Chapter 26-29
I'm really sorry for the lousy title... couldn't think of one >.< 1st thing first: this case is a MUST READ!! Well if you're a new Detective Conan reader... It is the very 1st time Ran suspects that Conan is actually Shinichi. It is rather funny seeing how Ran tries to catch him off guard, but sad for Ran, technology wins... =.= When Conan was in a tight spot, Professor Agasa mimicked Shinichi's voice using the voice changer bowtie phoned her. Pretty sad for Ran, but Shinichi is doing it to protect her... How ironic... Haiz... Okay back to the point, this case is a rather cool one. Well at least the motive is more sensible than those with boy-girlfriend relationships. It is very common in real life. When one loses their loved ones to diseases, nothing can be done to change it. Yet some relatives to the patient may blame it on the doctor, causing a very sad turn of events...
Detectives involved: Edogawa Conan, Mouri Kogoro
People directly involved:
Ogawa (A surgeon who operated on culprit's son, failed operation)
Ogawa Yuuta (age 5 son of surgeon)
Ogino (fake sender name: Tanaka Touko)
Ogino Tomoya (late son of Ogino, died 3 years ago due to late stages of appendicitis)
Background: Ogawa looked for Kogoro for help. There was a mysterious sender (fake name Tanaka Touko) who sent toys money (1 million yen/month) to the client every month, morning glory bouquet every year, and a letter that very day. The gifts, money, and flowers had been sent for 2 years. The letter received that day read: The 25 million yen has been paid. I am coming to collect my side of the transaction. The address and name on the gifts were fake.
How Conan knew the client was a surgeon: He noticed diagonal scars on the tip of the clients index fingers. This was because during surgeries, surgeons had to hold thin little wires absolutely taut, thus creating the scars overtime.
Clues:
The things were sent from 2 years ago to now
The toys and 1 million yen were sent every month
The toys did not have bar codes and looked second-handed
The total money received was 25 million yen
The morning glory flowers were received once a year, on 3rd of August
Conan checked through the surgeon's patient records
Conan happen to stumble upon a game with name records. One of the player was named Ogino Tomoya (Conan later found the name in the patient record)
Patient Record of Tomoya: Died after undergoing surgery under Dr Ogawa, on 3rd of Aug, 3 year ago
Deduction & motive: The mysterious sender was Mr Ogino, father of the late Ogino Tomoya who died of appendicitis. He deluded himself into believing it was Dr Ogawa's fault for not performing a good surgery and saving his son. Thus, to take revenge, he constantly warned Dr Ogawa with the gifts, and the 25 million yen were Tomoya's life insurance. He wanted Dr Ogawa to feel the same way he did when his son died. He planned to take Yuuta's life 3 years after his son's death, when Yuuta turned 5.
Rest of the story: Mr Ogino bribed Yuuta with toys to follow him after school. When he was about to stab Yuuta, Conan managed to aim a football at him (with the help of his power enhancing shoes). The similarities of Yuuta's innocence to Tomoya's made Mr Ogino give up. The story ended rather nicely, since Dr Ogawa forgave Mr Ogino and did not report the incident to the police.
My thoughts: Despite the death of the kid (3 years ago), it's quite heartening to know that no one's hurt adn that things were resolved. :)
Thursday 25 October 2012
Manga Review-- Detective Conan (The Hatamoto family)
Chapter 20-25
There were 2 murders and an attempted murder within hours on a cruise ship, done by the same murderer, plus the complications were between the Hatamoto family itself. Well, at least the motives weren't for inheretance, which was quite a huge issue. Oh well, this is a very complicated and long case. Hopefully you'll be able to understand my 'explanation'. :)
Detective(s) involved: Edogawa Conan, Mouri Kogoro
People Involved:
Hatamoto Gouzou (head of family)
Hatamoto Takeshi (newly-wed husband of Natsue/Hatamoto employee),
Hatamoto Natsue (daughter of Gouzou's oldest son),
Hatamoto Kitarou (husband of Hatamoto Mariko/company VP),
Hatamoto Mariko (elder daughter of family),
Hatamoto Jouji (youngest son of Gouzou/chef),
Hatamoto Akie (Natsue's elder sister),
Hatamoto Tatsuo (Akie's husband),
Hatamoto Ichirou (son of Mariko),
Suzuki (family butler)
1st murder(Gouzou's death):
Victim: Hatamoto Gouzou (Badly wounded. Died of excessive blood loss)
Suspects: prime--Hatamoto Takeshi (exposed to be son of Zaiki Isao, rival of Hatamoto family); rest of Hatamoto family except Natsue (with Ran & others)
Possible murder weapon: knife
Murder scene: Gouzou's room
Clues: Takeshi's flower found at the door
Closed room murder
Body found 40-50 min after death
Only Gouzou and Suzuki have the keys to the room
Missing murder weapon
Some blood landed on door frame (door was open during murder)
Bread crumbs found in blood puddle, charcoal found on crumbs (bread made by Jouji, further clues in part 3)
Jouji always carries his kitchen knife with him
Conclusion (partial): Gouzou himself locked the door after being stabbed, but died of excessive blood loss. Culprit could be any of the suspects except Suzuki and Takeshi, who was preparing the meal at time of death. Also, some blood ought to have dripped outside the room, but it was wiped away. If it was Takeshi, he would have picked up the flower when cleaning the blood. It shows that the murderer was framing Takeshi (by dropping his flower at the door).
