ANIME REVIEW | No Truths Prevail in "Detectives These Days Are Crazy!"
Gone are the days of the film noir. Hollywood used to go gaga over rough detective tales, where a hot dame comes in wanting to have her cigarette lit as she tells the gumshoe her reason for being here. There’d be drinking, sleuthing, and maybe a little sexual tension to get the viewer antsy in their seats. But now, those stories are all but vanished in modern-day storytelling, save for maybe the occasional indie hipster comic artist trying to revive it. Perhaps they should take a cue from author Masakuni Igarashi, whose manga Detectives These Days Are Crazy! is being given the anime treatment by Liden Films (Call of the Night, Hanebado!).
Alas, this is not a nitty-gritty Humphrey Bogart-styled detective story; it’s quite the opposite. Keiichiro Nagumo (Junichi Suwabe) was once the talk of the town, as his detective skills in high school made him the go-to sleuth. Unfortunately, something terrible happened to Nagumo: he got old. As a result, he’s now a washed-up has-been who struggles to even get a single job. That’s when Mashiro Nakanishi (Kana Hanazawa) walks into his office and brings something that he needs: a damn good partner!
The problem: Mashiro has just too much spunk in her. Her energy, her style of taking down criminals, and even her problem-solving skills are far too much for poor Nagumo, who already has his own health problems to deal with. Nevertheless, Nagumo decides to keep Mashiro around, as she does a decent job with getting clientele and jobs. But can they solve these cases and circumstances in time before the next water bill comes around?
Just as it was in the manga, the magic of Detectives These Days Are Crazy! comes from the team-up of Nagumo and Mashiro. Despite their vast differences — a thirty-something chain-smoking grump and a youthful energetic dum-dum — they make for a perfect pair. The reason is due to their manzai-styled rhetoric: one plays it straight, the other delivers the punchline, sometimes with their literal fist. Not only does it lead to some great verbal humor, it also brings forth some Grade-A physical comedy!
From the verbal aspect, it’s the unexpected one-liners that bring the biggest laughs. There are times where Detective Nagumo lights up a cigarette and looks to begin to say some words of wisdom. Instead, what comes out of his mouth are some eyebrow-raising and giggle-inducing quips that’d have you judge his sanity. How Mashiro and the clientele react to them will also leave you laughing, as it’s either over-the-top or straight-up blunt!
As for the physical comedy, that’s all Mashiro’s alley. (Poor Nagumo’s got bad knees, after all.) Chasing perps, accidentally breaking million-yen pottery, and even her usage of weaponry are more terrifying than the crimes the crooks are being accused of! Basically, Mashiro’s an idiot, pulling off stunts and maneuvers that’d make Wile E. Coyote wince. Thankfully, in this anime, stupid people can’t die.
Where Detectives These Days Are Crazy! shines is when a case allows the series to combine the physical and verbal humor. A great example of that is in the fourth episode’s “Murder at the Mansion of Screams”. It starts off like a classic Holmes-styled story, only for it to unravel in maddening ways. Mashiro accidentally destroying the only way out of the mansion, Nagumo bullshitting his way into getting confessions, and even new random party guests appearing out of nowhere showcase the goofiness this show has to offer. And every punchline delivered is a full TKO of comedic brilliance!
Even if Nagumo and Mashiro were the only main characters, this series manages to deliver a pretty good ensemble. Rival detective Yuu Asunaro (Tomohiro Yamaguchi) unintentionally uses creepy tactics to seek out criminals, whilst his assistant Hana Kazamaki (an unrecognizable Aya Hirano) watches with dead eyes and frustration. Former yakuza member Taro Nezu (Kengo Kawanishi) poorly runs errands for the main duo, whilst gadget girl Azuha Hoshino (Fairouz Ai) crafts items that cause more damage than good. Then, there’s the Big Four Creepy Old Dudes, and saying anything more than that would ruin the joke.
From a comedic aspect, you won’t find a better vocal performance this summer than from Hanazawa. Her Mashiro is super-expressive, going from cutesy and sincere to deathcore screaming in an instant. It’s a performance that shines as Hanazawa’s best in her 20+ year career as a voice actress, a feat considering the heavy hitters that she’s done over the years. The same can be said for Suwabe and his Nagumo, who balances gruff and goofy in a way that perfectly complements Hanazawa’s range. If there’s an award for best vocal duo in the Japanese voice acting industry, these two are top contenders!
Although Liden Films is doing double-duty this summer with the new Call of the Night season, they are not slouching with the animation quality of Detectives These Days Are Crazy! The facial expressions they give to Mashiro reach uncanny valleys of creepy hilarity, with the occasional derpy ones that are just as funny. When it comes time to pull out the physical humor, the looniness of the fights is showcased with such a delightful amount of wackiness. It may not go full Bugs Bunny in zaniness like KonoSuba or Asobi Asobase, but it gets pretty darn close.
The bluesy harmonica-filled soundtrack by Tomoki Kikuya (Bocchi the Rock!, Wasteful Days of High School Girls) is pitch-perfect with the comedic timing of this anime. Not only does it boost the humor, but it adds a touch of class when the show needs to slow down and catch its breath from laughing too hard. Speaking of laughing, there’s a brilliance to the opening theme “Suffer” by Taiiku Okazaki, which showcases the pains of getting old in a fast-paced hard rock fashion. Hanazawa takes closing theme duties with the bouncy “GORI☆GORI Feez e-Girl!!”, which encapsulates Mashiro’s personality to a tee.
When I read the original manga of Detectives These Days Are Crazy!, it made me wonder how they would pull off the anime adaptation. Needless to say, any worries have thus far been tossed aside, as this is one of the brightest examples of comedy this season. Whether you’re old and cranky or young and spunky, this anime has plenty of reasons to laugh with and at its characters and their missions. Even with heavy hitters like CITY and the new seasons of Grand Blue Dreaming and Mr. Osomatsu, Detectives These Days Are Crazy! still manages to prevail as a highlight of Summer 2025.
Story:
Script:
Animation:
Voice Acting:
Soundtrack:
Final Grade (not an average):
Detectives These Days Are Crazy! can be viewed on Crunchyroll, and has been licensed by Crunchyroll. Episodes 1-9 were observed for review. Promotional consideration provided by Crunchyroll.
