History Main / CluelessDetective

* OlderThanRadio: In ''Literature/SherlockHolmes'', this describes Inspectors Lestrade, Gregson, and the other inepts of Scotland Yard. It's also worth noting that this trope diminished in later stories, in a case of reverse {{Flanderization}}, . In the early stories the policemen of Scotland Yard probably couldn't catch a cold, much less a criminal. In later stories their incompetence is downplayed and they're shown as having positive traits, as well as being able to solve standard, everyday crimes, with Holmes focusing on the strange and unusual affairs. This is the version of Lestrade that is the TropeNamer for [[InspectorLestrade a slightly different trope]].

* Steve from ''WesternAnimation/BluesClues'' is talented at many things, investigation wasn't one of them, he often needs help from kids to solve mysteries. In ''WesternAnimation/BluesCluesAndYou'' After graduating from college, he became a detective who owns his own agency, but according to ''Film/BluesBigCityAdventure'' he needs to eat "Thinking Snacks" to do any investigative work (which frustrates his younger brother). On one episode of the series fourth season he can barely manages to leave his own agency, as he loses his keys and investigation items.

* * Steve from ''WesternAnimation/BluesClues'' is talented at many things, investigation wasn't one of them, he often needs help from kids to solve mysteries. In ''WesternAnimation/BluesCluesAndYou'' After graduating from college, he became a detective who owns his own agency, but according to ''Film/BluesBigCityAdventure'' he needs to eat "Thinking Snacks" to do any investigative work (which frustrates his younger brother). On one episode of the series fourth season he can barely manages to leave his own agency, as he loses his keys and investigation items.

* The ''Franchise/BerniceSummerfield'' novel ''Ship of Fools'' by Dave Stone has Benny trapped on an entire star-liner full of clueless detectives, all pastiching a different famous character, and all clueless in a different way. Emile Dupont of Nova Belgique (Literature/HerculePoirot) is a raving ConspiracyTheorist[[note]]Although the epilogue suggests this might be ObfuscatingStupidity[[/note]]; Sandford Groke (Literature/SherlockHolmes) is ''actually'' a psychopath; Kharrli the Czan (Literature/CharlieChan) is probably the sanest, but his FunnyForeigner routine involves gratuitously insulting everyone; and Agatha Magpole (Literature/MissMarple)'s success rate is down to her being a subconscious psychic who unwittingly prods people into committing the murders she solves.

* Arthur Hastings in the last ''Literature/HerculePoirot'' novel (''Literature/{{Curtain}}''). Scotland Yard Inspector Japp in the other ones.

* OlderThanRadio: In ''Literature/SherlockHolmes'', this describes Inspectors Lestrade, Gregson, Hopkins and the other inepts of Scotland Yard. It's also worth noting that this trope diminished in later stories, in a case of reverse {{Flanderization}}. In the early stories the policemen of Scotland Yard probably couldn't catch a cold, much less a criminal. In later stories their incompetence is downplayed and they're shown as having positive traits, as well as being able to solve standard, everyday crimes, with Holmes focusing on the strange and unusual affairs.

* ''WesternAnimation/{{Llanargollen}}'': Prys and his dog Ceri are the two detectives in town. Ceri is the competent one who always solves everything. Prys, on the other hand, fits this trope to a T, doing things such as hanging a painting upside-down and thinking the artist painted it upside-down, and mistaking a picture of a watch for the watch itself.

* Detective Dan of ''Series/AllThat'' is a hopelessly incompetent detective whose cases usually end with the obvious perpetrator getting away scot free while the victim is the one arrested.

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[[quoteright:194:[[ComicStrip/FoxTrot https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/FoxTrotCluelessDetective_2195.jpg]]]]
[[caption-width-right:194:Never trust those ants, I always say...]]

* Sherlock Hemlock from ''Series/SesameStreet''.

* Hanpei Hattori from ''Series/{{Kikaider}}''. Dressed like Sherlock Holmes and bragged about being a descendant of [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hattori_Hanzo Hattori Hanzo]], but never managed to do much of anything (course, he was somewhat upstaged by the {{a|rtificialHuman}}ndroid HenshinHero who was the star of the show...).

