The story mainly focuses on the weretiger Atsushi Nakajima, who joins others gifted with supernatural powers to accomplish different tasks including solving mysteries and carrying out missions assigned by the agency.

After being kicked out of his orphanage, Atsushi saves a detective named Osamu Dazai, believing he was drowning in the river while his actual intention was suicide.

From Dazai, Atsushi learns he is a gifted with a supernatural ability capable of transforming him into a berserker white tiger in the moonlight; which was why the orphanage tortured him and kicked him out.

During Atsushi's fights against the mafia, he also meets Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald, the leader of an organisation named the Guild who placed the bounty on his head.

Fitzgerald disregards any superficial damage the Guild might bring to Yokohama in exchange for the book, having an airship named "Moby Dick" destroy the city.

He sets up a fatal clash between the detectives and the mafia using a virus ability user from the group that he leads, Rats in the House of the Dead.

Pages of The Book are later found by Dostoyevsky's other group, The Decay of the Angel, which uses its powers to frame the Detective Agency for a murder case.

Dazai is imprisoned for his past crimes and is placed in a cell near Dostoyevsky while the government sends its military forces known as the Hunting Dogs to execute the members of the Agency.

After the battle with Kamui, the next stage for the Decay of the Angel plan commences - turning people into vampires and eventually controlling humankind thanks to Bram.

As Fukuzawa manages to defeat Fukuchi, he is revealed to have wanted to rid the world of wars through his methods and is killed by one his underling from the Hunting Dogs.

[8] The manga originated from Asagiri's idea to gather multiple famous late authors and poets and draw them as young adults and teenagers with supernatural powers.

Kadokawa Shoten approached Asagiri with writing more content for the characters, which led to the production of light novels where the writer decided to explore Dazai's past.

A major theme in the narrative of people overcoming themselves; As an example, Kyoka was written as an assassin who wants to escape from the work from the Port Mafia and instead becomes Atsushi's partner in the Detective Agency.

Francis Scott Fitzgerald from the Guild plans to destroy Yokohama in his story arc but at the end and his next appearances, it is revealed his only desire was protecting his family.

Sigma is also another villain written to be relatable though the author made him like that due to his "average" skills when compared to stronger antagonists.

A manga based on the light novel Beast, which is illustrated by Shiwasu Hoshikawa, debuted in Monthly Shōnen Ace on 26 December 2019.

[21] This spin-off manga takes place in an alternate timeline and features Ryūnosuke Akutagawa, who joins the Armed Detective Agency, and Atsushi Nakajima as a subordinate of the Port Mafia.

[37] In June 2020, Kadokawa announced that an anime television series adaptation of the spin-off manga, Bungo Stray Dogs Wan!, was in production.

[3][4] At the Mayo(w)i Inu-tachi no Utage Sono Ni event on 19 February 2017 a film project based on the manga series was announced.

[47] Titled Bungo Stray Dogs: Dead Apple,[48] the film premiered on 3 March 2018 with the staff and cast from the anime series returning to reprise their roles.

[51] An action role-playing game titled Bungo Stray Dogs Mayoi Inu Kaikitan was announced and released on iOS and Android.

Starting in September 2018, a second stage play was done based on the light novel Dazai Osamu and the Dark Era and its anime adaptation in the second season of the show.

[70] J. Laturnas from University of British Columbia noticed that Dazai's characterization in Bungo Stray Dogs and Bungō and Alchemist helped to revitalize the original author's works.

"Of course, the character named ‘Dazai Osamu’ is not the person himself," Asagiri laughs, "the most important thing was to make [the author-characters] interesting in a manga-like way."

Likewise, Dazai's character is heavily inspired by No Longer Human and its protagonist, Ōba Yōzō, with a few references to the historical author's life, personality, and preferences.

[86] Anime News Network felt that, while initially weak, Atsushi could become, little-by-little, a stronger person, due to the way Dazai guides him.

[91] When season two ended, The Fandom Post saw Atsushi's team up with Akutagawa as one of the best sequences in the series, which explored how the two characters felt during their interactions and production values made the fight more entertaining.

Manga.Tokyo highly praised the relationship between the teenage Dazai and Odasaku since it shows the impact Odasaku had on the Dazai's characterization and growth as a person which contrasted with his regular personality,[94] while UK Anime Network felt it made the cast look more rounded in the general due to the multiple use literal characters based on real life alongside Ango.

[95] Dazai's debut in the anime's third season earned praise from Manga.Tokyo for once again exploring his teenage years where his relationship with Chuuya Nakahara is revealed in the form of flashback episodes.

[96] Anime News Network noted how dark this incarnation of Dazai is as he does not appear to care for other people and instead ponders the idea of killing himself in contrast to his cheerful persona from the regular series.