| “ | The peace and quiet of daily life is something that's meant to be broken out of the blue, right? | ” |
—Retrace VII: Reunion | ||
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Introduction
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Oz Vessalius (オズ＝ベザリウス, Ozu Bezariusu) is the protagonist of Jun Mochizuki's Pandora Hearts. He is the eldest child of the Vessalius Dukedom and its rightful heir.[1] During his Coming-of-Age Ceremony he is thrown into the mystical prison the Abyss,[2] where he creates an Illegal Contract with Alice, a Chain also known as the B-Rabbit.[3] Under threat of arrest, he joins the government research organization Pandora.
A prophecy[2] by the Baskerville Clan declares him the "key to the Intention of the Abyss,"[4] and Pandora finds him to be the reincarnation of its founder, the hero Jack Vessalius.[5] Thus, he is tasked with finding and defeating the reincarnation of Glen Baskerville[5] and aiding Pandora's quest in gaining control of the Intention of the Abyss.[6]
He, along with Alice, and his childhood friend Gilbert Nightray, are the central protagonists of Pandora Hearts.
This article contains plot and/or ending details for Pandora Hearts.
Read at your own risk.
Oz is in fact the original B-Rabbit[7], a Chain created by Lacie Baskerville and the Core of the Abyss. His original bodies were two identical toy rabbits, one kept by Lacie, the other by the Core.[8] Following Lacie's death, he became the companion to her daughters, Alice and the Intention of Abyss. One of his bodies was destroyed by Jack Vessalius[8] while the other was made into a Chain.[9] Jack then Illegally Contracted him to destroy the "Chains" separating the Abyss and the material world, causing the Tragedy of Sablier.[10] After this failed to drag the world into the Abyss, Jack was cursed to age circuitously from his age at the time of the Tragedy, back to a newborn.[11] Alice, Oz's former owner as a stuffed toy, took his power as her own to prevent him from being made to inflict further suffering.[12] As Jack's soul degraded, Oz eventually gained control of his body, though Oz could not remember his true identity or power. Xai Vessalius adopted Oz as a newborn about a century later and raised him as the human Oz Vessalius.[13]
Appearance
Oz is identical to how Jack Vessalius looked in his teens.[14] As such, he has blond hair and large green eyes, and while he was notably larger than Gilbert Nightray at fourteen,[1] he is remarked as short and frail,[15] coming up only to 164cm (5'4").[16] His hair is short and spiky, shown to be hard to control.[17] He has a cowlick at the front of his head, jokingly compared to a banana. When using the power of the B-Rabbit, his eyes turn red.[18] When drawing him, Jun Mochizuki pays special attention to his smile.[16]
He wears several outfits over the course of the series. For the first few arcs, his default outfit consists of civilian clothing, chosen to be inconspicuous.[19] He wears a white shirt with a brown vest and a red tie, along with plaid green shorts and brown boots. He eventually[20] switches to an all black outfit, with a long, double breasted coat, black shorts, and black boots. Following the deaths of Noise and Echo, he picks up their red Baskerville cloak and wears it in Echo's honor for the rest of the series.[21]
His true form is not humanoid. Originally, Oz had two bodies, a pair of identical toy rabbits.[8] These rabbits had black fur and red eyes, each wearing a long bow. Following the birth of the Alices, one of these bodies was given an outfit[8] which he would wear when manifesting fully as a Chain.[7] As a Chain, he takes the form of a large, somewhat anthropomorphized rabbit with black fur and red eyes. This form is sometimes given more predatory features, such as sharp teeth and a muscular frame. In this form, he wears a red and white checkered coat and wields a large, red scythe.
Following the hundred year timeskip, Oz reincarnates as a blond, humanoid boy of similar stature and build.[22] He wears a white shirt, a lightly colored button up hoodie, a striped tie, dark shorts, black socks, and black flats. He has the same cowlick as he did possessing a human form in his previous incarnation.
