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Aibou episodes
I'm not trying to favor one Yuletide request over the others, but just in case someone is interested in writing Aibou fic or is simply interested in learning more about the series, I thought I'd share some episode recs that highlight the nominated characters. Heck, even if you don't want to write fic but are interested in the show, I would love to have someone to chat about Aibou with! (This will also serve as a good reference for myself in case I want to look up the episodes later, either for fic research or just for my own enjoyment.)
For newbies, I'd advise starting from the beginning with Season 1. We see Ukyo and Kaorumeet for the first time in episode 1, and get a look at how their partnership develops. ETA: After a rewatch, I realized that they actually meet for the first time in the TV movies that aired prior to the series.
And on the other end of the spectrum, in Season 7, we see Kaoru's departure from the Special Mission department and the MPD, and episodes 8 and 9 in particular show how far they've come: レベル4〜前篇 and レベル4〜後篇・薫最後の事件 (I think they translate as something like, "Level 4~first part" and "Level 4~second part - Kaoru's Last Case".) In this two-part storyline, Ukyo and Kaoru are investigating a murder involving the theft of a deadly virus, and in order to catch the killer, Kaoru exposes himself to that virus, trusting Ukyo's belief that the virus isn't really contagious. As mentioned in my Yuletide letter, it shows the deep faith and trust that Kaoru has in his partner. At the end of episode 9, Kaoru also leaves Special Mission (and Japan altogether, due to events that happened in the first episode of the season), and we see Ukyo bidding him a restrained goodbye, not quite being able to say how much he will miss Kaoru. Kaoru and Itami exchange more humorous farewells, with Itami saying in his typical sneering way, "I hope you die there," which would be a horrible thing to say if he meant it (though we know he doesn't), but Kaoru takes it in stride and simply retorts, "If I do, I'll come back and haunt you!" For these two frenemies, I believe that's supposed to translate to "Take care of yourself over there," and "Don't worry, I'll be fine." ;-) I love how they continue to bicker right up until the end--no sloppy sentiment for these two, and yet their friendship manages to come across.
The rest of season 7 is actually a good examination of Ukyo's character, as it shows him coping with the loss of Kaoru. He continues to solve cases alone or with informal partners that only last for an episode or two, and he doesn't act overly emotional, but it's strange to see him alone after seven years of working with Kaoru, and his ex-wife Tamaki is obviously a little worried about him. In the final episode, ep. 19 特命 ("Special Mission," an extra-long special episode that aired in 3 parts on my local station in the US), Kanbe Takeru is sent over from the National Police Agency to become Ukyo's new partner in Special Mission. Ukyo does not welcome his new partner at all--in fact, he isn't even there at the office to greet him, and has already left to investigate a new case. Kanbe eventually catches up with him, and it's funny to see Ukyo act uncharacteristically rude to him, with his constant petty and nitpicking criticisms of Kanbe's behavior and detective skills.
"Special Mission" also provides us with a good introduction to Kanbe. He's told that he's supposed to be secretly evaluating Ukyo to see if he's useful to the police department. His cover story is that he was demoted for some unnamed mistake, but Kanbe seems unsure that he isn't being demoted for real. We soon discover that he's squeamish about dead bodies, and that the kanji for his given name, Takeru, can also be read as "Son": Itami and his partners misread the kanji on Kanbe's business card, and even after they learn his real name, Itami occasionally refers to him as "Kanbe Son" in Seasons 8 and 9, just to needle him.
Season 8 continues to develop Ukyo and Kanbe's working relationship, which gradually grows from one of suspicion and veiled antagonism to a somewhat grudging respect. A couple of good episodes that tell us more about Kanbe's character are episode 3, ミス・グリーンの秘密 ("Miss Green's Secret"), in which Kanbe befriends the murder suspect, a kindly old lady whose hobby is gardening, and episode 19 (the last episode of the season), 神の憂鬱 ("The Melancholy of God"), in which we finally learn the real reason why Kanbe was sent to Special Mission, and also meet an ex-girlfriend of his and learn more about his past. It's also the episode in which Ukyo finally accepts him as a partner, in his typically subtle and understated way.
Pretty much any of the episodes from Seasons 1-6 plus the first half of Season 7 give us a pretty good picture of Kaoru, though Season 7 is especially poignant, given that it's his last. A couple of my favorite Kaoru-centric episodes are Season 5, episode 2, スウィートホーム ("Sweet Home"), in which he and his wife move into a supposedly haunted house, and Season 6, episode 16, 20世紀からの復讐 ("Revenge from the 20th Century"), in which Kaoru is taken hostage along with some other customers at a convenience store--in that episode, we also get a glimpse of his past when he was working as Itami's partner in Division One of the MPD.
A good Itami-centric episode is Season 5, episode 7, 剣聖 ("Sword Saint"), in which Itami's kendo instructor is murdered. When a rival instructor confesses to killing him in a consensual but illegal duel, the case is closed, but Itami still has some doubts about the case. Since he can't officially investigate, he reluctantly swallows his pride enough to ask Special Mission to look into the case--it's a great episode that shows us a more personal side to Itami. And as mentioned in my Yuletide letter, Season 8, episode 15 (狙われた刑事, "Detective Targeted") also shows us Itami's softer side, and has some great interaction between him and Kanbe.
