Line #46 Manga/Mouse


1	[[quoteright:275:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/rsz_dmouse4_000a.jpg]]
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3	->''"There is nothing Mouse cannot steal."''
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5	''Mouse'' is a {{Seinen}} comedy manga written by Satoru Akahori (writer of ''Anime/SaberMarionetteJ'', ''Literature/MazeMegaburstSpace'', and ''Manga/KashimashiGirlMeetsGirl'') and illustrated by Hiroshi Itaba, which was serialized in ''Young Animal'' from 1999 to 2004 and compiled into 14 volumes. It was adapted into a TwelveEpisodeAnime series of 15-minute episodes in 2003.
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7	The series concerns the adventures of the GentlemanThief Mouse and his UnwantedHarem of sex-slaves. In his civilian identity, Sorata Muon is a mild-mannered art teacher who is popular with his female students and gets bullied by his three colleagues- Mei, Yayoi and Hazuki. But in truth, he is the heir to a four-hundred-year-old dynasty of [[PhantomThief Phantom Thieves]], and his female colleagues are actually his devoted assistants and live-in sex-slaves.
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9	The series featured an extreme amount of {{fanservice}}, some truly awful {{pun}}s, full-chapter shout outs, a general attitude of not taking itself very seriously and, beneath it all, an actual story. The fanservice was dialed down a lot in the anime adaptation.
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11	Not to be confused with ''ComicBook/{{Maus}}''.
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13	----
14	!!This show provides examples of:
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16	* AdaptationDyeJob: Sorata's divas. Their sex-slave attire while on the job is all latex black in the manga. The anime gives them colorful variations: Mei -> Red, Yayoi -> Pink, Hazuki -> Blue.
17	** In addition, Yayoi's hair in the manga is mostly depicted as black or [[PurpleIsTheNewBlack dark purple]], but in the anime it's a light brown.
18	* AdvanceNoticeCrime: The eponymous thief announces his crimes before he commits them, specifically to make the heist more challenging. Targets include Swiss banks (as in, ''the entire bank.'' He used a tunnel-boring machine and explosives.), collections of priceless gemstones, and masterpiece clocks. He also ''takes requests,'' stealing a recently-completed artificial island because the Chief of Police dared him to. It's later revealed that, at least some of the time, it's to add to the mystique of the artifacts he steals. For example, a much-touted "perpetual clock" (invented in the 1800s) that was about to wind down. If he'd left it alone, it would have failed in front of the whole world. If it gets stolen by Mouse on its 100th anniversary, the legend is allowed to continue.
19	* AllGirlsWantBadBoys: Subverted strongly. Sorata, in his day-to-day persona, is a kind, gentle, loving young man who is often shown to be clearly uncomfortable with the whole "sex slave" business (even if his ladies themselves often plant their tongues firmly in cheeks when acting it out, see below). As Mouse, Sorata is courageous, cunning, loyal (he says when he retrieves the injured Mei during their first mission together, "Mouse leaves no one behind!") and daring. EVERY woman who sees Sorata goes totally nuts for him.
20	* AllWomenAreLustful: Almost every chapter has Mouse's female assistants trying to have some manner of sex with him, but Mouse just wants them to give him a breather and not do such things.
21	* ArtificialHuman: [[spoiler: One turns out to be a homunculus created by alchemy.]]
22	* BattleHarem: It's a HaremAnime comedy that consists mostly of scenes about hilariously over-the-top heists Sorata pulls and scenes where his accomplices/[[SubordinateExcuse servants]], ahem, lavish attention on him in a hilariously over-the-top fashion.
23	* BiggerIsBetterInBed: Sorata is, well, gifted. Some panels in the manga show outlines of his pixlated dick in ''great'' proportions. Chapter 90 featured a dildo which was said to be his exact size, which meant the thing was gigantic. Yayoi calls it the "God of Virility" in chapter 88.
24	* BreakingTheFourthWall: There's one character in the Anime who complains that it's the last episode, but her first appearance.
25	* CantHoldHisLiquor: Mouse doesn't get drunk often. When he does, he transforms from a relatively demure guy to an [[LovableSexManiac insatiable sex machine]], managing to satisfy his entire retinue of female servants in a single night.
26	* CatchPhrase: "There is nothing Mouse cannot steal!"
