『小さくなった名探偵』

「立てやＯＯ！！手帳に付いとる桜の代紋が泣いとるぞォ 」

『名探偵コナン』

"Stand up !! Don'cha see the sakura mark on your police notebook is cryin'?!"

"Detective Conan"

 
Again a book with a mask in its title? It's really just a coincidence...

Like Kindaichi Kousuke no Shin Bouken, Nanatsu no Kamen ("The Seven Masks") is a short story collection by Yokomizo Seishi, featuring his series detective Kindaichi Kousuke. I wasn't impressed at all by the stories in Kindaichi Kousuke no Shin Bouken. Most of them had promising premises, but were executed very poorly. But those stories were indeed rewritten at a later stage in (presumably) a better form. No such excuses for the stories in Nanatsu no Kamen. What you see is really what you get. This makes the stories sound really, really horrible, which is not completely true. They are just... very disappointing for someone who loves Yokomizo Seishi's longer novels. Almost like somebody else wrote the Kindaichi Kousuke short stories.

The Kindaichi Kousuke stories in this collection pretty much all share the same problem: Kindaichi hardly appears in the stories and that's also because it always takes an awfully lot of time for either a) an actual crime to happen or b) enough information to become available for a detective to start deducing. One story has the first (contemporary) murder about two pages before the end and on the same page the murderer commits suicide and leaves a confession note. What were the other 38 pages before the murder about then?! Yokomizo comes with relatively interesting premises for his stories (a murder in a house full of cats; a dead body hidden in the pilar of a sun dial, a murder commited by what seems a Bat Man), but somehow manages to forget to insert a puzzle plot in his stories until the last 2~3 pages. For every story. Pretty much all important clues are to be found there. It makes for very tedious reading. 

Nanatsu no Kamen ("The Seven Masks") is written from the perspective of Misa. She tells how she was once known as a saint on her (Catholic girls') school, but once she crossed the line by sharing her bed with her senior Rinko and became aware of her physical beauty, Misa started to become much crueler. She leaves Rinko and starts to seduce men at the cafe she works at for fun. To the outside world though, she is still the saint Misa. One day, her schemings fall apart though and one of her lovers is found dead. Was it murder or suicide? This story is more crime-thriller than a puzzler, but Yokomizo put in a simple locked room murder near the end for... some reason or another.

In Neko Yakata ("Cat Mansion"), a bunch of kids find the dead body of a fortune teller. She was killed in her home, which was dubbed 'the cat mansion' as she picked up street cats and let them walk free in her house. And they were indeed walking around the crime scene. A simple, short story with a conclusion no one would really care about. 

Mehiru ("Female Leech") is probably the best story here, though that's not saying much. Kindaichi Kousuke gets a very strange request: whether he would retrieve a handbag left in an apartment. The client says she'll leave the key on top of the phone box she's calling from and asks Kindaichi to be discrete above all. Kindaichi takes the cases and actually disguises himself (in 'western' clothes, as his hakama appearance is known to all), but when he enters the apartment, he finds the bag in the sleeping room. On the bed he also finds two dead bodies, with their faces burnt away with acid. Who are these people and who is his client?

In Hidokei no Naka no Onna ("The Woman in the Sundial"), the new owners of a mansion find the mummified body of a woman inside the pillar of the sundial when they tried to move it. But the identity of the woman isn't really a mystery. Oh, and a murder like two pages before the ending. Once again, premise is promising, but bad execution. By the way, Yokomizo Seishi has written a whole series of OOO no Naka no Onna ("The Woman in the OOO") short stories. 

In Ryouki no Shimatsusho ("The Bizarre Explanation"), Kindaichi Kousuke is invited to visit his old senior (at school) at his mansion near the sea. He and other guests discover the dead body of a woman on a boat in the small cave in the sea across the mansion. The victim died because of an arrow in her breast, but was it the arrow Kindaichi's host shot earlier towards the cave, meant to scare the people there? Here we see a Kindaichi Kousuke who is awfully like his grandson, because they both seem to drive murderers into total despair and finally suicide. Of course, most clues of this story were only given in the final 3~4 pages of the story. Again. 

Koumori Otoko ("Bat Man") starts with the scene of young Yukiko cramming for the university entrance exams. One day, late at night, she sees how a figure resembling a human bat kills a woman in a room in the big apartment across her room. The next day, the dead body of the woman is found inside a trunk sent to her work. Kindaichi happened to be visiting the police, and quickly solves this case that is sorta competent, but like all these stories feel imcomplete. Most stories feel too short and that's not only because of the page count, but mainly because Yokomizo doesn't make optimal use of said page count. 

Bara no Bessou ("The Villa of Roses") also spends too much pages to not very interesting dialogues and descriptions, leaving less room for the (very simple) locked room murder of an old lady who had invited all of her relatives, as well as her solicitor and Kindaichi Kousuke, to her mansion for a mysterious announcement. Despite its length, this story has an unbelievable amount of characters. I guess that's where all the pages went to.

So by now I know that Yokomizo Seishi can pretty much only write superspecialawesome novels, and that short stories are not his forte. With short stories, he uses too much pages for creating atmosphere, leaving like two or three pages for puzzle + clues + conclusion. It's almost painful to see Kindaichi Kousuke appear in these stories. He should stand proud, not be burdened by these half-complete stories. Boy, do I feel stupid for getting so much Kindaichi Kousuke short story collections! Another three to go. Sigh.

Original Japanese title(s): 横溝正史　『七つの仮面』 / 「七つの仮面」 / 「猫館」 / 「雌蛭」 / 「日時計の中の女」 / 「猟奇の始末書」 / 「蝙蝠男」 / 「薔薇の別荘」

『呪いの仮面は冷たく笑う』

「人生は仮面舞踏会みたいなもんだ。男も女もみんな仮面をかぶっ​て生きている」

『仮面舞踏会』

"Life is like a masked ball. All men and women live their lives wearing masks"

"Masked Ball"

Maybe I should think about actually coming up with original post titles; finding appropiate titles/quotes for everything is getting more difficult everytime...

Today a writer whose work is actually available in English. Takagi Akimitsu's Shisei Satsujin Jiken ("The Tattoo Murder Case") is one of the best locked room mysteries in Japanese detective fiction history and one that everyone should have read. This was Takagi's debut work in 1948 and he followed with many other novels and I think a total of three of his novels have been translated in English.

Noumen Satsujin Jiken ("The Nou Mask Murder Case") is Takagi's second novel, published one year after Shisei Satsujin Jiken. The novels starts with strange things are happening in the Chizui mansion. One night, a person was seen walking around the mansion wearing the cursed Hannya mask (from Noh theater), an item in the possession of the Chizui family for many, many years. Young scientist Yanagi has been residing in the Chizui mansion ever since he came back from the war and he is asked by the head of the Chizui family to find someone to investigate the case. Yanagi's friend, Takagi Akimitsu, a detective fiction critic / aspiring writer (who may or may not be the same person as the writer of this novel) happens to be staying in the neighbourhood on a holiday and is thus asked to investigate this case, but tragedy strikes pretty much immediately after Takagi is hired: the head of the Chizui mansion is found dead, in his study which was locked from the inside. And besides his dead body lies the cursed Hannya mask. Was it just a normal heart attack, or was he the victim of something more sinister? And who was the person who called the undertaker and asked for three coffins...?

A locked room mystery, written by Takagi Akimitsu. A novel that won the Japanese Detective Writers Assocation Price? Expectations were high. Naturally.And the novel starts out pretty good too; the curse of the Hannya mask, the strange members of the Chizui family, the locked room mystery, it reminded me of Takagi's previous novel. And that's never a bad thing.

But the end was... quite horrible. Plot devices were taken from other, famous Western novels (though the locked room itself is an original trick, as far as I know, but not as awesome as that of Shisei Satsujin Jiken) and Takagi actually spoils the ending of two or three books in this story. Yes, Takagi, I understand you're a fan of Van Dine, but I do not feel any urge to pick The Bisshop Murder Case any time soon now. Neither Christie's The Murder on Roger Ackroyd, if I hadn't read it already. References to other detective novels are great, but never ever should you touch upon the main plot twists in the novel (at least not in a way that spoils it to people who haven't read them yet).

Takagi Akimitsu and Yokomizo Seishi's orthodox detectives pretty debuted around the same time and both writers made use of references to Japanese culture, so in my mind a connection is made rather quickly. So I was hoping that Takagi's Shisei Satsujin Jiken / Noumen Satsujin Jiken would be as strong a duo as Yokomizo's Honjin Satsujin Jiken / Chouchou Satsujin Jiken, but Noumen Satsujin Jiken is obviously the weak link here. Actually, these two couples have quite some parallels, but I'd be entering spoiler-heavy areas then.

