Pumpkin Scissors

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Pumpkin Scissors
パンプキン・シザーズ
(Panpukin Shizāzu)
Genre Drama, Military, War
Manga
Author Ryoutarou Iwanaga
Publisher Flag of Japan Kodansha
Flag of the United States Del Rey Manga
Demographic Shōnen
Magazine Magazine GREAT
Monthly Shōnen Magazine
Original run 2002 – ongoing
Volumes 9
TV anime
Director Katsuhito Akiyama
Studio GONZO, AIC
Network Flag of Japan Tokyo MX
Original run October 2006 – March 2007
Episodes 24

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.

Contents

[edit] Plot

The story is set up in a region of a fictional world strongly resembling Western Europe during the Interwar period. Wireless communication does not exist nor do automatic weapons, 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.

[edit] Rank Insignia

Members of the Pumpkin Scissors unit crossing a river using an amphibious vehicle based on a real-life model, the Volkswagen Schwimmwagen
Members of the Pumpkin Scissors unit crossing a river using an amphibious vehicle based on a real-life model, the Volkswagen Schwimmwagen

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 - shō sa)		 Connery
Captain
(大尉 - tai i)		 Hunks
First Lieutenant
(中尉 - chū i)		 Webner
Second Lieutenant
(少尉 - shō i)		 Alice
Warrant Officer
(准尉 - jun i)		 Martis
Oreldo
Sergeant Major
(曹長 - sō chō)		 Stecchin
Corporal
(伍長 - go chō)		 Randal
Private First Class
(上等兵 - jōtō hei)		 Mercury

[edit] 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.

Platoons revealed so far
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 (Life Neglected Soldiers)
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)

[edit] 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 (一本だたら), a ghostly, blacksmith with one eye and one leg, seemingly analogous to the "Alt Schmied" god in the series.

[edit] 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

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 cavalry 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, Lionel Taylor, who apparently supports her ideals. However, there are apparently are some feelings between her and Randel Oland as hinted throughout the series, particularly in episode 22.


Warrant Officer Machs

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. It is also hinted from one of the episodes that he knows very good defensive-based martial arts.


Warrant Officer Oreldo

Childhood friend of Machs, Oreldo is a handsome young soldier who fancies himself a ladies' man. He is very clever, resourceful and an expert at picking locks. His background has yet to be fully explained, but he seemed to be a street urchin before joining the military.


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

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".
Due to his reckless style of combat, Randel is frequently hospitalized during the series. These hospital stays lead to a running gag about the corporal's apparently 13-1/2 inch penis, and the inability of the hospital staff to get a urine sample from him.


Mercury

Often referred to as "Merc" (Mer-kun in the Japanese version). 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 Merc 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

The officer in charge of the technology development unit of the army intelligence bureau.


Lionel Taylor

A high-ranking noble who is engaged to Alice, though he seems to have more sinister purposes up his sleeve.

Major Connery

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

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". As a bandit, he called himself Grauwolfe or Wolfe after his unit's codename.

Hans Voiced by: Junji Majima (Japanese), Vic Mignogna (English)

A High Temperature Trooper (HTT) who is indebted to the secret organization "Silver Wheel". As an 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 Kauplan 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 cease-fire inside it.

