Anokata theory: The boss may be...

[Chekhov MacGuffin]

It's impossible that the Boss is related to conan, to haibara maybe but I never read that in an interview, so maybe the fact that haibara would be surprise is a fake.

Mostly ripping straight from DCW's Boss of the Black Organization wiki article...

All the reasonably well confirmed information that is known about the boss from interviews is:
•Aoyama specified that the name of the boss has appeared somewhere in the manga. It was not clarified whether the boss has appeared in person. (The article where this was written has been tracked down and confirmed.) There appeared to be some confusion over later interviews whether the boss actually appeared in person or not, but it is best summarized by "Gosho gave out an ambiguous statement: The Boss has already been come up with/has already appeared; the name also has already been come up with/has already appeared. But which option is the correct understanding, everyone has their own opinion."
•The Black Organization's formal name gives away the boss' name. "The Black Organization" is not the real name of the organization.
•Minami Takayama, Gosho Aoyama's former wife and Conan's voice actor, knows the boss' identity.
•Aoyama revealed that he didn't expect the Detective Conan series to last longer than three months. This indicates that the boss might have been hinted early in Detective Conan.
•The boss chooses the alcoholic codenames for the agents, but does not have one himself/herself.
•The boss is not Professor Agasa.

The known facts about the boss are:
•The boss uses the first few notes of the song Nanatsu no Ko to encode his/her phone number. The number is #969#6261, which was purposefully made non-functional by Gosho Aoyama to prevent prank calls. The number might have a Tottori area code; but it is uncertain because of the way the number, including the area code, was altered to prevent prank calls. It is worth noting that Ai Haibara reacts to the word Kurayoshi – a city in Tottori province, when she notices Shinichi Kudo had taken an interest.
•He/She uses alcoholic codenames for agents.
•The boss is very careful. Vermouth says, “The boss is always careful to the extreme. He’s the type to ruin the plan by overthinking it.”
•Vermouth is the boss’ favorite for an unknown reason and he/she allows her some degree of independence.
•The boss thought Shuichi Akai could become the Black Organization’s silver bullet. In that regard he/she's more like Vermouth than Gin who doesn't believe a single person who can take the syndicate down in one shot exists.

Bits of info that have been circulated by fans, but have not been confirmed by anyone in the English-speaking population
•Aoyama also said that Ai would be really shocked if she discovered who the boss is. “It’s someone that Haibara would never have expected.” This info is attributed to Volume 19: The Case Closed Casebook.

[Adel34]

Just wondering... if Conan knows the boss's number, then why doesn't he call that number? Or at least use Megure's voice or something to ask the phone company about the identity of the person who's registered on this number.

[PhantomWriter]

Just wondering... if Conan knows the boss's number, then why doesn't he call that number? Or at least use Megure's voice or something to ask the phone company about the identity of the person who's registered on this number.

(To be a dork and reference my childhood, I'm remembering how it's like Animorphs. David tried to call his family after he had to go on the run...)

Haibara treats it as Pandora's box. Presumably, as soon as someone who isn't supposed to be privy to the number calls it, the Black Organization will try to swoop in and nab whoever it is. On top of that, impersonating someone would result in said person being murdered for appearing to be inquiring about the phone number or for calling Ano Kata.

The same could be said for caller ID. If Conan or someone similar were to call the number and, even if they were to impersonate a voice that would make sense [Gin, Kir, Vermouth, et al.], there are two problems. One, the caller ID would not match their phone unless they stole that agent's phone. Two, even if they managed to, there would be the problem of how that agent would say they lost their phone and how they would not remember the contents of the conversation.

Come on, Yuusaku can't be the boss. If he was, Haibara would have been dead by now.

It is possible, using a chess metaphor, that he's playing a long game. She may be an easy piece to take out, yes, but it could cause problems that he would rather avoid. Namely how the Black Organization figured out Sherry was there, especially pertinent after she's now confirmed as "dead," which would make Conan rather suspicious of everyone he knows who knows he's Shinichi and she's Shiho. If he digs too much, it's possible he'll find out who Yuusaku is.

On top of that, there's the matter of how, if the Black Org finds out about APTX's unintended effects, that would leave his son in danger. Conan's main advantage is that almost nobody knows about the shrinking. As soon as that becomes general knowledge, his extreme sloppiness will make Conan easy pickings.

