The original Gaale title card for Hake-met-Paaru's first season
Hake-met-Paaru: The Learner (Gaale: Hake-met-Paaru-Ikalunaaru) is a mystery thriller series from the Ashkathi Union, based on a series of well-known Ashkathi detective stories. It centers around an Ashkathi "learner" (detective) named Hake-met-Paaru (played by Taaki-met-Nalaken-Tainu), who is an ex-Brother of Larine working onboard the space station Tranquility. Every episode, Hake and a female partner (affectionately referred to as an Outsider Girl, or Golaani-nata) investigate strange goings-on onboard the space station. Notably, Hake does not use weaponry, but rather his cunning and Brother training, to thwart the villains.
Though originally filmed in Gaale, it has been dubbed into Eqit, Spanish, Rihansu, English, Snailian, and other languages.
Season 1 aired in 3552-3553, and Season 2 aired in 3554-3555. A third season is planned to air starting in 3556.
Overview[]
The typical episode of the show starts with the crime of the episode being carried out in a cold open, keeping as much vague as possible about the criminal's motives and identity. The opening credits roll, and the scene changes to Hake in his office speaking to Tanade about some sort of issue the office is having, usually a shortage of funds. After this, Hake receives a holo call from someone, usually one of the Outsider girls. Hake goes to investigate, and he interviews the witnesses, as well as begins to establish the suspects. The Outsider girl joins the investigation some time soon, having a reason for being nearby the crime scene (which Hake promptly deducts judging by observations he makes). The two then carry out their investigation. About half-way through the episode, the criminal, hiding his or her identity, attempts to do Hake and the Outsider girl harm, or captures the two of them. At this moment, the Outsider girl usually points out that they might need a weapon to deal with the criminal, to which Hake responds with his trademark saying. (Ranzuannan is not usually happy about this.) Using his wits, Hake manages to escape the criminal, and they return to the scene of the crime. Using the evidence gathered throughout the episode, Hake speaks to all the suspects, then proceeds to run down the evidence, narrowing down the suspects until only the criminal is left. The criminal confesses, and usually tries to kill Hake, the Outsider girl, and some of the other witnesses. Hake and the Outsider girl manage to outsmart the criminal, and the criminal is captured and locked away. Hake and the Outsider girl part ways, and Hake returns to the office, where a frustrated and exasperated Tanade is waiting for him. The episode ends with Tanade admitting that Hake did a good job, but bringing up the issue from the beginning of the episode (again, usually lack of funds) once more.
Characters[]
- Hake-met-Paaru-Ikalunaaru (played by Taaki-met-Nalaken-Tainu): The main character of the series. Once a member of the Brothers of Larine, Hake dropped out when he became disgusted with the increasingly violent methods of the Larinian police department. He now acts to thwart crime in his own unique, nonviolent methods. He is a passive yet stern and brave individual, preferring to watch and learn (hence his title, the Learner) rather than fight through his problems. He is well-known for his once-an-episode statement: "Weapons? Why, my brain is the only weapon I require."
- Eria Starrez (played by Veronica Capistrano): The most well-known Golaani-nata, having made 15 appearances over the course of both seasons. A cheery and excitable Verandi girl, Eria works as a waitress in the Summer Skies cafe, Hake's favorite mealtime spot on Tranquility. She has become embroiled in Hake's detective action multiple times, due to frequent incidents at the Summer Skies. Eria's emotional nature constrasts nicely with Hake's stoic calmness, and Hake considers Eria a loyal friend and assistant.
- Ranzuannan (played by Narzarran Ajei): A Sirian Golaani-nata, and a member of Ae Abex. Easily the most hot-headed and serious Outsider girl, Ranzuannan acts as a pragmatic and violence-prone foil to Hake. Despite this, her violent nature and obsession with duty is often played for laughs. She is the second-most recurring Outsider girl after Eria, appearing in 8 episodes of the show.
- Tanade-met-Kulara-Alar (played by Nani-met-Aladuni-Tainu): Tanade is Hake's boss. She works at the Ashkathi embassy in Tranquility and does not approve of Hake's vigilantism. Nonetheless, she appreciates his methods and knows that he truly believes he's doing the right thing.
- Information Unit Rico (played by Acting Unit Bartholomew): Rico is a Norb parakeet frame, and one of Hake's informers. Rico is a chatty, somewhat obnoxious bird, but he picks up a lot of information on Tranquility, and is willing to share some of it with Hake for a reasonable price. Oftentimes, the Outsider girls (especially the Sirian Ranzuannan, who calls him "the fool bird") get irritated with him, but Hake puts up with Rico because he knows that Rico, despite outward appearances, is a moderately upstanding bird.
- Najravata (played by Rosic Karvayan): A recurring villain on the series, and the closest thing that Hake has to an arch-nemesis. Najravata is a Jiptohr crime boss who runs a shadowy organization known as the Claw. Almost no one has seen Najravata's face, and in the show he is usually kept in shadow. The Claw is behind many of the criminal acts during the second half of Season 2 especially, and the organization is rumored to play a major role in Season 3.
Reception[]
Hake-met-Paaru was received well on Larine. Though the show is somewhat violent, the show's anti-weapon message and Hake's good nature gives the series a positive image in the Ashkathi Union. The Golaani-nata are seen as a way to show off outsider culture to the Ashkathi Union, in a way that can appeal to other nations in the process.
Hake-met-Paaru was found to be surprisingly successful in the foreign market.
Despite being widely praised by critics for its clever writing and what was widely referred to as a "unique concept," the show received very little commercial success in Izera. The Akandan Times' series reviewer, Tery Campell, gave it 4.5 stars out of 5 and called it "the most tragically underwatched show to ever air in the Empire." He said that viewers were missing out on "a truly refreshing, new interpretation of the classic detective/thriller/mystery genre" that was accompanied by "excellent writing [...] the kind that really keeps you guessing!" At the end of his review, Campbell speculated that the show's lack of traction in Izera was due to its inability to compete with other, more well-known shows of similar genres like They Fight Crime and Emergence. Most major Izeran channels stopped carrying it after season 2 ended, but it continues to air on more specialized channels that cater to niche audiences, and is available for download and through some "on-demand" services.
In Verandi, the show proved moderately popular among Ashkathi immigrants and was featured on the International Channel. Hake-met-Paaru became more successful in Verandi after the establishment of the Taralepe Network, which aimed at bringing Ashkathi media to the Empire for immigrants. Large groups of fans arranged for public viewings of new episodes on or near the beach at night, a regular enough occurrence in Verandi, but the first for a show of Ashkathi origin. The show received mixed reviews from top critics, some commending the unique take on a tried and true formula, while others knocked off points for having the formula in the first place. Moral advocates praised the series' spirit of cooperation and non-violence advocacy.