i really think Psych is actually the best depiction of bestfriendism i’ve ever seen. they stumbled into being friends at a young age and were instantly inseparable. one has autism and the other ADHD. they get into slap fights. they have dance offs. one is always making up a new fake name for the other based off a pun. one is a pharmaceutical rep and the other calls into police tip lines for easy cash. they run a psychic consulting business together. it’s called psych. no one is actually psychic.
We come to another "week of all time," for more than one reason this time. The topics are as varied as the tone, so let's dig in.
1) Names!
The detectives in the Sunset Mansion Case all have names that are (very loosely) inspired by and characters that are meant to embody various fictional detectives.
Furuyo Senma (千間降代): Jane Marple, better known as Miss Marple, an elderly spinster and amateur consulting detective created by Agatha Christie. Marple is written as マープル (ma-puru), and it’s those last two characters, minus the semivoiced ゜, which gives us the “furu” in her first name.
Harufumi Mogi (茂木遥史): Philip Marlowe, a good ol’ hardboiled detective created by Raymond Chandler. His name is plucked from one of the most famous men to ever portray Marlowe on the silver screen, Humphrey Bogart (ハンフリ, hanfuri is modified into Harufumi).
Shukuzen Oogami (大上祝善): Nero Wolfe, a heavy-set armchair detective with a love of fine dining created by Rex Stout. In Japanese, “wolf” is ookami; make ka voiced, and you get the character’s last name.
Ikumi Souda (槍田郁美): Dr. John Evelyn Thorndyke, the proto-forensic scientist and detective written by R. Austin Freeman. Thorndyke is written as ソーンダイク (so-ndaiku), and some sounds are plucked from that to make the character’s last name.
Saguru Hakuba (白馬探): In keeping with Magic Kaito theming, the color in his name is white (白). But the initials for his name, S.H., and aspects of the way he carries himself, bring to mind Sherlock Holmes.
2) Remember Them?
Got a few small nods this week, and all three of them are in the Pottery Class Murder.
Ran’s reference to Sonoko buying a knitted sweater for Makoto is from the Girl Clubbing Murder (Ch. 284-286).
Kikuemon is the famous potter from the Famous Potter Murder (Ch. 160-162).
Though this one probably goes without saying, Ran’s “I’ll wait for you” on the bottom of her cup is very likely a response to Shinichi’s request at the end of Restaurant Elevator Murder. (Ch. 260)
3) Culture
A lot of topics this week, and quite a few of them qualify for slightly deeper dives. So let's go one topic at a time.
Blood Types
Nakamori’s comment in Akako's Delivery Service about Kaitou Kid being carefree is in relation to his blood type.
Blood type personality, as a concept, is largely similar to astrology in the way it can be used to assign personality features or even figure out relationship compatibility.
Though you still see it every once in a while today, the blood type personality theory boom in Japan was from the 1970s to the early 2000s. It largely faded out due to growing problems with particularly hardcore adherents to the theory practicing a level of discrimination based on blood type alone.
Though there can be variations on which traits are assigned to each blood type, the basic framework is:
Right now, the only confirmed main cast blood types we have are Kaito’s B and Hakuba’s A. Do you think they fit the stereotypes?
Goats
In the Sunset Mansion Case, the mention of goats as a creature that was abandoned by God might be something that sounds familiar due to their associations with Satan or the devil in pop culture. The bible is a little more mixed on how it presents goats, though. There are passages about worshiping them as pagan idols (bad, and may vary depending on the translation for the Hebrew), as scapegoats (mixed), or as sacrifices and clean food (good). But the big passage that probably best exemplifies this view of goats is from Matthew 25:31-46: The Sheep and the Goats.
31 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. 32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.
[…]
41 “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42 For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’
Card Suits
The hint given in the Sunset Mansion Case, as revealed by Conan, is about cards and card suits. But why those specific items?
Playing cards and their suits have a surprisingly complicated history, but the very basic version is that the Islamic world borrowed some of China’s earliest suits and modified them based on assumption of what those suits meant. These suits then spread into Europe via Mamluk Egypt and Moorish Granada and developed the “Latin” suits of coins, clubs, cups, and swords in the 1370s.
Over the next couple centuries, developments split. The tarot deck developed in about 1440 with the extra 21 cards, and over the centuries these turned into the pentacles, wands, cups and swords suits. Meanwhile, Swiss-Germans developed their own suits (shields, roses, acorns, bells) in 1450 that very quickly developed into a separate set by Germans (leaves, hearts, acorns, bells). The French then took those suits in 1480 and created the most recognizable set of suits: clubs, diamonds, hearts, and spades.
