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「紹介します2！」 (Shoukai Shimasu 2!)
“I’ll Introduce 2!”
While I generally don’t like recap episodes, I have to admit that Girls und Panzer at least manages to make them interesting. This episode was handled in pretty much the same way as the previous recap episode, albeit with more information on the new additions to the cast of characters and the various tanks fielded since. We also had some light shed on a few of the rules of the nationals, including the differing victory conditions (between the practice battle with Gloriana and the nationals themselves to be specific) and the number of tanks that can be fielded. I’m pretty happy to see the nod they gave to the fact that it’s not entirely safe rather than dismissing the danger entirely – even if they’re protected from shells, other factors such as fire and drowning still present a serious threat.
Other than the varying information about favourite tanks and some profiles for the girls from outside of Oarai, we actually had a proper intro to the Mechanics team (aka the Leopon team), whose identities we didn’t really know before now. They are Nakajima (Yamamoto Nozomi), Hoshino (Kanemoto Hisako), Suzuki (Ishihara Mai), and Tsuchiya (Kitamura Eri). I may be mistaken, but it would seem they’re all nicknamed after famous racing drivers (which would make sense given their hobby!). Interesting to note is that all but Yamamoto Nozomi already voice another character in the series!
Beyond this, it’s pretty much just standard recapping fare. I’m a little sad we’re going to have to wait three months now for the final two episodes, but interestingly enough, a proper sequel is apparently tentatively planned, so fingers crossed for that! It seems this was denied, but there’s still hope! I hope you’ll all rejoin me for the last two episodes in three months, but until then, panzer vor!
ED1.10.5 Sequence
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ED1: 「Enter Enter MISSION !」 by 渕上舞、茅野愛衣、尾崎真実、中上育実、井口裕香 (Fuchigami Mai, Kayano Ai, Ozaki Mami, Nakagami Ikumi, Iguchi Yuka)
Sequel?! Yes please!!!
I read that sequel link and they have updated it with a denial by the director. He said the newspaper article was incorrect. While he isn’t against the idea, they are only concentrating on finishing the last 2 episodes at the moment.
Too bad. I had hoped that with the 2 final episodes, we’d get 10 new ones at the same time since most anime seasons are 12 episodes. This must mean that whatever anime they are doing in March will only have 10 episodes unless its a 2 season run at 22 episodes. At least there is still a chance of another season in the future.
Ah damn, that’s a pity. Well here’s to hoping anyway!
Its funny how they manage to make 2 recap episodes in one cour and then don’t finish the series on time and we gotta sit around waiting til spring to see those final 2 episodes. I love this series but seriously someone is bad at time and resource management.
Well, the production problems were a disappointment. But I fully support the decision to recycle animation for two fillers and delay broadcasting the last episodes, rather than simply cut corners to meet the deadlines. It was a pretty courageous decision.
REPOST!
“The newspaper credits the popularity of the anime, which has led otaku to make “pilgrimages” to places that appear in the anime. One of these areas include Ōarai in Ibaraki Prefecture, which was affected by the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, making this devastated area a tourist spot. ”
OTAKU POWER! =D
SEQUEL HEIL!
Just like Strike Witches…. GuP is just too awesome to be 1 cour
Damn right, frankly it’s a bit refreshing. Not ragging on series like SAO or Chuuni, but to me, they’ve felt the same as their predecessors. It was shows like SW and Upotte! which was a mix of just plain hard military goodness mixed in with quirks that people would dismiss it, only to ignore how great the cast was, how good the writing got to be, etc.
And yes, SW excelled in writing in my opinion. People normally point out the pantsu and ignore it for what I thought was some rather good story and character development.
I finally managed to convince my sister to watch SW. She was hooked onto it cos of the movie.
WRT the copious amount of pantsus… I have to agree with you. Looking past all those pantsu shots, its a great story with good characterisation. Oh and not forgetting shout outs to popular culture like the trench run from Star Wars IV or famous battles like Battle of Britain and Battle of the Bulge
As for Upotte…. I still don’t quite like it though. From the way the characters are drawn mostly. Aside from that, the 1st run felt lack lusture
From SW I demand NORTH AFRICA!
Marsaille and Rommel! And hope to get my land witches. Would LOVE to see how they do up the Panther and other tanks we came to know in GuP
Yeah, a lot of people tend to quickly overlook the fact that the pantsu bit isn’t (strictly) for fanservice, but it’s also due to convenience in-story as well. I mean, if they just LOOKED at the Striker Units, then try to imagine what a pain in the ass it would be for the girls to get those things on while wearing pants, longer dresses, or anything more loose, especially since they have to jump and slip them on on the fly (no pun intended) when an enemy attacks, and then imagine the inconvenience of having to change in and out over and over for each attack, then the concept doesn’t seem AS silly as initially thought, but actually makes perfect sense for the story.
