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Mr. Chang
Voiced by: Toshiyuki Morikawa (JP), Trevor Devall (EN)
"You know, sometimes it just feels like I'm wading through a giant sea of shit."
A former police officer with the Royal Hong Kong Police turned Triad leader; currently engaged in an friendly competition with Balalaika over control of the Roanapur underworld.
- Affably Evil: A light hearted and mellow crime boss who prefers to conduct business in a peaceful and bloodless fashion and is almost always friendly to everyone he meets.
- Back-to-Back Badasses: He and Revy make an awesome version of this during a gun fight- See the terrorist arc.
- Blatant Lies: He tells Rock that, as a former cop, he's seen both sides of the law and has a different perspective from anyone else. He was actually a corrupt cop, responsible for the deaths of his fellow officers and other nasty stuff. He was on the other side from the start.
- Card-Carrying Villain: Apathetically and matter-of-factually talks about his absolute lack of compassion for the sexually-abused Ax-Crazy children Hansel and Gretel because he is a black-hearted cynical scumbag and is completely comfortable with that fact, not to mention that they killed some of his men in needlessly violent ways. This is the defining difference from the kind-and-honorable Papa Wolf gangsters played by Chow Yun-fat that he is based upon.
- Casual Danger Dialogue: He engages in this during the Hansel & Gretel arc. Chang and a group of his Mooks are outside Verrochio's place and he casually mentions, "You may want to duck". Seconds later one of Verrochio's goons goes flying through the air and the Mook ducks and barely manages to avoid being hit by the body.
- The Chessmaster: The one who commissioned Rock to see through to ending Roberta's rampage.
- Comic-Book Fantasy Casting: Chang looks suspiciously like Chow Yun-fat.
- Cool Shades: Considering his character design is based on Chow Yun-fat, this comes with the territory.
- Crazy-Prepared: In the Lock'n'Load Revolution arc, Chang provided Lagoon company and the other carriers a password so as to know who they could trust. Takenaka knew the password and uses it to try and steal the documents from Rock and Revy...only for Revy to reveal Chang considered this possibility and made a new password at the last minute.
- Cynical Mentor: Shows shades of this toward Rock in "El Baile de la Muerte" arc. He sees to it that Rock gains points in chessmaster at the same time as losing points in compassion.
- Deadpan Snarker: Frequently makes friendly, but still sarcastic jabs at people who he disagrees with.
- Death Glare: Despite acting Affably Evil for most of the time, he shows the same dead eyed glare that Balalaika and Roberta have while heading to the gangster meeting in the 'Roberta's blood trail' arc.
- Dissonant Serenity: His reaction to seeing a dead body being thrown out of a window towards him is to casually cover his face and treat it as a mild inconvenience while coyly snarking about it. He also stays very light hearted during gunfights and usually cracks jokes while dodging bullets.
- Embarrassing Nickname: Don't call him "Babe" (Unless you're Fry Face).
- Even Evil Has Standards:
- He considers having to kill old friends a rotten deal. So in the light novel, he offers to take care of such an enemy for Balalaika… Too bad she's Eviler than Thou.
- He also shows disgust at the Snuff Films that Hansel and Gretel were forced to be in.
- Evil Laugh: Gives one after Rock calls him out for what he is.
- Foreshadowing: The Triad is the Church's biggest customer, and Chang himself makes frequent use of their trade routes. An early indicator that he's actually a stooge for the CIA as the Triad's drug routes are wholly appropriated by the agency, and by extension Eda, to keep a firm grip over the Golden Triangle.
- Guns Akimbo: Not unlike Chow Yun-fat's characters, Chang's weapons are two Beretta 76s. He also uses a pair of AMT Hardballer Longslides borrowed from his subordinates.
- Identical Stranger: The light novel mentions offhand that when he visited Beijing, he was mistaken for a celebrity. Wonder who that could have been?
- I Have Many Names: It's played for laughs in the light novel. Biu would prefer that Chang not add "Master Ninja" to his repertoire of nicknames.
- Manipulative Bastard: In the "Roberta's Blood Trail" Arc. He drops the fact that The US army was being targeted by the maid in order to get Balalaika on his side and later gets Rock to help him get Roberta out of town by guilt tripping him.
- Minored In Ass Kicking: He says he prefers peace and cooperation to violence, is ahown to specialize in strategy and manipulation, and as a White Paper Fan his position within the Triad is ostensibly a purely administrative one. But when push comes to shove, he has no trouble throwing down, and his skill as a gunslinger exceeds even Revy.
- Mr. Fanservice: Without his glasses, he is very handsome; with the glasses he is very handsome.
- Nerves of Steel: Normally cheerful and emotive, this guy is also capable of being completely calm during a massive shootout. The only time he lost his cool was when Eda told him he was an insect compared to the might of the United States. His cool demeanor also slips in Chapter 116 when he catches grasp of Rock's ideals now during a casual game of blackjack between the two at Balalaika's casino and begins to realize the scope of what he's attempting to play at now with Roanapur, which causes Chang to give his support unconditionally to aid Rock's endeavors to see where this shakes for the city as a whole.
