Written by Tsugumi Ohba and illustrated by Takeshi Obata, Platinum End (プラチナエンド) is a Japanese manga series that run from 2015 to 2021. The plot revolves around Mirai Kakehashi, a student on the verge of suicide, who is rescued by Nasse, his guardian angel. After his rescue, the angel grants him superpowers and explains to him that he is one of 13 God candidates who are to replace the Almighty in 999 after retirement.
Thanks to its major success as a manga, Platinum End was released in 2021 as an anime by Signal.MD and TBS and is available for streaming on Funimation and Crunchyroll.
About Platinum End—a Japanese Manga by Tsugumi Ohba
Before we can talk about Platinum End in more detail, we should first mention its author, Tsugumi Ohba. Namely, Tsugumi Ohba is the pen name of this manga writer. We don’t know his true identity, which is hidden from the public. Nevertheless, it’s well known that he is also the author of the legendary Death Note series and Bakuman alongside Takeshi Obata.
When it comes to Tsugumi Ohba’s latest manga series, Platinum End, it’s as fascinating as comics in Japan get. As mentioned, it’s a story about a high school student who decides to end his life because of his abusive fosters—his aunt and uncle. However, before he can commit suicide, Mirai is saved by his guardian angel, Nasse, who grants him superpowers.
The reason for his newly acquired abilities is that Mirai is chosen to compete with 12 other candidates to become the next God. Unfortunately for Mirai, not all contestants are eager to compete in a just manner. They will use their newly acquired powers to kill others and cheat. Hence, he allies with the rest to compete without killing.
Platinum End top characters
Platinum End is full of interesting characters. Therefore, let’s go through a brief summary of the main cast so that you understand the series a bit better.
Mirai Kakehashi
Mirai Kakehashi is the protagonist of the Platinum End series. In the animated show, he is voiced by Alejandro Saab in the English dub version. Mirai is a depressed high school student who is abused by his aunt and uncle. He tries to kill himself, but Nasse, a guardian angel, saves him. Afterward, he finds out that his aunt and uncle killed his parents, so he decided to bring them to justice, before continuing to compete to become the next God.
Nasse
Nasse is Mirai’s guarding angel. She saves him from death and grants him three angelic abilities—wings to fly, a white arrow to kill enemies, and a red arrow to make others fall in love with him for 33 days. She has a cute face, however, it’s not uncommon for her to make cruel remarks about people and events Mirai comes across on his journey to become God.
Metropoliman
Kanade Uryu, aka Metropoliman, serves as the main antagonist of the Platinum End series besides Yoneda. In the original Japanese version, he is voiced by the famous Kaito Ishikawa. Just like Mirai, he is a high school student. Yet, unlike Mirai, he will use any means necessary to become the next God. While hunting for other candidates, he uses his alias, Metropoliman, and he kills them to use their wings and arrows to become more and more powerful.
Saki Hanakago
Saki is Mirai’s love interest, his classmate, and a God candidate too. She teams up with Mirai to stop Kanade and his sinister plan. Interestingly enough, Saki and Mirai were friends in childhood. However, she did nothing to stop others from bullying him. She also saw Mirai try to kill himself and attempted to do the same, only to be saved by Revel, her guardian angel.
Top episodes of Platinum End
Platinum End is a great manga and an even better anime. It’s full of great eps, but some are just so nail-biting that we need to preview them. But don’t worry—no spoilers ahead.
Episode 1: Gift From an Angel
The first episode of Platinum End is so good, that it will hook you onto the show before the first half is over. It follows Mirai as he attempts suicide and introduces us to Nasse in one of the show’s best scenes. Mirai at first refuses to compete as a God candidate but soon changes his mind once his newly acquired powers start to kick in.
Episode 5: Death Sentence
By episode five, Mirai and Saki meet Nanato Mukaido. He’s also a God candidate looking for allies to fight Metropoliman. He explains that he’s ill and that he won’t live long. Knowing this, Nanato intends to use the little time he has to stop Metropoliman’s death game.
Episode 8: Symbol of Promise
Episode eight is one of the better eps in the series. In it, we witness the humanization of Saki’s character, as she is portrayed as holding onto a lot of guilt. On the other hand, it follows Nanato as he struggles to provide for his family and is uneasy about his imminent demise.
Episode 11: Your Own Worth
Episode 11 shows us another side of Platinum End. It’s not all serious doom and gloom. In fact, it’s all about comedy. Namely, after Saki’s red arrow hits Hajime, he gets a new lease on life and falls in love with her. Unfortunately for him, it’s not really what Saki intended.
Episode 14: Two Lights
In episode 14, we witness the fight between Mirai and Metropoliman in the skies above Tokyo. Besides the fight itself, we learn more about the antagonist’s motivation for acting the way he does. It’s the pivotal moment of the series that deepens the plot and captivates the audience more than it did beforehand.
What to know about the Shōnen Manga genre
Platinum End is a shōnen manga. Yet, what does shōnen mean? In essence, shōnen isn’t a genre. It’s actually a term that refers to the targeted audience. In this case, it’s adolescent boys, between the ages of 8 to 18. It’s usually action-packed and has fast plots that involve magic and fantasy. Besides Platinum End, some of the most popular shōnen mangas include the mentioned Death Note series and Future Diary.
Listen to more manga audiobooks with Speechify audiobooks
In case you enjoy mangas, anime, and other Japanese pop culture, Speechify should become your next stop. Why? Well, it’s the home of over 60,000 audiobooks, many of which are mangas. Besides that, it’s available across all popular platforms and devices, meaning that you can enjoy your favorite characters and plots anytime and anywhere. And on top of that, your first purchase will only cost you $1, which is more than reasonable, isn’t it?
FAQs
Did Platinum End get canceled?
Unfortunately, Platinum End didn’t get a season two. However, it’s still possible that it will happen at some point in the future.
Is Platinum End a sequel to Death Note?
Although Platinum End isn’t a sequel to Death Note, some themes are similar and one could make connections between the characters of Light Yagami, Mirai Kakehashi, Shuji Nakaumi, and even Temari to some degree.
