There has been a series of abduction incidents by unidentified flying objects. According to taxi drivers who lost contact with female passengers right before the incidents, the women were saying "the ship is departing." Jin recalls being invited to a "ship" by a man he met at a bar three days ago.
According to screenwriter Ai Ota, she joined the series after receiving an invitation from director Takeshi Yagi. Regarding this episode's storyline, she explained, "The world in this story is completely at odds with our own—a distorted, unhealthy place."[2]
Ota explained that, unlike the inexperienced Jin and Kei, Agent R is firmly rooted in reality. Although he had a marriage, everyday joys, and moments of simple pleasure, he always sensed that something was wrong with the world. He kept moving forward to avoid confronting that unease.
Although R disappeared after his wife's death, Ota emphasized that the real cause was a long-standing premonition that her death finally confirmed, showing R how distorted the world truly was. R's age was set at 35 to explore how someone at that stage views life.
As for the episode's concept, Ota drew inspiration from online shopping. The way purchases become mere data unsettled her. From such records, a nearly identical yet fundamentally different "self" could form within the network. This idea shaped both the opening and ending of the episode.
For Ota, the standout moment was the rooftop confrontation between Jin and R. Although she sometimes wrote detailed stage directions, especially for 30-minute dramas, the 20-minute format of the series relied on faster cuts. To preserve the intended atmosphere, the team meticulously refined even the smallest details.
Ota intentionally kept the ending open because he believed the world's problems were far from resolved. Even though the ship was destroyed, those who longed for it remained. The system that drove these hardworking individuals to want to "board the ship" remained unchanged.
This episode aired in the United States on TOKU on June 5, 2017.
