[Karakuri Circus] A look into the secret activities of the mastermind behind it all, "Faceless = Platinum"

2025.07.29

Karakuri Circus is divided into two parts, the Karakuri Arc and the Circus Arc, which are told from the perspectives of the two main characters, Kato Narumi and Saiga Masaru. The Karakuri Arc depicts the deadly battle between Kato Narumi and Shirogane and the automatons, the enemies of humanity, while the Circus Arc follows Saiga Masaru and Shirogane (Eleonore) as they meet and grow through the circus. Working behind the scenes, and the source of all the feuds in Karakuri Circus, is Faceless (Platinum). I would like to introduce and examine his secret activities.

Contents

The Final Boss of the Series and the Mastermind Behind Everything

Faceless, the Mastermind Behind Everything
Source: Karakuri Circus © Kazuhiro Fujita, Shogakukan / Twin Engine

As the title suggests, most of the events that occur in Karakuri Circus are manipulated by someone like a mechanical device, and acted out like a circus. These masterminds are Faceless, Dean Maistre, Sadayoshi Saiga, and Shirogane. It's all his fault that Saiga Masaru inherited a huge inheritance and his life was targeted, that Kato Narumi contracted Zonaha disease and had to fight as a Shirogane, and that Eleanor was raised as a doll instead of a human.

The Beginning

Source: Karakuri Circus © Kazuhiro Fujita, Shogakukan / Twin Engine

It all began when the alchemist siblings Shirogane and Shirogane fell in love with the same woman. The woman's name was Francine, and she bore a striking resemblance to Karakuri Circus' heroine, Eleanor Saiga. Shirogane tells Shirogane that he has fallen in love with Francine, but even though Shirogane knows his brother's feelings, it was Shirogane who confessed his feelings to Francine and fell in love with her.

At the time, there was no knowledge of epidemics, and a panacea was needed.

Source: Karakuri Circus © Kazuhiro Fujita, Shogakukan / Twin Engine

After overhearing Shirogane's confession, Shirogane kidnapped Francine and disappeared. However, Francine never smiled after being abducted. Eventually, when they drifted to the village of Clog, Francine fell ill and was isolated by the villagers. Nine years later, Shirogane tenaciously finds Shirogane and Francine, learns why Shirogane took Francine, and attempts to create a panacea called a "soft stone" to save Francine.

Goodbye, Francine

Source: Karakuri Circus © Kazuhiro Fujita, Shogakukan / Twin Engine

Though the "Soft Stone" was completed, Francine committed suicide by self-immolation out of guilt towards Shirogane. Around the same time, Shirogane also completed a "Soft Stone," but everything was reduced to ashes, leaving behind a lock of Francine's hair as a keepsake. This is the beginning of everything, and the catalyst for Shirogane's further descent into madness.

[Karakuri Circus] Analysis! Why did Shirogane go insane?

Source: Karakuri Circus © Kazuhiro Fujita, Shogakukan / Twin Engine

Shirogane, the final boss of Karakuri Circus and a villainous villain, was initially sensible. I believe that Platinum was unable to find happiness even after stealing Francine because he was so normal. Perhaps it was because he felt a deep sense of guilt that he later awakened to a dark madness that overshadowed that guilt.

[Karakuri Circus] The Secret Activities of "Faceless = Platinum" Part 1: Revenge on the Villagers

Source: Karakuri Circus © Kazuhiro Fujita, Shogakukan / Twin Engine

Shirogane creates the Francine Doll, made with Francine's hair, and the "Four Oldest" automatons, who spread the deadly Zonaha disease, to exact revenge on the descendants of the village of Clog, who imprisoned Francine. His brother, Shirogane, saves the village with the "Water of Life," made by dissolving "Soft Stone" in water, marking the beginning of a long, drawn-out battle between Shirogane and the automatons.

The Beginning of Shirogane's Feud with the Automaton

Source: Karakuri Circus © Kazuhiro Fujita, Shogakukan / Twin Engine

Shirogane achieved his selfish revenge, but the Francine doll beside him was unable to smile, so he abandoned the doll and disappeared. In order to find someone who can make her laugh, the remaining Francine doll increases the number of automatons and begins spreading the Zonaha disease into the world, causing death-like pain if the automaton is not able to make someone laugh.

