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Noir is a popular series about an assassin named Mireille who receives a message on her computer telling her to come search for the past.

Mireille then heads to Japan and meets a young girl, Kirika, who has an amazing talent for killing. Kirika also has no memory of who she is or how she aquired her special skills. Reluctantly, Mireille teams up with Kirika, not only to find Kirika's missing past, but also to answer the questions that haunt her own life. They take the name Noir, with no idea of the secrets that lie behind the name "Noir".

Noir was well received when broadcasted in Japan during a 26-episode TV Series. It has a European style and unusual plots which makes it a good Anime Series to follow.

NOIR AT A GLANCE

• Director: Koichi Mashimo
• Genre: Dark and voilent Anime! Noir meaning black in French. Contains no funny scenes.
• Main Character:: Mireille Bouquet and Kirika Yuumura.
• Episodes: 26 TV episodes that first aired in 2001.
• Official Website: Project Noir - Workfile

Major Character

Mireille Bouquet

An efficient killer and somewhat cold woman, Mireille lost her mother, father and older brother to an assassin when she was young. She views her violent occupation as just that, a job, one that puts food on the table. At first, she seems to have no use for soul-searching, but disturbing memories of her family's murder, and being with Kirika begin to allow her to look more deeply at herself. Mireille is actually the least interesting character in Noir; she doesn't have Altena's conviction, Kirika's misery, and even when she realizes how much she cares for Kirika, her emotions can't hold a candle to Chloe's.

Kirika Yuumura

The young amnesiac who kills without emotion, but then is brought to tears by the fact that she isn't sad about killing. She tells Mireille that as soon as they find out who she (Kirika) really is, Mireille can kill her, and Mireille agrees without hesitation. Kirika never backs down on this, and even so, she begins to view Mireille as a friend (maybe even a mother figure?). She even gives up a chance to find her answers to save Mireille's life. It's obvious from the beginning that Kirika's skills far surpass Mireille's, even as young as Kirika is, and there's a certain amount of jealousy on Mireille's part.

Chloe

A girl raised by the same secret society that ordered the hit on Mireille's family, Chloe is, for me, the best character in the series. The same age as Kirika, Chloe witnessed Kirika's first killing, and decided she too would become an assassin. She carries out her missions and seems to wipe the memory from her mind, evidenced by her unusually cheerful disposition.

There's an interesting episode in which Chloe actually saves her target from another group of assassins, and strikes up a friendship with him, but in the end has no problem killing him (although she does keep a promise she made to him when he realized she came to kill him).

Chloe's near-obsessive desire to be best friends with Kirika stems from her belief that they are the true Noir, and nothing (not even Mireille) should come between them. This is what causes her breakdown; the realization that Kirika has chosen Mireille over her. Chloe's rage is, by far, the coolest scene in the series; her skills are comparable to Kirika's, and her devastation at the ruining of the one thing she'd strived her entire life for is more than evident. Yet she dies with a smile on her face, whispering "Noir", as though she never really gave up on Kirika, or was it that the very idea of Noir was a cruel joke at her expense?

Altena

The most feared and respected individual in the Soldats, Altena's will never wavers, and she is willing to sacrifice anything or anyone to see her dream of the true Noir come to pass. She starts off as the mother-saviour, always with a look of calm tranquility on her face (a look she keeps even in death).

There's a scene in which Altena, as a child, wanders the desert of her war-torn country, and is picked up and subsequently raped by a soldier. This more than accounts for her motto, "If love can kill, then surely hate can save."

Chloe worships her, and she treats Chloe as though she were her own child. Until the end, when it is revealed that Altena fully expected Kirika and Mireille to be the true Noir; Chloe was just a means to an end. Her death, and Mireille and Kirika's dialogue before and after her death appear to show that Altena was right all along.


Message to Members

So..., any thoughts? For those of you who have seen the series, do you agree with my ideas about the characters? I tried to provide as in-depth an analysis as I could, but if you disagree with anything, feel free to discuss. Also, if I got anything in the series wrong (I haven't watched it in quite a while), let the moderators know so they can edit this Sticky.

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LenMiyata

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ADV Films currently has the US/Canada/Region 1 license for this series...

Project Noir - Workfile: ADV Films Official Website

The series is also currently licensed in Australia by Madman

Noir: Madman Catalog Page

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