Rum Arc Discussion Thread (Plot + Characters)

[alphajjc]

That actually are some valid points.
Unfortunatelly I highly doubt that Gosho already knew in the Vermouth-arc or even in the Bourbon-arc what he was going to do in the Rum-Arc.
So some things might seem contradictionary.

I think its still possible that Rum simply didnt told the Boss about his shrinking and was only communicating via computer.
Your counter-argument "The Boss would like to meet Rum" is still valid, but on the other hand its valid to say
that the Boss doesnt need to meet Rum (again) since he trust him that much as making him his Nr.2.

But I guess we´re maybe a lil bit over-analyzing.
Atleast we agree that Iora isnt Rum

he is

[k11chi]

That actually are some valid points.
Unfortunatelly I highly doubt that Gosho already knew in the Vermouth-arc or even in the Bourbon-arc what he was going to do in the Rum-Arc.
So some things might seem contradictionary.

I think its still possible that Rum simply didnt told the Boss about his shrinking and was only communicating via computer.
Your counter-argument "The Boss would like to meet Rum" is still valid, but on the other hand its valid to say
that the Boss doesnt need to meet Rum (again) since he trust him that much as making him his Nr.2.

But I guess we´re maybe a lil bit over-analyzing.
Atleast we agree that Iora isnt Rum

Pretty sure he posted about Rum like 10 years ago. And he would make the past statements fit the current plans anyway... Like how he already did with Gin mentioning Shinichi being the first test subject in chapter 1.
Anyway, while your theory could fit for "why" Rum has so many different descriptions, the thing about not seeing Rum doesn't take into account the theory about Wakita on the first page. Unless Wakita hasn't seen that person either... Which doesn't sound like something Gosho would do because it means there is no character interaction between them...

[DCUniverseAficionado]

Kiyonaga would be breaking new ground for Aoyama's handling of suspects, assuming he was supposed to be an intentional suspect. (Gosho, if I recall, outright said Yamato wasn't Rum because so many people thought he was due to the three descriptions, but it was likely unintended). [..] Kiyonaga was introduced very early in the series and his appearances have been exceedingly sporadic.

Here's the thing with Kiyonaga—in his debut case (File 78–File 80/Episode 18), there's narration at the end by Shinichi/Conan, in which he says that Kiyonaga's daughter and the groom got married, three years later, and we see a photo of that wedding... and Kiyonaga's in the picture. Unless Gosho intends to have the end of the series (and, thus, Rum's capture/death) take place after this point (and after he claimed, in the Singapore Q&A, that DC, at this point, had only taken place over the course 6 months, 90+ volumes in and very close to File 1000), or have Kiyonaga escape justice, or just retcon this narration out of existence and pretend it never happened, the chances of Kiyonaga turning out to be Rum take a nose dive, just with that.

I think its still possible that Rum simply didnt told the Boss about his shrinking and was only communicating via computer.
Your counter-argument "The Boss would like to meet Rum" is still valid, but on the other hand its valid to say
that the Boss doesnt need to meet Rum (again) since he trust him that much as making him his Nr.2.

But I guess we´re maybe a lil bit over-analyzing.
Atleast we agree that Iora isnt Rum

Nope. I'd believe a 13-year-old Muga killed Koji and Amanda over Sakurako doing it and then taking APTX.

As Serinox posted, if the boss knew about APTX being capable of shrinking people, then the BO would've looked at elementary schools by now. If Sakurako is Rum, who took APTX 17 years ago, then she, of all people, would be able to put two and two together, since she's seen both Shinichi/Conan and Shiho/Ai—the last thing she'd do is hide that from the boss... and even if she did, for whatever reason, she'd surely try to do what Vermouth did, and try to quietly erase the problem.

While I do believe Sakurako has a greater role to play in the plot, I definitely don't think she's Rum.

Atleast we agree that Iora isnt Rum

he is

On the other hand, a 13-year-old assassin is still quite the stretch. There's no precedent for it, in DC.

For me, Muga being Rum is 50/50, at this point.

[Max1996]

On the other hand, a 13-year-old assassin is still quite the stretch. There's no precedent for it, in DC.

