Christie

Christie (クリスティ, Kurisuti) is a professional assassin and She Quan martial artist, who made her first appearance in the 2001 title Dead or Alive 3, she is the femme fatale of the series and is one of the only female villains so far, along with Alpha.

A cold-blooded woman with a sadistic streak, Victor Donovan hired Christie to kill Helena Douglas, and she was responsible for the death of Helena’s mother, Maria. Ever since that incident, she continues to stalk Helena throughout the series.

Early Life
Very litte was known about Christie's past has come to light, except that she was born and raised in England, and had taken up a high-profiling career as a professional assassin.

The First Tournament
Christie was hired by Victor Donovan, a powerful figure in the Dead or Alive Tournament Executive Committee, to work as a double agent for him: while her official status was working as an employee for DOATEC, in reality she would act as Donovan's bodyguard and work with him to get rid of Fame Douglas, the head of DOATEC, and his daughter Helena so Donovan may take over the company.

Around the time of the first Dead or Alive World Combat Championship, Christie was working with Bayman, another assassin hired by Donovan, and both of them were tasked with transporting Kasumi to the Freedom Survivor so she may enter the tournament. To get the young girl interested in joining, Christie told Kasumi that Raidou, her traitorous uncle who had seriously injured her brother Hayate, was going to be there, so the girl could avenge her brother.

It seemed that Christie was fully aware of Donovan's plans for kidnapping Kasumi for Project Alpha from the start, as she knew that Kasumi was one of the top competitors for the tournament and that she was looking for Raidou to begin with.

During the final of the tournament, after Kasumi had defeated and killed Raidou in battle, she was kidnapped and taken back to Donovan's headquarters by Christie. Bayman, who had just killed Fame Douglas under Donovan's orders, tried to contact Christie as she was leaving, but she ignored his message and flew home without him, possibly under orders from Donovan.

The Second Tournament
Shortly before the events of the second tournament, Christie was ordered by Donovan to assassinate Helena; following her father's death, Helena inherited DOATEC, making her the only person standing in the way of Donovan's take-over of the company.

For her first attempt, Christie tried to take out Helena with a sniper rifle from a balcony, while her target was starring in an opera performance with her mother, Maria. Although on target, Christie's mission failed, because Maria spotted her just in time and took the bullet, killing her instead. Christie got away and Helena started on the revengeful path of finding her mother's murderer. As the killer's identity was unknown, Christie managed to stay close to Helena posing as the woman's personal assistant.

After the second tournament, Christie tried to convince Donovan to get rid of Helena permanently, as she was seeking out information about Project Alpha, but they had to lay low due to the mistakes made last time; the CIA were still looking for Maria's shooter, and Donovan's team still had to find Hayate, who they were using for Project Epsilon. In order to lure Hayate in, Christie suggested they created a third tournament, and use Genra, a former shinobi of the Mugen Tenshin Ninja Clan, as bait to get all the shinobi in.

The Third Tournament
For the third tournament, Christie's mission was to stop Helena from winning, and in the process prevent her from discovering more about Donovan's secret plans and his anti-Douglas faction.

Christie later confronted Helena during the course of the tournament, where she revealed her real occupation as an assassin sent by Donovan. However, before she could do anything, the assassin was soon caught by Bayman, who had been hired by Helena and was in the process of seeking revenge on Donovan for trying to have him killed.

They were discovered by Kasumi Alpha, a clone of Kasumi created by Project Alpha, who then believed that Christie wanted Donovan dead, despite the assassin's assurances that she worked for him. Christie then commanded Alpha to defeat Helena, but the clone was defeated as well, and both the clone and Christie managed to escape.

Sometime later, Christie kidnapped CIA agent Irene Lew to lure Ryu Hayabusa away from his friends Hayate and Ayane. Although she was defeated, she bought enough time for Genra to create a portal to the Hellfire, and attack the shinobi. Although Christie fulfilled her part of the plan, Genra failed and was killed in combat.

