Mysterious Joker

Mysterious Joker
Cover of the first volume of Mysterious Joker
怪盗ジョーカー (Kaitō Jōkā)
Genre	Comedy, Mystery
Manga
Written by	Hideyasu Takahashi
Published by	Shogakukan
Demographic	Shōnen
Magazine	Bessatsu Corocoro Comic Special Corocoro Comic Corocoro Dragon
Original run	2008 – present
Volumes	20
Anime television series
Directed by	Yukiyo Teramoto
Written by	Dai Satō
Music by	Yūsaku Tsuchiya
Studio	Shin-Ei Animation
Network	Tokyo MX, Kids Station
Original run	October 6, 2014 – January 5, 2015
Episodes	13
Anime television series
season 2
Directed by	Yukiyo Teramoto
Written by	Dai Satō
Music by	Yūsaku Tsuchiya
Studio	Shin-Ei Animation
Network	Tokyo MX, Kids Station
Original run	April 6, 2015 – June 29, 2015
Episodes	13
Anime television series
season 3
Directed by	Yukiyo Teramoto
Written by	Dai Satō
Music by	Yūsaku Tsuchiya
Studio	Shin-Ei Animation
Original run	April 4, 2016 – scheduled
Episodes	TBA
Game
Kaitō Joker: Toki o Koeru Kaitō to Ushinawareta Hōseki
Developer	Bandai Namco Games
Publisher	Bandai Namco Games
Genre	Action
Platform	Nintendo 3DS
Released	^JP June 25, 2015

Mysterious Joker (Japanese: 怪盗ジョーカー Hepburn: Kaitō Jōkā) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Hideyasu Takahashi. The series was originally published as a one-shot, then later began serialization in Shogakukan's Bessatsu Corocoro Comic Special, Corocoro Comic, and Corocoro Dragon manga magazines. An anime adaptation produced by Asatsu DK and animated by Shin-Ei Animation has aired in Japan since October 6, 2014. The series follows the adventures of a thief named Joker, who goes around the world stealing treasures with his apprentice Hachi, while avoiding traps set by the police.

Characters

Phantom Thieves

Joker (ジョーカー Jōkā) / Jack Jones (ジャック・ジョーンズ Jakku Jōnzu)

Voiced by: Ayumu Murase^[1]

The main protagonist of the series. A phantom thief who performs miracles, he likes to steal treasures that have high value. When not stealing treasures, he spends his free time rolling around lazily, watching TV, reading manga, and playing video games. He hates doing laundry, cleaning up, and cats. He also loves to eat curry dishes. Before he became a phantom thief, he lived in a mansion with his parents until they died in a plane crash, and was known as Jack Jones.

Hachi (ハチ)

Voiced by: Yumiko Kobayashi^[1]

Joker's ninja apprentice. He is happy-go-lucky and quite clumsy. He was born and raised in a ninja village, though he was a clumsy failure. He strongly adores Joker and makes sure to protect him. He refers to himself as Oira (オイラ) and tends to end his sentences with ssu (～っス), a shortened variant of Desu (です). He is very good at housework and cooking.

Spade (スペード Supēdo) / King (キング Kingu)

Voiced by: Hiro Shimono,^[1] Mizuki Watanabe (Childhood)

Joker's rival. He is a smart phantom thief who plans by collecting and researching information before acting. He is somewhat of a prankster and prideful in a different way from Joker. When he acts up too much, he often gets a fever.

Dark Eye (ダーク・アイ Dāku· Ai) / Ai (アイ Ai)

Voiced by: Kenichi Ono, Yumi Hara (Ai)

Spade's assistant. Like Hachi, he is very good at housework and cooking. He is very reliable when it comes to supporting Spade's acts. Dark Eye is actually the eldest sister of the "Shuffle Sisters", an idol group.

Diamond Queen (ダイヤモンド・クイーン Daiyamondo· Kuīn)

Voiced by: Miyuki Sawashiro^[1]

Silver Heart's granddaughter. She is a tomboy phantom thief who trained alongside Joker and Spade. She is energetic, cheerful, and often gets into trouble. She is bad at cooking, but she is very skilled at using a knife. When she was a baby, she was known as Queen Emerald (クイーン・エメラルド Kuīn· Emerarudo) and her parents were murdered by minister (Professor Clover in anime). Feeling sorry for her, Silver Heart decided to raise her and changed her name to Diamond Queen.

Roko (ロコ)

Voiced by: Misaki Kuno

A dog who is always seen with Diamond Queen. Roko was part of an experiment to create genetically modified animals, which resulted on his abilities to speak and emit a destructive sound wave. Although Roko hangs with Queen, he was named by Joker, and such the two are good friends. The origin of his name from a Japanese Corn of Tomorokoshi (トウモロコシ). His experiment number is 101.

Silver Heart (シルバーハート Shirubā Hāto)

Voiced by: Bin Shimada^[1]

The teacher of Joker, Spade, and Diamond Queen. He is a legendary phantom thief who has been called the Silver Magician. He is a genius, but has a sketchy personality and hates anything bothersome. Sometimes, he ends up hurting his back. In truth, he thinks of Joker and the others as his own real children and grandchildren and cares about them, but he won't admit it due to him being embarrassed. Before he became the phantom thief, he was the agent. In the anime adaptation, he sometimes breaks the fourth wall to explain certain important events in the episode, such as the tricks Joker performs.

