Hercule Poirot is one of the best detectives in all fiction. Agatha Christie’s first novel showcasing him wasThe Mysterious Affair at Stylesin 1920. The esteemed detective most recently appeared inDeath on the Nilethough; a movie that was delayed due to the pandemic. Had it been released in 2020 like it was supposed to be, the planned sequel, which is already in development, would probably be a lot closer.
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For those who need a good detective fix in the meantime, there are plenty of other shows, movies, and games that can oblige. Most detectives are born fromSherlock Holmes, who is synonymous with the word detective. He’s great, so any straight depictions of him will be avoided as it’s too obvious to put him up against Poirot. These other picks are just a few examples of the best detectives in popular media.
6Conan Edogawa
Conan Edogawa is from themanga and animeCase Closed, orDetective Conanas it is known in Japan. Conan is a fake name used by the teen detective, Shinichi Kudo who is poisoned by an evil organization in the first episode. Rather than kill him, the poison transforms him into a young boy. To hide his true identity, he changes his name and moves in with his girlfriend, Ran, and her father, Kogoro.
Kogoro is also a detective, but pretty a poor one, so Shinichi uses his younger self to get the drop on villains and throw them off guard. He often puts Kogoro to sleep with a dart and uses his bowtie voice changer to solve the cases for him. It’s wilder than it sounds, but the cases are down to earth. However, the same cannot be said ofthe movies, which can get a little bonkers.
5L
L is technically the antagonist in theDeath Noteanime. The story focuseson Light Yagami, who finds a mysterious notebook after school one day. This book allows him to kill people simply by writing down their names on its pages while thinking about their appearance. The book is attached to a demon known as Ryuk, who helps Light out in his own special way. Light’s goal is to kill criminals for the greater good.
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Noble ideals or not, the detective known only as L has no choice but to stop him. The first half of the anime is like a cat and mouse game. L knows Light is the culprit, but he can’t prove it straight away. Whether he succeeds or not is a spoiler. Whatever the outcome, L is the true hero of the story and a crack-shot detective.
4Professor Layton
Professor Layton is the main character in along-running puzzle video game series. Layton is inspired by Sherlock Holmes and is British, although the world he inhabits is a more fantastical version of reality. The games are a series of logic and mathematical puzzles that Layton has to solve for various reasons.
They usually tie into the plot in some fashion. It may seem odd to see a detective use math to solve mysteries, but Layton gets results. It doesn’t matter how he does it. There have been movie adaptations as well but not enough of them. Seriously, Layton needs more screen time.
3Phoenix Wright
Phoenix Wrightis technically not a detective. He is a lawyer and the original main character of theAce Attorneyvideo games. There have beenspinoffs and sequelsthat star other lawyers as well, but Wright will always be the favorite amongst fans. Why this series should count is because players have to take on dual roles. They must defend their clients and get them out of trouble.
The best way to do this is through investigations. Wright is as good a detective as he is a lawyer, even if it looks like he is bumbling through life. He is not as confident or as boastful as some of the other great fictional detectives found in media. He’s incredibly modest, in fact, which makes him all the more likable. Shy as he may be, Wright gets the job done.
2Benoit Blanc
Benoit Blanc is a very recent creation when compared to the likes of Poirot and Holmes. He hails fromKnives Outand his popularity helped to get a sequel greenlit. The sequel is tentatively titledKnives Out 2and should be heading toNetflixat some point in 2022.
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Part of the Blanc’s charm is his southern drawl, which someone in the movie points out is pretty similar to Foghorn Leghorn’s. His southern accent is a bit thick and cartoonish, which is why the joke worked. The accent, whether intentional or not, throws people off so that Blanc can get the drop on his suspects. After one film, he seems competent enough to hang with the other great detectives.
1Batman
People often forget thatBatmanis as much of a detective as he is a superhero.The animated Batman seriesgot this balance just right. While some crimes pointed obviously to his most infamous villains, oftentimes there was a lot more for the caped crusader to unravel.
The new movie,The Batman, finally got some true detective work in a live-actionBatmanfilm. Whether he is physically fighting crime or analyzing pollen under a microscope, Batman truly is a brilliant detective. That said, Ra’s al Ghul remains the onlyBatman villainto ever bow to Batman’s superior sleuthing skills.
