Ranpo Kitan: Game of Laplace – 03
Definitely not a suspicious person.
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I looked into some of the source material for this and it was kind of enlightening. Not so much on the mysteries, but more on the characters in this anime. |
So does that mean that Kobayashi was wearing girl’s panties? Or was he even wearing anything?
I hope they do something more productive with Hashiba’s character soon. I suppose he’s Kobayashi’s moral compass in a way, but all he seems to do each episode is protest everything and blush when Kobayashi comes close to him. They’ve already established that Kobayashi just isn’t going to listen to anyone saying “whoa, stay out of mysteries kid”, so Hashiba’s character can be kind of grating sometimes. …Though as an interesting fact that might explain things here, apparently Edogawa was interested in the topic of homosexuality (since his friend Iwata researched that topic in Japanese literature and history). So this is probably why Hashiba’s character is in the anime. I’m not sure if he has a counterpart in Ranpo’s novels at all, but at least it explains why they would bother having these kind of BL hints in the first place.
Kage Otoko is quite a mystery, but is he a pedophile? He didn’t seem sexually attracted to little girls (or at least it seems that he would never touch them like that). By society’s standards, he’s someone that parents probably would’t want near their children regardless of his intentions (because of the fear of what he might do), but he clearly didn’t want to harm anyone and even went out of his way to help Sachiko gain happiness. Which was kind of the opposite of Watanuki, who also didn’t display any indication of wanting the little girls sexually (though it wouldn’t have been a surprise if he did), but his “affection” was harmful.
Honour the loli. Respect the loli.
I guess it just goes to show that children are more perceptive than adults, since Sachiko and Kobayashi knew that it was Kage Otoko despite his disguises. …Though in Kobayashi’s case, he might have noticed because he has a very… “special” perception of the world compared to other people (which was probably also emphasized with how Hashiba was fooled by the fake Akechi). He didn’t notice when Kage Otoko was playing the kidnapper’s mother, but that’s probably because Kobayashi wasn’t familiar with that person, where he knew Akechi was off (somehow) right away. Maybe this will play a role in the plot later, since Kage Otoko might be a reference to Ranpo’s “Fiend with Twenty Faces” (a gentleman thief who was great at disguises and a enemy of sorts to the Ranpo’s original Akechi). But then again Akechi wasn’t even interested in Kage Otoko this episode or things involving him.
Akechi didn’t really do much, but having him uninterested was a convenient plot device to let Kobayashi do some work again and gain experience. And I guess this episode was educational for Kobayashi’s crossdressing skills. They’ve been hinting in the OP and ED (and also at the end of this episode) that whatever the skull person that’s been appearing is, it’s going to be a concern of Akechi’s. Maybe this will start an overarching storyline for this anime. Or at the very least, have Akechi more involved with the storyline instead of having Kobayashi take up most of the screentime.
Was it just me, or was the climax of the episode made so dark that it was really hard to see what was going on? I guess things are easier to animate if you don’t have to show what’s happening… Anyways, this was not a complex, two episode mystery. It wasn’t even really a mystery at all. But it did kind of introduce Kage Otoko and the kind of world that Kobayashi has gotten himself involved with. Well, more of what kind of world Kobayashi has joined since the human chairs were already pretty brutal. The direction the anime is going still seems kind of aimless (though with hints that something bigger might happen), but this was entertaining nonetheless. Plus really, since the show is about solving crimes in a case by case basis, it’s to be expected that the story seems a bit more disconnected.
About Karakuri
University student and the one at Metanorn who's known for wearing glasses. Likes blood, insanity and plot twists, but also plays otome games and adores cute romance anime. It balances out... somehow.
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
Shadow-Man/Kage Otoko’s disguise skills are to be feared. They work too well. To me, he seems like this naïve, idealistic, wannabe superhero type who works in extremes. There are some feelings of childishness about him, too. He covers his face with a paper bag of all things but I couldn’t sense any ill intent from him around Sachiko.
This case was a quick shot but no less creepy thanks to that captured criminal. What he did to those girls for not following his whims was despicable so I was more than happy to see the reluctant Akechi beat the crap out of him. The ugly mook is a repeat offender so hopefully he’ll be put away for good this time or ultimately put down by capital punishment.
Every time I watch the OP, I wonder what that skull represents because it replaces everyone’s face in the visuals while the other versions of them are with some bizarre S&M gear on.
Each separate case may be leading up to something. Before the anime began, the PV showed a suspicious looking woman who will be played by Yoko Hikasa. She strikes me as a “pull the strings from behind the scenes” kind of person. And she seemed interested in Kobayashi.