That's only based on the assumption that Muga IS actually 30 at the time of the Poirot Case. For all we know, he could actually be older than that.

[Serinox]

Sure, but the ages in the captions have been right way more times than they have been wrong (two times, Subaru and the culprit from the Selfie Stick case, if I recall correctly), so until we have any hints towards his age being higher, we probably should stick to the given age being accurate.

[MeiTanteixX]

Do you think Iori though is just as skilled as Gin is? It is hard to picture so which makes you understand Wakita for feeling as if he is too weak? And Gin is a straight up bad ass with all his skills and abilities. Hard to imagine someone else being above him.

I think we should take Subaru's statement seriously,... that Rum is a bigger dog than Gin(not just in terms of position). Wakita seeing Rum as weak doesn't really mean that he sees Gin any bigger.

Also, I have a feeling that maybe Momiji's father is the Boss, I don't know , I mentioned it before as well, and will say it again, though there is a possibility had Gosho not decided who the boss is, but since his ex-wife knows so i am wrong. No probs!
Again, Gr8 work MeitanteixX

I fully doubt that Momiji is anything bigger than what she's portrayed to be(which is already big enough to me).
Thanks

Congrats—while he won't be my top pick, you just convinced me to change Muga's Rum suspect status on the Fit the Pieces Together thread. He'll now be more likely, in my book, to be Rum than Hyoue or Kanenori.

And whether he's Rum or not, he's a manga character—thanks for dedicating a part of the post to make clear that he and Momiji aren't just going to be movie characters who'll disappear after Movie 21.

Thanks, I guess
Good to know that it sounded reasonable to you.
I agree with you on the likelihood.

No problem. I noticed that many used M21 as an argument, so I had to address it.

I will consider him only as an outlier besides all the other suspects.

I would say he takes the front row, but at least Iori is starting to be considered as a suspect.

As for Rumi, all we know is that she "can't see with her right eye"... this doesn't confirm that she has a prosthetic eye, she could have a very bad eye sight or is blind in that eye (with the eye being her real eye).

Never claimed that she has a prosthetic eye.

Having a 13 year old as a killer really would be taking a gamble because, no matter how competent the kid, someone that age is going to make mistakes an adult wouldn't.

Be more specific with the kind of problems that a 13-year-old would face that an adult could handle.
Guess what... Rum screwed up.

What does Gosho is saying us here?
Rums face appeared (lets cross the maybe) but his/her name didnt?

So even though Rums(=Sakurakos face) appeared, her real name didnt.

"His/her name haven't shown up, in a sense!" ---> Rum's real name hasn't appeared, but his alias has.
"Maybe his/her face has appeared...?" ----> I think it's ambiguous enough to go either way(since it's a Japanese translation, the underlying tone of this sentence could be more ambiguous than what it seems in english).

"Sakurako = Rum" is really based on nothing but the level of twist it would give.
I think the suspicious part in the interview is how Gosho chose Iori of all people to compare his age with Akai. Makes me think that he had Akai's age in mind when he decided Iori's age(as if the age similarity is important, as if Iori is important).

[DCUniverseAficionado]

"Sakurako = Rum" is really based on nothing but the level of twist it would give.

Exactly.

[Tantei San]

Having a 13 year old as a killer really would be taking a gamble because, no matter how competent the kid, someone that age is going to make mistakes an adult wouldn't.

Be more specific with the kind of problems that a 13-year-old would face that an adult could handle.
Guess what... Rum screwed up.

I understand that you may have your own part of the story for a RUM being a 13-yo kid and going around doing assassinations, but think about it that way, Yes, Gin said RUM screwed up, but it hasn't been stated in what way he did(Maybe, Gosho wrote it in a way to wander us, maybe that's what he meant, We don't know.). Did he screwed up in killing, because if I recall, In kohji's case both him and amanda were murdered, and i think that, that was the primary motive of RUM/Asaka in the first place.
Or did he screwed up in escaping thus injuring himself up and hence, the prosthetic eye. Or was he caught and screwed up.

What does Gosho is saying us here?
Rums face appeared (lets cross the maybe) but his/her name didnt?

So even though Rums(=Sakurakos face) appeared, her real name didnt.

