| Jing: King of Bandits | |
| 王ドロボウJING | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy, Kaitō, Science Fiction |
| Manga | |
| Written by | Yuichi Kumakura |
| Published by | Kodansha |
| English publisher | Tokyopop |
| Demographic | Children |
| Magazine | Comic Bom Bom, Magazine Z |
| Original run | November 6, 1995 – July 5, 1998 |
| Volumes | 7 |
| TV anime | |
| Directed by | Hiroshi Watanabe |
| Studio | Studio Deen |
| Licensed by | ADV Films (formerly) AEsir Holdings (currently) |
| Network | NHK |
| Original run | May 15, 2002 – August 14, 2002 |
| Episodes | 13 |
| Original video animation | |
| Jing, King Of Bandits: Seventh Heaven | |
| Directed by | Hiroshi Watanabe |
| Studio | Studio Deen |
| Licensed by | Funimation |
| Released | January 21, 2004 – April 28, 2004 |
| Episodes | 3 |
Jing: King of Bandits (王ドロボウJING Ō Dorobou Jing), also known as King of Bandit Jing, is a seven volume manga series by Yuichi Kumakura about the adventures of the bandit Jing and his partner Kir. The manga was adapted into a 13 episode anime series produced by Aniplex and directed by Hiroshi Watanabe as well as a Game Boy game released in 2000 by Messiah (released only in Japan). The anime series aired from May 15, 2002 to August 14, 2002 on NHK in Japan. The manga is licensed in English in North America by Tokyopop. ADV Films licensed the Jing: King of Bandits anime series. ADV had also licensed the Seventh Heaven OVA, however in 2008, the OVA became one of over ADV titles transferred to Funimation.[1] As of September 1, 2009, all of ADV Films' former catalog are transferred to AEsir Holdings, with distribution from Section23 Films[2] Although its seemingly not as popular as some other series of which its a contemporary; the series as a whole was popular enough to get a game produced and have an artbook published - U-1Kumakura Works.
A recurring theme in Jing: King of Bandits is references to alcoholic beverages. Chapters are referred to as "shots." Each storyline arc features at least one person who is named after an alcoholic beverage, usually the "Jing Girl" (somewhat like a Bond Girl). In addition, each town or city is named after a cocktail, and Jing and Kir's "Kir Royale" attack is also a cocktail, observed by his catch phrase (in the English dub) "Gimme a Kir Royale" uttered almost every time before he uses it. (In the original Japanese dialogue he merely says "Kir Royale".) More information about the specifics of each name can be found in the Tokyopop releases (Volumes 5 and 7).
Contents |
King of Bandits Jing is a series of short, usually disconnected stories starring the young boy who calls himself Jing, the Bandit King. Although Jing's reputation seems to extend throughout the universe of the series, many enemies underestimate him, not expecting the "great" King of Bandits to be a "little kid".
The stories vary a great deal, especially between the initial manga series and the sequel series, Jing: King of Bandits: Twilight Tales. In the initial series, stories often border on comical and cartoonish. Each arc includes a new treasure or object that Jing is seeking, a woman or girl (affectionately referred to as "Jing girls") who accompanies him somewhere along the way on his quest for this item, and an enemy that either wants to protect what it is he intends to steal, or get to it before he does. Settings also vary; Jing travels to a clockwork city, a desert with living lava, and even deliberately gets himself arrested to steal something from inside a maximum security prison, among other fantastic locales. He always escapes in the end of each arc, and always manages to steal his target, although not always in the way that the characters or the reader expects. Each arc also features the upset of some restrictive societal norm thanks to Jing's intervention; rulers are dethroned, prison riots are caused, an entire corrupt religion is reduced to shambles. This could be taken as a look at the "benefits" of lawlessness and chaos when faced with corrupt and stagnant law, but it is left up to the reader to decide—at no time is Jing described as anything other than a thief. There is no doubt that Jing leaves the lives of more than one person shaken in his wake, often inverting their world views. Additionally, none of the Jing girls ever follow him out of their specific arc—but there are occasionally implications of continued contact, such as the end of the Pompier arc when Fino receives a letter from Kir via post mail. Although by the "end" of Twilight Tales, Jing may have returned for Picon (one can only presume by looking at the final few pages of said volume), whether or not he takes her in as a partner or something more - considering the nature of the series may never truly be resolved.
