The Comic Book Mystery

"In a few minutes, this famous cartoonist will be dead. Who killed him? Was it the ambitious lettering man? The layout expert? The background artist? The figure specialist? His disillusioned secretary? Or was it someone else? Match wits with Ellery Queen, and see if you can guess who done it!" 

"The Comic Book Crusader"

My own earliest experiences with the mystery genre were through visual media. Series and direct-to-TV films like Scooby Doo! Where Are You?, Agatha Christie's Poirot and the four animated adaptations of the Sherlock Holmes novels are some of my earliest memories of the mystery genre. And while I did read mystery novels by writers like Christie and LeBlanc before, I only really started reading mystery fiction after I started with mystery manga like Detective Conan and Kindaichi Shounen no Jikenbo. So for me, there has always been a very intimate link between mystery fiction and the visual format, and I absolutely love it when mystery fiction makes full use of its medium. Mystery fiction in the form of comics (manga) and animation for example are fantastic in bringing certain clues, like colors or intricate floorplans, or insane murder tricks that are difficult to reproduce in real life, with the amazing Detective Conan episode Noroi no Kamen wa Tsumetaku Warau as a good example. It's for this reason that I have always kept a good eye on various puzzle plot mystery comics, as I am quite aware of the possibilities they offer over the written word in regards to our favorite genre. In fact, I think of the regular mystery bloggers around here, I'm probably the one who looks at these things the most often.

For people interested in mystery manga however, an amazing book and absolute must-read has been released recently. Honkaku Mystery Manga Zemi ("Honkaku Mystery Comics Seminar", 2018) collects a series of very informative columns by mystery critic Fukui Kenta, originally written for publisher Tokyo Sogensha's Web Mysteries! web magazine. The columns have been edited and updated for this book release, so even those who have read them will find this book very informative. In the two-hundred or so pages of this volume, Fukui presents an incredibly comprehensive history of mystery manga published in Japan, spanning the period from after World War II until the present. As for the question of how comprehensive this book is: Fukui introduces over 800 different titles within this volume, so you are absolutely sure to come across a manga title you never heard of.

Fukui's "seminar" on mystery comics traces a chronological line of mystery manga in Japan, focusing on publishing history. The book is roughly divided in two halves, each comprising of two sections. The first half focuses on comic adaptations of mystery fiction both domestic and foreign. Fukui's story starts with the earliest comic adaptations of Edogawa Rampo's Shounen Tantei Dan series in the fifties, of which there were quite a lot. The many Rampo titles mentioned here not only show the popularity of Rampo's series among the younger public, they are also the first in a long line of novel adaptations. Of particular interest is the part on the comic adaptations of Yokomizo Seishi's work, in particular the novel Yatsu Haka Mura. While I was already quite aware of a "Yokomizo Boom" in the 1970s, when his work's popularity suddenly exploded with pocket re-releases and the live-action film adaptations by Ichikawa Kon, I had no idea that the Yokomizo Boom started with comics! Apparently, the immense popularity of comic adaptations of Yokomizo's work was what convinced publisher Kadokawa Haruki to publish pocket re-releases of Yokomizo's novels in the first place, and what led to Inugamike no Ichizoku becoming the first theatrical film produced by the then brand-new Kadokawa Pictures, which is still one of the four major film studios to this day. Fukui continues tracing the release history of various authors and titles, domestic and foreign, from these earliest successes to the present. Interesting notes of interest include for example the TOMO Comics Masterpiece Mystery series, which included adaptations of books like Crispin's The Moving Toyshop or Futrelle's The Thinking Machine, the part on popular adaptations of contemporary works like Yonezawa Honobu's Classic Literature Club (Hyouka) series and the part solely devoted to Sherlock Holmes and Lupin adaptations. Note however that few of these were monster hits though. The 70s ~ early 90s in particular saw many releases that... just were.

The second half of Fukui's seminar focuses on original mystery manga, and is roughly divided in two parts: the period before the mega-hit series Kindaichi Shounen no Jikenbo, Detective Conan and QED, and after. The section on original mystery manga before the 70s does not provide many surprises: I already knew that many series back then weren't really about solving a mystery, but more like spy stories, with the "detective" acting as an agent fighting crime. Examples cited are for example Tezuka's work (like Chief Detective Ken-1). The period from the 70s until the mega-hits is interesting though, and it makes so much sense in hindsight. Apparently, mystery manga series with longer runtimes started mostly in the magazines aimed at female readership, with for example Puzzle Game☆ High School as one of the longest running mystery manga ever (with the original series running from 1983 until 2001, and spin-offs/sequels still being published today). These female-oriented magazines also published many one-shot mystery stories. As I mentioned, this makes quite a lot of sense in hindsight, as the 70s and 80s were also the time when horror manga genre for girls really exploded, and the horror and mystery genres have always been very close. For those interested in the history of mystery manga, I think this pre-Kindaichi Shounen/Conan/QED period holds many interesting titles, and I definitely dotted down some titles I want to read.