"Rum's name didn't appear,... in a sense!" ---> Rum's real name hasn't appeared, but his alias has.
"Maybe his/her face appeared...?" ----> I think it's ambiguous enough to go either way(since it's a Japanese translation, the underlying tone of this sentence could be more ambiguous than what it seems in english).

"Sakurako = Rum" is really based on nothing but the level of twist it would give.
I think the suspicious part in the interview is how Gosho chose Iori of all people to compare his age with Akai. Makes me think that he had Akai's age in mind when he decided Iori's age(as if the age similarity is important, as if Iori is important).

As for Sakurako,
@dccd,
I think you are over exaggerating that fact that Sakurako maybe RUM, I understand you have your theory based on something which you found relevant but how much has her character development being described giving out the fact that she is RUM, her personality and the overview suggests that she is completely irrelevant to the Arc, and that the only reason she was given a plot character was because she was close to chiba.
Though, I am not denying your theory and at the moment everyone is being lined up as a suspect.
Also, It is quite a thing to notice that two of the Major RUM suspects are actually household workers?
Both Iori Muga and Sakurako Yonehara are household workers and going by the way they have been shown, I can say for more than atleast 10 years they have been workers.

[dccd]

Well guys, up to this point its obviously subjective on what someone finds suspicious.
I for myself put Iori on the very bottom of my list, since i hardly doubt that Rum would act like Iori did and would be introduced with a "big bang" like this one.

And atleast for me - there are dozen of aspects pointing on her, but there are all more the
"reading between the lines"-type of things. So I hardly doubt anybody will find that convincing.

...and that the only reason she was given a plot character was because she was close to chiba.

If this was true, then Gosho wouldnt have drawn a single panel with her noticing Conans skills, CH783 P7.
She will play a bigger role in this arc and since I dont find any fitting "role" for her I assume she is Rum.

But well... I guess were about to wait and see what happens

[MeiTanteixX]

Having a 13 year old as a killer really would be taking a gamble because, no matter how competent the kid, someone that age is going to make mistakes an adult wouldn't.

Be more specific with the kind of problems that a 13-year-old would face that an adult could handle.
Guess what... Rum screwed up.

I understand that you may have your own part of the story for a RUM being a 13-yo kid and going around doing assassinations, but think about it that way, Yes, Gin said RUM screwed up, but it hasn't been stated in what way he did(Maybe, Gosho wrote it in a way to wander us, maybe that's what he meant, We don't know.). Did he screwed up in killing, because if I recall, In kohji's case both him and amanda were murdered, and i think that, that was the primary motive of RUM/Asaka in the first place.
Or did he screwed up in escaping thus injuring himself up and hence, the prosthetic eye. Or was he caught and screwed up.

I never said that him being a 13-year-old was the reason for his screw up. I'm making the point that saying "a 13-year-old would make mistakes compared to adults so Rum couldn't have been a teen" is a very weak argument when Rum hasn't so far been proven to have been competent 17 years ago. In fact, he messed up(regardless of the reason), which is a fact, so it doesn't help the argument.

[Kor]

Sakurako was introduced even before Amuro was introduced, so I'm not sure why anyone finds her to be suspicious in the first place. Every time the cast stumbles upon her, it's by pure chance because she constantly works for different people.
At most, she's just a guest character that shows up every 70 chapters or so.

[Tantei San]

She will play a bigger role in this arc and since I dont find any fitting "role" for her I assume she is Rum.

That might have just triggered something in me.

[Absenta]

What about the Shukichi Haneda stuff¿? Half brother with Kohji? Why?? We don´t know much about Shukichi and I think he is an important character, he is an Akai after all.



Here´s my crazy theory:

Tsutomu Akai is Rum, and he is now Shukichi Haneda in disguise.

Howso??:

- Shukichi Haneda resembles a lot to his father.
- Shukichi Haneda is related to Kohji Haneda, even probably without meeting him. We don´t know much about Shukichi, even Sera doesn´t know where he lives.
- Shukichi Haneda is a strong-built man but he has a feminine side, he´s cheerfuul and a bit childish. He can also be considered an old man because he likes Shogi and he has been in the organization since a quite long time.
- Shukichi Haneda is quite confident of his memory, he proclaims to be the best memorizer in the world. Rum relys absolutely in Curacao,
who had the capacity to memorize big data.
- Shukichi, like the rest of his family is really intelligent.
- Shukichi Haneda hs the same age that Chris Vineyard is supposed to be (physically) 27-28.


