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Jan 27, 2020 8:40 AM

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Apr 2018
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Ok I am disappointed in this ending but I feel like a lot of others are way mor disappointed here and I want to explain why I don’t think this was as much of a waste of time as others are claiming. Yes it spells out the message and spends too long getting to it waxing philosophically (episode eleven was terrible), but it still presents a thesis on its central question of what is justice/ what is good and evil? Furthermore, ai magase seems to exist mainly to prove a point or push her idea mainly while playing devils advocate for it, or at the very least pushing it in the most pressing way possible to get zen, Alex and others on the same page. The change in meaning of what doing the right thing means to Alex and zen was an interesting plot development, although the events leading up to it and after it were definitely far from the bets or most logical route to and from it. Throughout the series we watch zen slowly realize that achieving good by only doing good isn’t possible and in the end he can’t even achieve good by only doing bad things to bad people but in the name of the greater good ultimately kills the president. It seems like that was also part of the message ai magase was trying to convey, which is probably a big part of why she didn’t truly believe what she was doing was evil, and likely only claimed so to further push the issue and get zen thinking. The underlying point here before I go on rambling to much is that this show did provide food for thought, good character arcs, good presentation and an ending that isn’t as bad as your immediate guttural response probably was to it. I def expected better but it also could have been far worse after how terrible episode eleven was. It certainly didn’t feel like a waste of my time and I feel like claiming it was would be overly harsh on all the good elements it did contain.
Jan 27, 2020 8:42 AM
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Jun 2017
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I HATE THE ENDING!!! I CANT BELIEVE WHAT I HAVE JUST SAW. I waited for a week just to saw zen killing the President of USA just then at the end when he and magase face each other--- ohh what i saw is magase...

I dont think they even resolve the issue at all.
Jan 27, 2020 8:50 AM
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Oct 2017
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anime-prime said:
I don't understand the point of this show. Shock factor? Evil wins in the end? Was this entire detective thriller just an excuse to talk philosophically (and lazy philosophy at that) and to kill the president of the united states? What was the point? I don't need happy endings but I need some sort of closure that shows that watching these 12 episodes had a purpose. What a waste of potential to an amazing premise.

the point of killing the president was to prevent the world to think the president accepted suicide
zen acted like he chased him and the president just wanted to escape from zen
Jan 27, 2020 8:51 AM

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Jan 2014
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VeriSnekBoi said:
Throughout the series we watch zen slowly realize that achieving good by only doing good isn’t possible and in the end he can’t even achieve good by only doing bad things to bad people but in the name of the greater good ultimately kills the president. It seems like that was also part of the message ai magase was trying to convey, which is probably a big part of why she didn’t truly believe what she was doing was evil, and likely only claimed so to further push the issue and get zen thinking.
Yeah i also feel similar BUT what was the point... What did she get by making a dead man realize what good or evil means? How did this change the world?They only saw a guy shoot the president, we dont even know if suicide law passed or why Itsuki even planned this whole thing... Two main antagonists one with unknown motive and one who has the motive of proving a point to a dead man...

Magase's actions only makes sense if you look at it from Seizaki's perspective which doesnt matter anymore because he is dead...Only person that somehow gained something from this whole ordeal doesnt exist now thus it is pointless...
Jan 27, 2020 8:53 AM

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Mar 2013
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Ryuseishun said:
Sorta long ramble here, cause I can’t keep the bottle cap on anymore.

That was perhaps one of the worst fucking conclusions to a mystery / psychological series that I’ve ever seen in my entire life.

What was accomplished? Nothing. What was taught here? Nothing. What was the ultimate point of all that meandering? Nothing, absolutely nothing.

Magase’s Quirk....I mean, Esper ability.....I mean, Gifted abil—.....ahhh fuck it, i dunno what to describe. That shit never had any sort of set-in-stone explanation. Shes’s perhaps one of the worst excuses of a villain I’ve ever witnessed. Whatever bit of backstory tossed in for her is silly and bareboned. She’s not sophisticated, she acts so, but there’s no true deeper intent, just a redundant af ideal about what’s good and evil. She wins in the end and is now probably gonna prey on the mc’s son now, but what was the point? It was so anticlimactic and inconclusive, considering how the series kinda lost its spirit by episode 7. Any visual cues this show are mostly too hollow without much foundation to really have much deeper theme, context, or meaning. Tbh, episode 3 was the point where I should noticed the red flag, due to how the course of the story suddenly changes to chasing some crazy bitch with supernatural psychic powers to “talk” people into suicide. Zen himself was as underwhelming as everyone else in the cast. One can argue about fitting oneself into the characters’ shoes and parallelism or realism, but seriously.......does realism alone always constitute good storywriting? No, ofc not. The one good thing I can take away from the show: the soundtracks, cause they help with adding to the tension (or at least attempts at tension).

If this was how the original source material went, this series was already full of problems to begin with, regardless of bad pacing or not (only 3 LN vol, 3 manga vol).

