Reviews

I only mark this as mixed feelings because I recognize some will not appreciate it. But there is a specific audience that should enjoy this. Don't compare this anime to any other modern anime, because it's just comparing apples to oranges. This is a historical artifact and should be enjoyed as such. A lot of people will complain about the CGI art style, but given the hindsight of 20 years - it's awesome. I think it's perfect for this anime; lifeless, creepy CGI animation was this thing that was everywhere for a very short amount of time until everyone finally realized it was totally ugly and then it was really only relegated to those straight to dvd children's movies that were rip offs of disney IP. So I think it shows us exactly where this show was coming from in history, it situates you perfectly in the early 2000s. It reminds me of watching code lyoko as a kid. A time when I had no idea how terrible and cruel technology would become.

Platonic Chain is the writer's personal prediction for where technology could have gone in the future. The website "PlaChe" is like an all seeing eye, that invades the privacy of everyone using security cameras that are seemingly everywhere in shibuya. Using facial recognition technology, it can attempt to find your long lost lover or your estranged father for you. Each short episode is generally about a specific feature of PlaChe and how the main characters (cute Shibuya middle schoolers) use it. It's very entertaining to compare the technology of PlaChe to what is truly possible today, in 2023. You have this ability to basically stalk people and find their exact location, using security camera footage mainly. Information they did not give up willingly. Today, if you wanted to find someone, you would likely just find them using information they willingly put online. It would be harder to find someone's exact location, but for those who incessantly document their lives on social media, it's certainly possible. I don't have an exact thesis about this show yet, I'm not saying it's some type of groundbreaking commentary on technology and society. It's mainly just interesting to reflect on this time before everything went so wrong.