Twilight Tales, which also ran at seven volumes, takes a great leap in terms of both art and writing for Kumakura. The alcohol-themed names are more obscure, the stories take a more serious tone, and the art is much more mature and highly contrasted and dramatic. There are far fewer super deformed expressions, and Jing seems more composed. Ages are never given for any of the characters, so it is impossible to tell how much time passes between the original series and TT, if any at all. While there is still typically a Jing girl in each arc, they are no longer as prominent as they were before, and Jing's relationships with his 'enemies' become more complicated and are no longer so clear-cut (many are "redeemed" rather than defeated). The theme of disrupting corrupt social structures, however, remains, which is interesting considering that Jing no longer manages to steal every treasure he sets out after in the arcs. In Twilight Tales, more often than not, Jing actually winds up fighting the sought object, or having to destroy it in some way. There is also a short arc featuring Jing's past that contains no Jing girl at all, nor a treasure, unlike the other "childhood" arc in the original series that featured both. In both these childhood arcs, Jing is already calling himself the King of Bandits.
There is no fixed ending for either series. Presumably Jing continues about his life much as he has throughout the series, and the reader is left with the feeling that the storyteller simply chose to stop narrating at that point, and that there is no "real" ending to Jing's tale.
Both childhood arcs, in both the original series and in Twilight Tales, seem more for the purpose of developing Jing's character than for providing any concrete information on his history. It is discovered that he has lost his mother in some fashion that is never explained, although it can be assumed from various bits of Jing's dialogue throughout both series that she is dead. His father is never mentioned. The original series arc does contain the story of how Kir and Jing met, but also contains a confusing event that seems to involve Jing having been born with a crippled right arm that is mysteriously restored to a fully functioning limb with the help of a gun (this is only really supported by the fact that young Jing in this story never uses nor reveals his right arm). The gun is delivered by Postino, who was told by Jing's mother to bring it to him on his tenth birthday "at any cost", "not one day late," and that it "will be needed for your right hand." How exactly the gun restores his arm, however, is unclear.
Jing also carries around with him a crystal, imbedded with the image of a woman's head with long hair, already in his possession from the beginning of the series. The crystal, too, is never explained. All that is known is that it is of great importance to Jing—when robbed by another thief in the first volume, Jing corners him and allows him to keep the jewels he stole, provided he returns the crystal. Fans have speculated that the crystal may be connected to his mother somehow, increased by scenes in which he thinks about her (such as after he released Cidre, the first Jing Girl and half of the Double Mermaid, where he looks at the crystal while doing so) however, as of yet there is no concrete evidence that this is the case.
Jing (ジン Jin)
He is the protagonist of the series. A dashing young black haired thief in a flowing orange trenchcoat, his exceptional skills and dedication are seemingly contradicted by his laid-back manner. He approaches life with a disarming, confident cheerfulness, selecting his targets seemingly on a whim. Because he is such a legendary figure, many people are surprised when they meet him in person, as he is rather small and unassuming at first glance. His skills as a thief, however, are without equal. He travels the world with his best friend, Kir, a talking albatross bird with whom he can combine to unleash the deadly Kir Royale attack, which is a green ball of energy shot out of Kir's mouth. He also holds a hidden retractable knife in his left sleeve and usually uses it when the Kir Royale would be a waste; its worth noting that the knife goes through a small handful of 'upgrades:' as a boy, it seemingly hid oversized kitchen utensils, in the primary series it becomes a simple slightly curved single edged knife, and by the time of Twilight Tales - its a full blown double-edged blade almost the size of a short sword. He isn't restricted to this however, as he also seems to be capable of turning anything into a weapon, such as wires as seen when he traps attack dogs or an umbrella he uses to diffuse a Kir Royale blast. That said though, his single greatest weapon is his mind - although never really highlighted, Jing is an extremely keen analyst, almost impossibly clever in executing his plans, and most importantly - has a talent for improvising when something actually doesn't work out his way (a rarity in itself). Strangely, his single greatest treasure is a simple green necklace, which never truly has its purpose revealed.
