Ranpo Edogawa is a staple in Japanese animation and is used as the inspiration for many detective stories in Japan. The most widely-used reference to this name comes from the long-running anime Detective Conan or, as it's known overseas, Case Closed and the main character, Shinichi Kudo.
In the case of Bungo Stray Dogs, Ranpo Edogawa is based on a real-life author who wrote mystery books. He acts as the brains of the Armed Detective Agency and can solve any case that is thrown at him. There may be some things that even the most avid fans might not know about the self-proclaimed world's greatest detective.
Updated on January 13th, 2022 by Sarah Martin: Since Bungou Stray Dogs' fourth season kicked off with Ranpo's backstory and the beginnings of the Armed Detective Agency, we've updated this list with more important information about Ranpo that even dedicated fans of the series may not have been aware of.
11 Ranpo Joined The Armed Detective Agency When He Was 14
Ranpo was the first member of the Armed Detective Agency. Stunned by his detective skills, Fukuzawa took him under his wing and recruited him as the Agency's first official member. Many fans may have been confused about how old Ranpo was when he joined, but it was obvious that he was at least a young teenager.
Ranpo was 14 when he was recruited into the Armed Detective Agency. It came after a string of terminations from previous jobs because he was bored with them. He caused all kinds of chaos at his previous jobs, from exposing a military chief's embezzlement scheme to up and quitting because he got bored of corporate norms.
10 There's Only One Ability That Can Stump Him
The only ability that ever caught Ranpo off guard was Mushitaro's Rats In The House Of The Dead. Rats In The House Of The Dead is a reality-altering ability that allows Mushitaro to erase evidence from a crime scene, effectively rendering most detectives useless.
Though the case stumped Ranpo for a while, he eventually unraveled the truth and realized that the only reason he couldn't find the evidence was due to a pesky reality-changing ability. He later confronted Mushitaro with his findings and called him out for being a killer.
9 His Eyes Are Brown In The Manga
Ranpo's eyes are always closed in Bungo Stray Dogs unless he activates his so-called ability, Super Deduction, or something serious occurs in the series. When he first opens his eyes, they are emerald green. However, in the manga and light novel, they are just a nice shade of dark brown.
The reason for this change, akin to how Kyouka Izumi has black hair in the original, is to make the character not blend into the dark backgrounds — even more so for Ranpo, as his attire is brown.
8 His Ability Is Not A Reference To Any Literature
Bungo Stray Dogs takes real-life literary figures and authors, turns them into fictional characters, and names each of their abilities after a book they wrote. For example, Osamu Dazai has an ability called No Longer Human that references the book of the same name. His character is also heavily inspired by the book.
However, since Ranpo does not have an ability and is simply a genius, it is not a reference to anything. Although he and the rest of the Armed Detective Agency know he has no ability, they continue to make him feel better and included with the rest of his coworkers.
7 Ranpo Was Not Born In Yokohama
When Atsushi first met Ranpo and was told to take on a mystery murder case with him, the first thing that caught his eye was that he did not know how to follow directions, meaning that he will get lost if he is not guided somewhere. He also didn't know how to take the train, hence why he needed Atsushi's assistance on their first mission together.
Although it was made out to be a joke at first, it makes more sense when it is mentioned that he was not born in Yokohama. He was raised in the countryside like Kenji, so he is easily lost in the big city.
6 He Is Named After A Pseudonym
The real-life Ranpo Edogawa was a mystery novelist born on October 21, 1894. He is the creator behind the detective Kogoro Akechi, a fictional private detective who first appeared in The Case of the Murder on D. Hill.
However, although most know him by his pen name Ranpo Edogawa, his real name was Hirai Tarou. His pen name is also a reference to Edgar Allan Poe's name. Since the author's pen name references Poe, it's also fitting that Ranpo's greatest rival in Bungou Stray Dogs is Edgar Allen Poe.
5 Ranpo Had A Traumatic Childhood
Bungo Stray Dogs has a wealth of characters who have well-written pasts and backstories. However, a lot has not been told about them in the anime. While the anime has told the audience about Atsushi Nakajima, Osamu Dazai, and most recently Chuuya Nakahara, it has yet to step upon Ranpo's backstory.
The reason for Ranpo's childish behavior stems from his childhood trauma and the impact it had on him. Ranpo may have been forced to grow up too soon, but rebelled against it by maintaining ap perpetually childlike attitude towards everything.
4 He Is The Son Of A Famous Detective
It seems like Ranpo's entire family was blessed with high IQs. His father was the infamous "Clairvoyant," a genius detective who married a woman of equal intelligence. They had no trouble raising Ranpo, but it seems like he expects everybody to be just like him and his parents. At the beginning of season four, fans saw Ranpo struggle to relate with Fukuzawa since he couldn't crack the case as fast as him.
Since Ranpo grew up in an environment where he was surrounded by people on the same intellectual level as him, it's not a stretch to assume that he'd grown accustomed to it. So, seeing people who can't put two and two together as quickly as him or keep up with his deductive reasoning would confuse Ranpo.
3 Ranpo Has Difficulty Doing Simple Tasks
Geniuses tend to have odd tendencies despite their mental faculties. Akin to one of the most famous examples in shounen anime, L from Death Note, Ranpo sits in his chair in a crouched position.
He also eats a lot of sweets. For Ranpo, although he can figure out crimes in under thirty seconds, he has immense trouble doing anything as simple as pouring tea. This is why the Armed Detective Agency tells Ranpo not to do anything and relax. He's incredibly useful on missions, but not so much with everyday tasks.
2 His Glasses Were Given To Him By Yukichi Fukuzawa
The person Ranpo respects the most in Bungo Stray Dogs is the leader of the Armed Detective Agency, Yukichi Fukuzawa. Ranpo and Yukichi have a connection that goes back a long way, as the Armed Detective Agency was founded because of Ranpo and to give ability users a safe place to belong.
Ranpo was kidnapped after he tried to track down a criminal by himself, and Yukichi saved him. Yukichi gave Ranpo the confidence he needed to move forward. He then gave Ranpo glasses to activate his "ability" and a place to belong. Ranpo took it with stride, hence how he became the cocky genius fans love today.
1 He Is The Oldest Member Of The Armed Detective Agency
Besides Yukichi Fukuzawa, the leader of the Armed Detective Agency that is 45 years old, Ranpo is the oldest member at 26 years old. Ranpo's status is mentioned when Atsushi asks why Ranpo does not do anything, as the other members say he does not need to because he is the oldest.
While this is a cover-up because he cannot do everyday tasks without breaking anything, he is the oldest and the first member. He's been offered official titles like "second in command," but admitted that he doesn't really want the responsibilities implied with such a lofty position.