They want “unnecessary fanservice”, they should watch the anime version of High School of the Dead, lol.
Actually, they could have worn shorts, bloomers, or mini skirts and still easily jumped into the striker units. And it isn’t just the witches. As the non-witch schoomate back in Japan from her school also was in her pantsu. Its clearly society thats keeping them exposed.
What drew me to SW initially was the WWII setting and use (or derivative) of WII weapons. SW does have a very good cast (I do have a slight preferences for Chiba Saeko as Mio). I agree that think that SW was unfairly judged by some who couldn’t get past the pantsu issue. The ecchi/pantsu scenes didn’t bother me, but I must admit I LOL’d at times when they would force in a pantsu shot just for the sake of it. It was interesting that the SW movie had surprisingly little fan service (hardly any past the intro). Even so, I thought it was as good or even a little better than Season 1 or 2 overall despite a rushed ending battle and “deus ex Yoshika” (JMO).
While SW has more humor, I do think GuP writing overall is a bit better – more consistent in quality and overall balance. SW neuroi battles have gone from difficult (needed Mio to find the core) to almost matter of fact by the movie. SW has some great moments, but also some very “meh” ones as well. Of course, just like any story/anime/movie/etc., some GuP scenes are better than others. However, I don’t find that variation to be quite the same degree as I do in SW. Both are good shows which I’m sure I’ll watch again. Still, I suspect I’ll have less of an urge to FFW through some episodes of GuP compared to SW.
@c2710: I’m impressed that you got your sister to watch SW. I bet she’d like GuP. SW Season 3 seems quite possible given the “to be continued” statement at the movie’s end, though I bet it’s still at least in part focused on the 501st JFW. I just hope that Shirley trades in her BAR for a .50 cal M2HB derivative. The BAR was an excellent squad weapon for the period – often underrated IMO, but a poor choice for the SW setting. Lucchini at least uses an M1919A6. Anyway, SW Season 3 & GuP Season 2 would make a great pairing for the Spring or Summer 2013 Anime Season :D.
As for Upotte, I’m with you – not a fan of the character designs at all(very similar to Kanokon & a couple others I can’t remember). Interesting concept, but nothing I would rewatch or recommend.
@HalfDemonInuyasha:
You do have a point. Kenneth M. Taylor, a US P-40 pilot during the Pearl Harbor attack, flew in his tuxedo pants (he was at an all-night party earlier) because he didn’t have time to change into something else. I guess some people would rather all witches wear tights like Ella & Sanya…
As for HOD anime, that seems pretty tame in terms of “unnecessary ecchiness” from what I recall when compared to the aforementioned Kanokon (manga’s decent, the anime…), To Love Ru S2/Darkness, Queen’s Oppai, err, Blade, Highschool DxD, and last season’s Hagure Yuusha no Estetica and Dakara Boku wa H ga Dekinai just to name a few.
I’ve always been a fan of military themed shows but I have to admit that Strike Witches did not interest me…at first. When I read the series synopsis, it just seemed too silly. The pics I saw also did not manage to hook me either…not that I have anything against fan service. It was the imagery of girls that were essentially fighter planes. It was weird.
So I left the series alone until the second season came out. A particular site I was following had a thread on it and I was surprised by some of the people I saw commenting on the episodes. By surprise, it was that these were posters who’s opinion I usually share when it comes to shows. Well, this then prompted me to give the series a shot and I watched the first season opening episode. Boy was I pleasantly surprised. The overall action was good and the setting was interesting as I typically fancy the WWII era for military themes but the characters were what completely hooked me. I loved them and their interactions with eachother.
At any rate, I also subsequently enjoyed Sora No Woto and Upotte. When I saw the premise for GuP in the Fall 2012 line up, I immediate knew I was going to like it. It just makes it so much better to see so many enjoying this show, to even hear about WoT players that wouldn’t necessarily watch anime become fans of GuP…just a really great thing.
Plus, the comments here have been educational as well when all the tank and military buffs discuss the various parallels and such. That definitely made this show all the more enjoyable.
What I find strange is all the blogs and forum threads I’ve read have been extremely favorable towards GuP. However the score on MAL is surprisingly low. It has recently risen but for a while it was below 7. Oh well, I really shouldn’t pay any attention to the MAL score since that was part of the reason I held off on Strike Witches for so long with it’s 7.31 score for season one LOL.
