Bungou Stray Dogs - Episode 41 - 10 Second Anime

Ranpo vows to get Kunikida out of prison by proving he did not commit his alleged crime. Archrival Poe helps.

Episode 41 — "A Perfect Murder and Murderer (Part 1)"

Hmm.

My Bungou Stray Dogs coverage has mentioned this before, but we should refresh our knowledge of our main characters' real-world counterparts as we pick up the story from four years ago. "Edogawa Ranpo" was the pen name for Tarou Hirai, a prolific author of Japanese mystery and thriller novels. His works introduced the genre of "boy detective clubs," like the Nancy Drew and The Hardy Boys series of mystery books for teen readers in America. Without Ranpo, anime would not have the long-running Detective Conan anime series.

The other thing I've mentioned before about Edogawa Ranpo is that this pen name is a phonetic homonym for Edgar Allan Poe, the inventor of the mystery novel. It tickles me so much that Poe in Bungou Stray Dogs has a Gift, but he can't keep up with the detective skills of Ranpo, who has no supernatural powers. Poe's Gift, Black Cat in the Rue Morgue, transports targets into the novel they are reading, which shows that Poe is a better writer than a detective. Ranpo never lets him forget it, either.

Heh.

Somebody wants to commit the perfect crime, but can he outsmart Edogawa Ranpo? All right! It's the official opening sequence for the Bungou Stray Dogs season. I see Fukuzawa's military police contact with a bunch of snazzy uniforms. Dostoyevsky looks like the Big Bad for the season, but you know the plot will be more convoluted.

Ranpo visits Kunikida in prison. Authorities blame him for a child's death (see the episode from four years ago). Ranpo wants to prove someone framed Kunikida. Ranpo suspects a Gifted in Dostoyevsky's camp can destroy evidence. Ranpo also blames himself for not preventing the little girl's death at the hands of Fyodor. Yay! Edgar Allan Poe and his raccoon! He wants to solve the mystery of a murdered author who left clues to his killer in the missing fourth chapter of his serial murder mystery. Convoluted, like a Japanese mystery story should be. Hah! Ranpo arrives! He has a mystery to solve at that place too! Oh. Ranpo is the Armed Detective Agency's "mascot" because he disobeyed Fukuzawa's orders.

How did Ranpo track the "evidence destroyer" to the Yokohama Tower's observation deck while Poe waits for his auction prize? Of course, they're related. "Kousuke Kindaichi" was a fictional detective in the mystery novels by Seishi Yokomizo. Bungou Stray Dogs did a switcharoo! Ranpo already solved the case. He didn't need the missing fourth chapter. Har. All the executives in Fitzgerald's Guild are filthy rich, so Master Architect Poe, number three in the hierarchy, considers two hundred thousand dollars a mere pittance. That pittance was worth the money to make Ranpo scowl!

Oguri Mushitarou was a famous mystery novelist in pre–World War II Japan whose book Perfect Crime was his most noteworthy work. He auctioned off the fourth chapter of Kindaichi's story to pay for his escape. Oops. The red envelope turned out to be the culprit's ultimate mistake. If that guy hadn't wanted to make a memorable show, Ranpo wouldn't have questioned its intention. He can erase physical clues to make a perfect crime but can't eliminate memories. Ranpo's impressions were the only clues he needed to find the villain. Is this all happening to Fyodor's plans? Now what happens next?

The ending theme gives the slice-of-life vibes we need after watching our likable characters go through trauma.