Kir (キール Kiiru)
He is Jing's sidekick, a feisty talking avian with a big mouth. Despite being a bird, he is constantly chasing human women, and usually hits on each episode's Jing Girl at every opportunity. Nonetheless, he is always rejected (curiously, the rejection is always due to his mannerisms and personality, and not the fact that he is a bird). Kir is a bit greedier than Jing and often wonders why the latter doesn't go after targets with more monetary value. Nonetheless, he is a steadfast friend and invaluable partner to Jing. As noted, Kir is Jing's primary source of firepower - when fused onto his right arm, he can fire a large ball of energy aptly named 'Kir Royale,' it should also be noted that although seemingly infinite in power - Kir has shown exhaustion over firing too many in a sequence. In this fused form, Kir can also grant Jing some limited flight. In a certain chapter involving a porvora delivery, its seen for the first and only time that Kir isn't unique to his species; mines around the world that Jing takes place make full use of these birds for demolition purposes - as such, the question is whether or not the Kir Royale is any stronger than that of his brethren's blasts.
Postino
He is the only other recurring character, and is a good example of the series' surreal tone. Postino is a mail carrier who travels by motorcycle, and whose route seems to include the entire world. He appears, seemingly on cue, at some point in each episode just as Jing is in need of help. He drives up, delivers a clue or plot exposition, and then drives away, and is not seen again for the remainder of the story. Postino is both a parody of Deus ex machina plot devices, and an example of the surreal and sometimes illogical world which Jing inhabits. Postino appeared only once in the original manga, in the "Amarcord" story. He appears twice in the Twilight Tales series, once in volume one, and once in volume five.
| # | Title | Original Airdate | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | "1st Shot: The Capital of Thieves" (1st SHOT: ドロボウの都) |
2002-05-15 | |
| The first episode takes place in a town called the Capital of Thieves, as Jing and Kir attempt to steal the mysterious Double Mermaid jewels, which in actuality are living beings. The Double Mermaid is kept at the top of a large tower that the tyrant in charge of the town has constructed. Many thieves have died trying to get to the top of this tower. Eventually Jing is able to make a giant bird angry enough to grow wings and fly him to the top of the tower. The item that Jing steals is the jewel that was created by the mother's and daughter's tears mingled together. | |||
| 02 | "2nd Shot: The Ghost Ship of Blue Hawaii" (2nd SHOT: ブルーハワイの幽霊船) |
2002-05-22 | |
| The second episode involves a trip to a town called Blue Hawaii and a rumored Ghost Ship that lies off its coast. The ship in reality is a casino powered by greed and desire, whose power source Jing steals. The Jing girl in this episode is Rose the daughter of Chief Police in the city, and whose father is trapped in the Casino of Greed. In the casino/boat Jing and Kir amass a lot of money, winning every game they participate in. Eventually the operator of this casino takes notice to them. Jing ends up figuring out that the casino's inhabitants are in reality lost souls consumed by greed and trapped in the gold coins. He defeats the gold coins because as the King of Bandits he is able to control his own desires and not fuel their power. This is apparently the source of Jing's true power as the bandit king. At the end of the episode Rose gives Jing a kiss. Postinos Riddle: The Ghost Ship runs on Greed and Desire. | |||
| 03 | "3rd Shot: The Adonis Capital of Time (Part 1)" (3rd SHOT: 時の都アドニス 前編) |
2002-05-29 | |
| The third episode involves the town of Adonis. The town is run by time. Jing and Kir defeat the guards at the entrance and rescue a girl named Mirabelle from being executed. The main crime in this town is being late. If you are 5 seconds late, the punishment is execution. After they save Mirabelle they are chased by the Master of the town. Mirabelle saves them by showing them to a place called Neverland for refugees. | |||
| 04 | "4th Shot: The Adonis Capital of Time (Part 2)" (4th SHOT: 時の都アドニス 後編) |
2002-06-05 | |
| This is the second part of the two-part chapter in Jing: King of Bandits. Mirabelle brought the two to the Neverland and as turns out, are being hunted by Adonis, wanted for many time-related crimes. Jing devised a plan to infiltrate the castle and stop the time clock, thus, stealing Adonis's "time". In the end Adonis was put to an end and Jing got to try the Pure "Clockwork Grape". | |||
