After the ending of the first season, I was excited for the endless possibilities that the sequel would offer, yet my hopes were shattered in just one episode. Compared to the first series, Psycho-Pass 2 feels cheap. Very cheap. It tries to appear as an intelligent show but it just ends up looking like a terrible crime thriller that shits on everything the first season did.

The production doesn't look as nice as it did before, even if the first season wasn't completely perfect anyway. The writing is lackluster, the characters lost whatever personality they had in the past, characters who aren't interesting get way more screen time than they deserve, and the main character, Akane, takes a big dip. I feel complete disappointment, and also anger, at the fact that a show that was a strong 8, got so bad that now I can't see myself scoring it as anything higher than a 4.Which I won't do because it's worse than that. Not every show deserves a sequel, this one certainly didn't and maybe should have ended at the first season.

Proceed with caution indeed cuz this sequel is the worst one I've seen.

Before I begin talking about anything else, I just want to complain about this shot right here.

It appears in almost every single episode, usually before Akane or someone else goes to talk with the Chief. Was there no other visual they could have used
to show us that they changed location? it pans the same way all the time too, only the climate or time of the day change. It is petty to complain about this but I don't care, it pissed me off and this season is completely anticlimactic and just trash anyway so might as well go full-on petty.

Plot:

Psycho-Pass 2 begins with a big bombing occurring in the middle of the city. Akane, the new inspector Shimotsuki, and the enforcers are on their way to check the crime scene. We then get introduced to two new enforcers, one of them who will also be one of the antagonists of the season. Akane and her team close in on the bomber, the confrontation goes bad and the bomber escapes, then they catch up to him again, and then Akane shares one of the corniest dialogues I've seen in a while with him, successfully lowering his crime coefficient low enough so that the dominator only uses the paralyzer mode on him.

This made me cringe. Terribly.

The episode ends with our main antagonist, Kamui, killing an enforcer and taking an inspector Hostage.

In the second episode, we start getting glimpses of a potential conflict between Shimotsuki, who is the new inspector, and Akane. I say glimpses because this will not be relevant enough or reach a satisfying conclusion at all. It will just be used as a plot device to build up drama. This episode gives more relevance to other inspectors besides Akane. We get introduced to inspector Aoyanagi who seems to be strong-willed and to take no excuses. Aoyanagi and Akane sit down in a boring office or auditorium to give exposition to one another, and Akane says that she believes there is someone who can't be seen by the Sibyl System. Naturally, Aoyanagi doesn't think the same, says she won't look for ghosts, and just leaves.

After this, we get yet another damn conversation with two characters in yet another boring setting. This scene happens in a gym, and it brings back memories of a similar scene in season 1 between Kogami and Akane. The way the show kept showing Togane and Akane, made it seem, at least to me, that Akane was trying to replace whatever she had with Kogami, with the current working relationship she is building with Togane. If that wasn't her intention, then it probably was the show's, since they
are stubborn in mirroring Kogami to Togane, even though the characters are not similar in any way.

Another boring conversation later, and we learn the truth about the hologram the bomber used back in episode 1. Then we get told that since his crime coefficient has gone down, and they will be transferring him to another facility. Naturally, the bomber escapes and then we get a scene in the sewers where he gets killed by inspector Aoyanagi just before he was able to tell Akane who Kamui was. At the end of the episode, Kamui dramatically punches a wall while complaining about how he thought Akane would understand.

If I was Kamui, then I too would be punching walls if I was stuck in this boring anime.

If Makishima, who was a very compelling antagonist, paid no attention or care to Akane, that is enough to believe she is not interesting. Why would Kamui care about her? this is just baffling but hey Kamui is a boring antagonist so it makes sense he would be interested in the dullness that Akane possesses.

In the third episode, we finally get to see some of what Kamui can do. Keep in mind this is the first and last time he will do anything remotely interesting. Anyway, he tortures the inspector he took hostage and gets her eye out so that he can transplant it into himself. Someone allegedly broke into Akane's department and trashed the place while also engraving the words "WC?" on her wall. Akane goes to visit Dr. Saiga and has once again a conversation. This conversation lasts for more than 5 minutes and doesn't tell us anything new. It's just characters trying to sound deep while they sit and drink coffee. The show tries to make Akane look like Kogami but it does a pisspoor job. We change scenes and....we're back with two characters chatting. This time it is Ginoza and inspector Aoyanagi.

