Superhumans with clairvoyance, telepathy, and other psychic powers walk among us, solving crimes for major government organizations. Then there’s Chojo, a psychic who patrols a ward where only small-scale crimes occur; it’s perhaps no surprise that he’s stuck at a small station since his rude attitude turns off his colleagues and the residents alike. But his new partner might just be different. Ippongi, a recent police academy grad, is earnest, strong, and impulsive; these two might just pair up to be quite the crime-solving tandem!

Viewers expecting a typical Shonen Jump adaptation from Super Psychic Policeman Chojo are in for a surprise when they tune in. This cop series draws heavily from influences that may not be all that familiar for Westerns audiences. For instance, there’s obviously a manzai (traditional Japanese two-man comedy team) structure to Ippongi and Chojo’s relationship; she’s the straight man and he’s the absurd one, not caring a lick for anyone around him (apparently), while his partner is trying to do the right thing in all situations. They’re a fun pairing, but they’re not necessarily funny, meaning that while I like them together, their jokes rarely hit. There are a bunch of them, as you’d expect from a gag series, but I laughed out loud maybe once in episode one. The other influence is older cop manga—and with the lack of cop anime in recent years, this may be less accessible to anime fans. I admit, I don’t get all the connections, but it’s obvious to me that everything here is a throwback—from character designs to the loud background art. This I actually like, but because the humor usually misses for me, the episode—much like volume one of the manga—was rather boring. But if you’re a fan of manzai, buddy cop comedies, and old-school throwbacks, you may enjoy this episode more than I did.

Super Psychic Policeman Chojo can be streamed on Crunchyroll.