“Psycho-Pass” returns with a brand new prequel focusing on Shinya Kogami. Read on for our review of this new series’ first volume but be warned, there are some spoilers for the anime series within.
Written by Gen Urobuchi and Midori Gotou
Illustrated by Natsui Sai
In this prequel to the hit science-fiction crime drama anime series, Psycho Pass: Inspector Shinya Kogami reveals how the legendary Enforcer was once an ace detective! Working within the city-regulating Sybil System, Inspectors must fight crime in a future where a single number measures your criminal tendencies and determines if you are useful to society!
Created by Gen Urobuchi, Psycho-Pass first aired in 2013 and became one of Funimation’s first broadcast dubs. It’s spawned a video game, a feature length movie and now a prequel manga series focusing on Shinya Kogami, who’s still an inspector when we meet him here. “Psycho-Pass: Inspector Shinya Kogami” Volume 1 is an easy read and it brings you back into this world seamlessly, but it does lack a little something extra behind it’s characterization of it’s lead.
In the world of “Psycho-Pass”, criminal behavior can be predicted in each individual person through the Sybil system. In this world, inspectors fight crime with the assistance of enforcers, people who have been shown to have too high of crime coefficients. They work for the police in exchange to stay out of prison and menial jobs. Shinya Kogami is a young inspector who uncovers a plot involving a hospital and organ transplants.
Right off the bat, “Psycho-Pass: Inspector Shinya Kogami” gets into the core mystery without much explanation of the criminal system. What we get is told through dialogue in quick bursts meaning that this isn’t exactly the easiest thing to jump into if you’ve never watched the anime series. The core mystery is compelling. There are a lot of multiple moving parts to continuously look at and even though the culprit is easy to figure out, getting there is enjoyable. This book is just the first in a series so it does have a cliffhanger, however, it’s not one that ruins the enjoyment of the book as a standalone case.
Given that this is a prequel, Shinya Kogami is not the dark, angry yet despaired enforcer we get to know later on when Akane takes over this team. In this prequel we don’t really see too much of a new side to him. He’s a bit more subdued but he’s still very intense in regards to how he investigates. He’s doesn’t wear his emotions outwardly and we don’t get much indication that he’s anywhere close to where he loses control and is demoted to an enforcer. It both works and doesn’t work for this book. On the one hand, it’s nice to get a true prequel that fleshes him out and lets us see his younger days with more clarity. On the other hand, I do wish his eventual downfall was hinted at just a bit more in a subtle way. We don’t really get in his head and I think that the writing suffers a bit for that. Most of the character interactions are a lot of fun since this does have a weird, dark sense of humor and the investigation is explained in a detailed but understandable fashion. However, I do wish we got a little narration as you tend to see in most things that exist in the crime genre.
Sai’s art is very well done but it’s almost too mechanical. The characters line up with their animated counterparts perfectly and the linework is fantastic but it can read just a little cold. At many places, there’s a great sense of expression but it’s only when the comedy comes into play. Sai is very good at creating the bigger reactions like a person freaking out at their clouded hue or the enforcers getting a bit silly when they get into costumes near the end. Despite how beautiful some of this looks, there is just this coldness behind the eyes of come characters that doesn’t quite work. Specifically Kogami. He’s not the most emotive character but there are places where he looks almost bored and that’s far from what he ever is.
Continued belowBecause this is manga, the art is in black and white. “Psycho-Pass” exists in a world that visually comes closest to maybe Blade Runner and you do miss that in this format. However, because of the lack of color, this story takes on a noir like vibe that enhances the narrative. Sai doesn’t use a lot of shadowing techniques and while this works on a bigger scale, I do feel like it takes away some of the drama during chase scenes. But in all, Sai does good work, it just lacks some of the punch that this kind of story should have.
“Psycho-Pass: Inspector Shinya Kogami” Volume 1 is by no means bad but it doesn’t succeed as much as it could. It’s great to have this back and I’m eager to read more.
Final Verdict: 7.0 – Solid core mystery but falters in other areas.