Yep I loved Strike Witches, Upotte and even So-Ra-No-Wa-To. To that list add this series.
While I don’t think that GuP can match the seriousness of Strike Witches, it does make up for moe and content.
3 months? WTF?
I don’t mind waiting for another season, but for thee few last eps? That seriously hurts the entire anime for me. E7 AO was already on the edge and I don’t remember the last Saki A episodes with the final ones just starting now – why are they doing this?
To understand this you have to know how show schedule works in Japanese TV. Basically a show “reserves” a certain timeslot for a specific number of episodes for a given season. Once that’s done, it’s pretty much locked in stone — the production has to use up all those episodes. If something happens mid-production, which was the case of Girls und Panzer (and Eureka Seven AO, due to the Olympics), there’s no way to get any extensions past the decided-upon episode count, as the timeslot for the show that will follow it on the same timeslot will ALSO locked into place by that point. As such, they’d have to wait for another opening in the broadcasting schedule, which in this case is in March.
The dvd extras OVA is out. Do you plan on blogging it?
While I would love to, we generally don’t blog ~6 minute short OVAs/Specials. Even when they’re as awesome as that one was. All them swimsuit references!
I just got the OVAs via tokyotosho and its’still RAW file…has to waits maybe 2 – 3 weeks according my time in Malaysia. Maybe 2 – 3 months. Can’t tells
I had fully expected a preview of the next episode with a title of “We Delay”.
The fact that we must wait for so long until the next episode is even worse than people think. Because it technically isn’t over it won’t qualify for any year-end awards. It’s sad because I would have liked to nominate it for; Best Musical Score and whatever award you give a show that turned out to be much better than anyone thought.
Well hopefully this show will be covered by the season wrap up podcast. I’m so glad that this show turned out so well and I’m not too upset that we have to wait so long, the reason is of course because it’s to ensure the quality of the product. For that I say thank you. The director should get some kind of award for this show, the pacing, the content has all been excellent.
I don’t know if it should win the award for animation but it definately deserves an honorable mention at least. The amount of detail they went into the models and the effects is astonishing.
Looking forward to the final episodes of this fantastic show, and the sequal as well.
I suppose one positive for the hold-off is the fact that, through the many fans it already has now (and others informed of it checking out episodes 1-10 in the meantime), there will be a lot of anticipation for episodes 11 and 12, and assuming they’re a huge hit and depending on how the season looks for new anime/sequels/etc, it could possibly build an even bigger fan base and become even MORE popular as a result. =)
First off, I want to thank you for covering this show. I’m not going to lie, I did judge this by its cover “Oh, pfft…girls on tanks. Moe-begging mismatch, not going to watch it.” And then I started reading your coverage on it and I immediately doubted my thinking. I gave the first episode a try and was hooked literally in 2mins. The POV of the tank drive and the cliffhanger scene with the shell coming in had me thinking “Oh, man, this is some series anime right here.”
Definitely not a moe-begging series and while an odd pairing they definitely matched the premise of the show up very nicely (Tankery makes ladies refined). I think Panzer is an underrated show, it’s light yet dramatic. The pacing is nice, animation is great, it’s funny and action-packed. It says its a show about girls riding tanks and it delivers a show about girls riding tanks.
This season, Panzer was my top show. Chuuni, SAO, Kanojo and MuvLuv were all good in my eyes but every week I was always looking forward to more Panzer. I’ll eagerly wait the last 2 episodes because frankly, I know they won’t disappoint. I’m glad this show got licensed and can’t wait for it to be released (most likely Summer/Fall 2013).
Panzer vor all the way!
I think many of us did exactly the same thing – expectations were not high at first, but episode one blew me away. It took quite a bit of effort to convince some of the other writers to pick it up, but those who did all thoroughly enjoy it too! Glad my coverage got you interested!
Title is actually more like
“Introducing! 2”
In a technical sense, that would be fair. However, contextually speaking, ‘I’ll Introduce’ is also an acceptible translation and fits the pattern set by the early episodes (which all began with ‘I’ll -something-‘) and goes hand in hand with the fact that Miho is doing all the introduction. ‘Let me introduce’, ‘Introduction’, and ‘Introducing’ are all fine, but I choose to use this one for those reasons.
Wish for more anime related to tank or war-machine base please
Im gonna be honest, originally, GuP was just some random anime I took up while waiting for the next SAO episode. But after watching it, SAO instantly took the back seat.
