TV-Series
Description
Phantom Thief Kid, often called Kaitou Kid, is a recurring character in Detective Conan. He is a gentleman thief who announces his heists in advance with a notice card, appears in a white suit with white gloves, a top hat, a cape, and a monocle whose clip is shaped like a four-leaf clover, and is known for never killing anyone and for avoiding lethal weapons. His official criminal number is 1412, a designation that became his nickname when a young novelist misread a scribbled number as the word Kid. He is also known by titles such as the Magician Under the Moonlight.
The identity of Kid is currently held by Kaito Kuroba, a seventeen-year-old second-year student at Ekoda High School. The original Kid was Kaito's father, Toichi Kuroba, a world-class magician who first appeared as the phantom thief in Paris eighteen years before the main events of the story. Toichi was killed during a stage show in what was staged to look like an accident, arranged by a mysterious criminal organization that considered him an obstacle in their search for Pandora, a legendary gem said to grant immortality. After Toichi's death, his old assistant and friend, Konosuke Jii, briefly took on the Kid costume to lure out the killers. When Kaito discovered a secret room in his home that his father had prepared for him and learned the truth, he decided to continue the role as the second Kid, both to investigate his father's death and to restore the name of Kaitou Kid to worldwide fame.
Kaito's central motivation is to find Pandora before the organization does and destroy it. Pandora is hidden inside larger jewels and can only be recognized when a gem is held up to moonlight, which is why Kid often checks stolen jewels under the moon before deciding what to do with them. If a stolen gem is not Pandora, he returns it to its owner. Over time his purposes broaden beyond the search for Pandora. He also steals objects in order to return them to their rightful owners, appears at crime scenes to clear his name when criminals misuse his reputation, and accepts challenges from other thieves or wealthy collectors even when the target has no connection to Pandora.
In personality, Kid is a compulsive magician who is drawn to difficult challenges for the thrill of overcoming them. He is highly confident, at times bordering on arrogant, and prefers to make his heists as spectacular as possible. He enjoys leading police on elaborate chases and letting them come close to catching him before escaping in a dramatic way. He has a soft spot for his audience and has refused to proceed with a heist when police tried to keep the public from witnessing his act. He is charming, especially toward women, and seems to know what to say in any situation. He hates to see other people get hurt and will quickly leap to protect someone in danger. Despite being a thief, he has a strong sense of honor, and he will abandon or return loot when it has no further purpose or when keeping it would harm innocent people. In his civilian life, Kaito is a playful and slightly mischievous student who is popular at school. He loves showing magic tricks, often annoys his classmates with pranks such as flipping girls' skirts, and has an extreme fear of fish. He is also known to dislike ice skating and billiards.
Kaito is exceptionally gifted in several areas. He is a careful planner who can design elaborate schemes and improvise when things go wrong. He has a photographic memory, a sharp eye for deception, and is skilled at reading how people think in order to misdirect them. His greatest talents are magic and disguise. He can perfectly imitate almost anyone's appearance, voice, accent, mannerisms, and way of speaking, and can fool even the people closest to the person he is imitating. He is a master of sleight of hand, an expert escapologist who can slip out of handcuffs, and highly skilled in stealth. His equipment includes a cape that converts into a hang glider, a gun that fires sharp metallic playing cards, and smoke bombs. He is athletic and acrobatic, capable of driving vehicles, and talented at lock picking, safe cracking, and even hacking.
Within Detective Conan, Kid serves as a recurring rival to the protagonist, Conan Edogawa. Their encounters usually end with Conan foiling the plan or recovering the treasure while Kid still manages to escape. Although they are opponents, they sometimes work together when their goals align, and Kid has helped Conan from behind the scenes on several occasions, especially in the films. Kid is one of the few characters who knows that Conan is actually Shinichi Kudo. Because Kaito strongly resembles Shinichi in both face and voice, he can impersonate Shinichi without a mask, and he has done so to protect Conan's secret in certain situations. The two share a relationship of mutual respect, and Kid reserves the title of great detective almost exclusively for Conan.
Kid also has meaningful connections with other characters. Inspector Ginzo Nakamori of the police is the officer who has pursued Kid for years and almost always falls for his tricks. Aoko Nakamori, the inspector's daughter, is Kaito's childhood friend and classmate, and she does not know that her friend is the thief she dislikes. Saguru Hakuba is a transfer student and detective who has deduced Kid's identity and frequently challenges him. Akako Koizumi, a classmate with magical abilities, also knows who Kid is. Konosuke Jii continues to support Kaito as his assistant and sometimes serves as a decoy Kid. Jirokichi Suzuki, an advisor to the Suzuki family, repeatedly sets elaborate traps to capture Kid, while his niece Sonoko Suzuki is a devoted fan. Kid also has a historical link to Shinichi's family, since Shinichi's father, Yusaku Kudo, was the young novelist who gave Kid his name and once competed with the original Kid. A later film, The Million-dollar Pentagram, reveals an even deeper connection, as Kaito and Shinichi are the same age and are cousins, their fathers being twin brothers.
