Beautiful Bones – Sakurako’s Investigation Review

We said it before during our first impression article, but it bears repeating: if you are a fan of mysteries and characters solving cases similar to BBC’s Sherlock, then Beautiful Bones/A Corpse Is Buried Under Sakurako’s Feet might be just the anime you’re looking for.

Beautiful Bones is a Japanese mystery novel series written by Shiori Ōta, with illustrations by Tetsuo, that’s been adapted into an anime by Troyca. In case you aren’t familiar with it, the series follows the character Shoutarou, a high school boy, who has befriended Sakurako, a slightly older woman who is obsessed with bones. Over the course of the show, they attempt to solve an array of cases, ranging from missing people to family curses, and even murders.

Perhaps it’s due to my love of detective shows, but I couldn’t help noticing a strong resemblance between this series and Sherlock (or really any Sherlock Holmes type of story). The main character of Shoutarou is the faithful sidekick (a la Doctor Watson), the brilliant genius is Sakurako (Holmes). They solve crimes together, though invariably Sakurako does most of the work, and they eventually find themselves tangled in the web of a Moriarty-type villain who has been masterminding a number of the cases they have worked on.

In these kinds of stories, I find myself enjoying when the reveal happens towards the end of each episode, explaining what actually occurred and why, and find out if I was observant enough to pick up on the subtle clues that lead to the correct deduction.

Characters:

While we did describe Shoutarou and Sakurako in our first impression article, there are a few other recurring characters throughout the series that I felt obliged to mention.

Yuriko Kōgami is a female classmate of Shoutarou’s, who comes to him for help in a case concerning her grandmother. After that, she becomes more of a friend to him and enlists his help in other situations. She is strong willed and determined when she puts her mind to something. She also has a difficult time letting go even when others advise her to.

Gran is Sakurako’s housekeeper, who always makes sure everyone is eating a good meal. She worries about Sakurako, but doesn’t hold back when Sakurako is being disobedient. She is very friendly and welcoming to all who visit, especially Shoutarou, whom she seems to have a fondness for.

Itsuki Isozaki is a life science teacher that seems to mirror Sakurako’s obsession, only with plants. However, he tries to be cool and distant, particularly when it comes to students, which hints towards his character’s backstory.

Pros:

Though the first episode appeared to include some subtle fan service, I was pleased to see that it really fell away in subsequent episodes. They didn’t spoon-feed us plot points, or explain every single detail. In fact, there were a number of questions that were still unresolved by the end of the season, but I would imagine they will factor into any upcoming seasons (if they make them, that is). The art style was vibrant and enjoyable. The show’s tone was serious, but not overly somber or melancholy, even when dealing with such difficult topics as depression and death.

Cons:

Honestly, there aren’t many things that I disliked about this show on the whole. There were one or two occasions when an episode seemed like a filler, but even when that happened, there was good character progression to give the audience more details on the people in this world.

Overall, I thought the series was a great mystery/detective show centered around characters that we’ve only just scratched the surface of. I look forward to watching more if they make another season. Fingers crossed!