While the other "lectures" (chapters) in Honkaku Mystery Manga Zemi are all focused on either time periods or themes, Fukui dedicates three chapters to three specific titles. As mentioned, Kindaichi Shounen no Jikenbo, Detective Conan and Q.E.D. Shoumei Shuuryou together symbolize the watershed moment for mystery manga in the early 1990s (some years after the shin honkaku movement started in literary world). Kindaichi Shounen no Jikenbo was the first classically-styled mystery manga series with a built-in Challenge to the Reader, which also became a big hit with live-action adaptations (the first drama series starring KinKi Kids' Doumoto Tsuyoshi and Tomosaka Rie was a big hit on TV). Detective Conan was created as a direct answer to the success of Kindaichi Shounen and became even bigger, reaching incredible audience numbers (Detective Conan: The Crimson Love-Letter was 2017's best grossing Japanese film. Not just animated or mystery: the best grossing domestic film in general). Personally, I never really got into QED and its spin-offs, though I'm aware of its popularity (you don't run for as long as QED if it were just an average series). Even so Fukui manages to point out interesting points for someone like me, like how author Katou studied architecture in college and how he uses that in his plotting. Spin-offs and related titles are also discussed in their respective chapters by the way, so series like Tantei Gakuen Q, Magic Kaito and C.M.B. are also discussed.

The remaining lectures focus on original mystery manga after the watershed moment. Not all of these were big success of course: magazine Shounen Jump's direct reaction to Shounen Magazine's Kindaichi Shounen no Jikenbo & Q.E.D. Shoumei Shuuryou and Shounen Sunday's Detective Conan's immense successes as mystery manga was the short-lived Karakurizoushi Ayatsuri Sakon, but that never really made a lasting impression. An interesting point made is how in the late 2000s and early 2010s, we saw the uprise of mystery manga with detectives with very specific fields of specialty, like Kuitan (food) or Reizouko Tantei (refrigerators). Fukui also looks at mystery manga with specific themes or audiences, like mystery manga aimed a younger public, or those that mix science-fiction with the mystery genre. Of particular interest are the lectures on "logic game" mystery manga and manga created by mystery authors. The latter is obvious, as we have many authors who write novels who nowadays also write for comics (like Ayatsuji Yukito and Sasaki Noriko's Tsukidate no Satsujin). The 'logic game' mystery genre is one that has really boomed the last decade or so, with Death Note and Liar Game being excellent examples: mystery manga that focus on characters trying to outsmart each other using clearly defined 'game' rules. Mahjong and gambling manga also fall within this genre, as these series too often revolve around surprising use of game rules to outwit the opponent.

If I had to voice a complaint about Honkaku Mystery Manga Zemi, it'd be that the book focuses very closely on publication history, meaning that most titles mentioned in this book are really only mentioned  (and perhaps followed by one short sentence saying whether it's good or not). Many sections of this book are just lists of titles, so those who want to learn more about certain titles will have to do some digging themselves too. As Honkaku Mystery Manga Zemi is about publication history, it does help if the reader has some rudimentary knowledge about manga publication history in general, because some trends and connections are more easily recognized. The book itself doesn't provide much context if you're not familiar with that. Don't expect this book to explain what kashihon are for example and what they meant for the Japanese manga market in general, as it assumes you know. The Japanese comic industry also has some major differences in terms of serialization and publication practices if compared to for example the European or the US comic industry, and being aware of the characteristics of the Japanese industry naturally helps when reading Honkaku Mystery Manga Zemi.

That said though, it is undeniable that Honkaku Mystery Manga Zemi is a seminal work for this genre. An amazing amount of titles have been researched for this book, and by categorizing these titles by release year and original publication magazines/lines, Fukui manages to point out trends in the development of the mystery manga genre in Japan, with the genre responding to both internal and external stimuli. The indexes are a godsend too, as they are divided in both titles and authors. The comprehensive framework sketched in Honkaku Mystery Manga Zemi makes this a must-read for anyone who wants to seriously write about the topic of mystery manga and I myself can't wait to read new, exciting research on this topic built on the foundation laid out in Honkaku Mystery Manga Zemi.

Original Japanese title(s): 福井健太 『本格ミステリ漫画ゼミ』 

番外編：The 8 Mansion Murders Released

I really should stop doing announcements of upcoming announcements, because it always leaves me with next to nothing to say with the actual announcement...

So yeah, I have little to add to my previous post, but to say that Takemaru ABIKO's The 8 Mansion Murders (original Japanese title: 8 no Satsujin) is now finally available as both a trade paperback and e-book, translated by me and published by Locked Room International. The previous shin honkaku mystery novels brought by LRI were obviously inspired by Agatha Christie (The Decagon House Murders) and Ellery Queen (The Moai Island Puzzle), while also having their own, distinct voice: The 8 Mansion Murders continues that trend of building on the context of Golden Age mystery fiction, but within a modern, setting as the impossible murders committed with a crossbow within a curious 8-shaped house invoke clearly the spirit of John Dickson Carr, which is even emphasized with a genuine Locked Room Lecture. The 8 Mansion Murders is also by far the funniest novel I've translated until now, but don't let the comedy fool ya! Publishers Weekly said in its starrred review the book is "one of the funniest and cleverest novels of its type to hit the English-language market in years."

