Kunihiko Maeda

Kunihiko Maeda

Maeda in The 3rd Birthday

Gender

Male

Age

35 (Parasite Eve)
Late 40s/Early 50s (The 3rd Birthday)
(born 1963)

Status

Alive

Hair color

Black

Eye color

Brown

Occupation

Scientist

Appearances

Parasite Eve
Parasite Eve II (mentioned)
The 3rd Birthday

Portrayal

Hiroaki Hirata (Japanese)
Joe J. Thomas (English)

“

Starting with the incident in Japan and now with this... I wonder if this is a message to all mankind... —Maeda to Aya Brea and Daniel Dollis

”

Kunihiko Maeda (前田 邦彦 Maeda Kunihiko) is the third main character in Parasite Eve, and returns as a supporting character in The 3rd Birthday.

Personality

Maeda is an intelligent Japanese scientist who has a strong interest in mitochondria and the original Eve. As well as this, he is very rigid to the ways of science, claiming that he won't believe in anything without "evidence."

He is very shy and polite and because of this, he has a hard time communicating in contrast to Aya Brea and Daniel Dollis. English isn't his first language so he occasionally has difficulty speaking, though in the The 3rd Birthday, Maeda becomes fully fluent, possibly to get closer to Aya and after dealing with that one xenophobic cop in the first game. He also seems to have a crush on Aya but never has admitted it. In The 3rd Birthday, Maeda has a nervous stutter, although it is unclear if he only has this stutter because Aya is around.

Maeda's excitement at learning about Aya's genetic mysteries and capabilities verges on the unseemly, although some would say that only proves he's one of those rare scholars who will never lose his passion for challenging the unknown.

Eve questioning her privacy.

Unlike the first game, the The 3rd Birthday version of Maeda is less shy and seem to be perverted in some way, to the point he may be thought of as a lecherous creep. His portrayal surprised and annoyed a lot of fans of the first game. If Aya looks out to the shower in Maeda's Base while on the staircase, she notices that the roof isn't concealed and she ponders if Maeda has been spying on her. This is made even more disturbing because Aya is Eve Brea. For the most part, Aya/Eve shrugs off Maeda's weird comments, such as when he comments how "sweet your tears must taste."

Biography

Prior to Parasite Eve, Maeda worked as a scientist, residing in the pharmaceutical department at a Japanese university as a postdoctoral researcher.

After an incident that took place years ago, he has devoted his studies to mitochondria.

Parasite Eve

Maeda in Parasite Eve.

After hearing of the tragedy at Carnegie Hall, Maeda immediately flies to New York City. After dealing with a cop who tells him he should go back to his country because he can't speak English well, he sneaks into the evacuated city. He finds an unconscious Aya in a horse carriage and takes her to a vacant apartment in Soho.

Maeda continues to assist Aya and Daniel, giving them insight into Mitochondria Eve. Throughout the game, he gives Aya three good luck charms (for more information on them, see Trivia). He also develops the mitochondrial bullets laced with DNA that helps Aya kill the Ultimate Being.

Eventually, he concludes that the incident of Mitochondria Eve is only one of the many disasters that will come to pass, if humanity does not change its lifestyle and consider the consequences which is endangering the Earth in a mirror reflection to how neo-mitochondria is a parasite to the host. He misanthropically calls humans parasites who are destroying the planet, the environment and animals, instead of living in unison.

Maeda watching the opera with Ben, Aya and Daniel.

After Aya defeats Eve, Maeda goes along with Aya to the opera at Carnegie Hall with Daniel and Ben.

Parasite Eve II

Maeda doesn't make an appearance in the second game, but is referenced a few times. For example, his name, "K. Maeda", is one of the incorrect answers on a computer belonging to Fred Bowman. In the shelter, Aya can examine a bunk bed and find a book called "Human Internal Evolution" and she mentions he wrote it for his dissertation. She mentions his new theory of mitochondria was shot down by the academics. He sent Aya a copy but it never arrived.

In the character epilogues, it is revealed that Pierce Carradine is now working with him on "super human" study after the events of the game. By identifying neo-mitochondrial DNA, he calculated the frequency of latent carriers over a 10 year span. His theory that these carriers would lead the evolution of the human species is not widely accepted.

".44 Maeda sp" bullets are available for the Mongoose magnum, which is some of the most powerful ammo available for Aya.