And people compare this to Psycho Pass s1 or even say it’s better than latter...I can’t really comprehend that, tbh, cause Psycho Pass had a sci-fi dystopia setting whereas Babylon does not unless one wants to consider Magase’s “Quirk”. Magase as a character would’ve been more befitting in a more supernatural setting.

I don’t even want to talk in detail about the redundancy about the numerous discussions about this “good Vs evil” subject. The conversation went from thought-provoking to childish real quick. Was this just more of a leeway for Magase to have her way that easily because a bunch of god damn politicians can’t come to a straightforward and obvious conclusion that was right there in front of them the whole time? I guess so.

With all that being said, the foundations for this show were too weak to begin with. It’s like trying to drive a big luxury cruiser without any propellers or engine. It felt like a show where the brainstorming just stopped halfway.


what a mess this show has been, specially after the break.
Jan 27, 2020 8:53 AM

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Aug 2018
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I expected something bright or even positive to end this show, but it turned out that even the ending is darker than anything I could imagine.

As for now, the only conclusion I can draw is that evil does not have an end and good eventually tends to become evil. Obviously that's a very negative/dark conclusion but why not.

I honestly think this show was made to open a reflexion instead of simply providing answers so everybody's interpretation will differ. Mine being that by wanting spreading good, you end up spreading evil/bad "for the greater good and no matter the cost".

Let's take an example : to save someone from a terrorist attack, you kill the opponent. Even if your goal was entirely positive & related to good, you fell into the evil side by taking someone's life. It won't matter if anyone in the world claims you were right, it won't matter if you are being rewarded for that : you still committed a sin in order to accomplish a good action and that makes you an evil person in its simplest definition.

However one thing tickles me : if I were to associate reality & religion, I'd say there's always a representant of evil & a representant of good anywhere, anytime. A hero or a divine chosen is always represented fighting a demon or a wicked evil person. In Babylon, it'd be tempting to say Zen was the representant of good & Magase the representant of evil. However in order to fight each other, one crosses the undodgeable path which is becoming evil to fight the evil. On the other side, Magase aka the evil representant cannot become good to fight the good representant so the conclusion had to be evil triumphing.

Allow me to quote Thomas Hobbes : "Homo homini lupus est" = "Man is a Wolf to Man". Man's worst enemy isn't a demon but another Man. And if we change Man (singular) into Manking/humanity, well that's then easy to understand you can't destroy your own self : evil has to be present for good to exist. There are the two sides of a coin but if one vanishes, there's no coin anymore.
Jan 27, 2020 9:00 AM

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Apr 2018
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LoneWizzy said:
VeriSnekBoi said:
Throughout the series we watch zen slowly realize that achieving good by only doing good isn’t possible and in the end he can’t even achieve good by only doing bad things to bad people but in the name of the greater good ultimately kills the president. It seems like that was also part of the message ai magase was trying to convey, which is probably a big part of why she didn’t truly believe what she was doing was evil, and likely only claimed so to further push the issue and get zen thinking.
Yeah i also feel similar BUT what was the point... What did she get by making a dead man realize what good or evil means? How did this change the world?They only saw a guy shoot the president, we dont even know if suicide law passed or why Itsuki even planned this whole thing... Two main antagonists one with unknown motive and one who has the motive of proving a point to a dead man...

Magase's actions only makes sense if you look at it from Seizaki's perspective which doesnt matter anymore because he is dead...Only person that somehow gained something from this whole ordeal doesnt exist now thus it is pointless...


Maybe she doesn’t want to change the world, maybe she just wants someone/anyone to understand her view. She doesn’t seem like someone good at getting people to understand how she views things, she is manipulative but maybe she just wants someone to see it her way. Perhaps it was a challenge for herself to make it someone who initially was so opposed to everything she represented. Also, perhaps zen isn’t dead, granted the ending HEAVILY implies she gets him to kill himself but it is never shown/confirmed in any way. The only thing that is confirmed is that he didn’t kill her. I feel like that intentional ambiguity is part of the point, and I feel like the more you think about the ending the less stupid it seems. It definitely isn’t what we wanted or expected but it has more to offer than is immediately apparent and I will absolutely be pondering on it a bit more. I just said my bit because I believe the overwhelming and immediate dismissal I am seeing here is being a bit to harsh and perhaps missing some of the point.
Jan 27, 2020 9:02 AM

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Nov 2016
32009
Lelouch0202 said:
Great episode, questionable ending.

I really liked the conversation between Alex and girl and his eventual conclusion that 'good' means 'to continue' and 'evil' means to end is an interesting philosophical conclusion for the questions this show has been bringing up.

I think I can get why Seizaki decided to shoot Alex at the end, it was to save the president's face to the world where he announced he would commit suicide if he thought it was good. Alex was corrupted by Magase's 'power' despite reaching the same conclusion as Seizaki, and Seizaki didn't want the world to think that Alex's true answer was the one with him committing suicide. It's ironic because Seizaki is committing 'evil' in the hopes that the world will see Alex as 'good' despite staunchly vouching for 'good' throughout the whole show.

