Trickster: From Edogawa Ranpo's "The Boy Detectives Club" is an original anime directed by Masashiro Mukai and animated by TMS Entertainment, inspired famous Japanese mystery writer Ranpo Edogawa's novels The Boy Detectives Club and The Fiend With Twenty Faces.
It is the 2030s. Kogorou Akechi, a mysterious detective, and his Boy Detectives Club have solved a number of cases and incidents. One day a club member named Kensuke Hanasaki meets Yoshio Kobayashi, a mysterious immortal boy who wishes to die, and invites him to the club while promising to find a way to kill him. Meanwhile, Akechi chases after the criminal nicknamed the "Fiend with Twenty Faces". The fate of the two begins to move...
The show is airing as a part of the slate of Fall 2016 Anime and is licensed by Funimation.
This series contains examples of:
- Anti-Hero: Kobayashi is a combination of Classic Antihero and Nominal Hero. Thanks to his condition, he never shows an altruistic attitude and doesn't seem to care about the lives of others.
- Big Brother Worship: Hanasaki absolutely worships his older brother. When it turns out his brother may not be such a good guy, he does not take it well.
- Break the Badass: Twenty Faces does this to Akechi near the climax of the series.
- Break Them by Talking: Episode 23 has Twenty Faces doing this to Akechi.
- Breather Episode: Episode 6 has no case or mystery to solve, and mainly focuses on the Character Development between Hanasaki and Kobayashi. The episode is also more comedic/heart-warming in tone.
- Broken Pedestal: After Hanasaki finds out that Akechi lied to him about his brother's whereabouts.
- Bungled Suicide:
- Kobayashi, on a regular basis, thanks to his immortality. The attempts have dwindled after he joined the Boys' Detective Agency, though.
- Hanasaki in episode 12.
- Chessmaster Sidekick: Inoue seems to be this to Akechi.
- Death Seeker: Kobayashi is a seemingly immortal boy with a death wish.
- "Do It Yourself" Theme Tune: The opening theme is performed by GACKT, who plays the Fiend with Twenty Faces, while the ending theme is performed by Azusa Tadokoro, who plays Nao Nakamura. For the second half, the roles are reversed: Azusa Tadokoro will sing the opening theme while Gackt will perform the ending.
- Heel–Face Revolving Door: Hanasaki in the latter third of the first cour, with hints that he may continue to be one in the future as well.
- Heroic BSoD: Hanasaki, when his brother got shot by Nao.
- Homoerotic Subtext: Plenty. Especially Twenty Faces' obsession toward Akechi.
- Jerkass Realization: Hanasaki in episode 12, going so far as to result in an attempted suicide.
- Keet: Hanasaki. Following his character arc in episodes 9-12, however, he completely loses this persona and goes into depression. He gets better though.
- Knockout Gas: Kobayashi uses this to knock out everyone in the building other than himself and Twenty Faces in Episode 12.
- Nice Guy: Hanasaki is usually very easygoing and friendly. He ends up taking a level in jerkass in later episodes after meeting his big brother, and though he's back to the good side again by the end of the first cour, it's doubtful whether he'll ever again regain his former personality.
- Playful Hacker: Makoto, with an owl for extra cuteness.
- Red Oni, Blue Oni: Hanasaki's red to Kobayashi's blue.
- Skyward Scream: Kobayashi does this at the end of Episode 23, as Hanasaki leaves Kobayashi for the final showdown with Twenty Faces.
- Soft-Spoken Sadist: Twenty Faces.
- Softer and Slower Cover: A softer version of the opening theme ("Kimi Dake no Boku de Iru Kara") is played in the final scene of Episode 12.
- The Stinger: Episode 13 ends on one, with Twenty Faces telling Akechi "it has begun". Episode 17 also ends with Twenty Faces asking if "his toy can have a good time" with him. Episode 18 has Kobayashi awakening from a nightmare.
- Talking Down the Suicidal: Kobayashi, believe it or not, has to do this to Hanasaki in episode 12.
- Took a Level in Jerkass: Hanasaki, once he meets his brother. Then he meets Twenty Faces...
- Whole Episode Flashback: Episode 18 shows Akechi's past.
- Who Wants to Live Forever?: Kobayashi. The guy can't even eat hot food because of his power, which dictates that he eat with his hands only (implements such as chopsticks or forks which can be used to kill oneself with aren't allowed near him). And to top it all off, if he tries to starve himself to death,
he gets "food" (for example, rats) forcibly shoved down his throat.
