Cuticle Tantei Inaba

Does an anime have to make sense to be good? Or even have a general direction to be appreciated? And how far can a show really go through just plain humor and gags? Well, pretty far if you consider this gem of a show which neither did get the attention it deserves nor did it fool itself with that notion. Rather the creator and the artists just tried to give enjoyment to the select few viewers it is likely to get and achieved even a certain level of perfection in their approach. And having a cool villain or rather a cool mafia goat (not jokingreally) villain is a huge boost to this awesome attempt at insane comedy. The plot-line is absolutely ridiculous in a good way, it follows a werewolf detective Hiroshi Inaba in his attempts to catch the goat mafia Don Valentino through solving some really funny cases along the way. The overall story also has subplots involving Hiroshi trying to reunite with his brother and various other side characters including the narrator Kei generally goofing around. On a first glance it doesn't seem much as you expect some kind of show that is bound to get repetitive, well that is so wrong. Each and every episode has generally 2 parts in it and you never guess what to expect next. With a interesting cast of characters the writers threw one after another of these funny situations and you can never guess what to expect next. There are episodes featuring flashbacks and even chibi characters in a unrelated story and even a day at the zoo. Despite the randomness and wacky humor at a few times during the show you almost think the writer is trying to get serious with some emotional scene and right then you are almost smacked in the face with even more slapstick humor. There is a background plot involving the main characters' past and corruption in police department which seems to have a more serious basis but then again the writer pulls you back into the fray with his very rich sense of humor and enjoyable variety of characters. The story gets 8 out of 10. The characters as always are the life of a show like this and this show is quite lively with them. From the hair fetishist werewolf Hiroshi to his cross dressing over protective assistant Yuuta to almost normal yet manically cat loving other assistant Kei. From superhuman detective Ogi and his incredible family to all other minor side characters (such as the goat's Lorengo, hot blooded assassin Gabriella, cute mad scientist Noah and real weak brother of the main character to name a few) all are very unique in their roles and add to enjoyment in a very nice way. Special mention is to be given of the mafia goat Don Valentino, to me he is one of the most interesting villainous character ever in any anime out there (at least comedy wise). His unique way of speaking and his money eating tendency, his various tricks that usually backfires in weird ways and his unique sense of mafia honor really adds to the overall charm of the show. No matter what other people would like to tell you the goat is the star of this show, period. The characters are the most interesting and gets 9 out of 10. Although a show like this one obviously had a low budget the people behind it really did a great job of not making it noticeable through the animation. While it never really tries to reach any new boundaries with its art and animation it does the job perfectly well through its various comical drawing styles with nice chibi drawings and some excellent shots of the characters in many forms (as they even did a manly goat!) which overall add to the wacky humor and make you really laugh out loud. This gets 8 out of 10. The sound was once again quite nicely complimentary to the atmosphere of the show. But I have to mention the voice actors as in a show like this they have huge responsibilities which in this case they pulled off nicely. Tooru Ookawa was once again the star as the Don Valention, I mean that ending theme is something that I almost never could skip. He did an excellent job and despite everything most of the times I really rooted for the Don knowing fully well he would never succeed. Other aspects of music and sound on the show was not bad by any means but never really draws attention to any detail. The voice acting pushes the show to a new boundary so the sound gets 8.5 out of 10. At the end of this reminiscence, I really do keep remembering the fun I had watching the show, as at the last episode while the cast kept saying how they are sad this is the last episode I couldn't help but be sad with them. This show was something I enjoyed just for sure power of wacky humor and incredible cast of characters and would love to see more of them which I know is never gonna happen. Fortunately this show have much re-watch value and I just might do that in the future. Highly recommended to any fans of comedy or any one just wanting to watch a light show for fun. Overall Score - 8.5 out of 10.