The Fourth Tournament
For the fourth tournament, Christie was once again in Donovan’s employment acting as his bodyguard as the Mugen Tenshin Clan attacked DOATEC for all the abuse they had faced due to the company.

During the attack, she intercepted Ayane and Ryu, both of whom were seeking to regroup with Hayate during the assault on the Tri-Tower. She was defeated, and both shinobi managed to get away from her. Christie also encountered Bayman once again, telling him take she would "give him Donovan" but he would never get out alive. She defeated him in combat, allowing DOATEC to take him into their custody.

As the Tritower headquarters started to burn down, Christie eventually found Helena within the building. Despite the bad blood between them, Helena was willing to allow Christie to walk away without a fight as DOATEC fell, but Christie stayed, and finally admitted that it was her who killed Maria. She took great pleasure as Helena almost broke down before her, and two women entered battle with unknown results (although Christie most likely lost the fight). Christie managed to escape the destruction of the Tritowers, and went on to continue her work as an assassin away from DOATEC.

The Fifth Tournament and MIST
Donovan employs Christie again, and she now serves him with his new organization: MIST. She visits a DOATEC rig and confronts Rig, giving hints that she knows about his past. At the bar, she encounters Eliot, whom she met during the last tournament. Christie tells him that he has grown up, but that remark makes him nervous. When he asks for milk, she slams a whole gallon, telling him that he needs it for strength. They fight afterwards and Christie is defeated. Later on, Christie spots Helena and Bass and tells the former that she is on a search for a real man. Then they fight and Helena defeats Christie.

When Donovan learns that the ninja plan on infiltrating the rig, he orders Christie to increase the security. There, she is confronted by Bayman, who had his suspicions of the place. They battle, and Christie is defeated by him. When the ninja launch their attack, Christie confronts Kasumi, who has infiltrated the lab to find her brother. The assassin tries to stop her from going any further, but is unsuccessful when the ninja defeats her. It is unknown what exactly happens to Christie afterwards, but she presumbly escapes the rig before it is destroyed.

Appearance
Also see: Christie's Outfit Catalogues

Christie is the tallest woman out of the Dead or Alive fighters, standing at 5'10 (177cm). She bears steely-gray eyes and her hair is a shocking shade of white.

In her original design, she had a pinkish complexion with darker-colored lips, a heart-shaped face, round eyes, a short and spiky hair style. For her re-vamped design in Dead or Alive 5, she has been given some slight changes. Her face has been made to look longer and more mature, she has a paler skin tone, and her hair is a little longer and not as spiky. Her body is also more voluptuous.

Compared to the other women's outfits in the series, Christie has some of the most "revealing," with a lot being tight and having plunging cleavage lines; her default outfit in Dead or Alive 4 doesn't even have an undershirt and her breasts are only covered by an open leather jacket. Her most recognizable outfit includes a white catsuit with a slightly open zipper and black boots. However, she has also worn very modest outfits, including a winter coat with leggings, and a black business suit.

Personality
As a professional assassin, Christie is cold, taciturn, objective and callous towards others. She is shown talking harshly to others, making fun of them, and taking enjoyment from the suffering of someone else; she laughed with malicious delight when Helena entered a highly shocked and distraught state after learning it was Christie who killed her mother all along.

Possibly as a result of her profession, she regards other people to be disposable and meaningless. She takes her job seriously, with a calm, quiet demeanor, and is completely ruthless when engaged in a mission, employing any means at her disposal to attain her mission objectives; including using her looks, charm, and sex appeal to lure in her victims. Her weapons of choice, along with her She Quan moves, have been the type that bring a painful, slow death to her targets, such as a needle to the spinal cord, and a razor-thin wire to slit someone's neck, hinting towards her inhumane, merciless nature.

She has demonstrated, at times, to enjoy her job with sociopathic glee, not because of the financial rewards, but for the killings themselves. It's possible she feels a sense of empowerment from her assassinations. On occasion, however, Christie teases or flirts with a person instead of killing them.

