bear their respective shame silently for the rest of their lives.]

And lastly, I believe the biggest example of Mika's growth can be found in what is arguably her most important relationship -- the one she shares with Ginoza. Whether you view them as mentor/mentee, begrudging friends, potential love interests, or all three, you can't deny that they have one of the most interesting and entertaining dynamics in the series. As mentioned above, when Mika first meets Ginoza, she views him as a cautionary tale. His demotion from Inspector to Enforcer is her worst nightmare, something that could conceivably happen to her, though she'll never admit it. Because of this, she treats him with hostility, disregarding his opinions and shunning his advice. But the longer they work together, the more we realize that Ginoza brings out the best in Mika -- and vice-versa. His calm, cool demeanor tempers her fiery spirit, and her enthusiasm makes him feel like he still has a purpose. By the time PP3 rolls around, he's become her #1 confidant, the person she calls whenever she has intel to share, grievances to air, etc. And you can't deny that Mika is the one person who makes Ginoza funny. Their flirtatious banter is genuinely charming and shows the softer, more human side of both their characters.

[Given her history with latent criminals, Mika refuses to listen to Ginoza, even when he's coming from a place of experience and genuinely trying to help her.]

[After working together for several years, Mika learns to value Ginoza's opinion and even feels proud when he compliments her.]

[During the Sanctuary case, Ginoza admits to both Akane and himself that being an Enforcer isn't so bad, as long as Mika is the one calling the shots. He knows she has a good heart, and working for her reminds him why he joined the MWPSB in the first place.]

[Notice how Mika's body language changes from PP2 to Sinners of the System. She now looks at Ginoza with appreciation and, in certain instances, affection. The fact that he views her the same way speaks volumes about how far their relationship has come.]

If you made it to the end of this mammoth post, thank you for sticking with me. Hopefully, we can all treat Mika with a little more patience, kindness, and respect when PP4 arrives.

[pech2]

I like to draw Yoshioka a bit tan. I think a sporty boy like him would spend a lot of time running out in the sun.

These past few months have been particularly stressful. Especially now with APs coming up. I hope I can do well in them. It’s my first time taking an AP exam that isn’t part of the AP portfolio system, so I’m super nervous. Hopefully we can get back to updates in May.

Otherwise I’d likely be working on editing the previous chapters…

[ladyginoza]

After 5 years of non existence or hiatus some may say. I have written 3 full pages on a WIP. Will I be able to keep the ball rolling? Who the hell knows but it be flowing XD

[shi-yin-drawings]

Psycho-Pass S1 art style VS later seasons/movies

I'm always amazed at how Akane and Kogami have evolved not only as characters but also visually. In season 1, it looks like the production was more faithful to Amano's design but in later seasons, they veer towards more realistic proportions, along with increased attention to details like clothing folds, while keeping the original inspiration from Amano in how they draw the faces. Personally, I love this evolution!

[aseriesofunfortunatejan]

Just finished watching Providence. I'll probably have some more thoughts to share about it after sleeping on it, and possibly later if I rewatch S3 again (😍).

Providence and S3 spoilers ahead!

The first thing I can't stop thinking about is that upon giving the Psycho-Pass subreddit a quick look before watching the movie, the only post I saw was about how "this movie should have come out before S3". I didn't read the body of the post in fear of spoilers, but throughout watching the movie, I kept thinking about how much I disagree with that. How insignificant would Akira be if you didn't know he was Kei's brother? How random would Atsushi be as a character if you didn't know what he meant to Arata? Imagine this random kid showing up. No one would react positively to Arata, Maiko and Kei. Akira would feel like a side-character we only cared about for a split second and Atsushi would be confusing in the wrong way. Season 3 wouldn't be the same without the mystery of Tsunemori's incarceration. Objectively a wrong take if you care about the storytelling and characters at all imo.

With that out of the way, while Providence answered some of our burning questions, some have been left unanswered, such as:

Did Gino change his haircut so drastically all of a sudden because he realised the wind blowing in his face meant he couldn't see shit?

I'd be willing to buy that he just enjoys changing styles regularly, though.

Since I'm looking at her... do we know what Frederica's deal is, exactly...? I also can't help wondering - is there a reason why Shimotsuki hates her this much? While she's always complaining over petty things, she seems to hold a pretty specific dislike towards Frederica. Is it really just her personality? (I'd be willing to buy that, too...)

I feel like we have gained a net zero information about either Homura Sr. or Jr. Or Bifrost.