Result: Takeshi was locked in a storage room (can only be unlocked from the outside).
Intepreted 'motive': Take revenge against Gouzou for taking father's company (father suicided)
Intepreted 'evidence': Takeshi's flower found at the door (murder weapon not found)
2nd murder(Tatsuo's death):
Victim: Hatamoto Tatsuo (Died of brain damage caused by a blow on the head)
Suspects: Takeshi (prime suspect),
all except Natsue (with Ran & others)
Possible murder weapon: steel pipe
Murder scene: lower ship deck; Ran, Conan & Natsue on upper ship deck
Clues: Conan heard a sound like sth hitting the water, then a thudding sound
Takeshi escaped from the locked room (someone opened the door from the outside)
Result: Well, no conclusion. There weren't enough evidence to tell who was the culprit, and almost all of them seem to have a motive in killing Gouzou. There could be an indirect motive to kill Tatsuo, maybe because he saw the murder weapon or sth along the line. The thudding sound could be the culprit getting rid of previous murder weapon.
Attempted murder:
Victim: Ichirou (stabbed in the leg, shallow wound)
Suspects: missing Takeshi (poor guy... he's actually a good guy...>.<)
all others (time-switch made it possible)
Murder Weapon: Jouji's kitchen knife
Murder scene: Washroom
Clues: deliberate blackout (use of trap-springer: affix a weight to the breaker, make a fulcrum using a string tied around sth else, tie lighted candle in middle, when fire reached rope, rope is burnt and broken; the weight automatically pulls the breaker switch)
murder weapon was left at the scene (Jouji's kitchen knife)
Ichirou's testimonial-- someone coming out of a stall, then blackout (he said he couldn't see anything), then was stabbed
Clues from search in rooms (looking for Takeshi):
Gouzou strongly opposed Mariko & Kitarou's marriage (they were cousins)
Jouji's knife case had 2 missing knives instead of one
In Ichirou's room, his art set contained charcoal and bread (for drawing and erasing)
Deduction: Ichirou was the culprit for all the incidents.
In the 1st murder, the conclusion showed that Takeshi is ruled out from being the culprit, since it was obvious the flower was to frame him.
The 2nd murder did not seem like a plan murder. If the culprit for all 3 murders were the same, then it was obvious that the 2nd murder was not planned beforehand.
The 2 missing knives from Jouji's knife case shows that there is still one missing weapon. Thus it can be concluded that at the 2nd murder, the thud was Tatsuo being hit, the water 'splash' sound was probably the culprit getting rid of the murder weapon. Tatsuo probably saw the culprit holding the weapon, thus the culprit's motive to kill was to silence Tatsuo.
As for Takeshi's missing in action, the murderer probably opened the door after the 2nd murder, so that he could once again frame Takeshi as the murderer (since he 'escaped').
When Conan (using Kogoro's voice) made the deduction to this point, he called Takeshi out from his hiding place in that very room. He said he escaped when he heard Natsue's scream, but when he saw the others blaming Tatsuo's death on him, he ran away to hide, and coincidentally hid in the room where Conan made his deductions.
As for the last 'attempted murder', people were wondering who opened the door for Takeshi, thus Ichirou was also a suspect for being the 'accomplice' who opened the door. He frantically thought of injuring himself to shift the blame away from him. However, his 'testmonial' when being stabbed was contradictory. If it was pitch-black, how could the 'stabber' stab him rather accurately? Also, unlike the 1st two murders, the murder weapon wasn't taken away, but was found beside Ichirou. Since he couldn't walk (stabbed), of course he couldn't get rid of the weapon.
Prove: The bread crumbs found in the 1st murder was from Ichirou. He used it to erase his drawings. Since traces of charcoal were found on them, it further proves that they belonged to Ichirou. They probably fell inside Ichirou's sleeve when he was drawing.
Motive: Ichirou loved Natsue. He went to Gouzou for approval to marry Natsue, but Gouzou said 'you think I'll let you take my precious Natsue?!'. Gouzou later approved Natsue & Takeshi's marriage just to spite Ichirou. Ichirou was angry and couldn't forgive the spiteful Gouzou and Takeshi who 'stoled' Natsue from him.
My thoughts: I think it is a really sad motive... Gouzou sure was spiteful and mean, but no one have the right to shorten other's life. It's rather sad for Ichirou too... He couldn't get the person he loved and lost everything too... :'( But I'm glad Gouzou wasn't killed for inheritance... It's an even more saddening reason to kill... X(
Comment from a friend: I really do think that Conan has been in the same grade for way too long (18 years if want to be exact), so personally, I really do think that Aoyama should end this series soon. Yes, we will be sad to see this cute "boy" gone, but we will be really glad or even elated if we will be able to know if he managed to turn back into the teenager, permanently. I am just a bit sick and tired of this endless line of murder, solving murder, getting lead on black organisation, losing lead on black organisation, and back to murder, and solving murder, etc. Come on, as a reader and a fan girl, I deserve to know if ran gets together with Shinichi. So please, I beg you Aoyama sama, just grant us a good and satisfactory ending already.