[Chekhov MacGuffin]

It is possible, using a chess metaphor, that he's playing a long game. She may be an easy piece to take out, yes, but it could cause problems that he would rather avoid. Namely how the Black Organization figured out Sherry was there, especially pertinent after she's now confirmed as "dead," which would make Conan rather suspicious of everyone he knows who knows he's Shinichi and she's Shiho. If he digs too much, it's possible he'll find out who Yuusaku is.

On top of that, there's the matter of how, if the Black Org finds out about APTX's unintended effects, that would leave his son in danger. Conan's main advantage is that almost nobody knows about the shrinking. As soon as that becomes general knowledge, his extreme sloppiness will make Conan easy pickings.

If Yuusaku is playing a "long game", then he is not looking after the Org's best interests, or the best interests of his loved ones.
If Yuusaku were the boss, that means he knows about Ai's, Conan's, and likely his wife Yukiko's anti-Org doings. He fails to keep his son and wife from getting into dangerous Org situations, most recently on the mystery train where Gin threatened to blow the whole train up with C4.** He would be diverting resources to find Sherry when he already knows where she is and who she is (proven in London case). He may in fact know Akai is still alive if he has been keeping up with Yukiko (which is likely because she and Conan do appear to exchange info and there is no reason for Yukiko not to tell Yuusaku). If Yuusaku was the boss, then he gave an order to kill a family friend: Mouri Kogoro. He would have authorized APTX4869's use as an assassination tool despite knowing it didn't always work. All these things appear illogical given what we might deduce about Boss Yuusaku's goals and family relations.

To me boss Yuusaku is an Agasa-like theory in that they both require some kind "long game" explanation for allowing the protagonists to attack the Org as they please. Gosho specifically took Agasa out of the pool for potential boss suspects. The reason why he did so I believe is because Agasa was a popular choice (likely prompted because other writers like the "it was someone close all along trope"), but he was not a very logical choice. I don't think Gosho would have announced Agasa was not the boss if Agasa was "close" to being the right answer; i.e. the boss is a secretly evil close ally of the protagonists. Thus, I think it is worth adding additional skepticism to any theory that is "Agasa-like".

I think it is highly likely Gosho has chosen a "logical boss". We can be reasonably certain that the boss is extremely cautious and protective of the Org's secrecy***, and will act in a manner consistent with those goals. A logical boss would try to apprehend or kill Shiho if he/she knew her whereabouts. He/she would move quickly on any information that someone is interfering with the Org to neutralize the threat or prevent it from functioning well (eg. take out only the most dangerous FBI agents because killing too many FBI would generate official attention). The boss would have stopped allowing agents to use APTX for murder if he/she knows it shrinks people. The boss wouldn't have employed Kogoro if he/she could have avoided it because letting outsiders get close is risky when the boss could probably solve a case on his/her own or have an Org member in disguise do it.

In short, I think a good boss candidate is one that isn't close enough to the protagonists to have ever had a good look at Haibara. The boss wouldn't know Conan's secret or have seen him working with the FBI or doing anything that indicates he is opposing the Org. The boss would probably tried to prevent his/her non-Org loved ones (if he/she has any) from being involved in any Org plot where they are at risk. If the boss is a relative or a friend, that person is probably at least a step removed from significant interaction with Conan and Ai.

**Gin's train explosion plan was probably approved by the boss because it's not Gin's style to go behind the back of the boss unless it is something that requires immediate action (i.e. drugging Shinichi). Also it would be hard to get that much C4 without the boss hearing about it.

***This is based on information from Haibara and Vermouth who, when making those statements, didn't have a reason to lie about it. It's also consistent with boss approved actions so far.

[Adel34]

I've been re-watching an episode and wondered - did anyone suspect Yamamura's grandma to be the boss? It's true that she lives in Tottori province and her phone number sounds like the boss's number. She appeared only once in the Witch In The Fog case in person. Her age would fit, since the boss is believed to be elderly. I haven't seen her being suspected in any of the fan speculations yet. What do you think?

[Pmofmalasia]

I've been re-watching an episode and wondered - did anyone suspect Yamamura's grandma to be the boss? It's true that she lives in Tottori province and her phone number sounds like the boss's number. She appeared only once in the Witch In The Fog case in person. Her age would fit, since the boss is believed to be elderly. I haven't seen her being suspected in any of the fan speculations yet. What do you think?

