"Three beautiful girls, three very clever sisters, they are three very skilled thieves, very smart, very agile." Many of you will have read it while humming it, on the other hand says the Italian abbreviation of one of the cartoons of the 80s most loved and famous ever: Cat eyes. Our journey into the world of 80s anime continues with the story of three sisters who by day are three common bartenders, cheerful and lively, and in the evening they turn into thieves of a thousand skills.
Cat's eyes: the plot
The first episode of Cat eyes it immediately enters the fullness of history. A group of agents, led by detective Matthew Hisman, guards a statue of great value inside a museum. This is because, with a note, the Cat's Eyes gang warned them not only of the theft but also of the time chosen to do it. Despite these warnings, Sheila, Kelly e Tati Tashikel, the three sisters-thieves, manage to steal the object of value and without particular difficulties. A scene that, over the course of the 73 episodes, we will see over and over again, with almost always the same outcome.
The mystery of the missing father
Let's be clear though: the three beautiful protagonists don't steal for the fun of it. In fact, every theft has a very specific purpose. Sheila, Kelly and Tati, members of the Cat's Eyes gang, only steal works of art and one famous artist from the 40s: Michael Heinz. In the course of history it turns out that the man is their father, who sadly passed away years earlier. Finding all his works of art, which were stolen by the Nazis during the Second World War, the three sisters hope to reconstruct the man's past and discover the truth about his disappearance. The man, in fact, would have been part of the resistance against the Nazis and, to take revenge, it would have been these who made him disappear.
Detective Matthew and the story with Sheila
However, it will not be an easy undertaking. This is also why il detective Matthew, whose job it is to discover the identity of the three thieves and arrest them, is also the boyfriend of Sheila, one of the three sisters. Fortunately for them, the man does not really stand out for his insight and, despite clues that are scattered everywhere that make it clear who the three cats may be (the most striking is the name of the bar where the three sisters work during the day, Cat Eyes), he gropes in the dark for the vast majority of the episodes and, indeed, it will be only a coincidence that will make him discover that the gang is made up of women and not men. Unlike Matthew, the colleague Alice Mitsuko - secretly in love with him - immediately suspects the three sisters. This is why she will initially be very suspicious and sometimes hostile towards them, especially those of Sheila. It will soften over the course of the second series of the anime.
Cat's Eyes: the ending of the cartoon
Faced with this plot there are two questions that arise: the three sisters manage to find their father and understand what happened to him? And does Matthew find out the truth about his girlfriend Sheila and the Cat's Eyes gang? The answer to both questions is "not really".
In 'last episode of the anime Cat's Eyes, the sisters, through their research made also thanks to the works of their father found and stolen, arrive in a villa. Here they come face to face with a man equal to their dad who, however, is not really him. Sheila, Kelly and Tati discover that it is indeed the twin brother of their father, the uncle. But he is not the good man they would expect: the sisters discover that it was he who betrayed their parent during the Second World War, causing his disappearance. And it is with this discovery that the cartoon ends. As a result, Matthew's investigation, his relationship with Sheila and the possible discovery of his true identity also remain in the balance, without a real conclusion. A final, therefore, very open and, certainly, unsatisfactory from this point of view.
Anime Vs Manga: the mysteries revealed in the comic
Not only many differences but also many shortcomings are recorded in the anime of Cat's Eyes compared to the manga. These bear the title of "Cat's eye“, Written by Tsukasa Hojo and first published in Japan by Shūeisha on Shonen Jump from 1981 to 1985 in 18 volumes. They will arrive in Italy quite a few years later, between 1999 and 2000, published by Star Comics.
The names
Surely the first that catches the eye of those who have had the opportunity to see the entire cartoon and also read the comics are the names of all the protagonists. Sheila, Kelly and Tati were actually born in Tokyo, which is why their names in the manga are Hitomi (Eye), Rui (Tear) e Ai (Love) Kisugi. Sheila's cop and boyfriend Matthew Hisman is called instead Toshio Utsumi.
Loves
If the story between Sheila and Matthew carries over to all the episodes of the cartoon, very little is known about the love affairs of the other two sisters. Well, in the anime some characters are absent that in the manga are presented as suitors of Tati and Kelly. That's not all: throughout the story, Tati falls in love with Paul, a classmate of his; Kelly, on the other hand, has a love affair with a painter named Michael Montgomery.
Heinz's works
In the anime, the three thieving sisters are looking for the works of their missing father, Heinz, in order to find out the truth about what his fate was. However, it is not clear why his works are scattered around the world and disguised under the signatures of another artist. In the comics, however, it is clarified that the painter was teaching numerous students who, after his death, stole all his works. To better hide them, his signature was superimposed on that of Cranaff, who is the first traitorous student.
The censorship
As often happens in anime, many of the scenes in the manga are deleted, cut. Also in the Cat's Eyes more violent scenes, those more spicy or even naked (like some showers of the three sisters) have been eliminated from the cartoon, clearly adapted to a vision of the younger ones.
The ending of the manga
But let's get to the focal point of the story of the three thieving sisters. We have seen that the manga does not clarify the doubts of viewers. It is not known, in fact, what really happened to his father, nor if Matthew finds out the truth about Sheila and the Cat's Eyes gang. In the manga it is more said that things are different, albeit in part.
If the mystery about the disappearance of the father of the three girls, also in this case, is not completely dissolved, the situation regarding the relationship between Sheila e Matthew. The cat, in fact, decides to reveal her true identity to her boyfriend, but then flees to the United States. The detective is upset but the love for Sheila is stronger than everything, so he decides to join her in America. When he finds her, he discovers that she has lost her memory due to viral meningitis. Her memory won't come back, yet, listening to familiar music, the girl seems to remember the past together in a very romantic moment. According to many readers, however, Sheila was only pretending to have lost her memory to give the story with Matthew a second chance without the shadow of her past as a thief.
Cat's eyes: the abbreviation
The anime was broadcast on Italia 1 from 15 September 1985 to 10 July 1986. The famous Italian theme of the cartoon obviously bears the title of “Cat eyes”And was written by Alessandra Valeri Manera with music by Ninni Carucci. It is sung by the unmistakable Cristina D'Avena.
The characters
Kelly Tashikel (Rui Kisugi) - The eldest of the sisters, protective and wise, is the mastermind of the Cat's Eye gang's plans.
Sheila Teashikel (Hitomi Kisugi) - The second of the sisters and girlfriend of Detective Matthew.
Tati Tashikel (Ai Kisugi) - The youngest of the sisters, often 'left at home' by the older ones on the most dangerous missions to protect her.
Matthew Hissman (Toshio Utsumi) - Detective trying to catch the Cat Eyes gang and Sheila's boyfriend.
Alice Mitsuko (Devil's Resurrection) - Matthew's colleague and in love with him.
Head - is, in fact, Matthew's boss, always nervous and ready to blame him for his failures.
Sig Marloss (Nagaishi) - a great friend of the father of the three sisters, he always has the necessary information about Heinz's works of art.
Michael Heinz - Missing father of the three sisters and great artist.
You are eager for a little more 80s nostalgia? We ventured into the troubled history of Lady Oscar, between Sorgenti Maledette with Ranma 1 / 2, among the thousand messes of Pollon, among the sporting challenges of Holly and Benji e Mila and Shiro. But also a lot, more!
Cat's Eyes Season 01 Episodes 01-18
- Yoshio Takeuchi (Director)