There were 2 murders and an attempted murder within hours on a cruise ship, done by the same murderer, plus the complications were between the Hatamoto family itself. Well, at least the motives weren't for inheretance, which was quite a huge issue. Oh well, this is a very complicated and long case. Hopefully you'll be able to understand my 'explanation'. :)
Detective(s) involved: Edogawa Conan, Mouri Kogoro
People Involved:
Hatamoto Gouzou (head of family)
Hatamoto Takeshi (newly-wed husband of Natsue/Hatamoto employee),
Hatamoto Natsue (daughter of Gouzou's oldest son),
Hatamoto Kitarou (husband of Hatamoto Mariko/company VP),
Hatamoto Mariko (elder daughter of family),
Hatamoto Jouji (youngest son of Gouzou/chef),
Hatamoto Akie (Natsue's elder sister),
Hatamoto Tatsuo (Akie's husband),
Hatamoto Ichirou (son of Mariko),
Suzuki (family butler)
1st murder(Gouzou's death):
Victim: Hatamoto Gouzou (Badly wounded. Died of excessive blood loss)
Suspects: prime--Hatamoto Takeshi (exposed to be son of Zaiki Isao, rival of Hatamoto family); rest of Hatamoto family except Natsue (with Ran & others)
Possible murder weapon: knife
Murder scene: Gouzou's room
Clues: Takeshi's flower found at the door
Closed room murder
Body found 40-50 min after death
Only Gouzou and Suzuki have the keys to the room
Missing murder weapon
Some blood landed on door frame (door was open during murder)
Bread crumbs found in blood puddle, charcoal found on crumbs (bread made by Jouji, further clues in part 3)
Jouji always carries his kitchen knife with him
Conclusion (partial): Gouzou himself locked the door after being stabbed, but died of excessive blood loss. Culprit could be any of the suspects except Suzuki and Takeshi, who was preparing the meal at time of death. Also, some blood ought to have dripped outside the room, but it was wiped away. If it was Takeshi, he would have picked up the flower when cleaning the blood. It shows that the murderer was framing Takeshi (by dropping his flower at the door).
Result: Takeshi was locked in a storage room (can only be unlocked from the outside).
Intepreted 'motive': Take revenge against Gouzou for taking father's company (father suicided)
Intepreted 'evidence': Takeshi's flower found at the door (murder weapon not found)
2nd murder(Tatsuo's death):
Victim: Hatamoto Tatsuo (Died of brain damage caused by a blow on the head)
Suspects: Takeshi (prime suspect),
all except Natsue (with Ran & others)
Possible murder weapon: steel pipe
Murder scene: lower ship deck; Ran, Conan & Natsue on upper ship deck
Clues: Conan heard a sound like sth hitting the water, then a thudding sound
Takeshi escaped from the locked room (someone opened the door from the outside)
Result: Well, no conclusion. There weren't enough evidence to tell who was the culprit, and almost all of them seem to have a motive in killing Gouzou. There could be an indirect motive to kill Tatsuo, maybe because he saw the murder weapon or sth along the line. The thudding sound could be the culprit getting rid of previous murder weapon.
Attempted murder:
Victim: Ichirou (stabbed in the leg, shallow wound)
Suspects: missing Takeshi (poor guy... he's actually a good guy...>.<)
all others (time-switch made it possible)
Murder Weapon: Jouji's kitchen knife
Murder scene: Washroom
Clues: deliberate blackout (use of trap-springer: affix a weight to the breaker, make a fulcrum using a string tied around sth else, tie lighted candle in middle, when fire reached rope, rope is burnt and broken; the weight automatically pulls the breaker switch)
murder weapon was left at the scene (Jouji's kitchen knife)
Ichirou's testimonial-- someone coming out of a stall, then blackout (he said he couldn't see anything), then was stabbed
Clues from search in rooms (looking for Takeshi):
Gouzou strongly opposed Mariko & Kitarou's marriage (they were cousins)
Jouji's knife case had 2 missing knives instead of one
In Ichirou's room, his art set contained charcoal and bread (for drawing and erasing)
Deduction: Ichirou was the culprit for all the incidents.
In the 1st murder, the conclusion showed that Takeshi is ruled out from being the culprit, since it was obvious the flower was to frame him.
The 2nd murder did not seem like a plan murder. If the culprit for all 3 murders were the same, then it was obvious that the 2nd murder was not planned beforehand.
The 2 missing knives from Jouji's knife case shows that there is still one missing weapon. Thus it can be concluded that at the 2nd murder, the thud was Tatsuo being hit, the water 'splash' sound was probably the culprit getting rid of the murder weapon. Tatsuo probably saw the culprit holding the weapon, thus the culprit's motive to kill was to silence Tatsuo.
As for Takeshi's missing in action, the murderer probably opened the door after the 2nd murder, so that he could once again frame Takeshi as the murderer (since he 'escaped').
When Conan (using Kogoro's voice) made the deduction to this point, he called Takeshi out from his hiding place in that very room. He said he escaped when he heard Natsue's scream, but when he saw the others blaming Tatsuo's death on him, he ran away to hide, and coincidentally hid in the room where Conan made his deductions.
