"The Criminal"
| None (may be referred to as the criminal, dark figure, or silhouette) | |
|
| |
| Age: | Never certain |
|---|---|
| Gender: | Never certain |
| Date of birth: | Never certain |
| Relatives: | Never certain |
| Nicknames: | Never certain |
| First appearance: | Unknown |
| Appearances: | Amount unknown |
| Japanese voice: | Always changes |
| English voice: | Always changes |
The criminals (犯人 han'nin) in Detective Conan are usually depicted as a black or dark figure with a humanoid shape.
First appearances
The first criminal silhouettes were very shady and roughly drawn in. They had no real body formation. They usually didn't even have a clearly drawn in face (as was shown in Opening 3). Sometimes, the figures resembled enough of the actual criminal's body that it could give away the true identity of the culprit (as was shown in the beginning of the first episode).
Facial features and other changes
It took quite a few episodes before the dark figures started to gain facial features. The first to appear were the eyes. The eyes were usually depicted as a man's eyes (the simple one black dot in each eye). The next facial feature to permanently appear was the nose. The nose gave the figure a more three-dimensional shape, rather than a sketchy flat appearance. The next major change was the mouth. When the mouth was added, it gave the figures the ability to talk (usually with a voice changer). The last major detail added were the muscles. Before, every dark figure looked very thin. Slowly, they started to look like real people, with muscles where they were supposed to be, and curves where they were needed. As the series went even further, the figures started to look more like men than women or genderless people. The figures today have very defined, large muscles. The figures are always shown as well fit, no matter how fat or frail the actual criminal really is.
Trivia
- Though usually depicted as a criminal, the silhouettes are sometimes protagonists, but their identity has to be kept a secret from both the viewers/readers and/or Conan.
- In Japan, a hooded jacket is sold with the face of "The Criminal" on the hood. When this is pulled down over the wearer's face, it makes them look like it.
