case study of vanitas vanitas death

The Case Study of Vanitas: Who Exactly is Vanitas

The details surrounding Vanitas' past remains one of The Case Study of Vanitas' biggest mysteries. Here is all that fans know about him so far.

Warning: This contains major spoilers for The Case Study of Vanitas The main character of The Case Study of Vanitas keeps things pretty close to the vest, but fans are slowly getting bits and pieces of Vanitas' life, and unfortunately for him, it's not a pretty picture. Vanitas was born to a doctor and a performer, resulting in his mother dying in childbirth. He was raised by his father, a doctor, who traveled with his mother's group of performers. While still a child, vampires attacked and killed everyone but him, delivering him into the hands of the chasseurs. Vanitas resided at the church and resolved to become a chasseur himself in order to slay the monsters that ruined his life. His training was already underway by the time he caught the eye of Dr. Moreau, a mad scientist that was determined to turn humans into vampires .

Dr. Moreau had Vanitas kidnaped right off a battlefield, leaving behind the body of another boy that was roughly the same height as him in order to fool the other members of the church into thinking he died in action. It was deep underground the chasseurs' headquarters, in Dr. Moreau's secret lab, that Vanitas was given the label test subject No. 69. It was here that Vanitas first met Mikhail, or Misha, as No. 71.

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Luna, The Vampire of the Blue Moon, Saves Vanitas and Mikhail

Dr. Moreau pushed the children through many agonizing experiments , Vanitas taking some in Mikhail's place in order to keep the younger safe, all in order to use the two Books of Vanitas to change the World Formula. These books could only be used by the Vampire of the Blue Moon themselves or by members of their clan. Moreau injected the vampire's blue blood into Mikhail and Vanitas in order to turn them into pseudo-kin. Before the final experiment was complete, the Vampire of the Blue Moon appeared and saved both children, taking them in as their own. When Vanitas asked what they wanted with him and Mikhail, they seemed confused and just stated that Vanitas called for help, much to his confusion.

The Vampire of the Blue Moon , whom Vanitas gives the name Luna, took care of the children for what appears to be a number of years. They lead them to the house of an alchemist friend of theirs and dealt with the children's current injuries. In the throes of a fever, Vanitas explained how he ended up in the lab to Luna. Luna called him kind even as he desperately denied it. Luna takes it upon themselves to teach the children how to read, fight, and about the different Malnomen of curse bearers. It was during this time that Luna probably took him to Altus since that seems to be the only reasonable excuse for him to have gotten there previously.

As time goes on, it is stated that Luna brought the children with them in order to try and help their damaged bodies from going out. Dr. Moreau's experiments pushed the children passed humanity and closer to what vampires are. This state is delicates; at any moment their bodies might give under the stain. Luna, as a last resort, offered to turn both of them into proper members of the Blue Moon clan. Mikhail agreed wholeheartedly, but Vanitas explicitly refused. He stated that even if he died the next day, he wanted to remain human.

Vanitas Kills Luna

This brings forth the mystery of why Vanitas accepted being made a vampire kin when he killed Luna. The details behind this situation have not been revealed yet, but Vanitas, thinking Mikhail is dead , kills Luna because they had become a curse bearer. Luna seemed to be aware of their curse and made Vanitas promise to never let someone see his memories. It appears that this spurred Vanitas to place that hypnotic suggestion on himself to kill anyone who ever tried to steal his memories.

Vanitas' relationship with Luna seems to be completely complicated. He seems to think of them fondly, but there is a deep-seated hatred for them at the same time. Vanitas is following their advice and remembering conversations with them, like when they promised that one day he'd find someone to love as long as he doesn't close his heart. But at the same time, Vanitas has visceral reactions to Dominique de Sade's implication that he worships Luna or when Mikhail wanted to bring Luna back to life. He has started multiple times that his greatest revenge on Luna is to save curse bearers , and that he has spent the entire time since he killed them trying to ruin their memory, and yet there is a certain kindness mixed into all of that.

RELATED: The Case Study of Vanitas: Vampire Lore Explained

The mark of possession on Vanitas' arm allows him to wield the Book of Vanitas, allowing him to change the World Formula and save curse bearers. This mark seems to grow the more he uses his powers, consuming and changing him into something Dr. Moreau tried to create. There is an implication that using the book is slowly killing him and may be an explanation for the anime is told through Noe's flashbacks after having killed Vanitas.

After killing Luna and believing Mikhail to be dead, Vanitas started healing curse bearers, and became a regular costumer of Dante and the other dhampirs' information network, and getting on the radar of the vampires of the Crimson Moon. Dante had stated that Vanitas had other 'shields' before Noe , but he always got bored of them and ditched them eventually. Dante seems surprised by how long Vanitas has stayed with Noe, even going so far as to share a room with him.

That currently brings us to the setting of the anime, where Vanitas and Noe as serially going on quests to save corrupted vampires. Much about Vanitas' life is still a mystery, like his name only appearing as "xxxx" in the manga whenever not addressed by Vanitas. The details of his apparent death are one of the main draws to this anime, and leave anime-only fans mand manga readers on the edge of their seat for every new installment of The Case Study of Vanitas .