27	* CharacterizationMarchesOn: Sorata being uncomfortable with his divas, maids and other women always demanding sex or "punishment" from him. This trait is kept strongly only in the first volumes of the manga. It is suppressed a bit in the middle, but from Volume 9 and onward, Sorata is more willing to give his women what they want, although he still acts surprised when they jump on him.
28	** Oddly enough, Sorata became this way when he and Mei were already an OfficialCouple. It seems commitment works the other way around for him.
29	* ChasteHero: Played with. It seems that Mouse would rather just collapse in front of the tv when he gets home. The girls have... other plans, which come off as BlackComedyRape. However, in a complete reversal of the norm, the girls are always "in The Mood", and Sorata gets horny every once in a while.
30	* ChickMagnet: Sorata doesn't need more than a few minutes to get a random woman to have sex with him. A great example was when Mei and his other servants were out competing against each other in chapter 89 to win a private date with him. While this was happening, Sorata decided to take a stroll (since the girls kept the competition a secret from him) and meets with a woman in the mall. Pages later, they're having sex, for no reason.
31	* CosplayOtakuGirl: Hazuki. During the New Year celebration (chapter 28 of the manga), she dresses up as Godzilla and scorches Sorata with an all-too-realistic jet of flaming breath.
32	* CharlesAtlasSuperPower: Sorata's strenght is certainly not human. In chapter 84, he is seen easily pumelling giant Kappa statues who were against him and Mei, as in jumping ludicrous heights and crushing them with his kicks.
33	* CrouchingMoronHiddenBadass: Sorata is somewhere between this and ObfuscatingStupidity.
34	* {{Ecchi}}: Much more so in the manga (which has numerous sex scenes) than in the anime.
35	* EnemyMine: Mouse and his hereditary arch-enemy One join forces occasionally and their harems give each other relationship advice.
36	* FanService: Wait, you said the anime dials this ''DOWN?''
37	* {{Fetish}}: Mei gets all hot and randy whenever she sees Sorata in short pants.
38	* GentlemanThief: Exactly what this series is all about.
39	* GoKartingWithBowser: Sorata is friends with Inspector Minami and later goes out drinking with his arch-enemy One([=/=]Wan[=/=]Woof).
40	* HappinessInSlavery: Sorata's three assistants and his army of maids are quite happy with their arrangement: Mouse himself, not quite as much.
41	** This is most blatant with Yayoi (the brown-haired Meganekko with the giant chest), who originally [[DoesNotLikeMen Did Not Like Men]] because of her [[CovertPervert Closet Perversion]] until Mei deftly cracked the little nut in his presence (just to distract her), so when Sorata needed to make her snap out of it, he knew how. Also, note that ''after'' her flashback's time, Yayoi is as relaxed around him as the other two.
42	** Mostly, it's presented as SubordinateExcuse brought up to eleven -- the comedy happens when they play these submissive games without pretending they really mean it:
43	---> '''Girls''' (in a playfully drawling choir): Master, punish us! (all three strike a [[ReadyForLovemaking Very Unambiguous Pose]])
44	---> '''Sorata''': Uh, girls, no... (tries to shuffle away)
45	---> '''Girls''' (in exactly the same tone): Then reward us! (striking ''exactly the same'' pose)
46	---> '''Sorata''': Uh, girls... (still tries to escape without being rude)
47	---> '''Girls''': Hee-heeee! (triple GroupHug attack)
48	*** As the reader will see from the above, it could hardly be more explicit that the girls are often making fun of their "slave" status unless they actually came out and said it.
49	** Sorata says on at least one occasion (when meeting Mei for the first time, when she is prestented to him as his slave) that he prefers to think of her as his friend.
50	*** Also (as detailed in IOweYouMyLife below), he not only got each girl in turn out of a bad psychological situation upon their first meeting, but saved each girl's life in turn. This wins him the unconditional trust, loyalty and affection of each young woman, and creates a strong sense of obligation in them.
51	*** Furthermore, Mei (who is undoubtedly speaking for the other two) says in one of the earlier chapter of the manga that she is a submissive slave ''only'' for Sorata. None of the young women is ever seen to behave in a slavish way toward anyone else.
52	*** Slightly subverted on at least one occasion in the manga (chapter 24-25) where Mei experiences unexpectedly strong feelings of jealousy when Sorata takes one of his students on a birthday date (by somewhat awkward coincidence, at the very place where the team is about to execute its latest heist). Mei gets the last laugh, however, as the girl obviously wants Sorata to make love to her, but it's Mei who ends up making love to Sorata just before the action starts.