Police / Detectives

Dogusaburō Oniyama (鬼山毒三郎 Oniyama Dogusaburō)

Voiced by: Naoki Tatsuta^[1]

The head of the police department's anti-phantom thief department and the secondary antagonist of the series. He despises Joker and tries his hardest to capture him, however, his attempts always backfire on him. His last name is a pun on the Japanese yōkai Oni.

Ginko Kurosaki (黒崎ギンコ Kurosaki Ginko)

Voiced by: Yuko Hara

A police officer who assists Oniyama.

Momo Shirai (白井モモ Shirai Momo)

Voiced by: Haruna Sakurai

A young police officer who also assists Oniyama.

Professor Clover Gang

Professor Clover (プロフェッサー・C(クローバー) Purofessā· Kurōbā)

Voiced by: Jūrōta Kosugi

The leader of the gang and the main antagonist of the series. He often thinks up villainous deeds and is the one responsible for the murder of Joker and Queen's parents.

Lady Doubt (レディー・ダウト Redī· Dauto)

Voiced by: Jenya

Professor Clover's shapeshifting cat assistant.

Others

Mister Kaneari (ミスター金有 Misutā Kaneari)

Voiced by: Mamoru Miyano^[1]

The representative of the Gold Group. He's very wealthy and uses most of his money to set up traps to defeat phantom thieves that come to steal his treasure. He has a stuffed teddy bear whose nose acts like a switch and an explosive device and usually when Joker steals his treasure he accidentally punches its face making the location he is in explode.

Kaneko (カネ子)

Voiced by: Aki Kanada

An anime-only character. A lady who assists Mister Kaneari.

Shadow Joker (S（シャドウ）・ジョーカー Shadō· Jōkā) / Cyan (シアン Shian)

Voiced by: Sōma Saitō

A rival phantom thief who looks similar to Joker. He works for Professor Clover.

Rose (ローズ)

Voiced by: Akane Uchino

Shadow Joker/Cyan's sister. She is actually a witch with time manipulation abilities.

DJ Peacock (DJ・ピーコック DJ· Pīkokku)

Voiced by: Masahito Yabe

A hyperactive announcer who provides daily reports at the Underworld Net News (裏社会ネットニュース Urashakai Netto Nyūsu).

Media

Manga

Written and illustrated by Hideyasu Tadahashi, the Mysterious Joker manga began as a one-shot. It was later serialized in Shogakukan's Bessatsu Corocoro Comic Special, then moved to Corocoro Comic. The first tankōbon volume was released on March 28, 2008.^[2]

Anime

An anime adaptation produced by Asatsu DK, animated by Shin-Ei Animation, written by Dai Satō, and directed by Yukiyo Teramoto aired in Japan on Tokyo MX from October 6, 2014 to January 5, 2015. The series has also aired on Kids Station since October 16, 2014. The series was simulcasted by Crunchyroll under the title Joker.^[3] The series' opening theme is "Kaitō Miracle Shōnen Boy" (怪盗ミラクル少年ボーイ Phantom Thief Miracle Young Boy) by Aruka Rider, and the ending theme is "Parade Illusion" (パレード・イリュージョン) by Mainya with Shuffle Sisters. The music in the series is composed by Yūsaku Tsuchiya. The February 2015 issue of Bessatsu Corocoro Comic announced that the series has been green-lit for a second season, which will premiere in April 2015.^[4] The second 2015 issue of CoroCoro announced that the second season will premiere on April 6, 2015.^[5] A 3rd season will premiere in April 2016.^[6]

Video games

A Nintendo 3DS video game based on the series entitled Kaitō Joker: Toki o Koeru Kaitō to Ushinawareta Hōseki (怪盗ジョーカー 時を超える怪盗と失われた宝石 Mysterious Joker: The Phantom Thief Who Crosses Time & the Lost Gem) is currently developed by Bandai Namco Games and was released on June 25, 2015 in Japan.^[7]

Reception

The series was awarded the 58th Shogakukan Manga Award in the Children's Category.^[8]

References

1. "Mysterious Joker TV Anime's 30-Second Commercial Streamed". Anime News Network. September 14, 2014. Retrieved December 16, 2014.
2. 怪盗ジョーカー 1 (in Japanese). Shogakukan. Retrieved November 30, 2014.
3. "Crunchyroll to Stream Wolf Girl & Black Prince, Joker, I Can't Understand What My Husband is Saying". Anime News Network. October 4, 2014. Retrieved December 1, 2014.
4. "Mysterious Joker Anime Gets 2nd Season in April". Anime News Network. December 26, 2014. Retrieved December 27, 2014.
5. "2nd Mysterious Joker Season Slated for April 6". Anime News Network. January 12, 2015. Retrieved March 16, 2015.
6. "mysterious joker tv anime 3rd season premieres in April". Anime News Network. December 23, 2015. Retrieved December 23, 2015.
7. "Mysterious Joker 3DS Game Previewed in Video". Anime News Network. January 18, 2015. Retrieved March 17, 2015.
8. "Silver Spoon, I Am a Hero Win Shogakukan Manga Awards". Anime News Network. January 24, 2013. Retrieved December 1, 2014.

External links

• Official anime website (Japanese)