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The Case Study of Vanitas

• View history

The Case Study of Vanitas (ヴァニタスの 手記 ( カルテ ) , Vanitasu no Karute ) is the second main manga series by mangaka Jun Mochizuki following the completion of her one-shot Crimson-Shell and her first main series Pandora Hearts . The series launched on December 22nd 2015 and is being published monthly in Gangan Joker magazine. Yen Press publishes the official English localization, translated by Taylor Engel. In Japanese, it is marketed as part of the "shounen" demographic. In English, it is marketed as "older teen."

On March 28, 2021, Studio BONES announced an anime adaptation , which aired from the summer of 2021 to the spring of 2022.

• 2.1 Vampires
• 2.2 The Book of Vanitas
• 2.3 Malnomen
• 3.3 Stage Play
• 6 Navigation

Centuries prior to the French Revolution, the " World Formula " theory was proposed by Paracelsus which posited that the world was governed by mathematical formulas whose variables could be identified and altered. He aspired to change these variables in an attempt to erase suffering and bring happiness to humanity, which resulted in the event known as " Babel ." Innumerable calamities rocked the world to its core, causing massive amounts of death, and once it subsided new entities came into being in the world, primely the Vampire species . Deemed abominations before God, normal humans attempted to wipe out these new beings, and a race war ensued. This attempted genocide failed and Vampires began to hide their existences which came to be believed as no more than myth and legend, despite dwelling only one step beyond the human world.

Noé Archiviste , a young vampire living in late 19th century France, is sent by his Teacher to Paris to find the Book of Vanitas and discover its true nature. Supposedly, the Book of Vanitas is a cursed grimoire created by the Vampire of the Blue Moon from which the incurable disease Malnomen originates. Noé successfully discovers the Book on his way to Paris, as well as the person possessing it—a human calling himself Vanitas who uses the grimoire to cure Malnomen. Vanitas declares his goal to be the salvation of the entire race of Vampires, and Noé accompanies him for his entire journey, wishing to understand the true nature of not only the Book but also the enigmatic owner who wields it.

The story consists of Noé's memoirs on how he would come to eventually kill Vanitas with his own hands.

Terminology [ ]

Vampires [ ].

Though referred to as "vampires," the Vampire race within The Case Study of Vanitas are distinct from mythical vampires, and were in fact named after them for having certain similarities. The main distinguishing feature between Vampires and humans is the ability of Vampires to see and interact with the World Formula , allowing them certain superhuman abilities. Unlike mythical vampires, Vampires within The Case Study of Vanitas do not have to drink blood or harm others to survive, and the vast majority go their entire lives without harming humans. While most (but not all) Vampires do enjoy the taste of blood, it is not a biological need, and is compared to alcohol, smoking, or sex. Compulsive blood drinking only occurs in the case of blood addiction or Malnomen .

Most Vampires are born under the Crimson Moon, and have a natural fear of the Blue Moon. Those who are born under the Blue Moon, as in the case of Vanitas of the Blue Moon , are scorned and ostracized by other Vampirekind.

The Book of Vanitas [ ]

A cursed grimoire supposedly passed on to Vanitas by Vanitas of the Blue Moon themself. It is the originator of the disease Malnomen, created in revenge against Vampires for their prosecution of those born under the Blue Moon. The human Vanitas now has the Book of Vanitas within his possession and is the only person capable of using it. However, contrary to the Book's original purpose, Vanitas uses it to cure cases of Malnomen and desires to save the Vampire race.

Malnomen [ ]

A disease created by Vanitas of the Blue Moon . It attacks the True Name of vampires, causing their bodies and souls to warp. Those infected with Malnomen, usually called curse bearers, gradually grow insane and begin to obsessively search for blood, escalating until they assault and even kill others without hesitation. In addition, their bodies will corrupt, though the onset of physical symptoms appear to happen rapidly in the final stages of the disease. Once warping of the body occurs, the curse bearer will continue to attack others until it dies. Until very recently, there was no possible way to cure those infected with Malnomen, and thus all curse bearers would be sentenced to execution by decapitation once their condition was discovered. The human Vanitas reverse engineers the different forms of Malnomen to find and restore the curse bearer's True Name, curing them.

The Case Study of Vanitas is written and illustrated by Jun Mochizuki and began serialization in Square Enix's monthly shōnen magazine Monthly Gangan Joker on December 2015. There are currently nine tankōbon volumes collecting serial chapters released in Japanese. The series is licensed in English by Yen Press and published simultaneously with its Japanese release.

The Case Study of Vanitas is an anime television series adaptation of the manga written and illustrated by Jun Mochizuki. On March 28, 2021, Aniplex announced at AnimeJapan an anime adaptation for the manga, animated by the studio BONES. It started broadcasting on July 2, 2021.

Stage Play [ ]

Stage "Vanitas no Carte" is a stage play adaptation of the manga written and illustrated by Jun Mochizuki. Announced by the official Twitter account on October 28, 2021. The show was initially scheduled from January 21st to January 30th, 2022 at the THEATRE1010 (シアター1010), in Tokyo, Japan. An encore was performed from March 10th to March 12th, 2023 at the Sunshine Theater (サンシャイン劇場), in Tokyo, Japan.

