Challenge Letter to Shinichi Kudo

Challenge Letter to Shinichi Kudo (工藤新一への挑戦状 ,Kudō Shin'ichi e no Chōsenjō) is a live-action drama series starring Junpei Mizobata as Shinichi Kudo that takes place before the events that begin the story of Detective Conan. The series began airing on July 7, 2011. Prior to the series three live-action specials were produced and based on the plots of three of the Detective Conan novels.

Main cast

The following is a listing of the main cast of the drama series according to the Chart section of the official series website.

Character		Actors
Picture	Name	Picture	Name	Notes
	Shinichi Kudo		Junpei Mizobata	Mizobata is the 2nd actor to portray Shinichi in live-action following Shun Oguri.
	Ran Mouri		Shiori Kutsuna	Kutsuna is the 2nd actress to portray Ran in live-action following Tomoka Kurokawa.
	Kogoro Mouri		Takanori Jinnai	Jinnai has portrayed Kogoro in all live-action adaptations.
	Sonoko Suzuki		Sayaka Akimoto	Akimoto is the 2nd actress to portray Sonoko in live-action following Mayuko Iwasa. She is also a member of the AKB48 idol group.
	Eri Kisaki		Nene Otsuka
	Miwako Sato		Natsuhi Ueno
	Wataru Takagi		Yuichi Tsuchiya

Other notable cast

Character		Actors
Picture	Name	Picture	Name	Notes
	Heiji Hattori		Tori Matsuzaka
	Kazuha Toyama		Rei Okamoto