ABIKO was the third author to debut from the Kyoto University Mystery Club, after Yukito AYATSUJI (The Decagon House Murders) and Rintaro NORIZUKI ('The Lure of the Green Door') (ARISUGAWA Alice was also a student in Kyoto, but he was at Doshisha University). ABIKO's career in the mystery genre expands beyond novels, as he was also the mastermind behind the epoch-making Kamaitachi no Yoru videogame for the Super Famicom in the mid-90s, changing the form of mystery games (an English-language localized version titled Banshee's Last Cry is available on iOS/Android). The Starship Damrey (3DS) and 428 - Shibuya Scramble (first English release in 2018) are some other games he worked on that are available in English, but The 8 Mansion Murders will be the first time one of his novels is published in English translation.

For those who have read LRI's earlier releases of (shin) honkaku mystery novels: you probably know what you can expect, so why wait? For those who haven't yet: I actually think this is the most accessible one until now. Like with the other novels, there are a lot of references to classic mystery fiction, but the banter of the characters in The 8 Mansion Murders is really funny to read and the main impossible mysteries are a blast.

And that's it for today's service announcement. I hope you'll enjoy The 8 Mansion Murders!

A Good Medium is Rare

 "Nothing is impossible," declared The Thinking Machine with equal emphasis. He always spoke petulantly. "The mind is master of all things. When science fully recognizes that fact a great advance will have been made."

"The Problem of Cell 13"

I've reviewed a couple theater mystery productions now, but still haven't seen one live....

Divine Dragon Village is a small community in the mountains on the verge of extinction because of its rapidly greying population, but also because it might be literally wiped away from the map because of talks of a dam being built nearby, which would lead to the flooding of the village. The one thing that keeps it alive now is a small filming studio, where the popular live-action series Psychic Academy Sigma is being filmed. Prosecutor Mitsurugi Reiji, police detective Itonokogiri and the energetic thief-in-training Mikumo are invited there by Mitsurugi's friend Yahari, who works at the studio as an assistant-director. The discovery of the body of the director puts a hold to the filming, but an initial investigation quickly leads to a suspect. Actor Asukai, who plays the lead Psychic Teacher admits he's the murderer, but there is one, enormous problem to this conclusion. The body of the director was found in the morning at the studio, but they have proof she was killed last night at the shrine high up in the mountains where the village treasure, the Dragon's Scale, is kept. However, the only path that leads up to the shrine was blocked last night due to a landslide following a heavy rainfall, so how was the body moved from the shrine down to the studio if the road was blocked? Asukai claims he used his psychic powers of teleportation to move the body, but Mitsurugi refuses to accept this supernatural explanation and tries to figure out how the body was "teleported" down the mountain in the stage play Gyakuten Kenji -  Gyakuten no Teleportation ("Turnabout Prosecutor - Turnabout Teleportation", 2016).

Gyakuten Saiban / Ace Attorney is a comedic mystery adventure game series starring a defense attorney defying unsurmountable odds in crazy trials that started in 2001. A spin-off game Gyakuten Kenji ("Turnabout Prosecutor") was released in 2009, starring the popular character of prosecutor Mitsurugi Reiji (known in the localized games as Miles Edgeworth), who'd investigate crimes himself on the scene to find his suspects. The spin-off was followed by a sequel in 2011, a manga series, and even a musical version performed by the all-female troupe Takarazuka. Gyakuten no Teleportation is a stage play (not a musical), performed by the same troupe that brought the two stage plays Gyakuten no Spotlight (2014) and Saraba, Gyakuten (2015) based on the main Gyakuten Saiban / Ace Attorney series.

The story of Gyakuten no Teleportation is based on an unused plot idea originally conceived for the second game, though it is difficult to say how much of it has been changed for Gyakuten no Teleportation. Anyway, it does feature an interesting mystery plot, as we are soon introduced to the suspect who gladly confesses to the crime, but who could not have done what he says he has done: teleporting a dead body from a mountain down to the studio in the village. What follows is a plot that mainly revolves around looking around at the crime scene and finding clues. This is similar to the games the play is based off, so that is something for the fans, but the story can feel a bit slow at times, as there are few plot developments until the finale, with most of the time being spent on exposition on locations/character backgrounds, making it feel like the main problem of teleportation is being pushed aside for something that could've been presented in a more direct, concise manner. The mystery of the teleportation trick is a bit crude, but adequately clewed, though there is a missed chance of presenting a truly great clue to the audience: I was convinced that they'd reveal a certain clue in the finale, as it appeared everything was pointing towards that, only to find out they totally ignored a chance to come up with a memorable clue. There is a great piece of misdirection going on though, one which worked perfectly with the medium of the story.

