Pumpkin Scissors
| Pumpkin Scissors | |
| File:PScissors.jpg | |
| Genre | Drama, Military |
|---|---|
| Manga | |
| Written by | Ryoutarou Iwanaga |
| Published by |  Kodansha Del Rey Manga |
| Anime | |
| Directed by | Katsuhito Akiyama |
| Studio | GONZO, AIC |
Pumpkin Scissors (パンプキン・シザーズ, panpukin shizāzu) is a manga created by Ryoutarou Iwanaga, originally serialized in Magazine GREAT in 2002, but later moved to Monthly Shōnen Magazine in October 2006. The manga has been licensed by Del Rey as announced at the New York Comic Convention 2007. As of May 2007, there are 7 volumes released so far.
An anime adaptation of Pumpkin Scissors, produced by GONZO and AIC, began airing on October 2, 2006 across several Japanese television stations and ended with the 24th episode on March 19, 2007. The series is licensed to the North American market by ADV Films.
Plot
The story is set up in a fictional part of the world strongly resembling Western Europe during the Interwar period. Wireless communication does not exist, and semiautomatic firearms are still technically novel.
A ceasefire ended the long war between the Royal Empire and the Republic of Frost. Three years later, the Empire is still plagued by starvation, pestilence, and soldiers turning into bandits. To aid in the war relief effort, the "Imperial Army State Section III", also known as the Pumpkin Scissors, was established.
The name for the group was an idea from one of its officers, the 2nd Lieutenant Alice L. Malvin. According to her, in their war relief efforts they must face the threat of corrupt people who protect themselves behind lies, power, money and many other layers around them like a pumpkin, and the Section III must act like a pair of scissors cutting through those layers and delivering justice to them.
Considered a waste of resources by some, and just an instrument of propaganda by others, the Pumpkin Scissors still take their duty to assist the country's reconstruction seriously. One day their life starts to change when Randel Oland, a veteran soldier with a mysterious past joins their ranks.
The anime series covers the first five volumes of the manga and part of the sixth one with a few alterations. During the ending of the season one finale, there is a quote suggesting an upcoming season two.
Rank Insignia
The military rank insignia and titles used by Section III and the rest of the army is based on the rank insignia used by the Japanese Army before 1945.[1]
| Rank | Insignia | Known Characters |
|---|---|---|
| Major (少佐 - shou sa) |
File:Pumpkin Scissors Major.jpg | Connery |
| Captain (大尉 - tai i) |
File:Pumpkin Scissors Captain.jpg | Hunks |
| First Lieutenant (中尉 - chuu i) |
File:Pumpkin Scissors 1st Lieutenant.jpg | Webner |
| Second Lieutenant (少尉 - shou i) |
File:Pumpkin Scissors 2nd Lieutenant.jpg | Alice |
| Warrant Officer (准尉 - jun i) |
File:Pumpkin Scissors Warrant Officer.jpg | Machs Oreld |
| Sergeant Major (曹長 - sou chou) |
File:Pumpkin Scissors Sergeant Major2.jpg | Stekkin |
| Corporal (伍長 - go chou) |
File:Pumpkin Scissors Corporal.jpg | Randal |
| Private First Class (上等兵 - joutou hei) |
File:Pumpkin Scissors Private First Class.jpg | Mercury |
The Invisible 9
Fruit of illegal experiments with human beings in violation of international war treaties, the Invisible 9 is group of secret platoons whose existence is denied by the Empire government.
| Number | Letter | Type | Nick Name | Japanese Name |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 901 | ATT | Anti Tank Trooper | Gespenst Jäger (Ghost Hunter) | 命を無視された兵隊 (Soldiers Ignorant of Death) |
| 903 | CTT | Chemical Tactics Trooper | Krankheit Jäger (Disease Hunter) | 死灰を撒く病兵 (Sowers of the Ash of Death) |
| 906 | FTT | Falling Tactics Trooper | Fallschirm Jäger (Parachute Hunter) | 翼無き降下兵 (Wingless Divers) |
| 908 | HTT | High Temperature Trooper | Alt Schmied Jäger (Old Smith Hunter) | 単眼の火葬兵 (One-eyed Cremators) |
Notes
- It is easy to assume that other divisions can be derived alphabetically (i.e. 902 = BTT, 908 = HTT and "H" is the eighth letter in the alphabet, etc.)
- Fallschirmjäger is an actual German term used for paratroopers in World War II.
- 908-HTT's nicknames seem to be a reference to the Wakayama folktale of the Ippon-Datara, a ghostly, injured blacksmith with one eye and one leg, seemingly analogous to the "Alt Schmied" god in the series.
Characters
Captain Hunks
- Voiced by: Chou (Japanese), Marty Fleck (English)
- The commanding officer and administrator of the Pumpkin Scissors. He issues mission orders and provides a calm, steadying presence, which balances Lieutenant Malvin's impetuous nature. His personality is relaxed and informal.
