English Dub Review: In/Spectre “Sleeping Murder”

Overview (Spoilers Below):
Kotoko offers her own explanation of Sumi’s death, which awakens the memory of a crime that had slept for decades.

Our Take:
Rion shared her explanation for Sumi’s death, in which she killed herself out of anxiety and pressure from her father. While this reasoning was approved, that doesn’t mean the case is closed for good. We have one more explanation to endure in this episode, and it’s from none other than Miss Kotoko Iwanaga. In other words, we’re letting the Goddess of Wisdom cook in the penultimate episode.
A few episodes ago, we assumed that the Yoko, Fubuke, was responsible for murdering Sumi as part of Koichiro’s deal. However, it turns out that this is not the case. Kotoko explains that Fubuke planned to disguise himself as a stray dog and rip her throat out, but a mysterious man in a black jacket got to her first. As a result, Fubuke disguised himself as Sumi to call for help and later proclaimed that he had killed her.
But that’s not the juiciest part of Kotoko’s theory. The man in the black jacket wasn’t a “man” at all. It was actually Kyoya’s wife, Karuko, who murdered her own mother, with Sumi screaming out the wrong information to protect Karuko from being investigated. Kyoya and Karuko did deny their part at first a couple of episodes ago, but it seems like they’re doing it to protect themselves, no matter how many times Kyoya denies it. But, of course, every case needs to conclude with one final tension-filled moment. This one is unsurprisingly no different, with Kyoya pulling a gun at Kotoko and Kuro, concluding with the latter two escaping unharmed.
With the truth finally revealed and Karuko in the hospital due to her suicidal attempt, Kotoko and Kuro have solved another enticing yet mildly convoluted mystery. However, while visiting a sick Koichiro, the duo discovers that the president knows Kuro’s cousin, Rikka, who told him about their abilities. This reveal means Rikka is responsible for the recent case that united the Otonashi clan.
Despite the president’s voice actor speaking like he was reading from the script, “Sleeping Murder” is another engaging conclusion to this unusual murder case. More importantly, it gives us another step closer for Kotoko and Kuro to locate Rikka. However, that doesn’t mean the show’s second season is concluding as well, as we have one last thing for the Goddess to take care of before all is said and done.