As for the last 'attempted murder', people were wondering who opened the door for Takeshi, thus Ichirou was also a suspect for being the 'accomplice' who opened the door. He frantically thought of injuring himself to shift the blame away from him. However, his 'testmonial' when being stabbed was contradictory. If it was pitch-black, how could the 'stabber' stab him rather accurately? Also, unlike the 1st two murders, the murder weapon wasn't taken away, but was found beside Ichirou. Since he couldn't walk (stabbed), of course he couldn't get rid of the weapon.
Prove: The bread crumbs found in the 1st murder was from Ichirou. He used it to erase his drawings. Since traces of charcoal were found on them, it further proves that they belonged to Ichirou. They probably fell inside Ichirou's sleeve when he was drawing.
Motive: Ichirou loved Natsue. He went to Gouzou for approval to marry Natsue, but Gouzou said 'you think I'll let you take my precious Natsue?!'. Gouzou later approved Natsue & Takeshi's marriage just to spite Ichirou. Ichirou was angry and couldn't forgive the spiteful Gouzou and Takeshi who 'stoled' Natsue from him.
My thoughts: I think it is a really sad motive... Gouzou sure was spiteful and mean, but no one have the right to shorten other's life. It's rather sad for Ichirou too... He couldn't get the person he loved and lost everything too... :'( But I'm glad Gouzou wasn't killed for inheritance... It's an even more saddening reason to kill... X(
Comment from a friend: I really do think that Conan has been in the same grade for way too long (18 years if want to be exact), so personally, I really do think that Aoyama should end this series soon. Yes, we will be sad to see this cute "boy" gone, but we will be really glad or even elated if we will be able to know if he managed to turn back into the teenager, permanently. I am just a bit sick and tired of this endless line of murder, solving murder, getting lead on black organisation, losing lead on black organisation, and back to murder, and solving murder, etc. Come on, as a reader and a fan girl, I deserve to know if ran gets together with Shinichi. So please, I beg you Aoyama sama, just grant us a good and satisfactory ending already.
Wednesday 24 October 2012
Manga Review-- Detective Conan (5th case: Black Organisation)
Chapter 13-16
I have to say that this case is a whole package... First a 'runaway father', then the death of this 'father', then the realization that they were robbers, and even more shocking is their relation to the Black Organization. Of course, many thanks to Professor Agasa who invented the 'criminal-pursuing glasses' that had a navigator and transmitter.
Detective(s) involved: Edogawa Conan, Mouri Kogoro, unknown hired detective
Suspects/ people involved: 'Hirota Masami',
Victim(s): Hirota Kenzou (robber)
Masami looked for Kogoro to search for her missing 'father', Hirota.
Clues: He had cats named Kai, Tei, Ou & Gou
Conclusion: Hirota liked horse racing, since Goukaiteiou was a race horse's name. He was found at the horse racing stadium.
Hirota was found dead the next night, Masami was missing too. They met the other detective, hired by a guy (let him be ABC) , also to look for Hirota.
Part 1: Conan accidentally stuck the transmitter on Masami's watch. He was led to a Pachinko building (god knows what's this place XP) and knocked into --. The glasses' battery died so his search stopped there.
Part 2: The second search ended up in a hotel. However, when they reached the destination, they found ABC dead with Potassium Cyanide.
Clues: large empty cases
false-matching stories
Hirota was a bachelor
Hirota oddly drove at high speed along the same route every day in his taxi
Conclusion: The trio were the bank robbers that stole 1 billion yen. The cases probably held the money. Hirota probably back-stabbed the other two robbers and ran away, thus they were desperately trying to look for him. However, ABC murdered him. Masami probably murdered ABC too.
Part 3: Conan and Ran chased after Masami. However, when they managed to catch up, the black organization had shot her at a vital spot. The only clue Conan got was that it was called 'Black Organization', and that the people liked to dress in black.
Masami's death was framed as a suicide, since her fingerprints were found on the gun near her body.
My thoughts: Wow. When I first saw the case I thought: this case would probably end fast. However, it turned out to be a link of events, with so many people involved. Well, if you thought that this was an interesting case, you ought to read on, because there will be many more cool cases coming up! :) Support Detective Conan!!!
I have to say that this case is a whole package... First a 'runaway father', then the death of this 'father', then the realization that they were robbers, and even more shocking is their relation to the Black Organization. Of course, many thanks to Professor Agasa who invented the 'criminal-pursuing glasses' that had a navigator and transmitter.
Detective(s) involved: Edogawa Conan, Mouri Kogoro, unknown hired detective
Suspects/ people involved: 'Hirota Masami',
Victim(s): Hirota Kenzou (robber)
Masami looked for Kogoro to search for her missing 'father', Hirota.
Clues: He had cats named Kai, Tei, Ou & Gou
Conclusion: Hirota liked horse racing, since Goukaiteiou was a race horse's name. He was found at the horse racing stadium.
Hirota was found dead the next night, Masami was missing too. They met the other detective, hired by a guy (let him be ABC) , also to look for Hirota.
Part 1: Conan accidentally stuck the transmitter on Masami's watch. He was led to a Pachinko building (god knows what's this place XP) and knocked into --. The glasses' battery died so his search stopped there.
Part 2: The second search ended up in a hotel. However, when they reached the destination, they found ABC dead with Potassium Cyanide.
