Bryce's Blog

I hope everyone is doing well, now that things are supposed to be
getting back to normal.

Things have been a
little rough here recently, but I am still glad that I can do what I
like.

Back in January,
while I was writing up a review, just as I am now, I noticed a
strange peculiarity that the next installment of the series was
already available for preorder on my preferred platform and I placed
an order for it, and it had recently arrived, which means it is time
to get down to business.

Today, I will be
reviewing that title, which is called Case
Closed Volume 82 by Gosho Aoyama.

As I have given a
series synopsis in an earlier
post, I will not go over it again.

Things continue on
as usual for Jimmy and the gang, with murders and heists still
happening from time to time.

However, after
resolving a case involving a cat that frequents a shop sharing the
same building where he stays, Jimmy is pulled into another case
involving the cat and he must solve that case, as well as the others
that he comes across, including one Sera’s brother was asked to
investigate.

While I liked the
previous
volume, maybe more than its predecessor,
there was annoyance that cropped up, so I am already prepared to deal
with things that may come.

After reading this
volume, I can say that I really liked it.

From the moment I
opened up this book and started reading it, I found myself engrossed
enough that I did not want to stop reading for any reason.

As I have said a
countless number of times, one of the most important things in a work
of fiction is how things begin, as the beginning is supposed to grab
the attention of the audience.

While there are many
ways to create a great beginning, depending on the genre and the
medium used to present a work, Detective Conan, just like many
other manga series, is published in a serial publication, which means
that it has to start in a way that makes sense based upon how the
last installment concluded.

Seeing as the
previous volume ended with the conclusion of a case, which seems to
be pretty rare now, the only way this volume could have started
things off was with the start of a new case, and it did just that.

However, what made
this one unique was that it was yet another case involving Kaito
Kuroba, which had me a little excited.

If things had not
started off with a KID case, I would have been alright with it, since
the first case of the volume is not usually the highlight of the
volume, but it probably would not have stood out if it did.

Fortunately, things
did start off with a KID case, albeit a not so exciting one, which
made me interested in seeing what I would be in for next.

Hopefully, future
volumes that start off with new cases get me as interested in the
contents of the rest of the volume as this one did, as that will help
keep people coming back for more.

I also liked how
most of the cases were rather enjoyable.

One of the things
that I really like about Detective Conan from the moment I was
introduced to it when it first aired on Adult Swim was how
interesting the cases were, though that was partly due to them being
true whodunits or howdunits, rather than the typical joke of a show
my mother watches that runs more like a documentary, and I felt
really invested in figuring things out.

While I cannot say
that the series is still quite like that now, seeing as things do
keep getting worse the closer to the current releases in Japan are, I
still enjoy a few cases here and there and this volume was no
different.

The KID case, while
it was not one that I am as fond of as some other ones, was a fun one
in the entertainment side of the spectrum that I did not find myself
completely bored with, and the other cases were ones that did a good
job of keeping things that should not be obvious from being as
obvious, making me want to take part in the case for myself.

If the cases
themselves were all bad, I would have been disappointed, even if I
know that I am getting close to cases that disgust me because of how
easy they are to figure out, as these cases are what keep people
coming back for more, aside from wanting to find out more about Black
Org and if Jimmy can get a cure for APTX 4869.

Thankfully, Gosho
Aoyama did a decent enough job with the cases to not many any stand
out for being truly horrible.

Hopefully, future
volumes, including ones that are to come after the recent appearance
of a figure that might be the boss of Black Org in the
Japanese releases, because that will help to attract new fans and
keep current fans around, but seeing as I am not the only one
encountering dull cases these days, I would not be surprised to
encounter a volume where every case is an absolute trainwreck.

Another thing that I
liked was that there were quite a few moments that made me laugh.

Aside from the cases
themselves, another thing I enjoy about Detective Conan is the
comedic moments and gems to be found in the series because the comedy
alone can turn even the most boring chapters into something that was
well worth it, even though everything else was a complete failure.

The funniest moment
was in the penultimate case of the volume, where Jimmy and the Junior
Detective League encounter a dead body when visiting the home of a
fellow student.

Now, the dead body
itself was not that funny and there were some other hilarious scenes
in the case, but the particular moment that had me laughing the
exchange between Sato and Jimmy in which she, like some other
characters, notices that Jimmy is at every murder scene, to which he
says that she and Takagi showed up right away as always too.

While the joke of
Jimmy being the true grim reaper is not exactly new in this series,
at least among fans of the series, it seems to me that this is the
first time that both Jimmy appearing wherever a dead body shows and
how quickly the police show up are brought up in the universe of the
series.

Not only does this
seem like a hilarious jab at the series itself, because it so true,
but also many other works in the detective, mystery, and crime
fiction genres.

If Gosho Aoyama had
not put this in, I would have been alright with, as there were other
things to laugh about, such as a little parody of things typically
found in kids show in America, but I doubt there would have been any
that would have stood out just as much.

Fortunately, Gosho
Aoyama did put this particular gem into the chapters that comprise
this volume, which make me feel like giving him a good round of
applause for including it.

The thing that I
liked the most though was how this volume ended.

As I have said a
countless number of times before, aside from how things begin,
another important part of a work of fiction is how things end, as the
ending is supposed to either leave the audience satisfied, if it is a
standalone work or final installment in a series, or give the
audience an incentive to keep coming back for more, if it is part of
a series.

