Calling an episode of Furuhata Ninzaburô "The Bigheaded Murder" is a hell of a claim. Surprisingly, the killer's plan lives up to the hype. And how could it not when the killer is played by Masaharu Fukuyama, Detective Galileo himself! Even though this episode was filmed 8 years before Fukuyama took up that particular lab coat, this is a crossover for the books and a lot of the best moments in this episode come from watching Fukuyama, one of my favourite Japanese actors (so good in "Like Father, Like Son"). He plays his character's bitterness and hurt so well, so truthfully, that he almost makes this murderer sympathetic.
He is helped by a well-written script in which Kôki Mitani creates a character drama far more fascinating than the mystery which surrounds it. Even though the set-up of the wronged man seeking vengeance is definitely old hat, the way Mitani writes the conflict and the way Fukuyama and Naho Toda play it are what makes it gripping television. There are terrific scenes between the two in which he pretends to have forgiven her while she wrestles between her own feelings of guilt and her need to move away from him. The scientist claims she changed after the accident which put him in the wheelchair but as Furuhata suggests, maybe it was he who changed.
Mitani balances this heavy drama with comedy very well and "The Bigheaded Murder" is unexpectedly one of the funnier episodes of the season. Not only do we get some funny scenes of Shintaro and Saionji continuing their rivalry, but there's also a hilarious slapstick subplot in which Shintaro manages to superglue his hand to his chin. As silly as it sounds it really works mainly because of Masahiko Nishimiura's talent at physical comedy. Like all great slapstick comedians, he makes misery utterly hilarious.
The mystery plot is where the episode falters a bit. The central set-up is excellent and promises an interesting investigation but like in quite a few episodes of this season, Furuhata himself is sidelined for a lot of the episode. The investigation is led instead by Saionji who questions all the suspects and, of course, reaches the most logical but wrong conclusion. Furuhata only really comes in at the very end to untangle the mystery. This means there isn't nearly enough interaction between Furuhata and the killer which is a real shame since Masaharu Fukuyama is a first-rate opponent for the wily detective.