I feel like I had another serious question... before I started joking about Gino's hair. It'll probably come back to me. I guess there's always "can Shou's backstory get a Moment? Anyone else remember how S2 didn't give its new cast the same amount of time S1 did? Babyboy's still kinda just Here rn."

I'm still a bit confused about Jackdaw and Vixen, and the fact that I only just realised that Vixen is a woman probably does not help.

I miss Azusawa and Obata...

Oh right, I think I remembered what I meant to talk about. There are events that clearly happened between Providence and S3 that haven't been detailed, such as Gino leaving the Bureau to join Foreign Affairs, Kunizuka running the fuck out of there or even, I believe, Arata and Kei being appointed as Inspectors. We know that Tsunemori contributed to the latter - I wonder if we may learn more about her reasoning in the future. I think we can also infer that Gino, who stated in the movie that he intends on protecting Tsunemori, had to change plans one way or another due to her arrest.

I feel like we still don't know enough about Akira's relationship to his brother or to Atsushi, and I don't know whether that will be forever left in the air of if it will be detailed. The exact implication of Stronskaya Sr. and her relationship to her daughter are also vague.

Honestly, there's a lot going on in this movie. A lot of politics... a lot of religion... and a thick wall of the story's context. It's complex, and it's interesting how Psycho-Pass is continuing in this direction that already stood out in S3.

I'll just say I'm upset about Saiga. Evil evil bad. I'm really hoping for more content with Arata, Maiko and Kei in the near future because I seriously love them!!! And I want closure for them!!!! Akira was a pretty interesting character, though his quick death was frustrating - which I assume was not not on purpose. Though it happened maybe a little too fast due to the movie format (compared to an episodic format), the revelation of his allyship was set up pretty well. Like I said, details are definitely missing - Atsushi didn't explain why Akira was so willing, and he was interrupted before he could say who he was in his own words.

It was pretty nice to see Kougami be a little cringefail. I didn't enjoy his characterisation in S3, but in Providence, it feels a lot more sensible - like he can really feel that he doesn't have control. I'm satisfied with his and Tsunemori's dynamic in the movie, wherein they care about each other deeply - dare I say, Kougami might even care a little more than she does at this point? - how does that dynamic shift feel my guy? - but Kougami's wrongdoings have weight and the narrative doesn't force him back on her. You can feel that he wants to be back, you can feel that to Tsunemori he never really left, but like I mentioned in a more personal post, Gino's her source of comfort, her trustworthy teammate; Kougami isn't welcomed back by default. This feels natural. This feels like the writing cares about their feelings.

What else... Oh yeah... Did anyone else feel like Saiga was kinda................. hot?

[fallingyams]

Yuukoku no Moriarty, I feel, has ignited a lot of my childhood glee. I've missed hyperfixating on things and coming up with dumb headcanons and writing fics to get rid of the silly brainworms the come in the middle of the day.

It's been a really, really long time since I've experienced this thrill where I can't stop thinking about the characters and story and not a single day passes where a little idea hits me like a sledgehammer in the middle of working

And then Morimyu, oh god, has sparked a descent down another rabbit hole (into 2.5D hell) and i haven't felt this way since I was like 13 and discovering Rebocon for the first time where KHR was an all-consuming series for me (fanfiction, fanpages, cosplay, osts, voice actors, EVERYTHING)

Anyway this was just a ramble because I'm mildly experiencing withdrawal from consuming stage content ever since I was introduced to some stages by a particular actor :') but WOW I've really missed this exhilarating feeling, my fingers are TREMBLING as I type this.

[pearlsephoni]

Inevitabilities

Can also be read on AO3!

Rating: T

Fandom: Psycho-Pass

Pairing: Shinkane (Akane/Kogami)

Characters: Akane Tsunemori, Shinya Kogami

Word Count: 1.2k

Summary: In their line of work, certain sacrifices are always to be expected. That doesn't make preparing for them any easier.

A/N: Written for @shinkaneweek Day 2: timely preparation for future eventualities. c/w for discussions of death and grief. Further author's notes can be found on AO3.

🕊

It was a beautiful night. Kogami was back from a mission, letting them pass an evening cooking and working on separate casework, before Akane abandoned her chair in favor of slouching over his shoulders, her whole body jostling from his soft chuckles as she leaned against his back.

Now they were on the couch, her legs draped over his, reading different books and occasionally breaking the silence to read out a quote, whether it was striking or ridiculous or funny. Her heartbeat was steady, calm, matching the rhythm of his thumb as he drew arcs along the inside of her bare ankle. The soft light of the floor lamp was all that illuminated their books, letting the rest of the apartment be washed by the silvery moon and bright neon lights of the city.

