1

1
Tagline
Gender	Male
Height	?
Awakening	?
Status	Deceased
Alignment	Good
First Appearance	9 (2005 short) (cameo)
Appears in	9 (2005 short) 9 (2009 film)
Voice actor	Christopher Plummer

They left us with nothing, nothing. Why do we have to right their wrongs? Sometimes, one must be sacrificed. -1's last words before sacrificing himself for 9

Number 1 is a stitchpunk from both the 9 (2005 short) and the 9 (2009 film). He is the first stitchpunk created by The Scientist. His fastening was two conventional belt buckles.

Biography

When the Scientist first gave life to 1, he immediately began struggling in the Scientist's hand and walked away defiantly. The Scientist notes that his stubborness is needed to survive in this world. He wonders if 1 will make a good leader or not.

He first appears walking in on 5 as he is talking to the newly-healed 9. He orders 8 to take the two up to the hiding place, where he explains to 9 about the war. However, he forbirds 9 and 5 from going out and trying to save 2. When 9, 5, 7, 3 and 4 return, he is furious, and he lectures 9 about how he has disobeyed orders and put everyone in danger. He bickers with 9 for a while, but then the Winged Beast attacks.

At the climax of the battle, the Winged Beast is attached to the propeller of the plane wreck, but it has grabbed onto 1's cape in order to keep itself on the wing of the wreck. 6 helps 5 activate the propeller, but it does not start because the Winged Beast is holding it by clinging onto 1's cape. 9 advises 1 to let go of his cape, and he does so, causing the Winged Beast to tumble into the propeller, shattering into pieces in the process. Instead of thanking 9 for his quick thinking, 1 retorts with "Humph. You owe me a cape."

Then, he leads them into a library to rest and recuperate from the battle. He lectures the group about how they should not always probe and ask questions like 2 did. This prompts 9 to deduce that 1 sent 2 out to die on purpose. 7 nearly kills him upon hearing this.

He is later seen, alone, walking along stacks of books, questioning himself upon whether his motives really are right or not. He does not notice the Seamstress creeping up on him.  He only sees the lifeless 2 come up to him and hypnotize him. The Seamstress proceeds to sew up 1.After the battle, he decides to go and find another safe place, but 9 convinces him that they should not keep hiding. It is at this point in the film that he gives up on being the leader of the stitchpunks, and this role is eagerly taken by 9.

After the machine is seemingly destroyed, he sits down alone and stares at the sky, taking off his hat, while everyone else has fun playing on the phonograph. It is possible 1 mourns the loss of 8, or regrets his actions as leader. He sees 5 running down the hill to catch the record, but says nothing. The Fabrication Machine rises from the factory's destruction and kills 5, 1 holds back 9 to prevent him from dying too and leads the group across a bridge. 6 is killed moments later, 1 opting to destroy the machine, causing 9 to run off to the Scientist's laboratory.

1 getting his soul sucked out by the machine after pushing 9 out of the way

At the last battle with the Fabrication Machine, 1 leads the final attack against the Fabrication Machine. The Machine dodges their shots and blows up an alleyway, and the explosion damages 1's hand. He watches 9 go up to the machine, and decides to sacrifice himself in order for 9 to take the talisman away from the machine. Lamenting on how humans left them to solve their problems, 1 pushes 9 out of the way as the machine activates the talisman. He gets his soul sucked out, but 9 successfully pulls the talisman out of the machine's socket, deactivating it.

At the end, his soul appears out of the talisman, along with the souls of 2, 5, 6 and 8. He gives 9 a nod of approval, and then all of the souls rise into the sky and seperate into rain, filled with micro-organisms, thus bringing life back into the world.

Personal

1 is the cowardly, arrogant portion of the Scientist's personality. He is the oldest of the group and the leader, demanding absolute loyalty from the others and frequently clashes with 9, who refuses to follow him. He refuses to compromise on any of his beliefs and is actually willing to let the others die to ensure his own safety, as shown when he sends 2 to his death. His attitude, changes, however, when 9 attempts to sacrifice himself to help 7 retrieve the talisman from the Fabrication Machine and 1 sacrifices himself so 9 can retrieve it. He is the fifth and last to die.

