魔法少女リリカルなのは, Mahou Shoujo Ririkura Nanoha, Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha

Nanoha StrikerS Episode 26: To the Promised Sky

2007-11-13T14:29:00.000+08:00

Portals open all over space… the cavalry is finally here. Chrono and all the others are watching in bated breath.
Rein is panicking. Hayate carries Quattro and Nanoha Vivio as the announcement comes about the Cradle being locked down. A door slams shut in their faces.
Scach hands off Sein to some soldiers before heading back in. Acous stops her, saying it’s impossible. Fate then radios in, saying that she’s trying to save the people in the capsules and to give her more time.
In Regius’ office, everybody is laid out. Duo is sightlessly staring at nothing, but it’s not clear whether she’s a live or dead. Signum finishes fixing her hair and says that she’s heading out. Agito stops her and says how much she hates Signum for killing Zest, but that she’s doing what he would do, so Agito will help. Signum holds out her hand and Agito slams her’s down on it, covering both in flames… Agito unisons.

Vice’s copter flies up to the Cradle. Vice tells Subaru and Tea to use Wing Road and her motorcycle to bust in. He’ll provide cover fire for them with Storm Raider and blows some drones out of the sky. He gives them a little peptalk before taking aim at a drone in one of the openings and using a Variable Barrier to destroy it. Subaru charges her Wing Road and they drive into the Cradle.
TSAB has detected an unknown magical signal. They finally resolve it to Lightning 2… Signum, in a fire suit basically. They’re a little surprised by her new look, but she says it’s fine. Agito and her both say “let’s do it” as drones approach. Agito charges her flame across Levantine as Signum switches it to snake mode and they destroy an entire battalion of drones in a couple slashes. Signum thanks Agito for this, but Agito can’t respond through her tears.
Near the lab, Voltair is destroying random drones while Erio flies around on Fried. Caro casts a full Speed Boost on Erio.

Vita is still in the Cradle, destroying things along with a couple random soldiers. Subaru and Tea come riding up, yelling to leave things to them as they drive past. Subaru says to not worry, she can just switch to combat cyborg mode if there’s danger.
The lab is collapsing as Fate finishes her final things. Erio calls in saying that he’s on his way. Boulders suddenly collapse above her, but Erio and his Sonic Move pulls her out of the way at the last second.
Subaru has detached from Teana’s motorcycle and is riding point for her, destroying all the drones as they go. Ginga watches the Cradle from a stretcher as Subaru puts on Blitz Calibur and then uses a one-two punch to blast through into Nanoha/Hayate’s room.

Team Lightning has escaped from the lab with all personnel in tow. The rest of the Stars are also on their way out and soon escape. Chrono orders the fleet to take up full attack positions and be ready. As everybody watches, the fleet opens fire on the Cradle, destroying it instantly. Shari’s a bit too enthusiatic with her celebration and Shamal shushes her… all the Stars are already fast asleep, tired from their day.
Nanoha then gives a voice over saying basically that everything is finally over with the Jail Scaglietti incident.

Later, the most dangerous of the culprits (looks like Jail, Tre, Quattro and Duo) are all confined to maximum security prisons. The rest of the combat cyborgs, including Lutecia and Agito, are living in kind of an insane asylum, but they’re all together and don’t really seem to be too terribly unhappy. Wendi asks Lu what happened with her mother… and we see her recovering in a hospital.
Life continues with the rest of the TSAB normals. Vivio is happily living with her mothers, Acous is still hitting on Hayate as usual. Hayate is kind of sad that things came to this with Regius. He had the same desire to protect them all as well. Everybody else cheers her up.
All the cadets are also continuing their lives as usual.

Signum and Genya go to visit the graves of their friend, Zest. When they get there, they find a bouquet already on his grave, left by EVIL SECRETARY, who salutes them before leaving.
Days later, all of Riot 6 is assembled while Hayate compliments them on how everything went with the Combat Cyborg incident and to continue doing their best.
After the little ceremony, the cadets feel a little sad that they haven’t been seeing as much of their teachers lately. Nanoha and to the forwards to come see something.

They go out to a cherry blossom field. Vita calls them to attention. She and Nanoha tell them how well they did and how well they worked together and exceeded all their expectations. They’ve become worthy of the Striker title. Everybody is fighting back tears… but there’s one more thing to do. All the old guard transforms their weapons for one last mock battle.
Fate apparently wasn’t in on the plans though and doesn’t want to do this. The rest say that it’s okay, and Vivio even gives Fate some cheering and tells her that it’s okay. Erio and Caro tell Fate to try her best and she finally relents.
Everybody gets into their costume and poses for pan overs while the ED starts playing in the background. Hayate and Ginga announce “ready… go!”

