Jing: King of Bandits - Characters

Characters

Jing (ジン Jin)

Voiced by: Mitsuki Saiga (Japanese), Joey Hood (English)

He is the protagonist of the series and The Bandit Boy Wonder. A 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)

Voiced by: Ryusei Nakao (Japanese), Ron Berry (English)

He is Jing's sidekick and partner in crime, 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

Voiced by: Shin-ichiro Miki (Japanese), Gary Haddock (English)

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.