This is what it looks like when Grell Sutcliff ever gets an anime to himself. From the looks of the cover it seriously looks like an anime which you should avoid(because of the goat)- but don't judge the cover because you'll be loosing a good gem to your anime list. This story follows the Cuticle Detective: Hiroshi Inaba who is a artificial cloned Doberman that works for the police and a new threat arises when the goat: Don Valentino (master of a Mafia organization) makes his début in Japan. Story: So to say this story was fast paced and the only genres that it satisfiedwas comedy and action i suppose. The story wasn't serious, even though it's categorized as a mystery there's only one mystery to the whole plot and it was given through within this 13 episodes but nevertheless i wasn't a klutz to give this one an eight unless it was entertaining. The whole story is a comedy and a little bit of seriousness added to the mix. The only flaw of this anime that it went fast paced with the character introductions(no not the main characters- but the secret characters) Art: The chara's were drawn very well- although there were some references from other anime like Yuuta is drawn like Armin from SNK and Inaba is very similar to Grell Sutecliffe from Black Butler. The chibi versions of the characters are so cute that literally it makes you go all fuzzy. Sound: The opening was good- it makes you feel nostalgic. This one is sung by the lead Seiyu who voices Inaba:Yuuichi Suwabe, and the ending was sung by the actor who voiced the goat. The soundtracks were okay- the choir like music in the last episode was epic. The seiyu's did a great job- Sugita Tomozaku(Gin-san) makes an appearance here- popular Seiyus like Fukuyama Jun(irony since he did Grell) and Okamoto Nobuhiko(Rin from Blue Exorcist) does minor roles but the other Seiyus made an enormous contribution too. Character: This one is a comedy and good one at that- but this anime could also get ridiculously serious at some point, the seriousness of the characters is at debate here- the villains are on neither side with the protagonists. I have never seen villains who get along side the protagonists like this. The punch-line giver,the cross dresser,the brother complex and the daddy's daughter fetishes can be found here. There are hidden emotions of the character's and you need to notice them and feel them. Hints were given throughout the anime and it would unmistakeably reveal that these characters are toughened up by the abrupt battles of the past. Enjoyment: I really enjoyed this one- i was really sad when I hit the last episode. The show has class A comedy and jokes with punch lines. The character's have the cute version and silly/serious version. Definitely a must watch if you have the wolf/dog lover or a cat lover trait. Overall: It was pretty interesting, there were some surprising plot twists that you can never imagine. And the turnouts of the characters are quite surprising. I loved that there was an episode about the spooky forest of Aokigahara- this anime is overall very much nostalgic and many of the audience commented that it definitely deserved a second season. An eight is given because of the creativity,comedy,art, great Seiyu dubbing and a good opening.

I don't like "gag anime." It's not that I don't have a sense of humor; I just don't have it for today's so-called comedy. People curse too much and think they're "funny." People hurt each other and it's called "slapstick comedy." But Psycho-Pass is too serious and Inferno Cop is ripping off Marvel's Ghost Rider. Detective Inaba is the type of comedy that takes no prisoners. A GOAT is the main baddie and nearly everyone is too slow to catch him. Said goat and his henchmen are also slow in certain ways and everybody ends up sabotaging each other. However. The jokes are not heavily "Japanese jokes;" they'reease to translate and are pretty good for a couple of guffaws. There are even times when the people behind it forget that this animu is mainly "cops versus robbers"... And then it REMEMBERS and sucker-punches you like Black Lagoon's first episode. I don't even know anymore.

8.1/10 It was a very enjoyable anime. I was curious about it after watching an AMV. There isn't much story, it's more of a "bits-and-pieces", "daily lives" kind of story. However, the one entire story is where a goat is the villain and steals money just to eat it, and there is a wolf detective who can derive information from hair. (It might sound really bad, but it's pretty good) Does an anime have to make sense to be great? I would say it was a pretty good and funny story because even though it was more of a Slice of Life anime, it added good comedywhen applicable. The story is meant for comedy, so it gives us a good laugh while maintaining action between detectives and the villain. The art of the characters was very appealing. Inaba Hiroshi is very handsome, the other main detective seems serious and cares about his work, and Inaba's 2 assistants both look capable and reliable. If you ignore that one of them is a trap. XD The opening was quite good and was there to show the action in the anime, and introduce the characters within 1:30, but the ending was there for comedic effect, having Don Valentino (the goat) sing. It was meant just to loosen the viewer up and it was the cherry on top for a comedic anime like this. As the anime progresses, no matter how comedic an anime this is, you are able to see Inaba's backstory as well as another wolf detective that plays an important role. You also see the trap's assistant's relationships change, especially with Ogino (other main detective). Kei, the other assistant, also changes his views on the odd-ball group and ends up fitting in within the first few episodes. I really enjoyed the anime. It was a good one to kick back with and relax with. If you were having a stressful day, I recommend watching this anime to unwind. It has comedy, action, a touch of feels, and is a great anime. Unfortunately, I think this anime doesn't get the attention it deserves.

Merchandise

Links may contain affiliate references

Studio

Producers

Themes