(L) Strike Witches TV (Mecha Musume)

[Serenity85]

hmmm... I noticed something while re-watching the series.... In the 3rd ep when Yoshika is introduced to the squad in the school room she's given a box that's suppose to have a uniform for her (complete with insignia and rank on it), she even takes set box to her room.... yet she never opens the box.. in fact the box is never seen again. Kinda wonder what kind of uniform she had (did it look like Lynne's or maybe Mio's/Francesca's)

Also in ep 6 (Sanya's ep) when she is hit by the Nueroi, she never attempts to put up a shield (you would have thought she'd at least try right?). In fact, I don't remember her ever putting up a shield. I wonder if that means unlike the rest of the witches her magic power (although, very strong and important) is limited to radar and thus she can't put up a shield.

Just food for thought^^

[lone_wolf]

Originally Posted by Serenity85

hmmm... I noticed something while re-watching the series.... In the 3rd ep when Yoshika is introduced to the squad in the school room she's given a box that's suppose to have a uniform for her (complete with insignia and rank on it), she even takes set box to her room.... yet she never opens the box.. in fact the box is never seen again. Kinda wonder what kind of uniform she had (did it look like Lynne's or maybe Mio's/Francesca's)

Also in ep 6 (Sanya's ep) when she is hit by the Nueroi, she never attempts to put up a shield (you would have thought she'd at least try right?). In fact, I don't remember her ever putting up a shield. I wonder if that means unlike the rest of the witches her magic power (although, very strong and important) is limited to radar and thus she can't put up a shield.

Just food for thought^^

I would think that Yoshika's uniform would just look like her standard Sailor Fuku top...something like this: http://moe.imouto.org/post/show/4695...ada_humikane-s

And it would make sense since she sort of represents the low rank of the Imperial Fuso Navy. She would not wear Mio's uniform because her ranking is way below hers. Mio is a major so it's expected of her to wear such a garment.

Lynette and Francesca and the rest of Strike Witches wear uniforms that are respective of their home country. Like the Karlsland gals....modified and somewhat based on a few Luftwaffe uniforms from WWII.

--Lone Wolf
一匹狼

[Serenity85]

Originally Posted by lone_wolf

I would think that Yoshika's uniform would just look like her standard Sailor Fuku top...something like this: http://moe.imouto.org/post/show/4695...ada_humikane-s

And it would make sense since she sort of represents the low rank of the Imperial Fuso Navy. She would not wear Mio's uniform because her ranking is way below hers. Mio is a major so it's expected of her to wear such a garment.

Lynette and Francesca and the rest of Strike Witches wear uniforms that are respective of their home country. Like the Karlsland gals....modified and somewhat based on a few Luftwaffe uniforms from WWII.

--Lone Wolf
一匹狼

Hmm, ya guess that makes sense lol^^ Just curious, which Luftwaffe uniforms are referenced? New information is always nice^^

[lone_wolf]

Originally Posted by Serenity85

Hmm, ya guess that makes sense lol^^ Just curious, which Luftwaffe uniforms are referenced? New information is always nice^^

The uniforms have been modified and tweaked but you can get a good idea where some of the Karlsland uniform concepts came from:

Some references...
http://www.diggerhistory.info/pages-...all-forces.htm
http://www.diggerhistory.info/pages-...s/germany2.htm
http://www.lostbattalions.com/german.../luftlist.html

Erika's hat is practically a "Schirmmütze".
Minna's jacket looks like a Field Blouse but when she's in her winter wear, she wears a hat similar to a "Fliegermütze".


As for Trude, I don't recognize any similarities...I'm sure someone else here may have a better reference though.

For the Japanese WWII uniforms, here's a small reference:
http://www.diggerhistory.info/pages-...s/japanese.htm

Mio's jacket based on:
http://www.diggerhistory.info/images...-uniforms5.jpg

Yoshika's uniform top:
http://www.diggerhistory.info/images...an_seamen2.jpg



--Lone Wolf
一匹狼

[Serenity85]

Originally Posted by lone_wolf

The uniforms have been modified and tweaked but you can get a good idea where some of the Karlsland uniform concepts came from:

Some references...
http://www.diggerhistory.info/pages-...all-forces.htm
http://www.diggerhistory.info/pages-...s/germany2.htm
http://www.lostbattalions.com/german.../luftlist.html

Erika's hat is practically a "Schirmmütze".
Minna's jacket looks like a Field Blouse but when she's in her winter wear, she wears a hat similar to a "Fliegermütze".


As for Trude, I don't recognize any similarities...I'm sure someone else here may have a better reference though.