“And, afterwards” (yes, it prints that in English) we see all the epilogue stuff (no voiceovers except for Subaru/Nanoha’s part):
–Agito is part of TSAB now and harassing Rein to her utmost.
–Long hair Tea is also part of the administration somewhere with Fate.
–Lutecia has been released and is free and enjoying life with her bugs… and her mother while Garyuu watches over her.
–Vice is macking on the ladies and for some reason has a photo of him posing with his sister, the other pilot… and Signum?
–Griffith is… doing whatever Griffith does.
–Erio and Caro are enjoying life in some floating island world. One of Lutecia’s bugs delivers a flower to her.
–Vivio is going to school… where Yuuno, loli-Arf and Nanoha spy on her and take pictures.
–Ginga is trying to rehabilitate the ‘good’ Numbers. Nove is disinterested… until Genya smiles at her and in her fear of old-man cooties, she snaps back to Ginga’s lesson.
–On a boat somewhere, a pair of children are in danger as it sinks. The flood comes at them, but a magical circle appears… and here’s Subaru to protect and save them.
–Finally, we come to Nanoha, in charge of her own division nowadays, giving them a little peptalk and telling them to do their best.

(That is the end of the StrikerS series. To watch the episodes, go to http://www.nanohawatch.piczo.com/ )

Nanoha StrikerS Episode 25: Final Limit

2007-11-13T14:26:00.000+08:00

Vita is finally at the engine room, and thinks about Nanoha and Hayate depending on her. She heads to the main core where there’s some shielded energy thing. She uses Eisen’s Limit Break it transforms into a huge drill thing. She swings it at the energy thing, but it doesn’t break at all. Instead, the security device initializes and all fires at Vita. She leaps out of the fire and rushes the core.

Hayate is getting a rundown from the flagship and decides to head in close. She gets radioed in from Alto, saying that she’s got someone en route… Rein.
Nanoha and Vivio are still fighting. Nanoha wakes up from being slammed in the wall. Vivio shoots a pair of energy blasts at Nanoha, who dodges and then Chain Binds Vivio from behind. Vivio breaks the binds and shoots more rainbow shots which explode and scatter, knocking Nanoha to the ground. Vivio charges a more powerful shot, but Nanoha blocks it with a round shield.
Raging Heart announces that WAS 2 is complete and is beginning area 3, but it’ll take some time. Vivio attacks, but Nanoha dodges and charges to Blaster 2 and knocks her back.

Raging Heart then creates two extra spearheads and Nanoha uses them to bind Vivio and then create a “Blaster Cage” (?). Vivio busts the binds and slams the cage, but can’t quite break it, though it is straining Nanoha.
Quattro is watching with glee at the demon she created in Vivio and how Nanoha is fighting to protect her and not trying to harm her.
Vivio breaks out of the cage and punches at Nanoha.
Elsewhere, Lulu’s bugs aren’t doing too well. Some are bleeding, others are simply sparking. Caro and Erio are a bit concerned about what’s going on. Jirayo (one of the beetles), appears behind them and shoots a lightning ball, but Garyuu intercepts it and protects Lutecia. He then goes to attack Jirayo while Erio drops down to attack the other one.

At TSAB HQ, Signum tells Zest that Alpine and Lutecia are secured and most of the combat cyborgs, as well as Scaglietti have been arrested. Zest says there’s only one thing left and grabs his halberd. Agito protests, but Signum also draws Levantine. He talks to her briefly about his reason for fighting before the two attack.
Signum dodges, letting her ribbon be cut, and then slices Zest’s weapon in half. He keeps attacking. She charges Levantine, and then slices through him and he falls.
At the Cradle, Quattro senses that there’s something wrong as it starts to rumble. Vita gets up and launches another attack at the core, but is blasted away and Eisen is sent flying.

It remains unharmed. She keeps thinking about how useless she’s being and how many people are relying on her. She yells to Eisen again, and he charges more cartridges and she tries one more time… but when she falls back, Eisen shatters and she falls. She apologizes to them all as she falls.
In a cloud of black feathers, Unison Hayate appears and catches her. Hayate thanks Vita for doing her best, and looks over at the core to see cracks expanding out from Vita’s last attack, and then it explodes.
Quattro knows bad shit is happening at this point.
Nanoha and Vivio keep facing down. –eyecatch–

At the lab, barriers are going up all over the place and alarms are sounding. All the TSAB people have no clue what’s going on and Scaglietti tells Fate that the Cradle and all his assorted works are going to go nuclear to create an opening to allow at least one of his copies to escape.
A glowing pink ball flies through the Cradle and appears behind Quattro.
Raging Heart announces that the Wide Area Search (WAS) is over and the coordinates and distance are found. Nanoha releases a ton of the little RH Options and strongly binds Vivio. Quattro can’t believe that a human could search and fight at the same time. She looks back at the monitor to see Nanoha massively charge herself and point towards the floor. Quattro finally realizes what’s going on.
Raging Heart cancels the firing lock, loads about 5 cartridges and Nanoha blasts through the floor and parts beyond with a Blaster level 3 Divine Buster, torching Quattro’s entire work station. As Quattro falls unconscious, she reaches out to the doctor’s dream.