I can appreciate Ginoza looking fine as hell, but did we need another scene of characters sitting around right after the other scene with Akane and the Dr.?

The show tries to give more substance to Aoyanagi, but nothing of what she says is any different from what we've heard before so it is hard to care about her ideals. She gets a call from the missing inspector, Shisui, and decides to meet up with her. This is obviously a trap since Shisui is now in cahoots with Kamui after having developed some sort of Stockholm syndrome.

While Aoyanagi is waiting for Shisui to turn up, an old man starts making a ruckus, and when she tries to stop him by pointing the dominator at him, it fails to recognize him as a potential threat, and then she gets attacked by a robotic dog. The old man starts beating her up and the episode ends. Shimotsuki and Akane were going to question a guy they apprehended earlier but it didn't seem important enough so whatever.

Episode 4. This is probably the only "good" episode of this season. This is laughable since this is the best of the worst. The old man got everyone to undress down to their underwear and begins beating the crap out of them. Shimotsuki and the enforcers have been dispatched to the scene. Being the pressed coward she is, Shimotsuki lacks leadership skills and does nothing to help the situation. You would think that a character who seems to be driven by her desire to be recognized by the Chief, and who hates Akane's way of working, would at least attempt to do some good work but nothing like that happens.

Akane calls Hinakawa to ask him to check if there are any holograms nearby, but Shimotsuki notices and tells him to stop and that she is the one in command right now. Since said commander is useless, the Chief sent another division to take care of the problem.

Maybe because you've done NOTHING.

Back in the mental care facility, Aoyanagi has had enough and grabs a piece of glass to attack the old man. She looks distressed and once again tries to aim the dominator at him. Her crime coefficient is now very high, resulting in her getting shot by one of the enforcers when the door began to lift. The facility's door opens and all the hostages come running out. They all were under heavy stress, so now all their crime coefficients are high and they get killed by dominators. Akane and Ginoza arrive on the scene, Kamui says goodbye to the old man before the said man dies, and then he ponders about what color Sibyl is.

Episodes 5, 6, and 7 were so boring that I remember almost falling asleep. That whole plot about civilians killing everyone while thinking they were just playing a console game lacked impact and the ending to the arc was cliched. Oh no, Akane is once again not able to shoot at a criminal. Kamui is not even recognized by the dominator, but she still had another gun she could have used. Nobody is saying you have to kill him, you could just incapacitate him, but whatever keeps this shitty
plot moving I guess.

Why are you breaking a sweat when you've achieved nothing at all?

Nothing much happens in episode 8. Shimotsuki is investigating the data Kamui had acquired and comes to the conclusion that Kamui must want revenge against the Togane Foundation since that is the common link among everything. The Togane Foundation is related to Togane since his mom was the one in charge. Shimotsuki begins writing yet another one of her many reports about Akane, and basically states that she thinks Akane should have her inspector rights removed. She goes to show her report to the Chief, and as you can imagine, this does not go well, and then Togane appears and calls the Chief his mom. Togane's mom was absorbed into sibyl, making the current Chief is his mom. Anyway, Togane brings Shimotsuki to the desk, and then his mom says she will tell her everything about the Sibyl system while Shimotsuki cries.

I feel the same but I'm too angry not to review this disaster.

Episode 9. I've seen way better shows with 11 episodes than this crap. Maybe I have too much free time to write this. Anyway, we learn about Togane's backstory in this episode. It does nothing for his character, as far as I am concerned, and he tells the Chief they may have some use out of Shimotsuki. Back to Kamui, we go, and now he is having a dinner party with a friend. Of course, all the guests of the party get killed off by the dominators, and Kamui spews even more deep words which have no value whatsoever because his motivations and everything else is as boring as his appearance. Akane and everyone else arrives at the scene, but it is too late and everything is burning down and Kamui is gone. This scene was probably supposed to be a turning point in this season but it fell flat. The "gore" is too vanilla, the artwork doesn't look good and the imagery used is nothing I haven't seen done better somewhere else. The music that plays is beautiful and that's about it. Kamui's friend gives a tiny box to Akane, which contains the bloodied ear of her grandmother, and she finally shows some emotion after 8 episodes. Moments later we see Togane kill the grandma and that's it.