[Karakuri Circus] The Secret Activities of "Faceless = Platinum" Part 2: Dean Maistre

Platinum Discourages Suicide

Source: Karakuri Circus ©Kazuhiro Fujita, Shogakukan / Twin Engine

The Francine doll was a flawed doll that never laughed. As a result, Shirogane falls into despair and seeks a place to die, attempting to take his own life in his hometown of China, but then he comes up with the idea of using the "Water of Life" to revive Francine. The "Water of Life" is capable of dissolving one's own memories, and by dissolving Francine's hair in the "Water of Life," he believes he can create a person who inherits Francine's memories.

Child Appearance, Adult Mind

Source: Karakuri Circus © Kazuhiro Fujita, Shogakukan / Twin Engine

First, Shirogane dissolves his memories in the "Water of Life" and gives it to a kidnapped child to drink, successfully rejuvenating himself. After drinking the Water of Life and gaining the traits of Shirogane, Shirogane changes his name to Dean Maistre and decides to live as Shirogane. There, Dean meets Angelina, a woman who is the spitting image of Francine (but is actually related by blood), and his obsession shifts to Angelina.

[Karakuri Circus] Faceless = Platinum's Secret Activities Part 3: Assassination Plan Launched

Source: Karakuri Circus © Kazuhiro Fujita, Shogakukan / Twin Engine

Dean Maistre's physical age was roughly the same as Angelina's, so he thought he could win her over without doing anything special by fighting alongside her as a Shirogane. However, Angelina ended up marrying Shoji Saiga in a foreign land and even having a child with him.

Attack

Source: Karakuri Circus © Kazuhiro Fujita, Shogakukan / Twin Engine

Shirogane is the creator of the automatons and can control them if he so desires. He plots to assassinate Angelina and Shoji Saiga, and to retrieve the Francine doll, which Angelina has brought to destroy. As a result, Angelina dies, but the Francine doll made from her hair dissolves in water as part of the "soft stone" passed down to Eleanor, protecting her from the "Water of Life."

Eleonore Becomes Shirogane

Source: Karakuri Circus © Kazuhiro Fujita, Shogakukan / Twin Engine

Thanks to the Francine doll's desperate defense, Eleonore was not dissolved in the Water of Life. However, after drinking the dissolved Water of Life, Eleonore became a Shirogane, inheriting Francine's memories.

[Karakuri Circus] Analysis! The Shy Dean Maistre!?

Source: Karakuri Circus © Kazuhiro Fujita, Shogakukan / Twin Engine

Dean's relationship has become even more complicated since Angelina and Shoji Saiga ended up together. Angelina, however, has a history of being rejected by every man because she is a near-immortal Shirogane. It's questionable whether he would have remained calm if Angelina had a boyfriend, but if he had gotten there first, it wouldn't be strange if he had ended up with Angelina.
He may actually be extremely shy.

[Karakuri Circus] The secret activities of "Faceless = Platinum" Part 4: Working in the shadows as Saiga Sadayoshi!

Source: Karakuri Circus © Kazuhiro Fujita, Shogakukan / Twin Engine

Even before plotting the assassination, Dean Maistre, the adopted son of Shoji Saiga, became president of the Saiga Group under the name Sadayoshi Saiga. He amassed enormous wealth. After the assassination plot, his obsession turns to Eléonore, who has inherited Francine's memories, and he uses his past failures as motivation to move forward with a certain plan.

It's like Steins;Gate's time leap, but with a different person overwriting it.

Source: Karakuri Circus © Kazuhiro Fujita, Shogakukan / Twin Engine

He plans to download his memories into Masaru Saiga, his mistress's son (no blood relation), and take his place. At the same time, he disguises himself as Saiga Shoji and raises young Eleanor as a doll, imprinting on her the belief that she will become human if she protects Saiga Katsu. The reason he gave Saiga Katsu a huge inheritance was to embroil him in a bitter family feud, put him in a critical situation, and force Eleanor to protect Katsu.

Just as planned

Source: Karakuri Circus © Kazuhiro Fujita, Shogakukan / Twin Engine

Eleonore is sent to Japan as planned by Shoji Saiga, out of a caring desire to keep Shirogane away from dangerous missions. However, due to the efforts of Saiga Shoji, the crucial download of memories into Saiga Masaru was incomplete, and Saiga Sadayoshi's body was almost completely destroyed.

[Karakuri Circus] The secret activities of "Faceless = Platinum" Part 5: His secret activities as Faceless!

Source: Karakuri Circus © Kazuhiro Fujita, Shogakukan / Twin Engine

Afterward, Sadayoshi Saiga, who somehow managed to survive despite being partially destroyed, secretly operates as "Faceless," commander of Shirogane-O. Having infiltrated the core of Shirogane, Faceless participates in the final battle against the automatons. In the process, Faceless sacrifices himself to save Narumi Kato.