Of the three stage plays, I think the first made best use of its medium as it was a stage play about a murder happening during a stage play, and while this one is somewhat similar in idea (a murder that happens in a studio with actors), I thought this play was less... ambitious? The things they do with the props and other theatrical "tricks" are similar throughout the three stage plays, but whereas it was exciting and new in the first play, it's just not as original anymore when you see it performed for the third time with nothing new. There are also some points about the plot that don't seem to synergize well with the medium: the way the locations are connected is for example fairly important to the plot, but on stage you only see discrete sets without really showing how the previous set is connected to the other in geographical terms.
 

The live-action film and the Takarazuka musicals were made to appeal to a wider audience, but the stage plays have always been more directly aimed at existing fans of the franchise, so generally, the acting is usually a lot closer to the original games, with many of the quirks and motions of the actors being lifted straight out of the game. This works for these fan-oriented productions, though even as a fan of Gyakuten Saiban/Ace Attorney, I never disliked the more serious, darker tone the live-action film had, even though I always hear people complaining how it was not EXACTLY like the original games. People who do want their live-action productions to be very, very much like the games, they need to seek out these stage plays, because these productions are very clearly made to appeal to that audience. There is also more interaction with the actors and the audience (talking about their favorite characters), and there is ad-libbing going on too, so these stage plays have more at-home feeling.

Gyakuten Kenji -  Gyakuten no Teleportation is a good mystery stage play though, that manages to combine a faithful adaptation of the source characters and atmosphere to a decent mystery plot that the audience can also solve themselves. If you have never seen any of these, you're in for a treat, though in terms of production, this play is not very different from the previous ones, so it might feel a bit underwhelming.

Original Japanese title(s): 『逆転検事　逆転のテレポーテーション』

She Died a Lady

Dance into the fire
That fatal kiss is all we need

"A View to a Kill" (Duran Duran)

Mystery fiction has always thrived on the re-use of concepts. When you read a mystery novel, chances are that the underlying core tricks or ideas behind the mystery plot are not completely original, but a variation of an idea that has been used somewhere before, often by a different author even. This is not a bad thing per se, as a good writer should, and will bring their own originality even if the core concept is old. For example, many classic mystery authors will, ultimately, use some concept used in the Father Brown stories, but a good author will manage to add enough of their own to transform it into something not easily recognized as 'oh, that's from Father Brown, and perhaps even improve on the original idea. Reuse of ideas is also prevalent within the canon of one single author. Agatha Christie is infamous for re-using her own ideas across several works, but she was always careful to change enough of the characters and scenery so you probably wouldn't notice it the first time around. This redressing of older ideas still requires originality though, as you can't just copy-paste chapters or paragraphs of an older book to write a new mystery, right?

Reuse of assets is however quite normal in other mediums, especially in videogames. Graphical assets like characters and backgrounds are very often re-used within series (and even if they're not the same series), as are musical tracks and game engines (the series of back-end programs that actually run the game). A mystery novel isn't likely to use the same written passages from earlier novels in the series, but mystery game series will often reuse these assets from earlier entries in the series. The Tantei Junguuji Saburou series re-uses many background scenes for example, and many of background music tracks are also (remixes of tracks) borrowed from earlier games. The Gyakuten Saiban/Ace Attorney as well as the Danganronpa series do similar things, with recurring characters retaining their graphical and audio assets from earlier appearances for example.

The game Keiji J.B. Harold no Jikenbo - Kiss of Murder, also known as J.B. Harold - Kiss of Murder however has a form of asset re-use I had never seen in mystery fiction before though. This hardboiled mystery adventure game was originally released in 1987 for the PC in Japan, and has seen re-releases on hardware like MSX, Nintendo DS and Switch. It is the third game released in Riverhillsoft's J.B. Harold mystery game series, though it is not considered the third entry in the series. The subtitle of the game is Another Story of Manhattan Requiem, and that is precisely what Kiss of Murder is: an alternative version  of the second game in the series, Manhattan Requiem. Both games start similarly, with the mysterious death of Sara Shields in Manhattan and Liberty Town police detective J.B. Harold being asked by his old friend and insurance investigator Judd to investigate her death, as J.B. became acquaintances with her during an earlier investigation. This is where the similarities in the stories stop though, as Sara's death is clearly a murder in Kiss of Murder, and this time a sapphire called Blue Sorrow which Sara had been keeping for her brother-in-law has disappeared. It doesn't take long for J.B. to discover that quite a few people had some beef with the woman, so it'll take a lot of good old-fashioned footwork to uncover who killed Sara and where the sapphire went.

