Follow TV Tropes

Following

Context Main / DetectiveAnimal

Go To

1%% Image selected per Image Pickin' thread: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=1321042150088640100
2%% Please do not change or remove without starting a new thread.
3%%
4[[quoteright:350:[[WesternAnimation/TheGreatMouseDetective https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/detective_animal_4.png]]]]
5
6->''"Detective Hammer Logan III woke with a start, images of the bizarre bayou murder still fresh in his mind's eye -- a dame in trouble, body covered with bloody toothprints and saliva—but as sleep lifted, the grizzled detective remembered that he was a dog and the dame a coyote, so he spun on the bed three times and slept the rest of the day."''
7-->-- '''Jacob Smith, Dallas, TX''', The Literature/BulwerLyttonFictionContest 2016
8
9He may be the FunnyAnimal, the IntellectualAnimal, or maybe even the SpeechImpairedAnimal, but if there's one thing that he's incredibly good at, it's solving any kind of mystery that comes his way. He can be either a HardboiledDetective, an InspectorOblivious, or a DefectiveDetective. Whether he does it on his own, or with a friend, or with a group of humans, expect him to help solve the case with ease. This character may or may not work in a WorldOfFunnyAnimals. Very often, [[PolicemanDog these characters are dogs of some description]].
10
11Compare AnimalSuperheroes.
12----
13!!Examples:
14
15[[foldercontrol]]
16
17[[folder:Advertising]]
18* Advertising PSA [=McGruff=] the crime dog has that whole Columbo thing going for him.
19* An Australian ad for blood donors had a bloodhound acting in much the same way. Due to the shortage of blood donors (voluntary in that country), said bloodhound had to be a detective to find one.
20[[/folder]]
21
22[[folder:Anime & Manga]]
23* ''Anime/AnimalDetectivesKiruminzoo'': The main protagonists use devices named "Kirumin", which makes them able to transform into animals. They use them to get clues a normal human couldn't get, as well as communicating with animals and understanding their feelings.
24* ''Anime/BillyBat'': The main character writes a comic book about a detective Bat.
25* ''Anime/SherlockHound'' is an anime where various ''Sherlock Holmes'' characters are {{Funny Animal}}s.
26[[/folder]]
27
28[[folder:Asian Animation]]
29* ''Animation/PleasantGoatAndBigBigWolf: The Little Detective'': Weslie the FunnyAnimal goat becomes a KidDetective and solves mysteries.
30[[/folder]]
31
32[[folder:Comic Books]]
33* ''Franchise/{{Batman}}'': In the few stories that he narrates himself, Batman's dog Ace the Bat-Hound was shown to be an expert detective.
34* ''ComicBook/{{Blacksad}}'' is about a feline PrivateDetective who gets involved in FilmNoir-like stories.
35%%* Creator/DCComics: Detective Chimp.
36%%* ''ComicBook/FishPolice'': It's pretty much there in the titles.
37%%* ''ComicBook/GarfieldHis9Lives'': Sam Spayed, one of the eponymous cat's former incarnations.
38* ''ComicBook/{{Grandville}}'': Detective-Inspector Archie [=LeBrock=], the badger lead character, and his sidekick Roderick Ratzi.
39* ''ComicBook/JoeyFly'': Joey Fly and Sammy Stingtail, a housefly and scorpion respectively.
40* ''ComicBook/RexTheWonderDog'' from Creator/DCComics has issues where he demonstrates his capabilities as a detective. He's even best friends with Detective Chimp, although they rarely if ever work on cases together.
41[[/folder]]
42
43[[folder:Comic Strips]]
44* ''ComicStrip/SlylockFox'' is a puzzle strip featuring a fox who solves crimes while dressed as Franchise/SherlockHolmes. Most of the other characters are anthropomorphic animals, too.
45[[/folder]]
46
47[[folder:Films -- Animation]]
48%%* ''WesternAnimation/TheGreatMouseDetective'' is an AdaptationExpansion of the ''Literature/BasilOfBakerStreet'' books.%%And?
