Hello everyone and welcome The Anime Pulse: First Reaction. We’re going to be taking a look at an anime that is dedicated to the 50th anniversary of the passing of Ranpo Edogawa, a fiction writer that specialized in the macabre style. This is Ranpo Kitan: Game of Laplace.
General Overview
A boy named Kobayashi, who attends a middle school, runs into a genius youth detective named Akechi. After being framed for a murder, Kobayashi becomes interested in Akechi in order to find the true murderer. However, it doesn’t end there as more crimes take place. Now Kobayashi and Akechi work to unravel the mysteries of those crimes.
First Episode Impressions
Okay.. Kobayashi looks, talks, and acts like a girl, yet, he is truly a boy. Kobayashi is framed for the murder of his teacher and is considered a suspect because Kobayashi was found in the classroom, holding the murder weapon. However, Kobayashi insists he was framed and teams up with Akechi in order to solve his case… except for one little setback.
Kobayashi’s teacher was also a murderer who turned his victims into human chairs and now, rather than being a suspect of the murder, Kobayashi is suspect of being the teacher’s accomplice. Kobayashi is arrested on the spot before he can leave Akechi’s apartment and with that, the first episode comes to a close.
The episode is labelled as “Part 1” so I’m sure that we’re going to be in for an episodic-style anime where cases may get solved over the course of two to four episodes, depending on the style. There is, currently, no number of episodes assigned to this series so it’s hard to tell if it will last 12/13 or 24/25 episodes. However, according to anichart.net, this show is not listed in the Summer Leftovers section so we can probably assume it’ll be a 12-13 episode series. Depending on how many cases they are going to solve, in order to fit in content, I’d be willing to bet the cases get wrapped up in two to three episode increments.
The first case is kind of creepy and disturbing. Creating chairs out of humans is definitely something that isn’t normal for anyone to think or even comprehend. The fact that Kobayashi seems excited over being framed and being given a chance to prove his innocence makes me wonder about the mental stability of our main character.
Then there’s also Souji Hashiba… Kobayashi’s classmate and.. well… close friend. Souji realizes that Kobayashi is a guy and yet he continues to blush around him. So yeah, there’s definitely some middle school level yaoi moments in this show that’s also rather.. well.. unsettling. Unless Kobayashi is a girl and this will be one big M. Night Shyamalan twist at the end. I guess we’ll have to wait and see.
I can tell only those with a twisted sense of entertainment will enjoy this show. Thankfully, I’m one of those people and I do like it so far. I will keep watching and after seeing the hints in the first episode, I’m going to not place any limiters on my expectations for this show. I’m expecting everything and anything that can and could be considered “messed up” to happen along this ride.
OP & ED Impressions
Opening
“Speed to Masatsu” by amazarashi
WOW… the artwork for the opening is pretty good.. especially when they interchanged real people with anime character symbolism. The song itself is also very good and I found myself watching this opening five or six times.. it’s one of those I can’t get enough of. It’s not balls to the wall awesome, but it’s rather simplistic in its musical layering, but that simplicity is where the opening shines. Everything from the style of the music to the lyrics fit everything I’ve experienced so far in this anime. This is going to be a definitely must have for me when it drops.
Ending
“Mikazuki” by Sayuri
WOW WOW WOW. The ending is AMAZING. Sayuri’s voice is AMAZING and it really gives a tone that matches the style of anime this is. The black and red art style compliments the song and the lyrics in a way where it enhances the overall atmosphere. The way the song is sung.. it’s got a sad feeling, but yet, it feels melodic and uplifting at the same time. That contrast between the two is really enthralling and this is definitely going to be another must have for me!
Worth Watching?
MAYBE – I’m only using maybe because I don’t know if this is an anime for everyone. For me, personally, this is a definite YES, but for others, it may not be their cup of tea. It all really depends on how you feel about the macabre style.
