Psycho-Pass: Policing The Soul

Aspirations, contemplations, goals. If I were to ask you if you have any now at this present time or have ever had a future you wanted to work towards, I expect the answer would be yes. From an early age we grapple with ideas of our own personal futures and what they may entail. What do you want to be when you grow up? A doctor? An astronaut perhaps? Even if we do not commit to these ideas borne from an innocent time it is one of the earliest instances we are given the chance to look into a personalized glimpse into what awaits us. We are given that freedom of choice.

But none of that matters here. You are ruled with an iron first. Draconian means determine how likely you are to be a danger to society. You have no choice. Only to remain mentally vigilant at all times. Hopefully the easy access to mental healthcare and professionals will see you through without needing to ever fear being removed. It’s for the safety of others after all. You can’t resist the greater good. In fact the more you do, the more the system fights back.

This is the reality of the world of Psycho-Pass. A twisted crime-free utopian promise ripe from the mind of Gen Urobuchi. Contrary to what your therapist might tell you, thoughts aren’t just thoughts in the world of Psycho-Pass, governed by the Sibyl System, the technology capable of determining the moral clarity of one's soul. They are a direct reflection of your soul, and by extension, your capacity to commit crimes. The cloudier your “hue” becomes, the more concerned you should be, and as Sibyl sees it, the more concerned society should be that you are walking the streets.

An emotionally adept surveillance state; Sybil is the sole operator and manager of proprietary hardware and software used to analyze the criminal tendencies of the entire country of Japan’s populace in the 22nd century. It established the Ministry of Welfare Public Safety Bureau (will be abbreviated MWPSB going forward) and oversees all of it’s personnel along with all Psycho-Pass technology and weaponry. There is no need for courts of law, what with the advent of the algorithmic Sibyl System’s accuracy unquestioned. Ultimately crime is dealt with via incarceration or death, a very violent one at that, carried out by the divisions of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) with their Inspectors, highly educated and mentally clean authorities and the enforcers. Latent criminals that have agreed to protect the inspectors in exchange for their very partial freedom through service to law enforcement. Leashed dogs used for the sole purpose of serving the inspectors unquestionably.

That is where our story begins. Akane Tsunemori, was the top student in training school. In Sibyl's estimation, her aptitude is the only one to exceed the Bureau's employment standards. She achieved an A ranking for 13 different ministries and agencies, along with six different companies. Assigned as an inspector to the CID division 01, she undergoes a bit of a baptism by fire. Learning quickly on the job how things are done in the field. As she gets to know the enforcers better and better, particularly Shinya Kogami one with a story and personality that Tsunemori finds sympathetic towards, she starts to have doubts over the legitimacy of morality being quantifiable via technology and science.

There are those with the ability to circumvent Sibyl. Rare, but entirely possible. Only the most savvy, driven, and idiosyncratic of individuals are able to crack Sibyl’s esoteric code. Rallying those who fit this criteria behind a common goal of dismantling it might be chaotic, might it be necessary too? A scary question the antagonist is all too willing to explore, however he needs to, however he wants to. An emotionally numb collective of humans who have no sense of self is a disgusting sanitization of the human experience.

The brilliance in Psycho-Pass lies in its ability to present the questions it asks of the viewer without actively showing it’s biases, if it even has any to begin with. In fact its lack of conviction without being non-committal is conveyed with such canny as well as feeling authentic and true to Urobuchi himself, providing with it among the best examples of philosophy and narrative intertwining harmoniously that I’ve yet seen. Naturally conveying its ideas and questions through story and character as opposed to a dramatic and more telegraphed shift towards its credo.

The Sibyl System is not objectively or inherently evil. Is total anarchy more desirable than absolute control? I can’t imagine it’s better than a society that is so used to crime that they are living in perpetual fear of being a victim, or worse, are completely numb to these incidents. Through their own admission, normal people are able to live their lives without questioning its judgments of who they are and what they’re capable or not capable of. A meaningless life or long one? The questions just keep coming don’t they? (Oh look there’s another.)

Psycho-Pass is a deeply intellectually moving work that packs just as much of emotional punch. It presents its philosophy through contrasting characterization and the ideologies that each character holds that are just as flawed and nuanced as they are lifelike and variable. We cannot be righteous building a happy society through deception and circumvention. Not at the cost of individuality and genuine discourse within a society. At least, that is my interpretation.