Clues: large empty cases
false-matching stories
Hirota was a bachelor
Hirota oddly drove at high speed along the same route every day in his taxi
Conclusion: The trio were the bank robbers that stole 1 billion yen. The cases probably held the money. Hirota probably back-stabbed the other two robbers and ran away, thus they were desperately trying to look for him. However, ABC murdered him. Masami probably murdered ABC too.
Part 3: Conan and Ran chased after Masami. However, when they managed to catch up, the black organization had shot her at a vital spot. The only clue Conan got was that it was called 'Black Organization', and that the people liked to dress in black.
Masami's death was framed as a suicide, since her fingerprints were found on the gun near her body.
My thoughts: Wow. When I first saw the case I thought: this case would probably end fast. However, it turned out to be a link of events, with so many people involved. Well, if you thought that this was an interesting case, you ought to read on, because there will be many more cool cases coming up! :) Support Detective Conan!!!
Manga Review-- Detective Conan (4th case: insurance bet)
Chapter 10-12
This is a very sad case where people on the verge of bankruptcy abandon humanity and kill for money.
Detective(s) involved: Edogawa Conan, Mouri Kogoro, Inspector Megure
Suspects: Abe Yutaka (friend of victim)
Victim: Negishi Masaki
Background: Negishi's body was found in a fire, thus it was impossible to tell the time of death. Negishi and Abe made a bet on who would die first, the 'longer-life' one allowed to obtain the other's life insurance of 500 million yen. Negishi seemed to have problems of someone stalking him, thus Abe paid Kogoro to shadow Negishi for 3 days, paying him 500 million yen, the amount equivalent to the life insurance. It was suspicious but Abe had a perfect alibi. From Day 1 to Day 3, Kogoro was shadowing Negishi, thus it was impossible to kill him. Negishi died on Day 4, but Abe was on vacation from Day 3 to Day 5. It was an impossible crime in a way, since Abe took photos on his trip that proved his absence.
Clues: The photos that Kogoro took of Negishi when shadowing him showed that on Day 3, he was left-handed. However, the rest of the photos showed that he was right-handed.
Deduction: Negishi was actually killed on Day 2, by Abe, before his vacation. On Day 3, Negishi was replaced by a fake that was left-handed. By letting his body burn in the fire, it was impossible to tell the time of his death.
Prove: When Conan told Abe his deduction and proved that he was the murderer, Abe stated it himself that he was the murder. Conan had preparation beforehand and recorded his 'confession'.
Motive: To get the insurance money. Abe's company owed 300 million yen and he was desperate for money.
My thoughts: It is very sad to see how people replace humanity by money nowadays. Always remember that money doesn't last, humanity and friendship will.
This is a very sad case where people on the verge of bankruptcy abandon humanity and kill for money.
Detective(s) involved: Edogawa Conan, Mouri Kogoro, Inspector Megure
Suspects: Abe Yutaka (friend of victim)
Victim: Negishi Masaki
Background: Negishi's body was found in a fire, thus it was impossible to tell the time of death. Negishi and Abe made a bet on who would die first, the 'longer-life' one allowed to obtain the other's life insurance of 500 million yen. Negishi seemed to have problems of someone stalking him, thus Abe paid Kogoro to shadow Negishi for 3 days, paying him 500 million yen, the amount equivalent to the life insurance. It was suspicious but Abe had a perfect alibi. From Day 1 to Day 3, Kogoro was shadowing Negishi, thus it was impossible to kill him. Negishi died on Day 4, but Abe was on vacation from Day 3 to Day 5. It was an impossible crime in a way, since Abe took photos on his trip that proved his absence.
Clues: The photos that Kogoro took of Negishi when shadowing him showed that on Day 3, he was left-handed. However, the rest of the photos showed that he was right-handed.
Deduction: Negishi was actually killed on Day 2, by Abe, before his vacation. On Day 3, Negishi was replaced by a fake that was left-handed. By letting his body burn in the fire, it was impossible to tell the time of his death.
Prove: When Conan told Abe his deduction and proved that he was the murderer, Abe stated it himself that he was the murder. Conan had preparation beforehand and recorded his 'confession'.
Motive: To get the insurance money. Abe's company owed 300 million yen and he was desperate for money.
My thoughts: It is very sad to see how people replace humanity by money nowadays. Always remember that money doesn't last, humanity and friendship will.
Tuesday 23 October 2012
Manga Review-- Detective Conan (3rd case: framed suicide)
Chapter 6-9
This is the first case involving Okino Yoko, Mouri Kogoro's idol. This case happened on the 3rd day after Shinichi turned into Conan. Before this, Professor Agasa had given Conan his new invention-- bowtie shaped voice changer, which helped him a lot.
Detective(s) involved: Edogawa Conan, Mouri Kogoro, Inspector Megure
Suspects(murderer): Okino Yoko, Manager Yamagishi, Ikezawa Yuuko
Victim: Fujie Akiyoshi (Yoko's ex-boyfriend)
Background: The victim was found dead in Yoko's apartment. He was stabbed with a knife from the back. The only entrance possible was the front door. Only Manager Yamagishi and Yoko has the keys. However the manager lost his keys and ever since then someone entered the apartment many times. Before that Yoko looked for Kogoro to capture a 'stalker' who has been entering her apartment now and then, taking pictures of her etc.
