A Challenge Letter to Shinichi Kudo ~The Mystery of the Legendary Bird~

Chronology
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Drama Special 3
Information
Title:	A Challenge Letter to Shinichi Kudo ~The Mystery of the Legendary Bird~
Japanese Title:	工藤新一への挑戦状～怪鳥伝説の謎～ (Kudō Shin'ichi e no Chōsenjō ~Kaichō Densetsu no Nazo~)
Original airdate:	April 15, 2011
Characters:	Shinichi Kudo Ran Mouri Kogoro Mouri Eri Kisaki Sonoko Suzuki Juzo Megure
Case solved by:	Shinichi Kudo
Cast: Junpei Mizobata as Shinichi Kudo Shiori Kutsuna as Ran Mouri Takanori Jinnai as Kogoro Mouri Nene Otsuka as Eri Kisaki Sayaka Akimoto as Sonoko Suzuki Masato Ibu as Juzo Megure Masao Kusakari as Isamu Wakura Tomoharu Hasegawa as Yoichi Wakura Asuka Shibuya as Kotomi Wakura Tetsuji Sakakibara as Ryoji Wakura Kasumi Suzuki as Misa Wakura Yutaro Tamariguchi as Sho Kosaka Takashi Yamanaka as Issei Haji Machiko Washio as Tomi Youichi Nukumizu as Kogoro's client
Director:	Tsukasa Shirakawa
Screenplay:	Takehiko Hata

Cast

Characters
Shinichi Kudo Ran Mouri Kogoro Mouri Eri Kisaki Sonoko Suzuki Juzo Megure

Case

Situation

Shinichi, Ran, Sonoko, and Eri travel to a remote area in the mountains where there is a legend of a large Otori bird, similar to shrikes, that takes people and make them its "hayanie". A hayanie is when an animal is forcefully stabbed and impaled onto a branch or barbed wire by the Otori bird. While visiting the village, the four meet up with the Wakura family, which consists of a father, two sons, and two daughters. But almost immediately, someone ends up impaled atop God's Perch, a shrine devoted to pleasing the giant Otori, and the village is thrown into chaos. Soon after, another victim surfaces and the telephone lines are cut. The wooden bridge leading from the village to the outside world is even destroyed. It soon becomes apparent that the culprit is targeting the Wakura family, and Shinichi investigates. But the mysteries pile up on each other and the impossible murders get even more puzzling. Just who is the culprit and what is their aim? And how did they accomplish a murder that only a giant shrike appears to be capable of?

Murder
	Location: Mozutobi Shrine God's Perch Victim: Sho Kozaka Cause of death: Stab wound Suspects: Otori Bird

Murder
	Location: God's Perch Victim: Ryoji Wakura Cause of death: Stab wound Suspects: Otori Bird

People

Isamu Wakura
	Wakura Group president Shiro's friend

Misa Wakura
	Isamu's second daughter

Sho Kozaka
	Victim (stabbed) Graduate student

Issei Haji
	29/30 years old Jūgoya Police Substation officer

Yoichi Wakura
	Isamu's eldest son

Kotomi Wakura
	Isamu's eldest daughter

Ryoji Wakura
	Victim (stabbed) Isamu's second son

Tomi
	Otori storyteller

Takezo

Machiko Konno
	Deceased (stabbed)

Kobayashi
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Resolution

  Show spoilers »

The culprit is the policeman, Officer Haji. He decided to take revenge on Isamu Wakura because, years ago, he had told his mother to go away, wrongly thinking she (who was Haji's mother) loved him for his money.

Music

Theme song titled "To you..." by Dream.

Differences between the novel and the live action drama

Note: The following are only details that have connection to the murder plot or are important to the content. Many other small details were changed in the drama as well.

• In the novel, the God's Perch is a wooden log on two pedestals and is put next to the Sacrificial Tree which has a pointed branch, while in the drama, the Perch is a pointed perch-like part of a stone monument. Therefore, even though they share the same principle, the murders are a bit different between the two versions.
• In the drama, the TV crew is completely omitted. Sho Kozaka, a graduate student, replaces Okada as the first victim.
• Ironically, in the drama, Ryoji is the one who is killed, while Yoichi and Kotomi remain alive (the culprit fails to kill Kotomi, and Yoichi never becomes a target).

See also

• Challenge Letter to Shinichi Kudo
• A Challenge Letter to Shinichi Kudo ~The Mystery of the Legendary Bird~ (Novel)