49* ''WesternAnimation/{{Zootopia}}'': Judy Hopps is ''very methodical'' in trying to uncover clues and potential leads on the missing animals case.
50[[/folder]]
51
52[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]
53* ''Film/OhHeavenlyDog'': Creator/ChevyChase plays a private eye who is sent back to Earth as a dog on order to [[WhodunnitToMe solve his own murder]].
54* ''Film/MuppetsMostWanted'': Sam the Eagle is a CIA agent on the trail of a stolen painting.
55* ''Film/PokemonDetectivePikachu'': The movie features a rabbit-like electric critter who solves crimes. The little guy even comes with his own deerstalker cap.
56%%* ''Film/ThatDarnCat''
57[[/folder]]
58
59[[folder:Literature]]
60* ''Literature/AnonymousRex'' is a ''Velociraptor'' in disguise as human is a HardboiledDetective. (But the book is set InAWorld where there are dinosaurs living among us, so he's not unique.)
61* ''Literature/BasilOfBakerStreet'': The titular hero is a MouseWorld version of Franchise/SherlockHolmes.
62* ''Literature/BugMuldoonAndTheGardenOfFear'': Bug Muldoon is a beetle private eye who takes jobs from insect clients in the garden where he lives.
63* ''Literature/TheCatWhoSeries'': Left ambiguously open -- Koko gives clues that in hindsight point directly at the criminal, although it is never made clear whether the clues are coincidental.
64* ''Literature/ChetAndBernie'' is about private detective Bernie Little, narrated by his dog Chet.
65* ''Literature/ChetGecko'': The titular character is a BigEater lizard PrivateDetective whose activities are limited to his elementary school, where the students and staff are all {{Funny Animal}}s.
66* ''Literature/CityOfDevils'': The LAPD and local Sheriff's Departments are entirely staffed by werewolves.
67* ''Literature/DetectiveDinosaur'': The titular character is a CluelessDetective assisted by his pterosaur HypercompetentSidekick and DaChief, a ''Tyrannosaurus rex''.
68* ''Literature/{{Felidae}}'' features, as you might guess from the title, a cat detective who solves cat crimes.
69* ''Literature/FreddyThePig'': One of the titular pig's hobbies is running a detective agency.
70* ''Literature/JoeGrey'' features a pair of cats with the unique ability to speak and think like humans. After finding out "whodunnit", they phone in anonymous tips to the local police force.
71%%* ''Literature/MidnightLouie'': Midnight Louie being a cat.
72%%* ''Literature/MrsMurphyMysteries'': The titular character.
73* ''Literature/TheNo2FelineDetectiveAgency'': Hettie Bagshott and her sidekick Tilly.
74* ''Literature/OldToffersBookOfConsequentialDogs'', an authorised sequel to ''Literature/OldPossumsBookOfPracticalCats'', has a poem about "Dobson, the Dog Detective", the opposite number to the criminal cat Macavity.
75* ''Literature/PrivateIGuana'' features an iguana detective who tries to find a missing HollywoodChameleon for a client.
76* ''Literature/SamTheCatDetective'': Sam is a calculating cat who is good at sniffing out clues about animal and human criminals and has an information network from other cats.
77* ''Literature/ShadyHollow'': Vera Vixen is a fox and IntrepidReporter who often seems more effective at solving crimes than the titular small town's police bears.
78* ''Literature/SherlockChick'': The hero is a chick who was born with detective gear and a deerstalker hat. In his adventures, he solves cases for the other farm animals.
79%%* ''Literature/SherlockHound'': Unrelated to the anime version, beyond "Sherlock Holmes parody".
80* ''Literature/TailchasersSong'' is a MatureAnimalStory about an older kitten named Tailchaser and his TagalongKid Pouncequick going on a quest to find out why cats in their clan (and neighboring clans) are disappearing.