Episodes

#	Title	Original airdate	English airdate	Plot
1	File. 1 - The High School Detective Before Becoming Conan, Uncovering the Murder Affair Mystery!	July 7, 2011
Yuuhei Tsubouchi, a professional cameraman, strangles Momoko Aida after thinking she was going to leave him for another guy and covers up his murderous act by ransacking her apartment to look like a robbery. Will Shinichi be able to prove Tsubouchi's guilt? First appearance of Shinichi Kudo, Ran Mouri, Kogoro Mouri, Miwako Sato, and Wataru Takagi. Ran comments that she longs to have wedding photos like the one's from Tsubouchi's wedding and Shinichi agrees. Meanwhile, Sato comments she'd rather not have any, surprising Takagi and causing him to stumble over his next few words to her.
2	File. 2 - The Live Broadcast Locked Room Murder! Expose the Secret of the Psychic's Curse	July 14, 2011
Shinichi is a guest on a live TV program called "The Showdown" where he tests his deductive abilities against the psychic abilities of Jiro Washimi. The TV program goes horribly wrong however when Washimi seems to kill the show's host, Takayuki Harada, using his psychic powers. Are psychic powers really to blame or was it simply a trick by the real murderer? When Shinichi explains how the shape-memory alloy in Harada's bandana works and is the same as the shape-memory alloy found in the materials of Ran's brassiere, Shinichi gets closer towards Ran and comments that the materials are "Excellent, aren't they?". Ran in embarrassment asks how Shinichi could possibly know something like that. Kogoro freaks out and asks if Shinichi and Ran are really in that kind of relationship. Ran then hits him in embarrassment. Later on when the group makes it to the third white room, Ran is startled by the gunshot sounds so Shinichi grabs her hand to help calm her down.
3	File. 3 - The Court Murder Case Behind Closed Doors! Expose the Hostess' Murder Trick	July 21, 2011
Shinichi, Ran, and Kogoro attend a trial at which Eri is a witness for the defendant Reika Saito's alibi. Things get out of hand though when Reika begins insulting Eri and Eri threatens to kill her, pointing at Reika with her hand in the shape of a gun. Much to everyone's surprise, a gunshot is heard when Eri says "bang" and Reika drops to the floor dead. Can Shinichi prove Eri's innocence? First appearance of Eri Kisaki. When Shinichi is looking at flowers on his phone to possibly give Ran as a gift, Eri catches him and suggests buying underwear instead, saying it's a popular present in foreign countries for lovers. Eri then continues to give Shinichi romance advice.
4	File. 4 - Perfect Crime! The Notice of a Murder at a Wedding, Reveal the Mystery of the Locked Room Poisoning Trick!	July 28, 2011
Shinichi loses a game against Ran and Sonoko during lunch so now he must play a penalty game: he must accept every request for a favor for the rest of the day. Before Ran can ask for Shinichi to take her out to a restaurant, Kogoro calls Shinichi and asks for him to assist with the wedding party of Kensuke Motoki and Kanon Shimabara. Later on, one of the guests, Nana Matsumoto, drops dead from what seems to be poison. Kensuke asks for Shinichi to prove his innocence, but is this one favor Shinichi can't complete? First appearance of Sonoko Suzuki. Ran's reason for getting Shinichi to do the penalty game in the first place was a roundabout method of getting him to go on a date to a restaurant with her. Ran is relieved when she discovers that Shinichi hasn't had his first kiss yet. While leaving the fourth white room, Ran wants to keep the dress. Shinichi asks if it wouldn't just be better to get a new one, confusing Ran and causing Kogoro to tell Ran she's not a bride yet.
5	File. 5 - The Amnesiac Actress's Magnificent Murder Trick - The Perfect Crime at the Summer Villa	August 4, 2011
Shinichi, Ran, and Sonoko are at movie director Akihiro Nagata's villa where Shinichi is practicing for a possible role in one of Nagata's films. Nagata's wife and famous actress Chisato becomes jealous and enraged when she catches Nagata "demonstrating" a kiss on rising actress Saori Kisaragi and even threatens her with a knife. Nagata calms Chisato down as villa manager Kana Ishihara prepares tea for the group. Suddenly, Nagata collapses from poison in his tea and Chisato suffers a shock so great that she loses her memory! It's up to Shinichi to reveal the truth, find Nagata's murderer, and prove whether or not Chisato has truly lost her memory. Ran is clearly jealous of Saori when she discovers Shinichi is supposed to do a kissing scene with her. Nagata, catching on to Shinichi and Ran's actions around each other, suggests that Shinichi and Ran should do the love scene instead, embarrassing both of them.
6	File. 6 - The Twenty Ladies' Magnificent Killing Kiss! The Killing Intent Hidden in the Murder Equation!	August 11, 2011
Shinichi and Ran in disguise, accompanied by Inspector Takagi, spy on Kogoro flirting with the hostesses at the Cristiano cabaret club. Kogoro and variety show educator Masato Mine are invited to participate in one of the club's games in which the men receive kisses on the cheek from 19 of the hostesses while a decanter of wine is filled and the grand prize is a kiss from lead hostess Kumi Amagi. Mine wins the game, so Kumi drinks his decanter of wine and prepares to kiss him, only to collapse to the floor dead instead. How did the murderer ensure Kumi would end up with the poison? Was the game truly luck, or can Shinichi reveal the secret behind winning the game and catch the murderer? When Kazuyo asks Ran if she loves Shinichi, Ran gets very embarrassed and claims Shinichi is just a mystery geek. After the murderer's motive is revealed, Ran asks Shinichi if he would ever kill somebody for the sake of someone he loved. Shinichi replies that no matter what a murder is still a murder. However, when Shinichi gives Ran the antidote in present day he adds on that although he wouldn't kill somebody for Ran, he would never let the one he loves die.
7	File. 7 - The Blood Smeared Kin's Inheritance Murder! Reveal the Mystery Behind the Kidnapping Trick!	August 18, 2011
After attending the funeral of a famous ramen chain owner, Sonoko gets kidnapped along with Yuri Noguchi! Miki, Yuri's sister, receives a phone call from the kidnapper demanding a large amount of money in diamonds. Shinichi and Ran manage to get to Sonoko and Yuri safely, only to find Miki was murdered when she was separated from them! Who killed Miki and why?
