!! [[Manga/StrayDog Manga]]
* CompleteMonster: The scientist-magician [[MadScientist Valruda]] mass produces "military dogs", by combining the DNA of people—rumored to kidnap orphans for this purpose—and dogs, condemning them to unquestioningly serve whoever makes a pact with them. [[SuperHumanTrafficking Selling the dogs throughout the nation]], they are generally used for war, as bodyguards or just slave labor, Valruda puts thousands through unending suffering. Throwing out [[AntiHero Fultac]] after deeming him a failed experiment, Valruda is shown dumping him in a sewer littered with the drowned corpses of other dogs he deemed failures, seeing his creations as nothing more than his own artwork to do with as he pleases.
* NightmareFuel / NauseaFuel: This being made by Creator/HiromuArakawa, there are scenes in labs involving images of flesh, organs, mutilations and whatever other horrible stuff that there are on experimentation on humans.

!! [[Film/StrayDog Film]]
* HarsherInHindsight: The idea of a police officer's issued weapon being used for crimes is especially harsh, considering that a bad guy in a country/territory with strict firearms control like Hong Kong, Japan and South Korea could attack/ambush officers doing their duties by themselves or steal from squad cars. In June 2019, Osaka Prefectural Police have been conducting risk assessments after officers manning kobans (alone for the most part) were attacked, sometimes killed, with their sidearms taken.
* IronWoobie: Murakami. He's vulnerable and haunted by his own guilt throughout, but he's incredibly tenacious.
* RetroactiveRecognition: Isao Kimura (Yusa) in his first Kurosawa film, later to become known as Katsushiro in ''Film/SevenSamurai''.
* SpiritualAdaptation: Of the detective stories of Belgian-French writer Creator/GeorgesSimenon, which director Kurosawa admired; though not a direct adaptation of any specific work of the author. Simenon ended up writing ''Maigret's Revolver'' in 1952, with a plot with similarities to ''Stray Dog'' (1949).
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