With Quattro down, all the gadget drones and her control on Lulu’s summons fades and they stop moving.
Vivio breaks free from the binds and recognizes Nanoha briefly, telling her to run away and then punches her. The whole Cradle turns grey as an announcement comes on that it’s basically going nuclear.
Hayate meets a ton of drones and torches them.
Vivio and Nanoha continue their fight. Nanoha says that she’s here to save her, but Vivio says that she can’t. Vivio starts punching through Nanoha’s shield and slams her to the ground. Vivio tells Nanoha that she finally realizes that she has no mothers, she’s just a copy. It’s okay if she’s not protected.

Nanoha yells that Vivio’s wrong, but Vivio tells her that everything is a fake and there’s no place in the world for her. Nanoha argues with her, saying that her feelings aren’t fake and she doesn’t hate her at all. Vivio is her important Vivio afterall. She may not be her real mother, but her feelings are real, etc etc. Both are in tears at this point and Vivio says that she loves Nanoha and asks her to save her.

Nanoha says to deal with the pain of this, and the two clash once again. Nanoha binds her and then charges all her little RH Options, saying that the magic damage will strip away what’s been done to her. The bonds start to break, and Nanoha orders RH to full throttle and shoots a Starlight Breaker basically point blank at Vivio. As she takes the damage, a relic emerges from her chest and then breaks.
Nanoha pulls herself to her feet after the massive explosion and looks for Vivio. She’s face down in the crater and can barely move. Nanoha remembers when Vivio fell as she ran to her. Vivio pulls herself to her feet and tells her that she’s gotten stronger, as she promised. Nanoha runs over and hugs her.

TSAB has figured out that the Cradle is going nuclear/on automatic.
Hayate meets up with Nanoha, but the Cradle’s automatic systems kick in the AMF on full and they’re both totally nullified immediately.
Zest is dying in Signum’s arm. He has some final words for Agito and pets her, apologizing for putting her through this. He thinks about his wish to protect the world as he slumps forward and dies.
Teana meets up with Subaru, who is carrying Ginga. The chopper lands and Shamal takes over Ginga. Vice also walks out. They tell the two cadets that Nanoha, Rein and Hayate are still in the Cradle and need backup to be saved. Teana and Subaru prepare to run off, but before they can, Ginga calls over Subaru and hands her Blitz Calibur.

Nanoha StrikerS Episode 24: Lightning

2007-11-13T14:23:00.000+08:00

Before the episode, Fate talks about her mother and being cloned from her ’sister’ Alicia. She understands her feelings of wanting to protect all those dear to her, and that’s why she’ll -run OP-
Some time in the past, Regius and Zest are discussing some kind of disaster from uncontrolled magic being used dangerously in the area. Regius yells at Zest for it, but relents and apologizes. The two take a walk, continuing to talk about what can be done to make sure that such things don’t happen again.

Later, in a meeting with some of the top heads of TSAB, Regius is presenting a new system for regulating and controlling mages. Everybody is excited for the new system. The brains even think that it’s a good idea. Zest is a bit more concerned though and thinks that they’re illegally researching things in the plant.
Two girls, a Nakajima and an Alpine (Arpino?) were listening in. Zest calls over to them and tells them to check things out. Once there, they figure out that the place really was a combat cyborg research plant. Zest and another subordinate radio in. Zest was ambushed and is critically wounded. The stealth Gadget Drones (same as the ones that attacked Nanoha and Vita uncloak all around them.
Elsewhere in the facility, Quattro, Trei and Cinque are standing in a field of carnage with a bloody Zest laying against a wall. Cinque’s eye wound is fresh.
In his office, Regius is receiving a report from Scaglietti about the status of the combat cyborgs.

They overcame an S rank opponent who tried to break in. Regius recognizes Zest with a start as Due gives the details about the opponents that they defeated while the brains listen in and comment. Zest was critically wounded and would be reprogrammed (to Regius’ shock), and Alpine was placed in the XI tank (ie, she’s Lutecia’s mother). I’m sorry, between the poor audio and the echoy effects, I really have no clue what they were saying, something about Zest being an acceptable loss probably.
Back in the present, Zest is demanding to know why he did such things. They just wanted to protect the world and live for their dream of justice. Regius looks up, ready to answer, but suddenly blood sprays out onto the photo in front of him. Zest is caught in a bind as the secretary turns in shock. The other woman in the room has her claws through Regius and blasts the secretary backwards. The woman reverts to Due and says that the doctor has no more use for Regius. Regius tries to say something to Zest, but collapses as he reaches out. Due then turns to Zest, saying it’s over for him too. She scowls, but he concentrates and breaks the bond.
Signum, Agito and Rein are all rushing through the hallways when there’s a massive burst. They enter Regius’ office to find the door destroyed, Regius facedown in his blood and Due unconscious, also bleeding severely. Zest is standing over them. Signum asks what happened, and he says that he killed them.
In the lab, Fate is still captured. Scaglietti says that she’s now his thing and turns away. He calls up a monitor and starts talking about Precia Testarossa and how she tried to recreate Fate in Alica’s image. He finds it hilarious, but that is what led to his own work. Project Fate, culminating in Fate Testarossa. Fate glares at him from her cage.