8	File. 8 - A Girl's Willpower, Revenge on the Molester! The Surveillance Camera's Hidden Murder Trick	August 25, 2011
Shinichi and Ran are riding a bus in Beika when Ran is suddenly touched on her butt by molester Osamu Sawada. After chasing the molester, Shinichi and Ran come across a case at the Beika Residence apartments where Katsuyo Miyano's respirator ceased working and she lies between life and death. Is Makoto Yamashita responsible for the respirator trouble through neglect or is there more to this case, and what does Sawada's obsession with Yukari Miyano's black underwear have to do with anything? After capturing the molester on the bridge, Shinichi comments that he's the only one allowed to touch Ran. Ran however isn't amused and threatens Shinichi with a kick.
9	File. 9 - Heiji Hattori and the Locked Room Unseen Weapon Murder Mystery! The East-West Detective Reasoning Battle	September 1, 2011
Osakan high school detective Heiji Hattori and his best friend Kazuha Toyama are on their way to visit Teitan High School when they witness a thief steal a purse. Heiji chases after the thief only to run past Shinichi and Ran on their way back from school. They capture the thief only to suddenly hear a woman scream in a nearby house. When owner Yoshino Fujimaru gets home and lets them in, the three are surprised to find Hideko Nakajima dead on a couch with a shard of glass protruding from her neck. First appearance of Heiji Hattori, and Kazuha Toyama. Shinichi and Kazuha both notice Ran seeming to watch Heiji very closely. Shinichi comments on it making Ran ask if he's jealous. Shinichi quickly claims he's not, but then Kazuha asks to talk to Ran privately. A jealous Kazuha confronts Ran forcing Ran to explain herself. Ran was watching Heiji because he reminded her so much of the guy she thinks about. Kazuha explains the story to Ran about how she and Heiji were accidentally handcuffed to one another when they were little and shows Ran the piece of the chain she keeps as a lucky charm. Ran asks if she and Heiji are dating but Kazuha, embarrassed, remarks that she thinks of herself as more of an older sister to Heiji. Kazuha in turn asks if Ran is dating the "mystery-loving-nut" she was commenting on earlier and as Ran explains she isn't quite sure what their relationship is, Shinichi overhears the girls' conversation.
10	File. 10 - Mystery of the Corpse That Teleported 200 Kilometers! Reveal the Wicked Woman's Perfect Crime Plan	September 8, 2011
Ran video-chats with Yukino Mizutani, Kogoro's client who apparently is under domestic abuse and being stalked by her lover, Kensuke Kubo. In the middle of the conversation, Yukino seems to be attacked by Kubo and screams for help. Ran calls Shinichi to Beika Mansion where Yukino lives; rushing there, she bumps into Kubo and later deduces that he is the culprit. However, Yukino is nowhere to be found – her corpse is discovered 6 hours later at a weekly mansion in Saitama, which is 200 km far from Beika Mansion; therefore, it's impossible for Kubo to be the culprit..
11	File. 11 - A Kiss is the Reason for Killing, a 20-year-old Revenge Murder! The Mystery of the Perfect Alibi	September 15, 2011
Shinichi invites Ran to have dinner in the restaurant on the 38th floor of the Beika Center Building for a reason. Meanwhile, a murder occurs: the victim is Taiji Tatsumi, the president of the Games company. Shinichi suspects the director of Games, Satoru Oba, but he has been with the president's daughter, Sakurako Tatsumi, all the time. Can Shinichi solve the case and go back to confess his intention to the waiting Ran on time? Shinichi attempts to confess his feelings for Ran in the same location his father, Yusaku Kudo, proposed to his mother. Unfortunately the lights in the restaurant go out just before he manages to say anything, so he doesn't end up confessing.
12	File. 12 - I'm the Killer! Three Independent Murderers? Reveal the Mystery of the Disguised Murder!	September 22, 2011
Machiko Sonoda, Ran's computer school teacher and Kogoro's drinking buddy, is found lying still – presumably dead – behind the closed shutter of Beika City Bank's safe-deposit box floor. There is a warning – the moment the shutter is open or the police make a move, the bank will be exploded. When asked for the murder culprit, all three suspects – Yuzo Nimura, Yoko Sakai and Ryosuke Hasegawa – raise their hands. Can Shinichi find the true culprit and prevent the 'explosion'?
13	File. 13 - Ran Dies! Expose the Mystery of the Final White Room Challenge from the True Culprit to the Genius Detective	September 29, 2011
Right after Ran admits being the criminal behind everything, she and Shinichi are separated and put to sleep. Hearing Takagi's voice, Shinichi wakes up, finding himself at Beika Marina and Ran lying still nearby. However, Ran is declared dead by a Medical Examiner named Hajime Hirata, and will be dissected to find out the cause of death; Shinichi can't do anything, being taken to the police station as an important witness. He and Kogoro later deduce Ran is only in an "apparent death" condition and may be revived. Will Shinichi be able to locate the true culprit of the white room? More important, can he save Ran? Shocked and desperate to hear that Ran is dead and going to be dissected, Shinichi does all it takes to rush to Ran and has to be stopped by both Sato and Takagi. Much later, after having suspended the criminal, Shinichi finds Ran in the morgue and try to wake her up – to no avail. Overwhelmed by agony, Shinichi cries, stating that he hasn't been in time to save her. When Ran comes to finally, both of them apologize to each other, and Shinichi says he is glad that Ran is safe. While piggy-backing Ran to the hospital, Shinichi offers to take Ran to an amusement park after she recovers and wins the city Karate Tournament. Several months later, Shinichi takes Ran to Tropical Land and gives her another phone strap as a present.

Specials

• A Challenge Letter to Shinichi Kudo ~Prologue Until Goodbye~ (2006)
• Shinichi Kudo Returns! Confrontation with the Black Organization (2007)
• A Challenge Letter to Shinichi Kudo ~The Mystery of the Legendary Bird~ (2011)

See also

• Official Japanese site