The first extended special episode of the new season of the popular detective drama "Aibou Season 24" (TV Asahi, Wednesdays at 9 p.m.) aired on October 15th, "Atone for Itself by Dying," and the story, which incorporated current events, and the exciting finale drew a lot of attention.
◇The following contains spoilers
In "AIBOU," Ukyo Sugishita (Yutaka Mizutani), a member of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department's Special Investigation Unit, uses his genius mind to solve difficult cases with his "partner." Since the show began airing in 2000, four partners have been created: Kameyama Kaoru (Yasufumi Terawaki), Kobe Takeru (Mitsuhiro Oikawa), Kai Toru (Hiroki Narimiya), and Kanjo Wataru (Takashi Sorimachi). In season 21, the original partner, Kaoru, returns to the Special Investigation Unit, marking the 11th season of the "golden duo" with Kaoru.
In the first episode, suspicions of a wrongful conviction emerge in a murder case in which the Supreme Court handed down a death sentence. Ukyo and Kaoru begin their investigation separately. In order to investigate the crime scene at the mansion of storyteller Takizawa Seiryu (Kataoka Tsurutaro), Ukyo conceals his identity and becomes an apprentice to Seiryu, a Living National Treasure. This leads to a unique development in which he conducts an undercover investigation while performing odd jobs as an apprentice.
At the end of the episode, Ukyo and Kaoru, who had been acting separately, reunite. The episode ends with Ukyo showing his police ID to Seiryu and revealing his identity, and the story continues into the second part, episode 2. On social media, viewers responded with comments such as, "So cool that he revealed his true identity here!", "The Special Missions Unit introducing themselves as police officers just before the end of episode 1 was so cool," "It was refreshing, like the scene where Mito Komon takes out his seal," "Isn't it too cool that the first part ended with an introduction," and "I can't wait to see what happens next."
There was also a scene in which his senior apprentice Go Ryu (Takaya Aoyagi) was hooked on online casinos, and comments on social media included, "They've brought in online casinos lol," "Online casinos are so timely," "It's a dark joke about a comedian playing online casinos," "Online casinos lol, has he already appeared on Aibou lol," and "That's the era we live in."