Why is this even a question at this point?

Episode 10. We're almost at the conclusion and I can't see this show picking up. Kamui and his gang hijack a train and begin bombing the station. Akane was taken out of the case, but she doesn't care and decides to stay on the investigation. Back on the train, Kamui and his lackeys are shooting everyone with the paralyzer. We get another conversation between Akane and the Chief. This is basically a repeat of the conversation they had back in season 1 when Akane learned that they killed Kagari. It adds nothing new to the table and just looks like a cheap drama. The Chief breaks the news to her that they found her grandma's dead body, and Akane goes back to her office to try and calm down but then lets out a high pitched scream. An illusion of Kogami appears and they share an "emotional" dialogue. Akane says she knows what to do now and leaves.

WHY IS HE AN ILLUSION THAT SHE HAD WHEN HE IS NOT EVEN DEAD??!!

All I could think while watching this was, why is Kogami appearing like this? I assume he is not dead, so why the hell do we need this to happen? Hell, I doubt Kogami is even thinking about Akane at all. This dialogue they shared was incredibly corny and just gave me second-hand embarrassment.

Akane decides to contact Kamui and gives him a location to meet up. Togane arrives to meet her first, and then says it is his duty to take care of Kamui. As if this show wasn't bad enough, Akane begins saying how she knows Togane has been acting, that she knows the current Chief is his mom, and that she knows he wants to paint her black. There was never any indication that she knew about his motives. This makes no sense. Kamui appears and points the dominator at Togane, Togane pulls out a knife, Akane screams, and the episode ends. Good riddance.

This season just makes me want to punch you so bad.

Episode 11. At this point I am angry. This has been a boring ride, for many things I said above, and well whatever. Back to where we left off, Akane stops Togane from killing Kamui and handcuffs him to a pipe. Then she gives another forced speech as to why she needs to protect the law and we cut to the opening theme. Kamui and Akane are on their way to meet the Sibyl system, and Kamui keeps changing into the holograms of the 180+ dead people he has. This probably would have been a good thing to show a few episodes ago but right now it adds no weight to what is happening. The Chief appears and attempts to block Akane from taking Kamui to the Sibyl system, but Kamui shoots her with the dominator. Togane can't free himself from the handcuffs and opts to butcher his hand with a pen to get out of them and follow Akane. The Sibyl system says it will acknowledge Kamui and decides to become a collective psycho-pass. Now that the dominator can work against Kamui, Akane tells him he is under arrest and asks him to surrender. He refuses and Akane doesn't want to shoot him.

You learned nothing in season 1, didn't you?

Togane arrives, tells Akane he is the one who murdered her grandma, and she begins to shake. Kamui says stuff about Akane that we've heard endless times and pushes her out of the way to point the gun at Togane. Both Togane and Kamui shoot each other, and Kamui explodes, but somehow Togane doesn't. He got hit too so why is he not exploding? god, I hate this crap.

You shouldn't even be alive, what in the hell.

Anyway, Akane says Togane is under arrest, and he screams and runs off. Why is Akane not following him? nothing is making sense. Togane is clearly on death's door, and Shimotsuki arrives at his location. She doesn't shoot him and says she will believe in Sibyl and just screams and cries. Later she reports Togane's death to Akane and says it happened before she could do anything. Akane goes back to the Chief's office, tries to act self-important but fails, and we reach the predictable ending with her one-liner about how it is the people who judge the society.

Nobody in their right mind would be intrigued by you.

Characters:

There are not many new characters, which is probably a blessing since almost nobody has any sauce to them. The new enforcers we get acquainted with do not bring anything compelling to the story whatsoever and don't fit with the current members. There is no chemistry between any of the enforcers thus making their dynamic is boring. This is a huge step down from the cast we had before. If you are into casts with characters who are able to bounce on one another you will not like this and should consider running as fast as you can from this
atrocity.