To visualize this, I've made a very simple chart:
Though the symbols for suits changed quite drastically, and for a variety of reasons, they tend to remain associated with whatever symbolism was connected to them from the start. Which is why Conan was able to connect the chalice (cups) with hearts, the sword with spades, and the treasure (coins) with diamonds.
Furoshiki
Kaito mentioning at the very end of the Sunset Mansion Case that the treasure wouldn't fit in his “thief’s furoshiki” is meant to invoke the very traditional image of a Japanese thief with some kind of bandana covering their head and a cloth bag over their shoulders.
1999
In Genta's Shadow Mystery Case, the kids' trail takes them to a shop selling apocalypse-themed shirts that were popular before the turn of the century, when this case was published.
The 1999 prophecy mentioned is specifically one of Nostradamus's prophecies, which said a great and terrifying king would arrive in the seventh month of 1999. This prophecy took hold in Japan in 1973 after a book was published about Nostradamus's prophecies, and the phenomenon escalated into the 1990s. Infamously, it was to the point that it even affected Aum Shinrikyo’s beliefs and activities. Though it had a brief resurgence right after 9/11, with conspiracy theories even in Japan wondering if it was a manifestation of this so-called king of terror, it ultimately fizzled away to obscurity.
4) Japanese Language Quirks
Some very simple ones this week!
Kaitou Under Scrutiny: The band Aoko is going to see, Prince Prince, sounds like the Japanese word for pudding or flan (プリン, purin), which is why Kaito mentions purin and babaroa (pudding and Bavarian cream), two egg-based desserts.
Sunset Mansion Case: Though the detectives run through the logic behind the name on their invitations, one part might require a visual Japanese aid. The kanji for child is 子, but the kanji for SPECIFICALLY a young animal is 仔, which is why they know to focus their attentions there.
Pottery Class Murder: As mentioned in Makoto’s introductory case, the final kanji for his last name and the kanji for his first name combines to form the name of a Japanese karate style, Kyokushin (極真), which is a full-contact style focusing on self-discipline, improvement, and hard training. Since Sonoko would have written the name in Japanese order (Kyogoku Makoto), Ran only saw those two kanji, misreading it until Sonoko points out the first kanji of his last name hidden away around the curve of the cup.
5) Short & Sweet References
So many of these go without saying, but for posterity's sake, we're going to list them out anyway!
Magic Kaito
“Pecasso” is clearly a reference to Picasso.
“Prince Prince” is a reference to Princess Princess, a Japanese pop-rock girl band active from 1983-1996.
Batman. He sure does reference Batman.
Akako's Delivery Service is a reference to the Ghibli film Kiki's Delivery Service, which came out only a year previously.
Detective Conan
Dracula. He sure does reference Dracula.
Based on the gas station sign at the end of the Sunset Mansion Case, this is likely another Yotsubishi reference (based on the real Mitsubishi).
6) Food For Thought
When Hakuba uses his signature question to ask Kaitou Kid why he steals, Kaito responds that it’s Hakuba’s job to find out the answer.
From a very simple surface level, he’s kinda correct. But as a sentiment, it does set up a bevy of poetic examples that Kaito will use later to illustrate how Gosho views the rivalry between phantom thieves and the detectives that chase after them.
The infamous comparison of “artist and critic,” and the probably even more infamous "like lovers I wouldn't want to meet," are both particularly flowery examples of this.
7) File That Away For Later
Two things:
Gin being left-handed.
Minor character details like these aren’t usually worth pointing out, but handedness tends to be a pretty huge clue in mystery stories. So for now, let’s just tuck away the knowledge that Gin is left-handed.
The Sunset Mansion Case.
Just trust me on this one.
(Mini) Character Spotlight: Saguru Hakuba
Hakuba is, to put it mildly, a very minor character in Detective Conan. And to be very frank, he isn't a character that would normally get one of these spotlights. But he is a core character in Magic Kaito, so I thought I could use him as a jumping-off point for 1) trivia that doesn't fit elsewhere, and 2) a small discussion of the way these two series are constantly cross-pollinating each other.
Before moving on, however, I should reiterate something important about this Book Club: the point is to make sure you have no questions while reading Detective Conan. That's why, for example, we've included the chapters that encompass Hakuba's introduction and his discovery of Kaitou Kid's identity, as they contextualize aspects of his relationship with Kaito that aren't present in Detective Conan.