[edit] Episodes

# Title Original airdate
01 "Invisible No.9"
"Fukashi no 9ban" (不可視の9番) 		 October 2, 2006
The Pumpkin Scissors unit gets unexpected help to deal with a dangerous renegade squad. 
02 "War Relief Unit"
"Sensai fukkou butai" (戦災復興部隊) 		 October 9, 2006
Randel becomes officially a member of the team, and Alice confronts a Viscount accused of abusing his people. 
03 "For That Is a Precious Thing (Noblesse Oblige)"
"So wa toutokimono narite" (其は貴きものなりて) 		 October 16, 2006
Alice must convince a group of villagers to work in the reconstruction of a tunnel, but they have their own reasons to not trust the government. 
04 "The Cracking Portrait"
"Hibiwareta shouzou" (ヒビ割れた肖像) 		 October 23, 2006
Martis starts to become suspicious of Randel, and decides to investigate his past. 
05 "The Frivolous Men"
"Asahaka na otoko-tachi" (あさはかな者達(おとこたち)) 		 October 30, 2006
While Randel is still hospitalized, Martis and Oreldo team up to dig further about him. 
06 "A Fruitful Time"
"Houjou na jikan" (豊饒(ほうじょう)な時間) 		 November 6, 2006
Randel discovers an abandoned baby and Alice decides to search for his mother. 
07 "The Lead and the Follow"
"Odoru mono odorasareru mono" (踊る者踊らされる者) 		 November 13, 2006
While Alice takes the day off to meet her fiancé, the rest of the team is sent in a search for missing supplies. 
08 "Burning Snowfields"
"Setsugen ni moete" (雪原に燃えて) 		 November 20, 2006
Alice and co. race against time to make an important delivery in a snowy and hostile wilderness. 
09 "Woman of the Morning Mist"
"Asagiri no onna" (朝霧の女) 		 November 27, 2006
Oreldo helps a beautiful and hopeless woman to come to terms with her past. 
10 "Pumpkin and Scissors"
"Kabocha to hasami" (カボチャとハサミ) 		 December 4, 2006
Stecchin reveals to Randel how the Section III was created, and the reason for its bizarre name. 
11 "Quiet Movement"
"Shizuka naru Taidou" (静かなる胎動) 		 December 11, 2006
Alice is kidnapped by a group who wants her help to expose an important manuscript revealing the military's darkest secrets. 
12 "The Unseen Pain"
"Miezaru itami" (見えざる痛み) 		 December 18, 2006
Alice's captors release her after she agrees to cooperate, but their lives are threatened by those who want to silence them. 
13 "Rough, but Delicious"
"Soya ni shite bimi" (粗野にして美味) 		 December 25, 2006
Martis has a subtle encounter with a princess from a foreign land. 
14 "The Flame Still Burns"
"Honoo, imada kiezu" (焔、いまだ消えず) 		 January 6, 2007
While removing homeless people from the sewers, Section III must deal with drug dealers operating there. 
15 "The Decision to Stray"
"Meisou suru sentaku" (迷走する選択) 		 January 13, 2007
Alice's unit continues to fight the drug dealers, and end up meeting a dangerous enemy armed with a flamethrower. 
16 "The One Who Tears to Pieces (Lady of Scissors)"
"Kirisakishi mono" (斬り裂きし者) 		 January 20, 2007
To take down the drug dealers once and for all, Alice storms their building with her special weapon. 
17 "The Yet Unrescued Darkness (Men of Pumpkin)"
"Nao sukuwarenu yami tachi" (なお救われぬ闇たち) 		 January 27, 2007
Alice is in a pinch against the Claymore unit while Randel has a showdown with Hans. 
18 "Small War Potential (Lilliput Army)"
"Chiisa na senryoku" (小さな戦力) 		 February 3, 2007
Randel is still depressed since the last mission and Stecchin decides to find a way to cheer him up. 
19 "Sweet Trap (Trick in Treat)"
"Amai Wana" (甘い罠) 		 February 10, 2007
While the rest of Section III is distributing rations to the homeless, Alice attends a ball with her sisters in a mansion nearby. 
20 "Enter the Performers"
"Enja nyuujou" (演者入場) 		 February 17, 2007
The ball is invaded by a furious crowd and the Section III ends up in a delicate situation. 
21 "The Puppet and the Idol"
"Deku to Guuzou" (木偶と偶像) 		 February 24, 2007
Alice challenges the Marquis to a duel, who sends his two bodyguards against her and Randel instead. 
22 "The Isolated Scales"
"Kodoku na Tenbin" (孤独な天秤) 		 March 3, 2007
Randel looks for a reason to fight again and Alice must deal with the enraged mob while fighting her opponent. 
23 "And Then There Was a Sweet Trap"
"Soshite Amai Wana" (そして甘い罠) 		 March 10, 2007
Everybody in the mansion watches Alice's duel, while the Military prepares itself to raid the place. 
24 "The Military, The Commonality, The Nobility"
"Gunjin, Heimin, Kizoku" (軍人・平民・貴族) 		 March 17, 2007
Time is running out for the Pumpkin Scissors to find a peaceful solution before the Section I starts to attack the mansion. 

[edit] 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

[edit] Notes and references

  1. ^ [1]. World Rank Insignia. Retrieved January 1, 2007.

[edit] External links