The Chinese site Youku has episodes available for streaming online (with Chinese subtitles only). Season 1, episode 1 starts here, and you should be able to view most if not all of the other episodes by clicking on the season links or by title search, which is why I have included the titles in kanji/kana. (The English titles are approximate translations relying on my dictionary and some help from Google Translate, so they might not be completely accurate.)
For newbies, I'd advise starting from the beginning with Season 1. We see Ukyo and Kaoru
And on the other end of the spectrum, in Season 7, we see Kaoru's departure from the Special Mission department and the MPD, and episodes 8 and 9 in particular show how far they've come: レベル4〜前篇 and レベル4〜後篇・薫最後の事件 (I think they translate as something like, "Level 4~first part" and "Level 4~second part - Kaoru's Last Case".) In this two-part storyline, Ukyo and Kaoru are investigating a murder involving the theft of a deadly virus, and in order to catch the killer, Kaoru exposes himself to that virus, trusting Ukyo's belief that the virus isn't really contagious. As mentioned in my Yuletide letter, it shows the deep faith and trust that Kaoru has in his partner. At the end of episode 9, Kaoru also leaves Special Mission (and Japan altogether, due to events that happened in the first episode of the season), and we see Ukyo bidding him a restrained goodbye, not quite being able to say how much he will miss Kaoru. Kaoru and Itami exchange more humorous farewells, with Itami saying in his typical sneering way, "I hope you die there," which would be a horrible thing to say if he meant it (though we know he doesn't), but Kaoru takes it in stride and simply retorts, "If I do, I'll come back and haunt you!" For these two frenemies, I believe that's supposed to translate to "Take care of yourself over there," and "Don't worry, I'll be fine." ;-) I love how they continue to bicker right up until the end--no sloppy sentiment for these two, and yet their friendship manages to come across.
The rest of season 7 is actually a good examination of Ukyo's character, as it shows him coping with the loss of Kaoru. He continues to solve cases alone or with informal partners that only last for an episode or two, and he doesn't act overly emotional, but it's strange to see him alone after seven years of working with Kaoru, and his ex-wife Tamaki is obviously a little worried about him. In the final episode, ep. 19 特命 ("Special Mission," an extra-long special episode that aired in 3 parts on my local station in the US), Kanbe Takeru is sent over from the National Police Agency to become Ukyo's new partner in Special Mission. Ukyo does not welcome his new partner at all--in fact, he isn't even there at the office to greet him, and has already left to investigate a new case. Kanbe eventually catches up with him, and it's funny to see Ukyo act uncharacteristically rude to him, with his constant petty and nitpicking criticisms of Kanbe's behavior and detective skills.
"Special Mission" also provides us with a good introduction to Kanbe. He's told that he's supposed to be secretly evaluating Ukyo to see if he's useful to the police department. His cover story is that he was demoted for some unnamed mistake, but Kanbe seems unsure that he isn't being demoted for real. We soon discover that he's squeamish about dead bodies, and that the kanji for his given name, Takeru, can also be read as "Son": Itami and his partners misread the kanji on Kanbe's business card, and even after they learn his real name, Itami occasionally refers to him as "Kanbe Son" in Seasons 8 and 9, just to needle him.
Season 8 continues to develop Ukyo and Kanbe's working relationship, which gradually grows from one of suspicion and veiled antagonism to a somewhat grudging respect. A couple of good episodes that tell us more about Kanbe's character are episode 3, ミス・グリーンの秘密 ("Miss Green's Secret"), in which Kanbe befriends the murder suspect, a kindly old lady whose hobby is gardening, and episode 19 (the last episode of the season), 神の憂鬱 ("The Melancholy of God"), in which we finally learn the real reason why Kanbe was sent to Special Mission, and also meet an ex-girlfriend of his and learn more about his past. It's also the episode in which Ukyo finally accepts him as a partner, in his typically subtle and understated way.
Pretty much any of the episodes from Seasons 1-6 plus the first half of Season 7 give us a pretty good picture of Kaoru, though Season 7 is especially poignant, given that it's his last. A couple of my favorite Kaoru-centric episodes are Season 5, episode 2, スウィートホーム ("Sweet Home"), in which he and his wife move into a supposedly haunted house, and Season 6, episode 16, 20世紀からの復讐 ("Revenge from the 20th Century"), in which Kaoru is taken hostage along with some other customers at a convenience store--in that episode, we also get a glimpse of his past when he was working as Itami's partner in Division One of the MPD.
A good Itami-centric episode is Season 5, episode 7, 剣聖 ("Sword Saint"), in which Itami's kendo instructor is murdered. When a rival instructor confesses to killing him in a consensual but illegal duel, the case is closed, but Itami still has some doubts about the case. Since he can't officially investigate, he reluctantly swallows his pride enough to ask Special Mission to look into the case--it's a great episode that shows us a more personal side to Itami. And as mentioned in my Yuletide letter, Season 8, episode 15 (狙われた刑事, "Detective Targeted") also shows us Itami's softer side, and has some great interaction between him and Kanbe.
The Chinese site Youku has episodes available for streaming online (with Chinese subtitles only). Season 1, episode 1 starts here, and you should be able to view most if not all of the other episodes by clicking on the season links or by title search, which is why I have included the titles in kanji/kana. (The English titles are approximate translations relying on my dictionary and some help from Google Translate, so they might not be completely accurate.)