Tsutomu Akai´s corpse was never found, it is very possible that he took the Silver Bullet Drug, similar to the APTX, and closer to the one that Vermouth presumably took. Tsutomu Akai might messed things out in the Amanda Hugues case and took the drug because he didn´t have other way to disappear. He might rejuvenated to Shukichi Haneda´s age and had to play his own son.
However we don´t know if once you take the drug you start to age again or simply your body remains in that state forever, it would be nice this issue to be solved.

Tsutomu Akai told his wife to think as him as a person that never existed so....

What I don´t know is what could happen to the real Shukichi, he might be abducted to the BO and trained. After all he was like 11 by that time. The decesead Rikumichi Kusuda could look-a-like bit to Tsutomu.


The Shukichi-Kohji Haneda stuff is really strange, we don´t know anything about this, even less about Shukichi and he is supposed to be an important character, after all he is the middle Akai brother.


So about the RUM arc characters:

Tsutomu Akai: Rum

Kanenori Wakita: Rivalry against Rum inside BO.

Hyoue Kuroda: Rum´s natural rival, boss of Amuro, his accident was Rum´s fault.

Rumi Wakasa: She could be Asaka and at the same time, the soul detective.



The Rum arc started with the Scarlet case, it stands for Scarlet studio of Sherlock Holmes, but it might stand for the AKAI surname too.

I would absolutely love Tsutomu Akai as Rum, with a rivalty against Kuroda, likely to be Amuro´s Boss.

[Serinox]

What about the Shukichi Haneda stuff¿? Half brother with Kohji? Why??

Koji is not Shukichi's half-brother, he is his "non-blood related brother" (the term used in Japanese doesn't specify much more than that).

- Shukichi Haneda is a strong-built man

Is he? Shukichi looks more like an average-built man to me.

- Shukichi Haneda is quite confident of his memory, he proclaims to be the best memorizer in the world. Rum relys absolutely in Curacao,
who had the capacity to memorize big data.

As Gosho recently said, movies are movies, manga is manga. The whole stuff from M20 with Curacao doesn't have relevance in the manga story, unless Gosho re-introduces it seperately, which seems highly unlikely, just like M13 had no relevance.

Rumi Wakasa: She could be Asaka and at the same time, the soul detective.

Gaito Hotta was the Soul Detective, he was a TV celebrity for a while. His identity can't really be doubted.

[Tantei San]

- Shukichi Haneda resembles a lot to his father.

It wasn't Shukichi, according to Manga Chapter 972-974 When Mary described the resemblance, It was more for Shuichi and not for Shukichi. You took it wrong.

And Can anyone please give this information as to How would Wakita Kanenori be a BO member?
I don't find him that way because.

Spoiler:

Having a 13 year old as a killer really would be taking a gamble because, no matter how competent the kid, someone that age is going to make mistakes an adult wouldn't.

Be more specific with the kind of problems that a 13-year-old would face that an adult could handle.
Guess what... Rum screwed up.

I understand that you may have your own part of the story for a RUM being a 13-yo kid and going around doing assassinations, but think about it that way, Yes, Gin said RUM screwed up, but it hasn't been stated in what way he did(Maybe, Gosho wrote it in a way to wander us, maybe that's what he meant, We don't know.). Did he screwed up in killing, because if I recall, In kohji's case both him and amanda were murdered, and i think that, that was the primary motive of RUM/Asaka in the first place.
Or did he screwed up in escaping thus injuring himself up and hence, the prosthetic eye. Or was he caught and screwed up.

I never said that him being a 13-year-old was the reason for his screw up. I'm making the point that saying "a 13-year-old would make mistakes compared to adults so Rum couldn't have been a teen" is a very weak argument when Rum hasn't so far been proven to have been competent 17 years ago. In fact, he messed up(regardless of the reason), which is a fact, so it doesn't help the argument.

Actually, Its other way around, I was quoting Phantomwriter's view and kinda mixed it with yours MeiTanteixX.