Between Parasite Eve II and The 3rd Birthday

Maeda returned to Japan for a period afterward, but NASA soon pegged him to participate in an interdisciplinary project. After presenting many research papers, Maeda became involved in the development of genetic cloning technology in Germany at the lab of Bonn University professor Friedrich Gehrmann.

Distinguished scholars from all disciplines gathered in Gehrmann's lab, but once the Twisted appeared in 2010, the program disbanded, as its participants practically went into hiding, devoting themselves to various research topics. This was a planned procedure meant to help satisfy Gehrmann's longing to save humanity with science.

The 3rd Birthday

After hearing of the appearance of the Twisted, Maeda immediately sets off for New York in order to research them. Maeda purchased an old warehouse which he converted into his laboratory where he can continue his research in peace.

At some point in time, he snuck into the CTI building and analyzed the Overdive device, and discovered the core of the device consisted of components from the Babel.

Maeda with Aya in his base.

After the CTI murders by Kyle Madigan in December 2013, Maeda once again met up with Aya to help and protect her - it is implied this may have been part of Blank's plan, and Maeda's profile claims "his catching up with Aya after the CTI murders was necessity masquerading as coincidence." The two of them continued their research into the Twisted and he helped Aya use her Overdive ability once again, even though she can no longer go to the past with it.

In February 2014, Maeda supports Aya when she Overdives to the Babel at North Shallows Tower, often encouraging her and informing her of the current situation. His current whereabouts is his protection shelter in which Aya Overdives. Maeda also notes that his current residence is invulnerable and will have no interruptions while Aya Overdives.

Maeda's cameo.

He can be seen in the final scene along with Thelonious Cray, Gabrielle Monsigny and Emily Jefferson. He appears for a brief moment crossing the street, which means he was in New York long before the Twisted were created. It is possible he may have chosen to surprise Aya with his visit.

After the events of the game, Maeda studied in Friedrich Gehrmann's lab at Bonn University in Germany. Maeda received high praise for his work on ribosomal structure. It went on to earn him the prestigious Wolf Prize, which is said to be a precursor to the Nobel Prize.

Quotes

Parasite Eve

• "I'm... Kunihiko Maeda. I'm a scientist from Japan."
• "Scientists can't believe anything without proof... It's... it's just one of those things."
• "They weren't kidding when they said they sell guns here in America, were they..."
• "Are you familiar with Richard Dawkin's theory of the 'Selfish Gene'?"
• "Starting with the incident in Japan and now with this... I wonder if this is a message to all mankind... If the earth is a single human being, we humans that invade the earth become like viruses out of control. We, in essence, are upsetting the natural balance of the body. This is definitely... utter destruction. You see... humans are, in essence... parasites... You can say that we are parasites and the world is our host."

The 3rd Birthday

• "I would do anything for you. Anything." (to "Aya")
• "O-oh, do you want to know more about me? Unfortunately, I'm not a very interesting s-subject. I'm normal. Average. Boring."

Trivia

• In the first game, Maeda gives Aya three "good luck" charms. Due to the game's complicated code, no one has been able to confirm that they actually do anything, though there are rumors saying they do actually help acquiring rare items and the like. Some players get rid of them as soon as possible, while others keep them just in case.

• Maeda bears a resemblance to the author of the original novel, Hideaki Sena. It is unknown if this is a matter of coincidence or homage.

• Maeda is apparently 3 years younger in the manga adaptation of Parasite Eve.

• Maeda is 170 centimeters (5'7") tall and weighs 52 kilograms (115 lbs) in Parasite Eve.

• In The 3rd Birthday, Aya can unlock some of Maeda's emails. The emails are between him and two other people, and they refer to Aya like a test subject. In these emails, the three people use codenames; the "Cowardly Lion," "Scarecrow" and "Tin Man," all references to The Wizard of Oz. Maeda is The Cowardly Lion and his friend Arthur Powell is the Tin Man.

Gallery

Parasite Eve

Portrait.

Maeda speaks to a xenophobic cop.

The cop is set on fire.

Maeda listening to Aya.

Maeda with Aya and Daniel at the harbor.

Maeda nearly confessing his feelings for Aya.

Maeda asked to sit down.

Maeda watching the opera.

Maeda under mitochondria possession.

The 3rd Birthday

Concept art.

Model.

Model.

Portrait.