I’m no tank maniac nor I am a WW2 buff, but after watching the 10 episodes, I started researching about tanks for no good reason. Hell! I even started playing WoT just to improve my tank know-how! (though i seriously suck at it)
All in all, GuP is definitely my favorite anime of the season. Sucks that I have to wait till march for the climactic battle, but when it does come, I shall watch it like there is no tomorrow.
PS: I vote yes for a sequel
LOL, even the recap skipped the Ooarai vs. Anzio match. Anchovy = Girls und Panzer‘s Sacchin?
Scheisse, and the two months+ without our weekly dose of GuP begins… Here’s to hoping that the last two episodes turn out well and make a good sequel hook to a second season!
Speaking of sequel hooks… I’m not too good with moonrunes, but the girl in the red coat (named Earl Grey–or so I read from other sources/forums) is apparently the Cromwell tank commander for St. Gloriana. I would love to see her in one of the last two episodes at least.
I LOL’d at that too. I think it’s funny how they just disregard Anzio as a footnote. It’s one thing if Black Forest or even Pravda does that to a team, but Oarai – ouch! Talk about no respect.
Well, even with recap we get a a tonload of info on girls and tanks involved – definitely a case of EXACTLY WHAT IS WRITTEN ON THE TIN CAN (T)!
My RL brother who is not a big anime fan himself, still was loving the series, and all the little details of the tanks involved, plus quirks of the teams.
One nice quirk I spotted was that “Otaku” team all has modern “overpowered” tanks for favorites, all of them technically nit eligible for tank battles sport. Public Morals clone army likes british heavy tanks, probably for them being “solid and safe”. And the automobile club memebers all love fastest tanks available (Christie!)
Needlessly to say I’m starting a special calender countdon to March with its promised final episodes detailing -doh!- the final match!
And I assume that after reading that Nonna’s favourite pastime is keeping diary on the Katyusha doujin writers went into overdrive…
@Moomba: Thanks for reviewing the show and good job! It’s not easy with a lot of Wot/WWII fans analyzing every tank & tactic. LOL. I for one will definitely be back for the the last two episodes.
Not much to add to what Moomba already said. One thing that stuck out was the comment about the judging system which features a microchip inside the shells. Umm… that’s either one tough microchip to withstand the force of impact and explosion, or one ultra fast microchip that can transmit the date prior to destruction. Of course that’s assuming the TL was accurate (used a new group for this ep). Not a big issue, just seemed a bit odd to me.
I agree with Moomba in that as far as recaps go, GuP does a better job that most. The staff does a good job in addressing likely questions from both “hard core” tank viewers (ex. Panzer IV upgrades to specific models Ausf F/2 then Ausf H) and “casual” viewers (basic tank info (stats and telltale characteristics) to explanation of tactics (Pravda battle)). There are times I wonder if GuP staff read forum posts/reviews/comments/etc. and note common questions which are then addressed in these recaps.
It’s going to be a long 2-3 months. Lots of pressure on the director and staff to make sure the last two episodes are of the highest quality. I think they will meet expectations. Along with the show, I’ve been impressed with the director’s sincerity and overall staff commitment to quality. Confirmation of Season 2 while we wait would be a nice. Too bad the rumor turned out to be false, but I still expect to hear an S2 green light at some point.
A little early, but Happy New Year to all. I hope to see everyone back when the last two episodes air for more great discussion.
” One thing that stuck out was the comment about the judging system which features a microchip inside the shells. Umm… that’s either one tough microchip to withstand the force of impact and explosion, or one ultra fast microchip that can transmit the date prior to destruction.”
Well, microchips _are_ being used in artillery shells to turn them into precision-guided munitions (such as this one), so a microchip in a tank shell isn’t too far-fetched.
Absolutely true, but those microchips are used to guide shells to the target – not to assess damage to the target after impact & detonation! Assessing damage mandates that damage has been done. So for a GuP tank shell microchip to do it’s job, it has to survive impact and detonation (I retract my earlier statement regarding processor speed – damage assessment is an after the event analysis so speed won’t help in this regard).
It’s like expecting at tablet to asses and transfer information regarding damage it has suffered after being hit by a 12 gauge 3″ magnum 00 buckshot round from a distance of 3m. Good luck with that. Frankly, that’s a very mild example compared to what’s left of a tank shell after it detonates. Maybe attaching a block of C-4 to a tablet and detonating is a better example.
Again, it’s a minor issue, but also a needless one IMO. The writers should have left the question how a tank is determined to be disabled with the on-board judging device alone. I think that’s a good enough explanation without adding unnecessary, dubious elements. Frankly, I find the “school on a carrier” concept less credible than having an on-board judging device.
*sigh* not even January yet. It’s going to be a sloooow two months.