It was domestic, comfortable, perfect. Akane hated to ruin it.

She gave herself until the end of her chapter, then slid her bookmark into place and slowly shut her book. She felt the weight of Kogami’s eyes flickering towards her, even though she was looking away to set the book aside. But he didn’t say anything, simply slid his own bookmark into place and placed the book on the coffee table, before turning his focus completely on her. A silent signal that he was ready.

“Um…Kogami-san.”

“Yes, Inspector?”

She grimaced at the teasing note in his response. “Shinya.”

“Yes, Akane?”

“I, ah…I’ve been assigned a new case.” His brows furrowed, but again, he didn’t say anything. “My assignment comes straight from Kasei.”

Now those brows raised, but still no response. “It’s…known to be dangerous. The Division assigned to it lost one of their Inspectors, so—”

“No.”

There was nothing light in Kogami’s voice now. It was all steel, perfectly matching the sharp edge of his gray gaze. Akane flinched, as though she could feel the edge of his words, but she powered through. “I wanted to tell you, in case something happens to me—”

“Akane, no.”

“I’ve set my journal to respond to your fingerprint—”

“Akane—”

“—and all of my most important codes and passwords will be in there, behind some other—”

“Stop it—”

“—I’m sure you’ll be able to find your way around—”

“Stop!”

The barked word seemed to echo around the room and bounce between the couple as they stared, wide-eyed, at each other. “Stop,” Kogami repeated, voice softer with appeal. “Don’t tell me you’re planning on…on…”

“It’s not like I’ll have much say in the matter,” Akane muttered with a humorless scoff. “I’m not sure how closely you’ve been following the new reports, but his victims don’t exactly volunteer.”

“You’ve survived worse cases. You’ve outwitted smarter murderers. You fought and you won.” He met her gaze and held it, his glinting eyes cutting straight through her walls as quickly and efficiently as ever. “You’re going to keep fighting, right?”

Indignation sparked up Akane’s spine and lifted her chin. “Of course I am.”

“Then what’s with the preparations?”

“There is more than one way to be prepared.” A wry grin pulled at her lips. “I’m not in the interest of leaving you with nothing more than a note this time.”

Her words were closely followed by a small yelp of surprise from a sudden pinch at her ankle. “Good,” Kogami huffed, fingers already soothing her reddened skin. “But I’d rather you didn’t leave me at all.”

“Now now,” Akane tutted, scooting closer until she could rest her chin on his shoulder, “don’t be greedy.”

“Why not?” He gently shrugged her away and turned to face her again. “You already know I’m selfish. Why shouldn’t I want more of the one good thing in my life?”

Kogami always loved to play at being cold and collected, only ever showing the spark remaining in him when caught in combat. He let down those walls around her, but she was still unprepared for his sudden, simple, achingly-vulnerable statements of his love for her. “You have your team,” she protested weakly. Her fingers ran through his messy hair, brushing it out of his face in a well-worn gesture. “You have Tenzing, somewhere in the world. You have others who care about you.”

“Not like you.”

“Not like me,” she relented. Her hand drifted from his hair to rest against his cheek. “You’re listed as my next of kin, so…if anything does happen”—her fingers lightly pressed to his lips, holding back his protests—“you’ll gain possession of my things, apart from a few things I’ll leave for some others.” It was her turn to let a teasing note slip into her words, despite the morbid topic. “Think of it as my way of paying it forward. I had to clean up your things, so it’s only fair for you to return the favor, don’t you think?”

“Oh, you think you’re so funny.”

“A little bit, yeah.” She was ready for his nip at her fingers, though she couldn’t help giggling at the glancing pressure.

He caught her hand before she could pull it away, weaving their fingers together and staring intently at all the lines where their skin met. Then, he murmured, “Me, too.”

“Hm?”

“You’re my next of kin, too.” When he looked up at her, his expression was newly-solemn. “You and Gino. Though unlike you, I’m not planning on making either of you face those responsibilities for a while, so…wish me luck.”

Akane simply hummed in response before snuggling in closer and nuzzling into the curve of his neck. When he spoke again, she felt more than heard his soft words. “...I don’t know if I could survive it.”

“Hm?”

“Grieving you.” Akane fell still, but she didn’t pull away, letting him wrap his arms tighter around her. “Sometimes I…I think I’ve grown numb to grief, after everyone we’ve lost. But then I imagine grieving you, and I…” A slow breath shook out of him before he could continue. “I feel hopeless just imagining it, Akane. You’re the color in my life, and I…I can’t go back to black and white.”

