Metropolis · Character

Slim

A shadowy figure of the Yoshiwara pleasure district, moving between the city's glittering surface and its darker appetites with unsettling ease.

supporting

Also known as Slim, Babel Slim, Babel

First appearance: metropolis

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Slim belongs to the night side of Metropolis, the quarter where the sons of the rich spend what the workers' hands have made, and he knows its currents better than anyone. He is neither master nor worker but a broker of secrets and pleasures, a man whose loyalties shift with the price, and whose knowledge of the city's hidden wiring makes him useful to those who rule it. His appearances mark the points where the novel's moral geography turns from spectacle to something more sinister.

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Character Web

12 connections

A slice of how Slim sits in the book — open the reader for the full interactive map.

Relationship types

Friendship
Other

Character groups

Central human characters
Protagonist
Mythological and minor figures

+7 more in the full Character Web

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Narrative arc

Story tension across the book.

Setup
Escalation
Breaking point
Aftermath
Closing

This is the story's dramatic climax because it represents the emotional and psychological peak where Freder, h…

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Relationships

Freder
friendship · positive
Josaphat
friendship · positive
Georgi
friendship · positive
Maohee
friendship · positive
Georgi
friendship · positive
Maohee
friendship · positive
Freder
friendship · positive

Freder
Freder and Slim are allies, with Slim often assisting Freder in navigating the underworld.
Josaphat
Josaphat and Slim are comrades, working together to support Freder's cause.
Georgi
Georgi and Slim are fellow workers and friends, united in their struggle.
Maohee
Maohee and Slim are allies in the worker community, sharing a bond of survival.
Georgi
Georgi and Slim are fellow workers and friends, united in their struggle.
Maohee
Maohee and Slim are allies in the worker community, sharing a bond of survival.
Freder
Freder and Slim are allies, with Slim often assisting Freder in navigating the underworld.

Relationship notes

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In the story

Slim appears across 8 companion beats. Open any chapter in the free preview to see the notes beside the text.

The New Tower of Babel
Freder's silent keeper and his father's agent, Slim watches Freder's every move and is capable of finding anyone Freder might seek.
II
Summoned by Joh Fredersen, receives orders to monitor Freder's every action, but fails to find him immediately.
III
Enters Freder's home to question servants about his master's whereabouts.
IV
Informs Fredersen that Freder has disappeared.
VI
Witnesses the Maohee-induced frenzy, rescues Georgi, and learns of Freder's involvement.
VII
Arrives at Josaphat's door, forces him to leave the apartment, and engages in a violent struggle with him. Remains cold and calculating throughout.
IX
The pilot of the aeroplane, described as having bull-like strength and a forceful calm. He refuses Josaphat's demand to turn back and is killed during the struggle, his skull crushed.
XXII
Returns to report that Freder cannot be found, confronts Joh Fredersen with hatred and accusation.

Chapter companion notes

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