A.I.C.O.

Artificial intelligence and artificial sentient beings are interesting subject matter. If you know how to produce good work from that, you could create all kinds of exciting masterpieces. This has been the case since the days of Czech writer Karel Capek and his book/play R.U.R. In recent times, some of you may have been captivated by a PS4 game called Detroit: Become Human, which also does a great job with the theme of what it means to be alive as a sentient android. How does this production by Netflix and Bones play with the subject of artificial life? Personally speaking, I think it is a cut above the usual anime series in all aspects. The animation is decent, and the soundtrack is rather pleasant, including the opening or the ending. Not many characters stand out apart from the main two protagonists. Most of the characters are forgettable, and I am not even going to remember their names tomorrow. They will end up lost to the past or perhaps simply known as ”the screaming hysterical one,” “the one with the artificial arm,” “girlfriend in a coma,” etc. Nevertheless, none of the characters are really bothersome. The main villain has his own classic and clichéd motivation for being a sad antagonist. Even though often nothing is as it seems, a lot of things can be deduced and figured out. Plus, I think I would have enjoyed a more bittersweet ending with some sort of strong message. The conclusion here is kind of weak or maybe underutilized. That is also precisely what I think about the narrative; it is a cut above. It is interesting; however, the potential of the philosophical aspect and the narrative is definitely not used to its fullest. Therefore, you are not left with the feeling that you have seen something excellent and powerful after watching it - rather just something quite interesting. 6.4/10. (03/06/2018)