Don't Call It Mystery
Don't Call It Mystery
Now Showing

Don't Call It Mystery

7.7
Yr 2022
Rt 60m
Status Ended
Drama Mystery
Your Verdict
Unrated

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Series Brief

Overview

University student Kuno Totono is the type who constantly questions what is taken for granted in society and develops his own theories based on his vast knowledge and unique set of values. One day in autumn, the police come to see him. His university schoolmate has been murdered at a park nearby and the police apparently regard Totono with suspicion. He is asked to come with them for questioning. In the interrogation room, the police are manipulated by Totono who tends to digress from the topic and poke at their contradictions. He even correctly guesses that one of them is troubled about not getting along with the wife and ends up giving advice. However, Totono’s fingerprints are eventually discovered on the murder weapon.

Critical Reception

What critics are saying

Score 72 /100

Critical reception for Don't Call It Mystery is generally positive, with viewers praising its candid, quirky protagonist and philosophical depth. Admirers highlight how the show excels in pacing, lighting, and score to deliver an engaging psychological exploration of societal identities and family dynamics through its criminal cases.

However, the show also received criticism regarding its mystery mechanics and character tropes. Some reviewers felt the police were rendered overly incompetent compared to the civilian lead, while others noted that the main character's deductions frequently relied on far-fetched theories and pop-science rather than sound detective work.

“excels in pacing, acting, lighting, silence and the OST... make an excellent philosophical and psychological piece”

“almost impossible not to let Totonou permeate our lives and perspective with his candid approach and extraordinary quirks.”

“evidences and theories are at times far-fetched and rely on pop-science”

Why fans love it

Don’t Call It Mystery operates as a philosophical inquiry disguised as a police procedural. Masaki Suda plays Kuno Totono, a university student whose primary weapon against the authorities is his inability to accept social norms at face value. Instead of typical detective work, the series relies on long, winding interrogations where observations about human nature and psychological contradictions take priority over physical evidence.

The show excels by subverting the expectations of the investigative genre. Rather than sprinting toward a conclusion, the narrative slows down to examine the perspectives of both the suspect and the investigators. By blending amateur sleuthing with a rigorous, almost academic dismantling of common assumptions, the series transforms a routine murder case into a study of character and societal values.

Featured Players

Cast

Credited 54
Regulars 9
Longest run 5 eps
Masaki Suda
Masaki Suda
as Totonou Kunou
Sairi Ito
Sairi Ito
as Seiko Furomitsu
Matsuya Onoe
Matsuya Onoe
as Yuto Ikemoto
Michitaka Tsutsui
Michitaka Tsutsui
as Nariaki Aoto
Eita Nagayama
Eita Nagayama
as Garo Inudo
Mai Shiraishi
Mai Shiraishi
as Anju Inudo (voice)
Kosuke Suzuki
Kosuke Suzuki
as Haruo Amatatsu
Mugi Kadowaki
Mugi Kadowaki
as Raika (voice)
Show 46 more
Hinata Hiiragi Eiichiro Funakoshi 2 episodes Wakana Matsumoto 2 episodes Takumi Kitamura 2 episodes Megumi Seki 1 episode Atsuko Takahata 1 episode Mirai Shida 1 episode Keisuke Horibe 1 episode Kuranosuke Sasaki 2 episodes Mansaku Ikeuchi 2 episodes Hiromasa Taguchi 2 episodes Kento Shibuya 2 episodes Taichi Saotome 3 episodes Yuki Imai 1 episode Fumiyo Kohinata 1 episode Tasuku Emoto 1 episode Kenichi Endo 1 episode Akio Kaneda 3 episodes Hiccorohee 3 episodes Aimi Satsukawa 3 episodes Yuki Morinaga 3 episodes Yasuto Kosuda 1 episode Toshifumi Muramatsu 1 episode Akira Nakagawa 1 episode Kenji Masaki 1 episode Shiiko Utagawa 1 episode Shizuka Fujimoto 1 episode Arata Saeki 1 episode Keiko Tomita 1 episode Yutaka Mishima 2 episodes Amane Okayama 3 episodes Atsuko Anami 2 episodes Asami Mizukawa 2 episodes Mikito Nakawaki 1 episode Hiroshi Tagami 1 episode Kōji Furukawa 2 episodes Natsuko 1 episode Arata Horii 1 episode Masayuki Shida 1 episode Kazuyuki Aijima 2 episodes Junior Chihara 2 episodes Yoshiyuki Morishita 4 episodes Yuki Kubota 5 episodes Ryohei Abe 5 episodes Erika Okuda 2 episodes Ryu Morioka 1 episode
Production Board

Crew

Music
Ken Arai
Theme Song Performance
Kazuki Arai Yu Seki Daiki Tsuneta Satoru Iguchi
Original Story
Yumi Tamura
Series Director
Aizawa Hideyuki Hiroaki Matsuyama Hiroyuki Abe Shunsuke Shinada
Producer
Rie Kumagai Kusagaya Daisuke
Creator
Hiroaki Matsuyama Tomoko Aizawa
Stage Director
Hiroaki Matsuyama
Screenplay
Tomoko Aizawa
Signal Match

Similarity

Where Don't Call It Mystery overlaps with other shows, and exactly what they have in common.

Keyword Cloud

Keywords

amateur detective investigation murder romance based on manga college student philosophical human nature psychological
Technical Sheet

Details

First Aired
January 10, 2022
Status
Ended
Episode Runtime
60 minutes
Origin
JP
TMDB Votes
34