Why is Kindaichi not as popular as Detective Conan? This is the Reason!

Detective Conan has been known as a legendary mystery manga and anime series that is still on the air today. This series has stolen the attention of detective story fans thanks to its always-present mystery stories plot twists.

Detective Conan is not the only anime about detectives released since the 90s. There is The Kindaichi Case Files which is certainly no less interesting than Detective Conan.

Unfortunately, this series is hard to compete with Detective Conan, especially in Indonesia.

Why Kindaichi not as popular Detective Conan? The following is the explanation.

1. The Kindaichi Case Files by Shin Kibayashi and Youzaburou Kanari

dock. Toei Animation/The File of Young Kindaichi Returns

As well as Detective Conan, The Kindaichi Case Files also focuses on the character of a teenage detective, where in this series the protagonist is named Hajime Kindaichi.

Kindaichi inherited the genius of his grandfather who was known as the best detective in Japan. Kindaichi is involved in solving problems related to various incidents that occur around him.

2. Manga The Kindaichi Case Files comes out first

dock. Toei Animation/The Kindaichi Case Files

The Kindaichi Case Files is a manga by Shin Kibayashi and Youzaburou Kanari, while the illustrations are by Fumiya Satou. The manga was first published in October 1992 and finished in October 1997 with a total of 219 chapters.

The anime adaptation itself aired from April 1997 to September 2000. Anime series Detective Kindaichi which was produced by Toei Animation, it only has 148 episodes.

Meanwhile, manga Detective Conan first published in early January 1994. Subsequently, Detective Conan got the anime adaptation earlier than Kindaichi, namely in January 1996. Both manga and anime Detective Conan, both still have status on going.

3. Why Detective Kindaichi not as popular Detective Conan?

dock. Toei Animation/The Kindaichi Case Files

So what The Kindaichi Case Files not as popular Detective Conan?

There are several important points that are the reason for the loss The Kindaichi Case Files in terms of popularity.

First, anime broadcast Detective Kindaichi which is not as much Detective Conan. This point has a big influence, because the average fan tends to choose to watch long series.

Next, this is related to demographics or target audience The Kindaichi Case Files, where the series is classified as a tie shounen tend seinen.

As it is known, seinen refers to manga or anime that is intended for mature fans. The reason is, it’s a draw seinen contains ‘heavy’ content that is not recommended for underage fans to enjoy.

Let’s relate it to Detective Kindaichi. Compared Detective Conan, The Kindaichi Case Files indeed presents problem solving for quite brutal cases, aka dark and more complex.

Well, that’s the reason why The Kindaichi Case Files not as popular Detective Conan. Are you team Kindaichi, Conan, or both?

Article first published on November 5, 2023, re-released on May 23, 2024.