Personality
Oz's charm
Oz is initially depicted as a heedless, headstrong teenage boy with few reservations[1] or concern for the world around him.[3] Though usually not outright rude, he has a haughty, aggressive speech pattern characteristic of self confident young men.[23] When he meets new girls, his first impulse is usually to flirt,[2] regardless of whether this behavior is appropriate or not.[24] He enjoys teasing others, particularly his valet Gilbert,[25] and ignores rules and tradition in favor of acting on his whims.[1] While trapped in Abyss, he was undaunted by the terrors found there, something Alice assumed was a consequence of stupidity.[3]
However, Oz is deeply sensitive to the emotions of others, his rash behavior a calculated effort to manipulate those around him. He is terrified of rejection and thus seeks to hide all vulnerabilities, refusing to express his true emotions.[15] He has little fear of danger, having internalized threats as a natural part of his life from a young age.[4] Similarly, he refuses to express anguish, even when betrayed, punished, or met with the death of a loved one. He adopted the philosophy of "acceptance," allowing him to easily adapt to new dangers,[4] but rendering him unwilling to resist dire conditions.[26] Though he acknowledges him as talented and studious, Gilbert described Oz as a taut thread on the verge of snapping.[27] Xerxes Break referred to him as "freaky" and "warped" for his behavior,[6] something Oz struggled to deny.[27]
Though never shown to directly harm himself, Oz acknowledged he was suicidal and admitted his ostensible recklessness was a cover up for deliberate attempts to die.[15] His father's open disdain for him[27] and the danger his political position put him in[4] made it difficult for him to acknowledge others' care for him as genuine.[28] Along with numerous[4] suicide[29] attempts,[26] Oz occasionally[29] exhibits[30] violent[31] outbursts,[32] though he was remarked as seeming unaware of his own actions during and after these episodes.[30] Oz nonetheless cares about the feelings of others, and upon coming to terms with the emotional impact his suicide would have on those who loved him,[15] resolved to work on his suicidal ideation.[28] He subsequently began to open up to others more and set goals for himself, much to the relief of those around him.[30]
Oz was shown to have numerous skills and hobbies,[16] though he is in fact rather naïve as a consequence of his sheltered upbringing. He told Echo he had never once seen a festival in person before,[33] and his lack of knowledge of the world causes occasional missteps, such as forgetting to pay a vendor for food he'd received. His sensitivity nonetheless causes him to appear precocious at times, particularly in his moral development and capacity for empathy, as he will quickly attach great meaning to the lives of even near strangers. As such, he exhibited a nobility and selflessness unusual for his age from when he was very young.
It is eventually revealed that Oz was initially a pair of stuffed rabbits created by Lacie Baskerville as a gift to the Core of Abyss, his existence serving as a link between the two when not allowed to meet. Unable to move or talk, Oz would observe the lives of Lacie and the Core up until the former's death. He then was passed down to Lacie's biological daughters, and was particularly fawned over by the earthly incarnation of Alice. Though he described Alice as "horrible," he loved her deeply, she being the one to give him a name and a sense of self. He was grateful to his creators for allowing him to be a companion to Alice, though he still could not communicate with her, and thus sacrificed his earthly body to deliver Lacie's final message. He would come to regret this, however, for the grief it would cause Alice, and the subsequent violence it would force him to commit.
Overall, Oz is intelligent, manipulative, and at times spiteful and sadistic. Despite this, his ultimate concern is the wellbeing of others, and his attempts at concealing his true nature are all in the hope of relieving others. He at times displays unusual maturity for his mental age, but is nonetheless childish in his interests and his understanding of romance.
Powers and Abilities
- Swordfighting: Oz was personally trained in swordfighting by Xerxes Break, as well as receiving some lessons prior to the events of the series, though he had limited actual experience.
- Violin: Oz was shown playing violin in the final chapter of Pandora Hearts.[22]
- Various other abilities: As the heir to the most powerful of the Four Dukedoms, Oz is expected to have many skills. These include: drawing, singing, poetry recital, piano, dance, studying horseback riding, mathematical calculation, and proficiency in firearms.[16]
Chain
Oz using B-Rabbit's power
As the contractor of the B-Rabbit, Alice, Oz had limited powers.
