Platinum End is an anime adaptation, by Signal.MD, of the Japanese Manga series written by Tsugumi Ohba and spans across 24 episodes of 24 minutes each.
The first couple of scenes from Platinum End may mislead you into thinking that this anime is your typical Japanese school “Slice of Life” type anime, but the narrative soon takes a disturbing turn when the main character, Mirai Kakehashi, decides to take his own life. Fortunately, he is saved by Nasse, who introduces herself as a guardian angel and that he has been chosen as one of thirteen “God Candidates” in a contest-like process to become the new God. This concept in Platinum End sees thirteen people of different ages and contexts, all with their own unique difficulties, moralities, values, and visions, brought together as they face a predicament of unprecedented severity and each must choose whether they would take the violent or peaceful route to get to the solution where one of them will become responsible for all of humanity and untold power.
As the narrative continues, the viewer is presented with a variety of characters of which some are villains, and whilst the main character, Mirai, is forced into positions where he struggles with his own moralities and difficult decisions like who to sacrifice, and who not to sacrifice, the viewer is left with their own internal struggle while mulling over the various characters’ actions and personalities as some of the characters aren’t inertly evil and have valid arguments and motivations for their actions which aren’t necessarily acceptable, but make sense when taking the character’s context into consideration.
Platinum End leads the viewer through some intense situations and the main antagonist is finally defeated. Here is where the narrative starts to decline and we see less action, but perhaps a better story, when the surviving God candidates attempt to resolve the matter of who will become God peacefully, but this agreement is turned on its head when another “God Candidate” expresses a radical view on the current situation and Mirai’s integrity as one of the world’s preferred “God Candidates” is called into question. The narrative takes some unexpected turns and one of the least expected “God Candidates” is finally chosen as the new God.
You’re wrong if this is where you thought the series would end. The final episode of this series will leave you either sincerely stumped and impressed, or thoroughly disappointed. You’ll have to watch it yourself to see what happens, but be prepared for the rollercoaster ride that is Platinum End and a twist that has the narrative doing a three-sixty. Platinum End has produced a narrative that will keep you on the edge of your seat and displays solid story writing and well-founded characters. The narrative features sensitive topics, but keeps the viewer engaged.
