Finally, the time has come to decide who gets to play God or become one. Platinum End Episode 18 explores the meeting between five of the six God candidates and reveals the sixth one. Let’s see what else happened in this review!
Platinum End Episode 18 Overview
Platinum End comes to us by the writers and creators of Death Note and Bakuman, Takeshi Obata and Tsugami Ohba. As if that wasn’t enough reason to get excited about this show, it is being directed by two prominent people in the anime industry. As it is a two-cour series, its first part was directed by Hideya Takahashi, who previously directed JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure Part 5. The second part is directed by Kazuchika Kise, the animation director behind Your Name and Neon Genesis Evangelion.
The series is being produced by Studio Signal.MD, the studio behind several well-known anime such as Recovery of an MMO Junkie and Mars Red. If you’d like to catch up on our review of the seventeenth episode, you can do so right here!
– Platinum End Episode 18 Review does not contain any spoilers –
Platinum End Episode 18 Review- God Complex
Platinum End has been a very grandiose show from its beginning. It has a concept that involves its characters attempting to become God, of all things. That is something not to be taken lightly because of the earth-shattering ramifications something of that ilk contains. However, a concept like that requires nuance and detail that the show usually doesn’t have, as it usually doesn’t feature many philosophical discussions about the subject. You are more likely to find the candidates going about their lives and having fun rather than competing to see who gets the ultimate prize.
The show’s tone was also casual and cartoonish in the first half, featuring a villain like Uryu Kanade and an even worse protagonist in Mirai. The battles were childish, and the motivations didn’t make sense alongside being highly illogical. The show was, frankly speaking, awful. However, a switch flipped somewhere around the halfway mark, and Platinum End decided to switch directions into a far more cerebral and understated show than it was, which was a huge net gain for the show’s quality.
The latest episode was a great example of the same. No longer does the show rely on random and unnecessary titillation of minors or shock value to attract or hold viewers. It now understands the depth of its concept and operates mostly on a conversational and psychological level, something that works really well for the series. The characters have come together and saw the light- that their problems were the type that would be much more conducive to conversations than killing.
Read More- World’s End Harem Episode 5 Review: A New Conspiracy
The government touch is also fine, although it should have taken place earlier in the show’s runtime, especially when more God candidates were alive. What’s done is done, and what we have right now is good enough. Mirai’s contrasting morals with the suicide loving kid has been some of the best content to come out of the show, and now that it looks like the show is continuing with that plot point, the future looks even more exciting.
Platinum End Episode 18 introduced the final God Candidate, and while we don’t do spoilers here, he isn’t one anyone will see coming. There’s a reason for that: he is a completely new character and nobody that we had ever seen before. The idea of introducing a new character so close to the show’s end, especially one who is supposed to have a huge impact on the show’s ending, is a weird one. However, they seem to be an extremely capable and interesting character so far, so let’s wait a while before commenting. Their angel, Muni, is also the most intriguing out of all of them, which makes them even better.
Verdict
Platinum End Episode 18 was a great episode that showcased the best of the show while hiding the worst. The show’s current direction is the best thing it has ever done.
Click here to read the review of the next episode!