For the Japanese WWII uniforms, here's a small reference:
http://www.diggerhistory.info/pages-...s/japanese.htm

Mio's jacket based on:
http://www.diggerhistory.info/images...-uniforms5.jpg

Yoshika's uniform top:
http://www.diggerhistory.info/images...an_seamen2.jpg



--Lone Wolf
一匹狼

Again, much thanks for the information^^ Gotta love history listens via anime (cute charaters help to^^)

[wavehawk]

Originally Posted by Keroko

*nod nod* But I already knew that. :3 Canadian cutie scores high on my list.

By the way, what does the Japanese description next to her portrait on the new art say?

- Sorry, I can't translate. Maybe we can ask Selkirk nicely and he'll do it? Else we could send him some choco (it's Feb 14th here now).

I'd have offered some Pinot Noir, but the bushfires here in Victoria are probably going to ruin Australia's wine production this year.

[selkirk]

Originally Posted by wavehawk

- Sorry, I can't translate. Maybe we can ask Selkirk nicely and he'll do it? Else we could send him some choco (it's Feb 14th here now).

I'd have offered some Pinot Noir, but the bushfires here in Victoria are probably going to ruin Australia's wine production this year.

Air Infantry around the World Series

Wilma Bishop (16 years old in '39)
Service: Royal Farawayland Air Force
Familiar: Scottish Fold

The elder sister of Sgt. Lynette Bishop in the 501st Joint Fighter Wing.

Unlike her sister, Wilma is like a vibrant ball of energy.
Knowing that the enlistment procedures and training period for the Britannian Air Force were long, Wilma went to the Britannian Commonwealth nation Farawayland alone, and after receiving her mechanized air infantry qualifications there, returned to Europe as part of a deployment to aid in the defense of Britannia.

Naturally bright and playful, at home she is not unlike her sister, and loves both making and eating sweets. However, one constant source of worry for her is how the eating part affects her weight.

As an air infantryman, she did not have any particularly noteworthy skills, and never participated in any large operations. She continued fighting until she was 20, at which point she retired.

Wilma had always shown a liking for older men, and after retiring, she married a Farawayland Air Force officer 30 years her senior, surprising all of her family and friends.

***

I actually did most of it in my mind a few weeks ago anyway, and had a good laugh at the last bit.

[Piroko]

^ Whoa! :SELKIRK EFFORT: appears!

[Davyd]

Yeah thanks for the work ^^

Rome wasn't built in one day .

[selkirk]

Air Infantry around the World Series

Nikka Edvardine Katajainen (15 years old in '44)
Service: Suomus Air Force (Suomen Ilmavoimat)
Familiar: Snow Weasel

Attached to No.24 Squadron (Hävittäjälentolaivue 24), an elite unit of the Suomus Air Force.
As Eila is also a member of this squadron, the two are fellow squadron members.

Has the appearance of a young boy, and a very exacting personality, who can split any situation into black and white. As she can be too focused and serious at times, she sometimes misses what is happening in her surroundings, and thus is often caught in Eila's pranks.

Going by the numbers, she is an excellent ace, but due to number of times she has lost Strikers, no matter whether it was due to being shot at, crashing in flight, encountering engine trouble, or other unforeseeable accidents, she is called "Jinxed" Katajainen by everyone around her.
However, she has never gotten any teammates involved in her accidents, and has never suffered any lethal wounds despite all this.

With the number of irreplaceable Strikers she destroyed, and Katajainen herself showing no signs of remorse, she was pulled from front-line duty for a time, and put to work cleaning the hangar.

She possesses a special magical aptitude for hyper-regeneration, and by synergizing with her familiar's healing magic, she can heal most injuries nearly immediately.

A currently-serving air infantryman in the the Suomus Air Force in 1944. She holds the rank of Master Sergeant (Vääpeli).

********

Next one. Her familiar went from a ferret to a weasel...?

********

Kuroe Ayaka (17 years old in '39)
Service: Fuso Imperial Army (Fuso Koukoku Rikugun)
Familiar: Satsuma Dog

Works as a test pilot developing new Strikers with the Flight Evaluation Squad of the Fuso Imperial Army.

Formerly, an ace witch who fought with Anabuki Tomoko and Katoh Takeko during the Fuso Sea Incident.
Open and cheerful, she is a good-natured person who always shows great care for her subordinates.

Being a mechanical enthusiast who did not mind flying prototype models and foreign-developed Strikers, she was invited to the Flight Evaluation Squad.
She always kept the engineers happy with the way she could detail minute differences in the capabilities of the prototypes not through general feeling but through hard numbers.
She also collaborated in trials for witch uniforms and other equipment, and is shown here wearing a prototype Kantou-i type flight uniform.

She is a skilled soldier who is commonly ranked among the top ten Fuso witches in history, particularly regarding her skill with swords in close combat. By focusing her magic power into the tip of her fusotou (katana) and driving her entire force into a thrust, she once brought down a large-scale Neuroi with a core sheltered deep within its body, which would normally be extremely difficult to destroy with just a sword.