Etymology
The name Christie is a diminutive of Christina, a Latin feminine form of Christin, which means "a Christian, a follower of Christ". This is quite ironic, as the meaning completely contrasts with Christie as she, a sadist assassin, goes against the Christian ideals of mercy, kindness and valuing the gift of life.

Helena Douglas
Helena and Christie are enemies. However, this does not mean she can't work with her. In fact it's shown that Christie is one of Helena's default tag partner both having unique and quite damaging tag throws. During the events of Dead or Alive 3, they were an official tag team, showing Helena's vengeance developed into a certain killer's instinct when coupled with Christie.

Christie was hired by Donovan on a couple of occasions to keep an eye on and attempt to kill Helena, Christie was also the one responsible for the death of Maria, Helena’s mother. Keeping this fact a secret from the other woman, Christie acted as a servant to Helena during the course of the third tournament, during which they had a stable, professional relationship. However, soon after Christie revealed herself as an assassin sent to kill Helena, resulting in the disintegration of the pair’s positive relations.

During the fourth tournament, she has observed Helena more. Christie has seemed to have developed a morbid fascination with her target, that even she finds difficult to understand. She nonetheless plans to carry out her orders, but is indignant of anyone else raising a hand to Helena, as that privilege is to be left to her alone. Christie revealed her responsibility for Maria’s death to her, making Helena hate her even more.

In Dead or Alive 5, it is revealed they are slightly more into friendlier terms, most likely to keep a professional reputation due to DOATEC's new rising, but Helena still watches Christie since she is Donovan's "Pet Assassin."

Bayman
Christie and Bayman are both assassins, and were both hired by Donovan. To begin with, they maintained a professional relationship, despite some friction between them, but that all changed when Donovan betrayed Bayman. Bayman does not care for Christie, even describing her as "one of Donovan's lap dogs", which she did not take to heart. It is hinted that the both of them may express slight enmity to each other. Nevertheless, they share a full tag alliance in tag battle and have an established working relationship together.

Victor Donovan
Donovan is a constant employer of Christie’s skills, and overtime she seemed to became his right-hand woman, as she helped him plot some of his plans against the Mugen Tenshin Clan, and at times she acted as his bodyguard. During the events of Dead or Alive 3, Christie was hired by Donovan on a couple of occasions to keep an eye on and attempt to kill Helena.

However, it is heavily hinted that Christie does not really care for Donovan; when she confronted Bayman during the fourth tournament, she told the other assassin that he could have Donovan, showing that she doesn't really care if the man dies or not.

Rig
Although it is unclear right now, Rig may have known Christie previously. In the trailer, she remarks on how much he has grown, hinting that she may have known him when he was younger. However, Rig doesn't seem to have any memory of meeting her before and, when Rig points this out, Christie neither confirms nor denies ever meeting him. Even though their relationship is still not defined officially, it appears later on that they have a close, work-related relationship, both working under Donovan's orders. As seen in the final moments of Dead or Alive 5, they both fight against Kasumi in order to prevent her from destroying Alpha-152.

Kasumi Alpha
At first, it appeared that Alpha was on good terms with Christie, as they were both working for Donovan, but when the clone found out that the assassin was not fully on Donovan's side, she began to show signs of mistrust towards Christie. However, it's not clear what Christie thinks about Alpha.

Dead or Alive
Christie is a refined speed and strike character which gives the player the opportunity to always hit the opponent first, making her difficult to counter. Her "pokes" are excellent at inflicting "stun" or stagger status on an enemy and her low to mid game is good. Her throws and counters, however, lack power and priority and her tiger knee and air-juggling game leave much to be desired. Her almost non-existent recovery rate and pressure attacks (such as the "Ren-Soja-Dako") make up for these. She is regarded as one of the difficult characters to learn and is not recommended for newly beginners.