The conclusion to the series as a whole is very inconclusive, we don't know what happened to Seizaki, given that Magase is alive at the end, can we assume he shot himself? What happened to the Suicide law? We deserve at least one more episode to show us a conclusion.

Overall, despite the abrupt ending I really liked this show. Mysterious, suspenseful and intriguing. The philosophical debates were interesting and made you think about them, Magase's 'power' is overly plot convenient, and doesn't really make sense given the reality based settings but I guess it was a means to bring about the good vs evil debate over making sense in the setting. I guess to that matter, the entire show seems to be more about conveying the ideas of what good, evil and justice could possibly mean with the story just serving as a means to that end. Still a very enjoyable show, absolutely shocking at points and intriguing in others. I only wish it had a more conclusive ending and Magse's 'power' was more coherent with the setting.

7/10


I pretty much agree with all you said. Definitely not the typical ending to satisfy the viewer, but consistent and I liked it too. At first I was a bit disappointed that the story didn't dive deeper into the concept of "good and evil", but instead of giving us one answer we received food for thought. So yeah, imo it accomplished what a mystery-thriller with philosophical themes is supposed to achieve.

7.5/10 had hella fun with Babylon

One Piece episode 914 & 915 & 1027 were a mistake and 957 brought the salvation - FMmatron


Jan 27, 2020 9:03 AM

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Apr 2016
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I struggled for a while to remember when was the last time an ending made me this livid. I think the last time was the Fate/Extra Last Encore finale special, which came not long after FranXX and its finale

Babylon's ending might be worse than both.
Jan 27, 2020 9:05 AM

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Mar 2016
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CodeBlazeFate said:
I struggled for a while to remember when was the last time an ending made me this livid. I think the last time was the Fate/Extra Last Encore finale special, which came not long after FranXX and its finale

Babylon's ending might be worse than both.


That says A LOT, tbh.
Jan 27, 2020 9:05 AM

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Jul 2017
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i think it's pretty obvious the Zen was arrested or killed, since you know he killed the president. Magase probably got away cause no one really knows her, so I am assuming that happened but not 100% sure, I would think the black dude and the rest would help Zen knowing what most likely happened but fuck, this ending man XD
Jan 27, 2020 9:07 AM
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Tygryys said:
anime-prime said:
I don't understand the point of this show. Shock factor? Evil wins in the end? Was this entire detective thriller just an excuse to talk philosophically (and lazy philosophy at that) and to kill the president of the united states? What was the point? I don't need happy endings but I need some sort of closure that shows that watching these 12 episodes had a purpose. What a waste of potential to an amazing premise.

the point of killing the president was to prevent the world to think the president accepted suicide
zen acted like he chased him and the president just wanted to escape from zen


I got that part. But as I wrote in my review, he could have aimed for a non lethal part of the body. There was nothing to lose. If he hits an arm and he falls, then he could say that too, if he hits and arms and he doesn't fall, then he saved his life. Either way, even what you said doesn't answer my question. Why was this show trying to say by existing? The ending didn't justify the shows purpose to be made in my opinion.
Jan 27, 2020 9:12 AM
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anime-prime said:

I got that part. But as I wrote in my review, he could have aimed for a non lethal part of the body. There was nothing to lose. If he hits an arm and he falls, then he could say that too, if he hits and arms and he doesn't fall, then he saved his life.


I think that the President was a lost case; Magase broke him and he'd probably never stop trying to commit suicide.
Jan 27, 2020 9:13 AM

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VeriSnekBoi said:
Maybe she doesn’t want to change the world, maybe she just wants someone/anyone to understand her view. She doesn’t seem like someone good at getting people to understand how she views things, she is manipulative but maybe she just wants someone to see it her way. Perhaps it was a challenge for herself to make it someone who initially was so opposed to everything she represented.
Yeah, that would be a good point if she didnt use MAGIC to make her point....If she was actually able to convince president or win over seizaki without her powers it would make sense...

Like how it would make sense if they found bunch of people who actually wanted to suicide in the opening act where she made 20 people group suicide in episode 2? 3? It would be thought provoking and i would stop and think, " wait a second maybe they have a point" but nope, they dont... They just brainwashed bunch of people to suicide...

Her powers spoil everything that would otherwise work, i can live with her powers not beign explained but as it is, it only makes this feel more hallow
Jan 27, 2020 9:17 AM
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Dec 2018
2
Any chance of season 2? This show left me hanging.
Jan 27, 2020 9:17 AM

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Oct 2013
388
I have the theory that the president's wife was Magase and when Zen decided to shoot the president she got mad and that's why we saw her in the end in his home town, going for revenge. But this theory doesn't make sense because his wife was actually helping him when he was having a hard time thinking. It did not make sense why she brain washed him either if she had some feelings for him. So this theory is denied.