What makes Kiss of Murder so strange is that it's a parallel world to Manhattan Requiem. Not only are both games about the death of Sara Shields, Kiss of Murder actually re-uses a great number of assets from Manhattan Requiem, most notably its graphical assets. While the stories of both games are completely different, with different characters, both games share character art. This means that the art of many characters in Manhattan Requiem is also used in Kiss of Murder, but for different characters. So while these characters might look exactly the same (as they are the exact same assets) in these two games, they represent different characters, with other names and backgrounds. So some people who supposed to be dead in Manhattan Requiem are alive here, and vice-versa. It's a bit like having the same actor playing different roles, but it's something very seldom seen in games and mystery fiction. It's perhaps similar to how the Nero Wolfe TV series used an ensemble cast that played different roles in different episodes, though at least the actors weren't wearing the exact same hairdo and outfits like in Manhattan Requiem and Kiss of Murder. In the original PC release, Kiss of Murder was a bit cheaper than a regular PC game, but you needed the disc of Manhattan Requiem to play the game (as it literally uses assets from that game).

In terms of gameplay mechanics and story, Kiss of Murder is also very similar to its two predecessors. Once again, the story starts out in a non-linear manner,  allowing you visit most of the suspects in any order you want, asking them about all kinds of manners. Right after the short prologue for example, you could choose to go to Sara's apartment to look for clues there, but also go to her work to ask about her last few da, or visit the library to look up some old files that might have to do with her death. A chat with one of Sara's acquaintances might raise your suspicions about them, making them a suspect, but they might also point the way to another suspect, or tell you something about another person whom you first thought to be completely innocent. There are nearly thirty suspects, and at first you learn all kinds of random pieces of information of them which can be A LOT to process, but as you progress, you'll slowly connect the dots. For example, at first person A might say they have an alibi, but interviews with person B and suspect C might prove that A wasn't where they said they were, making them a suspect too. The game isn't really helpful here though: it will say whenever you have collected enough testimony to consider a person a suspect, but it doesn't repeat what those clues were, so you really need a good memory, or write things down, or else you'll go "Okay, the game now tells me this person is a suspect, but I can't remember why." Eventually, you'll gather enough testimony and evidence to confrot suspects with their lies, uncover their relation to the death of Sara and in the end, solve the murder. As the game progresses, it loses its non-linearity, as you cross off all the possibilities. What sets Kiss of Murder apart from the previous two games in the J.B. Harold series is the chapter structure: Kiss of Murder is slightly less linear as it's actually divided in several chapters, with some characters and events only happening after certain chapters, whereas the previous games had less structure. Knowledge of previous games is not required per se, though Kiss of Murder does adress a plot point raised in the first game, Murder Club.

As a mystery story, there's nothing fancy here: no locked room murders or impossible alibis or anything like that. Kiss of Murder's emphasis lies on unraveling the complex ties between all the characters. At first, you'll only have a face and a name, but as you progress, you'll slowly uncover how each of these characters are connected, and most of them will turn out to be quite different from your first impression. As a game it's certainly not a very engaging or thrilling experience, as you're basically only going through dialogue, with everyone snitching on each other, The fun lies in going through this story in a non-linear fashion and making the connections yourself in your mind, as the game itself doesn't explain (for example, the game might tell you need to confront suspect A with their lies now, but you yourself have to remember that a while ago, suspect B and C both provided proof that suspect A had lied in completely different testimonies). At the best times, it does really feel like you yourself are solving this case, but at the worst of times, Kiss of Murder feels like a chore, as you run around asking everyone about everything in the hopes of coming across a clue. The division in chapters in Kiss of Murder doesn't help much to help this problem the previous games also had.

If you have played any other J.B. Harold game, you know what to expect from this game. Kiss of Murder does not only borrow its graphical assets from Manhattan Requiem, but the gameplay is also exactly the same. It is a very sober and small adventure game that focuses solely on conversations, with no puzzle-solving demanded from the player themselves, but slowly discovering how everyone is connected can be fun, but only if you pay attention all the time, because the game doesn't want to explain a lot to you. As a game written by Suzuki Rika (known for the Another Code and Hotel Dusk games of the late CiNG), you can expect a lot of focus on the human characters, but Kiss of Murder offers very, very little besides that.

『刑事J.B.ハロルドの事件簿 キスオブマーダー』

High Spirits

Damnant quod non intelligunt

If someone says they're too cynical to participate in a seance, does that mean they are actually leaving the door ajar for the supernatural because they recognize their cynicism might be getting in the way of results?

Table-turning, speaking with the dead and other spiritualist trends took hold of the wealthy in fin de siècle London, but even in spheres so enlightened as these, crime occurs. Sergeant Cribb of London's Criminal Investigation Department is asked to investigate a series of odd thefts among wealthy citizens. The link between the robberies is the owners were all absent from their homes during the theft as they were attending a seance by a certain spiritualist whom experts think might be the genuine thing. Cribb however is of course not as enlightened as his social superiors, and suspects that this spiritualist might actually be behind the thefts. The spiritualist, eager to prove his powers to the world, agrees to undergo an experiment. The spiritualist is to summon the spirits from the dead in a closed-off section of a room, divided from the group by a curtain. A special contraption has been rigged in order to ensure the spiritualist won't cheat while out of sight. He is seated in a chair, with special handles. As long as his both hands are on the handles, a weak electric current runs through the chair, which can be checked by a galvanometer by the other people. The seance session however ends in a death, as the spiritualist is electrocuted to death. As nobody could've messed with the transformator or the chair, it appears only a ghost could've killed the man. Cribb however suspects a human hand behind all this, and with the help of his constable Thackery, he intends to find out whose hand it is in Peter Lovesey's A Case of Spirits (1975).