“Well, I’ve already grieved you once,” Akane murmured, words slightly muffled in his skin. “I don’t think I could survive grieving you again.”

“Hm…that’s no good. We both have to die eventually.”

“Maybe we’ll just have to go together…in a grand, fiery explosion!”

“An explosion? Haven’t we had enough excitement in life? Can’t we go peacefully in our sleep, holding each other?”

“My goodness, you’re such a romantic.” Laughing, Akane pulled back just enough to press a sweet kiss to his cheek. “Like you’d ever get tired of excitement.”

He grinned when their eyes met, a warm, fond little thing, only to melt away the longer he stared at her. “Promise me you’ll fight to live,” he suddenly murmured, hand rising to her cheek. “I want more time with you.”

“Of course I will. These are just precautions, Shinya, nothing more. I promise.”

“Good.”

When he leaned in for another kiss, he was quicker to lick into her mouth, and Akane welcomed him. She let him guide her to straddle his lap, let him slide fingers into her hair and arch her neck for his lips, let him press her close until their bodies were flush against each other. For all her teasing and scolding, Akane was just as greedy as he was, at the end of the day. And for all her intention to fight, the future was still unpredictable. This time with Kogami was a precious thing, and dammit, she was going to relish it with everything she was worth.

[thinenotthee]

woag, ro is writing fic?!?!? truly amazing. anyways, have kogami shinya having thoughts about les mis, in response to this post of mine

[kyouka-supremacy]

What's p/p?

Ah, I meant to say, pp, Psycho-Pass. I usually add slashes to avoid unprompted rambles to show up in main tags, sorry if that resulted confusing.

I love Psycho-Pass. I already made a post about why bsd fans might find it enjoyable, but honestly, there's so much more to it beyond what it has in common with bsd.

The prompts for reflection this series offers are just wonderful: on the relationship between citizens and government, on pervasive systems, on freedom of choice and free will, on safety vs. freedom, on discrimination of minorities and creation of scapegoats, on propaganda and brainwashing, on the increasing and treacherous presence of technology in everyday life, on how government uses technology to control and manipulate people, on fighting the system from the inside vs. fighting the system from the outside. I should watch it again too. It's crazy good.

Akane Tsunemori - the coprotagonist of the first season, the protagonist of the second season and overall the true core and heart of the franchise - is one of the most complex and beautiful characters I ever met. Her growth and character development is truly amazing: the way she starts off as unknowing and naïve, and grows so so much from there; how her writing finds this perfect balance between becoming more mature / hardening and staying true to her beliefs - even when everyone, the system, the people she relies to, the people she looks up to - tell her that there's no other way, that it can't be. It's breathtaking. She is a breathtaking character. The way alone that no matter how conscious and aware she becomes of how cruel the world is, how unredeemable people are, how beyond saving the system is, she still keeps believing in humans… It may sound cliché by itself, but believe me, it's wonderfully executed, and her character is truly amazing. Not to mention, the way she mirrors the coprotagonist Kougami is fabulous, but this is not really about him; she's an amazing character of her own right, and I will die on this hill.

The female cast in general is all amazing honestly. Don't get me wrong, the male characters are just as complex and multilayered (and I LOVE Gino and Kou, how couldn't I), but that's… Something we're more accustomed to, while finding well written female characters is objectively much harder. Female characters in Psycho-Pass aren't written as female characters, they're written as people, just as much as their male counterparts are. They have their fears and hopes and strengths and weaknesses just like any other character. I love Yayoi for being strong and coolheaded. I love (LOVE) Shion for being her fabulous self, kind and flirty and confident and with an heart so big, and for her subverting the trope of guy in the chair by being a glamorous woman who's also incredibly competent at her job of analyst. I love Akane's friends and I don't like season 3 but Mai is genuinely awesome and a joy every time she's on screen. I love Risa so much I could die, I love how strong and independent she is, I love the dilemmas she had to face, I love her choices and how they might have been the wrong ones and how it still haunts her, I love the tragedy of her character in general, I love the doomed friendship that used to be between her Gino and Kou. I love love love Fredrica, I love her being bossy and confident, diligent and determined. There's just a lot of… Strong and independent women in Psycho-Pass, and it's not just a way of saying, they really are.

