Man of Many Faces

Everything About Fiction You Never Wanted to Know.
A master thief has his own heart stolen.


A two-volume Manga by CLAMP, it follows the nine-year old Akira who steals valuable objects for his two mothers, known to the public as the 'Man of 20 faces'.

Then he runs into a young girl named Utako in the middle of one of his crimes, and end up striking a friendship that eventually becomes something more.

The eponymous thief is also part of the CLAMP School Detectives (for reasons entirely based on Rule of Funny).


Tropes used in Man of Many Faces include:
  • Bishonen: It is a CLAMP story, but even being a boy doesn't stop Akira from falling into this. We do see he gets it from his father.
  • Child Prodigy
  • Christmas Episode: Where Akira's dad shows up dressed as Santa Claus.
  • Distant Finale: Akira has retired from crime, and is starting a legit job as a teacher.
  • Feminine Women Can Cook: Utako becomes obsessed with becoming a good cook, seamstress, and other things, hoping to win Akira's heart, although it turns out she didn't need to.
  • Gentleman Thief
  • Has Two Mommies
  • Kid Hero
  • Precocious Crush: Akira is nine, and Utako is five, when they meet. So it would count as this trope.
    • It especially counts when earlier Utako had a crush on her teacher, who says it can't work out (for obvious reasons).
  • Pretty in Mink: The second volume cover art, and a couple of the pictures in the manga.
  • Sleeping Single: In the Epilogue, two separate beds are clearly seen, even though...
  • They Do: ...had already occurred. Likely related to its creation as an "all ages" manga.
  • Whole Costume Reference: Utako wears a little version of the horse race dress from My Fair Lady for one of her birthdays.
  • Wise Beyond Their Years: Many children in CLAMP-manga share this trait. Utako is president of the Kindergarten Student Division Council, at the age of five, and has conversations about love that no normal five-year-old would have, Akira is Elementary School Board Treasurer, and seem to do much of the work at home. Then again, his mothers are more childish than him.