- No Celebrities Were Harmed: The already mentioned Chow Yun-fat.
- "Not So Different" Remark: He allegedly started out on the right side of the law (he didn't, he was a crook when he was a cop too), only to defect when by all counts he shouldn't have had to, and now serves as an Only Sane Man for fellow criminals. Chang is more than happy to point this out to a horrified Rokuro.
- Only Sane Man: Generally acts as a voice of reason towards the other local crimelords, particularly Balalaika.Are we going to break this up and kill each other before we even get to the agenda? I can imagine the party over at the Justice Department if we did.
- Rank Scales with Asskicking: The head of the Triad in Roanapur, and the best gun-fighter in the series.
- Reasonable Authority Figure: While he is as morally reprehensible as the other crime bosses, he's definitely the calmest and most reasonable of them all, preferring peaceful cooperation and only using violence as a last resort.
- Red Oni, Blue Oni: Blue to Balalaika's Red. He prefers coexistence and diplomacy while she prefers killing whoever pisses her off. This makes sense as Balalaika is a former soldier who was trained to kill while Chang belonged to the Hong Kong Police Force who are trained to defuse a situation before using violence as a last resort.
- Rousing Speech: Saddles his fellow crime heads with a villainous version, after the Only Sane Man quote eventually accomplishes zilch. Two pages' worth can be found on the Quotes Page.
- Scarf of Asskicking: Of the untied variety, hanging around the collar of his coat. He wears it whenever he's caught in a gunfight.
- Shadow Archetype: To Rock. They're both (mostly) non action guys who prefer negotiation over physical fights, are more peaceful and calm compared to their female counterparts (Revy for Rock and Balalaika for Chang). They're both also token good teammates with Rock being the only Lagoon crew member with any sense of morality while Chang is the least violent and most diplomatic crime lord in the city. The difference between the two however is that Rock still has some scruples left and will go out of his way to do the right thing while Chang is mostly motivated by self interest and is significantly more ruthless. Hell, they even look quite similar when Chang takes off his glasses.
- Slasher Smile: Rarely done, but has one or two of these on occasion, usually accompanied by a cigarette between his teeth.
- Teeth-Clenched Teamwork: He's a pawn of the CIA, and he knows it. Almost all of his power and authority comes from the fact that Eda lets him have it. But, as he still makes full use of this "partnership" to his benefit, he isn't an Unwitting Pawn.
- The Triads and the Tongs: Mr. Chang is a Pak Tsa Sin (a high ranking officer) of the Kan Yi Fan, a fictional Triad based in Hong Kong.
- Token Good Teammate: To the other Roanapur mob bosses. Downplayed as he's still a gang boss, but he's by far the politest and has the least Kick the Dog moments.
Shenhua
Voiced by: Yuko Sasaki (JP), Saffron Henderson (EN)
A Taiwanese assassin in the employ of Mr. Chang. She prefers to use various edged weapons in close combat, in particular a pair of kukri knives linked together with a length of leather rope at the handles, thus using them as modified rope darts. She is also skilled in the use of throwing knives.
- Affably Evil: Quite cheery most of the time, whether she's skewering hapless Mooks, or delivering an unfortunate man in a suitcase to be chopped up by a goth with a chainsaw. She and Revy even have a (relatively) friendly conversation whilst trying to kill each other.
- Anime Chinese Girl: She speaks in broken Japanese/English with a heavy accent, wears a qipao and uses cutting weapons and martial arts in a show where most major characters use firearms.
- Asian Speekee Engrish: Speaks like this in both the Japanese and English dubs, something Revy makes fun of whenever they see each other ("Chinglish").
- Ax-Crazy: She can get rather… enthusiastic about chopping up people with kukri knives.
- Berserk Button: Do not mock her poor English. Revy got a kukri held to her throat for her trouble, and future instances of racial slurs and mockery from Revy were met with more threats of violence and mutilation.Revy: Let's go, little miss Chinglish.Shenhua: Oh, you like for me to split your ass in four? It is not nice to make fun. You one rotten bitch!
- Blade Enthusiast: She's as good with the knives as Revy is with the guns. She also has some kunai
for long distance fighting, and can toss her Kukris if her opponents are further away. According to her, knives are better because they don't need ammo. - Blade on a Rope: Her kukris are attached to her wrists with a rope, and she's more than capable of swinging them to behead people from thirty feet away.
- Dark Action Girl: She's as insane as she is capable.
- Dragon Lady: She's a Taiwanese assassin who wears qipao and talks in pidgin English (or Japanese, respectively). Don't underestimate her because of that if you value your life.
- The Dreaded: One of the deadliest assassins in Roanapur (and by extension the world). Even Revy is extremely wary of getting into a fight with her.