53	** PlayedForDrama during the "Stranded but Happy" arc in the manga. Sorata says that he doesn't see Mei as a slave (implying he sees her as a woman and companion) and she goes into a HeroicBSOD, culminating in her nearly commiting ''suicide'' because she thinks Sorata doesn't want her anymore.
54	*** While not as dramatic as the above segment, there are hints and glimpses throughout the manga that for all the PlayedForLaughs on the surface, the girls genuinely see themselves as possessions and toys for Sorata's amusement. Thank God that Sorata is a NiceGuy.
55	* HeroicSacrifice: During the two-part story in manga chapters 26 and 27 referred to in the MoodWhiplash entry, [[spoiler:the girls put Sorata in the submersible's dinghy so that he can make it back to the surface, fully aware that there is no room for them, but entirely willing to give their lives for their beloved master. Sorata recovers consciousness right about this time, happily, and is able to execute a daring last-minute rescue. "Mouse leaves no one behind!"]]
56	* IOweYouMyLife: The girls are so loyal to Sorata because he cured Hazuki's Multiple Personality Disorder, rescued Mei from her abusive grandmother, and helped Yayoi get over Androphobia (as well as saving them from murderous relatives, a tomb's deathtrap, and a burning building, respectively).
57	* ImpossibleThief: "There is nothing Mouse cannot steal." The series starts with him stealing an entire museum under the watchful eyes of the police, and [[SerialEscalation gets only more and more absurd from there.]]
58	* LegacyCharacter: The identity of Mouse has been passed down from father to son for generations.
59	* LegacyOfService: Mei comes from a family that has served Sorata's for generations.
60	* LikeCannotCutLike: Subverted, the only thing strong enough to break One's weapon of choice, the Unbreakable String, is the Unbreakable String itself.
61	* LuckyCharmsTitle: ''[=M0USE=]''
62	* {{Meido}}: In addition to his core harem, Sorata also has a huge army of maids to support him in his adventures and satisfy his carnal desires. Not, of course, that he really wants any more satisfaction for his carnal desires than he already gets from his three chief ladies, but the maids aren't giving him any choice in the matter.
63	* MoodWhiplash: This light-hearted, tongue-in-cheek series has a very dramatic two-part episode in chapters 26 and 27 of the manga [[spoiler:in which Sorata is seriously injured by an undersea volcanic eruption during a mission to steal/recover a priceless artifact from a sunken ship. Add the fact that the submersible the team is in gets stuck, and it's a pretty sticky situation, all in all. Inspector Onizuka, by his reactions, makes it clear just how much of a WorthyOpponent he considers Mouse when he explodes in fury at someone who says he hopes Mouse has died]].
64	** On a less grave note, for all the jokes and comic glomping-leading-to-sex, Mei, Yayoi and Hazuki all love Sorata dearly, and make this clear on several occasions. Sorata reciprocates.
65	* MultipleReferencePun: The opening is called "Mouse Chuu Mouse". "Chuu" is both the sound a mouse makes in Japanese and the sound effect for kisses; on top of that, the title is pronounced "Mouth to Mouth".
66	* NinjaMaid: As part of his maid army, he also has a whole platoon of warrior maids called the Black Maids.
67	* NonIdleRich: Sorata is filthy rich. The Muon mansion is absurdly huge and has all sorts of entertainment areas within its grounds (pools, gardens, ''stadiums''). Still, his life as Mouse takes priority over all the luxury. In fact, he doesn't even live in the mansion anymore, choosing to maintain a low profile by living in a condo.
68	* NotSoAboveItAll: Sorata normally resists his servants' advances, but when he gets drunk...
69	* OfficialCouple: Mei and Sorata allegedly become a couple about halfway through the manga, but he still maintains his quota of having sex with many other women. Mei is often trying to get these women away from him, but she is fine with Yayoi and Hazuki having sex with him, only in foursomes or when she gets to "taste" him first, though.
70	* TheOnlyOneAllowedToDefeatYou: Inspector Minami helps Sorata and his crew escape from One because he has so much fun trying to arrest Mouse.
71	* OurVampiresAreDifferent: Hiruko is a vampire that calls on giant blood sucking leeches that also act as creepy tentacles.