This book is probably historically important, as it is part of the post-war orthodox boom in Japanese detective fiction, but as a novel on its own, it's pretty weak, spoiling too much and borrowing a bit too much of other novels. The locked room itself is original, as far as I know, but not nearly as impressive as in Takagi's previous book, and almost disappointing.
  
Original Japanese title(s): 高木彬光　『能面殺人事件』

『探偵甲子園』

「ううん・・・それが正解・・・死を確認するまで、生を信じ抜くことが名探偵の名探偵たる所以だもの」

『名探偵コナン』

"No, you were right, believing in life until you have made sure someone is dead, that's what makes a great detective a great detective"

"Detective Conan"

Volumes 51~60, so only one big post left after this one! And yes, that also means that there will be fewer Conan-centric posts from that point on!

This batch of volumes is very good, with a very tense Black Organisation story, set-up and wrap-up of the Hondou Eisuke storyline and a couple of very good stories. And I had forgotten a lot of these stories actually. Most of these seemed familiar, but with most of them I didn't remember the solution until late in the story, or even not at all. So yeah, re-reading was necessary. Oh, and the usual spoiler warning.

Detective Conan manga & movies:
Part 1: Volumes 1 ~ 10
Part 2: Volumes 11~20; The Timebombed Skyscraper (1) / The Fourteenth Target (2)
Part 3: Volumes 21~30; The Last Wizard of the Century (3) / Captured in Her Eyes (4)
Part 4: Volumes 31~40; Countdown to Heaven (5) / The Phantom of Baker Street (6)
Part 5: Volumes 41~50; Crossroad in the Ancient Capital (7) / Magician of the Silver Sky (8) / Strategy Above the Depths (9)
Part 6:  Volumes 51~60; Private Eyes' Requiem (10) / Jolly Roger in the Deep Azure (11)
Part 7: Volumes 61~70; Full Score of Fear (12) / The Raven Chaser (13) / Lost Ship in the Sky (14)
Part 8: Volumes 71~80; Quarter of Silence (15) / The Eleventh Striker (16) / Private Eye in the Distant Sea (17)
(You will find the links to the reviews of volume 70, 72~76, 78, 82~87 and the films Quarter of Silence (15), The Eleventh Striker (16), Private Eye in the Distant Sea (17), Dimensional Sniper (18) in the library)

Volume 51
Keyhole: Kuriyama Midori
Cases: Heiji's Memories; Chase of the Fish Mail; Hunting for Shellfish with a Sigh; Mystery of the Russian Blue; The Sealed Mansion
Plot: Hondou Eisuke is watching Conan

A rather tame volume, this one. The conclusion to Heiji's Memories is pretty much as expected: the case itself is awesome, but the way Aoyama keeps linking everybody's past with each other is really getting ridiculous (and it gets even more ridiculous in volume 55). Chase of the Fish Mail is a type of story that comes up less often in the series, being a type of the code cracking subgenre: interpretation of children's words. Azusa of Cafe Poirot has another problem with cellphones, as she is getting weird mails from a little child that often visits the restaurant. The mails suggest that the kid's life might be in danger, but how to find out his whereabouts? Mystery of the Russian Blue is a rather strange story, dealing with Eri's new cat Gorou and an enigmatic mail a client asked Kogorou to solve. The code is... pretty easy, I think. It's not like everybody in Japan uses it, but I think most people (of my age) should know about it. Finally, The Sealed Mansion is actually set in one of the mansions next to the Suzuki mountain villa (volume 5). A mysterious face that looks out of a window that couldn't have been opened and a locked room murder are the elements of this not particular exciting story, but now Conan at least knows that Hondou Eisuke is secretly watching him.

Volume 52
Keyhole: Yamamura Misae
Cases: Preview of Fate and Relations; Metropolis Police Detectives' Love Story 7 - The Fake Wedding; The Topsy Turvy Conclusion; Sonoko's Red Handkerchief
Characters: Yamamura Misae

Preview of Fate and Relations is a pretty cute story, where the Detective Boys visit a preview of the movie Star Blade VI. The DBs get acquinted with another fan in the line, but there is something sinister behind his enigmatic actions.In Metropolis Police Detectives' Love Story 7 - The Fake Wedding, Takagi and Yumi dress up as a bride and groom who are threatened by a burglar whom they had chased away. It is thought that the burglar has sneaked into the reception disguised as a guest, as a dead body dressed in suit was found a bit earlier. It's a pretty classic which-of-the-three story, not particular memorable or anything. In The Topsy Turvy Conclusion, a writer kills his ghost-writer (and steals his manuscript meant for his own debut). The Detective Boys happen to find the dead body, but all in the collector's items stored in the anteroom have for some reason been placed topsy-turvy. A Queen-ish story, with a Queenish answer. In Sonoko's Red Handkerchief, Sonoko wants to hang her handkerchief from a tree, as a sign for Makoto to find her, just like in the popular TV love drama. Luck has it that they find the dead body of a man they had met earlier that day. The only clue to the murderer is a mark in the victim's notebook. Oh, and police inspector Yamamura's grandmother gets mentioned again (and features as the keyhole character this volume). A rather dense police detective who lives with his grandmother whom he watches TV dramas with? Furuhata Ninzaburou's Imaizumi.

Volume 53
Keyhole: Higashio Maria
Cases: Kaitou KID and the Four Masterpieces; Grand Strategy of Class 1B!; Shadow of the Black Organisation - The Young Witness / The Strange Illumination; Shadow of the Black Organisation - The Strangely Large Compensation; Falling Stars of Pearls
Characters: Higasho Maria; Funemoto Touji
Plot: Mizunashi Rena (Kir) has been unconcious for two months; Eisuke uses the same interrogation technique like Mizunashi Rena; Conan finds out Eisuke is investigating Mizunashi Rena's whereabouts;

In Kaitou KID and the Four Masterpieces, a letter signed by KID tells a famous painter he is going to steal his newest work, the last in a series of four. The heist ends in the murder of the painter's father-in-law (and the theft of the painting). Has KID finally commited his first murder? Not really a KID heist story, but the plot is great, so no complaints here. Grand Strategy of Class 1B! is a cute little story, where teacher Kobayashi has prepared a little game for the kids of 1B, involving two new kids in the class. In Shadow of the Black Organisation - The Young Witness / The Strange Illumination, Eisuke invites himself as an assistent to Mouri Kogorou, who has taken a case offered by a little boy. The kid swears he had seen a man throw the dead body of the famous rockstar who has gone missing for some days from a bridge around New Year, but he can't remember where it was exactly. A bit like those other children's talk code cracking stories, but made more interesting as it is clear that Hondou Eisuke is more than he seems, using high level interrogation techniques, being a lot more smarter than he seems and apparently trying to get information about Mizunashi Rena (Kir) out of Kogorou. The next day, Eisuke brings a new case to Kogorou, one he found on the net. Someone is seemingly in the same situation as the red-headed Wilson in The Red Headed League, being paid a small fortune for a seemingly meaningless job. During the investigation, they meet up with Megure, who is investigating a murder. The son of the family where the murder happened, is surprisingly the kid who was witness to the crash and capture of Mizunashi Rena/Kir in volume 49. And even more important, it seems that Vermouth has visited the house too!

Movie 10: Private Eyes' Requiem
Release: April 16, 2006

A special movie in honor of the the 10th anniversary of the anime. As such, this movie has an all-star cast of pretty much every important character in the series (most in short cameos), with Mouri Kogorou and other detectives hired to investigate an old case. If they refuse, Ran and the other will get blown up by the bombs set on their arms (without their knowing; they think it's a normal VIP entry pass for the entertainment park). The movie is mostly memorable because of the cast (and an awesome team-up action by Conan and Hattori at the end of the movie) and one I enjoyed very much, but I really couldn't tell you anything about what the case the detectives are investigating. So it's probably not that interesting detective-wise.

Volume 54
Keyhole: Koshimizu Natsuki
Cases: Shadow of the Black Organisation - The Strangely Large Compensation; Falling Stars of Pearls; The Unbreakable Snow Man; Three Days with Hattori Heiji (1); Three Days with Hattori Heiji (2)
Characters:  Koshimizu Natsuki; Tokitsu Junya
Plot: Vermouth knows Kir (Mizunashi Rena) had an accident; In the past, Kir killed a spy called Hondou; Hattori is asked to investigate both Mizunashi Rena and Hondou Eisuke

The murder in Shadow of the Black Organisation - The Strangely Large Compensation; Falling Stars of Pearls is not directly connected with the Black Organisation, but we know that Vermouth is on the track of Mizunashi Rena, as she found out from the kid Toji that she has been in an accident. Gin also tells Vodka about the time Mizunashi Rena killed a spy in the Organisation and that the name of the spy was Hondou. Conan is also very careful with Eisuke, sending him away (using Kogorou's voice) before he proceeds with the investigation, fearing Eisuke would see through the voice-changing bowtie trick. The Detective Boys go snowboarding in The Unbreakable Snow Man. When a woman is found drowned in lake, it is thought that she fell from a cliff into the lake, but Conan thinks it's not just an accident. A rather predicable story. Three Days with Hattori Heiji (1) is a pretty OK story, revolving around a disappearing corpse inside a temple. In this story, Conan asks Hattori to investigate both Mizunashi Rena and Hondou Eisuke, as they both seem to have ties to Osaka. In Three Days with Hattori Heiji (2), Hattori is asked to enter the Detective Koushien, a match between the four great high school detectives of Japan (North, South, East and West), held on a remote island.

