The KochiKame: Tokyo Beat Cops (KochiKame) manga series features an extensive cast of characters created by Osamu Akimoto.
The Police Box
Born March 3. The Head Patrol Officer of Katsushika, stationed at the police box in front of Kameari Park. Hails from Asakusa, Taitō, Tokyo. "Ryo-san" is a 36-year-old middle-aged police officer with the personality of a teenager. His laziness at work is matched only by his greediness and cleverness in hatching money-making schemes, the fruits of which are invariably squandered on toys, gadgets, and cheap entertainment. He is the stereotypical street-smart "shitamachi" type: sporting a crew cut, stomping about in ratty sandals (even in uniform), and being narrow-minded toward the outside world, as he makes his rounds on a creaky old bicycle. At the same time, he is a super-otaku, up on all the latest fads in popular culture and consumer technology. While most of his interests are juvenile (such as videogames and collectibles), he also indulges in more typically salaryman-type pastimes such as drinking, pachinko, and gambling (especially horse-racing). Despite his undisciplined lifestyle, he possesses superhuman strength and stamina, which he is forced to depend on at times. Ryotsu is a bachelor and seems relatively uninterested in women, yet occasionally attracts the attention of naïve young female acquaintances, though never with any eventual success. He travels to Hashutsujo by his bicycle named Chidori. He has a younger brother named Kinjiro who wears glasses and runs a successful law firm.
Born December 24. A young, handsome patrol cop who serves as Ryo's comic foil as he is benevolent while also rich. While holding down a day job in the police box in front of Kameari Park, Nakagawa is the son of Nakagawa Zaibatsu and often has to zip off to board meetings in his exotic sports cars and private helicopters. He is quite handsome, an expert driver and marksman, and popular with all the lady cops. However, as a rich heir, he is quite naive to the ways of the world. His policeman's uniform is an ¥300,000 yellow pinstripe suit made by Pierre Cardin. Though constantly surrounded by beautiful women throughout his duties, Nakagawa appears indifferent and his tendencies are somewhat ambiguous. He hates natto, and his favorite car is his Ferrari. He has a younger sister who is also as busy as his parents.
Born July 7. A female counterpart to Nakagawa, Reiko's wealth is inherited from European nobility and she juggles her commitments to the police job with those of high society. The daughter of the Kobe-based Akimoto Trading Zaibatsu, Reiko is half French, was raised in France, and is multilingual. With her flowing blonde hair and stunningly cute pink police uniform she looks like an angel. She is fast for a woman of such built. Reiko is often courted by rich and famous men but has never found the right man. She works in the transportation department and drives a Porsche. She has one younger sister named Yu Akimoto.
The Chief Patrol Officer of Katsushika, in charge of the police box in front of Kameari Park. He usually called "Buchō" or "Division Head" (部長) and is Ryotsu's boss. He is a typical grizzled middle-management senior cop. Sporting a small trimmed mustache, akin to Hitler, Bucho is often out of touch or exasperated with his younger staff, but he always ready to punish Ryo-san for his laziness (Despite this, he shows kindness to Ryotsu occasionally, treating him as the son he never had). He is a fatherlike figure for Ryoutsu, Reiko, and Nakagawa. His many hobbies include judo, kendo, sado, bonsai, and calligraphy. He comes to Hashutsujho by bus and train. He is married with one daughter named Hiromi and is grandfather to her two children.
Reiko’s occasional partner on the force, whose nickname is Maria (マリア), an ateji reading of her full name's kanji. She is the most important female character after Reiko in the anime. Like Reiko, Maria is tall, beautiful, and buxom. Unlike Reiko, Maria is a brunette and a transgender woman. Maria, along with Reiko, are portrayed as being the main beauties of the Kochikame storyline. She is always known and seen in her violet police uniform she always wears to work. She is in love with Ryotsu due to his resemblance to her former martial arts teacher and becomes jealous whenever another girl comes near him. Initially Ryotsu wanted to marry Maria desperately but started to like her more like a female best friend after knowing her past. Since Maria is a pre-op trans woman or Kathoey, she is occasionally told by Ryotsu that she is a man. She was a Muay Thai (kickboxing) champion and generally excels at all martial arts. In the manga, she became a biological female after a magical incident, while she underwent hormone replacement therapy and breast augmentation surgery in the anime. She is yet to undergo sex-reassignment surgery like the real TS kickboxing champion Parinya Kiatbusaba. It is revealed that she and her twin sister Rin were being born from Kyoko Asato, their mother who gave birth to these two at the age of sixteen when she met Ban.
The station's motorcycle policeman, and Ryotsu's underling, often reluctantly dragged into his schemes. A shy young man who still sports a pompadour from his teenage motorcycle gang days, he immediately turns into an aggressive man with a deeper voice and a very intimidating face when he mounts a motorcycle. No motor gangster is a match against him, as he still thinks like one. He is also an otaku who loves shōjo manga and Japanese idols. Honda's father runs a garage specializing in Kawasaki cycles named Honda Ringyo. His humble-aggressive personality switch runs in the family, as his father with his coveralls, his younger brother with bicycles, and his younger sister with elephants.