The other theory is she was aware of the president because he was a smart and wise man, and when he got enlightened about what's good and what's bad she brain washed him so he doesn't reveal it to the public. But here what doesn't make sense is how she found out that he found the answer, it was only in his mind, maybe she got a clue when he said he is going to find an answer but damn that was fast. And why in the world was she blond at that scene where she brain washed him?! We willl never find out! Because come on, in such a show every small detail should make sense if you dig deeper into it right, well I guess no. So this theory is hanging.

The final theory is that she is just a crazy woman, which is obvious and she just decided to brain wash him because if the president kills himself as an answer to that girl's story then everyone's answer would be "suicide is good", and the suicide law would be denied, that's why Zen shot him but what didn't make sense is why did Magase decided to kill Zen at the end, asuming she did because we heard a gun shot. I guess because with his action he finally got in her way so that's why? But why in the world did we see her in that village in the end? So this theory is hanging too.

Reminds me of Monster,in the end there will always be evil, is this what the author wanted to show us I do not know, as a whole this show was not bad but it could show us more of Magase's thoughts, because like this she is just a hollow character with no depth which makes her a badly made villain. And maybe we needed a little more of the suicide law and how it affects people, I know we did saw some but I felt it was not enough, or how it mingles with our main cast more. What's good and what's bad, the answers were found which was a good thing, pretty obvious and simple answers but I like simple things in mystery show sometimes.

So yes like every other show Babylon had it's ups and downs, more downs if you ask me, I think I wrote too much, but those are my thoughts as a fan of the mystery genre, it was hard for me to finish this series, but let's not be harsh on the author, he can't fit everyone's tastes, and be glad we got some answers at least, everything else is a mystery!
Jan 27, 2020 9:18 AM

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Jan 2014
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NemoTheLost said:
I have the theory that the president's wife was Magase
Nope, we clearly saw his wife watching him shoot the president in his home while magase was there with him

NemoTheLost said:
The other theory is she was aware of the president because he was a smart and wise man, and when he got enlightened about what's good and what's bad she brain washed him so he doesn't reveal it to the public. !
And this is not a theory, this is what happened...She didnt need to know if he found the answer or not, she didnt care
Jan 27, 2020 9:19 AM
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May 2011
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To continue is good and to end is bad, that's a philosophy that Magase will break it easy just like she did in episode 2 with zen, she will just say shit like "then to continue starvation and war is good and to end them is bad then?"

Not as thought out as the author think, and can be broken easily by a character he created too! the irony.

Bad ending overall, it's not about it being sad or shocking, but how inconclusive it is, you spend 12 episodes for this, meh
Jan 27, 2020 9:19 AM
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Jan 2019
1009
One of the best anime I've seen. It is of the best that premiered in 2019, and it is a shame that many have missed this gem. What a spectacular and unexpected ending! It has left me with a great feeling of helplessness. I look forward to a second season soon. It was really a pleasure to see it.

Ps: That damn bitch must die.
Jan 27, 2020 9:21 AM

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Jul 2019
156
MehmetY said:
Swagarot said:

i feel like in steins gate it wasn't as important as in Babylon cause in steins gate while it was important it wasn't used as the main "thing" while in here ai's powers are pretty important cause they cause a lot of major events in the story, i feel like without explaining it ai's powers are just another plot device.

Okabe's power as important as Ai's power imo. Without Reading Steiner, Okabe couldn't keep memories from other time lines and this was one of the main things at Steins;Gate events.

Yeah but in steins gate, reading steiner was important but it had more important stuff with it, in Babylon they mainly used ai's powers to move the plot around and while there were some other stuff to move it too ai's powers we're usually the main thing to move it, if you don't explain ai's powers it just ends up looking as a lazy plot device to move the plot. even without explaining her powers i still enjoyed this show but it could've been a lot better if those powers had an explanation
Jan 27, 2020 9:23 AM

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LoneWizzy said:
VeriSnekBoi said:
Maybe she doesn’t want to change the world, maybe she just wants someone/anyone to understand her view. She doesn’t seem like someone good at getting people to understand how she views things, she is manipulative but maybe she just wants someone to see it her way. Perhaps it was a challenge for herself to make it someone who initially was so opposed to everything she represented.
Yeah, that would be a good point if she didnt use MAGIC to make her point....If she was actually able to convince president or win over seizaki without her powers it would make sense...

Like how it would make sense if they found bunch of people who actually wanted to suicide in the opening act where she made 20 people group suicide in episode 2? 3? It would be thought provoking and i would stop and think, " wait a second maybe they have a point" but nope, they dont... They just brainwashed bunch of people to suicide...

