TV-Series
Description
Makoto Hanzawa, commonly referred to as Hanzawa-san, is the main protagonist of the spin-off series Detective Conan: The Culprit Hanzawa. His full name is Makoto Hanzawa, and his surname is a play on the Japanese word for culprit, hannin. He hails from the rural countryside of Izumo in Shimane Prefecture and moves to Beika City with a single, dark purpose: to find and murder Shinichi Kudo, the teenage detective who holds a grudge against him for reasons not fully detailed. Beika City, known in the main series for its extraordinarily high crime rate, appeals to Hanzawa as the ideal place to carry out his plan.
Hanzawa is depicted as a country bumpkin who is utterly unfamiliar with modern urban life. He struggles with everyday tasks such as using automatic ticket gates, navigating the city, and managing his finances. Despite his murderous intent, he is surprisingly timid and easily frightened by the very real crimes and dangers of Beika. He frequently indulges in violent fantasies, imagining himself killing people who annoy him, but he restrains himself because he knows that committing unnecessary murders would attract unwanted police attention and jeopardize his ultimate goal. This contradiction between his grandiose criminal ambition and his mundane, often comical incompetence defines his personality. He is also deeply lonely, occasionally relying on his mother for advice and comfort, and he fears living in a place where actual violent incidents are common.
His primary motivation is to murder Shinichi Kudo, though he repeatedly fails to carry out the act due to a combination of bad luck, fear, and the interference of other characters. He believes that by killing Kudo he will achieve some form of personal satisfaction or justice, but the exact nature of his grudge is kept vague. His role in the story is that of an anti-hero and a parody of the generic black-silhouetted culprit that appears in the original Detective Conan series. Instead of being a mastermind criminal, he is a hapless, struggling individual trying to survive in a city full of real mysteries and dangerous people.
Key relationships in his life include his mother, Hitoe Hanzawa, who often checks in on him from their hometown. He also interacts with numerous characters from the main series. Conan Edogawa follows Hanzawa because he finds him suspicious, though Hanzawa remains oblivious to being tailed. Ran Mouri terrifies him after he witnesses her karate skills, and he goes out of his way to avoid her. He mistakenly believes Professor Hiroshi Agasa is a mad scientist because of his eccentric inventions and explosions. He briefly confuses Kaito Kuroba and his alter ego Kaitou Kid with his target due to their similar faces, but later realizes they are different people. He also forms a bond with a small Pomeranian dog named Pometaro, whom he adopts and cares for despite his financial struggles.
Over the course of the series, Hanzawa experiences minor development. He attempts to improve his skills for his planned murder, such as taking remote swordsmanship lessons from a character resembling Okita Souji and attending a sniping class run by Shuichi Akai, though he shows little natural talent in either. He also works various part-time jobs, including at a rental video store and as an assistant for Professor Agasa, to support himself. His most significant moment of growth comes when he finally tracks Shinichi Kudo to Kyoto during a school trip, but he cannot bring himself to kill him because Ran Mouri is nearby and he fears her strength. This failure leaves him dejected but does not extinguish his goal. He continues to search for another opportunity, showing a stubborn, almost obsessive persistence.
Notable abilities are few. He is not particularly strong, intelligent, or skilled. His main asset is his single-minded determination, though it is often undermined by his own cowardice and lack of preparation. He has no supernatural or exceptional talents, making him a comically ineffective criminal. His most distinctive trait is his appearance: a pitch-black silhouette with purple shading, a featureless face, and a yellow backpack, which visually mirrors the generic culprit from the main series. This design serves as a running gag, as he is indistinguishable from other black silhouettes in the world.
Hanzawa is depicted as a country bumpkin who is utterly unfamiliar with modern urban life. He struggles with everyday tasks such as using automatic ticket gates, navigating the city, and managing his finances. Despite his murderous intent, he is surprisingly timid and easily frightened by the very real crimes and dangers of Beika. He frequently indulges in violent fantasies, imagining himself killing people who annoy him, but he restrains himself because he knows that committing unnecessary murders would attract unwanted police attention and jeopardize his ultimate goal. This contradiction between his grandiose criminal ambition and his mundane, often comical incompetence defines his personality. He is also deeply lonely, occasionally relying on his mother for advice and comfort, and he fears living in a place where actual violent incidents are common.
His primary motivation is to murder Shinichi Kudo, though he repeatedly fails to carry out the act due to a combination of bad luck, fear, and the interference of other characters. He believes that by killing Kudo he will achieve some form of personal satisfaction or justice, but the exact nature of his grudge is kept vague. His role in the story is that of an anti-hero and a parody of the generic black-silhouetted culprit that appears in the original Detective Conan series. Instead of being a mastermind criminal, he is a hapless, struggling individual trying to survive in a city full of real mysteries and dangerous people.
Key relationships in his life include his mother, Hitoe Hanzawa, who often checks in on him from their hometown. He also interacts with numerous characters from the main series. Conan Edogawa follows Hanzawa because he finds him suspicious, though Hanzawa remains oblivious to being tailed. Ran Mouri terrifies him after he witnesses her karate skills, and he goes out of his way to avoid her. He mistakenly believes Professor Hiroshi Agasa is a mad scientist because of his eccentric inventions and explosions. He briefly confuses Kaito Kuroba and his alter ego Kaitou Kid with his target due to their similar faces, but later realizes they are different people. He also forms a bond with a small Pomeranian dog named Pometaro, whom he adopts and cares for despite his financial struggles.
Over the course of the series, Hanzawa experiences minor development. He attempts to improve his skills for his planned murder, such as taking remote swordsmanship lessons from a character resembling Okita Souji and attending a sniping class run by Shuichi Akai, though he shows little natural talent in either. He also works various part-time jobs, including at a rental video store and as an assistant for Professor Agasa, to support himself. His most significant moment of growth comes when he finally tracks Shinichi Kudo to Kyoto during a school trip, but he cannot bring himself to kill him because Ran Mouri is nearby and he fears her strength. This failure leaves him dejected but does not extinguish his goal. He continues to search for another opportunity, showing a stubborn, almost obsessive persistence.
Notable abilities are few. He is not particularly strong, intelligent, or skilled. His main asset is his single-minded determination, though it is often undermined by his own cowardice and lack of preparation. He has no supernatural or exceptional talents, making him a comically ineffective criminal. His most distinctive trait is his appearance: a pitch-black silhouette with purple shading, a featureless face, and a yellow backpack, which visually mirrors the generic culprit from the main series. This design serves as a running gag, as he is indistinguishable from other black silhouettes in the world.