Clues: Heater turned on at high power
Small dried water marks around body
Everything in the room knocked over except a nearby chair
Manager purposely slipped onto the victim to retrieve a strand of hair
An earring belonging to Ikezawa Yuuko
Stalker:
Deduction: Yuuko was the one entering the apartment.
Evidence: Although it was supposedly the 1st time she entered the apartment, her earring was found in it, she knew her way to the washroom and knew how to use a rarely seen lighter.
Motive: To harass Yoko since she 'stole' her work. She eventually looked into Yoko's apartment in attempt to create a scandal.
Death case:
Deduction: It was a suicide. Yoko and the manager did not have an alibi, thus did not predict the death of the victim. Thus, they can be ruled out. As for Yuuko, if she wanted to defend herself, she could have said that she did not know the victim. However, she was honest in saying that she met the victim when rummaging in the apartment, showing that she is not the murder.
Evidence: The victim was holding a strand of hair. He made it look like it was a murder by Yoko. Regarding the method of death, the victim created a hole in a block of ice and stuck the knife outwards in it. The victim stood on the chair and aimed his back at the knife.
Motive: Fujie was still in love with Yoko. It was the manager who forced him to dump Yoko since them dating would create much gossip. When he met Yuuko in the apartment, since Yuuko looked similar to Yoko with sunglasses on, he thought that Yoko rejected him coldly. Being heartbroken, he killed himself as so.
My thoughts: It is rather sad to see someone dying for their loved ones, even more when someone dies to destroy their loved one's future. As I said before, these are not really worth dying for. If you are ever caught in this kind of situation, always remember that it isn't the end of the world. The world is filled with much more intriguing things that can help you keep on going. So never shorten your life so easily. Smile, and tell yourself that everything is going to be fine... :)
This is the first case involving Okino Yoko, Mouri Kogoro's idol. This case happened on the 3rd day after Shinichi turned into Conan. Before this, Professor Agasa had given Conan his new invention-- bowtie shaped voice changer, which helped him a lot.
Detective(s) involved: Edogawa Conan, Mouri Kogoro, Inspector Megure
Suspects(murderer): Okino Yoko, Manager Yamagishi, Ikezawa Yuuko
Victim: Fujie Akiyoshi (Yoko's ex-boyfriend)
Background: The victim was found dead in Yoko's apartment. He was stabbed with a knife from the back. The only entrance possible was the front door. Only Manager Yamagishi and Yoko has the keys. However the manager lost his keys and ever since then someone entered the apartment many times. Before that Yoko looked for Kogoro to capture a 'stalker' who has been entering her apartment now and then, taking pictures of her etc.
Clues: Heater turned on at high power
Small dried water marks around body
Everything in the room knocked over except a nearby chair
Manager purposely slipped onto the victim to retrieve a strand of hair
An earring belonging to Ikezawa Yuuko
Stalker:
Deduction: Yuuko was the one entering the apartment.
Evidence: Although it was supposedly the 1st time she entered the apartment, her earring was found in it, she knew her way to the washroom and knew how to use a rarely seen lighter.
Motive: To harass Yoko since she 'stole' her work. She eventually looked into Yoko's apartment in attempt to create a scandal.
Death case:
Deduction: It was a suicide. Yoko and the manager did not have an alibi, thus did not predict the death of the victim. Thus, they can be ruled out. As for Yuuko, if she wanted to defend herself, she could have said that she did not know the victim. However, she was honest in saying that she met the victim when rummaging in the apartment, showing that she is not the murder.
Evidence: The victim was holding a strand of hair. He made it look like it was a murder by Yoko. Regarding the method of death, the victim created a hole in a block of ice and stuck the knife outwards in it. The victim stood on the chair and aimed his back at the knife.
Motive: Fujie was still in love with Yoko. It was the manager who forced him to dump Yoko since them dating would create much gossip. When he met Yuuko in the apartment, since Yuuko looked similar to Yoko with sunglasses on, he thought that Yoko rejected him coldly. Being heartbroken, he killed himself as so.
My thoughts: It is rather sad to see someone dying for their loved ones, even more when someone dies to destroy their loved one's future. As I said before, these are not really worth dying for. If you are ever caught in this kind of situation, always remember that it isn't the end of the world. The world is filled with much more intriguing things that can help you keep on going. So never shorten your life so easily. Smile, and tell yourself that everything is going to be fine... :)
Manga Review-- Detective Conan (2nd case: double-kidnapping)
Chapter 3-5
This is the 1st case Shinichi helped in after turning into Edogawa Conan (age 6/7). I skipped Chapter 2 since it's quite understandable as the start of the main plot. :)
Detective involved: Edogawa Conan, Mouri Kogoro (Mouri Ran's father)
Suspects(kidnapper): Asou-kun (Butler of household), man-in-black (made-up character), random kidnapper
Victim(kidnapped): Tani Akiko (age 10)
Resolution:
1st kidnapping:
It was a fake 'kidnap', the plan thought up by Akiko herself. Asou supposedly saw the 'men-in-black' kidnap Akiko with a knife in his hand, with the 'motive' of 'kidnapping' for the father to close down his company in a month's time. The 'kidnapper' escaped by climbing up a tree and over the wall. However, things became complicated when a real kidnapper called and asked for a ransom of 3 million yen in second-hand bills.
