Ryoko’s Case Files First Impressions: Smart, Smooth and Stylish

And that matters how exactly…?

NEVER talk to a woman about her ag-

Oh, I give up.

Izumida’s almost like James Bond Johnny English with the ladies.

Snapshot Summary:

The episode begins with a woman in a white dress standing in a field. She then takes a gun out and shoots herself in the head. This turns out to be the dream of Izumida Jun’ichirou, Lieutenant and subordinate of Yakushiji Ryoko, a superintendent in the Criminal Investigation Division of the Metropolitan Police Department, and the woman of Izumida’s dreams (in more than one sense…?).  While going out shopping (in the middle of the work day) a man stumbles in front of their taxi and seems to dry out and emit some sort of gas, essentially ending up mummified. While chasing a suspect, Izumida discovers a ring and they also encounter Soga, owner of the building which contains the Quarantine Technical Research Organization and who is the former of the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare. After the less than pleasant encounter (through which Ryoko is antagonised), they continue to their original destination while discussing the case, and while Ryoko is enjoying her new swimsiut, 6 further events similar to the first occur around the city.

It turns out the ring belongs to the Tsukuyomi Party, an occult group dedicated to the belief in the existence of the Goddess of the Moon. After having the body of the original mummified man examined by Professor Tatsumi, a specialist in “supernatural cases”, poisons from imported food are discovered in his stomach, which leads Ryoko to believe she can start a fight with with the QTR based on evidence from the case, as the importation of foreign foods comes under their jurisdiction. Meanwhile, a mysterious white-haired woman stands outside Soga’s building, reminiscing about how she and Ryoko used to “play” in the past.

As they return to the Police Department, they meet up with Kishimoto, another (much more naive) agent, and Superintendent Muromachi Yukiko, rival to Ryoko. After the two women insult each other for a while( haha, witty banter) Ryoko and Izumida discover a party is being held by the QTR. They attend but Soga discovers this and orders two people to “liquidate them”, at least one of whom, a black-haired (cray-eyed) woman, is part of the Tsukuyomi Party. During the Party, Izumida seemingly receives a note from Muromachi to talk with her; it turns out it was from Kishimoto, who has been captured by Soga’s security. Meanwhile, Ryoko receives a drink from the bartender who turns out to be the same woman Soga was addressing earlier. Izumida manages to fight off Soga’s subordinates and rushes back to the bar, seeing Ryoko seemingly drink the drink offered her. However, while holding the bartender at gunpoint, she says she will have the woman tell her all she knows.

I really like this show. It seems like a throwback to the classic 1980’s cop shows, none of which I have actually seen, but the style seems to imply this :P. I’ve always liked mystery shows, detective shows and the like; something about a convuluted web of deceit and dirty dealings has a natural appeal to me.The OP and ED both have little animation, but the jazz music completely makes up for both of them.

As you can see from the summary, quite a bit of information was handled in the episode (yay for complicated plots and names!) but fitting the pieces together is always what makes these types of shows fun. I quite like Ryoko’s flirtatious and eccentric attitude, and though Izumida’s quie typical as the subordinate of a beautiful woman, he can also hold his own in a fight, which is good (please, no more wimpy characters, this season’s FULL of them).

Animation-wise, the shows a bit above average, some shots having more details than others, though nothing to call home about. The BGM’s decent with hints of Parisian (and one point even Carribbean) influence dotted about, mixed with something of a rock-steady, jazzy, sound. (Please keep in mind, these definitions may not be accurate as I know almost nothing about the technicalities of music :P)

The writers of the show know how to give relevant plot points while not giving everything away, and even hinting at events in the future (the white-haired woman outside the building, Izumida claiming supernatural things seem to hapen around Ryoko).

Overall, it was an intriguing first episode, and I may be blogging as it possesses a certain charm for me (and its the only show which had enough detail for me to even bother writing something close to a full summary for it ^_^).

There seems to be an increasing number of KERAZY characters in anime these days…