Physical Description

1 is the stubborn yet cowardly leader of the stitchpunks and the first creation of the Scientist. He appears to be made out of pale burlap. His hands and feet are metallic, and the hands have somewhat of a gnarled, claw-like look to them. The feet are divided into three metal plates, bearing resemblance to a three-toed, clawed foot. His head is gaunt, with high "cheekbones", appearing to have a skull beneath the fabric skin. His skin is fastened by metal buckles, and it appears to be patched up. After the war, upon reaching the Sanctuary, he obtains a cape made out of a scrap of red silk fastened with a brooch with a red gem on it, and a staff that is a metal rod with a gear attached to it (along with a bell at the end). He also made a makeshift "pope hat" out of an unknown material. This hat has a brass one-cent coin on it that was attached with a piece of wire.

His pupils are interesting. Unlike the other stitchpunk's optics, they are triangular and narrow into evil-looking slits when he is angry. They become slightly wider and rounder when he is afraid. He apperently doesn't have eyebrows also but part of his skin above his eyes is stitched to resemble eyebrows.

1 tends to take on the personality of a grouchy old man at times, being quite cowardly, dogmatic and unfair. He rules over the stitchpunks with a very strict and no-nonsense mind, and refuses to converse with those who are too curious, like 9 and 2. Despite his strict rules and attitude, 1 wants what is best for his group and protects them no matter the cost, following the belief that there must be sacrifices for the survival of others, sending elderly 2 out of deliberately die for being a potential threat to the group's safety. He is quite opposed to alchemy and mankind, referring to alchemy as "dark science", and resents mankind for leaving their world in ruin. 8 serves as 1's guard, but while 1 acts rudely towards him, he seems to appreciate 8's protection.

Throughout the film, 1 loses his leadership status, also losing his staff, cape and hat in the process and relinquishing his title after the destruction of the Fabrication Machine's factory. However, he takes on a leadership role again when 9 runs off to find the Scientist's workshop, but this leadership is more formal and patient.

Possessions

• Staff: This staff is what 1 uses to show his power, and he may be quite old like 2 so he uses it to help him walk. 1 can use it somewhat like a weapon, which we see when he hooks 5 around the neck to pull him closer, and does it to 9 to check his number when he first meets him. The staff is made of a broken pen, half a gear and a little bell. The cane is lost when 9 lets go of it during the Winged Beast attack.
• Hat: this pope-like hat is what 1 uses to hide his rather witty "hairstyle" and for ruler theme. It is made of a broken candle cap with an Luxembourg penny tied to it. The penny falls off when he is caught by the seamtress (but gets rescued by 9), and he takes off the hat near the end, and it (possibly) gets crushed by the Fabrication Machine. During the flashback of the war, his hat appears to be made of a spent bullet casing.
• Cape: a red silk cape, maybe torn from a curtain and fastened around 1's neck with a ruby brooch, makes 1 look even more like a king and further accentuates his vanity.

Characters Relationships

• 9 - 1 often disagrees with 9's ideas of conquering the machines, instead wishing to hide in his sanctuary.

• 8 - 8 is 1's most obedient companion, and also his bodyguard.

• 7 - 1 looks upon 7 as a traitor, most likely because she left the sanctuary to go out and fight the machines.

• 6 - 1 ignores 6 because of his confusing and unclear nature.

• 5 - 1 acted neutrally towards 5, until 5 agreed to go with 9 to save 2.

• 3 & 4 - 1 has no notable relationship with 3 & 4, and acts neutrally towards them in every respect.

• 2 - 1 was annoyed by 2's inquisitive personality, and so he sent him out to "scout" (actually to die).

Appearances

9 (2005)

9 (2009)

Trivia

• 1 is the last stitchpunk to die.
• The end of 1's staff resembles an object seen at the end of the short film.
• In the Russian adaptation, 1 represents possible The Chancellor.
• Despite being a coward in the beginning, he was one of the only two stitchpunks to risk their lives and die protecting 9, the other being 2.