- Eloquent in My Native Tongue: She presumably speaks fluent Chinese, but her English (and Japanese, in the original) is utterly dreadful both in grammar and pronunciation, to the point where Revy (who is Chinese-American) nicknames her "Chinglish". It's not a good idea to take her poor language skills for stupidity, unless you want to be knifed to death."My English not good because I am pure Taiwanese. Maybe you like me to skin your ass, bitch?"
- Femme Fatalons: She has long red nails.
- I Am Not Left-Handed: Wears long stiletto heels on purpose to keep her edge in an environment where few know martial arts. When she gets serious, they come off.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: A remorseless assassin and prickly bitch she may be, she still has kind of a heart underneath it all. There's no one more dependable than her to have your back in a fight, and following the Greenback arc she lets Sawyer and Lotton live with her after the latter saves her life.
- She is also surprisingly kind to Garcia, respecting his conviction to save Roberta in his own way, even stating that he "has the heart of a warrior."
- Kicking Ass in All Her Finery: The difference between her and every other woman in the show is that she kicks ass while wearing an elegant red qipao.
- Kukris Are Kool: She fights with a much more practical version of a Whip Sword: twin whip kukri. She's good enough to behead people with them from 30 feet away.
- Lady in Red: She's wearing a white jacket over it, but the Sexy Slit Dress underneath is crimson-colored.
- Lady of War: She's damn graceful with those kukris and kunai.
- Leg Focus: Both for Fanservice purposes and to show her throwing knives to remind viewers/readers that she's more than just eye candy.
- Magic Skirt: Somewhat. Her Sexy Slit Dress does reveal she's wearing a laced underwear underneath, but it still doesn't expose her completely when she jumps around or gets thrown away in fights.
- Ms. Fanservice: A beautiful woman whose Sexy Slit Dress gives readers/viewers plenty of Leg Focus.
- Not-So-Harmless Villain: Very easy to underestimate given her Engrish. You'll regret laughing though when her knife comes out.
- Pet the Dog: She lets Sawyer and Lotton live with her simply because the latter was kind to her. Given how utterly stupid and useless he is, this was quite the gesture.
- Punch-Clock Villain: She's a professional who follows the money, simple as that. That being said, she has fought alongside Lagoon more often than not.
- Raven Hair, Ivory Skin: Fair-skinned, black-haired, and one of the series' premiere Ms. Fanservice.
- Team Mom: Word of God claims that she is like this to the trio formed by her, Sawyer and Lotton.
- Teeth-Clenched Teamwork: She clearly hated working with Revy (who repeatedly addressed her with racial slurs and mocked her poor English) and Leigharch (who was an unreliable, drug-addled nuisance). On her end, she regularly threatened Revy in response to Revy's verbal abuse, and thought Revy's threats of violence towards Leigharch in the event that he fucked up the getaway were amusing.Revy: Listen up, you fuckin' leprechaun. You're gonna wait here until you get our signal. If you run away, I'll hunt you down and castrate you.Shenhua: My! She say good thing! I agree very much!
- Throwing Your Sword Always Works: While she's pretty deadly in melee combat with her Kukris, they're also attached on a rope to her wrists, so she can also hurl them for mid-ranged combat. Her accuracy with them is pretty good as well.
- Two Guys and a Girl: She forms a team with Lotton and Sawyer. They even live together now!
- Underestimating Badassery: Shenhua's English (or Japanese in the original manga and anime) is deliberately worse than the rest of the cast's, and in the anime she speaks with a very thick accent. However, as she helpfully points out, her difficulty with learning a second language means nothing when she's trying to kill you, and she consistently demonstrated that she was very good at her job.
Biu Yuen
Voiced by: Chikara Osaka (JP), Michael Adamthwaite (EN)
Chang's most visible assistant, apparently his second-in-command.
- Beleaguered Assistant: He's introduced with Chang casually tossing his cell phone at him, and further appearances put them into a lighter, more serious version of the Comedic Duo.
- Bodyguarding a Badass: He and the unnamed Triad Mooks who accompany Mr. Chang are armed and ready to defend him, but their boss is easily one of the most dangerous gunfighters in the city.
- The Comically Serious: With a boss as apparently whimsical as Mr. Chang, Biu's appearances tend to cast him as Chang's Straight Man. The light novel's "Master Ninja" incident comes to mind.
- Cool Shades: Always wears shades.
- The Dragon: Though we've never seen Biu fight, he's highly enough ranked that he can (lightly) banter with his boss and occasionally discuss fairly personal matters.
- Straight Man: To Chang's "carefree mob boss act."
- Triads and Tongs: He belongs to the Triad.
- Villain Cred: He compliments Chang for his manipulations during the "Roberta's Blood Trail" arc.Biu: "I finally get why the Dai Lo chose to elevate someone like you, a Dirty Cop who killed his partners. You got some big fucking balls!"Chang: "Hmf. Stop, you'll make me blush."