Volume 55
Keyhole: Kuroba Touichi
Cases:  Three Days with Hattori Heiji (2); Genta's Deadly Shoot; Young Kudou Shinichi's Adventure; Laywer Kisaki Eri's Love
Plot: Kudou Yuusaku knows that Kuroba Touichi is Kaitou KID

And one of the entrants is Koshimizu Natsuki, the only female high-school detective we have seen in the series and she is from Fukuoka too! She speaks Hakata-dialect only once or twice though. Which is absoletely cute though! The locked room murder the four detectives have to solve is brilliant in its simplicity and I really hope we'll see Koshimizu again in the series. This series totally needs a Fukuoka story. What about a scene on top of Fukuoka Tower a la the Tsuutenkaku scene in Osaka? Dogen? Yoka toko yaro, Hakata! In Genta's Deadly Shoot a German the Detective Boys had just met is murdered. Just before he died, Conan asked who killed him, and the German pointed to... Genta. Is Genta the murderer? Well no, and the dying message is a bit too fanciful, but hey, it works in Dutch too! Young Kudou Shinichi's Adventure is a story I have some problems with. The plot itself is cute, with a young Shinichi and Ran following a set of codes, left by a mysterious man at school. In the course of their 'investigation', we also meet some of the other characters, which is fun. And we know that Kuroba Touichi (the original KID) was the one who taught disguise skills to Yukiko. But why have Yuusaku know that Touichi is KID and let them be rivals like Conan/KID? This super-interrelated world with mirror-images everywhere in the Aoyama world is really getting ridiculous. Laywer Kisaki Eri's Love is a short story with Ran overinterpretating things. Becaue she does that. A lot.

Volume 56
Keyhole: Ethan Hondou
Cases: Metropolis Police Detectives' Love Story 8 - The Ring Finger on her Left Hand; The Yamanba's Knife; The Whereabouts of the Black Photograph; Clash of Red and Black - Start / Blood Relative
Characters: Ethan Hondou
Plot: Hondou Eisuke lived in Osaka; Conan acquires photo of Hondou's father; Hondou's father worked at the Company, Mizunashi Rena has bloodtype AB

Why is Satou wearing a ring on her left hand? Takagi is not really concentrating on the case in Metropolis Police Detectives' Love Story 8 - The Ring Finger on her Left Hand, as the rings bugs him. A lot. A ring also plays a big part in the poisoning of a celebrated writer. It seems like suicide, as all doors were locked before the coffee was made, but suicides are very rare in Conan. The trick used here actually a variation on those we saw in the first cases with Hattori and Haibara. The Yamanba's Knife is a short story, with the DB's (and Agasa) getting lost in the mountains and ending up in the house of old little woman. A second group also arrives there, consisting of two hosts and their customer. She gets killed, but where did the murder weapon go? And then the investigation regarding Hondou Eisuke and Mizunashi Rena continues, as Hattori discovered that Eisuke used to live in Osaka and that his father used to visit a restaurant with his colleagues, who all wore black. The grandson of the owner of the restaurant has a photo of Eisuke's father and Conan, Agasa and Ai quickly go there to get it, solving a little case of breaking and entering. Acquiring the picture, Conan is also told that Hondou seemed to work at something called the Company. Clash of Red and Black - Start / Blood Relative is the start of the wrap-up of the Hondou Eisuke story-line. Here Conan finds out that Eisuke has been visiting hospitals in search of his sister, who looks precisely like Mizunashi Rena. He is also told about that Eisuke had an accident in the past and received his sisters' blood. While Eisuke says he doesn't think that Mizunashi Rena is his sister, Ran suggests visiting her father's friend who is a big fan of Mizunashi Rena. They get wrapped up in a phone fraud case, but finally find out that Mizunashi Rena has bloodtype AB, while Eisuke says he has type O, meaning Mizunashi Rena can't be his sister (as he wouldn't be able to receive her blood).

Volume 57
Keyhole: James Black
Cases: Clash of Red and Black - Start / Blood Relative; Devil of the TV Station; Man on the Run; Clash of Red and Black - Coma / Infiltration
Plot: Birth certificate confirms Eisuke is bloodtype O; Ethan Hondou was an undercover CIA agent; Eisuke is snooping around Haido Central Hospital; the Organisation has infiltrated the hospital;

Luck has it that Eisuke is going to visit the mansion where his mother worked as a maid in the past to pick up some lost items (including a certificate with his bloodtype, confirming it as type O). Kogorou happens to be invited to the mansion too, to investigate the murder on the son of the family some time ago. During their visit, the head of the family is found hanged inside his study, Suicide or murder? Conan also discovers that Eisuke has a scar on his chest from an operation, that will turn to be very significant later. In Devil of the TV Station, Satan Onitsuka, a rock star, kills the director of his production company at the Nichiuri TV station. The Detective Boys happen to be visiting the studio and Conan quickly suspects Satan Onitsuka, but has trouble finding proof for it. The story revolves around two tricks (how did Satan get out of his room and how did he get a hold of a mirror), one of them being practically copied out of a Furuhata Ninzaburou episode. Man on the Run is a short story about Kogorou being on the run for someone. Funny, but more like a short breather for the longest Conan-story up until now, spanning more than a volume: Clash of Red and Black. It starts with many revelations: Hondou Ethan, father of Eisuke, was an undercover CIA spy in the Organisation, killed by Kir (Mizunashi Rena). Hondou Eisuke has been frantically searching around hospitals for Mizunashi Rena, suspecting that someone has killed his sister and had her face surgically changed to look like her. Furthermore, Eisuke had once heard his father use the mail-adress of the Organisation's boss (which sounds like nanatsu no ko if entered on a phone) and he heard the mail-adress again in the Haido Central Hospital, which is where Mizunashi Rena is; meaning that the Organisation already infiltrated the hospital. Jodie, James Black and Conan go to the hospital immediately and discover that a patient has been asking around. Conan also discovers that Eisuke had leukemia.

Movie 11: Jolly Roger in the Deep Azure
Release: April 21, 2007

Absolutely. Boring. Movie. The fact that the opening sequence is rather different from the other movies should have set me off. A quest for treasure means this is a rather Detective Boys heavy movie too. It includes some forensic investigation, but this is really the worst Conan movie. Some friends said they liked it, because of the Ran/Sonoko friendship scenes and stuff, but that is certainly not why I am watching Conan. It actually took me a while to get over the utter shock of this movie and gather enough courage to see the next Conan movie.

Volume 58
Keyhole: Andre Camel
Characters: Andre Camel
Black Organisation:  Kusuda Rikumichi; Kir (Mizunashi Rena = Hondou Akemi); Rye (Maboroshi Dai = Akai Shuuichi) (not anymore)
Cases: Clash of Red and Black -  Coma / Infiltration; Clash of Red and Black - Awakening / Disturbance / Disguise / Testament; Clash of Red and Black - Suspicion / Innocence / Desperation / Killed in the line of Duty
Plot: Kusuda commits suicide; a past between Akai Shuuichi and Miyano Akemi; Mizunashi Rena uncovered als CIA agent and sister of Eisuke; Mizunashi Rena returns to the Organisation; Jodie borrows Conan's cellphone; Akai get shot by Mizunashi Rena

Superspecialawesome volume! The whole volume is one single story, the longest until now. Too much happens: the FBI find out who the mole is thanks to Conan, but he escapes and commits suicide; thus notifying that Mizunashi Rena is in the hospital. The Organisation plays a cat-and-mouse game with the FBI who are trying to protect Mizunashi Rena (and the other patients in the hospital), which is stunning! With hightened security, we also meet FBI agent Andre Camel, who looks a bit like Vodka. Akai's past is explored and Conan is told that he used to be a spy in the Organisation with the codename Rye and that he dated Miyano Akemi, Haibara's sister in the past. Because the Organisation found out about Akai (thanks to a mistake by Camel), the Organisation started to distrust Akemi, and the 100 Million Yen Robbery (volume 2) was actually meant to prove her loyalty to the Organisation as well as getting her sister out of the Organisation. Conan and Akai seem to get along very good, coming up with a whole series of plans of actions. Mizunashi Rena is also uncovered as Hondou Hidemi, CIA spy in the Organisation and indeed the daughter of Hondou Eisuke and sister of Eisuke. Her father commited suicide to save his daughter and the mission, making it seem like she had killed a spy. Eisuke changed bloodtypes after his leukemia operation, meaning he has AB type, just like his sister. Akai Shuuichi and Conan strike a deal with Mizunashi Rena; they'll return her to the Organisation, in exchange for information. She accepts and through several double bluffs she gets back in the Organisation, making it seem like she escaped on her own from the FBI, marking a short pause in the battle between the FBI and the Organisation. Andre Camel gets caught up in a murder case during this break, a case with three foreigners as suspects. Jodie comes to help him, and it is during this time that the Boss orders Kir (through Gin) to kill Akai Shuuichi, in order to clear any suspicions of her having struck any deals with the FBI. And she indeed lures him out, saying she needs protection and shoots him on the spot, under the watchful eyes of Gin.

