Monster ep.7

May 26, 2004 | 3 Comments

More suspense is the order of the day for this series. I actually think that this particular episode looks and feels a lot like one of those suspense/horror films where one wishes that the character didn�t go into a certain room. Maybe I have an overactive imagination but for some reason this particular episode manages to make me aware of how crept out I'd be if something similar actually happened to me. The episode also brings back Detective Lunge (Runge). I think he's actually an interesting character but so far I have no idea if he is supposed to be a clever character or a presumptuous and ego-driven one. So I'm not sure whether I should sympathise or loathe him. Sometimes his actions and mannerism make me think that maybe he'll figure out the whole thing somehow. But the character then disappoint me by looking as if he's obsessed with catching Tenma for the crime that he thinks Tenma has committed.

Anyway, continuing from the previous episode, episode seven sees Tenma and Nina arriving at the Fortners' residence. Nina, however, seems to be in a state of shock after Tenma tells her about her brother, Johan, and can barely walk without looking as if she's a deer caught in a headlight. The two, however, decide to enter the Fortners residence despite the fact that all signs clearly suggested that something wrong has happened inside the house. The two ended up going all the way to the living room and in there they find 3 dead bodies: Nina's father, mother and Mr.Mauler. And then as if Tenma hasn't left enough fingerprints all over the place, he has to touch, give mouth-to-mouth resuscitation, and tries his best to revive the three dead bodies. I understand that Tenma is a nice guy but surely he realises that by doing this, he's leaving enough fingerprints for someone to accuse him as the perpetrator of the crime.

Tenma thankfully is distracted from his grief when he hears Nina mutters about how she thought she had killed her own brother. Tenma quickly realises that the person who shot Johan nine years ago was none other than his own sister. In return, Tenma sadly tells Nina that he was the person who revived his brother. Anyway, after finding out that the telephone line has been cut, Tenma decides to get the two of them out of the house before they endanger their own life. However, before they managed to get out of the house, the front door is opened by two detectives who claim that they are there after receiving a report of house disturbance from someone. The detectives then survey the house and then tell Tenma that they will take him and Nina to the police station for some questioning. Tenma at first is relieved and agrees to get inside their car. In the middle of the journey, however, he realises that something is not right.

It seems that the detectives are taking him and Nina to an entirely different direction from where the Heidelberg police station is located. When he inquires about this, however, the detectives simply tell him that they are actually detectives from Mannheim police station so they are simply taking them to that station. Tenma, however, can't get over his confusion as to why the two detectives decide to take him to another town. Tenma then decides to do some deductive logic and realises that the two detectives never told him who report the crime to them. When he adds on the part where the phone line was cut so it was impossible to call anyone out and the fact that the detectives didn't come with the sirens on, Tenma starts to become suspicious of the detectives. He becomes even more paranoid after he sees a trace of blood smear around the edges of one of the detective's coat. I have to say that if I were in Tenma's position, I probably act in a similar paranoid manner as well.

Tenma ends up jumping to the conclusion that these two detectives could have been the very people who murdered the Fortners as well as Mr. Mauler. Therefore, Tenma is relieved when he finds out that the car is being stopped by a highway patrol. He, however, becomes puzzled again when the highway patrolmen recognises the two detectives, suggesting that they maybe real detectives after all. Tenma, however, can't get over his uneasiness over the whole situation and decides to ask the permission of the detectives to get out of the car with Nina by pretending that Nina doesn't feel well. While Tenma is out on the bridge with Nina, he tries to rethink about what he should do. He, however, makes his decision when the two detectives call him with his profession, which he never told neither of them. The detectives, sensing that Tenma may about to run away with Nina, decide to give them a chase. Tenma, however, manages to pull himself and Nina down to the river below the bridge before the detectives can catch either of them.

The next morning, Tenma and Nina are seen near a riverbank trying to make sense of it all. Nina tells Tenma that it all started when the she and Johan crossed the border together after the war. The two of them then ended up being taken care of by an elderly couple. One day, however, Johan told Nina that he has an idea and not long after that, the elderly couple died. Nina at first didn't understand why everyone who was kind to them died one by one. However, that night at the Lieberts' residence she finally found out the reason for those people's death. Nina then admits that when she finds out that her brother was the one who's been doing the killing, she ended up picking up the gun and aim it to her brother's head. Johan, however, laughed at her and even told her to aim straight for his head and to throw the gun out of the window once she's finished. So Nina ended up doing exactly that nine years ago. Nina then becomes angry and asks why Tenma decided to save Johan. If he hadn't done this, the Fortners may still be alive now.

Tenma, however, doesn't answer Nina's question and instead tells her that she should stay here while he tries to contact the police. If the two detectives from last night were real, then he believes that Johan may have some police connections. He also tells Nina to hide herself in the case that someone spots her. Unfortunately, when Tenma reaches the Heidelberg police station, the place is swamped by journalists who want to find out about the Fortners and Mr. Mauler murder. Therefore, he finds it hard to approach the detective who's fielding the question from the journalists. Tenma, however, manages to find out that the creepy guy that follows Nina from the night before was found dead in the Heidelberg castle. Tenma then sees the two detectives from last night approaching the Heidelberg police station and concludes that Johan does have some police connection after all. Therefore, he decides to call the Heidelberg post and tells one of the employees that he'll bring a witness for the newspaper.

By doing this, Tenma hopes that he can still tell his and Nina's version of the events without endangering the lives of either of the two. Meanwhile, inside the Heidelberg police station, Detective Lunge/Runge analyses the photograph of the dead creepy guy in the Heidelberg castle and recognises that the hand of the person was tied. When he finds out that no rope has been found in the area, he decides to go to the area itself and ends up finding Tenma's necktie, further complicate Tenma in the murder that has happened thus far. Back to Tenma himself, he returns to the riverbank to take Nina to the newspaper interview but finds out that she is nowhere in the area. After a frantic search around the area, he realises that Nina is not there anymore and eventually he finds out a note written by her telling him that it wasn't his mistake that Johan is still alive. He was simply doing his job as a doctor. Because of this, Nina asks Tenma to move on with his life and save other lives. The episode ends with Tenma sitting inside a train, wondering what Nina plans to do to Johan.

Well, at the end of the day, I'm still not sure if the detectives are really Johan's underlings or if Tenma was simply being paranoid. From the look of things, the former is more likely but if that is the case, then Johan will have to be quite influential in order for him to pull off something like this. I am also interested to know why Johan thinks that his sister will want to come with him after she finds out about that he'd murdered their adoptive parents. And then there's the part where she actually shot him on the head once. Wouldn't taking his sister with him actually jeopardise his success at hiding his crime records? The likelihood of the two of them being spotted together is bigger than if Johan lives on his own and keeping a low profile. I don't think he wants to kill her either because if he wants to do so, he could have done it easily a couple of years ago or very recently before Nina realises her true identity. At any rate, it's good to know that the show keeps the viewers on the edge because I feel that the suspense and the mystery are the main elements that make this series unique and interesting.

© memento 2003