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High Card
Members
Finn Oldman
Finn Oldman
Voiced by: Gen Satō, Mutsumi Tamura (young)
A talented thief and pickpocket, Finn is a young man trying to raise money for the orphanage that raised him when it is facing hard times. After a failed attempt to make it big in a casino, he realizes the card he held as a memento of his parents is actually one of the X-Playing Cards and gets invited into the organization.
His Card is the 2 of Spades "Neo New Nambu", which produces a gun in his hand.
- All for Nothing: Taking a dangerous job to save the orphanage he grew up in turns out to be for naught, since the orphanage gets destroyed by Bobby Ball, specifically because of Finn taking such a job. In Episode 9, he decides to pick up the pieces and try to go on working anyway, regardless of his original goal no longer being viable. Later on, it's subverted in a rather dark way. Chris, planning to sacrifice himself to save his sister, provides a cheque for the money needed to rebuild the orphanage.
- A Birthday, Not a Break: He lost his family to the Black Knight on the night of his 7th birthday, January 3rd.
- The Chosen One: Lala believes Finn could be the one who will end the misfortunes caused by the Cards because he's the one who possesses the 2 of Spades, the Card that put a stop on San Galgino.
- Distressed Dude: Episode twenty-two ends with TILT willingly transforming into San Galgano and absconding with Finn.
- Family of Choice: He's an orphan and while he still sees Lyndsey and the other orphans as part of his family, he develops a strong familial relationship with the High Card members, particularly with Chris. When Chris attempts to sacrifice himself to save his sister, Finn begs him not to do it and tells him that he's part of his family.
- Improbable Aiming Skills: A Required Secondary Power of his Card. When using "Neo New Nambu", Finn becomes incredibly precise with his shots and aiming, being capable of shooting directly through a marble that Bobby threw at him as well as shooting one of the Cards out of Chris' X-Hand despite being a great distance away, Chris being in a moving Ferris wheel, and Finn falling.
- Kill the Ones You Love: In the last episode, Finn reluctantly kills his older brother to prevent Sal Galgano from controlling him.
- Laser-Guided Amnesia: He lost his memory in an accident as a child. As a result, he can't remember his parents and wound up in the orphanage, but he knows he had parents and a brother. "Sweet Home" reveals that Ban and Zenon manipulated his memories regarding the death of his parents.
- New Meat: A recent recruit to High Card after the pilot episode and his use of the 2 of Spades.
- Only in It for the Money: Finn joins High Card because he wants to use the money to save the orphanage where he grew up.
- Past Experience Nightmare: He regularly has nightmares about the fire in which he lost his memories and presumably his family. The nightmare usually ends with him being attacked by a Black Knight figure as a child. The nightmare makes it clear that he didn't lose his family in a car accident as he was led to believe.
- Playing Card Motifs: The 2 of Spades is a significant number for him as, in a lot of games (most famously, Poker), 2 is the lowest value a card can hold, while the Ace is considered a high-value card despite representing the number 1, which further establishes him as a newcomer in the bottom of the pyramid.
- Revolvers Are Just Better: "Neo New Nambu", his Card, allows him to summon the Nambu Model 60, as well as ammo for it.
- Sticky Fingers: In the first episode, he's very skilled in pickpocketing and continues to use the talent after joining High Card, such as snagging the key the Old Maid team needs for their heist in Episode 6.
- Unwitting Instigator of Doom: The thing that got him his carrd, sent the Klondikes sniffing around at his family home and killing his parents, resulted in his brother getting cursed with the power of San Galgano? On his birthday, before the fire, he asked his big brother to get him a card like one of the set from Fourland's founding myth.
Chris Redgrave
Chris Redgrave
Voiced by: Toshiki Masuda, Emiko Takeuchi (young)
A cool womanizer, Chris is the one who recruits Finn to High Card after meeting him and realizing his possession of an X-Playing Card. He takes the role of Finn's mentor in the organization.
His Card is the 5 of Hearts, "Calorie's High", which revives and heals him whenever he is killed or injured.
- Big Brother Instinct: He had a younger sister who has a genetic illness that killed their mother years ago. When she collapses on the street, Chris rushes her to the hospital. His sister's illness motivates him to use the X-Hand to save her.
