Another episode, another case for Sakurako-san. As usual with detective dramas on TV, seems that this show will be following an episodic approach, with a new case each week. For now, we didn't see any clue about a major story arch here (or did we?).
SPOILERS
This time, Shoutarou finds a 3-year old girl alone at night in front of a convenience store. He takes her to the police, but they are unable to discover her or her parent's name because she just don't say it. After seeing blood on the girl's backpack, Shoutarou decides to ask Sakurako-san for help.
This episode's story was great, and they were able to tell it in just one episode. I have to admit that I was afraid the 20 min. time would be too little for a mystery series. I admit I was wrong. Furthermore, we got to see a little glimpse of what can be the major story being told during the series. But there are some not-so-great things.
First, some things are way too convenient and some coincidences help the duo too much. The way that Shoutarou's friend meets them, just to identify the girl and tell them where she lives was too much a coincidence. The drugged father going into the house at the exact moment Sakurako-san is trying to save the baby is another. To be fair, detective dramas always have some coincidence, but I think they abused a little to make things easier and faster to solve.
Another problem is that the cops are so dumb and incompetent that they feel unrealistic. Seriously. Lastly, one thing that wasn't 'bad', but I didn't like either: BONES. I mean, Sakurako-san uses her knowledge about bones to solve something at the first-half of the episode, but it doesn't feel like it was really necessary for the mystery's solution.
Despite these little things that bothered me, I still enjoyed the episode. The story kept me glued to the screen, the mystery was nice as well as the art. And the character development is happening, as we get to know a little more about both Shoutarou and Sakurako, with the ending adding a question that'll be in our head for possibly a long time: Who's Soutarou?
Rating: 4 stars
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| Flashback time |
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| Sakurako's little house |