81* ''Literature/ThreeBagsFull'' by Leonie Swann is a murder mystery that gets solved by a flock of sheep.
82* ''Literature/{{Wizard}}'': Catseye Gomez is a [[{{Magitek}} thaumagene]] tomcat addicted to old hard-boiled detective archetypes, who plays a key role in investigating murder cases in two of the novels.
83[[/folder]]
84
85[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
86* ''Series/InspectorRex'': Rex the German Shepherd is a skillful dog who works with a team of Austrian homicide detectives and has been helpful to solving many crimes.
87* ''Series/LancelotLinkSecretChimp'' is an AffectionateParody of Film/JamesBond films made with real monkeys.
88* In ''Series/{{Llanargollen}}'', Prys ar Frys is accompanied by Ceri, a dog - or rather, a "Dog-tective" - in solving mysteries. Both are opposite in personalities - Prys ar Frys is much clumsier than his dog companion Ceri, who is an IntellectualAnimal.
89* ''Series/{{Wishbone}}'': Wishbone the Jack Russel terrier plays the roles of Franchise/SherlockHolmes in "Literature/TheHoundOfTheBaskervilles" and "Scandal in Bohemia" and Literature/CAugusteDupin in "Literature/ThePurloinedLetter".
90[[/folder]]
91
92[[folder:Puppet Shows]]
93* ''Series/TheMuppetShow'': Episode 103 has a Sherlock Holmes spoof starring Rowlf the Dog as the Great Detective.
94* ''Series/MuppetsTonight'': In episode 206, there's a sketch in which Sherlock Holmes is a whale.
95* ''Series/SesameStreet'': Colambo is an ovine Series/{{Columbo}} parody.
96%%* ''Series/TalesOfTheRodentSherlockHolmes'': Roland Rat once starred in the series.
97[[/folder]]
98
99[[folder:Radio]]
100* ''AudioPlay/BigFinishDoctorWho'': The Doctor's companion Frobisher is an alien called a Whifferdill that can change shape. His favorite shape, and the one he adopts in his day job as a detective, is penguin.
101[[/folder]]
102
103[[folder:Tabletop Games]]
104* ''TabletopGame/{{Crimestrikers}}'' is set on a WorldOfFunnyAnimals called Creaturia. The titular heroes are an elite team of crimefighters who are the local equivalents to the InterpolSpecialAgent.
105* ''TabletopGame/SpudDogDetective'' stars a dog on the case to solve the mystery of who killed his master.
106[[/folder]]
107
108[[folder:Video Games]]
109* ''VideoGame/BarnyardSherlockHooves'' features a cow and a rat trying to determine what became of their missing friends.
110* ''VideoGame/DetectivePikachu'' and ''VideoGame/DetectivePikachuReturns'' stars an electric rodent who solves crime.
111* ''VideoGame/InvestiGatorTheCaseOfTheBigCrime'' has the titular Investi-Gator, an anthropomorphic alligator and CluelessDetective.
112* ''VideoGame/PaperMarioTheThousandYearDoor'': Pennington the detective penguin. [[spoiler:Though at the end of the chapter, he reveals he's not a real detective, he just likes to pretend]].
113* ''Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog'': Team Chaotix, consisting of Vector the Crocodile, Espio the Chameleon, and Charmy the Bee, where all three members are collectively part of the "Chaotix Detective Agency" since ''VideoGame/SonicHeroes''. In ''Heroes'', they track down and eventually find [[spoiler:Dr. Eggman was kidnapped by Metal Sonic, and he had enlisted their help in order to save him]]. The detectives apparently struggle to make ends meet, as games past ''Heroes'' is any indication, with one of Vector's favorite things is also money. Both the [[ComicBook/SonicTheHedgehogArchieComics Archie]] and [[ComicBook/SonicTheHedgehogIDW IDW series]] sees the team taking on a variety of cases and solving mysteries, though much like their game incarnations, struggle to keep the lights on.