Over the course of the series, Kid develops from a figure seeking answers about his father's death into a more openly honorable phantom thief who is willing to cooperate with his rivals when necessary. His identity and motives remain hidden from most characters, but his consistent refusal to kill, his habit of returning unwanted treasures, and his willingness to protect others have made him a distinctive presence in the world of Detective Conan.
The identity of Kid is currently held by Kaito Kuroba, a seventeen-year-old second-year student at Ekoda High School. The original Kid was Kaito's father, Toichi Kuroba, a world-class magician who first appeared as the phantom thief in Paris eighteen years before the main events of the story. Toichi was killed during a stage show in what was staged to look like an accident, arranged by a mysterious criminal organization that considered him an obstacle in their search for Pandora, a legendary gem said to grant immortality. After Toichi's death, his old assistant and friend, Konosuke Jii, briefly took on the Kid costume to lure out the killers. When Kaito discovered a secret room in his home that his father had prepared for him and learned the truth, he decided to continue the role as the second Kid, both to investigate his father's death and to restore the name of Kaitou Kid to worldwide fame.
Kaito's central motivation is to find Pandora before the organization does and destroy it. Pandora is hidden inside larger jewels and can only be recognized when a gem is held up to moonlight, which is why Kid often checks stolen jewels under the moon before deciding what to do with them. If a stolen gem is not Pandora, he returns it to its owner. Over time his purposes broaden beyond the search for Pandora. He also steals objects in order to return them to their rightful owners, appears at crime scenes to clear his name when criminals misuse his reputation, and accepts challenges from other thieves or wealthy collectors even when the target has no connection to Pandora.
In personality, Kid is a compulsive magician who is drawn to difficult challenges for the thrill of overcoming them. He is highly confident, at times bordering on arrogant, and prefers to make his heists as spectacular as possible. He enjoys leading police on elaborate chases and letting them come close to catching him before escaping in a dramatic way. He has a soft spot for his audience and has refused to proceed with a heist when police tried to keep the public from witnessing his act. He is charming, especially toward women, and seems to know what to say in any situation. He hates to see other people get hurt and will quickly leap to protect someone in danger. Despite being a thief, he has a strong sense of honor, and he will abandon or return loot when it has no further purpose or when keeping it would harm innocent people. In his civilian life, Kaito is a playful and slightly mischievous student who is popular at school. He loves showing magic tricks, often annoys his classmates with pranks such as flipping girls' skirts, and has an extreme fear of fish. He is also known to dislike ice skating and billiards.
Kaito is exceptionally gifted in several areas. He is a careful planner who can design elaborate schemes and improvise when things go wrong. He has a photographic memory, a sharp eye for deception, and is skilled at reading how people think in order to misdirect them. His greatest talents are magic and disguise. He can perfectly imitate almost anyone's appearance, voice, accent, mannerisms, and way of speaking, and can fool even the people closest to the person he is imitating. He is a master of sleight of hand, an expert escapologist who can slip out of handcuffs, and highly skilled in stealth. His equipment includes a cape that converts into a hang glider, a gun that fires sharp metallic playing cards, and smoke bombs. He is athletic and acrobatic, capable of driving vehicles, and talented at lock picking, safe cracking, and even hacking.
Within Detective Conan, Kid serves as a recurring rival to the protagonist, Conan Edogawa. Their encounters usually end with Conan foiling the plan or recovering the treasure while Kid still manages to escape. Although they are opponents, they sometimes work together when their goals align, and Kid has helped Conan from behind the scenes on several occasions, especially in the films. Kid is one of the few characters who knows that Conan is actually Shinichi Kudo. Because Kaito strongly resembles Shinichi in both face and voice, he can impersonate Shinichi without a mask, and he has done so to protect Conan's secret in certain situations. The two share a relationship of mutual respect, and Kid reserves the title of great detective almost exclusively for Conan.
Kid also has meaningful connections with other characters. Inspector Ginzo Nakamori of the police is the officer who has pursued Kid for years and almost always falls for his tricks. Aoko Nakamori, the inspector's daughter, is Kaito's childhood friend and classmate, and she does not know that her friend is the thief she dislikes. Saguru Hakuba is a transfer student and detective who has deduced Kid's identity and frequently challenges him. Akako Koizumi, a classmate with magical abilities, also knows who Kid is. Konosuke Jii continues to support Kaito as his assistant and sometimes serves as a decoy Kid. Jirokichi Suzuki, an advisor to the Suzuki family, repeatedly sets elaborate traps to capture Kid, while his niece Sonoko Suzuki is a devoted fan. Kid also has a historical link to Shinichi's family, since Shinichi's father, Yusaku Kudo, was the young novelist who gave Kid his name and once competed with the original Kid. A later film, The Million-dollar Pentagram, reveals an even deeper connection, as Kaito and Shinichi are the same age and are cousins, their fathers being twin brothers.
Over the course of the series, Kid develops from a figure seeking answers about his father's death into a more openly honorable phantom thief who is willing to cooperate with his rivals when necessary. His identity and motives remain hidden from most characters, but his consistent refusal to kill, his habit of returning unwanted treasures, and his willingness to protect others have made him a distinctive presence in the world of Detective Conan.