- He could summon Alice to fight for him. In these cases, she would take the form of a large rabbit and attack others with a summoned scythe.[24]
- As the presence of a Chain in his body was believed to put him under physical strain, Alice's power was nearly always sealed by the Raven.[19] Under these circumstances, Oz could not release Alice's power without first making skin-to-skin contact with the left hand of the Raven's contractor, Gilbert Nightray.[24]
As the B-Rabbit, Oz had several powers.
- Originally manifested as a Chain in order to destroy the "Chains" which distinguish Abyss and the material world,[9] Oz was one of the most, if not the single most destructive Chain to appear in Pandora Hearts.
- Oz was one of two known Chain Killers, Chains capable of completely destroying other Chains (the other being Mad Hatter).
- This ability extended to Baskervilles, former humans whose bodies have come to take on the traits of Chains, allowing him to easily kill the normally invulnerable Baskervilles.[34]
- It is stated in an omake that Oz may have had the power to charge weapons with Chain Killing powers, hence why he was able to scar Gilbert.
- This ability extended to Baskervilles, former humans whose bodies have come to take on the traits of Chains, allowing him to easily kill the normally invulnerable Baskervilles.[34]
- He was able to manifest a large, red scythe which he could manipulate intuitively.[30]
- He was able to turn objects to sand by touching or striking them, though it is unclear if there is any limitations on this ability.[31]
- He was able to summon thick, pointed chains, which could be used as a projectile weapon.[35]
- Like all Chains, Oz was invulnerable to most physical attacks, though the human body he possessed was not.
- Over time, Oz's presence in Jack's body caused its physical constitution to morph, their body becoming more Chain-like than human (similar to that of a Baskerville's).[22]
Oz holding Jack's pocket watch
Equipment
- Oz is not shown or implied to regularly carry practical or combat-oriented equipment.
- He carries a golden pocket watch which he retrieved from Lacie's Tomb at the start of the story. This pocket watch was originally created in collaboration between Jack Vessalius and Glen Baskerville, and would play "a song" when opened.[1]
Quotes
- "Well, I've come across so many oddities that I've gotten used to it. ... Only by accepting all this, can I get a grasp of the situation."
- "Everything that hurts you, everything that makes you sad, I'll destroy them, all of them!. So that's why please smile, my precious Alice."
- "No...No! I don't want to kill! I don't want to destroy! Please... help me...Alice!"
- "I was rejected, never given any expectations. ... Then at least, I won't be a burden to others. It's alright if the only one who's hurt is me...!"
- "I may carry Jack within me...And I may look like him...but don't get the wrong idea. My name is Oz."
- "I'm Oz Vessalius...Alice's contractor...But... As B-Rabbit...I killed everyone...destroyed everything... Did I... Did I.... DID I?!'"
Appearances
- Retrace I: Innocent Calm (First Appearance)
- Retrace II: Tempest of Conviction
- Retrace III: Prisoner&Alichino
- Retrace IV: Rendezvous
- Retrace V: Clockwise Doom
- Retrace VI: Where am I?
- Retrace VII: Reunion
- Retrace VIII: Whisperer
- Retrace IX: Question
- Retrace X: Malediction
- Retrace XI: Grim
- Retrace XII: Where am I?
- Retrace XIII: A Lost Raven
- Retrace XIV: Lop Ear
- Retrace XV: Welcome to labyrinth
- Retrace XVI: Keeper of the secret
- Retrace XVII: Odds and Ends
- Retrace XVIII: Hollow eye socket
- Retrace XIX: Detestably
- Retrace XX: Who killed poor Alice?
- Retrace XXI: Discord
- Retrace XXII: His name is...
- Retrace XXIII: Conflict
- Retrace XXIV: Hello my sister!
- Retrace XXV: Elliot&Leo
- Retrace XXVI: The pool of Tears
- Retrace XXVII: Get out of the pool
- Retrace XXVIII: Modulation
- Retrace XXIX: Rufus Barma
- Retrace XXX: Snow White Chaos
- Retrace XXXI: Countervalue of Loss
- Retrace XXXII: Snow Dome
- Retrace XXXIII: Echo of Noise
- Retrace XXXIV: Noise of Echo
- Retrace XXXV: Madness of lost memory
- Retrace XXXVI: Sablier
- Retrace XXXVII: Glen Baskerville
- Retrace XXXVIII: Scapegoat
- Retrace XXXIX: Gate of Blackness
- Retrace XL: Blindness
- Retrace XLI: Where am I?