I have read awfully little by Peter Lovesey (only Bloodhounds I think), but I did like what I read of him, and as I had heard A Case of Spirits mentioned as an impossible crime once, I decided to pick it up. A Case of Spirits is a book in the Sergeant Cribb series by Lovesey, set in Victorian London and focusing on a policeman rather than a certain consulting detective. I had no problems starting with A Case of Spirits by the way, even though it's the sixth entry in the series. The series was also dramatized in the late 70s/early 80s (A Case of Spirits was also dramatized), so I assume that this series is actually well-known by people better informed than I, giving the exposure it got.

What I enjoyed most of this book was probably its setting. Victorian London is not a place unknown to mystery fans. Most people have some affinity with Sherlock Holmes, even if one's not too familiar with early detective fiction and there are even (fantastic!) Japanese stories set in the London of Jack the Ripper. And yet A Case of Spirits managed to entertain me in a way I had not foreseen. Partly because of the main topic: spiritualism. It's well known that spiritualism became a real hype in those times, with people trying to contact the Other World, and even Holmes' author Conan Doyle has been known to dabble quite a lot with spiritualism. The seance is not an unknown sight in mystery fiction, of course. I always think of Christie's Peril at End House and The Sittaford Mystery, though in those stories, no crimes happen during the seance, which is also the case in episodes 603-605 of Detective Conan. A good example of an impossible crime during seance would be one of the early cases from Tantei Gakuen Q, but A Case of Spirits has an interesting one too, as every suspect is in another section of the room than the victim, and it appears nobody could've tampered with the seat-contraption. It is a kind of impossible crime, though I thought the final solution somewhat lacking in power. I have to admit I had trouble visualizing what had happened exactly, and that usually doesn't help with the enjoyment of a plot. While there is some good clewing going on, other (essential) aspects are left rather vague in the story, making it hard for the reader to 1) come up with the complete solution themselves before it is revealed, and 2) still somewhat hard to really visualize after it's been revealed. Or maybe it's just me. One object for example is supposed to be used in a certain way, but I don't think the prior description of that object would've allowed for that until it is described as such in the solution. But other elements of the plot, for example the way Sergeant Cribb determines who's the culprit, are worked out much better, in an almost Queenian way of elimination. So some very good elements, some less so. The plot also involves some more minor mysteries, like the thefts, that do tie in with the main mystery eventually, but those are fairly light elements in comparison.

But I did really like the whole seance setting, as well as the grander Victorian setting. What I liked especially of the Victorian London in A Case of Spirits is actually that it's not emphasized at all! Yes, the story is set in Victorian London, explaining the spiritualism hype, but you don't get constant references to the historical setting, and in fact, you could easily forget one's reading a historical novel at times because of the lack of elements truly dating the story. It helped make the story feel more genuine and focused on the plot, rather than being dressed gaudily in Victorian dress. I already mentioned the game Dai Gyakuten Saiban already in passing, and there the Victorian setting is emphasized, but that is okay, as the mystery plots there are intricitly connected to objects and customs from those times. But not every single story set in Victorian London needs to be like that, so I think A Case of Spirits works great in respect as it is clearly set there, but does not overemphasizes its setting, with historical references cluttering the pages. You'll occasionally come across something that seems dated to the reader, but that is all, and it never screams in your face it's a historical novel.

The novel also has a light comedic tone to it by the way, which also helps make this a pleasant read. It's funny though, in terms of 'feeling', I tend to think that mystery fiction set in Victorian London (written contemporarily) has a tendecy to be 'dark and serious', but when I start to think of examples of titles I've actually read/seen/played, all I remember is fiction that's mildly comedic in tone at the very least.

Anyway, A Case of Spirits is a fairly short book, and I am afraid I have also very little to comment on it. It's a decent mystery novel with some elements that are truly great and some elements that could've been polished a bit better, but an entertaining story nonetheless. I for one definitely intend to read more of this series in the future.

Murder at the Television Studio

"Print! Radio! That's what reaches people. Television is just a frivolous, expensive playtoy."

 "The Adventure of the Hardhearted Huckster"

As I mentioned in my review of the excellent Japanese TV adaptation of The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, I try to review mystery fiction in various formats on this blog, which often means either a movie or a drama. The reason I often end up reviewing movies is simple: they take relatively little time to consume. I also watch Japanese TV dramas regularly, but for some reason or another, I often forget to write a review of the series whenever the series is over. Last year's Kizoku Tantei was an exception in that regard, as more often than not, I end up only writing something about the first episode, like with Himura Hideo no Suiri or Nazotoki wa Dinner no Ato de, which were both fun series nonetheless.