Her powers spoil everything that would otherwise work, i can live with her powers not beign explained but as it is, it only makes this feel more hallow


I get where you are coming from with the “magic” but I think calling it that is refusing to meet the show at its level. It seems to just be highly potent persuasion/manipulation that yes is unexplained and definitely stretches disbelief but if you swallow that pill is becomes easier to accept the other aspects of the show. I can def see why people that can’t/don’t can’t and don’t accept that and why it would make a lot of the events of the last arc seem all the more ridiculous but to me it isn’t as tall an order to tolerate. I don’t want to start an argument or anything and with a lot of things this ambiguous, interpretations are to each their own, it just rubs me the wrong when when I see so many people discarding this show and acting like it was all meritless and a waste just because certain parts (like the end) didn’t work for them. Episode 11 was trash as far as I am concerned but even given that the show overall is still good and has things to offer watchers.
Jan 27, 2020 9:26 AM
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littlecrisis said:
anime-prime said:

I got that part. But as I wrote in my review, he could have aimed for a non lethal part of the body. There was nothing to lose. If he hits an arm and he falls, then he could say that too, if he hits and arms and he doesn't fall, then he saved his life.


I think that the President was a lost case; Magase broke him and he'd probably never stop trying to commit suicide.


You are right, but in that instance, as any police officer would tell you (probably), you go for an immobilization, not death. You don't just shoot a person trying to commit suicide (he isn't even trying, he is being forced). You try to save them. I am just saying that there were other scenarios ahead of him. They could even go public with the truth. They had recordings. Not everyone might have believed it but as an official statement it would negate the U.S. decision to allow suicide. Imagine what his family would go through being family to the guy who killed the president. If I was him, I would go for a minor shot, hope for him to survive, and immobilize him if necessary, and then have a new president. Remember, the entire cabinet knew of Ais powers and they had evidence. Either way, I don't think it was handled well. Sort of like how some people think that Nears victory over Kira wasn't handled well.
Jan 27, 2020 9:26 AM

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Jan 2013
6450
What a shitty finale.

Nothing was explained, and time was wasted erroneously pondering basic philosophical problems.
Jan 27, 2020 9:27 AM

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Oct 2013
388
LoneWizzy said:
NemoTheLost said:
I have the theory that the president's wife was Magase
Nope, we clearly saw his wife watching him shoot the president in his home while magase was there with him

NemoTheLost said:
The other theory is she was aware of the president because he was a smart and wise man, and when he got enlightened about what's good and what's bad she brain washed him so he doesn't reveal it to the public. !
And this is not a theory, this is what happened...She didnt need to know if he found the answer or not, she didnt care


The theory wasnt just that sentence though.
Jan 27, 2020 9:33 AM

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@NemoTheLost
she didnt care about him finding the answer or not, she only wanted to talk with him and make him suicide thus it doesnt matter i f she knew president found out the answer or not, as for her being blonde, she clearly used a wig or her magical shapeshifting abilities to get inside the building

@VeriSnekBoi
> It seems to just be highly potent persuasion/manipulation that yes is unexplained and definitely stretches disbelief
If someone only have to whisper 1 word or simply brush their hand to make them completely lose all rationality and kill themselves thats a little more than persuasion or manipulation, thats as close to magic as you can get without making fireballs

And dont get me wrong, i don't think me watching this show was meritless and a waste of time, it was quite fun...But from the perspective of every single character in the show everything happened was pointless
Jan 27, 2020 9:36 AM
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Dec 2019
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When the president was killed I honestly wondered if anyone has ever tested how "final" Ai's abilities are. I mean, he could've immobilized the president and then they could've put him in a padded room for some time to see if the effects wear off. But of course, that wouldn't be helping the actually very trite message this shows forced down our throats.

I think Babylon, as a show, is a mess. There are so many things that seem to be completely pointless given this conclusion, like the whole setup with the suicide law. Because, in the end, the goal was to present a school-level discussion about good and evil.

That said, maybe it was never the goal to present an amazing story. Actually the topic about suicide in general was something to ponder. The show wants to give people ideas to think about. Maybe the whole plot was more of a hook for the author to present ideas? In that sense, this show might have more lasting impact than many other anime, even if it is not that great.
SylverthasJan 27, 2020 9:48 AM
Jan 27, 2020 9:36 AM

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Oct 2013
388
If that's it then wellp, mystery sure.
Jan 27, 2020 9:38 AM
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anime-prime said:

You are right, but in that instance, as any police officer would tell you (probably), you go for an immobilization, not death. You don't just shoot a person trying to commit suicide (he isn't even trying, he is being forced). You try to save them. I am just saying that there were other scenarios ahead of him. They could even go public with the truth. They had recordings. Not everyone might have believed it but as an official statement it would negate the U.S. decision to allow suicide. Imagine what his family would go through being family to the guy who killed the president. If I was him, I would go for a minor shot, hope for him to survive, and immobilize him if necessary, and then have a new president. Remember, the entire cabinet knew of Ais powers and they had evidence. Either way, I don't think it was handled well. Sort of like how some people think that Nears victory over Kira wasn't handled well.


Oh I'm with you on this one, the ending's shite. xD But what you're suggesting is that Seizaki should've forcibly kept alive someone who was suffering and without a prospect of recovery. That's inhumane. And Seizaki knew exactly that, as he had had a first hand experience with handling Magase's victims.

