This is the thirteenth post in Digiboy’s Character Database of Love. I finally burned through all of the character submissions by ghostlightning and robert weizer—if you’d like to submit a character to the database as well, send me an email about it.
25. Rail Tracer – Baccano!
Seiyuu: Morita Masakazu (Performance: 3.5/5)
Character Design: (Designed by Kishida Takahiro, based on designs by Enami Katsumi). Like most of the cool 20s gangsters in Baccano, Rail Tracer wears a suit, but his is distinct in that it’s usually dyed with blood. Rail Tracer likes to make a mess and lives up to his former name, “Vino,” by covering himself in the blood of victims. When he’s cleaned up, he’s a handsome, smiley fellow with messy red hair.
Personal Bias/Moe Traits: On one level, I love Rail Tracer for the reason I love most Baccano characters, which is because of their insanity. His original name was Claire Stanfield, and then he became known as Vino, but after the Flying Pussyfoot fiasco, he declared that his name is now officially Rail Tracer. I think that name alone is a testament to his insanity (if covering himself in blood and doing acrobatics on top of a train wasn’t enough.)
The real reason I love RT though is because of his personal philosophy. He believes that he is the God of his own world, and that everyone else is just “a part of his dream.” This is what gives him the confidence to do whatever he wants and, he believes, become immortal. I love that the story lets him get away with everything he does because it gives his philosophy weight.
Distortions of My Imagination: What makes it difficult for me to call Rail Tracer one of my favorite characters is just that there’s so little of him in the show. I like to imagine he’s as cool as he says he is and that he’ll be in an excellent relationship with Chane Laforet, but until either more novels get translated or another anime gets made, I really have no idea.
Crowning Moment of Love: Fighting on top of a train whilst professing his love of Chane Laforet. It doesn’t get more romantic than that.
Title: Rail Tracer!
26. Yuno-“cchi” – Hidamari Sketch
Seiyuu: Asumi Kana (Performance: 4.5/5)
Character Design: (Designed by Ito Yoshiaki, based on designs by Aoki Ume). Yunocchi was my first love in character design, and possibly what created some of the things I love today. She’s short and also has short hair, has small breasts, and is cute, but also attractive. These are all things that still describe my favorite designs. And I can’t very well talk about Yuno’s design without mentioning the legendary Xs~
Personal Bias/Moe Traits: I’ve always had a thing for cute girls who’re trying to find their way in life and having fun along the way. When I first fell for Yuno, I was particularly into shy girls, but over time, I’ve been less adamant about those types, favoring assertive and self-sufficient women. Still, Yuno is cute and fun, and even if I don’t like her “like that,” I love to watch her with her friends, and I love watching her life’s progress.
Distortions of My Imagination: By now, you probably know where I’ll go with this—lesbians! Just as I said about Miyako last week, I know that Aoki Ume and SHAFT both have somewhat of a lesbian bias, much like myself, and know that girl’s love is a fixture of puni-moe 4koma manga. Plus, Aoki-sensei has drawn more than enough suggestive series art. One day, I will make a fanfic of this couple.
Crowning Moment of Love: Probably the time I really fell for Yuno was when she realized, having seen the artwork of her graduated senpai, that she needed to truly find and chase after her passion. Story of my life.
Title: X
My Sword Is Unbelievably Dull 
Holy shit, you just nailed what it is I love about these two.
Good to know! Both are such lovely characters~
Whenever I think about Rail Tracer I think about Ichigo Kurosaki running around on a train killing people.
It’s interesting that Baccano manages to make the audience root for the mass-murderer/force of nature character. I mean even versus the perpetual child-man Czeslaw we still root for RT because the little immortal dude is too creepy. I know I especially rooted for Claire during the OAVs when he shows up and saves Chane from Graham Specter.
Compare to Ladd who is clearly a villain but one we enjoy watching, Claire is practically the hero of the Flying Pussyfoot and definitely the hero of the specials. Yet he is also a mass murderer and hitman with a twisted philosophy and a love of eviscerating people in a disturbingly gory manner.
Hehe, indeed. It doesn’t bother me that he’s a mass murderer—rather, I love that fact. I don’t always love mass murdering characters, but then they aren’t always the coolest and happiest character in the show.
Naturally, I’ve created a character who’s just like RT~
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I wonder if Rail Tracer is right at all in assuming he’s a god. He changed shape slightly when attacking some of the white suits, his eyes glow red and there’s also the gun that appeared in his hand when fighting Ladd.
He’s in the specials? I should watch them now.
Yess, he gets a lot done in the specials! (Namely meeting Chane).
LOVE AND PEACE!!!
This show never ceases to be awesome. My favorite was probably episode 16, mainly because of Rail Tracer. The fight between Graham and Ladd was epic though.
As someone who’s read the majority of the light novels in Japanese (just one and a half more to be consumed as soon as school releases me from its clutches!), let me assure you that Clair is in fact even more awesome in those. In addition to his pure badassery, he really and truly adores Chane and shows it in words and actions, to the point where I’ve mentally commented that he’d make the best boyfriend ever.
Except for, you know, that whole assassin thing.
Also, the more I read, the less certain I become that his solipsism is a delusion. Things just have this tendency to work out exactly how he wants them to…