Case Closed: Season Three

After clever high school sleuth Shinichi Kudo (Jimmy on the English dub) was poisoned by a crime syndicate with a new drug that shrunk him down to the size of a small boy, rather than give up, he dubbed himself “Conan” and now fights crime as the child sidekick of egotistical detective Kogoro. Unbeknownst to Kogoro's daughter Ran, Conan is actually her old high school friend Shinichi, whom she misses and fears dead. In this 27-episode third season of Case Closed, the gumshoe team continues to solve murders and other mysteries, many featuring clever or unique twists that have hooked fans of the long-running show into coming back year after year, while occasionally furthering the overarching plot revolving around Conan's situation (in this season, Conan learns more about the crime syndicate and encounters a suspicious former friend). Most of the mysteries are episodic and can be watched in any order since character development occurs very slowly: i.e., Conan solves all of the crimes with a combination of brains and gadgets, but gives the credit to the unwitting Kogoro. Sure to appeal to fans, this dual-language four-disc set, rated TV-PG, bows on DVD with extras including a character spotlight and a look at Conan's wristwatch stun gun. Recommended. [Note: Case Closed: Season Four is also newly available.] Aud: P. (L. Martincik)