| 05 | "5th Shot: The Little Girl from Technicolor Town" (5th SHOT: 色彩都市の少女) |
2002-06-12 | |
| The fifth episode has Jing and Kir help a young daughter of an artist complete his final work of art before his death. | |||
| 06 | "6th Shot: The Eternal City Of Reviva (Part 1)" (6th SHOT: 不死の都リヴァイヴァ 前編) |
2002-06-19 | |
|
Jing and Kir start off by crashing the party of a baby prince at his castle and soon hear about a city, Reviva, whose people hold the secret to eternal life. The two set off with this episode's Jing-girl, Vermouth, to find the city. They are pursued the entire time by a duo also seeking the secret to eternal life, a scholar called Pernod (eerily similar to Malcolm MacDowell in the movie Clockwork Orange) and his well-built lackey, China Lilet. They pursue the three at a distance most of the time and more often than not just follow in the footsteps of Jing when solving puzzles or overcoming obstacles. The episode closes, to be continued in episode 7, shortly after Jing and his companions battle a skeleton who is cursed to drink wine for all eternity, only to have it spill back into the barrel again. The skeleton thanks them for freeing him from his curse and goes to spread his cape and stand on a small boat to act as a sail. Postino's Riddle: "Yeah, I deliver letters for them sometimes. But you know, I've never seen an obituary come out of that town." |
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| 07 | "7th Shot: The Eternal City Of Reviva (Part 2)" (7th SHOT: 不死の都リヴァイヴァ 後編) |
2002-06-26 | |
|
Jing, Kir and Vermouth continue on their sail boat to the city of Reviva, which has long been abandoned by its citizens and is inhabited only by the king, who still guards the water of eternal life. He congratulates Jing, whom he calls "The Minstrel," for coming so far and tells him of his plan to make Jing the new king of Reviva. Vermouth is injured in a battle with Leviathon, a giant fish that the king has been pursuing for ages, and is, to the great surprise of Jing and Kir, repaired by the king. The king apparently constructed her for the purpose of finding a new king. Jing and his companions are then drawn into battle with the scholar and his lackey, who has been modified by the scholar with robotic parts and a remote-control. In the end, the scholar and his lackey are tangled up and forced into becoming part of a perpetual motion machine and Jing pours out the water of eternal life, stating that shining for only a second is better than living a dull grey life for all of eternity. Postino's Riddle: None, this episode is the second in a series. See Episode 6. |
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| 08 | "8th Shot: Don't Drop the Por Vora" (8th SHOT: 爆弾生物ポルヴォーラ) |
2002-07-03 | |
|
Jing and Kir go on a quest to find the lost Sun Stone and pick up a shipment of two Por Vora along the way. In addition to dangerous and magical environments, the Por Vora are explosive. Jing and Kir hook up with this episode's Jing-girl, Izarra, and just narrowly make it to their destination, Sungria, with just one Por Vora. The other sacrifices itself to save the others. Jing uses his typically inexplicable knowledge of treasure to reveal the Sun Stone using the Mercury Stone to activate it. Izarra adopts the Por Vora as Jing and Kir vanish into the clouds, hitching a ride on the rising Sun Stone. Postino's Riddle: "I'm not permitted to handle dangerous creatures like the Por Vora. I'm prohibited from delivering radioactive or poisonous cargo." This is not necessarily a riddle, but reinstates what has already been mentioned about the Por Vora's dangerous nature. |
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| 09 | "9th Shot: The Musical Island of Coco-Oco" (9th SHOT: 調べの島ココ·オコ) |
2002-07-17 | |
| Jing and Kir travel to the musical island of Coco-Oco. At the beginning of the episode, Kir becomes irritated with Jing and goes off on his own. Kir almost drowns but is saved by Mimosa, this episode's Jing girl. Jing goes off on his own to investigate the rumor of the Ocarina of the Moon. Mimosa goes to a cave on the island to watch the guy she likes called Russian playing a flute. Most of the rest of the episode is spent developing her character and their relation. At the end of the episode, Kir gets Jing to show up to save Russian from the collapsed cave, where all four find that the Ocarina of the Moon was in fact the moon shining beautifully through the cave like music. Mimosa and Russian have a cute little scene at the end and Kir and Jing settle their argument. Jing reflects that "this is one thing we can never steal". Jing and Kir leave on the train heading for Zaza. | |||