Edit: We're never explicitly told Magase's effect isn't temporary, but given the victims' claims that they took a peek of the 'truth' or whatever I have a strong feeling the damage was permanent. And even if it was not, how long could they possibly keep trying to cure (and in the meantime torture) the victims before they'd give up? Where would you draw the line? Days, months, years?
littlecrisisJan 27, 2020 9:58 AM
Jan 27, 2020 9:40 AM

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Oct 2013
388
Lol since the first episodes I was wating for the purpose of the character's actions but it was not shown so pointless is the right word I guess ;[
Jan 27, 2020 9:45 AM

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Jul 2019
40
I knew it, this was sht tsk tsk 😬
Jan 27, 2020 9:45 AM

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Nov 2011
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I'm shocked how pretty much everybody is missing the point of the show.

Magase powers don't need to be explained. The suicide law isn't what's important neither. It's about good and evil.
Jan 27, 2020 9:46 AM

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AAAGH! I'm so goddamn angry at that ending...



9/10. One of the best shows I've seen in a while.
Jan 27, 2020 9:50 AM
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Jan 2020
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For those who are saying the ending was “bad” and “anticlimactic” I feel like they’re missing the whole point. Zen decided to kill the president rather than have him commit suicide while the whole world was watching. If he hadn’t done so, most nations would’ve adopted the Suicide Law after such event. Zen sacrificed his freedom and family over saving the lives of millions of people, since Alex’s suicide would’ve encouraged the adoption of the suicide law everywhere.
Jan 27, 2020 9:53 AM

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Ryuseishun said:
Sorta long ramble here, cause I can’t keep the bottle cap on anymore.

That was perhaps one of the worst fucking conclusions to a mystery / psychological series that I’ve ever seen in my entire life.

What was accomplished? Nothing. What was taught here? Nothing. What was the ultimate point of all that meandering? Nothing, absolutely nothing.

Magase’s Quirk....I mean, Esper ability.....I mean, Gifted abil—.....ahhh fuck it, i dunno what to describe. That shit never had any sort of set-in-stone explanation. Shes’s perhaps one of the worst excuses of a villain I’ve ever witnessed. Whatever bit of backstory tossed in for her is silly and bareboned. She’s not sophisticated, she acts so, but there’s no true deeper intent, just a redundant af ideal about what’s good and evil. She wins in the end and is now probably gonna prey on the mc’s son now, but what was the point? It was so anticlimactic and inconclusive, considering how the series kinda lost its spirit by episode 7. Any visual cues this show are mostly too hollow without much foundation to really have much deeper theme, context, or meaning. Tbh, episode 3 was the point where I should noticed the red flag, due to how the course of the story suddenly changes to chasing some crazy bitch with supernatural psychic powers to “talk” people into suicide. Zen himself was as underwhelming as everyone else in the cast. One can argue about fitting oneself into the characters’ shoes and parallelism or realism, but seriously.......does realism alone always constitute good storywriting? No, ofc not. The one good thing I can take away from the show: the soundtracks, cause they help with adding to the tension (or at least attempts at tension).

If this was how the original source material went, this series was already full of problems to begin with, regardless of bad pacing or not (only 3 LN vol, 3 manga vol).

And people compare this to Psycho Pass s1 or even say it’s better than latter...I can’t really comprehend that, tbh, cause Psycho Pass had a sci-fi dystopia setting whereas Babylon does not unless one wants to consider Magase’s “Quirk”. Magase as a character would’ve been more befitting in a more supernatural setting.

I don’t even want to talk in detail about the redundancy about the numerous discussions about this “good Vs evil” subject. The conversation went from thought-provoking to childish real quick. Was this just more of a leeway for Magase to have her way that easily because a bunch of god damn politicians can’t come to a straightforward and obvious conclusion that was right there in front of them the whole time? I guess so.

With all that being said, the foundations for this show were too weak to begin with. It’s like trying to drive a big luxury cruiser without any propellers or engine. It felt like a show where the brainstorming just stopped halfway.


you said everything I was goingt to in that ramble... it's a shame it turned out like this since it could be really interesting.

At this point I'm just really glad that's over so I can stop feeling annoyed at the way most of the conversations and the plot went...
"In the past few months since we met, I've shared many memories with Nagato. Though I've also shared memories with Haruhi, Asahina-san and Koizumi, I found that I've experienced more events with Nagato in particular. In fact, every situation seems to involve her. I might as well mention this, she's probably the only person to cause the bell within me to shake the most vigorously..." ~ Kyon, TMOSH
Jan 27, 2020 9:53 AM
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Sep 2016
5
I didn't mention it in my post before since I didn't know much about this but Zen's family are probably in his hometown and here is the thing I am not sure about, I do not know if that is his hometown or his wife's and if it is, there are three scenarios I can think of.

A) Zen is in prison, his family is staying with Zen's parents who probably live in his hometown but this doesn't explain why Magase is there with a suitcase, she doesn't care about his family because if she did, she would have hurt them a long time ago to mess with Zen.