This does mean, however, that you might have questions about Akako's presence in Akako's Delivery Service. This post explains her presence in Magic Kaito and her distinct (and extremely intentional) lack of presence in Detective Conan, as well as a number of other factors. Please read if you're interested!
1) In Parallel
Hakuba's timeline across the two series is, in a word, comical. If you've read the recommended Magic Kaito chapters this week, then you will have read every single chapter Hakuba was in before his Detective Conan introduction. What does that actually look like?
Hakuba was introduced in March 1990 in Chapter 15, three years after Magic Kaito began in 1987. He features prominently in three back-to-back chapters that introduce him, set up his relationship with Kaito (in and out of the classroom), and establish his knowledge of Kaito's double identity.
Then, radio silence. Detective Conan was published in 1994, and though Magic Kaito had more chapters in the intervening years, the most Hakuba got was a reference in Magic Kaito's Black Star in April 1999 (Ch. 23-24). The Sunset Mansion Case thus marks the first time Hakuba appears in a proper speaking role in almost ten years. Chapter 25 of Magic Kaito is published in 2002; at that point, every single following heist except for one reasonable exception features Hakuba in some capacity, cementing him as a key part of the Magic Kaito quartet.
We will be reading some of the later Magic Kaito chapters as well, so you can look forward to seeing what he's like in his home series!
2) Treasured Trivia
We return to the 2011 “TREASURED EDITIONS” for some trivia straight from Gosho!
Heist 15: The Great Detective Appears!
He’s here! Saguru Hakuba! Wait, more importantly, the Superintendent General is here… The top-ranking person in the MPD would never show up at a scene like this, but… he was probably worried about his son… (lol) By the way, Kid may or may not be bad at ice skating because I am… (lol)
Heist 16: Kaitou Under Scrutiny
Wow, Aoko’s skirt is so long, and Kid’s mobile TV is so big… You can really feel the era (lol). Which reminds me, the newspaper on the last page is called the Ooshima Newspaper! The newspapers in Magic Kaito are almost always the last name of my editor at the time. Sorry about that (lol).
Heist 17: Akako’s Delivery Service
Kaitou Kid being 174cm tall and weighing 58 kg is, of course, because those were my height and weight at the time! And the blood type too, I guess! (lol) You know, I wrote them getting information on his race and age from a single strand of hair because I thought it would be cool, but nowadays you can even use DNA analysis to narrow down exactly who a strand of hair belongs to. The advances of science are terrifying… (lol)
If you aren’t familiar with metric:
174 cm = 5’8.5”
58 kg = 127.8 lbs
3) Canonized Info
In a somewhat surprising move, the Sunset Mansion Case develops aspects of Hakuba that remain in greater DCMK canon to a degree.
Watson. Hakuba’s hawk is first mentioned in this case, but Watson’s existence throughout either Detective Conan or Magic Kaito is actually very minor. In fact, this is Watson’s only appearance in the main manga, and he doesn’t appear in Magic Kaito at all. But he still lives in the far more comedic The Culprit Hanzawa, a spin-off that gives the Sunset Mansion characters a surprising spotlight.
Baaya. Hakuba mentions in an off-hand comment that his housekeeper (baaya, a housekeeper or a wet nurse) brought him to the mansion. This is the first mention of such a character in his life, but she’s eventually imported back into Magic Kaito in the form of Kashiko Shikibe (式部鹿紫子), an elderly woman who often assists Hakuba, in Dark Knight (Ch27-28, Dec 2006). Like the other characters in Magic Kaito, her name contains a color: 紫, or purple.
And that brings us to the end of a very eventful week! Thank you as always for reading, and hope to see you next time!
if you truly want aspd, that means youll have to accept the symptoms.. one of those being the emotional flatness.
yes.. you may not feel sadness as deeply.. a benefit, if you must. but this also means you dont feel happiness as deeply, either. you wont enjoy things.
i hate going to concerts, even if its an artist whos music i like to some degree. i could sit front row and not feel even a smidge of excitement.. or happiness.
i have ditched many hobbies because i stopped enjoying them. even the ones i liked a bit more at first.
i got into my dream school and had to watch the people around me celebrate while i was struck with indifference the entire time.
i have never kept a job past a year. i get so bored that i start problems out of nothing. i burn bridges everywhere i go.... and after.. still just indifferent.
i dont have friends in my real life. if i do, they are around because they can be useful to me. but sometimes, if my goal is taking too long, i will ditch them anyways. i get bored too easily.
even regular conversations are mundane. the indifference makes it difficult to put effort into them... unless i am masking and see a benefit.
i watched movies when i was younger in an attempt to learn how to mask better. i almost never get through anything now. i dont hate movies. i simply cant enjoy them. the only times i will watch them now is if its with another person. or if i must for any other reason other than my own autonomy. indifference. bored. even if characters die or things blow up.
there are so many more examples i could name. but the point is, this is one of the realities of aspd. so please, if you want the diagnosis so bad, if you want this so bad, be ready to never be able to enjoy anything. its a mundane life you will be set to live.