- Big Brother Mentor: He's assigned to mentor Finn on his new job. Initially, he dislikes it but he becomes close to Finn. He admits that Finn is just like him when he was younger. He even donates his money to Lyndsey to rebuild the Sun Fields orphanage.
- Big Damn Heroes: In "Prisoners", despite his injuries and his Card ability not fully restored, Chris saves his team on time from the Black Knight by ramming the car at it.
- Big Eater: The drawback of using his Card is that it makes Chris hungry, so he regally eats high-calorie meals.
- Combat Pragmatist: When fighting Jade, he tricks him with a fake-out attack right after throwing his gun away to say they will have a clean fight with no tricks to steal his Card and shoot him from behind. Chris admits he couldn't beat Jade in a one-on-one fight, so he had to resort to this.
- Commonality Connection: He understands Burst's mission to save TILT because he too was in the same position as her: saving a loved one with the use of the X-Hand.
- Facial Horror: In chapter 6 of ♢9 No Mercy, he gets his face torn off by "Brain Buster", while the details aren't shown and his face is kept mostly in the dark, it's pretty clear what happened and he is shown to have lost several teeth in that attack.
- Generation Xerox: His dad was also a member of High Card and also was willing to kill himself playing an X-Hand to save the life of a family member.
- Healing Factor: His Card's ability, being strong enough to revive him from fatal injuries, kinda like Wolverine. The drawback is that it makes him super hungry.
- Heroic Sacrifice: His true goal is to die the same way his dad did: To play the X-Hand to heal a family member, only in his case he plans on healing his terminally ill sister.
- Irony: His powers allow him to survive anything, but he has a sister barely hanging on to life, implied to be dying.
- Power at a Price: As revealed in Episode 15, Chris' usage of the X-Hand to save his sister not only lessens the power of his Card but also inherits the symptoms of his sister's illness.
- Power Incontinence: Inverted. In Episode 13, after receiving an injury, Chris experiences a pain in his chest and realizes that his injury hasn't healed, suggesting it's a consequence of him using an X-Hand and Finn interrupting it last season.
- Red Is Heroic: He's associated with the color red and so far his only negative traits are his teasing nature and flirtatious tendencies.
- Resurrective Immortality: The 5 of Hearts, "Calorie's High", allows Chris to be killed and get back up soon after, with the side effect that it makes him really hungry.
- Screw the Rules, I'm Doing What's Right!: He doesn't care about the rule that forbids anyone from playing an X-Hand because he cares more about saving his sister than his own life. To achieve this goal, he lets his allies believe the Klondikes successfully stole a powerful Card, knocks out Finn in order to steal the last few he needs to heal his sister, and immediately goes on the lam.
- Senseless Sacrifice: Turns out that his original plan of using the X-Hand to save his sister in exchange for his own life was unnecessary. Playing an X-Hand with fewer Cards would cause her to be significantly better without the need for him to die during the process. Lucky for him, they found out by Finn intervening with the spell.
- Stepford Smiler: While he seems like a flirty womanizer, he carefully hides his problems about his sister's illness from everybody else.
- Why Did It Have to Be Snakes?: In "Knightmare", Chris says he's not fond of gorillas when confronting the 6 of Hearts Player (who took on the appearance and abilities of a gorilla), likely because of his time with a bunch of gorillas (one pounding his face in and another getting... intimate with him) on an island in Volume 2 of the CD dramas.
- Would Hurt a Child: He coldly shoots Finn, still a minor at 17 years of age, after saving him from a member of the Klondike Mafia. However, the following episode reveals he aimed for his breast pocket because the X-Cards are indestructible. While this paralyzes Finn, it leaves no serious damage to him.
Leo Constantine Pinochle
Leo Constantine Pinochle
Voiced by: Shun Horie
Cold and distant, Leo is the manager of the Old Maid branch of Pinochle. He is also the son of Theodore, the head of Pinochle, and by extension High Card.
His Card is the 7 of Diamonds, "Never No Dollars", which swaps the currency he has in hand for an object of equal value.
