Automoderated users, Autopatrolled users, Bureaucrats, Comment administrators, Confirmed users, Moderators, Rollbackers, Administrators
214,447
edits
m (remove unneccessary quote box template) |
No edit summary |
||
(10 intermediate revisions by 5 users not shown) | |||
Line 1:
{{trope}}
[
The '''Phantom Thief''' is a special class of criminal. An elusive and fantastic thief who can be long gone before the victim even knows what hit him. Just as likely to be an antihero as a villain.▼
▲[-{{quote box|Dear [[TV Tropes]]: By the time you find this, I will have made my escape with your precious page image.<br />Thank you for your contribution to my collection.}}-]
▲The Phantom Thief is a special class of criminal. An elusive and fantastic thief who can be long gone before the victim even knows what hit him. Just as likely to be an antihero as a villain.
There is no single set model of the Phantom Thief, but they usually have some of the following characteristics.
Line 18 ⟶ 14:
* Steals as a form of vigilante justice.
* May or may not actually [[Impossible Thief|break the laws of physics]] to achieve their goal.
* An [[Escape Artist]] who is hard to catch and even harder to hold.
Particularly common in Japanese media, stemming from the popularity of [[
Compare [[Gentleman Thief]] and [[Classy Cat Burglar]]. If part of their motivation is the thrill of stealing then they are also [[The Kleptomaniac]]. See also [[Loveable Rogue]], [[Anti Hero]].▼
▲Compare [[Gentleman Thief]] and [[Classy Cat Burglar]]. If part of their motivation is the thrill of stealing then they are also [[The Kleptomaniac]]. See also [[Loveable Rogue]], [[Anti
{{examples|Examples:}}▼
== [[Advertising]] ==
* McDonalds' Hamburglar.
Line 40 ⟶ 36:
* Kaitou Kid (literally known as the Phantom Thief Kid) from ''[[Detective Conan]]'' and ''[[Magic Kaito]]'' has this [[Incredibly Lame Pun|in spades]].
* In the [[Boys Love]] manga ''[[Gorgeous Carat]]'', main character Ray is also known as Phantom Thief Noir.
* ''[[
* X in ''[[Majin Tantei Nougami Neuro]]''. Unfortunately, those aren't [[Serial Killer|his only crimes]]...
* Phantom Renegade of ''[[Medabots]]'' steals rare medals in order to keep them out of the wrong hands. He would actually do a pretty good job, if he didn't clumsily lose them right after gloating over his successful heist.
Line 49 ⟶ 45:
* ''[[King of Bandit Jing]]''
* ''[[Mouse]]''
* ''
* One of the earliest examples is probably [[Osamu Tezuka]]'s ''[[Rainbow Parakeet]]'', whose unusual name comes from his mastery of disguise & ability to mimic voices.
* Played with in ''[[Ghost in
* Called out to, but not really played right with [http://www.mangareader.net/hayate-the-combat-butler/317/6 Fumi and Sharna] of ''[[
* In ''[[One Piece]]'', Nami can steal practically anything without anyone noticing (as seen in the Drum arc). However she prefers to brag.
* The Black Rose in ''[[Ashita no Nadja]]''.
* Le Bled from ''[[Steam Detectives]]''. Also known as Phantom Thief Le Bled!
== [[Comic Books]] ==
* The Rogue from ''[[The Maze Agency]]''.
* [[Fantomas]] (the Mexican comic book version anyway.)
Line 64 ⟶ 60:
* Sir Charles Lytton, a.k.a. 'the Phantom', from ''[[The Pink Panther]]'' and sequels.
== [[Literature]] ==
* [[
* [[The Saint]]
* The Gray Ghosts in the ''[[Shadowleague]]'' books.
* Conina from ''[[
* The titular character of the German gangster spoof series ''[[Dickie Dick Dickens]]'' has traces of this, being a Chicago gangster in the 1920s who uses trickery, charm and his [[Impossible Thief|impossibly well-honed skills as a pickpocket]] to reach his goal. His son, Donald D. Doberman, is an even clearer example of the trope.