114[[/folder]]
115
116[[folder: Webcomics]]
117* ''Webcomic/ElGoonishShive'': The cat-like Writer's Block plays a detective during the "Detective Block" storyline.
118[[/folder]]
119
120[[folder: Web Videos]]
121* ''WebVideo/CreamHeroes'': "Don't Trust Kitties" has Lulu turn detective to uncover who raided the kitchen at night and made a mess with the trat box to get a reward. After interviewing witnesses (Momo and Chuchu) he learns the suspect has 'long, white fur.' Lulu fingers Coco and captures him. [[spoiler: However, this turns out to be a frame up. The suspect with the long, white fur was Lala and Lulu was her accomplice. As such Lulu not only got away with his crime but was actually rewarded for it.]]
122[[/folder]]
123
124[[folder:Western Animation]]
125* ''WesternAnimation/ChipNDaleRescueRangers'': Chip the chipmunk does most of the detective work for the group.
126%%* ''WesternAnimation/ClueClub'' features two dog characters, Woofer and Wimper. However, Woofer is a bit of a KnowNothingKnowItAll and Wimper is his HypercompetentSidekick.%%How are they examples?
127* ''WesternAnimation/DangerMouse'': Danger Mouse is a secret agent but he still does yeoman's detective work.
128* ''WesternAnimation/DarkwingDuck'': Darkwing, like his inspiration Franchise/{{Batman}}, is a BadassNormal AnimalSuperhero who also does detective work from time to time.
129%%* ''WesternAnimation/DogCity'': Ace Yu/Ace Hart.
130* ''WesternAnimation/{{Droopy}}'': Droopy and his son Dripple star in several cartoons in ''WesternAnimation/TomAndJerryKids'' and eventually their own spin-off series ''WesternAnimation/DroopyMasterDetective'' in which they play the roles of 1940's style private detectives.
131* ''WesternAnimation/FishPolice'': [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin They're fish, and they're police]].
132* ''WesternAnimation/GravityFalls'' had a ShowWithinAShow called ''Duck-Tective'', which is about a duck (a [[IntellectualAnimal highly intelligent, but otherwise ordinary]], duck) in a deerstalker hat solving mysteries.
133* ''WesternAnimation/HongKongPhooey'': Subverted with the main character, who may be "number one super guy", but the mysteries that he encounters are actually solved by his cat, [[HypercompetentSidekick Spot]].
134%%* ''WesternAnimation/InspectorGadget'': Brain.
135* ''WesternAnimation/{{Jabberjaw}}'' featured the eponymous shark who helped his human friends, Biff, Shelly, Bubbles and Clamhead, solve mysteries in a futuristic underwater world.
136%%* ''WesternAnimation/KingLeonardoAndHisShortSubjects'': The Hunter.
137%%* ''WesternAnimation/LooneyTunes'': WesternAnimation/DaffyDuck in several shorts:
138%%** As [[ComicStrip/DickTracy Duck Twacy]] in ''WesternAnimation/TheGreatPiggyBankRobbery''.
139%%** As [[Franchise/{{Dragnet}} Sgt Joe Monday]] in ''WesternAnimation/RocketSquad''.
140%%** As [[Franchise/SherlockHolmes Dorlock Homes]] in ''WesternAnimation/DeduceYouSay''
141%%** As Boston Quackie in ''WesternAnimation/BostonQuackie''
142%%** As China Jones in ''China Jones''
143%%* ''WesternAnimation/PhineasAndFerb'': Perry the Platypus.
144%%* ''Franchise/ScoobyDoo'': Most of the time.
145* ''WesternAnimation/SnooperAndBlabber'': The titular due is a cat-and-mouse detective team.
146* ''WesternAnimation/TheSylvesterAndTweetyMysteries'', although it's mostly accidental. The bickering among Sylvester, Tweety and often Hector causes clues to appear in front of Granny, who then solves the mysteries herself.
147[[/folder]]

Top