| 10 | "10th Shot: The Lullaby of the Por Vora" (10th SHOT: ポルヴォーラの子守歌) |
2002-07-24 | |
| Jing finds the secret Por Vora city Bluwari and is invited to stay there forever but he declines. A trio of criminals infiltrate the building and hack into a room 'that should not be opened' and thus the self-destruct mechanism was turned on to ensure that the Por Vora secret never leaked out. | |||
| 11 | "11th Shot: The Masquerade Ball of ZaZa (Part 1)" (11th SHOT: ザザの仮面舞踏会 前編) |
2002-07-31 | |
| Jing and Kir are in ZaZa planning to attend what was thought of as a masquerade ball, but it turns out the sign read "Mas Corrida", and corrida is a bullfighting term. Suddenly, Jing and Kir are in the middle of a nationwide masked gladiator tournament to determine the new Earl of ZaZa and receive the Vintage Smile, a pearl white mask Jing came to steal. Jing finds out from Angostura Sr., that Madame DuBonnet didn't mourn for the loss of her husband, but was severely crushed when her only son, Lemon, was murdered by his uncle. The Madame grew cold and heartless, and ordered these tournaments to force everyone to fight until no warrior is left standing. Her main targets are the D'Ice Brothers: Baffle, Crash and Cube, the three who assassinated Lemon. After humiliating an opponent in true bandit fashion, Jing witnesses Cube's devastating defeat at the hands of a mysterious warrior in blood-red armor and demon motifs. | |||
| 12 | "12th Shot: The Masquerade Ball of ZaZa (Part 2)" (12th SHOT: ザザの仮面舞踏会 中編) |
2002-08-07 | |
| Jing has advanced into the Black Corrida, which is the final stages of battle. During the time, more plotting from the D'Ice Brothers are in the works to take the role of Earl by force, while Jing plots his own caper. Miss Stir unexpectedly comes across Jing while walking through the palace, but she didn't notice him as the King of Bandits. After defeating Crash, Jing finds himself surrounded by all three D'Ice Brothers, but one Kir Royale later and the brothers get blasted. Having escaped the D'Ice Brothers' wrath, Jing finds himself face to face with the demonic warrior who brutalized Cube who is simply known as "The Warrior of the Rising Son". | |||
| 13 | "13th Shot: The Masquerade Ball of ZaZa (Part 3)" (13th SHOT: ザザの仮面舞踏会 後編) |
2002-08-14 | |
| The fight continued on until the night with Jing and the red-armored warrior matching each other blow for blow. Just as Jing disarms the warrior's sword, Cube smashes the warrior to gain vengeance. The armor shatters and to everyone's shock, it revealed Miss Stir! Before anyone can act, Jing carried Stir and jumped towards the Madame's balcony so she can rest. Baffle suddenly captures Jing and hopes to execute him, but Angostura halts Baffle letting him know the law in ZaZa. Jing, ever so crafty, decides to have one more battle with Baffle. However, before the match, he switched masks and clothes with Angostura in order to reach Stir and the Vintage Smile. During Stir's rest, the cold-hearted Madame cried and took off her mask revealing her face. Then, everything in ZaZa was back to normal. Jing got the Vintage Smile while his friend Ginjou got everything else. However, Baffle was on Jing's trail and Jing finally put an end to the D'Ice Brothers' evil with a Kir Royale blast. Afterwards, Kir started to get that look in Jing's eye that something happened between him and Stir. When the masquerade ball was back to dancing instead of fighting, Stir put off every man who wanted to dance with her so she can save the first dance for Jing. | |||
| OVA | "Seventh Heaven" (Seventh Heaven) |
Unknown | |
| Based on Volume 4 of the Manga. It's a three part OVA. Jing gets arrested and incarcerated in the infamous prison known as Seventh Heaven--in order to talk to Campari, a conjuror who discovered a dream orb that could crystallize dreams. But when he finds himself sucked into a dream world of Campari's own making, a little more than Jing's freedom is on the line. In the Extra Shot, the story of how Jing and Kir met for the first time is told. | |||
Volume 1 - Chapters: 1st shot - in the City of Thieves, 2nd shot - Mystery of the Phantom Ship, 3rd shot - the King of Bandit's Test, 4th shot - No Time for Adonis, early design collection.