- Benevolent Boss: While he may not act like it, Leo does care for his subordinates (unlike his more pragmatic father). In Volume 2 of the CD drama, after Finn is forced to go on a mission when he had plans to visit Sun Fields, Leo blows off his concerns by suggesting sending the orphanage children candy to make up for it. The end of the Volume implies that Leo actually sent the kids a whole mountain of candy as an apology.
- Calling the Old Man Out: He is dismayed at his father's lack of compassion when the latter tells him that saving loved ones is pointless. He calls him on this, reminding him that he would never be like him.
- Cast from Money: The 7 of Diamonds power, "Never No Dollars," lets its player instantly swap any amount of currency in their physical reach for an item of equivalent value.
- Character Tic: Has a habit of biting his nails whenever he is tense.
- A Day in the Limelight: "Look At Me" centers on Leo attending college after HC operations were forced to be suspended with Theodore being kidnapped by the Klondikes.
- Generation Xerox: Leo's a High Card agent like his father before him. However, he breaks the rule of doing what he's being told when he works with Finn and the other HC agents to get to Chris before he's killed by using an X-Hand. He reiterates to his father that he would never become like him who has no regard for his loved ones.
- The Leader: Of the current High Card team. Throughout the first season, he slowly cares for his teammates, which his father disapproves of.
- Logical Weakness: He needs money, lots of it, for his power to work.
- Missing Mom: His mother is never mentioned.
- Swap Teleportation: His power swaps any amount of money for an item that is worth that amount. The higher the money, the more special and exclusive the item.
- Troll: He has his moments. In Volume 2 of the CD drama, after the team gets stranded on an island full of gorillas, Leo hides the fact that he had a GPS on him the entire time they were on the island since, in his own words, "they have been slacking off lately" and used them being stranded on an island to install some discipline.
- "Well Done, Son" Guy: Leo desperately wants an emotional connection with his father. This explains his reason for joining High Card because he wants to talk to him regardless of whether his father sees him as an employee.
Wendy Sato
Wendy Sato
Click to see Love-P
Voiced by: Haruka Shiraishi
The accountant for the Old Maid branch. A polite foreigner whose Card was passed down to her by her father.
Her Card is the Ace of Spades, "Love & Peace", which summons to her hand a sheathed katana. Unsheathing it releases a superpowered persona called Love-P, which is a sadistic killer.
Tropes for Wendy:
- The Ace: She is the best fighter in High Card and is their go-to resource whenever they're fighting tough enemies like Nhat in Season 1 or Hudson in ♢9 No Mercy. Her Card is the Ace of Spades, to represent this.
- The Alcoholic: Downplayed, but she's a heavy drinker, chugging down several large mugs of beer in Episode 4, and several empty bottles and cans of beer litter her apartment. Ironically, she gets drunk easily after three drinks. In "Knightmare", she's briefly seen downing an entire pitcher of beer as Chris shares his and Finn's encounter with the Black Knight.
- Ancestral Weapon: Her Card is actually a family heirloom, confusing many fans about the timeline of the heist. Then it's revealed that only some of the Cards were lost in the heist and many were already in the hands of people supposedly loyal to the royal family.
- Can't Hold Her Liquor: It's a High Card rule that Wendy can't have more than three drinks. In "Samurai Girl", Wendy gets totally sloshed and needs to be escorted home by Chris and Finn. And in "Take Back Five", her role as a distraction ends with her getting wasted off of an entire bottle of wine and unable to continue her part in the mission.
- Combat Stilettos: Wears heels with her suit even when going into a fight. Works against her in a Played for Laughs example in "Samurai Girl" when one of her heels gets caught in a manhole cover on her way to work causing her to fall and miss her bus.
- Commonality Connection: She bonds with Chloe due to their worries about using their Cards that would endanger other people.
- A Day in the Limelight: "Hold Your Hand" focuses on her trying to help Chelsea save a young girl named Chloe, while Wendy deals with personal issues after letting Love-P loose.
- Generation Xerox: Wendy's a High Card agent, having inherited both the job and her Card from her father.
- It's All My Fault: Blames herself for the Klondike's attack on High Card being successful, as letting Love-P loose has made them focus on containing her just as Zenon fled with all their cards.