- Retrace XLII: Stray
- Retrace XLIII: Crown of Clown
- Retrace XLIV: Dusty Sky
- Retrace XLV: Queen of Hurts
- Retrace XLVI: Persona*
- Retrace XLVII: Unbirthday
- Retrace XLVIII: Isla Yura
- Retrace XLIX: Night in gale
- Retrace L: Reverse Corte
- Retrace LI: Lily&Reim
- Retrace LII: Bloody Rites
- Retrace LIII: Humpty Dumpty Sat On A Wall
- Retrace LIV: Blank Smile
- Retrace LV: Back To Back
- Retrace LVI: Rabbit Eyes
- Retrace LVII: Humpty Dumpty had a great fall
- Retrace LIX: Couldn't put Humpty together again
- Retrace LX: Egg Shell
- Retrace LXI: Demios
- Retrace LXII: Repose
- Retrace LXIII: Purpose
- Retrace LXIV: Tarantelle
- Retrace LXV: Collapse
- Retrace LXVI: Jack
- Retrace LXX: Oz
- Retrace LXXI: Black Rabbit
- Retrace LXXII: Bloody Rabbit
- Retrace LXXIII: A note
- Retrace LXXIV: Broken Rabbit
- Retrace LXXV: Alone
- Retrace LXXVI: Alice&Oz*
- Retrace LXXVII: Vacant
- Retrace LXXVIII: Decision
- Retrace LXXIX: Falling
- Retrace LXXX: Oscar Vessalius
- Extra episode: It makes all kinds
- Retrace LXXXI: CHILDREN
- Retrace LXXXII: Wish
- Retrace LXXXIII: After the Rain
- Retrace LXXXIV: Trickster
- Retrace LXXXV: Reverberate
- Extra episode: Together
- Retrace LXXXVI: Wager
- Retrace LXXXVII: Starting Point
- Retrace LXXXVIII: Answer
- Retrace LXXXIX: Staccato Drop
- Retrace XC: Clock Tower
- Retrace XCI: Juror
- Intermission: The present (Mentioned only)
- Retrace XCII: A Story
- Retrace XCIII: Abyss*
- Retrace XCIV: Blaze
- Retrace XCV: Vincent
- Retrace XCVI: Disagree
- Retrace XCVII: I am
- Retrace XCVIII: Reverberate
- Retrace XCIX: Shade
- Retrace C: Ossia
- Retrace CI: Oswald
- Retrace CII: The Nursery
- Retrace CIII: Call Your Name
- Retrace CIV: Will (†)
- Episode 1: Innocent Calm
- Episode 2: Tempest of Conviction
- Episode 3: Prisoner & Alichino
- Episode 4: Rendezvous
- Episode 5: Clockwise Doom
- Episode 6: Where am I?
- Episode 7: Whisperer
- Episode 8: Question
- Episode 9: Malediction
- Episode 10: Grim
- Episode 11: A Lost Raven
- Episode 12: Welcome to Labyrinth
- Episode 13: Keeper of the secret
- Episode 14: Hollow eye socket
- Episode 15: Who killed poor Alice?
- Episode 16: His name is...
- Episode 17: Hello my sister!
- Episode 18: Elliot & Leo
- Episode 19: The pool of Tears
- Episode 20: Modulation
- Episode 21: Snow White Chaos
- Episode 22: Countervalue of loss
- Episode 23: A Warp in the World (Non-Canon)
- Episode 24: Kyrie (Non-Canon)
- Episode 25: Beyond the winding road (Non-Canon)
- Caucus Race 1 — Story 1: Golden Drops
- Caucus Race 1 — Story 2: Black Widow
- Caucus Race 1 — Story 3: White Kitty (Mentioned only)
- Caucus Race 1 — Story 4: Pink Curse
- Caucus Race 2 — Story 1: Blue Rose
- Caucus Race 2 — Story 2: Hello Baby
- Caucus Race 3 — Story 1: A Promise Lost*
- Caucus Race 3 — Story 2: Adoration
- Maidora Hearts (Non-Canon)
- Bumbling Sleuth Break (Non-Canon)
- Magical Girl Ill-Omened❤Lacie (Non-Canon)
- Pandora Academy (Non-Canon)
- Gilbert in Wonderland (Non-Canon)
(*) - Denotes that the character did not appear physically, but as a part of another character's memories.
