This week’s episode sheds some light on the strange alternate universe our characters inhabit. For instance, there’s a tragic lack of children running around. According to Sanda, there are only 50,000 kids under the age of 15. As a result, adults are deferential to children. Odd. We even learn later that kids can straight up kill an adult and it won’t be considered a crime. This is a world where Japan’s (and maybe the whole world’s) birth rate has completely plummeted, so children are treated as national treasures. But why has it plummeted? Is it due to personal choice? Probably not. Adults wouldn’t be coddling these kids if adults are simply choosing not to have babies. I think it’s more likely that something has damaged humanity’s ability to reproduce. But that’s still just speculation.