Chikage Kuroba
| Chikage Kuroba | |
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| |
| Japanese name: | 黒羽 千影 (Kuroba Chikage) |
|---|---|
| Age: | unknown |
| Gender: | Female |
| Relatives: | Toichi Kuroba (husband, deceased) Kaito Kuroba (son) |
| Aliases: | Phantom Lady |
| First appearance: | Anime: Episode 627 Magic Kaito Chapter 1 Magic Kaito: Kid the Phantom Thief |
| Appearances: | Chapters: 3 Episodes: 1 Episodes: 8 Specials: 3 |
| Japanese voice: | Michie Tomizawa |
Chikage Kuroba (黒羽 千影 Kuroba Chikage) is a character in the manga and anime franchise Magic Kaito.
Contents
Background
Not much is known about Chikage yet as her appearances in Magic Kaito have been limited. However, in the manga she is aware of Toichi's secret life as Kaitou Kid and that her son, Kaito, discovered Toichi's secret for himself.[1] During the TV special, she was away in Las Vegas, but in a video message to her son said that she knew he'd probably "be very busy very soon," implying that she knew about Toichi's secret room, his identity, and that Kaito would likely become Kid.
In Detective Conan chapter 733, it was revealed that Chikage was once a phantom thief herself known as Phantom Lady. As her alter ego, she wore horror makeup as her signature look, and only targeted large companies and very rich individuals with unscrupulous earnings.
A background story of this was revealed in two new Magic Kaito chapters, which included Toichi's first heist. In it, Chikage met Toichi during one of her own heists, and he ultimately ended up saving her life from a mysterious criminal group who hired her to steal a gem under false pretenses and then double crossed her. The two subsequently fell in love, and Toichi decided to become a thief in order to protect her from them. He reasoned that if he stole the limelight from her, she wouldn't have to continue thieving, and the criminal group would focus on pursuing him instead. She mentions this story to Kaito, which sets the stage for the chapter.
According to Sonoko Suzuki during the Ryoma heist, she was the great thief known as the "Showa Era's Woman of Twenty Faces."
Personality
Although not much is known about Chikage, it can be implied she has a mischievous side of her character because she tells Aoko about Kaito's one weakness: fish.[2]
Plot overview
Chikage first appeared in a minor supporting role in Magic Kaito. In the manga, she lives with Kaito and seems to be a stay-at-home mom. This is changed in the later chapters to match her anime counterpart.
In the anime adaptation of the first chapter of Magic Kaito however, Chikage is abroad. From a video message to her son, it seems that she had been traveling extensively as Kaito grouses "Geez, spending Dad's savings..." At the time of the episode, she was in Vegas with another unnamed woman and claimed to have already seen three magic shows that day.
Before Toichi's first appearance as Kid, Chikage was a thief known as Phantom Lady. Her main targets were large companies and rich individuals who attained their wealth via nefarious means. She later started targeting forgeries of valuable items that were manufactured by people who intended to sell them as the real thing for large sums of money on the black market after the theft. Instead, she would deliver them to the police.
During her final heist in Paris, Toichi dresses in the Kid outfit and rescues Chikage from being captured. As they escape, they kiss, and he compares her to a jewel. In order to protect Chikage, Toichi decides to become a famous phantom thief so he can take attention away from Chikage's previous heists as the Phantom Lady. He then asks if she would "take up residence in his jewelry box" to which she agrees. [3] Kaito as Kid alludes to his mother being the Phantom Lady to Conan during the Ryoma Gunbelt heist which he completed as a favor for Chikage.[4]
Name origin
The name "Chikage" means "one thousand shadows" in Japanese.
Different looks
Trivia
- Chikage's name was first revealed in the credits of the first Magic Kaito special. Her name was later confirmed as canon during The Phantom Lady storyline in the manga.
See also
References
- ^ Aoyama, Gosho (1988-05-15). "The Revived Phantom Thief" (in Japanese). Magic Kaito. 1. Tokyo: Shogakukan. p. 20. ISBN 4-09-122081-9.
- ^ Aoyama, Gosho (1988-05-15). "The Revived Phantom Thief" (in Japanese). Magic Kaito. 1. Tokyo: Shogakukan. p. 21. ISBN 4-09-122081-9.
- ^ Aoyama, Gosho. "30: The Phantom Lady (Part 2)" (in Japanese). Magic Kaito. Tokyo: Shogakukan.
- ^ Aoyama, Gosho. "733: The Cleaning" (in Japanese). Detective Conan. Tokyo: Shogakukan.