A plump cop stationed at the police box. He wants to live his life as an "ordinary policeman" but is rather poor and unintelligent, though sensible. He has two sons. Every attempt he makes to buy a house or car ends with tragic results. He is usually seen with Buchō and wears glasses. Originally known as , he was renamed to his current name in 2009. However, since he was renamed, he had gotten many fortunes. His birthplace is Hokkaido.
A police officer who only works one day every four years (coinciding with the Olympics) and does nothing but sleep even then. He is able to keep his job because his precognition and nensha abilities come in handy during investigations. If he is awakened before the scheduled time, he will go on an angry rampage and cause destruction everywhere, and only the pleading from a beautiful girl can calm him down.
Ryotsu's fellow patrol officer who often joined him in goofing off during the early years of the series. Though a police officer, he looks more like a yakuza, sporting tattoos on his back and a scar over his right eye. He has been playing mahjong for over 20 years and even remembers playing it as a child. Though once a prominent character, he appears very rarely these days, but he did appear in 2004 and 2006. He has a tattoo on his back.
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Two female police officers who work on the traffic department. Both of them love to tease and ridicule Ryotsu, though not out of hate. Their relationship with Ryotsu is a love/hate relation, similar to siblings, and both of them know that if they ever get into trouble, they can always count on Ryotsu (even though he sometimes demands a favor in return). Ono is Naoko's senpai. A (behind the scenes) misunderstanding led to them accidentally having each other's voice actress in the first episode. They only appear in the anime series and are absent in the manga.
Other Katsushika Station Officers
Voiced by: Eimei Esumi→Jin Nishimura Head of the new Katsushika station. A rather kind and gentle man, he met and eloped with his wife during his patrol officer days. He has three children and six grandchildren whom he spends his days off babysitting. His estimated age is 58.
A newly arrived traffic division officer who joined the ranks at age 19, right after graduating from high school. She was born in Kanda, Tokyo and is an efficient Edokko. Her shitamachi knowledge is almost on par with Ryo-san. She is a bit of a tomboy and is fearsome in a quarrel. A self-taught martial arts expert, she is also an amazing baseball player, capable of throwing a fastball at 150 km/h (approximately 93 mph). Her family runs the high-class restaurant . She (with her family) is the most important recent addition in the story. She was engaged to Ryotsu after he started working in Super Kanda Sushi, but it was called off when they realized that they were cousins as well as learning his greedy nature. However, they continued to live and work together and even slept together sometimes (when she was drunk and strangled Ryotsu). In the manga, many chapters prove she and Ryotsu like each other. She usually matches and bests Ryotsu in everything he is good at (except for more negative things like gambling and drinking etc.). Despite her appearance, she is well-versed in many traditional Japanese arts, such as dancing and music, and once dressed up as a geisha – completely fooling both Ryotsu and her brother. Usually her street clothes involve jeans and T-shirts with no makeup and very little accessories.
Works in the traffic division. She is the eldest daughter of a distinguished Bushido house in Kyoto and is well-versed in all such arts. She is attractive and very honest. She is popular with the other policewomen and greatly admires Buchō. Because his voice resembles her father's, she has fallen for Ryotsu and is very jealous of Maria. In addition, her name is a kyūdō term. Haya is 21 years old. In later chapters, she displayed the ability to see ghosts and even into the future. She usually goes on patrol with Matoi, who is her main sparring partner (since she is generally the only female office who can stand up to her in martial arts). She is present in the manga but absent in the anime.
Honda's fellow motorcycle cop underling and later girlfriend. She is a delicate young lady and a bit of a crybaby. She has a side job as popular shōjo manga author .
A policeman who works for the new Katsushika station. He used to be a mercenary in America. He conceals weapons of all kinds in his body and does not remove them during bathing or sleep. He has the habit of firing indiscriminately when danger is sensed. He is unaccustomed to women (as he will nosebleed on the sight of them) and surprisingly cowardly without his guns. His ancestors in Kyūshū were ninja.
A police officer who works at the new Katsushika station. He is excellent at all combat sports, especially, judo. He tries to appear to have no interest in women but has displays a very unhealthy obsession with a fictional female video game character named .
One of the many young policewomen of the district and Ryotsu's arch-enemy. Saotome thinks Ryotsu is a disgusting, rude, hooligan. Ryotsu thinks Saotome and her colleagues are pampered weaklings and a waste of the force's budget. Saotome and her fellow bachelorettes live in a luxury dormitory resembling a French chateau.
An elite police officer and graduate from Tokyo University. He is cool and intelligent but, because his face looks more like that of a yakuza thug, he carries his diploma around as proof that he is as smart as he says he is. His specialty is debate; he still always loses when it comes to looks.
The "traffic safety" instructor for the division. He usually goes way overboard in his training and safety regulation, which basically involve that cars drive slower than walking pace, as well as giving ridiculous nicknames (all associated with traffic regulation) to his colleagues.
A frequently appearing cop (though not quite as much in recent years) who laughs at anything and everything.
Other recurring characters