TV-Series
Description
Bakkubeado, also known as Backbeard, is a major antagonist in the Gegege no Kitarō series who holds the distinction of being the most powerful Western yōkai, frequently opposing Kitarō and Japanese yōkai. His appearance is consistently that of a giant sphere with one large central eye encircled by a colored eyelid and numerous short tentacles, though the specific details shift across different adaptations. In the first anime, he appears as a black sphere with light grey skin, while the third anime depicts him with a yellow sclera, red iris, and blue eyelid. The fourth anime retains the yellow sclera and red iris while adding a visible pupil, and the fifth anime features a white sclera, red iris, and longer tentacles. The sixth anime significantly alters his look with a green eyelid, yellow sclera streaked with violet veins, a dark ring around the red iris, and tentacles resembling cracks in the sky. This version also grants him a physical humanoid form with green-tinted skin, where his eye migrates from his abdomen to his face.
His personality is marked by pride, moodiness, and a fierce disdain for Japanese yōkai, whom he deems weak. He espouses social Darwinist beliefs, asserting that the strong possess the right to dominate and eliminate the weak. Despite his arrogance, he displays obedience toward stronger entities like Akashita. In the sixth anime, his villainy escalates significantly, as he demonstrates zero loyalty to his followers, sacrificing Agnès mother for the Ring of Arcana and injuring Adél to force Agnès into the Brigadoon Project, with his ultimate goal being to strip global yōkai of free will for blind obedience. His personality amalgamates traits from his followers: Wolfgangs contempt for weakness, Carmillas sadism, Victor Frankensteins amorality, and the mystical prowess of Adél and Agnès. He relishes his position in the Western yōkai hierarchy and leverages promises of power to recruit figures like Belial.
Bakkubeado originated in the 1966 manga story The Great Yōkai War, where he leads Western yōkai including Dracula and Frankenstein to invade Kikai Island, slaughtering half its population and nearly exterminating the Kitarō family. After hypnotizing Kitarō, he is defeated when Medama-Oyaji stabs his eye. In Yōkai Rally, representing the United States, he displays callousness by hitting Umibōzu child with his car and using his dizziness powers to gain an advantage. After finishing third, he protests the results but backs down when challenged by Akashita. Later manga stories reveal unexpected alliances, such as in Kitarōs Vietnam War where he aids Medama-Oyaji in locating a spy, and in Yōkai Lockheed where he reverses hypnosis on Kitarō and blinds the Great Witch. Even when cooperative, he retains malicious tendencies, causing traffic accidents for amusement. In Kitarōs World Obake Tour, he attempts to steal a rocket by blinding its pilot and captures Nezumi-Otoko, only to be bisected by a pendulum and weakened as his halves dizzy each other. The sixth anime expands his role considerably, depicting the Brigadoon Project and his manipulation of the Arlene sisters for the Ring of Arcana, culminating in his revival after an initial defeat.
His primary abilities center on his eye, which allows him to induce hypnosis to control minions or counter spells, inflict dizziness on opponents, emit heat beams that ignite targets, fire concentrated energy beams, and generate lightning. His tentacles lash out as versatile weapons for stabbing, binding, or capturing foes, and he can also manifest limbs as needed, such as during sumo competitions. His characteristic fighting style often involves cheating or using underhanded tactics, as seen during Boze sumo tournament in Kitarō Kunitori Monogatari, where he uses his eye powers and tendril stabbings but ultimately loses to Kitarō.
His personality is marked by pride, moodiness, and a fierce disdain for Japanese yōkai, whom he deems weak. He espouses social Darwinist beliefs, asserting that the strong possess the right to dominate and eliminate the weak. Despite his arrogance, he displays obedience toward stronger entities like Akashita. In the sixth anime, his villainy escalates significantly, as he demonstrates zero loyalty to his followers, sacrificing Agnès mother for the Ring of Arcana and injuring Adél to force Agnès into the Brigadoon Project, with his ultimate goal being to strip global yōkai of free will for blind obedience. His personality amalgamates traits from his followers: Wolfgangs contempt for weakness, Carmillas sadism, Victor Frankensteins amorality, and the mystical prowess of Adél and Agnès. He relishes his position in the Western yōkai hierarchy and leverages promises of power to recruit figures like Belial.
Bakkubeado originated in the 1966 manga story The Great Yōkai War, where he leads Western yōkai including Dracula and Frankenstein to invade Kikai Island, slaughtering half its population and nearly exterminating the Kitarō family. After hypnotizing Kitarō, he is defeated when Medama-Oyaji stabs his eye. In Yōkai Rally, representing the United States, he displays callousness by hitting Umibōzu child with his car and using his dizziness powers to gain an advantage. After finishing third, he protests the results but backs down when challenged by Akashita. Later manga stories reveal unexpected alliances, such as in Kitarōs Vietnam War where he aids Medama-Oyaji in locating a spy, and in Yōkai Lockheed where he reverses hypnosis on Kitarō and blinds the Great Witch. Even when cooperative, he retains malicious tendencies, causing traffic accidents for amusement. In Kitarōs World Obake Tour, he attempts to steal a rocket by blinding its pilot and captures Nezumi-Otoko, only to be bisected by a pendulum and weakened as his halves dizzy each other. The sixth anime expands his role considerably, depicting the Brigadoon Project and his manipulation of the Arlene sisters for the Ring of Arcana, culminating in his revival after an initial defeat.
His primary abilities center on his eye, which allows him to induce hypnosis to control minions or counter spells, inflict dizziness on opponents, emit heat beams that ignite targets, fire concentrated energy beams, and generate lightning. His tentacles lash out as versatile weapons for stabbing, binding, or capturing foes, and he can also manifest limbs as needed, such as during sumo competitions. His characteristic fighting style often involves cheating or using underhanded tactics, as seen during Boze sumo tournament in Kitarō Kunitori Monogatari, where he uses his eye powers and tendril stabbings but ultimately loses to Kitarō.