[[folder:Comics]]
* Franchise/{{Batman}} once came into contact with the Biddee sisters, a pair of [[LittleOldLadyInvestigates little old lady investigators]]. They do have ''some'' genuine insights on an ongoing investigation, but Batman mentions that their interference had earlier "fouled up" several cases.

* Robert L. Fish wrote parodies about "Shlock Holmes" an incompetent detective. In one instance he "deduced" that their visitor had been a toothless diabetic because he discarded a cigar with a dry end and no teeth marks. When he returns you see he uses a cigar holder.

* Played with in the ''Literature/WarlockHolmes'' series by G. S. Denning - Warlock Holmes is a ''ridiculously'' bad detective, whose attempts at being one are something like the Eleventh Doctor's failed Holmes pastiche in "The Snowmen", with added InsaneTrollLogic. Dr Watson is the real rational mind in the partnership, and does all the actual detective work. However, as a two hundred year old sorcerer, Holmes is very knowledgeable (while still erratic) on the subject of magic, which Watson knows nothing about, and [[OccultDetective which all their cases involve]].

* Pennington of ''VideoGame/PaperMarioTheThousandYearDoor'' is a detective, and is miserable at it. He starts with misidentifying world-famous hero Mario as Luigi and just goes downhill from there. He doesn't come close to the answer to any mystery during the chapter where he's significant, but always claims to have "suspected all along" any actual facts Mario discovers. [[spoiler:It later turns out that he's a museum curator who fancied being a detective.]]

* The ''Franchise/BerniceSummerfield'' novel ''Ship of Fools'' by Dave Stone has Benny trapped on an entire star-liner full of clueless detectives, all pastiching a different famous character, and all clueless in a different way. Emile Dupont of Nova Belgique (Literature/HerculePoirot) is a raving ConspiracyTheorist; Sandford Groke (Literature/SherlockHolmes) is ''actually'' a psychopath; Kharrli the Czan (Literature/CharlieChan) is probably the sanest, but his FunnyForeigner routine involves gratuitously insulting everyone; and Agatha Magpole (Literature/MissMarple)'s success rate is down to her being a subconscious psychic who unwittingly prods people into committing the murders she solves.

[[folder:Film--Animated]]

* ''Film/WhosHarryCrumb'' Largely this trope. Though he does have some moments of deductive prowess.

* A SomethingCompletelyDifferent episode of ''Series/MarriedWithChildren'' has Al as a CluelessDetective. He does eventually solve the case, but not until he has falsely accused everybody who was at the scene, in the most unlikely ways possible (e.g. accusing a retarded man of being a criminal mastermind, and accusing a man with hooks for hands of having turned out the lights with one hand while putting a knife in the victim's back with the other). He even briefly confesses to the crime, believing he's eliminated every other possible suspect, shortly before he actually uses his knowledge from years of selling cheap women's shoes to find a vital clue and solve the case for real.

* Thompson and Thomson in the ''WesternAnimation/TheAdventuresOfTintin''. One man they talk to gets nervous when they mention the pickpocket they are seeking, doesn't want police officers in his apartment, and when they are inside, they find dozens of wallets on the shelves. He [[BlatantLies claims he is a wallet collector]] and they ''[[PoliceAreUseless believe]]'' him.

* Comicbook/MistyKnight in ''Series/LukeCage2016'' is a downplayed variant: she's a very good investigator (at one point, it's commented that with her resume, she could've taken a post at 1PP or even become a Fed), but not so good at other parts of being a cop, often letting her emotions get the better of her and losing convictions because of it.

'''Detective Dan:''' ''(examines safe)'' Lucky for you this safe is empty.

If they're just trying to solve an entirely different case and accidentally succeeding at foiling an actual criminal scheme, it's just InspectorOblivious at work. Not to be confused with DefectiveDetective (though cluelessness might apply to his ''personal'' life). Compare CluelessDeputy and InspectorLestrade (who is only clueless at putting the pieces of the puzzle together). And finally, sometimes this trope is invoked as a way of getting suspects to lower their guards, for this see ObfuscatingStupidity.

* ''Manga/DetectiveConan'': Kogoro Mouri, until a case comes along in which a friend or family member has been killed or is at risk. Most of the real cops fall under InspectorLestrade, except for [[PluckyComicRelief Misao Yamamura]] from Gunma, who is a complete idiot who can't do anything right so that even Mouri {{Face Palm}}s at him.