I'd have to check, but I think the purpose of the scene where he notices that his grandmother's phone number is similar is supposed to signify a Tottori area code, since the area code numbers would be the same as the boss's.

[k11chi]

I've been re-watching an episode and wondered - did anyone suspect Yamamura's grandma to be the boss? It's true that she lives in Tottori province and her phone number sounds like the boss's number. She appeared only once in the Witch In The Fog case in person. Her age would fit, since the boss is believed to be elderly. I haven't seen her being suspected in any of the fan speculations yet. What do you think?

hmm... need to think about that

[dcfan01]

I've been re-watching an episode and wondered - did anyone suspect Yamamura's grandma to be the boss? It's true that she lives in Tottori province and her phone number sounds like the boss's number. She appeared only once in the Witch In The Fog case in person. Her age would fit, since the boss is believed to be elderly. I haven't seen her being suspected in any of the fan speculations yet. What do you think?

Well, according to one of the few confirmed interviews of Gosho, the boss' name should have been mentioned before ch551..
Yamamura's grandma is mentioned by Yamamyra in ch542: "My grandma recommended it to me, so I began watching the reruns[...]" (w/background photo of her)
but her name wasn't introduced until the case of "The Witch Enshrouded by Fog" (ch661-663).

[k11chi]

I've been re-watching an episode and wondered - did anyone suspect Yamamura's grandma to be the boss? It's true that she lives in Tottori province and her phone number sounds like the boss's number. She appeared only once in the Witch In The Fog case in person. Her age would fit, since the boss is believed to be elderly. I haven't seen her being suspected in any of the fan speculations yet. What do you think?

Well, according to one of the few confirmed interviews of Gosho, the boss' name should have been mentioned before ch551..
Yamamura's grandma is mentioned by Yamamyra in ch542: "My grandma recommended it to me, so I began watching the reruns[...]" (w/background photo of her)
but her name wasn't introduced until the case of "The Witch Enshrouded by Fog" (ch661-663).

or maybe the name that appeared was simply "Yamamura".. The names are really similar

[dcfan01]

I've been re-watching an episode and wondered - did anyone suspect Yamamura's grandma to be the boss? It's true that she lives in Tottori province and her phone number sounds like the boss's number. She appeared only once in the Witch In The Fog case in person. Her age would fit, since the boss is believed to be elderly. I haven't seen her being suspected in any of the fan speculations yet. What do you think?

Well, according to one of the few confirmed interviews of Gosho, the boss' name should have been mentioned before ch551..
Yamamura's grandma is mentioned by Yamamyra in ch542: "My grandma recommended it to me, so I began watching the reruns[...]" (w/background photo of her)
but her name wasn't introduced until the case of "The Witch Enshrouded by Fog" (ch661-663).

or maybe the name that appeared was simply "Yamamura".. The names are really similar

their names are similar, "Misae Yamamura" - "Misao Yamamura" for a reason.. they both come from the mystery writer Misa Yamamura..
I don't think Gosho would Associate everything that's bad and evil to a real person's name..

[k11chi]

I've been re-watching an episode and wondered - did anyone suspect Yamamura's grandma to be the boss? It's true that she lives in Tottori province and her phone number sounds like the boss's number. She appeared only once in the Witch In The Fog case in person. Her age would fit, since the boss is believed to be elderly. I haven't seen her being suspected in any of the fan speculations yet. What do you think?

Well, according to one of the few confirmed interviews of Gosho, the boss' name should have been mentioned before ch551..
Yamamura's grandma is mentioned by Yamamyra in ch542: "My grandma recommended it to me, so I began watching the reruns[...]" (w/background photo of her)
but her name wasn't introduced until the case of "The Witch Enshrouded by Fog" (ch661-663).

or maybe the name that appeared was simply "Yamamura".. The names are really similar

their names are similar, "Misae Yamamura" - "Misao Yamamura" for a reason.. they both come from the mystery writer Misa Yamamura..
I don't think Gosho would Associate everything that's bad and evil to a real person's name..

thats just referencing. there are probably thousands of refs and shout outs in DC to detective fiction and mystery in general

[dcfan01]

their names are similar, "Misae Yamamura" - "Misao Yamamura" for a reason.. they both come from the mystery writer Misa Yamamura..
I don't think Gosho would Associate everything that's bad and evil to a real person's name..