She retired for a time when she became 20 years old, but serving in the air infantry was a lifelong vocation for her and she enlisted once again half a year later. As her magic power showed little decay in strength, she was allowed to rejoin the Flight Evaluation Squad under the condition that she not be put on missions on the front lines.

********

And... another one done.

[qmeister]

One thing I never really got, was the whole 'magic declines as you reach 20 years of age' concept. Aren't we shown that Yoshika's mother and grandmother can still do healing? Yet Mio and Minna seem to be nearing 20 and Mio especially looks like she'll have to step down soon.

Is it just that when you grow up, Strikers no longer fit?

[selkirk]

Originally Posted by qmeister

One thing I never really got, was the whole 'magic declines as you reach 20 years of age' concept. Aren't we shown that Yoshika's mother and grandmother can still do healing? Yet Mio and Minna seem to be nearing 20 and Mio especially looks like she'll have to step down soon.

Is it just that when you grow up, Strikers no longer fit?

Booklet 1 says that both Yoshika's mother and grandmother (p.59-60) were very powerful witches, better than Yoshika herself, and that they were both examples of extremely rare cases where their magic did not decay (much).

The Official Fanbook (p.74) also says that witches are often believed to be unable to activate their abilities if they are not chaste, hence why they are forbidden from interacting with the males on base, and are given relatively higher ranks than them. This appears to be a rather late addition to the setting, since in Booklet 1 they say that the witches are given higher ranks considering they are an important fighting force, and yet are still just young girls, so it's a form of protection. Nothing about chastity has been mentioned prior to the Official Fanbook if I remember correctly.

[qmeister]

Originally Posted by selkirk

Booklet 1 says that both Yoshika's mother and grandmother (p.59-60) were very powerful witches, better than Yoshika herself, and that they were both examples of extremely rare cases where their magic did not decay (much).

The Official Fanbook (p.74) also says that witches are often believed to be unable to activate their abilities if they are not chaste, hence why they are forbidden from interacting with the males on base, and are given relatively higher ranks than them. This appears to be a rather late addition to the setting, since in Booklet 1 they say that the witches are given higher ranks considering they are an important fighting force, and yet are still just young girls, so it's a form of protection. Nothing about chastity has been mentioned prior to the Official Fanbook if I remember correctly.

Thank you very much, this explains where Yoshika gets her stronger than average powers. Though I would think the Booklet contradicts the Fanbook, assuming Yoshika is a biological child of Dr and Mrs Miyafuji, and Mrs Miyafuji is the biological daughter of her mother. Hence neither of them being chaste.

Though I may be completely wrong, of course, and it is merely because they have such considerable powers from the start that they can still use them.

[Keroko]

well, the book labels it a 'belief', so it doesn't mean its true, it just means that's the reason for the order.

I do dislike it though. It kinda takes away the force of episode 5, and it being Minna's decision, and her way of dealing and protecting others from the pain she felt with the loss of her boyfriend.

Coincidentally, this also creates a plothole, if such relationships were forbidden, how do we explain Minna's relationship? Or Wilma's?

Speaking of which, thanks for the translations. Wilma's character quirk is amusing to say the least. XD

[wavehawk]

Originally Posted by selkirk

Air Infantry around the World Series
Wilma Bishop (16 years old in '39)
Service: Royal Farawayland Air Force
Familiar: Scottish Fold

Thanks, Selkirk!!!

Originally Posted by selkirk

Wilma had always shown a liking for older men, and after retiring, she married a Farawayland Air Force officer 30 years her senior, surprising all of her family and friends.

Happily Married. I should have known...

[Vexx]

Hmmm, kind of sounds like a "miko==striker_witch" analogy.... miko must be 'pure' to be their most powerful in ritual, but there's some debate over whether that is simply purified in mind and spirit or whether 'physically pure' is actually necessary.

However, there's so many contradictions in the material, story, and so on; it ends up sounding like a lot of arm-waving and nonsense.

[wavehawk]

Originally Posted by Vexx

However, there's so many contradictions in the material, story, and so on; it ends up sounding like a lot of arm-waving and nonsense.

- Do remember there's been a lot of changes between Humikane's original works/concept (I think he started in 2005?) and the TV series of late. I guess it's kind of like the retconning that DC and MArvel comics do all the time--to fit in with the updated story, they have to go back and retcon past established facts to make it fit better.

I hope Selkirk can have enough breathing room and time to do translations on the other stuff on Humikane's page. Then again, I hope he doesn't stretch himself (I'm hoping he finishes the novel translation, too).

[Keroko]

I can look past contradictions in separate material, but contradictions in the same material, such as this 'relationships with Witches are forbidden by high command' versus Minna's relationship... that irks me.

[Lesca]

Just out of curiosity, anyone know what the offical websites talking about? 7 days untill some sort announcement?

[Fnights]

Omfg, i hope they announce second season.