* ''[[Old
{{quote|
For when they reach the scene of crime--Macavity's not there! }}
* Comus from the [[Ellery Queen]] short story "The Dauphin's Doll" in ''Calendar of Crime''.
== [[Live
* [[Kamen Rider Decade|Kamen Rider Diend]]
* ''[[Iljimae|Il Ji-mae]]''{{context}}
* Parker on [[Leverage]] is this, being the only member of the team to never have been put in prison.
Line 83 ⟶ 79:
* Trilby epitomizes this trope in ''[[The Art of Theft]]''. He continues to be one in ''[[The Chzo Mythos]]'', though he soon finds his chosen vocation can be stressful.
* Neeshka from ''[[Neverwinter Nights 2]]'', although certainly interested in money, mostly sees burglary as a sort of competitive game, taking delight in difficult heists.
* In ''Phoenix Wright: [[Ace Attorney]]: Trials and Tribulations'', Mask☆DeMasque (yes, [[Lucky Charms Title|complete with the star]]) is a
** {{spoiler|Guess what: he really isn't. Further guess what: he really is ''but'' he didn't commit the theft in question - that was Atmey, who was responsible for putting him up to most of his previous heists and was using this one [[Crazy Awesome|as an alibi]].}}
** It's an awesome moment when {{spoiler|you get the [[Loveable Rogue|loveable little bastard]] cleared of all the crimes he actually did commit, almost by accident}}.
** ''Ace Attorney Investigations'' has another in "The Great Yatagarasu", a sort of [[Intrepid Reporter]] version of the [[Vigilante Man]]. The Yatagarasu has two odd quirks compared to other phantom thieves. First; the Yatagarasu doesn't steal much that's tangible. Rahter, the thief makes off with evidence of [[Corrupt Corporate Executive|dirty dealings]] and makes them public. Secondly, the Yatagarasu doesn't actually send calling cards to the victim beforehand. Rather, the victim doesn't know that their info was even stolen, until it shows up on the news, having been delivered to the authorities alongside a calling card. {{spoiler|Actually, there's [[Collective Identity|three of "him"]], all [[Cowboy Cop
*** Related is Kay Faraday, who claims to be the new Yatagarasu though [[The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything|she doesn't actually ever steal anything]]. Bonus points for managing the unlikely combination of [[Highly
* In the ''[[Thief]]'' series, Garrett is a classic
** The higher difficulty levels impose a code of honor (no killing humans; zombies and the like are fair game). The [[Fandom]] takes it further still, with a common [[Self
*** To clarify, Ghosting means leaving no evidence anyone was there. No unlocked doors (lock them again), nobody looked round and asked "What's that noise?", no broken windows, no doused torches (in Thief 2, which this is very popular for, re-lighting torches is easy) and definitely nobody injured or killed. The only difference is all the loot is gone.
* Skye from ''[[Harvest Moon]] DS Cute'' is widely known as "Phantom Skye". He doesn't seem to steal for any other reason other than for the fun of it (or, should you choose to woo him, to meet with the player).
** Actually, Skye steals because {{spoiler|he wants to make really good curry. The items he steals are ingredients and other people's curry dishes (to taste them).}}
* [[Classy Cat Burglar|Kasumi Goto]] of ''[[Mass Effect 2]]''.
{{quote|
** She would lampshade leaving notes and signs of her robberies by saying her partner\lover Keiji got her out of the habit.
* [[Sly Cooper]].
* ''[[Wario
* The Phantom from ''[[Maple Story]]'', the member of the Thief class among the original Five Heroes who sealed [[Big Bad|The Black Mage]].
* Most versions of [[Carmen Sandiego]].
== [[Web Comics]] ==
Line 110 ⟶ 108:
{{reflist}}
[[Category:Steal This Index]]
[[Category:Criminals]]
▲[[Category:Trope]]
|