By: Robert Murphy
There is nothing quite like a good mystery to get a person thinking, there is just something about it that makes you wonder the how, why and who done it of it all and there's just no stopping it, it's practically human nature. This drive to solve mysterys is what wakes Rampo Kitan's main character Kobayashi from his dreamlike state of living as the hum drum monotony of everyday life leaves him feeling bored and out of place among society. This would all change however as a murder case leads him to being the primary suspect in a murder case but rather than react with horror, he finally feels alive.
Rampo Kitan starts out on the pinnacle of high notes with it's first episode, you have Kobayashi who is your unassuming everyday student that is now thrust into the middle of a murder case involving his former home room teacher. This doesn't frighten or faze him in the least however and he spends the entire episode setting out to prove his innocence armed with nothing but his wits and the aide of a young detective for the government, 17 year old prodigy Akechi. The two don't necessarily work together though rather Akechi notices a particular talent and likeness to himself in Kobayashi so he holds off solving the case so Kobayashi can prove his worth. The case itself is a rather gruesome one that involves the dismemberment of a human body but it is also displayed in a strange but important manner to the story. By the end, it would have been impossible for me not to be hooked on the show if this is what the rest of the series had in store for it but sadly this isn't the case.
The show does not fall apart after it's strong opening rather it loses the captivating touch it brings you when it first starts out. Kobayashi falls into the background as a character which is odd considering he is marketed as the series main character but instead he is phased out and replaced by Akechi's story and struggles. Hence forth Kobayashi adopts a bizarre new character trait that markets on his female like qualities, his design being one of those anime character you initially mistake for a girl. He wears dresses and oddly flirts with one or two of the male characters in the show particularly his best friend Hashiba who follows him around and protest to him working with Akechi.
Akechi himself is a bland sort of character to say the least. His story starts out just as interesting as Kobayashi's does, he is a young detective who was hired by the government at an early age due to his intelligence and incredible deduction skills, but then there is no follow through for the impressive character he's suppose to be. His complicated past however is what the main focus for the story revolves around which involves one case in particular known as Twenty Faces. Twenty Faces is a villain that has no real identity but rather he is a symbol for anyone trying to dispense justice outside of the law and claiming that it is right. The reason behind Akechi's focus on these cases is too intricate to the plot to reveal but needless to say it involves someone very important from his past. And while this would normally be quite intriguing, the cause behind Twenty Faces being a global phenomenon involves a complex and convoluted story that made absolutely no sense whatsoever.
Some of the cases for Rampo Kitan are what did keep my attention for the 11 episode run time. All of them were extremely dark and did not shy away from showing the true ugliness that the world has to offer and displaying why exactly someone might want to become Twenty Faces in order to dispense their own brand of justice that the government and the law doesn't always seem to provide. The perfect example of this comes from Keisuke Kagami who is a young but strongly motivated detective in the series who has a tough time accepting the current system that's in place. He believes in justice and doesn't really question the law but when criminals are released on a daily basis due to random technicalities he becomes very resentful. There are also numerous TV reports and interviews that pop up during the show that have intellectuals and specialist in various fields discussing what causes violence in today's world or how we must protect the youth of the nation. All of which does a fantastic job of highlighting an underline message about violence that Rampo Kitan has hidden away beneath it's story.
I thought that Rampo Kitan was going to be a far greater show when I first went into it, the story starts out extremely well with it's appealing characters, story and dark tones but its washed away after the first few episodes and replaced with bizarre fan service and a confusing story. Kobayashi would have been much better at the forefront of the shows story if the tale kept following along with his grooming of becoming a brilliant detective like Akechi and focus in on why he feels so desensitized towards the world. But instead we are left to focus on Akechi who after his initial introduction is not a strong main character for the show to lean on as he complains and solves case after case. There was plenty to work with as the dark tones and social commentary oozed out from even the first episode and I sat there watching and wondering what sadly could have been if things had gone even a little differently.
Good:
- Social commentary on violence
- The dark tones and mysterys
Bad:
- Story falls apart after a great setup
- Akechi is a poor lead character for the show to lean on
- Bizarre fan service with Kobayashi and other characters
Scully Rating: 3.5 out of 10
No comments:
Post a Comment