For those like-minded people who enjoy watching proper mystery fiction in the audiovisual format, the recently released 21 Seiki Honkaku Mystery Eizou Taizen ("The Encyclopedia of 21st Century Honkaku Mystery Video", 2018) is a book to keep in mind. As the title suggests, this reference guide is a catalogue edited by mystery critic Sengai Akiyuki (and contributions from various people including Mitsuda Shinzou and Ookura Takahiro) with over 250 titles of honkaku mystery fiction in video form released in the 21st century. The book is divided in six categories: Japanese films, TV drama series and animation, foreign films and TV drama series, and "variety shows". The entries vary from length from half a page, full page to two-page spread, offering a short summary, some comments on the qualities of the product and occassionally other useful information like the best episodes in a series, or pointing out what other (mystery) works the screenplay writer or director has worked on. There are also a few short editorials (one a very detailed explanation about the differences between the original stories and the TV adaptation of Kizoku Tantei) and interviews to fill up the volume,

This book does not purport to be a complete guide, but on the whole, this is a packed volume with lots of alluring titles listed. The volume focuses on productions from the 21st century, which in general means productions from 2000 until late 2017, when work on this volume was finished (I think that Murder on the Orient Express (2017) is the most recent entry included, which dates from the end of 2017). With franchises or series pre-dating 2000, the book will only discuss those works released from 2000 on. The two-page spread on the Detective Conan movies for example starts with the 2000 release Detective Conan: Captured in her Eyes, while the Furuhata Ninzaburou entry only discusses the couple of specials released since 2000.

All the sections are richly filled with both familiar and interesting-looking titles though, even if there are some strange omissions like the more recent TV adaptations of the Asami Mitsuhiko series not even being mentioned in the Japanese TV drama section. I was surprised I had actually seen a good amount of the Japanese TV drama section, but there are still enough titles I hadn't even heard of. The foreign movie section is also surprisingly varied, with not only entries from the English-language world, but also plenty of works from Asia (South Korea especially) and Europe (Italian and French movies). The Japanese animation section is of course also quite important, as there are plenty of great Japanese animated mystery shows, and this especially is a form that is likely to be missed by English-language publications with similar goals (if they exist in the first place).

Is this a perfect guide? No, there are plenty of quirks that are easily noticed. Some are minor annoyances, like the foreign film/drama sections only mentioning the localized, Japanese titles, with the original titles (in their source language) only available in the index. Some entries are also hidden in other entries: the TV special based on Shimada Souji's Mitarai Kiyoshi series for example does not have its own entry and is not mentioned in the index, but it is briefly mentioned in the entry for the film Tantei Mitarai no Jikenbo - Seiro no Umi. The Galileo films on the other hand are mentioned within the entry for the two TV series of Galileo. You'd think that they're only putting franchises together, but this is not done consistently: the Detective Conan animated TV series and the film series have two pages each (but there is no entry for the various live-action adaptations). Death Note has entries for the films and the anime series, but not for the live-action TV series. So the selection can sometimes be a bit weird.

The quality of the entries also vary wildly. Some are really well-written considering how short they can be, with a brief summary, pointing out why it's good or not, the best episodes, and some insight in the staff behind the series. Others are overly-long summaries that barely give you any idea if the product in question is worth watching or not. The entry for Liar Game for example spends probably 90% of the available space to summarize the various games they play throughout the series, while arguably this series is one that would benefit so much more by a good explanation of why it's a mystery series for those who haven't seen it yet, as it is so different.

Despite some small points though, I'd say 21 Seiki Honkaku Mystery Eizou Taizen is a handy volume to have for the mystery fan. While the book is obviously somewhat more expansive on Japanese productions than on foreign productions, it's still a comprehensive work on mystery fiction in video form from all over the world and sure to provide some tips for future viewing. Though not each entry is as good as the other, I think this volume also provides some interesting reading on productions you haven't seen yet, but also on ones you already know.

Original Japanese title(s): 『21世紀本格ミステリ映像大全』

Cool City

「あれが天王寺動物園！あれが大阪ドーム！ほんでここが通天閣や！！どや？えートコやろ大阪は！」

『名探偵コナン』

"That's Tennoji Zoo over there! And that's Osaka Dome! And ya got Tsutenkaku here! What'cha think? Osaka's a great place, right?!"

"Detective Conan"

While Osaka is historically, culturally and even linguistically an important city in Japan, I never did spend much time there, not even when I lived in Kyoto, which was practically around the corner. I think I have spent all-in-all not even a whole week there in my whole life, even though I come across it a lot in media like books, TV drama and games.

