English Dub Review: Cop Craft “Cop Show, Witch Craft”

Law and Order: Tolkien Victims Unit

OVERVIEW (SPOILERS)
Fifteen years ago, a portal to another world, Simani, opened in the Pacific Ocean, with elves, fairies, and all sorts of fantastical creatures emerging from it. Now two million of them live in the city of San-Teresa, blending with the population, but also giving birth to new aspects of crime.

On the busy streets of San-Teresa, two cops, Rick and his partner Kei Matoba, show up for a sting to apprehend two guys dealing in fairies. They arrest them before they can use it on some unsuspecting Dragon Type Pokemon, but then one starts chanting and gains super strength, choking out and killing Rick before getting away with the fairy. Devastated by losing his partner of four years, Kei is eager to avenge Rick and continue the case, but fate has other plans.

The next day, Kei is set to meet a noble of the Farbani Kingdom who might be able to help with the case, though that requires going out to the portal in the middle of the ocean. He’s soon introduced to Tilarna Exedilica, who’s bratty and haughty nature instantly gets on his nerves, even if he didn’t already have a major prejudice against her kind. And if that wasn’t bad enough, she’s being assigned as his new partner to retrieve the fairy. Not that she’s very fond of him either, given his being totally stand-offish, and her general ignorance of the human world only puts them more at odds with each other.

Their first lead comes soon after, as the captured smuggler got the fairy from a gang of Mexicans in a Ridgeline car. This leads them to a night club and a black market dealer and informant named Biz O’Neill, which surprises Tilarna that a policeman would be working with a thief. His info takes them to an apartment to find one of the fairy’s original owners, but Tilarna senses magic at play. Upon entering the apartment, they witness a hooded figure killing their target, forcing them into a firefight.

OUR TAKE

I have a soft spot for Urban Fantasy stories where fantastical elements are blended into a modern background, so I guess I should look no further than a Buddy Cop show about a brazen human policeman and a magical girl newbie partner. Not exactly what I thought I was signing up for when I saw the poster, since I figured Tilarna would be a straight up magical girl, but what I got probably works better in the long run. We’ve definitely got a premise that is ripe for exploration, as we’re introduced to a gritty world of crime that just so happens to have elves, fairies, and magic being integrated into it. With only twelve episodes to get into it, I guess this case with the fairy will probably be taking up at least a huge portion, so I hope they use that time wisely.

I can’t say I’m super thrilled with the set up of our main duo, at least for now. Their dynamic is already starting to form, with Kei’s street wisdom guiding Tilarna through her new surroundings while her knowledge of magic will be a big help when he’s out of his depth, but they both still have plenty to learn about dealing with people, including each other. It’s definitely expected that two people, literally from different worlds, aren’t going to get along right from the start. And if the Ending is any indicator, we aren’t going to have to wait long for their respective guards to come down and learn to respect one another. I suppose my main issue with it at the moment is that it feels so artificial. I obviously can’t deny that prejudices towards creatures like this would exist, but I would really like us to hurry things along to when they start liking each other better.

Also of note is that the writer and artist of this story are just as much a strong double act of mid-2000’s anime storytelling, with writer Shoji Gatoh being responsible for the creation of the Full Metal Panic franchise and illustrator Range Murata known for his art design on the memorable Last Exile series. Knowing the roots that Cop Craft comes from gives me hope that it can give me some nostalgia for the style of writing of last decade. And hopefully a bit more excitement than a brief action scene at the end of the episode.