Volume 2 - Chapters: 5th Shot - The Flower of Neverland, 6th shot - How to Steal Time, 7th shot - The Clockwork Grape, 8th shot - The Most Dangerous Cargo, 9th shot - Incandescent Memories, Jing: King of Bandits initial setup collection (2)
Volume 3 - Chapters: 10th shot - the Goddess of Sungaria, 11th shot - Country of Tears, 12th shot - Town of Eternal Life, 13th shot - Lips of an Old Woman, 14th shot - Seven Colors of Ascension, initial set-up collection (3).
Volume 4 - Chapters: 15th shot - Seventh Heaven, 16th shot - Prison of Dreams, 17th shot - A Sneeze From the Sun, 18th shot - the Hometown's Whereabouts, Extra Shot 1 - Amarcord First Volume, Extra Shot 2 - Amarcord Last Volume, initial set-up collection (4).
Volume 5 - Chapters: 19th shot - Zaza's Masquerade, 20th shot - Vintage Smile, 21st shot - the Warrior of the Rising Sun, 22nd shot - At the End of a Desperate Struggle, 23rd shot - Tears of an Unmasked Face, 24th shot - Waltz of the Wind, King of Bandits Crime Report.
Volume 6 - Chapters: 25th shot - Electricity Killed the Cat, 26th shot - the Sea in the Sky, 27th shot - the Navel's True Nature, 28th shot - A Colossus of Clouds, 29th shot - Lights Out, 30th shot - Mother Ocean, initial set-up collection (5).
Volume 7 - Chapters: 31st shot - Girl On Auction, 32nd shot - Black Market, 33rd shot - Crimson Lake, 34th shot - the Fifth Element, 35th shot - Burning House of Ice River, 36th shot - Full Color Cemetery, 37th shot - White Tapestry, Crime Report - Second Edition.
Volume 1 - Chapters: 1st Shot - Les Enfants Du Paradis - Part One, 2nd Shot - Les Enfants Du Paradis - Part Two, 3rd Shot - The Patchwork City, 4th Shot - God's Brain
Volume 2 - Chapters: 5th Shot - the Lady of Roentgen Street, 6th Shot - the Power of Holy Body Grafting, 7th Shot - Thirty-Four Pursuers, 8th Shot - A Medicine Called Freedom, 9th Shot - The End of Judgement, 10th Shot - The Naked World, Unpublished Story - Joshua Tree, Gameboy Sketches
Volume 3 - Chapters: 11th Shot - Coronation of the Lost King, 12th Shot - The Truth About the Recipe, 13th Shot - Expiration Date of a Bride, 14th Shot - Revolution In the Kitchen, 15th Shot - Evil Ingredients, 16th Shot - The Blessing of the Horn, 17th Shot - The Silent Banquet, Gameboy Sketches
Volume 4 - Chapters: 18th shot - Love Tax Evader, 19th shot - Mass in the Fog, 20th shot - Eternally Brokenhearted, 21st shot - Love Paid, 22nd shot - Accidental Accomplices, 23rd shot - Where Fog is Born, 24th shot - La Vie en Rose, Gameboy Sketches
Volume 5 - Chapters: 25th shot - Crime of Passion, 26th shot - the Graveyard of Memories, 27th shot - the Answer to the Riddle, 28th shot - the Wind of Time, 29th shot - the First and Last Question, Extra Shot - Jing el Sur.
Volume 6 - Chapters: 30th shot - the Merry Widow Banquet, 31st shot - the Silent Flower, 32nd shot - Melody of Malady, 33rd shot - Rhapsody in Blue, 34th shot - Optimum Variation.
Volume 7 - Chapters: 35th shot - At the Bottom of the Black Velvet.