Volume 59
Keyhole: Yamato Kansuke
Characters: Torada (nee Uehara) Yui 
Police: Police Inspector Yamato Kansuke (Nagano)
Cases: Clash of Red and Black - Suspicion / Innocence / Desperation / Killed in the line of Duty; Laywer Kisaki Eri's Testimony; Fuurinkazan - Armored Warrior in the Maze / Conclusion of Shadow and Lightning; The Dead Angle in the Karaoke Box
Plot:  Fingerprints of the dead body match those on Conan's phone; Jodie gives Conan a different phone back;

The car with Akai Shuuichi's body is blown up by Kir. Jodie remembers that Conan's cellphone (which she is borrowing) has Akai's fingerprints on them and asks the police to check them with the dead body's prints. They match.  Laywer Kisaki Eri's Testimony is a short story where a killer uses Eri as her alibi: the murderer was cutting Eri's hair when the murder took place. A very mechanical, Shimada Souji-esque trick. Fuurinkazan - Armored warrior in the maze / Conclusion of Shadow and Lightning is one of the best stories in Conan history, period. Two rivaling families, murders commited following a Fuurinkazan motive, appearance by Hattori, first appearance by Yamato Kansuke, a hard-boiled one-eyed detective with a limp. A must-read. The Dead Angle in the Karaoke Box is the last Hondou Eisuke story (for now). It starts with Hondou and Conan both trying to buy Shinmei Kaori's (volume 19) new book, and they (together with Sonoko and Ran) end up in a karaoke box, where a murder is committed.

Volume 60
Keyhole: Okiya Subaru
Characters: Okiya Subaru 
Black Organisation: Bourbon
Cases: The Dead Angle in the Karaoke Box; Red, White, Yellow and the Detective Boys / Mystery of the W Code; The True Identity of the Urban Legend; Murderous Intent is the Fragrance of Coffee
Plot: Hondou Eisuke finds out that Conan is Shinichi; leaves for America to enter the CIA; Okiya Subaru moves in the Kudou residence

The Dead Angle in the Karaoke Box is a story that revolves around the search for a murder weapon, and is very much like a certain Furuhata Ninzaburou story, but a bit more practical. In the end, Hondou Eisuke tells Conan he's going to the States and baits Conan into telling him he's actually Shinichi, something he had suspected from the beginning. In Red, White, Yellow and the Detective Boys / Mystery of the W Code, the mansion of the classmate of the Detective Boys is burned down. The Detective Boys were asked by the kid to investigate one of the persons renting a room at their place, saying he was rather suspicous. Once again code cracking of a kid's story, but more interesting is the introduction of Okiya Subaru, a student who was renting a room there and thus a suspect. Haibara seems to feel a Organisation vibe from him and he seems to be a bit too smart. As Mizunashi Rena had leaked information to Jodie, saying that a new Organisation member with the codename Bourbon has been sent to investigate around the Beika area, Conan, Jodie and Haibara suspect that this Bourbon is looking for Haibara. And Okiya seems like the best suspect for Bourbon. To much surprise of Haibara though, Conan tells Okiya to live in the Kudou mansion, saying nobody lives there now anyway. In The True Identity of the Urban Legend, 'The Hammer Man' has been murdering women with a hammer and the police has found out where he lives. When they enter his home though, they find him strangled to death. A story that revolves around misdirection and actually re-uses the same trick a couple of volumes earlier, but done much better. Murderous Intent is the Fragrance of Coffee also revolves around misdirection, with a poisoning murder and actually a very good story, IMHO, even though it's set up quite simple.

Hondou Eisuke was introduced in volume 59, but is pretty much the main player in this set of stories, as he is searching for the missing Mizunashi Rena. The conclusion of this is in The Clash of Red and Black (volumes 57~59) is really intense and one of the best Conan stories. I don't really like Hondou Eisuke as a character, as he was either a Conan-type of character, 'accidently' helping the detective or just too suspicious, so I'm glad he's gone, but I have to admit the arc itself is very good. With both the CIA and FBI in the story, a mole in the Organisation and the death (?) of Akai Shuuichi, it's not really clear how big the finale of Conan is going to be though. The Organisation is getting bigger by the minute, it seems.

The best 'normal' stories in these volumes are the Hattori stories; the Detective Koushien is great with four (five) great detectives gathered, including someone from Fukuoka! The Fuurinkazan story is just amazing with great story-telling and an awesome theme for the murders.

And now just the last 10 volumes! 

Original Japanese title(s): 『名探偵コナン』第５１巻～６０巻　/ 『名探偵コナン　探偵たちの鎮魂歌（レクイエム）』 / 『名探偵コナン紺碧の棺（ジョッリー・ロジャー）』

「真夜中のコナン、はじまる」

親愛なる新一様

私はあなたのファンです。

あなたの活躍を見てきました。

あなたは素晴らしい探偵です。

このホワイトロームはあなたへのプレゼントです。

楽しんで　♥　♥

『名探偵コナン　工藤新一への挑戦状』

My dear Shinichi

I am your fan.

I have been watching your work.

You are a great detective.

This white room is a present for you.

Have fun ♥　♥ 

Detective Conan - A Challenge Letter for Kudou Shinichi

Yes, I know that lately posts have been very dangerously Conan-centric, but it's really all just a coincidence. I for one didn't even know the Conan drama was to begin this week until two days before the first episode,which was yesterday, on Tanabata. Planned on purpose because of the whole Ran and Shinichi thing? Maybe. Anyway, I plan to write something up for every episode of this new series. Because fanboys will be fanboys.

Meitantei Conan - Kudou Shinichi e no Chousenjou (Detective Conan - A Challenge Letter for Kudou Shinichi)
Episode 1 (July 7, 2011): Before he turned into Conan, the high school detective solved the mystery of the adultery murder!
Episode 2 (July 14, 2011): The locked room murder commited on air! Reveal the secret cursed by the psychic
Episode 3 (July 21, 2011): Murder Case in a Locked Courtroom! Reveal the Trick of the Hostess Murder
Episode 4 (July 28, 2011): Perfect Crime! Murder Notice at a Wedding, Reveal the Locked Room Poisoning Trick
Episode 5 (August 5, 2011): The Glamorous Murder Trick of the Actress who lost her Memory - Perfect Murder at the Summer House
Episode 6 (August 11, 2011): The Magnificent Murderous Kiss of Twenty Beauties! The Murderous Intent Hidden in the Murder Equation!
Episode 7 (August 18, 2011): Inheritance Murder Among Bloody Relatives! Reveal the Mystery of the Kidnapping Trick!
Episode 8 (August 25, 2011): A Woman's Determination, Revenge on the Molester! The Murder Trick hidden in the Security Camera
Episode 9 (September 01, 2011): Hattori Heiji and the Mystery of the Invisible Locked Room Murder Weapon! Deduction Battle between the Detectives of East and West
Episode 10 (September 08, 2011): The Mystery of the Body that Moved 200 KM Within An Instant! Reveal the Perfect Crime Scheme of the Evil Woman
Episode 11 (September 15, 2011): A Kiss Is the Reason for Murder, A Revenge Murder After 20 Years! The Mystery of the Perfect Alibi
Episode 12 (September 22, 2011): I Killed Her! 3 Single Murderers? Reveal the Mystery of the Fake Murder!
Episode 13 (September 29, 2011): Ran Dies! The Final Challenge of the True Criminal to the Genius Detective - Reveal the Mystery of the White Room

Like the name suggests, Meitantei Conan - Kudou Shinichi e no Chousenjou (Detective Conan - A Challenge Letter for Kudou Shinichi) is a series focusing on the cases high school student detective Kudou Shinichi solved before he turned into Conan. As the catch-copy for the series is mayonaka no Conan, hajimaru ("A nightly Conan is about to start) and the series is broadcast around 00:00, I suppose this is meant as a Conan-series meant for grown-ups rather than for children. Besides the main characters Shinichi, Ran, Kogorou, Eri and Sonoko, guest appearances by Hattori, detectives Satou and Takagi are planned (actually, Satou and Takagi already appeared in the first episode...). Different from the previous TV specials is that not all episodes are based on an original script, some episodes will be based on existing stories from the manga (I guess the ski holiday episode with Hattori, as that is the only story featuring Hattori where Kudou and Hattori don't meet directly!).

