Review of Kagi no Kakatta Heya Ep 4

This episode is memorable in terms of two aspects. First of all, instead of having a very clear-cut scenario where the viewer doesn't have to do much guessing about who the criminal is, this episode offers two suspects for the first time and gives a dash of uncertainty as to how things would turn out. I wouldn't say that this is difficult to guess but at least, that's something different from what we had seen in the first three episodes. Secondly, this episode marks a subtle yet significant change in how the key trio interacts with one another. From complete strangers who lead entirely different lives, the mystery-solving "business" has brought them closer together, whether they notice it or not.

As always, the trio are in some dimly-lit room again with Enomoto giving some "prep talk" on what to expect for the next 40 minutes or so. If you remember, the first two episodes in this series focus a lot on scientific stuff while last episode's theme was shogi. This time, Enomoto is faced with a problem that involves both entomology (study of insects) and toxicology. A man named Kuwashima was found dead in his apartment which he used to rear spiders and the police declares that he died because of a bite by a poisonous spider. Coincidentally, Kuwashima's apartment is just one floor above Aoto's. When Serizawa is called to Aoto's place to help her kill a cockroach, they bump into Furumizo, a reporter and an acquaintance of Kuwashima, who wants to gain entry into his friend's place in order to save the spiders left to die by Kuwashima's wife Mika. After knowing their identities, Furumizo asks them to represent him in getting Mika (Shiraishi Miho) to accede to his request.

When Serizawa and Aoto meet Mika at her in-law's place, they are surprised to find that Kuwashima is actually the owner of a Japanese traditional dessert shop and that his relationship with Furumizo seemed to be different from what Mika described. Mika gives the reason that she didn't feed the spiders because her mother-in-law was angry with her husband for rearing those creepy crawlies and hated them for killing her only son. Nonetheless, they manage to get Mika to give Furumizo two of the spiders which belong to him in the first place. When they visit Kuwashima's apartment, they find that all windows, the sink and ventilation outlets have been sealed up because he wanted to prevent his spiders from escaping and hurting others in the process. Mika's behaviour while at the apartment also arouses the suspicion of Serizawa and Aoto.

The two of them relate what happened to Enomoto who for the very first time, is sitting in his office without doing anything else while listening to them. He gives his take on the situation and feels that being an expert on spiders, Kuwashima should not have exposed himself to a situation where he would be bitten by a poisonous spider. Serizawa also points out that the position of the pincer used in feeding the spider was different from what Furumizo had used. Much as the circumstances point to the case being more than an accident, there is no concrete proof to show otherwise so Enomoto goes to Aoto's apartment and Kuwashima's door to see the layout and the type of lock used in his apartment. After his inspection, Enomoto concludes that Kuwashima's apartment was a closed-room at the time of his death.

While discussing the case at the law firm, Aoto shares the information she found out from neighbours living near the Kuwashima household. It seems that the relationships between Mika and her mother-in-law and husband are rocky and the couple was on the verge of a divorce. In addition, Furumizo suddenly tells Serizawa that Mika agreed to let him have all the spiders left behind by Kuwashima which arouses the suspicion of Aoto and Serizawa. When Aoto finds out that someone threatened Mika about exposing her late husband's spider-rearing habit and tells Enomoto about it, he adds nonchalantly that although Kuwashima's apartment was in a closed-room condition, there was a likelihood that he might have been murdered. Aoto realises that Enomoto lost interest in the case as soon as he found out that there was nothing suspicious about Kuwashima's apartment so that's why he didn't mention the fact that Kuwashima should have been killed by someone.

Aoto asks for Enomoto's help in finding evidence in Kuwashima's apartment to identify the killer and he agrees readily. After assessing the apartment and seeing how the key suspects behave, he comes to the conclusion that Mika is the real killer of Kuwashima.Mika had married her husband for money and was angry that he wanted to divorce her upon finding out the truth. Before he could have a chance to go through the divorce, she killed him so that she could inherit his fortune which she saw as a compensation for leaving a "blemish" on her marital history. Having heard her confession, Aoto later admits to Enomoto that she was shocked and wondered if she might have such a dark side within herself. Enomoto replies that she's not like Mika so Aoto has no need to worry at all.

 As I pointed out earlier in this review, there are some adjustments as to how the story is presented. That's good news for the viewer especially for someone like me who really has a problem sticking to episodic stories. A little bit of variety in the storytelling works wonders in keeping the concept fresh and appealing. However, it's not just this which has renewed my interest in the series but rather the group dynamics between our key trio that really spices up the viewing experience.

Enomoto, Serizawa and Aoto got together by a stroke of fate in the first episode when Enomoto helped Serizawa get out of a locked safe. It was by pure coincidence that Enomoto was roped in to help out with solving these closed-room mysteries. Serizawa himself didn't set out to take up such cases as well. In fact, the first case was accepted by an overly-earnest Aoto while the second case was brought to him by Enomoto. The third one had more to do with Serizawa because the victim was his client and Serizawa himself had been marked by the police as a possible suspect. As for Aoto, she's been someone who's forever eager to help others and doesn't think twice before she leaps. Enomoto looks cold and distant on the surface especially when the issue has nothing to do with locks or security systems.

In this episode, we can observe how they are slowly changing after going through these cases together. Enomoto used to be busy doing other things while listening to Aoto or Serizawa talk about the cases but for the very first time, he actually sat down to listen to them properly instead of focusing on his locks. He also displayed a higher willingness to interact with them rather than give one-liners when pressed for an opinion. When Serizawa was going on about his not-entirely-logical deduction, Enomoto didn't shoot him down immediately as per before. In fact, Serizawa himself was sort of preparing for Enomoto's sharp remarks about his deduction not being accurate but that didn't come as expected. Likewise when Enomoto used to hurt Aoto a little bit with his frankness, he has learnt to be a bit more tactful when interacting with these lawyers and even "consoles" or "encourages" her with little remarks which seem nonchalant at times.

Aoto used to get ahead of herself and was rather emotional at times without thinking about her responsibilities as a lawyer or what she should do as a logical adult but it's obvious that she's more careful about how she should behave. Since Serizawa was engaged by Furumizo to help in the case, she knew that she had to do things in a different way because of his responsibilities to the client. That's good to see because Aoto is showing signs of growing up. On the other hand, Serizawa who used to dread anything troublesome and unprofitable, is willing to allow Aoto to do some detective work on her own in order to find the truth. Given the old Serizawa, he would have stopped her from doing anything that doesn't bring in money for the law firm.

As the drama progresses, I'll be pretty much looking forward to how the trio gets along and it will be worth checking if a romantic relationship will indeed blossom between Enomoto and Aoto. They will be one cute couple to look out for if that really happens. ^__^