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| Minami Hamabe in Alibi Kuzushi Uketamawarimasu |
In the 2019 Drama “Pure”, actress Minami Hamabe played Junko Kurobara, a carefree and goofy girl who had an almost uncanny knack for solving crimes due to her attention to facts and details... She wants to help the police but is marginalized by the Head Detective of the Department, but when they arrive at dead ends on their case, he reluctantly calls on Junko’s help.
And once on the case, it doesn’t take long for Kurobara to put the facts together and solve the case, but there is no glory for her as the head detective hides the help he got from her and boasts to his colleagues that he did it all himself! But she enjoys solving crimes too much to stop!
In Alibi Kuzushi Uketamawarimasu, Minami plays a character that is almost EXACTLY the same- in a LOT of ways, this could have been a DIRECT sequel to Pure, not only in Hamabe’s portrayal of the main character Tokino Mitano, but in the relationship she has with the Detectives!
Tokino is a young and chipper girl running a watch-repair shop in town, which she inherited from her Grandfather (as portrayed by a portrait of Leo Morimoto, LOL).
What she has also inherited from him is his ability to “Break Alibis”, that is, take anyone’s testimony and find any faults in it. He even offered it as a service, but young Tokino hasn’t had a chance to put her skills to the test.
Much like her character in Pure, Hamabe’s character Tokino LOVES food, and a good amount of time is spent showing her enjoying her treats!
It’s on a happy trip to get some beloved croquettes that she first meets the arrogant and bull-headed Saji Yoshiyuki (Ken Yasuda).
Tokino immediately recognizes him as a detective, and we find that he’s been transferred to this small town to take over the head of the Department. And he doesn’t have long to wait for a crime to happen, as he and Tokino witness a dazed man get struck by a car.
As they go to help him, the man confesses to murdering a woman and even manages to give the address where the crime supposedly took place, before being taken away by the paramedics.
As a great enthusiast of puzzles, Tokino is excited to participate in the investigation, but she is constantly shooed away by the brusque Yoshiyuki, who doesn’t want any civilians mucking up the crime scene.
But there are several points in Tokino’s favor. One is that she is on very good terms with the Police staton and its crew, and the other is that the place detective Yoshiyuki has been set up to lodge at is none other than her Watch Shop! It seems he just CAN'T get away from her inquisitive ears!
It's here that she reveals her knack for solving crimes by breaking the suspects' alibis. She offers her unique service to him, but he is adamant that she can’t help.
At the station, things aren’t looking so good. right off, Yoshiyuki butts heads with one of the lead detectives, a spoiled guy named Yuma Tokai, whose father is an important politician figure.
Everyone doubts Yoshiyuki’s abilities and even when he points out that the suspect already confessed to him, they point out that the guy has an unbreakable alibi and therefore must be innocent. All the facts point to the guy being the murderer, but no matter what, he can’t break the guys testimony!
And so, in the end, Yoshiyuki reluctantly goes to Mitani and tells her that he will hire her to break the case, and we finally get to see the young sleuth in action!!!
Once she is on the case, Yoshiyuki is naturally impressed, though he won't be crediting her for any gains she makes! Still, looks like the beginning of a beautiful partnership!
Such a THRILL to see Minami Harabe again, and in such a similar role to the one I fell in love with her in! So far it’s fun show and I can’t wait to see more!
Posted by zdorama @ zdoramaagain.blogspot.com