Mad Man

Source: Karakuri Circus © Kazuhiro Fujita, Shogakukan / Twin Engine

Naturally, Faceless, the mastermind behind everything, had no reason to participate in the final battle between Shirogane and the automatons, nor any reason to help Narumi Kato. However, he did help Narumi Kato for the incredibly crazy reason that he inherited his brother Shirogane's memories and, despite not being driven by a desire for revenge, saw Narumi Kato as his brother and possessed a similar aura. He wanted to steal Eleonore right in front of his very eyes.

Game Proposal

Source: Karakuri Circus © Kazuhiro Fujita, Shogakukan / Twin Engine

Appearing as the mastermind behind the plot, Faceless appears to administer a complete download to Katsu Saiga. However, after meeting unexpected resistance from Katsu, he proposes a game to Katsu. The game involves protecting Eleanor from assassins sent for two years, and the others will no longer harm her.

[Karakuri Circus] Discussion! Was Commander Faceless always intended to be the final boss?

Source: Karakuri Circus © Kazuhiro Fujita, Shogakukan / Twin Engine

Faceless is also known as the Faceless of the Three Solutions. Two of these, disintegration and dissolution, appeared in the Karakuri Arc, but the last one did not appear, and the third one was revealed towards the end, so it could be assumed that Faceless was intended to be the final boss from the beginning, but the reason he helped Kato Narumi is so strange that I personally think the setting of him being the final boss was added on later.

[Karakuri Circus] Shirogane's Unprecedented Final Plan

Faceless unleashes a plan to destroy civilization by releasing nanomachines called "Apollyon," the pathogen of a new type of Zonaha disease far more deadly than the original. Only a few people in the world remain uninfected by Zonaha disease, and they manage to capture Eleanor by taking the members of Nakamachi Circus, who had escaped danger thanks to being by Eleanor's side for so long, as semi-hostages.

To Space

Faceless's final plan was to download Masaru, who had boarded the ship, and have him destroy Faceless's body, completely replacing Masaru and taking possession of Eleanor. He then planned to leave space in the rocket.

I failed again and again

Although they were able to capture Katsu and download him into their castle, Mont Saint-Michel, Katsu had consumed a high concentration of Shirogane's Water of Life, granting him regenerative abilities similar to Shirogane's, nullifying the download. Katsu, anticipating this, purposely downloaded himself, exploiting the opening and recapturing Éléonore at the last moment.

[Karakuri Circus] Thoughts! Did he intend to keep his promise to Katsu in the game?

No (certainty) Did he intend to keep the promise he made with Saiga Masaru in the game: "If I can protect Eleanor from the assassins sent by her for two years, I won't touch her again"? I don't think he had any intention of keeping it. I think this was part of a plan to help Masaru grow and become someone who could protect Eleanor, and then take his place.

[Karakuri Circus] Platinum's Unprecedented Final Plan

In the end, neither Francine, Angelina, nor Eleanor belonged to Platinum. So he decided to wipe out all of humanity. He gave orders to accelerate the progression of the Zonaha disease's pathogens. This left the remaining humans with just over two weeks to fight.

A Fateful Showdown

The remaining humans put up a desperate resistance, and as a result, Saiga Masaru made it to the space station where Shirogane was. Shirogane knew that Masaru had fallen in love with Eleonore. However, Shirogane asks why he didn't take Eleanor away from him like he did.

Are you happy?

Katsu certainly loved Eleanor, but he says that it was Narumi who Eleanor fell in love with first. He doubts he'll be happy if he takes her away from him. This was the very essence of Shirogane's past. Even after stealing Francine, Shirogane could not find happiness.

A Brother's Feelings

Those words touch Shirogane's heart precisely because he was the same as her. In the aftermath of the battle, the space station is no longer able to maintain its hardness, and it is announced that it will crash into Kuroga Village. Shirogane and Masaru work together to manipulate puppets to change the space station's course, and succeed in doing so. Wondering if he would feel the same way if he had a younger brother, Shirogane tells Masaru about the cure for Zonaha disease and helps him escape from the space station.

I was wrong

And so, the man who was Shirogane, Dean Maistre, Sadayoshi Saiga, and Faceless remained on the space station. Driven in madness, this man, who had never once reflected on his actions, died with regret for his sins for the first time.

Karakuri Circus Platinum Review

As the root cause of all the conflict in Karakuri Circus and the ultimate villain, Platinum's impact is extremely important throughout the series. It's rare to find such an over-the-top final boss, and it's fair to say the series was made possible by his presence. I think he was a truly powerful final boss.