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A review by easolinas
Case Closed, Vol. 35 by Gosho Aoyama
3.0
Theatrical murders, serial killers and a haunted apartment building all take center stage in "Case Closed Volume 35." This mystery manga series is still chugging away doggedly, but this particular volume has some big road bumps -- especially since one of the mysteries has a painfully anticlimactic, rushed ending.
Rachel's fever dream takes her back to a past case that Jimmy solved in New York -- an actor in a popular stage show was murdered ONSTAGE, and all four of the suspects were his lovers. And even after Jimmy unraveled the truth, Rachel had a shocking encounter with a murderer.
Then Richard is called to deal with an apartment building said to be haunted by the ghost of a girl murdered nearby. Of course, Conan knows that the only one haunting this place is her murderer. And when Mitch wanders off into the woods on a mysterious errand, Conan and his friends go off to find him... only to find that a serial killer is loose in the woods.
Finally, Harley, Conan and their respective love interests get to spend some quality time on a tropical beach, where the boys mostly laze around predicting what bathing suits girls are wearing. But of course, a body turns up soon.
"Case Closed" is a series that mostly runs along on a steady, entertaining stream, with the occasional high or low thrown in. "Case Closed Volume 35" contains one of the lows, sadly -- the whole story about searching for Mitch in the woods has a solid start, a creepy buildup... and an ending that just makes you slap your head and go, "What was all the fuss about?"
Fortunately, the other stories are pretty solid, standard "Case Closed" fare -- clever tricks used by the murderers, deceptions, plenty of motives, and a story that is cut off at a cliffhanger at the end so readers will scrabble for the next book. And some clues are dropped about one of the mysterious figures we've seen in passing, albeit looking a bit different.
We also get to see Jimmy doing his brilliant detective schtick back before he became Conan, and it's kind of nice to see him openly revealing the clues without having to hide behind someone else. And Anita seems to be gradually loosening up and becoming more normal... much to her horror.
"Case Closed Volume 35" has one story that flames out and burns like a lump of pizza cheese on the bottom of the oven, but fortunately the other stories are pretty solid fare. And as usual, it leaves you wanting what's next.
Rachel's fever dream takes her back to a past case that Jimmy solved in New York -- an actor in a popular stage show was murdered ONSTAGE, and all four of the suspects were his lovers. And even after Jimmy unraveled the truth, Rachel had a shocking encounter with a murderer.
Then Richard is called to deal with an apartment building said to be haunted by the ghost of a girl murdered nearby. Of course, Conan knows that the only one haunting this place is her murderer. And when Mitch wanders off into the woods on a mysterious errand, Conan and his friends go off to find him... only to find that a serial killer is loose in the woods.
Finally, Harley, Conan and their respective love interests get to spend some quality time on a tropical beach, where the boys mostly laze around predicting what bathing suits girls are wearing. But of course, a body turns up soon.
"Case Closed" is a series that mostly runs along on a steady, entertaining stream, with the occasional high or low thrown in. "Case Closed Volume 35" contains one of the lows, sadly -- the whole story about searching for Mitch in the woods has a solid start, a creepy buildup... and an ending that just makes you slap your head and go, "What was all the fuss about?"
Fortunately, the other stories are pretty solid, standard "Case Closed" fare -- clever tricks used by the murderers, deceptions, plenty of motives, and a story that is cut off at a cliffhanger at the end so readers will scrabble for the next book. And some clues are dropped about one of the mysterious figures we've seen in passing, albeit looking a bit different.
We also get to see Jimmy doing his brilliant detective schtick back before he became Conan, and it's kind of nice to see him openly revealing the clues without having to hide behind someone else. And Anita seems to be gradually loosening up and becoming more normal... much to her horror.
"Case Closed Volume 35" has one story that flames out and burns like a lump of pizza cheese on the bottom of the oven, but fortunately the other stories are pretty solid fare. And as usual, it leaves you wanting what's next.