- Katanas Are Just Better: "Love & Peace", the Ace of Spades, allows the player to summon a katana. That being said, using it turns Wendy into a crazed, ruthless killer, so she tends to fight without drawing the sword.
- Lethal Chef: Downplayed. While the food Wendy makes is edible, it's often described as tasting terrible.
- The Smurfette Principle: The only female member of High Card.
- Trash of the Titans: Her apartment is a bit of a mess, covered in trash bags, old bottles and cans of beer, a sink full of dirty dishes, and other such things.
Tropes for Love-P:
- Ax-Crazy: She's a bloodthirsty psychopath who only has slaughter in mind, laughing madly and smiling sadistically as she cuts her enemies to pieces.
- Big Damn Heroes: Is unleashed to hold off Nhat in the Season 1 finale, saving Finn's life in the process.
- Blood Knight: She absolutely loves combat.
- Breast Expansion: The Love-P transformation causes Wendy to go up a few cup sizes and automatically does her hair and makeup.
- Color Motifs: Red and purple.
- Combat Sadomasochist: Love-P is a sadistic killer who takes pleasure in slicing the people she is supposed to work with. She takes specific pleasure in people who can survive it, like John Doe and Chris, since she can kill them over and over again.
- Curb-Stomp Battle: Normally she's the one dishing these out, but in "Answer the Door" she's on the receiving end of one courtesy of Bernard, of all people.
- The Dreaded: One rule in High Card is that Wendy must never unleash her. When she appears, it takes a struggle to subdue her.
- Foil: To the Black Knight. Both of them are the Superpowered Evil Side of the highest and lowest Spade cards, but one is a No-Nonsense Nemesis Mighty Glacier with a BFS, and the other is a Blood Knight Glass Cannon with a katana.
- Godzilla Threshold: Love-P is a dangerous, sadistic killer that will kill friend and foe alike and is way too dangerous to let loose, but when it is absolutely necessary, she is Old Maid's trump card. When facing Nhat, another Ace card user, she is the one who has to come out and deal with it.
- Ironic Name: Love and Peace, as befits a pain-dealing warrior.
- Makeup Is Evil: While turned into the vicious, insane Love-P, Wendy's lips get covered in lipstick and her cheeks get slightly reddish.
- Precision F-Strike: She calls Naht a "[bleep]"note in response to Naht calling her a "[bleep]".
- Split-Personality Makeover: As Love-P, Wendy's hair gets longer and messier, lipstick appears on her lips, her eyes turn bright pink, and her breasts grow a few cups.
- Superpowered Evil Side: She's this for Wendy, as she will violently attack pretty much anyone she can get near.
- Yandere: The way she behaves towards the other members of Pinochle is a mix of this and Blood Knight.
Vijay Kumar Singh
Vijay Kumar Singh
Voiced by: Yuichiro Umehara
The overseer of system management and sales in the Old Maid branch, Vijay is a quiet and collected man. He also happens to be studying to earn his Ph.D. at the University of Cribbage. He's also to be a Supreme Chef.
His Card is the 3 of Clubs, "Green Green", which gives him the power to summon and control plants.
- Ambiguously Brown: He seems to be this setting's equivalent of a South Asian person.note
- Big Brother Instinct: Out of everyone in High Card, he and Leo have known each other the longest and have a close bond.
- Big Damn Heroes: When Victor Baggins of the Klondike Mafia nearly kills Leo, Vijay manages to save him.
- Bunny-Ears Lawyer: His love of ecology can get the best of him, such as in Volume 2 of the CD dramas, where he runs off to survey the island the team ends up on.
- Combat Pragmatist: Despite his relatively small numbered card (the only cardholder lower than him in High Card is Finn), his power is incredibly versatile and powerful, but he also is aware of his limitations and will play things to his advantage, which include ambushing Airman underground where his powers are the strongest due to roots and holding Sonic Move down while he is talking with Finn by tying his feet together rather than facing him in a fight.
- Green Thumb: The 3 of Clubs allows its wielder to talk to and control plants.
- Nature Lover: Aside from his powers being nature-based, he is mentioned to water and care for his plants meticulously. Even his outfit has roses on the pants.