Gallery [ ]

• Vanitas first appeared in the final Pandora Hearts artbook 「There is.」 , shown waving to the main cast of Pandora Hearts as he passed by alongside Noé with his back turned so that he remained unidentifiable at the time.

Navigation [ ]

• 3 List of Characters (The Case Study of Vanitas)

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English Dub Review: The Case Study of Vanitas “Where Death Slumbers”

Overview (Spoilers Below):

Vanitas and Noe meet with Lord Riven and discuss their next move. Noe is surprised to learn that Luca is a Grand Duke, while Vanitas gets them kicked back into the human world when he offends the vampires by asking to examine their Queen.

Once returned to the human realm, they learn that vampires have been going missing and go in search of the group responsible’s hidden base. They don’t find it, but Vanitas already knows where it is, and sneaks out by himself to go after the church’s anti-vampire unit. Luckily, Noe tags along with him, because it’s going to take both of them to make it out alive.

Last week’s episode of Vanitas was all romance focused and didn’t fare too well in my review. For the eighth episode this week, the show switches things up and returns to the action of hunting for vampire hunters when Vanitas and Noe return to the human realm. It’s certainly not a great episode, but it’s definitely a lot more interesting than the previous one.

The opening scene isn’t a promising start, as Vanitas does his usual annoying Vanitas thing and takes things too far in his desire to examine the Queen. It’s a little hard to tell if it’s just serial sarcasm or if he’s genuinely unhinged, but it’s probably a combination of both. I’m less surprised about Vanitas getting them booted from the realm and more interested in the reveal that Luca is the Grand Duke, but we don’t get to spend much time processing that before the series kicks its next storyline into gear.

Back in the human world, more vampires have been going missing and Noe, Vanitas, and their associates are eager to put a stop to it. Or are they? The group goes into some underground catacombs that turns out to be nothing more than a tourist trap. It’s kind of pointless, and especially so because it turns out that Vanitas knew where they should’ve been going all along. Maybe some will enjoy the chaotic nature of having a main character like Vanitas, but I am not among them.

He and Noe eventually break into a church and Noe comments that it seems like Vanitas already knows who’s responsible for the kidnappings and where to find them. He confronts Vanitas about it, and wouldn’t ya know it, Vanitas just ignores him and spews some unrelated bullshit. It’s frustrating for Noe, but also as a viewer. I did enjoy it a bit more once the two of them ran into a paladin named Roland. He seems like a naive young worshipper at first, but manages to trick Vanitas into a trap and then goes on the attack against Noe in the cliffhanger ending.

Where Death Slumbers  is a solid improvement over last week’s episode for sure, but there’s still plenty I would’ve liked the show to have done differently. Pacing, for one thing. If we could’ve gotten into the final catacombs more quickly instead of spending time on false alarms and Vanitas’s queen fetish, maybe more answers would’ve been found. But then again, the show is perfectly content to let Vanitas keep all his secrets to himself… for now, at least.

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About Caleb

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• Cast & crew

Where Death Slumbers

• Episode aired Aug 21, 2021

Vanitas and Noe head to the catacombs of Paris in search of the Chasseurs, an anti-vampire squad of warrior priests. Vanitas and Noe head to the catacombs of Paris in search of the Chasseurs, an anti-vampire squad of warrior priests. Vanitas and Noe head to the catacombs of Paris in search of the Chasseurs, an anti-vampire squad of warrior priests.

• Tomoyuki Itamura
• Takayo Ikami
• Hitomi Mieno
• Jun Mochizuki
• Natsuki Hanae
• Kaito Ishikawa

• Noe Archiviste
• (English version)

• Noé Archiviste

• Dominique de Sade
• All cast & crew
• Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

User reviews

• August 21, 2021 (Japan)
• Contents Seed
• See more company credits at IMDbPro

Technical specs

• Runtime 23 minutes

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The Case Study of Vanitas 10

Artist: Jun Mochizuki

Letterer: Bianca Pistillo

Translated by: Taylor Engel

Mikhail’s machinations have succeeded in turning Noé and Vanitas against each other—and in a desperate attempt to stop Noé, Dominique throws herself offff the Ferris wheel! Locked in a fifierce struggle against a relentless Vanitas, Noé cannot do anything but watch as his childhood friend plummets to her death…Are they doomed to end this sordid affffair exactly as Mikhail intended?

The Case Study of Vanitas, Vol. 10

The Case Study of Vanitas Volumes

The Case Study of Vanitas, Vol. 9

The Case Study of Vanitas, Vol. 8

The Case Study of Vanitas, Vol. 7

The Case Study of Vanitas, Vol. 6

The Case Study of Vanitas, Vol. 5

The Case Study of Vanitas, Vol. 4

The Case Study of Vanitas, Vol. 3

The Case Study of Vanitas, Vol. 2

The Case Study of Vanitas, Vol. 1

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Posted Mar 20, 2024 by Callista Gonzalez

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