The first episode (subtitled "Before he turned into Conan, the high school detective solved the mystery of the adultery murder!") starts rather surprising: Shinichi, Ran and Kogorou wake up in a white room, stolen from Cube. The three have no memory of how or why they got in the room, but Shinichi finds a letter, saying the white room is a present to him from a fan. Then a computer display appears, asking for a password. The hint is a date, and Shinichi remembers that he solved a case on that date. And yes, this leads into the episode, and at the end of the episode, Shinichi inputs a code, that leads... into a second white room (of course asking for a new code which is related with another case). Hello, main storyline! So Shinichi will probably talk about old cases and move from room to room until somewhere around episode 7~8 and by that time the cases will probably relate with the main storyline, leading up to the finale, where a supercriminal with a grudge with Shinichi awaits. Or it might be more original.

Anyway, the main episode starts with the murder of a cameraman of his sister-in-law/lover. Using an alibi trick, he tries to deceive the police, but luck has it that high school detective Kudou Shinichi and childhood friend Mouri Ran were visiting the nail salon on the floor below the apartment of the victim, so Kudou mingles in the investigation. Of course. How did the cameraman create the trick and can Kudou find the evidence to catch him? I was overall pretty happy with the episode. A bit bland for a series opener maybe, but it's a classic Conan-ish inverted story and really not bad at all. Could well have been a three file (chapter) story in the manga.

The setting was a bit light on the Conan-atmosphere though. That is to say, the story was Conan-like, but the main characters were... not really like they are in the original. Takagi and especially Satou should be more capable detectives, while Mizobata's Shinichi is still not as good as Oguri's (more cocky) Shinichi. But maybe something that will change as the series progresses.

What was most surprising was that the series seems to keep distance from the original manga and the previous TV dramas. As seen in the logo, the Meitantei Conan part is much smaller than the Kudou Shinichi part and while the previous TV dramas used music from the TV animation, this series mainly uses original background music (except for a superspecialawesome guitar remix of the Conan main theme! Must. Have. Soundtrack). Heck, the word Conan wasn't used once in this episode actually (you do see him very briefly in the opening though)! The previous dramas all started with "this happened, xx days before I turned into Conan", or something like that, with a voice over by Takayama Minami (Conan's voice). That wasn't used here, nor the sarcastic thought voice overs used in the previous dramas (being an artifact of the anime, where thoughts spoken out loud are pretty normal, and most of Conan's text in the manga are thoughts anyway). It certainly made this drama feel more like a 'normal' drama (rather than based on a manga/anime), and I suppose this series can be seen without prior knowledge of the series.

The series' main body consists of the cases Kudou solved in the past, but I'm not sure what to expect from the whole white room thing. Why are Kudou and Ran chained to each other (while Kogorou is free to move)? When does the whole white room thing take place? Can it be this is after Kudou has turned to Conan, meaning he used the temporary antidote again? Will it somehow connect to other plot points in the manga's story? Not much too go on from the first episode, so I'll just have to wait...

The next episode: a murder on a TV set commited by a... psychic (played by Drunk Dragon's Tsukaji)? Might turn out to be very good!

Not sure if I'm going to watch the series live again though. Time-wise, it's perfect, coming on 17:00 here, but finding stable streams is rather troublesome. Yesterday's try out with Keyhole TV was not really optimal, with jerking images and me missing parts of the dialogue because of the sound quality....

Original Japanese title(s): 『名探偵コナン　工藤新一への挑戦状』　サブタイトル「コナンになる前の高校生探偵が、不倫殺人の謎を暴く!」
Date & Password: 2010.06.24; アイシテル

"I suppose I owe it to Holmes' apprentice?"

「人生を決めるその瞬間、自分に嘘をついてはいけない」 『名探偵コナン』

"Don't lie to yourself the moment you have to decide your life" 

"Detective Conan"

Yes, even though I'm doing my complete Conan overview posts, here's also a single review of the newest Conan volume. Mostly because I had decided I would do one, before I had even decided I would do the complete series (there is a precedent for single reviews though). Oh, and totally doing reviews of every single episode of the new Detective Conan live action series! I shouldn't be so excited about the series (as I wasn't too enthousiastic about the special), but fandom > logic in this case.

Meitantei Conan 72 starts with the conclusion to the London / Sherlock Holmes arc. The last volume ended with a common Conan-trope: the search for a single person in a big group, in this case, at Wimbledon. The solution Conan has found for this problem is a simple, yet effective way and the story wraps up in a somewhat movie-ish way. Guest appearances by a certain duo at the end was kinda surprising, but funny. And the words spoken by Conan to Ran.... I am not that foolish as to say that is the start of a new dynamic between the two characters, but it'll probably come back in a significant way. Overall, the London arc was great though and sure to go into the annals of Conan-ology as one of the better stories of the series.

The second story and the fourth story in this volume are very alike: both revolve around the Detective Boys and moments with Haibara as the main leader of the group as Conan is incapacitated. In the second story, the Detective Boys play hide-and-seek in an old building sheduled for demolishment the next week. Inside they hear a kidnappee tap a request for help to them, but Conan gets caught by the two kidnappers. It's up to Haibara to lead the the Detective Boys. For a DB story, it's pretty exciting as Conan is caught and it even features an appearance of (an important) somebody I had totally forgotten about. In the other DB story, the DBs (minus Conan because of a cold) meet a boy living on the same floor on Ayumi, who says he is being kidnapped. The 'kidnappers' say they're just his parents though and take him back in the appartment. Conan, who was talking with Haibara on the phone, deduces that they really aren't the boy's parents, but loses conciousness (because of his cold) and the DB's aren't sure how to proceed, nor how Conan came to his conclusion.

The third story is a standard which-of-the-three story. Ran, Sonoko and Conan visit Teitan University because Mouri has a speech at the university festival, and they visit the house of horrors some movie students made for the festival. The person who was playing a dead body, turns out be a real dead body though. Was it suicide, or murder? Oh, and that crime scene technician in this story? Who is he? Did he appear in previous volumes? His design is way too unique for just a throw-away character. Heck, the suspects in this story are more generic than him!

The final story is just the opening chapter of a longer story, so not much to say about that. A lady, who loves clocks, has been getting strange threatening letters signed by the Keeper of Time the last few years. Mouri Kogorou is asked to investigate the case and visits the client's house (filled with clocks). The chapter ends with the murder on the client right during her birthday party.

A so-so volume. A bit too heavy on the Detective Boys (though the first one is pretty good), and the only 'normal' story is rather standard fare. Especially with appearances of KID and Hattori lately and the London/Holmes arc, this volume just feels.... very standard. 

Original Japanese title(s):　青山剛昌　『名探偵コナン』第７２巻

「Mysteriousな時代の幕開け！」

「ありえない？誰が証明したんだ？」

『ガリレオ』

"Impossible? Who proved that?" 

"Galileo"

Wu... Wait, a book? Not even Conan-related? A miracle. But with a live action Detective Conan series starting tomorrow, I think the Conan-theme will continue for a while...

The title is impossibly long, but Shin Honkaku Suiri Tokubetsu-hen - Fukanou Hanzai no Kyouen ("New Orthodox Detective Special - Banquet of Impossible Crimes") is a very nice anthology edited by Nikaidou Reito and includes two essays (one by Nikaidou himself), though I will only focus on the stories here. Like the titles suggest, this is an anthology that focuses on impossible crimes. The anthology I discussed last time was horrible, but with an editor like Nikaidou (who also specializes in impossible crimes), I wasn't too worried about this one and in fact I was kinda curious, as I didn't know any of these writers. Yes, when I bought this book, I accidently thought that a Nikaidou Reito novel was included. Oh, and for the tags for this posts: I didn't include the Japanese names for these writers as they took up too many characters (200 characters limit apparently).

The anthology starts off good, with Mitsuda Shinzou's Shirei no Gotoki Aruku Mono ("It Walks like a Ghost"). A man is found dead in a snowy courtyard, poisoned with a very violent poison. What's so utterly impossible about the murder is that the first man on the scene swears he saw a pair of geta walking away from the body towards the building. And indeed, the only footprints in the court are from a pair of geta leading away from the dead body. Was it a ghost that commited the murder? The plot and trick is pretty good, but I didn't really like Mitsuda's writing style and even though this is the anthology's first story, I finished this last as I had to give up several times midway through.