The nomer "Modern City" was more than fit for Osaka in the thirties: it was a bustling city of business and culture. The whole country was quickly modernizing and industrializing, but the driving energy behind those changes was focused in capital Tokyo and here in Osaka, in the heart of West-Japan. Hirata Tsuruko still had a few years to go before she'd graduate from school, but she was already a true Modern Girl, a person of this modern era. Her greatest hobby is reading those detective stories that of late have become popular in Japan, but little did she know she'd star in her own tale of mystery! One day, as she's heading out for school, a fellow bus passenger is poisoned to death. This was only the first of a series of murders in Osaka, but what makes Tsuruko afraid is that her childhood friend Mia and her father appear to be at the center of all things. Mia and her father, an atropologist, had left Japan when both Tsuruko and Mia were very young, so Tsuruko had looked forward to meeting with her friend again, but Mia's acting very cold for some reason, and more and more deaths occur around the father and daughter, like a murder happening in the same building as where their hotel is located. Tsuruko, with the help of journalist Urugi Shousuke, tries to figure out what's going on in Osaka in Ashibe Taku's Satsujin Kigeki no Modern City ("A Murder Comedy In The Modern City", 1994).

I have mentioned in previous reviews on Ashibe Taku's books how he loves weaving historical and literary research into his stories: the pastiches featuring famous detective characters in his The Exhibition of Great Detectives series (Part 1 and Part 2) show both Ashibe's interest in the works he imitates, from writing style to publication history, but also a great understanding of world history, as  he also weaves real world events with his tales, while Grand Guignol Jou proved to be a mystifying bibliomystery that mixed book-fiction with reality, involving Ellery Queen's Mystery League, a short-lived, and lesser-known precursor to Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine. Each of these books is packed full with small references to literature and history, which has given Ashibe's books a distinct feeling.

Satsujin Kigeki no Modern City is in a way perhaps the extreme of this style. The book is a humorous account of the adventures of Tsuruko and Urugi as they try to solve a series of murders happening around the modern city of Osaka, but the story at times feels filled too much with historical trivia. Osaka in the thirties is the true focus of this novel, so it is not strange that Ashibe would want to flesh the setting out through the use of historical research in his story, but the problem is that more than often, it's simply too much. Let me start with the opening chapter for example. The story brings us along settings like Midousuji (the main street in Osaka), but each time we're given a short description of how that place has grown out to be its modern (thirties) current form. Or when Tsuruko enters the bus, we're told about the various bus lines that existed back in thirties Osaka. And then we're told about the kind of detective stories Tsuruko likes, and the magazines running back then, and the series being serialized at the moment are mentioned too. The thing is: this goes on forever. I can admire the effort that has gone into the research into thirties Japan, into the history of topics like the publication dates of detective stories, of films, of theater, of municipal services, of the geography of Osaka back then. There are also some minor references and appearances of historical figures like Tsuburuya Eiji (Father of Japanese special effects. (Co-) creator of franchises like Godzilla and Ultraman). But to have all these references pop up every other page can be a bit tiring, as it brings down the pace of the story, and it makes this detective story feel more like a Wikipedia page at times.

I myself do have an interest in early twentieth century cities in Japan (heck, I actually took a two-semester course on the modern city (development of the city in pre-war Japan) when I was studying over there) and it's nice to see Osaka as the focal point, as Tokyo is the usual suspect for these kinds of things, but the integration of all of this research is simply drowning out the rest of the novel.

There are some nice touches to this "historically sound" novel though. Some chapters end with newspaper clippings about the murders written in the old writing style to strengthen the "thirties" vibe for example, while there are also some real time schedules of trains and buses included too. These inclusions are spread out more, so they don't feel as heavy-handed as the references in the text itself. Oh, and a funny reference is that Urugi writes for the same newspaper as Morie Shunsaku, Ashibe's main detective character, used to work for before he became an attorney, many decades later.

'Completely packed" is thus a theme, and that also holds for the core mystery plot, as it features three 'real-time' murders and even more before that. We also have Hiroko running around tailing people and stuff, so there's a lot of sleuthing going on too. The core plot however feels a bit disjointed: there's no functional link between the various murders (they're different "sets" of murders), and they are on the whole fairly simple. The book often feels like a discrete series of events: one murder happens, they talk a bit about that while we're given copious amounts of historical references, another murders happens, now we move on to that and give little attention to the previous one, even more historical references etc. The murder that made the most impression was the one commited on a train: this actually features an ingenious alibi trick that makes perfect use of the era. The way the true culprit is identified is pretty brilliant too, I have to admit, as it makes great use of the setting of this book. But in general, I'd say watching Hiroko and Urugi trying to solve the crimes is more fun than actually trying to solve the murders yourself.

So basically, I could appreciate the intention of making thirties Osaka a living and breathing setting for Satsujin Kigeki no Modern City, but the way it was done led to an uneven novel, where every other thing would spark up a short history course or unveiling of a bit of trivia, while the mystery plot, even if at times really good, feels slightly disjointed and most of all, overshadowed by the presence of the Modern City. I did like Hiroko as a modern girl in the thirties though, so I'll probably read the other book in the two-part Modern City series too, as that's a short story collection, and I imagine my greatest gripes with this book (overindulging in the research and unfocused plotting) shouldn't play too much of a role in short stories.

Original Japanese title(s): 芦辺拓　『殺人喜劇のモダン・シティ』