If I may, I think the primary purpose of the chip in the shell is to transmit the data on what type of shell it is, how it is flying, how much it weighs, air-resistance, etc. while it is in flight. That info all gets sent to the black box in the tank, which, in combination with data from its own sensors, then determines how much damage the impact would have caused. The computer in the tank is determining how much damage was caused, the chip in the shell is just shouting out “Man I love being (X) type of shell! It’s a beautiful day today! Bit windy! Gee, there’s something really hard coming up awfully fas-” *bang*
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=ehhitnnB22k
Finally saw a translated version of this recap. I don’t think I’ve ever actually sat through and watched any recap episode in other anime. There is usually no information and the narration (if there is any) is fairly dull. But GuP? Both recaps had information that I was looking forward to regarding the characters, setting, and tanks. Plus the narration by Yukari and Miho was great since they were seemingly interacting with eachother. Ahh…they make such a cute couple lol.
Anyway, nice to learn a bit more on the rules of Sensha-do, names of the recent character additions (lol at Sodoko’s team with the two other girls having similarly formatted nicknames), and the tank specs.
When I first read Moomba’s post I was so happy to hear that a second season was in the works only to have my hopes dashed. Oh well, I figure one upside to still being around after Dec. 21st is so that we’ll be here when the second season comes out.
I want a second season so damn bad. Especially if it involves Mama Nishizumi profusely apologizing to Miporin.
And x1000000 if it has Ahiru team getting a decent tank. Best girls + worst tank, wth?
Instead of a sequel, perhaps we’ll get a related series.
Introducing Girls De-Pantser, a tradional art of males. The goal is to take a girls panties off her body without her being aware of it until after the fact. Famous practitioners are Maid Guy Kogarashi(Kamen No Maid Guy)and Akatsuki Ousawa(Hagure Yūsha no Esutetika) . Alongside other traditional masculine arts such as hiding ero books from Mom, peeking on the girls bath, and flipping girls skirts, the goal is to develope young buys into well adjusted perverted adults.
http://oi46.tinypic.com/8xsjkw.jpg
I gave you a thumbs down for being a despicable person, but that doesn’t mean you don’t have my respect. The path of true perversion is a long and lonely road, but hopefully you can reach Kogarashi’s and Ousawa’s level one day.
The sequel will be Women und Panzer, where Shiho Nishizumi takes on her archrival Mei Fei of the chinese school, Konan High, in the professional world panzer championships.
Not sure where else to put this, but here’s an updated on Girls und Panzer Episodes 11 & 12 air dates + link to EP 11 PV:
Air dates for Tokyo MX:
EP 11: 2013/03/18 @ 22~22:30
EP 12: 2013/03/25 @ 22~22:30
Episode 11 PV is here
Screen Caps for PV are here
One month away GuP Fans. Looking forward to Moomba’s review and following discussion as always. 😀
finally RAW file for GuP episode 11 is out…
Yep Watched it twice XD. Can’t wait for subbed version and EP 11 discussion (Moomba should still be around). LOTS to talk about.
indeed….there’s lot to talked about….and Oorai tactic were also brilliant…
Sugoi!!!
A Full Working MAUS!!!! Panzer!!! SUGOI!!! 🙂
Little Hetzer of early version is really mean machine, her reputation live up!!!! Erika and Panzerlied also including. Finally MAUS!!!!!!!!!!! The Biggest One-Sama lived up and turned the tide of the war. Full functional, highly overrated firepower and amour even Tiger (P) cannot penetrate her deadly amour..
Worth of 3 months waiting…..
Yeah, but Maus problem was… his Weight.. He cant use Bridges, without destroying it XD
It will be Cool if the Family would use a “Ratte” as Mobile HQ XD (Ratte is more Bigger then Maus..)
treats the Panzer as He since all crew are girls? not bad. Ok Indeed He is overweight and don’t worry, just let us enjoy the show and waits other give their comment too…
still Maus receive warmest welcome despite his overgrown size, weight, shape and firepower..Maus eventually standard 88 mm rite?
Maus eventually standard 88 mm rite?
FYI – The Panzer VIII Maus (only the second of two prototypes had a working turret) had a 128 mm KwK 44 L/55 main gun and a second coaxial 75 mm gun. The main 128mm gun was insanely lethal against any WWII tank with an effective kill range out to 3500m or more. God forbid that thing hits the Type 89. The Volleyball team will need diamond coating rather than carbon coating to withstand a hit from that.
I’m just asking ok!! Maus wasn’t my most favourite tank at all but only exceptional in GuP. I know the amour very thick but don’t know the main weapon.
GuP subbed version just release. By Commie…