Conan began to suspect the true cause of the 1st kidnapping. He realized there were fierce guard dogs in the house that would bark at any stranger that enters the house, thus impossible for the 'men-in-black' to kidnap Akiko in her house. He concluded that the 1st kidnapping was aided by Asou himself, through spinning a story. Apparently Akiko was sent to a hotel to play.
Motive-- Since Akiko's mother passed away 3 years ago, her father became a workaholic, causing Akiko to feel lonely. Thus, she thought that if she could make her father stop working, he would be able to care about her and play with her.
2nd kidnapping:
The kidnapper found Akiko in the hotel and kidnapped her for a ransom.
When he contacted her father, Conan managed to get some clues: Akiko was being held captive 'at some school where she could see a big chimney out of the window'.
Conan deduced that the kidnapper was probably still in the area. He narrowed down the captive place to 5 schools, however the search was to no avail. He then realized that Akiko was probably talking about a tall building, which when looked from the side view, looks like a chimney.
Conan managed to find Akiko, but since his body shrank, he was unable to knock the kidnapper down. He was badly injured until the guard dog that Conan brought with him escaped and looked for Akiko's father and the rest. Ran reached in time and with her great martial arts skills, she managed to stop the kidnapper.
My thoughts: Even when saving other's lives, you ought to make sure that you have enough tools and weapons to defend yourself and ensure a certain degree of safety. This case also showed that workaholic parents should pay more attention to their children. :)
This is the 1st case Shinichi helped in after turning into Edogawa Conan (age 6/7). I skipped Chapter 2 since it's quite understandable as the start of the main plot. :)
Detective involved: Edogawa Conan, Mouri Kogoro (Mouri Ran's father)
Suspects(kidnapper): Asou-kun (Butler of household), man-in-black (made-up character), random kidnapper
Victim(kidnapped): Tani Akiko (age 10)
Resolution:
1st kidnapping:
It was a fake 'kidnap', the plan thought up by Akiko herself. Asou supposedly saw the 'men-in-black' kidnap Akiko with a knife in his hand, with the 'motive' of 'kidnapping' for the father to close down his company in a month's time. The 'kidnapper' escaped by climbing up a tree and over the wall. However, things became complicated when a real kidnapper called and asked for a ransom of 3 million yen in second-hand bills.
Conan began to suspect the true cause of the 1st kidnapping. He realized there were fierce guard dogs in the house that would bark at any stranger that enters the house, thus impossible for the 'men-in-black' to kidnap Akiko in her house. He concluded that the 1st kidnapping was aided by Asou himself, through spinning a story. Apparently Akiko was sent to a hotel to play.
Motive-- Since Akiko's mother passed away 3 years ago, her father became a workaholic, causing Akiko to feel lonely. Thus, she thought that if she could make her father stop working, he would be able to care about her and play with her.
2nd kidnapping:
The kidnapper found Akiko in the hotel and kidnapped her for a ransom.
When he contacted her father, Conan managed to get some clues: Akiko was being held captive 'at some school where she could see a big chimney out of the window'.
Conan deduced that the kidnapper was probably still in the area. He narrowed down the captive place to 5 schools, however the search was to no avail. He then realized that Akiko was probably talking about a tall building, which when looked from the side view, looks like a chimney.
Conan managed to find Akiko, but since his body shrank, he was unable to knock the kidnapper down. He was badly injured until the guard dog that Conan brought with him escaped and looked for Akiko's father and the rest. Ran reached in time and with her great martial arts skills, she managed to stop the kidnapper.
My thoughts: Even when saving other's lives, you ought to make sure that you have enough tools and weapons to defend yourself and ensure a certain degree of safety. This case also showed that workaholic parents should pay more attention to their children. :)
Manga Review-- Detective Conan (1st case: roller coaster)
Chapter 1
Detective involved: Kudo Shinichi
Victim: A guy
Suspects: Gin & Vodka (men in black), girlfriend of victim, 2 friends of victim (1 is gymnast)
Resolution:
Proof: The culprit's missing pearl necklace is the murder weapon.
Motive: The culprit was the victim's ex-girlfriend, dumped for his current girlfriend.
It was murder on a roller coaster in which the victim's head was cut off during the ride.
Detective involved: Kudo Shinichi
Victim: A guy
Suspects: Gin & Vodka (men in black), girlfriend of victim, 2 friends of victim (1 is gymnast)
Resolution:
Culprit-- gymnast friend
She frames the victim's girlfriend, since it is 'impossible' for the culprit, who is sitting two rows before the victim, to carry out the murder during the ride. The culprit places the supposed 'murder weapons' in the girlfriend's bag. However it does not make sense for the girlfriend (framed culprit) to not get rid of the weapon during the ride if she was the murderer.
Shinichi thus identified the true method of murder: the gymnast escapes the safety guard off the roller coaster by placing an item behind her back beforehand and sliding out from the bottom. Then, as a gymnast, it is simple to balance herself during the ride, by securing her legs around the safety guard and turning around to hook the murder weapon around the victim's neck. The murder weapon is a steel hoop made of piano wire and a hook. By looping the wire around the victim's neck and securing the attached hook to the railing, with the speed of the roller coaster, the victim's head is effectively cut off.
