| Mr. Famenias | |
|---|---|
 | |
|
Japanese Name |
- |
|
Romanized Name |
- |
|
Nickname(s)/Alias(es) |
Mr. Famenias (ミスター・ファメニアス Misutā Fameniasu) |
|
Debut |
|
|
Voice actor |
|
|
Status |
Deceased; |
Mr. Famenias is Fiona’s father and president of the Famenias Company. He is present in The Perfumer story.
Background
Originally, Mr. Famenias, the president of a cosmetic manufacturer, is only seen inside his company's headquarters. He has many men working under him, including those watching his rebellious daughter Fiona, who disapproves the way he does business. However, he always relies on her skills as a talented perfumer and lead researcher of the company. He provides his employees with stink bombs so they can subjugate Fiona and keep her working by exploiting her enhanced sense of smell.[1]
In the manga, Mr. Famenias and his daughter had to move out from the building containing the memories of the family, motivating Fiona to create perfumes so they could go back one day.[2]
Famenias Company
The Famenias Company headquarters.
It started as a small cosmetic manufacturer, producing mainly soap, but it became a luxury brand recognized throughout the kingdom for its perfumes after Fiona's great-grandfather, the first president of the company, obtained a foreign book, The Scent God’s Scripture. The story is well-known between perfumers and managers of the cosmetic industry and explains why the Famenias Company (ファメニアス社 Fameniasu Sha) logo depicts a book. The company's headquarters is located in the commercial district of the capital, as well as its laboratory used by Fiona. Recognized by her skills since young, Fiona inherited The Scent God’s Scripture and the secrets about the business and made good publicity for the company. Mr. Famenias never read the Phantom Book contents.
Mr. Famenias was presented with the perfume recipes formulated by his daughter Fiona, which saved his company and prevented them from having to move out. The luxurious perfume Blue Trance became their biggest hit and the chosen product among influential foreign actors. However, the formulation is a diluted version of the Relic, a highly addictive substance. Unsatisfied with the Blue Trance profit, Mr. Famenias started selling the Relic to the Padauk Company. The Relic recipe is kept in a shelf at the back of the president’s room.[1] In the manga, the mobsters discover fakes mixed in with the Relic samples.[2]
.jpg "Blue Trance (manga).jpg (138 KB)")
Personality
He’s a gentleman who worries about the success and image of his company. According to Fiona, her father only thinks about profit and has no artistic ideals. He ignores her dream of producing a perfume that makes people happy. He’s indeed a greedy man who started dealing with the mafia in the drug trade even after the success of the Blue Trance. Mr. Famenias has problems dealing with his daughter, ordering his employees to keep a watch on her. They can be instructed to use stink bombs to stop her. Although he didn’t inherit The Scent God’s Scripture, he accepts the first president’s judgment and recognizes Fiona’s skills, although he thinks the book has no value, serving only as a company's logo. Nevertheless, he boasts about the company's story and his daughter’s talent as propaganda material.[1]
In the manga, he seems more despicable for not trying hard enough to understand his daughter and for bragging about his company's success after the Blue Trance rise in popularity. However, although late, he eventually regrets his acts, realizes how Fiona is important to him and affirms to be dealing with the mafia only to get back the family old building, part of his daughter’s childhood.[2]
Appearance
Mr. Famenias, as seen in the manga.
Mr. Famenias is a stout middle-aged man who gives off the impression of being the president of a company. Dalian disapproves the way he keeps his hair tightly parted.[1] In the anime, he’s a willowy man with blond hair and mustache. His golden eyes are the same as Fiona’s. The president wears a brown two-piece suit with a green necktie.[3]
In the manga, he displays expensive rings on his right hand. He wears his black hair in a sleek hairstyle. In this version, Mr. Famenias uses glasses and a bow tie.[2]
Plot
Fiona involved Hugh and Dalian in trouble while being chased by Mr. Famenias' employees. The president greets them at the Famenias Company headquarters to compensate for their spoiled fried breads and to prevent them from spreading bad publicity about his company. He tells them about his business, including Fiona’s skills as a perfumer and the foreign book she inherited, until one of his employees appears to deliver a message. The Padauk Company was waiting to see Mr. Famenias. The latter leaves his office, asking Hugh and Dalian to wait for Fiona.
Hugh and Dalian meeting Mr. Famenias.
The perfumer talks about her father during a conversation with Hugh and Dalian at her laboratory. She was rebelling against him because he only thinks about profit, while Fiona tries to produce a perfume that makes people happy. They eventually meet a drug addict looking for Relic to buy. He mentions about the Padauk Company attempting to kill the president of the Famenias Company and take control over the Relic production. Fiona runs to check her father.
Mr. Famenias' death.
Noss had already sliced Mr. Famenias’ throat when Fiona barged in the president’s office. Meanwhile, Vance was looking for the Relic recipe. Ultimately, Fiona uses her formulations to terminate the Padauk Company. During her last moments, she explains how she presented the Blue Trance recipe to his father to save the company, though aware of its danger. After all, the Blue Trance is a diluted version of the Relic, an addictive substance that drives people crazy. Mr. Famenias’ fate was decided when he started selling the Relic to the Padauk Company.[1]
Mr. Famenias doesn’t die in the manga. In this adaptation, Fiona is forced to produce the Relic to the Padauk Company, until Vance starts questioning the secrets of The Scent God’s Scripture. The mobster uses the president to test the Phantom Book. Mr. Famenias, with his head covered with a bag, is forced to touch its cover. He collapses on the floor with his head partially disfigured. When Fiona finally discovers his identity, he apologizes for dealing with the mafia. He was only trying to buy the family's old building back. After Mr. Famenias is stabbed by Noss, Fiona screams in despair and releases the power of The Scent God’s Scripture, driving all the criminals to commit suicide. Later, it’s revealed that Mr. Famenias had survived. At the Famenias old building, Hugh and Dalian describe Fiona’s last moments to him. The president shows his daughter’s old laboratory and presents Hugh with the sample of her first perfume. He burns the material around to prevent the Relic from ever being produced again. The fire creates a scent that makes Mr. Famenias remember the moment when they had to move out. The man cries while mourning his daughter.[2]
.jpg){kind=link}
Trivia
- Mr. Famenias is one of the last characters voiced by Hidetoshi Nakamura. In the same year, he gave his voice to Baron Musgrave from Gosick, a franchise much compared to The Mystic Archives of Dantalian. He passed away in December 2014.[4]
- The character and his company is named after Juan Famenias Floris, founder of the oldest English retailer of fragrance and toiletries. Ran today by his descendants, Floris has been active since its beginning in 1730.[5]
- The Famenias Company building is located on 54 Parliament Street, Westminster. The place dates from the end of the 19th century and should belong to Grindlays Bank in real life.[6] It stands next to The Red Lion, a pub active since the Victorian era and visited by English writer Charles Dickens.[7] The Palace of Westminster is less than a 5 minutes walk away. The anime even shows part of the iconic Elizabeth Tower in the distance. The light novel mentions a train station nearby, probably referring to the Westminster station.
- The company's old place, mentioned only in the manga, is located at the Hay's Galleria. Originally a brewery situated on the bank of the River Thames, nowadays it's a mixed use building featuring offices, restaurants, shops and flats.[8]
References
|