REVIEW: ‘Platinum End,’ Episode 21 – “The Time for Talk”

Platinum End is a dark fantasy anime produced by Signal.MD. With their last meeting ending in death, Professor Yoneda sets up another meeting where the God Candidates should be safe to speak. Before it happens though, Saki and Mirai step out to have a private heart-to-heart talk in Platinum End Episode 21.

A narrative structure can be infuriatingly interesting. This frustration stems from a conflict between the quality of a story’s narrative and the ability to see how it might’ve been improved. As I watched this week’s episode of Platinum End I found myself frustrated by the stall in the show’s pacing as it set up what I’m sure will be the series’s next big moment. However, as I look back on what transpired during Platinum End Episode 21, I cannot say that anything that happens is unnecessary or poorly handled, just that as a whole it felt too slow and dry. Perhaps it is a sign that the story’s overall narrative has become too convoluted that it must work through so much to set up a discussion between the two factions of God Candidates? Or perhaps I’m just a bit too impatient to see what happens next?

Perhaps the true lesson to take from this overly-slow episode is to be less critical of when fiction plays things a little fast and loose where concepts like magic are concerned. As much of this episode’s time is spent setting up safeguards against problems and untangling the veritable Gordian Knot that has become the show’s nuance and in-depth intricacies surrounding the arrows’ abilities and the conditions under which one candidate may become God. Which, to be honest, I found no single part of particularly uninteresting. I just wish there had been some way to add a bit more to break up the intricate setup. As it stands, there is only one moment during this episode when the show steps away from its Byzantium set up to allow some characters to flow through the story.

This moment comes when Saki and Mirai step away from the rest of the group to have a private talk. This scene is easily the stand-out in Platinum End Episode 21. It is everything I would want the moment to be while managing to stay true to the characters who play it out. Mirai’s few words and simple actions feel incredibly impactful as they come from a character who has been so well sculpted as someone who is extremely reserved. Saki’s trademark uncertainty also adds charm to this heartfelt scene.

The animation throughout the episode delivers the various characters and situations that move through it quite well. This is particularly true of the above-mentioned scene between Mirai and Saki.

While Platinum End Episode 21 doesn’t always succeed in entertaining, it delivers what feels like a thorough and well-thought-out setup for what comes next.

Platinum End Episode 21 is streaming on Funimation and Crunchyroll.