Dead or Alive Xtreme
While it's a little tricky to befriend Christie, it is manageable if you give her gifts she likes. However, it is hard to get her to become friends with Helena, and vice versa, no matter how many gifts the player tries to give between them. This is particularly evident in Dead or Alive Xtreme 2. Despite the bad feelings with Helena (possibly Kasumi also), Christie herself can recruit the other girls just fine after giving out of few gifts. Leifang is possibly the friendliest towards her (baring one musical note) while the other girls are more neutral.

In beach volleyball, Christie is similar to Helena, however she's more powerful, and lacks the technique Helena has. She has enough strength to knock people down with her spikes, and has enough speed to reach far-off shots. Despite her lack of technique, Christie is a well-balanced character like Helena, and Lisa, so she can make a good team with either of them.

Musical Themes

 * Monster - Dead or Alive 3 and Dead or Alive: Dimensions
 * Eclipse - Dead or Alive 3 Ending Theme
 * Serpent Dance - Dead or Alive 4
 * My Grave - Dead or Alive 4 Ending Theme

Dead or Alive Series

 * Dead or Alive 3 (2001 - 2002)
 * Dead or Alive Xtreme Beach Volleyball (2003)
 * Dead or Alive 4 (2005 - 2006)
 * Dead or Alive Xtreme 2 (2006)
 * Dead or Alive Paradise (2010)
 * Dead or Alive: Dimensions (2011)
 * Dead or Alive 5 (2012)

DOA: Dead or Alive
In the 2006 film DOA: Dead or Alive - loosely based on the video game series - Christie is played by Australian actress and model Holly Valance. In the film, Christie is portrayed as a more approachable and nicer person than her game-self; she socializes with the other female characters, and seems to form friendships with them, which she would not do in the original series. She also possesses platinum blonde hair and the family name "Allen". (However, this could be an alias.)

In the film, Christie is known as a master thief, (and an assassin, according to her "profile" image,) working with Max, who is her partner-in-crime and on-off boyfriend. She is willing to spend time with the other girls, even when she does not have to; as seen when she follows them to look for Ryu Hayabusa, even though she does not need to, nor does it fit in with her job of robbing Donovan.

Trivia

 * In the Dead or Alive Xtreme sub-series, Christie's favorite color is Black.
 * Christie owns a fully grown and tame pet black panther, as shown in her Dead or Alive 3 ending.
 * Her fourth outfit in Dead or Alive 4 is similar to Rachel's default attire from Ninja Gaiden. In turn, one of Rachel's hairstyles available in Ninja Gaiden Sigma, "Assassin," is similar to Christie's hairstyle.
 * Besides being the tallest of the female cast, Christie is also the oldest female at 26 years of age.
 * Christie was ranked #42 in UGO Networks's "Top 50 Videogame Hotties" list in 2010, and #4 in GameTrailer's "Top Ten Gamer Babes" list in 2007. She was also featured in IGN's "Videogame Babe of the Day" series in 2006.
 * In Christie's story mode in Dead or Alive 4, the fight between her and Ayane or Ryu is randomized, since she serves as sub bosses for both Ayane and Ryu in their own story modes.
 * Her Dead or Alive 3 theme Monster can be heard in the beginning of Rig's chapter of the DOA5 story, and her Dead or Alive 4 theme Serpent Dance can be heard in the True Kasumi chapter of the story when you fight her and it can also be heard when you fight her as Helena.
 * It seems to appear that Christie has a liking for snakes as some of her costumes have pictures of snakes. Some of her swimsuits from Xtreme sub-series have the design of snake skins. This could remind of Christie's merciless nature and her fighting style.
 * Christie came 2nd in the Top 7 video game shower scenes held by GameRadar.
 * Although it is implied Christie is a prolific killer, she has only been explicitly shown killing two person: Maria, Helena's mother. It is shown in Helena's flashback ending in Dead or Alive 4 and also the man who got killed by Christie's large needle.