thats just referencing. there are probably thousands of refs and shout outs in DC to detective fiction and mystery in general

I'll admit that the argument is weak, I can't really make stronger arguments because there is very little information about misae.
BUT I do believe it's enough to rule her out.
Sure, there are tons of references in the DC world (some of them to real people, and others to fictional characters)..
but the boss name is not just like any other name.. it carries a lot of weight, he is the ultimate antagonist of "conan".
It is not only mean to the person whose name you decide to associate to the source of evil, it is also too big of a role for such an unknown name in the western world (it is no match for "conan" wich is known world-wide)..

And Yes, if the boss' name has any kind of reference to a real person, it will all come down to a contest of popularity between the two .

[Shinichi Edogawa]

I read somewhere that Ooguro Rentarou can be the boss and that his name appears in the mermaid case and first tequila case. Who is he? And why can he be anokata? Thank you.

[Chekhov MacGuffin]

I read somewhere that Ooguro Rentarou can be the boss and that his name appears in the mermaid case and first tequila case. Who is he? And why can he be anokata? Thank you.

It's a theory that is popular in the German fandom. The man is only known through his name, specifically a name in Hattori's guestbook in the mermaid case. Coincidentally, or not so coincidentally depending on how you feel about it, the name is shared by the Daikoku cocktail bar - the building the Organization bombed at the end of Tequila's case. Daikoku and Ooguro share the same characters, so the correct pronunciation is unclear.

The theory is popular because Gosho claimed to have included the name of the boss in the manga; it's unclear whether the boss as actually appeared.
Here is the history of the Ooguro speculation as copied from a post at DCW.

---

---

Since the German speakers are having a field day with this, here is some suspicious name trivia for you all. So Zenthisoror and HADAA did a translation of one of the names from Heiji's guestbook in the mermaid case.

8 Aug 2012, 10:17
vinyard: can someone pls translate the names in the guestbook ?

8 Aug 2012, 12:03
Zenthisoror: Hmm...well on the page Conan's looking at, the names are: Sakanazuka Saburo, Miyano Shiho And the clearest name on Hattori's page looks like Ooguro (or Daikoku) Kentaro, although it could be Oozato Kentaro.
8 Aug 2012, 12:05
Zenthisoror: If it was Ooguro (or Daikoku) Kentaro, maybe we could put him on the list of suspects for the head of the BO - the symbols for the surname, after all, mean Big Black.
8 Aug 2012, 12:05
Zenthisoror: But, mustn't jump to conclusions.
8 Aug 2012, 13:13
HADAA: Zen, it's actually Ooguro (or Daikoku) -R-entarou（大黒連太郎）, and the name Ooguro/Daikoku did appear as the building's name in that Tequila's case (The "Daiko" building which is an alternate pronunciation for the same kanji)
8 Aug 2012, 13:20
HADAA: Tidbit: Number 49 is Miyano Shiho and Number 50 looks suspiciously like 土井塔 (Doitou, and with 克樹 Kakki it would become the alias used by Kid once), but at this point I think Gosho prolly simply ran out of names or just inserted random easter eggs, like we did with our movie releases

So if we play the parse-the-kanji game for Ooguro/Daikoku Rentarou (大黒 連太郎)
大 【おお】 (pref) big; large
黒 【くろ】 (n) black
連 【むらじ】 (n) (arch) Muraji (hereditary title; orig. one of the two highest such titles, later demoted to seventh highest of eight)
太郎 【たろう】- Son. By itself it usally means eldest son, but when prefixed you get other meanings like Kintaro ("Golden Boy"), or Momotaro (Peach Boy)

Big Black Seventh Child?

Note: Gosho is fond of odd pronunciations:
大黒 can be Ooguro (Common pronunciation) or Daikoku (god of wealth and fortune, also used as building name in earlier case)

Later Edit: Other people have attempted to look at the same guestbook and do not agree on the name, so take the theory with a grain of salt please. See this thread: http://www.japanisch-netzwerk.de/Thread ... Et6d7paacg

Edit for posterity: The disaster started here in German, and then moved to here...

---

---

[Shinichi Edogawa]

Thank you very much Chekhov! There were so many interesting theories about anokata that I don't what to say about it haha.