I have just watched Takopi’s Original Sin and it’s some really heavy stuff. It sheds light on some very real issues in today’s society such as bullying, domestic abuse, suicide, etc., and how unfair conditions can lead to such behaviors. However, the ending feels a bit… Libby, for lack of a better term? (Spoilers ahead)
Major spoilers up ahead:
So in the end, Takopi sacrifices himself so that the two rival characters Shizuka and Marina become friends instead of enemies. The anime presents this as a happy ending (of course, as the main conflict between them has been resolved in a positive way), but at the same time, during the time skip at the end, Marina still has the facial scar she gets from parental abuse in a time skip from a previous timeline, which implies that her household problems likely still haven’t been resolved.
Also, it seems like a wasted opportunity to not address how the contradictions within Capitalism perpetuate these situations in the first place, whether it be Shizuka’s poverty (with her mother having to turn to prostitution to keep them afloat), Marina’s abusive parents (unable to properly seek help, causing her to turn to bullying Shizuka to vent her frustrations), Azuma’s parental neglect (always being forced to push himself as an attempt to gain his mother’s approval due to work culture), etc.
I’ve also heard that sites like YouTube will implement AI systems to estimate users’ ages based on the content they view, and apply restrictions accordingly, such as blocking the viewing of videos deemed problematic, and an ID will be needed to prevent these restrictions. But considering that the majority of YouTube’s “kid’s content” is either brainrot or ElsaGate content, this will more likely be used to silence opposition, such as coverage on Israel’s genocide against Palestinians.