- Only Sane Employee: The least eccentric among the members of High Card, he tries to keep Leo from going off in a bidding war against Who's Who when their caper goes awry.
- Out of Focus: Finn and Chris are the protagonists of the series, so they get a lot of focus; both Wendy and Leo get an episode with a focus on them ("Samurai Girl" and "Crazy Rich"), Vijay is relegated to the background and has nothing about him explored. A special 25th episode entitled "The Flowers Bloom" will focus on that.
Leaders
Theodore Constantine Pinochle
Theodore Constantine Pinochle
Voiced by: Daisuke Ono
The CEO of Pinochle, Leo's father, and boss of High Card.
His Card is the Queen of Diamonds, "Balor", which grants him clairvoyance.
- Abusive Parents: Of the "emotionally distant" variety. He sees Leo more as an employee than family, and only really talks to him when it involves the Cards.
- Combat Clairvoyance: His Card's ability which helped him and his teammates predict his opponents.
- Distressed Dude: After Zenon attacked the Pinochle HQ, Klondike takes advantage of the chaos and kidnaps Theodore, leaving High Card without their leader.
- Good Is Not Nice: While his main motivations appear to be his loyalty to the royal family and a desire to keep the peace, he is willing to do some nasty things.
- Fatal Flaw: His inability to communicate with others bites him in the ass which could have prevented most of the conflict. Had he told Ban why he prevented him from using the X-Hand to reverse time to save his father, Ban wouldn't have grown into a bitter man who created the Klondike family who uses the Cards to terrorize the whole country.
- Hero of Another Story: He was an agent of High Card, doing the same things the current members are doing.
- Hidden Heart of Gold: As revealed in "Winner or Loser", Theodore's reason for stopping Ban from using the X-Hand was to protect him as he cared for him. Then, he protects his son from Ban's attack, showing that he also cares for him. This would explain why he's against using the X-Hand and rarely shows his emotions because he doesn't want anyone to experience what Ban did. Unfortunately, his lack of communication caused the people he cared for to resent him for his coldheartedness.
- Magic Eye: His Card gives him clairvoyance.
- Mysterious Past: Not even Leo, his own son, knows much about his past. So far, the only info about him is he used to be a field agent with Aya, Jiro, and Tyler and he's on speaking terms with Ban Klondike. The Season 2 episode, "Once Upon a Time, reveals his history with Ban.
- Papa Wolf: When Ban tries to kill Leo, Theodore shields his son and uses the X-Hand to defeat Ban.
- Parental Neglect: His relationship with Leo is more on High Card-related business rather than familial. Leo doesn't even know his phone number.
- Pet the Dog: Even after all the chaos Chris caused by trying to use X-Hand to save his sister, something Theodore was willing to authorize his death to prevent, he ultimately allows Chris to be rehired to High Card once everything is over. Granted, given his utilitarian nature, this could just be the pragmatism of not wanting to lose an experienced Player right after the Klondikes assassinated the Crown Prince and nearly got the rest of the royal family.
- Playing Card Motifs: Even though he's the leader of Pinochle and High Card, his Card is the Queen of Diamonds, signifying how he's loyal to the Royal Family.
- The Stoic: He rarely expresses any emotions.
- We Used to Be Friends: With Ban Klondike. The two used to be part of High Card as young men and were buddies, yet something happened that strained their relationship. Turns out the death of Ban's father and Theodore stopping Ban from using the X-Hand destroyed their friendship with Ban being completely furious at his former friend.
- Would Hurt a Child: Was willing to kill Chris when he was a kid to impede his father from using an X-Hand because using it was forbidden.
Bernard Symons
Bernard Symons
Voiced by: Kazuhiro Yamaji
Leo's butler who serves as an administrator for High Card who does everything from serving tea to servicing cars at Pinochle's Old Maid branch.
His Card is the 9 of Spades, Bokka, which summons a shield that can transform into any shape and is strong enough to block even Love-P's attacks.
- Crazy-Prepared: He keeps a block of C-4 in his shoe's heel, which comes in handy when the active members of High Card (minus Chris) are apprehended by the police in "Prisoners".
- The Handler: He acts as one for the current team giving them missions.
