Warning! This post contains spoilers for Netflix’s Dead Boy Detectives.
Dead Boy Detectives‘ Edwin and Charles have fascinating supernatural powers and abilities that help them navigate the mysteries of their afterlife existence. Serving as a spin-off to Netflix’s The Sandman series, Dead Boy Detectives follows the sleuthing adventures — and misadventures — of Edwin Paine and Charles Rowland. What makes Edwin and Charles stand out from other television detectives is that they have been dead for a long time. As the show’s title suggests, they are ghosts who have somehow escaped the afterlife and found a way to help solve supernatural mysteries in the mortal realm.
What makes the dynamic duo even more intriguing is that, despite looking like teenagers, the two are fairly old and have honed their investigation and magical abilities for decades. Owing to this, Edwin and Charles always come up with unique solutions to the challenges that come their way, drawing upon extensive experiences and supernatural abilities. Since Edwin and Charles rely on myriad resources and skills to solve mysteries in Dead Boy Detectives, a detailed breakdown of the scale and scope of their powers seems necessary.
Edwin has been dead far longer than Charles and spent 70 years in the depths of hell. Although Netflix’s Dead Boy Detectives does not delve too deep into his experiences in the netherworld, it seems likely that he spent those years learning more about the supernatural. This would explain why he has a massive collection of books that cover everything from ancient spells to terrifying details about paranormal parasites. Other than merely possessing books about the supernatural, Edwin also knows a lot about occult practices, rituals, spells, curses, etc.
Even when it purely comes to investigative skills, Edwin always stays ahead of the curve and is quick to notice threats and anomalies surrounding him. For instance, in Dead Boy Detectives‘ opening episode, he easily figures out that Esther’s kitchen cupboard is too far forward. Apart from being the brain of the titular detective duo, Edwin also has the ability to teleport using mirrors — he calls it “mirror hopping.” He is also invisible to most humans and can only be seen by those who have had near-death experiences like Niko or are psychics like Crystal.
While Edwin is the brain, Charles is the brawn in Dead Boy Detectives. As many hilarious moments in Dead Boy Detectives suggest, Charles is not the brightest bulb in the box. However, there are times when he unknowingly comes up with the wisest solutions to the gravest problems. Unlike Charles, Edwin relies less on his intellect and more on his physical strength. He may not necessarily appear strong on the outside, but has several tools and weapons in his “bag-of-tricks” that help him fight, ward off, and even overpower strong evil forces.
Speaking of his “bag-of-tricks,” Charles possesses a bag that looks like any other ordinary backpack in appearance. However, the bag has infinite storage capacity, allowing him to keep everything from weapons to Edwin’s books. He also carries an enchanted cricket bat in the same bag, which comes in handy when he fights with formidable enemies. As Charles reveals, his bag-of-tricks contains a pocket universe, and finding things inside it is a skill he has developed through years of practice. Charles also carries a pocket knife and always manages to successfully pick locks with it.
Like Edwin, Charles can also talk to cats and use mirrors as wormholes. Both Charles and Edwin can also possess people, but only for a few seconds. Despite having the ability to possess humans, they avoid doing it because it often raises alarms and alerts authorities from the afterlife. Since they are both supposed to be in the afterlife and not roaming around in the human world, they stay away from possessions unless it is their only choice.
Like their show counterparts, the Dead Boy Detectives in the original comics are invisible to most humans because they are ghosts. They are also intangible and cannot be touched by another human, just like Edwin and Charles in the show. The comic books also explore how the two can perform astral projections by separating their astral selves from their ghost bodies. This is something the show has not explored yet. The two detectives can also levitate in the comics, which is another power Netflix’s Dead Boy Detectives might eventually introduce as the series progresses.