The second story is a more fantasy-like story, but a nice one nonetheless. Hana Chiru Yoru ni ("On the Night the Flowers Scattered") (Mitsuhara Yuri) tells us about the Devil's Fruit. The fruit is too hard to eat, but if you soak the fruit in liquor, the liquor acquires mysterious powers: it is capable to heal all illnesses, but it has two side effects: the patients falls in a deep, deep sleep (two days at the least) after drinking it and more importantly, it erases the patient's dearest memory. Ever since her grandfather died, Hatsune has been tending to the trees with the Devil's Fruit and preparing the liquor. One day, the king of a neighbouring country brings his queen to Hatsune, asking her to save his queen, who is dying from an ilness. She tells them about the side effects, but they decide to take the medicine anyway and Hatsune leaves them in a little hut next to her house on a hill. That night however, the king is found stabbed to death outside the hut, on a bed of scattered flowers of the Devil's Fruit. Nobody could have climbed the hill without the guards noticing, nor was the only other person (beside Hatsune) in any state to kill the king, as the queen was already sleeping soundly due to the Devil's Fruit. Nice, rather dreamy, story.

I have to admit that I don't remember everything about Higashigawa Tokuya's Jisoku Yonjuu Kilo no Misshitsu ("A Locked Room at 40 KM/H") as I read it a long time ago. If I remember correctly though, a private detective and his assistent are on a stake-out, trying to gather evidence in an adultery case. Their target however is on to them and she hides her lover inside a chest (or was it a sofa?) and aks a friend (who is a professional mover) to pick up the chest and help her lover escape, hoping to fool the detectives. They're not that stupid though, and the assistent follows the moving truck on his motorbike. After a long ride (@ 40km/h), he and the truck have an accident and he ends up on the truck. There he discovers a pool of blood coming out of the chest (or sofa?) and consequently, the dead body of the lover. Who killed him, and more importantly how, as the assistent was riding behind the truck the whole time. ever since they left the adulterer's home The trick is not totally fair, if I remember correctly, or at least, very dependent on luck and coincidences.

While overall, this anthology is really good, I like Ishimochi Asami's Hanging Game the best. It's the first story in his This Country series, a set of stories set in a fictional single party state (that is almost totalitarian). Capital punishment is still in use here and even exploited: executions (by hanging) are held in big stadiums and tickets are sold to the masses, who love these shows. Panem et circenses. One day, the head of a rebel party is to be hanged, but the executioner, Major Banjou, is pretty sure that members of the rebel party are hiding in the audience, hoping to free their leader. What follows is a mind-game of if-you-think-that-I-think-that-you-think of Major Banjou and the two sub-leaders of the rebel party. It's almost like a Conan story (with the need of having to find out what someone hidden in a big group is planning to do), but as the viewpoint of the story switches between Banjou and the rebels, the reader has no idea who is going to win until the end.

Kagami Masayuki's Sei Alexandria Jiin no Sangeki ("Tragedy of Saint Alexandria Chapel") is set in Russia, 1920. After the revolution, Sonya has been forced to live with her mother in the Saint Alexandria Chapel, originally as paying guests, but nowadays working there as they couldn't pay back their debts. One day, the head of the chapel is found murdered, hanged besides the bells up in the chapel tower, seven meters from the floor. Who could have gotten him up there? The trick itself, or at least, one part of the trick is pretty cool (another part was utterly ridiculous though) but very clumsy clueing kinda ruins the surprise of the trick. It's just too obvious how it was done and consequently who the murderer was.

Kaburagi Ren's Karegusa no Yuki Toketareba ("When the Snow of Dried Leaves Melts") has one of those tricks that you _will_ scream at, no matter what. Something like 'this is brilliant', or 'this is utter crap!', or both. If you had told me this was a Shimada Souji trick, I would have believed it immediately. The story's set in the Taishou period, and Miyazawa Kenji (of all people!) is requested to help the main suspect in a murder case: the victim was killed on the fourth floor of the local government office (this building to be precise. Yes, it really exists) and the suspect was seen coming down the ladder from the fourth floor right after everyone heard the blood-curling scream of the victim. The suspects says he was on the third floor when he heard the scream and climbed to the fourth floor, where he only found the dead body of the victim. If the main suspect didn't do it, how did the murderer escape from the fourth floor?

This anthology brought us from a fantasy land to fictional countries, Russia and the past and now the future. In Sonoda Shuuichirou's Dakara dare mo inaku natta ("And that is why there were none"), space-traveling has been perfected and humans have been colonizing other planets. One day, Earth receives a message, with a diary, from one of the colonies in development, accompanied with video material. It seems that all eight members of the colonizing mission are dead and what's more: they have clearly been killed as most of them were decapitated. The police can only confirm seven dead bodies on the video material though. As this was sent from a far-away colony, the message was actually sent seven years earlier (and only reached the Earth recently). As it was an old mission, with most data on it lost, the police has nothing to go on except for the diary of one of the crew members and the video material. The diary says that among the crew of eight humans, one (or more) was actually an android (yes, they run according to Asimov's Laws), but none of the others know who the android was. Was it one of the defective androids, that only followed the third law of Asimov (self-preservation)? Or was it a human killer? Great story, my first SF detective actually, and one that make great use of its setting.

A really fun anthology. I liked pretty much all stories and even though these stories tend to be quite long for short stories (around 70~80 Japanese pages), most of these stories make perfect use of the page count. Nikaidou made a really nice selection, with the Mitsuhara's fantasy story and Sonoda's SF story being surprising, but great choices, as well as Ishimochi's That Country story. Especially the latter was awesome, with the rebels trying to accomplish the impossible and the major trying to prevent that. I'll be sure to pick up Ishimochi's That Country, as well as more anthologies in this series.

Original Japanese title(s): 二階堂黎人（編集）　『新・本格推理 特別編―不可能犯罪の饗宴』 / 三田信三 「死霊の如き歩くもの」 / 光原百合 「花散る夜に」 / 東川篤哉 「時速四十キロの密室」 / 石持浅海 「ハンギング・ゲーム」 / 加賀美雅之 「聖アレキサンドラ寺院の惨劇」 / 鏑木連 「かれ草の雪とけたれば」 / 園田修一郎 「だから誰もにいなくなった」

『満月の夜と黒い宴の罠』

「やっと会えたな… 愛しい愛しい… 宿敵（こいびと）さん？」

『名探偵コナン』

"So we finally meet again... my dear dear nemesis"

"Detective Conan"

Volumes 41~50, so I'm actually nearing the ending of this series of posts! A LOT happens in these volumes with the Black Organisation, with Aoyama bringing in new parties, revealing a carefully planned surprise and lots more. Spoilers and quite a few of them!

Oh, and I will try to come up with a book-review err... soon, but I have to admit that reading Western books earlier and manga now has really messed up my Japanese reading speed.

Detective Conan manga & movies:
Part 1: Volumes 1 ~ 10
Part 2: Volumes 11~20; The Timebombed Skyscraper (1) / The Fourteenth Target (2)
Part 3: Volumes 21~30; The Last Wizard of the Century (3) / Captured in Her Eyes (4)
Part 4: Volumes 31~40; Countdown to Heaven (5) / The Phantom of Baker Street (6)
Part 5: Volumes 41~50; Crossroad in the Ancient Capital (7) / Magician of the Silver Sky (8) / Strategy Above the Depths (9)
Part 6:  Volumes 51~60; Private Eyes' Requiem (10) / Jolly Roger in the Deep Azure (11)
Part 7: Volumes 61~70; Full Score of Fear (12) / The Raven Chaser (13) / Lost Ship in the Sky (14)
Part 8: Volumes 71~80; Quarter of Silence (15) / The Eleventh Striker (16) / Private Eye in the Distant Sea (17)
(You will find the links to the reviews of volume 70, 72~76, 78, 82~87 and the films Quarter of Silence (15), The Eleventh Striker (16), Private Eye in the Distant Sea (17), Dimensional Sniper (18) in the library)

Volume 41
Keyhole: Miyano Akemi
Cases: The Two Alike Princesses; Secret of the Touto Developing Studio; The Four Porsches; Hidden Away in the Toilet
Plot: Haibara being shadowed; Haibara catches a cold; wiretaps placed in Agasa residence; Haibara and Conan find out about tapes hidden by Akemi

The Two Alike Princesses is pretty making things really ridiculous, with the revelation that Kogorou, Eri and Yukiko are all Teitan High alumni. All the important characters all seem to have met in the past already. Anyway, the case is pretty fun with Eri and Yukiko (The Night Baroness) as the main characters, but the trick itself is a bit too medical for me. Not sure if the fact that Yukiko speaks Tosaben, Touhokuben, Nagoyaben and Kumamotoben fluently will come back. The second case is the first time the Detective Boys meet Yukiko (though she has to leave for NY at the beginning of the story), but the case itself is a pretty standard one with a hard to spot visual clue, but hinted at through the setting, I guess. The Four Porsches isn't that interesting (a man found strangled in a Porsche), but it leads directly into the most important Black Organisation-arc by having Haibara catch a cold and by having her shadowed. The last story is a copy of volume 18's The University Professor Murder Case, with Haibara and Conan trying to find secret documents left by Shiho Akemi just before her death and murder happening as they visit an illustrator's studio (which used to be the Shiho residence). Shiho Elena is said to be nicknamed Hell Angel in the organisation, but I don't think this fact returns in later volumes.

