The latest information from Detective Conan has been revealed in episode 96 – The Last Two Cases, which was released on March 23, 1998. After solving a complex case, Ran took Conan to buy food in order to “celebrate the victory.” While following Conan’s reasoning and methods for solving cases, Ran began to suspect that Conan is actually Shinichi. She even took off Conan’s glasses to see the familiar face of her childhood friend, Shinichi.
As they were arguing, a significant character appeared – Yukiko Kudo, Shinichi’s mother, who revealed a complex relationship through a “difficult sentence”: “Conan is actually the grandson of the uncle who is related to the daughter of your uncle.”
Initially, viewers might think Yukiko was simply answering Ran. However, upon further reflection, the statement is quite logical and hints at the true identity of Conan being Shinichi Kudo.
Let’s analyze Yukiko’s statement carefully. Yukiko’s uncle could indeed be viewed as a relative of Shinichi. The daughter of this uncle would be Yukiko’s cousin. Thus, the uncle of this cousin is Yukiko’s father. Finally, the grandson of Yukiko’s father is indeed Shinichi.
From a linguistic perspective, Yukiko’s lengthy sentence may manifest differently in future dialogues. However, the overall intention of the creator Aoyama here is that Yukiko does not hide the fact that Conan and Shinichi are the same person in front of Ran, while it remains uncertain whether Ran understands this.
In conclusion, Yukiko’s presence has dismantled Ran’s doubts about Conan’s identity, but it does not necessarily mean that Ran has stopped thinking about Shinichi. To this day, whether Ran (and Kogoro) knows that Conan is Shinichi remains a significant mystery that the creator has yet to reveal.
Image: TMS Entertainment