Anatomy of a Scoliosis Pattern — a Real Life Story
Client in today had a hip and low back problem that showed up when running up uneven stairs. This is probably not a new problem as she has a Scoliosis pattern. (Many people do who’ve never been ‘diagnosed’.)
Her right hip has been painful and tight; her right pelvis is ‘hiked’; her right lumbar is ‘flat’; the right QL is short.
When prone, turning bent legs left against resistance is weak at T/L junction and L5/S1 junction. Since the body is 3-dimensional this means her lumbar likes to turn left at T12/L1 AND L5/S1.
But on the left side of the lumbar, the TOP of the QL at T12/L1 is thick and tight. Scoliosis often has this pattern. Side bending using QL on the Left side she is strong at T12/L1 and weak at the insertion of QL onto the Iliac crest. So, TOP of the QL on the left is Strong for Side Bending and Weak for Rotation. On the right the insertion of QL on the Ilium is VERY tight and strong and inhibiting the lateral hip stabilization of Glut Med/Min. BOTH Erector Spinae up and down the spine are weak. The right hip therefore is ‘gripped’, externally rotated to brace for the weak back and Glut muscles. The right Iliacus is very tight also creating the perfect picture for compression of the hip joint: External Rotators co-contracted with Iliacus. This co-contraction flattens the lumbar spine. Erector Spinae is not functional/active/responsive and the Psoas on the right side is not supporting the upper end of the lumbar lordosis from the front. It tests weak.
The right rib cage is narrower than the left at the bottom. When my client inhales using the diaphragm, the right side does not expand as well as the left. This too, is a common pattern of some cases of Scoliosis. Are you confused? How does all this fit together? What can be done about it?
I’m just glad that NMR does not try to understand the whole pattern at once... These compensations were built on top of one another over many years of coping. You would never know this client has Scoliosis if you saw her in line in front of you. NMR tackles the most strategic imbalances first. The T/L junction is #1. Remaining functions of the ‘waist’ are next; then the way in which the pelvis deviated to accommodate the shorter muscles.
When I look at these ‘types’ of Scoliosis there is no way to understand from a 2-dimensional drawing the dynamics of what is going on in Scoliosis patterns. The ’shape’ of things is less important than What’s working vs. What’s not working.
These muscle patterns can be re-programmed. If you are curious, consider studying NMR. We’ll be doing an Advanced NMR for Scoliosis class in Dallas the first weekend in August.
PRIMARY COLOUR: Blue (Specifically Navy Blue or Ice Blue).
COLOUR OF THE SKY: Pale blue-grey.
MAGICAL POWER: Healing of illnesses and injury by touch.
SHOE: Dr. Scholls Headstart Combat Boots (Womens)- Black, size 10.
HOUSEPLANT: Rosemary.
BLADE WEAPON: Rapier.
SCHOOL SUBJECT: History.
SOCIAL MEDIA: Instagram.
MAKEUP PRODUCT: Chapstick.
CANDY: Twizzlers- Cherry.
TANGIBLE FEAR: Thanatophobia (fear of losing someone you love).
ICE CUBE SHAPE: Sphere.
METHOD OF LONG-DISTANCE TRAVEL: Flying (by plane or quintjet).
ART STYLE: Art Nouveau.
HISTORICAL PERIOD: 1940′s/early-2010′s.
MYTHOLOGICAL CREATURE: Tutelary.
PIECE OF STATIONARY: Leather-bound journals and pens.
THREE EMOJIS: 😰😤💙
CELESTIAL BODY: Constellation- Scutum.
Stolen from: @born-to-be-mischievous.
Tagging: @mcltitcdes for Marc and Mika (YES! I SAID BOTH!); @quiveringdeer for your favorite slasher; @adventurepunks for Zatanna; @blizzardmuses for Barbara; @spinxeret; @leschanceux for Dick; @bokketo for Nat; @ablackwidowsbite for Wanda; @fasterthanmydemons; @thedemonconstantine for Timmy; @infinitelycomplexpuzzles for Kara; @agentjjkelly; @agentsterling; and @wetheresilientfew for Cillian.
