Bishounen Tanteidan – 03

「きみだけに光りかがやく暗黒星 その3」 (Kimi Dake ni Hikari Kagayaku Ankokusei” Sono San)
“The Dark Star that Shines for You Alone – Part 3”

In the last part of Mayumi’s mystery, we get a better glimpse of why she is being targeted and how she managed to catch the attention of the mercenary group Twenties. But as the group’s leader Rei aims to profit from abducting her and the boys, one of the guys decides to flip an Uno card to have Rei worry about a completely different set of hostages.

It was hard not to swoon over Rei with how much swagger and confidence she had as she revels in being a cutthroat mercenary. Her sexy, mature charm might likely be the closest we’d get to seeing female eroticism in this show, but it’s worthwhile to see how her confident aura amplified this charm to even higher heights.

Usually, shows like this would make its villains squares or killjoys who are ultimately foiled by the power of beauty. But Rei subverts much of this as a hired hand considering how she puts almost as much attention on presentation as the detectives do. Even with the threats of murder and trafficking she threw at our main characters, it was hilarious to see her be on mutual ground with Hyouta because they both take great care of their thighs. Considering that jail is a revolving door for the experienced mercenary, I’m looking forward to seeing if Rei turns out to be a regular fixture in the series. With how eccentric yet daring she comes off, she’d be the perfect foil to the detectives by being the only antagonist who could reach the same wavelength as the detectives.

One of Bishounen Tanteidan’s greatest strengths that appeal to me is how it wears its heart on its sleeve and unironically embraces the idea of seeing beauty in anything. Manabu allowing Mayumi to join the Pretty Boy Detectives was neat because he sought to redefine “boy” as a state-of-mind rather than a state-of-being. Where Mayumi merely having a “boy’s spirit” by being curious, inquisitive, and extravagant is more than enough to surpass the second rule’s stipulation. While most of the guys, including Michiru, assumed they operated off of using the textbook definition of “boy”, their definition of “beauty” also aligns with the message of redefining the limitations to surpass them, making it realistic for Manabu to see Mayumi’s inclusion as part of their personal ethos of making bold decisions that reach outside of the box.

Aside from beauty, this episode also explores what it means to dream of aspirations. Mayumi’s dream evolves as she’s thrown into this risky mystery because it calls attention to why she couldn’t be an astronaut. At first, she thought she’d give up only to preserve her deteriorating yet enchanted vision. But as she learns of beauty from the detectives, she finds that the mere act of aspiring to be the grandest version of yourself is more valuable than what it is you’re aspiring to be. Where embracing creativity and having a grand vision of who you are and where you’ll be is already a sign that you’re growing as a person. Giving up on one dream doesn’t mean another dream isn’t waiting for you. As long as you still have the motivation to push yourself in a different direction, you have what it takes to be fulfilled by the new way you carry yourself.

When Mayumi ends up being more fascinated in uncovering beautiful mysteries than sweeping the stars as an astronaut, her world view is evolving, not shrinking. She might be shutting one door, but in its place, even more doors have appeared before her. With a myriad of different journeys and mysteries that await her, it should be fascinating to see how she fits in with the Pretty Boy Detectives and what kind of strength or concentration will be her expertise.