2nd Lieutenant Alice L. Malvin
- Voiced by: Shizuka Itou (Japanese); Kaytha Coker (English)
- The main female protagonist. Second in command and field leader of the Pumpkin Scissors. An inexperienced soldier of noble origin who graduated in the academy just before the ceasefire (the ceasefire was announced literally in the middle of the graduation ceremony for the class of officers she was in at military academy); Alice's hot-tempered and reckless demeanor tends to sometimes put her and her subordinates in danger. She has a strong sense of duty and justice and tries to live up to her family's military traditions, contrary to her father and sisters belief that she must assume a more feminine behavior. While she is the current heir to her family, she will likely lose this position once her younger brother comes of age.
- Contrary to her subordinates who always engage in combat with firearms, Alice's weapon of choice is a short-sword with her family crest engraved on it, but in some occasions she shows her true skills in battle when brandishing her special weapon, a long double-bladed calvery sword called Mahne. Another curious trait of hers is that sometimes she feels chills on her neck when something very good or very bad is about to happen. Alice is engaged to another noble, Leonil Taylor, who apparently supports her ideals, however there are apparently are some feelings between her and Randel Oland as hinted throughout the series but particularly in episode 22.
Warrant Officer Machs
- Voiced by: Chihiro Suzuki (Japanese); Blake Shepard (English)
- Graduated as one of the top students of the academy, the slight, bespectacled Machs provides the voice of reason and caution when out in the field.
- Note: In episode 24, the official military documents displayed on screen in very good English shows his name to be "Martis."
Warrant Officer Oreld
- Voiced by: Kousuke Toriumi (Japanese); Gray Haddock (English)
- Childhood friend of Machs, Oreld is a handsome young soldier who fancies himself a ladies' man. He is very clever, resourceful and an expert at picking locks.
- Note: In episode 24, the official military documents displayed on screen in very good English shows his name to be "Oreldo."
Sergeant Major Lili Stecchin
- Voiced by: Kana Ueda (Japanese); Monica Passley (English)
- She is the longest serving member of the "Pumpkin Scissors" unit, Little is known about her past except that she was a part of the military band in her previous post. She serves as Captain Hunks' aide and is also responsible for taking care of Mercury. She is elated to no end that with the recruitment of Randel into their unit, she finally outranks someone (other than the messenger-dog, Mercury) and has "an underling!"
Corporal Randel Oland
- Voiced by: Kenta Miyake (Japanese); Adam Dudley (English)
- The main male protagonist. A retired soldier who joined the Pumpkin Scissors to aid in their war relief effort. He was part of the secret 901 anti-tank-trooper unit, basically consisted of foot soldiers trained to take down enemy tanks by themselves. This unit, known also as the "Gespenster Jäger" (German for "Ghost Hunter") was part of the "Invisible 9".
- Despite his impressive stature (well over six feet tall), and a body riddled with scars, Randel's nature most of the time is kindhearted and ingenuous. But when he is in trouble he turns on his blue-steel lantern marked "901-ATT", and he becomes a fearless and vicious combatant. He is capable of defeating even heavily-armored foes with his 13mm anti-tank gun, known as the "door knocker".
Mercury
- Voiced by: Kazuki Ogawa (Japanese); Smokey DeLange (English)
- Often referred to as "Mer-kun" (a diminutive nickname). The platoon's messenger-dog, who has a bad habit of biting peoples' heads. He was demoted from Corporal to Courier Private First Class for biting an officer in Episode 1. He is very fast, reliable and sensitive to the emotions of his team. Their reaction to a particularly unpleasant Officer (Major Connery) lead to the previously mentioned incident. He resembles a Labrador Retriever.
- While Mer-kun is normally seen as a friendly dog with the members of Section III, when events warrant it, he shows himself to be a what the commoners referred to as a "military hound," and can even disarm opponents.
First Lieutenant Webner
- Voiced by: Akiko Hiramatsu (Japanese); Laurie Gallardo (English)
- The officer in charge of the technology development unit of the army intelligence bureau.
Major Connery
- Voiced by: Tomoyuki Shimura (Japanese); John Tyson (English)
- The commanding officer for Section I of the Army Intelligence bureau. Compared to Captain Hunks, his personality is cold-hearted. However, along with Captain Hunks, he also seems to know about the secrets kept within the army. He often complains to Captain Hunks about Section III interfering with his operations, but usually backs down eventually.
Wolmarf
- Voiced by: Dai Matsumoto (Japanese); Bill Wise (English)
- The first minor antagonist of the series. He was a leader of a Chemical Tactics Trooper (CTT) squad. Oland killed him with his "door knocker".
Hans
- A High Temperature Trooper (HTT) who is indebted to the secret organization "Silver Wheel". As a HT Trooper he and his fellow soldier were given a flame thrower and a protective suit. The suit however did not protect against the flames, a fact the Kaplan Institute covered up by filling the suits with a fluid impregnated with analgesics. After the cease-fire, Hans's fellow soldiers took off their suits, ignorant of their life-threatening burns, and perished. Hans, having delayed taking off his suit, realized that to remove the suit was to die and spent the years since the case-fire inside it.
Episodes
| # | Title | Original airdate | |
|---|---|---|---|
Theme songs
- Opening theme
- Aoki Flamme (蒼き炎(フランム)) by Yōko Takahashi
- Ending theme
- Mercury GO (マーキュリー★GO) by Kana Ueda and Yukai na Nakama-tachi
- Ending theme (episode 18)
- Pumpkin Ondo (パンプキン音頭) by Kana Ueda