Recap: A case of Internet identity theft leads the group to a much larger conspiracy.

Iro’s Thoughts:
The metaplot of Psycho-Pass seems to finally be starting this week, with a further look into the society of this world. In what is perhaps the typical fashion at this point, the Internet is depicted as pretty much cyberspace with everyone using odd mascots. The progression is still a pretty straightforward police procedural, with the squad investigating a suspected murder and jumping through hoops to find the truth. It’s just that this time, the criminal was one step ahead.

It’s interesting to think about how serious identify theft would be in this universe – with any given person’s Psycho Pass defining their entire existence, one’s “identity” would be the most valuable thing they possess. The villain seems to be operating an entire criminal ring based off seamlessly replacing popular celebrities with his own men. I was speculating weeks ago that Kogami hated the other dude so much because he stole the former’s identity, and I might just be proven right at this rate.

Gee’s Thoughts:
In this episode we find out that like many futuristic cyberpunk stories, Psycho Pass has a fully realized internet with virtual reality and Summer Wars-esque avatars. The concept isn’t exactly new to science fiction, though there is the interesting aspect that in the world of Psycho Pass, there are certain avatars who are immensely popular, to the point where they can live off of their publicity, which I suppose in reality, isn’t far different from out own modern internet world.

This week’s episode centers around a case of identity theft in which a victim’s avatar is still in use long after his murder. Once again, the enforcers’ instincts win out over the enforcer’s preference for following the book. Will this tension eventually come to a head? I suppose we’ll have to wait and see. In the meantime, Akane continues to want to know Kogami better, though with mixed results, what with Akane being a naive and innocent recruit and Kogami being essentially a loose-cannon-cop placed under permanent house arrest.

By the end of the episode, it turns out that this internet identity theft is part of a larger conspiracy and ends up being the first episode that ends with a cliffhanger. After three episodes of world building, this is definitely a change for the better. Once again, I’m seeing Ghost in the Shell similarities with standalone episodes eventually leading to longer and connected arcs. While decent, Psycho Pass hasn’t really done anything truly impressive, but hopefully with a more involved and interesting narrative, that will change.