Location Analysis: Bungou Stray Dogs

There will be instances where the anime setting isn’t exactly looked like on the actual location due to lack of aesthetic or has a need to fit in on a certain scene. As for Bungou Stray Dogs, some of its settings were based from multiple sites around Yokohama or even outside the main stage. After a thorough research and multiple visits, I was able to breakdown the possible model on each of the notable locations from the series. *All of the screenshots were taken from Google Maps.

Armed Detective Agency

Armed Detective Agency, where our main characters work, doesn’t have an actual comparison in the real world however, Museum of Yokohama Urban History is so far the closest model of the agency in Yokohama given to its outer appearance and the similarities of the building around it. 

As for the interior of the building, it was based from a 1930s art-deco style building in Ginza named Y’s Art Gallery. 

Armed Detective Agency might be located near Motomachi Shopping Street if ever this agency was placed in real world. As you can see in the scenes below, the building is close to an expressway.

Metropolitan Expressway Kanagawa Rte No.3 Kariba Line is the only expressway that passes Naka Ward and also goes along the Motomachi Shopping Street, Yokohama Chinatown and Yamashita Park, three of the most featured places in the series.

From Season 1 Episode 4, we got to see the other view of the agency’s outer appearance. A similar pillar has also found at Yato Bridge right in front of Motomachi Street. 

Cemetery

From Season 1 Episode 7 and Dead Apple movie, an overlooking view of Yokohama Bay Bridge can be seen from the cemetery.

However in the real world, the view didn’t come from the cemetery but a view from Osanbashi Pier given the bridge’s tower angle is almost identical at this street view below. 

On the opposite view of the cemetery is a church on the background. Yokohama is known to have Western-style churches so I found two models that fit to the architecture on this church.

One of them is Sacred Heart Cathedral, a catholic church in Yamate Area, where they might based the main structure of the church.

And the other is Yokohama Kaigan Church, the first protestant church in Japan, where they based the shape of the tower. 

Unfortunately there wasn’t an exact replication on the cemetery but there was a foreign cemetery around the area. The Yokohama Foreign General Cemetery is a historical site in Yokohama where the memorial graves of foreign soldiers from World War were placed.

Garden

From Season 3 Episode 1, in prequel arc “Fifteen Year Old”, where we get a flashback scene of Chuuya and Dazai. The park above is identical to Motomachi Park but doesn’t have the overlooking view.

So as the house in the background.

The location of the exploded mansion is based from Yamate Italian Garden. It is an English-style garden with an overlooking view of Yokohama and a diplomat’s house dated back in 1910. The two places might be very close in the series but in the real world, it took 30 minutes to walk from Motomachi Park to Yamate Italian Garden.

For more in-depth anime to real life comparison: across Minatomirai Line and JR Negishi Line.