Akane, the protagonist. I have a love-hate relationship with her. Well, I had it. Now I am convinced I utterly dislike her. In season 1, somewhere along the middle of the show, I stopped having intense hatred towards her but the sequel just destroyed her character so much that at this current point I find nothing remotely likable about her. If this season was supposed to be a deconstruction of her character, it failed miserably. For some reason. the whole 11 episodes it seems the show wants us to believe that everyone and their mother finds Akane to be fascinating despite her being dull as hell. I can't help but laugh.

Togane is obsessed and wants to "color" her black, Kamui seems oddly interested in her, as well as Dr. Saiga. We are never shown anything to make us believe that Akane is this big badass and unbreakable character that has all these people interested in her. Akane became the most boring character in the show, and the moments when she tries to be smug just come off as corny and tryhard. That whole conversation she had with the bomber of the first episode was laughable. You can find similar conversations in shows like CSI. That's how bad the script is. Whenever she tries to take the moral high ground, it sounds forced and diminishes her character. The dramatic moments when she is supposed to be kind of losing her sanity are not presented well and overall it is hard for me to care about her at all or take her seriously.

Shimotsuki is the new inspector. She is an envious woman who for some reason is completely pissed about Akane being the favorite dog of the chief, and is always complaining about everything and not making any kind of effort. Her character design is mediocre, her hairstyle is horrendous, and she has no character development whatsoever in the rest of the show. You could take her out of the story and it probably would not change much. In the beginning, there were hints that maybe we could have a good rivalry or an arc related to the issues she has with Akane but this never happens in the way that it should. I can tell you right now that focusing on that rivalry would have been more interesting than the atrocity that is Kamui and his dumb ass plot.

Togane is a psychopath with a mother complex. The show sometimes implies that Kogami and he are similar, by using images of Kogami and rendering them above him and so on but nothing about this man is similar to him. Togane is not Kogami and he will never be. Besides his obsession with Akane's boring shell, there is nothing more to talk about. His design is horrible as well and out of the bunch, it seems he looks the most outdated. There is a trend with the characters in the sequel. They lack so much personality that I have to take jabs at their appearance.

Kirito Kamui. He is the main antagonist of this season and when compared to Makishima he is a joke. His character design is bland. So bland that he could star in his own rom-com anime. His views on life are boring, the plans he comes up with are nothing as elaborate as what we've seen in season 1, and he is just not a good antagonist. He has zero charisma and even when we learned about his backstory, it did nothing for him. Maybe he was deemed to fail just by the name. Even his death was boring.

The rest of the characters are mostly ok. Ginoza, Yayoi, the new kid, Shion, and Saiga are fairly likable but none of them did any outstanding deeds this season.

The show also tries to give more screentime to two other inspectors but they had no real personality whatsoever so I can't be bothered to even care. Shisui and Aoyanagi just served to make the story move.

Visuals and Animation:

The character art for the most part resembles the one from season 1, but it looks off at the same time. The Character Designer is the same so I can only blame the studio for this. The overall aesthetic of the show doesn't look even close to that of the first season, and there are no creative uses of color or other uses of interesting imagery to describe things happening. Most of the time is spent with characters talking to each other while sitting down drinking or eating and none of the conversations are immersive. The direction as a whole lacks character.

The animation and character art chosen for the opening and ending seem lazy. The use of CGI is not an eyesore and seems consistent with what we saw in season 1 so good for them.

Overall, Psycho-Pass 2 is a bad sequel. It ruins characters that were decent before, adds new ones that are dry as dust, has drab and flat imagery, and steps on everything the first series built up. The only show that has recently felt as insulting as watching this was Noblesse and at least that had something good going for it. The comedy. The only laughs I got in this show were the cliched dialogues Akane had or the unattractive artwork in most scenes. It's crazy how the only good thing about the sequel, for me, was Ginoza. In season 1 he looked beautiful but in this season he looks extra hot.

This is the only reason I am not rating this show a 1.