72	* OvernightAgeUp: Hazuki, at one point, turns into a Genie-like child and, through a magic wand, regrows. We get a lovely scene of her [[BreastExpansion chest popping up]], as well as her butt. In addition, we also get a shot of her undoing her hair so we can get a good view of her back.
73	* PinkySwear: Sorata does this in chapter 20 of the manga when he promises never to abandon Hazuki.
74	* PoliceAreUseless: Mouse freaking ''steals a building'', and all the police can do is stare in awe. No one even tries to follow him, or anything.
75	* PragmaticAdaptation: The anime doesn't adapt the manga as a 1-1 transfer, instead taking specific scenes and plot lines from throughout the manga as needed.
76	* PoliticallyIncorrectHero: Sorata's father, the previous Mouse, is shown in flashbacks to view women as tools for man's pleasure, a philosophy he demonstrated to his son by showing him his harem. It's implied the reason Sorata's so uneasy around his harem is out of [[IAmNotMyFather a rejection of his father's philosophy]].
77	%* SexGod: Sorata, yes really.
78	* ShoutOut: In the lyrics of the anime's opening, "denki nezumi ni harinezumi iroiro irukedo (There's an electrical mouse and a hedgehog, and there are a lot, lot more)"
79	* SympatheticInspectorAntagonist: The police captain.
80	* TopWife: Mei is the most confident and experienced of the slaves. When Sorata disappears for a day, she immediately takes the helm and bosses around everyone else, including the maids.
81	* ReallyGetsAround: Mouse, in the manga, is this in spades. He has sex with every single woman to ever appear in a single page, and surprisingly enough, this aspect of his character is not seen as negative by anyone in the series. In fact, it is supported because all previous members of his family whom were Mouse once in their lives also had as many women as they could find.
82	** Mei does get momentarily irked when she sees Sorata and Yayoi having sex for the first time, but that's only because she's on the outside looking in. She jumps right in and turns it into a threesome.
83	* RazorFloss: One's weapon of choice.
84	* StealTheSurroundings: The main character steals [[spoiler: an entire museum]] to obtain the golden skull it contains.
85	* TamerAndChaster: The anime adaptation is only barely arousing compared to the manga, where explicit sex is a common thing in almost every chapter. Also, the anime only implies that Mouse has sex with his three divas, whereas in the manga, he had sex with ''every single woman he ever met''.
86	* TrueCompanions: The relationship between Sorata and his female assistants, in both the anime and manga, goes much deeper than a mere D/S sexual tie. Mei, Yayoi and Hazuki are all seen acting, in virtually every episode and chapter, as full members of the team. They even take Sorata's place as Mouse when he isn't available for some reason (as in chapter 25 of the manga). In return, Sorata, as the team's leader, continually watches out for the welfare of his followers.
87	* TwelveEpisodeAnime
88	* UnwantedHarem: Subverted. Sorata didn't ask for Mei (the first of his team) to join him. She was essentially given/assigned to him because of the long tradition of service of her family to his. However, they quickly established a strong romance and a highly effective professional team, and Mei basically recruited Yayoi and Hazuki for the team, without much objection from Sorata.
89	* VillainProtagonist: Sorata's a thief. That makes him the villain. Played with in the final episode, though, as it's revealed that [[spoiler: he typically only targets treasures that are going to be destroyed or lose their mystique. This way, he hopes for them to exist forever in legend. And it turns out that he and his crew incur a net ''loss'' as a result of their criminal activities, so at least they aren't doing it for personal enrichment.]]\
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91	In the manga, [[spoiler:it is made clear pretty early on that Sorata's motives have little to do with the usual criminal motives. In fact, it's pretty explicitly said that his family has a steal-from-the-filthy-rich only tradition very much in the mold of Myth/RobinHood. Sorata performs numerous actions of kindness, bravery and honor throughout the manga. So, he's a "villain" only in a very narrowly defined sense of the word. Contrary to the anime, a dialogue between Sorata and Mei early on reveals that the (legitimate) family enterprises overall are running a healthy profit, whatever financial result the thefts may bring.]]
92	* WholePlotReference: Entire chapters are dedicated homages to anime such as ''Manga/CatsEye'' and ''Manga/GalaxyExpress999''.
93	* WhyDontYouJustShootHim: One's pet SWAT team sure does take its time.
94	* WorthyOpponent: For all his fulminations whenever Mouse/Sorata executes a heist right under his nose, Inspector Onizuka considers Mouse this.
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Context Manga / Mouse