Manga Review: Case Closed Volumes 65-67 by Gosho Aoyama
Premise: Teen detective Shinichi Kudou (Jimmy Kudo in the American version) is trapped in the body of a child. As Conan Edogawa, he solves mysteries anyway, while trying to track down the Black Organization that did this to him. See my previous entries.
We open Volume 65 with Sonoko Suzuki (Serena Sebastian)’s uncle Jirokichi supposedly targeted by the gentleman thief Kaito Kid. Except that the challenge letter was a fake. So how is it that a real challenge has suddenly appeared? Must be the real Kaito Kid, but who’s he disguised as? And what treasure lies within the supposedly impenetrable Iron Tanuki vault?
Then FBI agent “Miss Jodie” spots someone who’s a dead ringer for the deceased Agent Akai, and following him leads her into a bank where coincidentally Conan and the Detective Kids have gone to deposit New Year’s money. A ruthless gang then stages a bank robbery, but there’s no possible way for them to escape with the loot. Or is there?
After that, Dr. Agasa and Ai Habara (Anita Hailey) are on the way back from a gadgeteering convention when their vehicle breaks down, and they accept a ride from a shady couple who know way too much about Conan. Can they alert the young detective without giving away their knowledge to the drivers?
This leads into the next mystery, the Case of the Blood-Red Wall. A remote manor turned artistic colony has had a mysterious death, almost certainly a murder. All the suspects have names that sound like colors, and we meet a new police detective. Takaaki Morofushi has the nickname “Kong Ming”, after a famous strategist from The Romance of Three Kingdoms, and likes to quote that saga. But can he use the wisdom of his namesake to solve the mystery, even with Conan’s help?
A relatively murder-light volume, but contains an important subplot and introduces a new recurring character, so worth picking up.
Volume 66 opens with the conclusion of the Blood-Red Wall case. The Empty Fort strategy works the trick!
Then the love-lorn Detective Shiratori (Santos) happens to meet Conan and the Detective Kids at the movie theater. By coincidence (or is it?) he meets a pretty woman who takes his mind off Detective Sato. Oh, and she really needs a police officer, because she’s being stalked. But when they get back to her place, the stalker is dead, murdered violently! If Detective Shiratori doesn’t figure out what’s going on, there may be no second date.
Then Conan and the Detective Kids take on the case of a mysterious empty warehouse that sometimes is filled with treasure! This is another case that requires knowledge of kanji, Japanese ideographs.
Then Heiji Hattori’s (Harley Hartwell) in town looking for his girlfriend Kazuha’s lucky charm which he had accidentally given to a tennis player they know. The charm, alas, only works for her, and the player was mugged at a sports bar. Conan must help Harley figure out who the mugger is, and get back that charm!
The volume finishes with the start of a new case, as a girl in Gothic Lolita fashion is murdered in a Harajuku restroom!
Decent, but no real plot movement except Shiratori possibly moving on from Detective Sato.
Volume 67 starts off with the conclusion of the Gothic Lolita case. Fashion turns out to be very important in the resolution.
Then the Detective Kids meet an old man and give him hope for tomorrow in a heartwarming story.
Afterwards, Conan learns that Agent Akai may still be alive, or there’s a double walking around. The bad news is that the Black Organization has also figured this out. But first, Conan must solve the mystery of who turned a department store shopper into a human bomb, and what connection it has to a series of red shirts being sent to a certain address. Can he figure it out before the bomb explodes, or the Black Organization sniper Chianti takes out her own target?
Meanwhile, the mystery of Dr. Agasa’s neighbor Subaru deepens. He knows too much to be innocent, but is he a member of the Black Organization?
Then, Detective Shiratori believes that Ms. Kobayashi, Conan’s homeroom teacher, might be his long-lost “girl of fate.” But when she witnesses a murder, their relationship becomes strained. Can Conan solve the case and bring the two together? Continued next volume!
This volume advances the Akai subplot and the Black Organization arc, so is an important one for long-time readers.
The art remains good, and some of the mysteries are tasty. If you like the series, you’ll like these volumes too.