- Meaningful Name: His Card's name, Bokka (墨家) can mean "ink expert", which fits for a transforming shield.
- No Celebrities Were Harmed: His younger self is based on Colin Firth, specifically from his role as Harry Hart in the Kingsman movies.
- Odd Name Out: His Card is the only one revealed so far whose name isn't in English.
- Reasonable Authority Figure: Was willing to give Finn a chance to be in HC despite Theodore's reservations. He also helps Finn save Chris from sacrificing himself with a four of a kind X-Hand.
Owen Alldays
Owen Alldays
Voiced by: Nobunaga Shimazaki
Theodore's personal secretary who carries out his orders faithfully.
His Card is the 8 of Diamonds, "Red Labyrinth", which allows the user and other people to step into another dimension that's connected to every single door in Fourland.
- Cold Sniper: The first weapon he's shown wielding is a sniper rifle and he uses it without flinching on Chris.
- Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Gets fooled by Zenon's illusions into giving all of High Card's cards over to the Klondike family.
- Revenge Before Reason: He wants the Klondike family to pay for what happened to Theodore and refuses to listen to his fellow High Card members who want to interrogate Burst for information about Theodore's whereabouts.
- Undying Loyalty: He's shown to be willing to follow Theodore's orders without question. This proves to be his Fatal Flaw as, while under the effects of Zenon's hallucinations with Zenon pretending to be Theodore, he did seem to note how odd Theodore was acting but still gave him access to the Cards Pinochle had collected.
- What Happened to the Mouse?: It's currently unknown what happened to him after Zenon stabs him in "Answer the Door". He reappears at the end of "Lala Valdenklein", having a new look and ready to take revenge on Zenon for what happened to Theodore.
- Would Hurt a Child: He's not above hurting, and potentially murdering, Finn through his bodyguards when the latter proves to be an obstacle in Chris's attempted assassination.
Ex-High Card members
Aya Tawawa
Aya Tawawa
Click to see her during her time with High Card.
Voiced by: Takako Honda
A kind old woman living off the grid. She used to be a member of High Card.
Her Card is the Jack of Clubs, "Coming Home", which allows her to pull anything in her field of vision to her direction.
- Defector from Decadence: She was deeply disturbed by Theodore's growing lack of care for human life, culminating in him attempting to kill Chris when he was a kid. She challenged him and then left without saying anything.
- I Was Quite a Looker: She used to be slender and much more conventionally attractive.
- Logical Weakness: Her Card draws things towards her, and that makes it perfect for enemies that are between her and any heavy object, but if her opponent is standing in front of nothing, there is not much it works for.
- To Be Lawful or Good: Theodore orders her to get Tyler's Card after the latter attempts to use an X-Hand of four Cards to save Chris because using the Cards for personal use is dangerous. Aya leaves the room as she refuses and sees how desperate Tyler is to save his son. But when Theodore tries to kill Chris, Aya stops him from doing it. After Tyler's sacrifice, she leaves High Card and becomes a hermit. She laments that if Tyler hadn't used the X-Hand, he would still be alive except that his son would be dead by then. However, she doesn't regret helping him.
Tyler Redgrave
Tyler Redgrave
Voiced by: Kosuke Toriumi
Chris and Michelle's father. A member of High Card who used to work with Aya. When Chris was caught in an explosion, Tyler used an X-Hand to save his son, at the cost of his own life.
- Disappeared Dad: He died prior to the series after sacrificing his life to save his son.
- Deceased Parents Are the Best: He's remembered fondly by Chris for being a good father who did everything he can to take care of him and his sister after their mother passed away.
- Heroic Sacrifice: He used an X-Hand of four Cards to save a critically injured Chris... at the cost of his own life.
Jiro Sato
Jiro Sato
Jiro with a young Wendy
Click to see him during his time with High Card.
Voiced by: Hideaki Tezuka
Wendy's father. He was once a member of High Card along with Theodore, Aya, and Tyler, but was seriously injured during a mission and decided that Wendy would succeed him.
- The Ace: Fittingly, he was the Player of "Love & Peace" before Wendy and was able to use the weapon without it controlling him.
- Deceased Parents Are the Best: It's implied he passed away, and Wendy still thinks fondly of him.