Movie 7: Crossroad in the Ancient Capital
Release: April 19, 2003
Police: Police Inspector Ayanokouji  Fumimaru (Kyoto)
Plot: Cold-inducing medicine counters the immunity for the APTX4869 antidote

Murder among art-thieves in Kyoto, the ancient capital. I really like this movie as a) Hattori plays a major role in it and b) the location of Kyoto. The story itself feels a lot more action-oriented that the other movies, I think, with sword-fights, bike chases and attempts on Hattori's life. As this is still Conan, the writers really needed to rub it in and confirm that Hattori's first love was in fact Kazuha, even though he didn't know at the beginning of the movie. It's also the first movie where we see Shinichi transformed back, as well the first movie since Captured in her Eyes that used the vocal version of the Conan theme, Kimi ga Ireba. Police Inspector Ayanokouji, who entered the same time Shiratori did, is really creepy though and feels like a throw-away character (even though he returns for a cameo in The Raven Chaser).

Volume 42
Keyhole: Jodie Starling
Cases: Hidden Away in the Toilet; Trap in the Convenience Store; Confrontation with the Black Organisation - Double Mystery under the Full Moon; Look for the Mark on his Behind!
Black Organisation: Calvados
Plot: Revelation that Araide is Vermouth (Sharon and Chris Vineyard); Jodie is a FBI agent; Haibara's identity is known to Vermouth; [Silver Bullet]; Conan hears the telephone mail-address of the Boss, [Angel]

Haibara and Conan find the tapes, which turn out to be tapes by Elena for Haibara. She does has one surprising message for Haibara, but we never get to know what that is. The second story is, in hindsight, important. Or at least, the case is not important on its own, which Ran solves on her own (with some encouragement by Shinichi over the phone). What's important is that Ran mentions that Conan has been hanging around the Agasa residence ever since Haibara got a cold, not leaving her alone for a moment. Which is all preparation for Confrontation with the Black Organisation - Double Mystery under the Full Moon. Just like that fact that Ran finds out Jodie has pictures of everybody hidden in her room at the end of Trap in the Convenience Store. Actually, practically everything that happened ever since... around Shinichi's revival in volume 26 was preparation. The shuffling around the one responsible for Araide Sr.'s death? Preparation The voice-changing cough mask in volume 26? Preparation. Jodie Saintemillion and Akai Shuuichi in the story? Preparation. The feeling Haibara had during the Bus Jack? Preparation. Keywords like Cool Kid, Cool Guy, A Secret Makes a Woman Woman, the stolen files on Mouri Kogorou, Shinichi and Ran meeting Sharon Vineyard, Shinichi and Ran saving a murderer, Araide treating Haibara for her cold, everything preparation for the revelation that Araide is in fact Vermouth, who is in fact both Sharon and Chris Vineyard. Preparation for the revelation that Jodie and Akai are FBI agents. Preparation for the fact that Hattori and Conan play a mean game of dress-up, by having Hattori dress up as Shinichi and Conan as Haibara.The double mystery is paced perfectly and the case in volume 26 was meant as misdirection for this. In that story Hattori's disguise was easy to see through, but here his disguise was made by Yukiko and the lines were in fact spoken by Conan himself. We don't see much of Organisation member Calvados and as he commits suicide pretty much immediately, we don't know much about him. Ran actually saves Haibara near the end, but Conan, who was knocked out, doesn't know this. Might come back later as an important fact? The last story is a Detective Boys story and probably meant to take away a bit of the tension of this volume, but it feels really out of place.


Volume 43
Keyhole: Enomoto Azusa
Cases: The Forgotten Telephone; Whose Deduction Show; The Miracle of Koushien! We're Not Losing From the Invisible Demon
Characters: Enomoto Azusa; Nakashima Shigeo (Or.: 4ban Third); Inao Kazuhisa (Or. 4ban Third)

The Forgotten Telephone feels a bit like an earlier Conan story, with a small request, made by Poirot waitress Azusa, that turns out to be linked to a bigger case. Not very interesting, though Azusa will pop up now and then. The second story is hilarious for its ending. Here Hattori and Kazuha decide that whoever solves a murder first gets to decide where to take the Mouris to in Osaka: the Takarazuka Revue or the Koushien. The case, with double layered dying message, isn't that interesting either. The final story is like The Trembling Metropolice Police Department - 12 Million Hostages, with a mad bomber giving hints to Hattori inside the Koushien Stadium. Pretty much unsolvable unless you're familar with Koushien Stadium. Funny is the finale is played between Kounan and Oogane. Kounan's ace, Nagashima Shigeo was the protagonist in Aoyama Goushou's 4ban Third. He owned a magic baseball bat that allowed him to hit homeruns in exchange for money. Oogane's Inao had a magic glove (yes, it's like the story with the unbreakable shield and the invincible spear). In this story though, they seem to be playing fair.


Volume 44
Keyhole: Nakamori Ginzou
Cases: The Miracle of Koushien! We're Not Losing From the Invisible Demon; MPD Detectives' Love Story 6; Kaitou KID's Miraculous Air Walk; Ghost Story of Teitan High
Chracters: Suzuki Jiroukichi; Lupin; Jii Konosuke (Or.: Magic Kaito)

In MPD Detectives' Love Story 6 Satou and Takagi seemed to have gotten a bit closer, but the rumor that Takagi is getting transferred seems to ruin their plans for the future. The case is fun because the main suspect is detective Chiba's roommate, but the trick seems a bit convoluted and a bit out of date. Kaitou KID's Miraculous Air Walk is a great story though, and the first story that really revolves around a heist ever since his first appearance in the series! The previous KID stories focuses on his disguises, but this is the first time we see some of his grand illusions. And what an illusion! A man walking through air! Adventurer Suzuki Jirokichi (and his dog Lupin) is also introduced, who will be the series' main means of introducing similar KID heist stories. We also catch a glimpse of Jii, KID's assistent. The last story is an impossible situation story, with a desk of a deceased student suddenly appearing in the school courtyard. Because of the rain, the courtyard is wet, but there are no signs showing how that desk got there. (The real) Araide also returns to Beika and resumes his responsibilities as the neighbourhood doctor, as well as the doctor at Teitan High.


Volume 45
Keyhole: Tsukamoto Kazumi
Cases: Ghost Story of Teitan High; Tragedy of Marumie Pier; The Dumb Route; The Stars and Cigarette Code

Why. Is. Tsukamoto. Kazumi. The keyhole character? I don't she ever comes back in the series. Anyway, the ghost story isn't that interesting. The Marumie Pier story is a pretty neat story though. One of those look-for-the-means-of-poisoning stories, and it's not very complex because the situation sorta suggest the means of poisoning, but elegance in its simplicity, I guess. The Dumb Route is a lot like a certain Matsumoto Seichou book, only modernized. Effective, but simple. The last story revolves around a dying message left by a man killed years ago, but it's kinda far-fetched. Or at least open for multiple interpretations.


Movie 8: Magician of the Silver Sky
Release: April 17, 2004

Conan learned everything on Hawaii. Handling guns, speedboats, cars and now jumbo jets. Yep. KID's performance is fun as always and he makes optimal use of the fact that in movie-canon, he is aware of Conan's identity. Meaning he is free to disguise himself as Kudou Shinichi, as Conan can't call him out on that. The chase in the middle of the movie is awesome, as is the way KID helps the gang near the end. The murder itself is... kinda not interesting. It's just a single murder, but I wan't more in a movie! Especially as the murder happens late in the movie. Fun movie because KID appears in a significant way, but the plane part is a bit too much like one of those accident movies.