Shinichi thus identified the true method of murder: the gymnast escapes the safety guard off the roller coaster by placing an item behind her back beforehand and sliding out from the bottom. Then, as a gymnast, it is simple to balance herself during the ride, by securing her legs around the safety guard and turning around to hook the murder weapon around the victim's neck. The murder weapon is a steel hoop made of piano wire and a hook. By looping the wire around the victim's neck and securing the attached hook to the railing, with the speed of the roller coaster, the victim's head is effectively cut off.
Proof: The culprit's missing pearl necklace is the murder weapon.
Motive: The culprit was the victim's ex-girlfriend, dumped for his current girlfriend.
My feelings: I feel that it is quite dumb to kill for such a reason, plus the culprit even planned to end her life after the murder. Life sure is fragile, but no one should lose a life for such a reason. These things will pass eventually and it is unreasonable to hold a grudge like this. Broken hearts are like wounds, they will heal over time. It would definitely leave a scar, but it isn't worth it to throw away your life for a scar, is it? Hopefully otakus will realise this too. :)
Sunday 21 October 2012
Book Review-- Fear (Jeff Abbott)
My very first post in this account will be a review of the book I've just read, titled 'Fear' by Jeff Abbott. It is a thriller story about a guy called Miles Kendrick who is mentally impaired-- his late friend haunts him. It was in an incident that he can't fully remember, thinking that he shot his friend with a gun. However, he did not turn up in jail, rather went under a witness protection program. He is fighting to regain his sanity with the help of his psychiatrist-- Allison. However, things get complicated when Allison is bombed in her house. Dangerous people began hunting Miles down, thinking he holds the key to Frost, the medicine that will save every mental patient. He joins 'forces' with Nathan and Celeste, another two mental patients to search for Frost to protect their lives and to take it away from the bad guys who are researching Frost illegally. Nathan has hallucinations of his soldier mates who died in an accident during war, since he was blamed for their death. Celeste is a tv star who won a survival game on television, whose husband was murdered by her obsessive fan.
The first thing i have to comment on about the book is the starting. The first chapter starts from Miles angle. At first, the readers do not know that Andy (his friend) is actually dead and that the conversations between Miles and Andy were his hallucinations. However, when Miles goes to Allison's office for treatment, we finally know that Andy is a 'ghost' he talks to. Miles keeps wondering about the 'confession letter' he wrote about what he remembers of the accident, and it makes the readers very interested to know what he actually wrote. The letter was only spelled out at the back of the book, where the patients gradually solve their problems. Another character is introduced-- Sorenson. He is known to be a 'bad guy' at the first few chapters, thought to be the one who set the bomb in Allison's office. However, his true identity is unknown until the second half of the book, where it is clear he is a player hunting for Frost to make money.
The interesting thing about the starting is how the second chapter switches to Denise Groote's point of view. He is a father of a mental teen (Amanda), who saw through her mother's death in a car accident. As an ex-FBI, he resorts to violence to seek revenge for his wife and child, and later to fight for Frost to cure Amanda. At first the readers are unable to identify the link between Groote and Miles, and may think that Groote, being hired by Quantrill, is actually the one behind the bombing of Allison's office. Talking about the bombing, it was probably due to the research materials on Frost that she stole.
Although this book contains much violence, it reflects many aspects of life. The themes present are mainly love for family, courage, survival, overcoming fear, determination, trust and team spirit. The book has shown the worst nightmares people can ever dream of, and how the characters struggle to make things right and to save their fragile lives. Of course I would recommend this book, but be mindful that it is rather gruesome and probably suitable for people aged 13 or above.
The first thing i have to comment on about the book is the starting. The first chapter starts from Miles angle. At first, the readers do not know that Andy (his friend) is actually dead and that the conversations between Miles and Andy were his hallucinations. However, when Miles goes to Allison's office for treatment, we finally know that Andy is a 'ghost' he talks to. Miles keeps wondering about the 'confession letter' he wrote about what he remembers of the accident, and it makes the readers very interested to know what he actually wrote. The letter was only spelled out at the back of the book, where the patients gradually solve their problems. Another character is introduced-- Sorenson. He is known to be a 'bad guy' at the first few chapters, thought to be the one who set the bomb in Allison's office. However, his true identity is unknown until the second half of the book, where it is clear he is a player hunting for Frost to make money.
The interesting thing about the starting is how the second chapter switches to Denise Groote's point of view. He is a father of a mental teen (Amanda), who saw through her mother's death in a car accident. As an ex-FBI, he resorts to violence to seek revenge for his wife and child, and later to fight for Frost to cure Amanda. At first the readers are unable to identify the link between Groote and Miles, and may think that Groote, being hired by Quantrill, is actually the one behind the bombing of Allison's office. Talking about the bombing, it was probably due to the research materials on Frost that she stole.
Although this book contains much violence, it reflects many aspects of life. The themes present are mainly love for family, courage, survival, overcoming fear, determination, trust and team spirit. The book has shown the worst nightmares people can ever dream of, and how the characters struggle to make things right and to save their fragile lives. Of course I would recommend this book, but be mindful that it is rather gruesome and probably suitable for people aged 13 or above.
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