Even though I would
not say that I particularly like how the volume ended, due to how
many volumes ended in the middle of case that was practically over,
which soured my impression of volumes ending like this one does, I
still thoroughly enjoyed it because, unlike those times in which
Shogakukan, or whoever they put this volume together, decided it was
okay to end a volume with the penultimate chapter of a case, this one
ends on the better note of the start of a case, the case in question
being the first
one to premiere on Crunchyroll back when the Detective Conan
fans in the US were pleading for the anime series to come back,
seeing as the case
page on Detective
Conan World’s wiki says it starts here.

By having the volume
end with the beginning of case, reader, especially if they are fans
of detective, mystery, and crime fiction, are left with the question
of how the body ended up where it did, how the crime was committed,
and who was responsible, which then makes them want to get into the
investigation and is why I prefer these kinds of endings over an
ending where the next chapter is just the answer portion of a work in
the detective, mystery, and crime fiction, like many volumes before
this have been.

If Shogakukan, or
whoever they had put together this volume for them, had ended the
volume at the point where Jimmy and Sera figured everything out, with
the only question of who the killer was, I would be furious because I
am absolutely tired of that kind of cliffhanger and I am sure that I
am not the only one that is sick of it.

Thankfully,
Shogakukan, or whoever they had compile this volume, decided to
instead have this volume end at the beginning of a new case, which
allows me to breathe a sigh of relief, as well as makes me glad that
I already preordered the next volume, which is supposed to be
released in July, according to the product
page on Amazon.

Hopefully, more
volumes in the future will end like this, as it is really the only
kind that cannot be tiresome when cases are extended for another
volume, but considering how hard it can be to find a decent point to
end a volume, I would not be surprised if there is yet another volume
where the only real incentive to read the next installment is to find
out if you beat Jimmy to the punch or not.

Outside of those
things, I cannot think of anything else that I particularly liked, at
least that could not be shoe horned into what I already talked about.

Because the volume
started out with a KID case that was entertaining, most of the cases
were enjoyable, and both Jimmy and the police became the butt of a
small joke, this volume was a very enjoyable read.

Although I liked the
book, there are some issues.

However, aside from
things that are too minor to talk about, such as typos, only two
things really bother bothered me

First, there is this
occurrence found in the fourth panel, when reading from right to
left, of the 154^th page seen below.

In the image above,
everything is completely readable, as it should be, but in the panel
I pointed out, I am having a tough time reading what Takagi is trying
to tell Jimmy, who has already cracked the suspect’s alibi, because
of a white, T-like line that cuts off either the first letter or part
of the first letter of the last words on each line in his bubble.

Yes, I can guess
that is is supposed to read, “Then the alibi will hold up,” but
it took me a while to even guess this much, especially because of how
much the line stood out.

Really, Viz? Do you
consider this to be an acceptable blunder to have in a final product.
I highly doubt the Japanese version of this volume has this issue,
but seeing as it exist in the print edition, according to a user in a
Detective Conan server by the name of LeannLeann, since I cannot
procure it due to being in a bad location and not wanting to clutter
what space I have.

Even though it does
not seem to be quite as bothersome to other people I have talked to,
it does not really make the product look that great, which is why I
am labelling it an annoyance.

Hopefully, Viz does
a better job with its next release because I’d really like to know
that I was reading what was supposed to be there, as that will help
show the reader that Viz is good about putting out good quality work.

The other thing that
kind of annoyed me, which came to mind when talking to others about
this volume, to confirm the first issue, was the Red Lady case that
starts in this volume.

After Jimmy, Rachel,
and the others reach their destination, somebody asks Sera if she is
Sera’s sister.

I was going to
overlook this one because I am having troubles thinking of a way that
this exchange could be worded without spoiling the identity of Sera’s
middle brother and still acknowledging her as being somebody’s
sister for those are only reading the Viz translations, but thinking
about how weird it all sounds, since Sera did say all three sibling
have different last names and saying Sera’s sister over and over
sounds weird.

If Viz had the
character in the translation ask Sera if she was Sera, I think that
this weirdness could have been avoid, but because they had to ask if
they were Sera’s sister, when the only other Sera we know about in
this volume is Sera’s mother, since Sera says her family name is
her mother’s maiden name.

Hopefully, this was
just a goof, because things will just get more confusing in moments
like this before the Viz releases reveal the identity of Sera’s
middle brother.

Still, considering
that it was just a small blemish, I think I will write it off as a
minor annoyance, like I was originally planning to do.

Thankfully, there
was nothing else that really stood out as an eye sore, so I can let
Gosho Aoyama and Shogakukan, or whoever they had put this volume
together, as well as Viz go without too much trouble.

While there were
only two things that did stick out, neither one was truly bad enough
to hurt the volume too much, even if one of them did not necessarily
look that pretty.

Considering there
was quite a bit to like and only two annoyances, one of which is far
easier than the other for me to overlook, this was definitely worth
reading.

I recommend this to
fans of Detective Conan and possibly fans of the detective,
mystery, and crime fiction genres, as they will like this the most.

As for everyone
else, this may be worth giving a try, as the fact that it starts with
a new case will make it easier to be able to jump right into this
series, as well as get acquainted with the detective, mystery, and
crime fiction genres in general.

If you liked this
review and would like to see more, please consider supporting me on
either Patreon
or SubscribeStar,
or if you would like to check out the reviewed title for yourself,
buy
a copy of Case Closed Volume 82 from Book Depository, who
has helped me close the gap in my Detective Conan collection
and offers free shipping to many countries around world, so that I
can continue following this series and possibly find other worth
while reads for you guys to check out.