B) Zen is dead, his family is staying with his parents and the same logic above applies here^

C) Zen is free and alive, he wanted to get away from everything like he did before and this time chose the place he felt most comfortable, this gives Magase to be in that town, to visit Zen but in this scenario I can not explain how Zen managed to escape imprisonment(Maybe his prison time was up and he was released but I don't think so because his child is still young) or why Magase is visiting Zen.
Jan 27, 2020 10:02 AM

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Feb 2008
2100
I love it when a Chekhov's gun goes off.

However, even I did not expect it to be fired in such a spectacular manner.

Too bad, Seizaki...

It was an unexpected ending. I like that.
Jan 27, 2020 10:03 AM

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Jan 2014
6259
BeanzyBeez said:
For those who are saying the ending was “bad” and “anticlimactic” I feel like they’re missing the whole point. Zen decided to kill the president rather than have him commit suicide while the whole world was watching. If he hadn’t done so, most nations would’ve adopted the Suicide Law after such event. Zen sacrificed his freedom and family over saving the lives of millions of people, since Alex’s suicide would’ve encouraged the adoption of the suicide law everywhere.
zen didnt sacrifice his freedom and family, magase would kill him either way, he was at a checkmate where he would "lose" regardless...
LoneWizzyJan 27, 2020 10:08 AM
Jan 27, 2020 10:14 AM

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Apr 2017
214
Worst anime ever gets your hopes up then throw it down in the end
1/10
Jan 27, 2020 10:18 AM

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May 2019
860
I wish I never watched this show, what a mess of an ending. It did nothing except leaving a bitter af aftertaste.

I just want to forget everything about this show.
If you read Eleceed you're automatically my friend.
Jan 27, 2020 10:20 AM
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Apr 2019
46
Outlander said:
I'm shocked how pretty much everybody is missing the point of the show.

Magase powers don't need to be explained. The suicide law isn't what's important neither. It's about good and evil.

Yeah i agree that magase power doesnt really need an explanation as its not really the point, its more like shes an embodiment of evil, though i think the suicide law is still somewhat important and its a bit annoying that they didnt fully conclude it (though perhaps its open to interpretation as its a difficult topic)

1. Seizaki shot the president because if he committed suicide it would be seen as the suicide law being good, by killing him everyone would assume it was a chased and murdered. Theres not a 100% chance of immobilizing the president and he may fall or still try and commit suicide afterwards.

2. This is my opinion but you guys need to remember he was like the only japanese man at the G7 summit and he technically worked as itsuki security as well as heavily involved in a number of suicides in japan, he could be painted as if he was the real 'magase ai' by the authorities to prevent the suicide law i.e he was one of itsukis men who planned and killed the president for not immediately agreeing with the suicide law.

3. Now the ending was a surprise, i always thought that he'd kill magase, the fact that we hear a gunshot at the end suggests he killed himself or maybe was shot by someone else. Now assuming he shoots himself, was it because of magase ai or because all the events prior and shooting the president left him broken.
Clearly Magase Ai is crazy and perhaps she is the embodiment of evil as suggested but maybe she was just trying to change a good man (Seizaki) into a bad one like proving humanity is evil. Admittedly we do never learn why she does what she does which is annoying but sometimes evil doesnt have a reason?

Overall i enjoyed the series partciularly the first 7 episodes and the tone change after the looong break was a bit slow and annoying compared to psychological thriller it was previously but there were good bits, although episode 11 where they are basically high and discussing philosophy at a low level was dumb.
I enjoyed the ending episode because it was gonna end with either seizaki and magase dead or even both and i think there were signs in the anime that magase was gonna have the overall victory whether she was dead or not, and while it may have diverged from the first half of the anime, i think this provides a good ending.

Jan 27, 2020 10:21 AM

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Feb 2014
2102
Everyone was played in the end by Magase Ai. A truly evil incarnate indeed. Zen Kaizaki was just an outlet of NPC that was given the choice to either act righteous as in what is stated or act in accordance to his own belief. The addition of world leaders was to impact on how much greater the stage would be for his grand judgement. No one could resist the temptation of the satan herself.
This show ended on such a note only to let us visualize the aftermath. It makes us think as the conclusion of the viewpoint that continuing forward is good while stopping is evil. But all that depends on the person them self.


KANLen09 said:


@Ryuseishun if you're familiar with the figure called Mado Nozaki, it's the same author as Kado: The Right Answer.


Well The Right Answer was a good one and kinda similar to this one. The concept of what's right depends on the belief one has.
When someone asks me why I like anime, I'd say Just Because.

Jan 27, 2020 10:21 AM

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Jul 2017
8313
That ending really made it look like it was setting up for another season. Definitely think this show would've benefited from another season/2 cours, there's still lots of stuff to be explained (like what's gonna happen with Zen and Ai). Assuming Zen ended up killing himself then does that mean we actually have a villain who comes out on top for once?

