Category: Detectives

L: Consulting Detective and Other Great Anime Spin-offs

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hisuiconA common complaint I hear about series is that the main characters are bland but the side characters are far more interesting and nuanced. It seems almost epidemic in shonen fighting. In fact Shonen Jump just started a spin-off magazine whose whole purpose is to put the spot light on some of the more popular minor characters in their magazine. The announcement of Super Strong Jump was just the catalyst we needed to bring out one of our post ideas from the back burner about our favorite side characters who would do just as good if not better in their own feature title. Remember that Gunsmith Cats’ Rally Vincent is a spin-off from the original Riding Bean series and look how far she has come.

This post has been brewing for a while, and is by no means a complete listing. But before it got totally out of hand, we had to think of which characters could really use their own stories beyond the fact that we just like them a hell of a lot. This is mere sampling of some of the great side characters that we’re pretty sure could hold their own in a series. Eventhough the title of this post mentions L, he already has a spin-off albeit a bad one, so we’ve come up with a list of other great spin-off options! Oh, yeah, 1/3 of our picks are still detectives though!

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Ongoing Investigations: Case #105

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hisuiconAfter hearing several rave reviews Narutaki and I were interested in seeing the Sherlock preview at the New York Comic Con but since that was the weekend of missing out on things we never got the chance to watch it. When we did find it playing on public television we eagerly gave it a look. The show is modernization of the classic Sherlock Holmes mysteries. While we have all the classic characters like Sherlock, Watson, Mycroft, and Moriarty but at the same time Sherlock has iPhone, Watson has just returned home from the Afghanistan conflict, and everyone has a web page. The cases themselves are loose reimaginings of  some of the original Shelrock Holmes mysteries. Sherlock himself has the right mix of genius, charisma, and full on prat that defines the character and makes him so iconic. At the same time Sherlock and Watson have a fun dynamic that sells the show (and would have people running to the Internet to complain about fan girl bait if this were an anime.) I did notice a bit of a vibe that I see in House which I found highly amusing because it means the influence may have come full circle. House was heavily influenced by the original Sherlock Holmes and now it seems that influence has come home to roost. Like many British TV shows the first season is extremely short with only 3 ninety minute episodes. The 2nd episode was the weakest of the three but they were all very entertaining and had a good mixture of action, comedy, and most importantly sleuthing. The only real downside in the first season ends on a cliff hanger so if you watch this you are just going to be on the edge of your seat for the conclusion.

I just can’t help myself, I really must talk about the BBC Masterpiece Mystery 3-part Sherlock (2010) series. This a modern telling of the classic detective unlike any done before, and wow did they set the bar high. The production quality is wonderful and well-crafted. Turning Sherlock and Watson into characters who live in the 21st century is a smooth transition in this series. Sherlock still relies on his incredible memory and capacity for noticing the smallest details but he does use some modern science once in a while. The reaction to him by the police is also a nice touch with most afraid of him or thinking he is a sociopath. As for Watson his war trauma and not feeling right in society is perfectly suited, and as my dad said “Watson always carried his gun.” Oh and I love that he has a blog about the cases. The dynamic between these two is comical at times but more comfortable than anything else despite them only meeting for the first time in part 1, in this I feel you can see the House influence the most. Watson is exasperated by Sherlock but also gripped by his insight and the mysteries. The first mystery is wholly gratifying in its puzzle, climax, and ending. Pretty much perfect. The second’s mystery is a little less solid but nevertheless good, and it was nice to see the solution be a bit unexpected. The final case is very intense because of the cat and mouse angle. And as everyone has already said, the cliffhanger is a major one (on par with that darned Twin Peaks first season cliffhanger!). It is excitement for the series that makes it devastating to wait a year for more of this brilliant rendition.

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No Case Too Small: Hayate the Combat Butler

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Welcome to our latest detective initiative! In No Case Too Small we will be highlighting series that pay homage, do a parody, or simply have an episode that involves a detective. These are one or two episodes stints in a larger series that doesn’t really involve sleuthing otherwise. Since our detective series list excludes such we wanted to give them a place all their own. And we want to make sure they don’t go overlooked or get forgotten.

The case in question is episode 30 of Hayate the Combat Butler: “The Beautiful Rich Great Young Detective Lady Saw It! The Case of the Murdered Female Teacher Amidst Clouds of Steam”

hisuiconHayate the Combat Butler is a character based comedy series but they love to parody and poke fun at a wide variety of topics at the same time. Given the popularity of detective anime, and detective series in general in Japan, it is no wonder that Hayate and Nagi encounter a mystery while visiting the hot springs. This intentionally cliché scenario leads to a  fourth wall breaking look at the mystery genre with tongue firmly in cheek. Continue reading →