Gallery Fake
| Gallery Fake | |
| File:Gallery Fake v1 cover.jpg The cover of the first volume of Gallery Fake | |
| ギャラリーフェイク (Gyararī Feiku) | |
|---|---|
| Manga | |
| Written by | Fujihiko Hosono |
| Published by | Shogakukan |
| Magazine | Big Comic Spirits |
| Demographic | Seinen |
| Original run | 1992 – 2005 |
| Volumes | 32 |
| Anime television series | |
| Directed by | Akira Nishimori Osamu Yamasaki |
| Studio | Tokyo Movie (episodes 1–25) Tokyo Kids (episodes 26–37) |
| Original network | TV Tokyo |
| Original run | 8 January 2005 – 24 September 2005 |
| Episodes | 37 |
Gallery Fake (ギャラリーフェイク, Gyararī Feiku) is a Japanese manga by Fujihiko Hosono, which was adopted into an anime television series. In 1996, it received the Shogakukan Manga Award.[1]
Plot
On a wharf on Tokyo Bay is a small gallery named Gallery Fake. The owner of the gallery, Reiji Fujita (藤田 玲司, Fujita Reiji), was once a curator at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. He was a learned curator with remarkable memory, keen aesthetic sense, great skill in restoration of paintings and knowledge of many languages, so he was called the "Professor". However, because of trouble in the workplace, Fujita was forced to quit the museum. Now he is an art dealer who sells paintings, authentic and fake alike, sometimes at extraordinary prices. His motto is "One without aesthetic sense can't help being cheated out of his money. And by being deceived, one may learn to distinguish real ones from the counterfeit."
However, Fujita is not a villain and has a strong sense of justice. He truly appreciates art and the artists who spent their lives to create it. He does not try to deceive people by selling fake paintings. He will go out of his way to help people in trouble, but also bring justice to politicians, businessmen or art dealers who are dishonest. He often touches the lives of those he encounters and people are attracted to him in spite of his sometimes gruff manner.
Characters
Reiji Fujita (藤田玲司, Fujita Reiji)
- He is an art dealer and a former curator for the Metropolitan Museum of Art (MET). Those he worked with refer to him as "Professor Fujita". He was forced to leave the MET by Max Watson when Fujita threatened to exposes his shady dealings. Later, he established his own gallery on a wharf in Tokyo, Japan called Gallery Fake. He is an expert at painting restoration and an artist. He can usually determine if a painting is real or fake. He sometimes makes promises he cannot keep (mostly to Sara) and will sometimes deal on the black market to get certain artifacts. Fujita hates exercise and is easily exhausted from physical activity. Fujita is often the cause of Sara's anger although he very protective of her. He has a daughter from a previous relationship, named Elizabeth, his love child with Flora Joconda (a descendant of Mona Lisa). The two met when Fujita was a penniless young man and not yet an employee of the MET.
Sara Halifa (サラ・ハリファ, Sara Halifa)
- She is Fujita's assistant and is very loyal, defending him if he is criticized. She accompanies Fujita on trips although she has little knowledge of art. She has a crush on him and is jealous if he visits Fei Cui. She adopts a stray cat which she has used to attack. She is an optimistic person and has a somewhat childish personality though she is persistent and unforgiving at times. Sara is a member of Kerabia's royal family and hates war because it resulted in the death of her family.
Sayoko Mitamura (三田村小夜子, Mitamura Sayoko)
- She is the director at Takada Art Museum. She thinks of Fujita as someone who is not helping the art world but destroying it. She states that Fujita is a cold-blooded scam artist. She is a stiff confident person and workaholic. She harbors some feelings for Fujita, as shown in episode 12.
Fei Cui (翡翠)
- She owns a store called Jade, but is also a proclaimed jewel thief. She is obsessed with them and other precious items. She often calls Fujita to gloat about her latest stolen items. Sara sees her as a rival for Fujita's attention. She has a volatile personality and her manservant, Menou, has said that Fei can be sunny one day and stormy the next. She sometimes has a problem with her eyes and fears she may go blind. Fujita claims that the jewels affect her eyes.
Menou (瑪瑙(めのう))
- Fei Cui's middle-aged manservant who is also a masochist. He's happy when Fei Cui punishes him for misdemeanors.
Carlos (カルロス)
- He is an associate of Fujita and helps him with his activities.
Ramos (ラモス)
- He is an addicted treasure hunter and sometimes joins Fujita when his particular skills are required.
Max Watson
- He is an art expert and employee of the Metropolitan Museum of Art (MET). He caused Fujita Reiji to resign from the MET after Fujita accused him of re-attrbuting paintings which were then sold a reduced price to the art dealer Bill Travers.
Episode list
| No. | Title [2] | Original airdate |
|---|
Notes
References
- ^ 小学館漫画賞：歴代受賞者 (in Japanese). Shogakukan. Archived from the original on 2007-09-29. Retrieved 2007-08-19.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ Titles taken from English language DVD release
External links
- Gallery Fake (manga) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia
- Gallery Fake (anime) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia
- Official TV-Tokyo site for Gallery Fake
