Strike Witches OVA

I see ads about the TV anime coming soon in my magazines.  The characters listed on the official website (middle red button on the left column) look extraordinarily tasty — Perrine H. Clostermann being my initial favorite for megane + ojou-sama and potential for tsundere, and Francesca Lucchini in second place for twintail. And Wikipedia informs me that an OVA was out in January 2007. How failingly fail of me not to have picked up on that already. So off to the Internets I went, and now I’m ready to review it. Say hello to what will be the Sky Girls of 2008.

Summary

The world has been attacked by an unknown force (presumably aliens). Mankind had been fighting a losing battle with current WWII-era technology, but they finally designed and engineered the Striker, thus creating the Strike Witches squadron. The Striker is technology combined with magic that allows mankind to fight evenly with this mysterious force. They call it the new “magic broom.”

Eleven girls from all over the world have assembled together and undergone three months of training. With support from the surrounding the communities, the girls are about ready to start real combat.

Eyepatched squadron leader Mio Sakamoto appears to be the strict one, keeping the other ten girls in line and properly disciplined. Twintailed pilot officer Francesca Lucchini is the shortest girl at 148cm; she seems to just enjoy life on base. Single-braid sergeant Lynette Bishop seems a bit clumsy.

Sergeant Yoshika Miyafuki (who somewhat resembles Chiyo from Azumanga Daioh in this OVA but looks different in the anime) prepares extraordinarily huge servings for dinner. Flight officer Perrine H. Clostermann dislikes Natto.

On a normal day, Flight officer Sanya V. Litvyak likes naps. Flight lieutenant Gertrud Barkhorn likes reading. Warrant officr Eila Ilmatar Juultilainen plays cards while flight officer Erica Hartmann and flight lieutenant Charlotte E. Yeager (the tallest and bustiest) look on.

Mio calls for a mock battle between two teams of girls. And it’s time for them to suit up.

The Striker apparently is a leg unit — “airplane pants” as a friend calls them. Each girl dons one per leg. The magical fusion of the devices causes the girls to get animal ears, animal tails, and animal familiars. They also gain super strength, able to carry heavy weaponry with ease.

The launching mechanism (or runway I guess) is entirely magical. It has a triforce in the center and glows to help the Strikers accelerate for liftoff. This is totally aerodynamically unnecessary, but oh well.

The mock fight starts. Intense dogfighting ensues with heavy firepower and magical shields for defense. Everyone is able to maneuver and communicate well.

Yoshika and Perrine square off, with the former being way too agile for the latter. Yoshika ends up on Perrine’s tail and is in prime position to shoot, but she hesitates. Mio witnesses this and interferes, engaging Yoshika and taking the battle to the forest. This is where she uses her sword to cut down trees and ground Yoshika.

“I can’t shoot my teammates,” was her reason, even though it was a mock battle. Mio harshly tells Yoshika to quit if she doesn’t have what it takes to be in the squad.

That night Yoshika packs up and leaves, but she meets flight commander Lieutenant Colonel Minna-Dietlinde Wilcke outside under the full moon. LTC Wilke talks about her lost family and how she and her squad are the only ones who can save mankind now.

As the sun rises, Yoshika is talked into staying, and as she returns to camp, all the other girls are there to welcome her with open arms.

And so the Strike Witches will fight to protect the world and the happiness of people.

Impressions

Well that was really pretty (even for just 8 minutes). It really is kind of a sister series to Sky Girls. Lolis take to the sky in mecha-like things to fight aliens? All right! The difference is that there’s 11 instead of 4 (although I had wanted the new girls at the end of Sky Girls to go on some mission; I guess this is my answer in a different fashion) and magic is involved instead of pure technology.

The time setting is also different, with Strike Witches taking place seemingly in the WWI or WWII era. The greatest evidence is the opening of the OVA where propellor-powered planes took to the skies for warfare. Even funnier is how the Strikers make the same noises; I thought this technology was supposed to be fuel efficient and sturdy. ^^ But guess what, the noises end up adding to the moe factor of the girls, crazily enough. They’re just doing cute dogfighting maneuvers!

The music seems to be really great, being orchestral and symphonic and reflective of music from the early 1900s and such. Epic and heroic stuff. Artwork is also sleek; great job Gonzo.

Nice voicecast so far. Sawashiro Miyuki plays my ojou-sama Perrine (memories of Shinku, Mint Blancmanche, and Houjou Reika surface), and Tanaka Rie voices LTC Wilcke. Saito Chiwa has also been reported to be in this series.

Lots of mysteries to be answered, including all the girls’ pasts (since they come from all parts of the world) and hopefully a better explanation of the Striker technology itself. Who are the enemies, and why are the Strike Witches really the only ones capable of fighting back?  Also, is the runway required for takeoff?  What if they get grounded like Mio did to Yoshika in this OVA?

And I already mentioned the animal ears/tails/familiars. XD Such a needless bonus, but hey I won’t complain. We get cat, dog, and rabbit ears among others. I’m quite looking forward to this; the series should air July 2008.

~Crisu

(click for larger)

Sanya (far left) gets third place for also looking very, very nice. <3