Trivia
- "Oz" is a name of Hebrew origin, meaning "strength," "power," or "courage." Canonically in-universe, Oz was named by Alice after Oswald.[8]
- Oz, particularly his true identity as the B-Rabbit, is based directly off the White Rabbit[38] from Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland novels.[39][40]
- Oz's character song is called Swear to...
- Oz's theme in the anime is called "Will." The final chapter of the manga is named after this theme.
Oz's profile in 24 + 1: Last Dance
- His likes are, in order, girls (especially younger ones), sweets, black tea, and tea parties. He has no particular dislikes.
- His skills include drawing/painting, writing songs and poetry, reciting poetry, violin, piano, dancing, studying, horseback riding, calculations, firearms, and swordsmanship (though he has little actual combat experience). He has no particular weaknesses.
- Mochizuki's comment on him is, though she had forced many difficult situations onto him, she is happy that by the end he is able to stop holding his emotions back and cry freely.
- In earlier versions of Pandora Hearts, Oz was a crossdressing girl who fell in love with the protagonist, an early draft of Gilbert Nightray. As the story and their characters developed, Oz became male and took Gilbert's place as the protagonist.
- While this is never explicitly confirmed, Oz is heavily implied throughout the narrative to be a Child of Ill Omen. The significance of this is fully explained here.
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Retrace I: Innocent Calm
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Retrace II: Tempest of Conviction
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Retrace III: Prisoner&Alichino
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 Retrace VII: Reunion
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Retrace XXII: His name is...
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Retrace IX: Question
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Retrace LXX: Oz
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 Retrace LXXI: Black Rabbit
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Retrace LXXIII: A note
- ↑ Retrace LXXIV: Broken Rabbit
- ↑ Retrace LXXVIII: Decision
- ↑ Retrace LXXVI: Alice&Oz
- ↑ Retrace LXXX: Oscar Vessalius
- ↑ Retrace LXVI: Jack
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 15.3 Retrace XXVI: The pool of Tears
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 16.2 16.3 Pandora Hearts 18.5: Evidence
- ↑ Retrace XLIX: Night in gale
- ↑ Retrace LVI: Rabbit Eyes
- ↑ 19.0 19.1 Retrace IV: Rendezvous
- ↑ Retrace LXII: Repose
- ↑ Retrace XCVIII: Reverberate
- ↑ 22.0 22.1 22.2 Retrace CIV: Will
- ↑ Oz uses オレ (ore) as a first person pronoun and お前 (omae) as a second person pronoun, both of which are characteristic of self-confident men.
- ↑ 24.0 24.1 24.2 Retrace XI: Grim
- ↑ Retrace VI: Where am I?
- ↑ 26.0 26.1 Retrace XXV: Elliot&Leo
- ↑ 27.0 27.1 27.2 Retrace X: Malediction
- ↑ 28.0 28.1 Retrace XXVII: Get out of the pool
- ↑ 29.0 29.1 Retrace XX: Who killed poor Alice?
- ↑ 30.0 30.1 30.2 30.3 Retrace XLI: Where am I?
- ↑ 31.0 31.1 Retrace XLIV: Dusty Sky
- ↑ Retrace LVII: Humpty Dumpty had a great fall
- ↑ Retrace XXXIII: Echo of Noise
- ↑ Volume 21 Omake: "Me, a Baskerville, and Master the B-Rabbit"
- ↑ Retrace LXV: Collapse
- ↑ Retrace LXXVII: Vacant
- ↑ Retrace CI: Oswald
- ↑ Wikipedia: White Rabbit
- ↑ Wikipedia: Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
- ↑ Wikipedia: Through the Looking-Glass