The typical Kochikame plot involves Ryo-san coming up with a money-making scheme by inventing a new gadget or capitalizing on a fad, achieving great success, calling on Nakagawa's help as things turn sour, and finally losing it all as the fad runs out of steam or out of control. While the plots are gag-driven, much of the humor comes from the juxtaposition of mundane characters with the bizarrely incongruous (Nakagawa's wealth, Maria's appeal, everyone's lack of actual police work), most of which is never explained or rationalized in the slightest.

• Won the 30th Japan Cartoonists Association Award Grand Prize in 2001
• Won the 50th Shogakukan Manga Award Special Jury Prize in 2004
• Won the Seiun Award for Best Comic in 2017
• The Previous Holder of the Guinness World Record for Most Volumes of a Single Manga Series