I LOVE women loving other women, canonly, on screen. The confirmation may be delegated to a small moment in the last episode of the first season, but the fact that it's still there nonetheless, and how it confirms that all the previous moments and exchanges were indeed moments and didn't leave it to ambiguity… It's nice, to say that the first season of Psycho-Pass came out in 2012. And you might have to wait eight years, three seasons, five movies for it, but the phrase “I just want to go outside, dine somewhere nice, and go for walks with someone I love” may make it worth it.

And I LOVE how all the leader positions are filled by women. It's a little funny, honestly, in the best way– despite what I made it look like so far, the Psycho-Pass cast is still men-dominated (or at least a pretty equally split 50/50?); yet all the leader positions are always filled by women: Akane and Mika and Kasei and Frederica and Karina, it's always women.

Also, Mika is a brilliant character. Of course I love her. I'm so so sorry for how much hate and criticism she gets (over being a purposely annoying character! Insane! When Dazai exists!), when she does really and excellent job at conveying “look! A fucked up brainwashed individual in a fucked up brainwashing environment! I wonder how that could have happened!”. Not to mention that her growth, her long and devious way to admitting that the system is flawed, is truly well made, too. Unpopular opinion, characters with big flaws, characters who are unsufferable and make lives impossible to everyone around them, characters who mess up again and again, are actually great to watch.

Again, don't get me wrong, I absolutely adore Gino and Kou too ahah. They're both great!! But that you can probably see by your own. Gino in particular used to be my favourite, how his character does a total 180° turn. I love to see men admit their mistakes and make the choice to be better tomorrow.

About that, the relationships between the characters are AMAZING. Especially the main trio Akane / Kou / Gino, all the combinations within it are beautiful and deep and brilliant, so so enjoyable to explore and with their fair share of canon content, while still never straying to romantic territory (I mean, Akane/Kou may be going in that direction, but if that's true, that's the slowest slow burn I've ever witnessed in my life).

What's more. The world building / general premise - a dystopian world, where your predisposition to do crime can be measured and the government makes use of such technology to monitor and control the population and guarantee everyone's safety - is genuinely interesting and compelling. The aesthetic is genuinely cool (AH, now that I think about it, I've got my unfair bias for people in suits, and pp has a LOT of people in suits… ). The opening and endings feature great artists like Egoist, Ryo, Who-ya Extended and Cö shu Nie, so you're sure to love them!!

(Also, Psycho-Pass is something I used to spend entire nights talking about with a friend, and I'm always thinking about her and hold her tight to my heart in every moment so. That's worth mentioning for me, pfffttt. I love my friend so much.)

Finally, because the other Psycho-Pass post I made here keeps haunting me for the lack of trigger warnings, please be aware: Psycho-Pass DOES have trigger warnings. Pretty much for eveything you can think of. Sexual assault and gore and body horror on the top of my mind, but it's quite dark and gritty at parts in its entirety, so please please keep that in mind if you decide to pick it up.

Well, this is the end of my Psycho-Pass love letter for now. Please give it a chance if you can! I'll go rewatch it now. General watch order, in order of release, is season 1 → season 2 → movie → Sinners of the System movie trilogy → season 3 → First Inspector movie → Providence movie. I don't really like the third season or First Inspector movie (the characters are still great tho, even the newly introduced ones), and I've yet to watch Providence. The first season later came out with an extended edition of added scenes between episodes, and they're quite nice, so if you can't get ahold of it, you might want to look up for a compilation of the missing scenes still.

[frankie-bell]

Hi there, Psycho-Pass fans! Due to the overwhelmingly positive response I got on my “In Defense of Mika Shimotsuki” essay, I’ve decided to take a flying leap out of my comfort zone and participate in Kinktober for the very first time. Now, I’m no stranger to smut -- if you’d like to see examples of my work, feel free to check out my Ao3 -- but I’ve never actually taken the plunge and accepted requests before, so this should be interesting.

As I mentioned in my essay, Mika has an astonishingly little amount of fic written about her, and what she does have is filled with rape/non-con, humiliation/degradation, and rejection. Not kink-shaming anyone, but I’d love to fill Mika’s Ao3 tag with a little more positivity.

Which is why I’d like to invite anyone who’s interested to either submit a prompt for me to turn into a Kinktober fic or join in on the fun by writing something themselves. If you’d like to participate, please feel free to use the header image I made. The more, the merrier!

To submit a prompt, either (a) reply directly to this post or (b) leave a message in my inbox. Just add *** to your submission if you'd like me to keep it private. I know not everyone is comfortable discussing this stuff publicly, and I want to be respectful of that. You can also message me on anon, if that makes you more comfortable.