Volume 46
Keyhole: Haga Kyousuke
Cases: The Stars and Cigarette Code; Dissonance of the Stradivarius (Prelude/Intermezzo/Postlude); Big Adventure in the Eccentric Mansion (Seal/Trick/Solution); Request at a Strange House - A Suspicious Ran
Characters: Samizu Kichiemon
Plot: Conan finds out what the phone-number is of the Organisation's boss (location: Tottori)

Dissonance of the Stradivarius (Prelude/Intermezzo/Postlude) is a great story with a cursed Staradivarius and a musical theme to everything. People getting burned, locked room murders, the works! It also features Haga Kyousuke, a character with perfect pitch, an ability that is used extensively in the 12th Conan movie, Full Score of Fear. Haga also tells Conan that the tune the telephone number of the Boss sounds like, is Nanatsu no Ko. Both the perfect pitch and a character telling the protagonist what song he has been looking for, is straight out of a episode of the third season of Furuhata Ninzaburou, The Perfect Pitch Murder. Big Adventure in the Eccentric Mansion (Seal/Trick/Solution) is a Detective Boys-in-a-strange-house story and the appearance of KID feels very abritrary, so not very interesting.


Volume 47
Keyhole: Miyamoto Yumi
Cases: Request at a Strange House - A Suspicious Ran; Red-Handed Jewel Robber; Conan and Heiji's Deduction Magic (Trick/Mansion/Solution)

In Request at a Strange House - A Suspicious Ran Mouri is asked to search for a lost telephone, but the case ends in murder. The story revolves around misdirection and done pretty good. The sub-storyline is that Ran suspects Conan is Shinichi (again!) because Conan's telephone rang when she sent Shinichi an e-mail. The way Conan fools Ran in the end is the same as he did in the story in volume 3 actually, but this time he (Shinichi) gives Ran his cellphone number. Good idea? Bad idea? It does mean he has to be more careful when he picks up his phone. The second story is a pretty good, though I tend to think that about stories with Takagi in the spotlight anyway. Here Takagi and the DB's follow a jewel robber, who seemingly takes a dive from a building, killing himself. It's of course murder. The trick is pretty grand, even for Conan-standards and reminscent of Shimada Souji's tricks. The essence of the final story is the same as Cornered Great Detective! 2 Great Murders After Another (1) (volume 14), with an old magician gone and his three disciples gathering at his house. This story ends in murder though, and the trick is a very old one (also used in a famous Kindaichi Shounen no Jikenbo story), but the visual clue to this trick is done pretty well.


Volume 48
Keyhole: Mizunashi Rena
Cases: Shinto Shrine Torii Surprise Code; Evil Spirit That Comes on Butsumetsu Day (Case/Suspicion/Solution); Black Impact! The Moment the Organisation Reaches Out
Black Organisation: Kir (Mizunashi Rena); Korn; Chianti
Plot: Mizunashi Rena looks Conan straight in the eyes; Conan overhears Mizunashi Rena's conversation with Gin; tracker stuck on Mizunashi Rena's shoe;

Shinto Shrine Torii Surprise Code is a double mystery: Conan can't seem to crack a code made by Haibara and Agasa, while Ran and Sonoko also seek Shinichi's help as they're involved with a murder case on their holiday. The solution to both problems is similar and not too difficult. The second story is a much better version of volume 21-22's Case of the Locked Room A Night Before the Wedding, this time set in a mansion where practically every suspect has a phobia, making it seemingly impossible for them to commit the murder. The plot-twist at the end is hinted at nicely, so fair. The final story is pretty big surprise, as it's a big Black Organisation story, pretty soon after the previous one. Here Mouri is introduced through Okino Youko to TV announcer Mizunashi Rena and helps her with what seems a stalker case. But coincidence has it that Conan's bug gets stuck on Mizunashi's shoe and he overhears a phone-call of hers with Gin, confirming that she is the Organisation member Kir. A enormous troupe of the Organisation, Gin, Vodka, Vermouth, Kir and the two snipers Korn and Chianti are preparing for an assasination and Conan has to stop them. Luckily, FBI agents Jodie Starling (Saintemillion), James Black and Akai Shuuichi seem to be at hand.


Volume 49
Keyhole: Hondou Eisuke
Cases: Black Impact! The Moment the Organisation Reaches Out; The Super Secret Road to School; The Couple Who Can't Go Back Anymore
Characters: Hondou Eisuke
Plot: Gin remains suspicious of Mouri Kogorou, Kir gets hospitalized, Eisuke sees Mouri (Conan) in action

Gin suspecting that Mouri Kogorou has something to do with the failed assassination and the bug on Kir's shoes is not that far off and he actually ordered Korn and Chianti to kill off Conan and Mouri, but last-second intervention by Akai Shuuichi (destroying the bug with Conan's fingerprints) makes the Organisation think that the FBI planted the bug, using Mouri as a scapegoat. Close call. The red-herring of Akai Shuuchi mentioning his 'girlfriend' all the time in his appearances is finally explained here (first made to make you think it's Haibara), as it is revealed that 'girlfriend' refers to his archenemy, the Organisation. The Super Secret Road to School is a DB story that deals with the after-effects with the previous story, but not very interesting. The Couple Who Can't Go Back Anymore is one of those stories where someone tries to use Mouri as an alibi, which backfires. Alway. The story also introduces Hondou Eisuke, Ran and Sonoko's classmate and major player in the next couple of volumes. He is actually like an older Conan, being quite smart but seemingly hiding it behind a face of innocence and clumsiness. I don't like him at all though and I'm glad he'll be gone in the future.


Movie 9: Strategy above the Depths
Release: April 19, 2005

I. Love. This. Movie. It's pretty tame in comparison to the previous movies, no KID, no Hattori, no virtual reality, no Black Organisation. Just plain serial murders on a boat. But the story is competent and the ending, with Kogorou solving everything on his own, outsmarting Conan, is just awesome. Of course, all stories where Kogorou solves the case are awesome. With every parent in Conan seemingly a super-detective except for Mouri himself (the only professional detective), it's nice to occasionally see Mouri in Serious Mode. 


Volume 50
Keyhole: Kobayashi Sumiko
Cases: MPD Detectives' Love Story 7; Special Report on the Detective Boys; Heiji's Memories

MPD Detectives' Love Story 7 has Takagi and Satou joining the same goukon, and they're both kinda mad at each other for doing that. The kidnapping case they encounter after the goukon is very Queen-ish: they figure out which of the three suspects is the kidnapper because they know what information is available to whom at what time. The ending, with Takagi saving the kidnapper from a suicide attempt is pretty cool though, as it's one of the few times we see Takagi take action without talking it over with his superior. In Special Report on the Detective Boys a reporter who wanted to do an article on the DB's gets killed and the DB's solve the case in front of their teacher Kobayashi (who has never seem them in action). It's the first story that places Kobayashi in center stage since her debut, and she'll return quite often from now on, also because she looks a lot like like Satou without her glasses. The final story is one I want to like, but just can't. Hattori tells Conan of the best detective he has ever known, not realizing it is Shinichi. The two boys apparently worked on the same case in the past, with a murder connected with the legend of a snow ghost, but they never met each other as they walked past each other the whole time (Shinichi seems to have headstart in the investigation though). What's even more mind-boggling is that Yukiko apparently met Hattori's mom at the same snow resort and the way Kudou Yuusaku and Hattori Heizou solved the case just by listening to the facts. I know Aoyama likes everyone connected, but this is a bit ridiculous.

Volume 42's main story is still one of the best plotted stories of Conan. Misdirection that starts almost 20 volumes earlier, the pacing of the two mysteries (Haibara's kidnapping and the murder on the boat), the double revelation as 'Shinichi' solves the case on the boat; it's perfect. While the story seemingly goes back to a status quo with Vermouth fleeing (yet promising to keep Haibara's identity a secret), the fact we have an insider who at least doesn't want to kill Shinichi is pretty important, as well as the fact that soon after we have the trio of Kir, Korn and Chianti entering the story, starting a new multi-volume-arc, which is also strongly connected with Hondou Eisuke and the reappareance of the FBI in Japan.

In this batch of stories, I see quite some 'rehashed' stories from earlier Conan volumes, that I only noticed as I re-read this stories. Most of them are improved though (luckily). Best stories here are Confrontation with the Black Organisation - Double Mystery under the Full Moon, Evil Spirit That Comes on Butsumetsu Day (Case/Suspicion/Solution) and Kaitou KID's Miraculous Air Walk. Especially the last story is great, as it re-introduces KID as a phantom thief, rather than someone who encounters murders (as in the previous KID stories). The Jirokichi vs. KID stories are all quite cool and feel as actual KID stories, rather than stories where KID just happens to be in.

The next batch might take some time though. Up until volume 42, I went through the stories pretty fast as I remembered most of them, but I had forgotten a lot about the last few volumes, and as I took a quick look at 51~60, I have to admit that I couldn't remember anything about the majority of the stories.

Original Japanese title(s):  青山剛昌 『名探偵コナン』第４１巻～５０巻 / 『名探偵コナン　迷宮の十字路（クロスロード）』 / 『名探偵コナン　銀翼の奇術師（マジシャン）』 / 『名探偵コナン　水平線の陰謀（ストラテジー）』