With major networks favoring police procedurals and crime dramas to fill in their programming slate, Teddy Go! is a slight compromise and an unusual reprieve from such series stock. It's a four-part miniseries that is basically a murder mystery that plays out as an off-kilter comedy with a paranormal twist. At it's center is an immobile, innoxious, knitted bear with a myriad expressions, bringing about the cute and funny in a scenario that could have easily conjured up childlike terror associated with the very of idea of spirits inhabiting playthings. Thankfully, it doesn't veer off its light and silly path, providing juvenile humor without much thought as to the cause behind such phenomenon or the creepy nature of certain encounters.
Yamase Kazuko (Morikawa Aoi) is a freeter who just got dumped by her boyfriend and lost her job. She tries to blow off steam in a shooting gallery where she wins herself a knitted teddy bear, which she cheerfully takes home, only to discover the same to be inhabited by the spirit of private detective, Amano Yasuo (Aikawa Sho). The deceased detective suckers Kazuko into assisting him in investigating the death of a married couple whom he believes to have been murdered as a result of a cram school admissions scam. Together with Amano's old partner, Fuyuno (Hiraoka Yuta), Kazuko sets out to help Amano resolve his "unfinished business" in order for him to cross over and find eternal rest.
The narrative in Teddy Go! proceeds predictably and does not offer anything new to material of the same ilk. In so far as the main mystery is concerned, it parades the usual list of suspects and lets go of any pretense of making the case complex or overly serious, instead shifting the focus on the bond between Amano and Kazuko. There's an odd dynamic to the relationship wherein Amano calls the shots and hands out instructions but, in fact, he's utterly dependent on the actions of a frivolous girl because of his newfound, cuddly, corporeal state. This is the part where cute meets fluff---and the prop steals the show for being able to convey different emotions, arguably better than its human co-stars.
The murder case might have been facile and pedestrian but the show does something right in mining the humor and absurdity of having a tough, grizzly detective embodied by a harmless stuffed toy. Comic sketches have been built around this very premise and while the timing and execution can be a bit off at times, some of the punchlines do manage to land. Morikawa Aoi and Hiraoka Yuta work best acting alongside an inanimate object while Aikawa Sho brings as much attitude in voicing the knitted blue bear despite his limited screentime. Attempts at emotional sentiment generally come off as a misstep---the bit about the estranged daughter is pure filler and less effective in drawing a reaction compared to scenes involving a torn up toy or a spirit about to cross over to the netherworld. Childish and unpolished, Teddy Go! is for a younger audience that would wholeheartedly embrace its use of stodgy visual effects, occult caricatures and over the top acting. Older folks might not see much value in it but that blue teddy bear would certainly win over a lot of kids.
PEDESTRIAN MURDER MYSTERY
OFF-KILTER COMEDY WITH A PARANORMAL TWIST
BEST ACTOR IS A KNITTED BEAR
UNEVEN COMIC TIMING
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