I'd also like to mention that the above prompts are just a jumping-off point. I'm pretty open-minded, so if there's something you're looking for that isn't on my list, just reach out, and I'll let you know if I'm comfortable filling your request. You can also combine prompts, if there are several that interest you.

Now, let's have some fun!

[latentillusion]

since i’m sick right now, i’m imagining how ginoza would take care of sick people.

sick child? he’d be the absolute sweetest, staying by their side, doting on them, helping them blow their nose, getting them a cute dessert as a treat for taking their medicine.

sick friend? maybe tease you for a bit for getting sick, but still checks in on you.

sick kogami? *throws cold medicine at him*

all in all though, he's probably really good at taking care of sick people, knowing which home remedies work best (from his grandma) to perfectly timing when to take medicine.

[lavenderongunpoint]

Looks at my Psycho Pass mutuals so intensely rn

[parm4carm]

not to be crass but there are way too many dumbasses allowed to use letterboxd oh my lord

i skimmed the reviews for psycho-pass: providence before seeing it and i shit you not half of the early reviews were from people who went in blind and rated it low because they couldn’t follow the plot.

to a film that takes place between seasons. that fills in gaps. that answers questions from s3.

things that you could find out if you took two seconds to research the series. because this and the previous four films have never stated that they were standalones.

there were so many reviews that said “couldn’t follow the plot” “i went in blind” “this should be able to stand alone without watching the series” “too dialogue heavy” and were attached to low reviews. again, a problem that they themselves created by paying for a ticket to a movie that they didn’t properly look into beforehand !!!!!

like genuinely in what fucking world does it make sense to complain about the fact that a film is dense and (very clearly) a continuation of a preexisting plot. that’s like showing up to any sequel of any kind and being upset because you don’t know what’s happening. my brother in christ you chose to come!!!!!

like i said in my review, we should be happy that we’re getting anime films that aren’t standard ova’s with no weight on the overarching story! it’s refreshing!

anyway. in conclusion. it was great!!!! and you shouldn’t be allowed to give a movie a low score if you blatantly admit you didn’t understand what you were watching

[psychopasss4]

Everyone's gearing for Police Tribe K-9 😎

Makoto Fukami (Psycho-Pass, Berserk anime), Ryo Yoshigami (Psycho-Pass 3) and manga artist Natsuo Sai (Psycho-Pass: Kanshikan Kōgami Shinya) had teamed up again for the futuristic sci-fi series, Police Tribe K-9.

And fans are showing their support, check Yoshigami-san's Twitter. But.. will there be a PsychoPass crossover?? 🫣🤔

Let's wait and find out 😁😜

[hxperion]

@grievice continued from x

Blaze watched as he neatly assembled the papers into the correct files. Hearing him speak, she listened intently. She was glad that he was becoming more considerate of his colleagues though she was more glad that he being more true to himself. "I don't think I have." She replied she can't remember if she did or not. worlds to her blended in she would have to think back for the rare chances she had to celebrate Christmas, most worlds were never this 'peaceful'. But yet she was grateful for this peacefulness, for this change of pace despite the restricting nature of being an enforcer. She managed to find comfort in it despite it all, not to mention she found the greatest group of friends she could ever ask for. A group she would willingly follow to the ends of the earth for. But she let herself not get lost in her thoughts as she spoke up again.

"We can do that, if that what you wanna do. it sounds fun." Blaze replied, looking up at him with a soft smile when he grasped her shoulder. Hearing his question. she nodded slightly. "yeah... it hates cold weather. its expensive equipment but god, its sucks when it gets cold out." she replied chuckling softly to try to lighten the mood a bit. However his comment that he would accompany her to the clinic did make her feel more comfortable. Even if the clinic would bother her to no end. Though she couldn't help but to laugh lightly at the mention of dressing up Dime as a reindeer. Her shoulders relaxed at noticing the sheepish smile that followed it on his face. He was cute to her in that way. though she would never admit that out loud, not in front of him of all people. However, she does hope that she never has to see his happiness fade anymore in this world, for as long as she is here. "that be fun too. I don't think I ever saw a sled race before, thinking about it. We could do that too, if a race is happening this year. I'll look into it if you want?" Blaze offered, not wanting to make his schedule more busy than it probably was.

[lelair]

Flattery

I finally watched Psycho-Pass Providence in theaters! I want to comment on the ending, hopefully without spoiling, through this quote: "Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery that mediocrity can pay to greatness." - Oscar Wilde