POWUH: and LOLi Defender with 10997 comments
I’m hoping for more continuity as well, and a central villain would be choice. Holmes had his Moriarty, DangerMouse had his Baron Greenback…
POWUH: Meta Team and Megane-chan with 3214 comments
Yeah, they really are a force to be reckoned with. He probably could disguise as a loli if he wanted to, but that’s probably against his personal rules or something. I didn’t sense any ill intent around Sachiko either, but I still don’t know how I feel about him pretty much stalking her…
Yep, agreed about that. Hopefully he doesn’t get out again…
We’ll learn, I guess. I think it was Famitsu or some other magazine that said that the woman was already in jail or something, but I guess that doesn’t take away the possibility that she could be the one pulling strings!
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
Anime News: Dance With Devils Anime’s Musical Numbers, Lead Actress, Theme Songs, Video Unveiled
You brought this name up before so I thought you might want an update of it.
POWUH: and LOLi Defender with 10997 comments
I have difficulty with the split between Kage and Watanuki. Whereas it’s easiest to see that one means no harm and the other very much does. The seemed like two sides of the same coin, and that currency is backed by obsession, with only an edge to separate them.
…but as you say, Respect the Loli.
POWUH: Meta Team and Megane-chan with 3214 comments
Yeah… Though that was probably the point? Like sure Kage’s intentions are good, but at the very basic level, he’s kind of the same as Watanuki. It seems something the anime would want you to question.
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
If we’re talking about transgressions, Kage’s would be the lesser of the two. At least he didn’t take any lives.
POWUH: and Athenaeum Châtelaine with 2212 comments
This episode wasn’t too bad. Again, like last week, it reminded me of an episode of Criminal Minds, except with out without the gunfights, car chases, and likable main characters.
Yes, Kobayashi and his annoying friend are still the weakest links of this series, and there doesn’t seem to be any solution to that any time soon.
The Shadow Man was fascinating. I liked him, even if his obsession was bordering on creepy. His ability to disguise himself is cool if impossible, unless one of his aliases is Mystique. But he’s a cool character to be introduced. The criminal was disgusting. And I have no idea why they felt a little hesitant if the guy was going away for good this time. This wasn’t just kidnapping little girls, he murdered 4 of them. I think that’s enough to put him away for quite a long time.
I felt so sorry for that little girl. It was heartbreaking after all she went through. 🙁
POWUH: Meta Team and Megane-chan with 3214 comments
Hahaha maybe Akechi will do more soon and you won’t have to deal with Kobayashi so much. But yeah, the two characters the story has been focusing on could get very very bland if they keep this up with no changes or developments.
If anything, maybe they put the emphasis on Watanuki being a previous criminal to add to the main plot? I can see the story developing into something with less of an episodic story if the main criminal mastermind or whatever is releasing previous criminals for some reason. …Or maybe it was the anime being pretentious with “who can you really trust?” and those kinds of questions…
But yeah, poor Sachiko.
POWUH: Meta Resident and LN Informant with 1529 comments
Is this week’s episode actually working off Ranpo’s actual stories, or is it another big creative liberty?
PS.I found listings for an actual Shadow Man novel by Ranpo, but I can’t find a lot of English-language info on it. Any help would be appreciated.
POWUH: Meta Team and Megane-chan with 3214 comments
Sorry, I don’t know anything about any of those things…
POWUH: Meta Resident and LN Informant with 1529 comments
Novel Akechi was a judo master, and was perfectly capable of defending himself in hand to hand fighting. This was carried over to anime Akechi too, as seen by his fighting skills.
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
Considering his choice of profession, self defense techniques are indispensable.
POWUH: Meta Team and PreCure Mastah with 9203 comments
Part of me feels this series was just created as an excuse to throw in a random “trap” character because there is a lack of them in most anime and I know it actually served a purpose this week even thou Kobayashi did nothing truly amazing! Besides discovering where the kidnapped girls were without a real plan of escape! WHAT THE HELL KID STOP THAT you are not a cop or pro detective, but that aside the shadow man did all the work LOL
I wouldn’t be shocked if Kobayashi got stabbed and was like WHOAAAA I SEE MY OWN BLOOD? AWESOME BEST DAY EVER.
The story this week yes very sad that mrfatcreepy dude killed the girls that refused to be his “daughters” turning them into stone! Yeah that was beyond messed up also as a side note wow the character design work was awful…yeah i’m not a pro artist but wow that fat guy design was so bad.
POWUH: Meta Team and The Mad Scientist with 5525 comments
I just caught up to Ranpo Kitan and wow, when did Seiji Kishi decide to become such a good director? Was he just having a dry spell the past…year or so? Anyways, I’m really enjoying this show and how absolutely creepy everyone in it is. It feels like someone who was interested in psychopathology wrote this.
Question: did Kage-Otoko donate so much money to Sachiko that he became so poor he couldn’t eat? Or was he just always a bum? Because if he did, then the main difference I see in his delusions and the fat kidnappers is that Kage-Otoko’s delusions cause harm to himself while the fat guy’s delusions cause harm to others. Kage-Otoko thankfully helps others in the process so it’s profitable for others, but it’s still pretty messed up.