As for shooting the president, it seems to me like a similar case with Shinobu, in which no matter what was done the president was gonna commit suicide either way so Zen decided to kill him so like someone else said, it doesn't make it seem like the pres was supportive of the law. Even if he did incapacitate him, he still would've found a way to kill himself, and given how every minute detail eventually ends up getting broadcasted nowadays, pretty sure people could put 2 and 2 together. Then again though, just seeing the president standing on the edge about to jump could also lead to the same conclusion so idk.

I think I'll go for tfw gamer president is a real thing/10 mainly because it's one of the few psychological shows that wasn't an absolute bore fest and wasn't confusing at all to understand the motifs/messages of it. That and Ai Magase is definitely one of the best villains I've seen

That being said though, I personally think the show started dropping after the big break it took
Jan 27, 2020 10:23 AM
ギャンブルビイ

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Sep 2018
625
I'm just very confused. I knew this anime was kind of a trainwreck but I wasn't expecting it to end like that.

I would have loved some kind of information about Magase's motives. Is she killing people off by being sexy just because she can or does she want to accomplish something?? How does she do that in the first place?? I think they tangled a bit too many plot points to handle in 12 episodes. Looking forward to the score drop...
Jan 27, 2020 10:24 AM

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Feb 2014
2102
BananaBenIbby said:
Outlander said:
I'm shocked how pretty much everybody is missing the point of the show.

Magase powers don't need to be explained. The suicide law isn't what's important neither. It's about good and evil.

Yeah i agree that magase power doesnt really need an explanation as its not really the point, its more like shes an embodiment of evil, though i think the suicide law is still somewhat important and its a bit annoying that they didnt fully conclude it (though perhaps its open to interpretation as its a difficult topic)

1. Seizaki shot the president because if he committed suicide it would be seen as the suicide law being good, by killing him everyone would assume it was a chased and murdered. Theres not a 100% chance of immobilizing the president and he may fall or still try and commit suicide afterwards.

2. This is my opinion but you guys need to remember he was like the only japanese man at the G7 summit and he technically worked as itsuki security as well as heavily involved in a number of suicides in japan, he could be painted as if he was the real 'magase ai' by the authorities to prevent the suicide law i.e he was one of itsukis men who planned and killed the president for not immediately agreeing with the suicide law.

3. Now the ending was a surprise, i always thought that he'd kill magase, the fact that we hear a gunshot at the end suggests he killed himself or maybe was shot by someone else. Now assuming he shoots himself, was it because of magase ai or because all the events prior and shooting the president left him broken.
Clearly Magase Ai is crazy and perhaps she is the embodiment of evil as suggested but maybe she was just trying to change a good man (Seizaki) into a bad one like proving humanity is evil. Admittedly we do never learn why she does what she does which is annoying but sometimes evil doesnt have a reason?

Overall i enjoyed the series partciularly the first 7 episodes and the tone change after the looong break was a bit slow and annoying compared to psychological thriller it was previously but there were good bits, although episode 11 where they are basically high and discussing philosophy at a low level was dumb.
I enjoyed the ending episode because it was gonna end with either seizaki and magase dead or even both and i think there were signs in the anime that magase was gonna have the overall victory whether she was dead or not, and while it may have diverged from the first half of the anime, i think this provides a good ending.


Quite the derivation you've got there. It's really compelling and satisfying.
When someone asks me why I like anime, I'd say Just Because.

Jan 27, 2020 10:31 AM
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Nov 2014
140
Too many questions left, it’s really sad. This show turned into a completely different genre after episode 7
Jan 27, 2020 10:41 AM

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Dec 2014
137
That ending was really bad. So we don't know what happened to the mayor, they gave us this hacky gunshot over black ending that sucks, the final conclusion they came to was too simplistic and makes the long philosophical debate between the world leaders in previous episodes feel pointless, and we never learn how Ai entrances people or what her deal is.

Terrible, terrible ending. It reminds me so much of the disappointing ending to Erased.
Jan 27, 2020 11:02 AM

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Dec 2015
1562
Yeah, even I have to admit to be disappointed by this ending. It basically just added more questions to the story honestly. With that being said, ignoring the fact this show had one of the best direction of 2019 (if not the best), definitely a extremely amazing soundtrack, and that the screenplay was delivering it at least until ep 7 (and even afterwards it was still stronger than a lot of other praised anime) is nonsense. I'm still giving this show an 8/10 but it probably won't be a nominee for Anime of the Year in my own award.
Jan 27, 2020 11:11 AM

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Jan 2017
1259
I was surprised with the ending but I appreciated it. It's not often you see the villain win out in the end. Babylon was a fun ride with the cat and mouse game between Seizaki and Magase being my favorite part. 9/10
Jan 27, 2020 11:19 AM

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Feb 2017
2713
Uumm... I don't really know what to comment but i don't think I liked this.
Jan 27, 2020 11:22 AM
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Jul 2018
564054
So... What exactly is Magase doing at the end with Seizaki's kid? Anyone who understood that care to explain?
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