This is being transmitted to the Lightning Squads. Caro tries to get through to Lutecia, and Erio tries to get Garyuu to remember that he’s supposed to protect ‘Lu,’ not do things that put her in danger. Lutecia’s eyes are still blood red, and she just goes on about how they know nothing while Fried sorties with some bugs overhead. Her precious thing can only be returned by doing this. She creates a huge summoning circle and a giant white thing… (looks like Garyuu), drops out. She says that she doesn’t want to be sad anymore, and screams.
Caro calls on her own summoning powers and chants a spell. Garyuu tries to attack, but Erio beats him back. He tells Garyuu to watch and listen. Both he and Caro know the same pain and lonliness from their flashback ridden pasts and they made it through them because they had friends and things to protect. Caro finishes her dragon summoning spell and calls forth Voltaire.
The White thing attacks (trying to decypher Lutecia crying with a minor overtone is beyond me), and Garyuu holds it back. Caro keeps trying to get through to Lutecia, saying that she absolutely promises that they’ll do everything they can to help her. Lutecia screams that Caro’s lying and releases a huge wave of energy, opening a gem on Whitey’s chest. Garyuu also releases his tentacles again, and a bunch of spikes burst forth from his arms, covered in his blood. He’s also bleeding from what I assume are his eyes.
Erio and Caro are shocked as Lutecia tells them to kill them. Whitey starts pulling in energy into the gem thing. Erio yells at Garyuu again, and a closeup on Garyuu’s eight eyes shows them definitely leaking blood. He takes a fighting stance once more. Lutecia attacks Caro with her minidrones, but Caro just defends. Once the smoke clears, Caro’s hat has been knocked off, and she tells Lutecia how much pain she’s causing to her summons. Luetcia’s eyes have cooled off a bit, but she screams again, though this time looks like she’s about to cry. Her two beetles fly up behind her, and Fried behind Caro.

Lutecia screams again, and the two beetles charge up electricity between their horns. Caro charges Fried’s flame and he uses it to intercept the shots. Lutecia is holding the shot, but Asclepius starts to crack.
Erio charges a cartridge and launches himself at Garyuu. The two clash, destroying the ground. Garyuu grabs Strada, pulling them both into the roll, but Erio is already charging a lightning punch and slams Garyuu with it.
Topside, Whitey releases a huge blast matched by Voltaire.
Erio’s punch has knocked out Garyuu (and most of his sleeve), and he turns back to go to Caro.
Lutecia was apparently knocked out at some point, as she’s breathing heavily and laying on Caro’s lap. She starts breathing very heavily and whimpering and her beetles charge for another attack. Caro tries to tell her that they don’t need to fight again.
All this is being shown to Fate in the lab.

She’s finally had enough and summons her Riot Saber (okay, Zamber), a cutlass looking thing, or maybe just the head of a glaive. Anyway, she effortlessly destroys the cage. Jail says that he expected as much from her, but she’s still weak from the AMF. He keeps going about how he took Project F and refined it, making copies that would become the combat cyborgs. He really rants for a long while, covering every single gibberish concept in the series from surpassing Al Hazard to clones with his memories of Project F to him living on if any one of the Numbers survives. If you can dream it, Jail probably said it.
He flexes his hands again and more threads fly up from the ground, this time wrapping around Fate’s neck. He says that he likes seeing her anguished faces.
Apparently Lutecia’s bugs never shot or something as the Lightning Cadets have Lutecia on Fried and are flying… somewhere as he trasmits all this to them. Fate yells at him to shut up and shoots at him with her lightning shots. He effortlessly blocks them and continues on about how she was made to be better than a human, a fighting machine. He’s the same as her mother, trying to make humans even better. He’s looking rather insane by this point.

The transmission is apparently two way, as Caro and Erio get to yell through it and give Fate a peptalk about protecting the things that are important and make people happy. Saving people, protecting them, all of it is real. She saved both of them after all and owe their happiness to her. Fate should never give up.
As they yell this, the insert song kicks in and Fate orders Bardiche to go into Overdrive mode… Sonic Drive. Fate blasts forth as she transforms and loses her jacket. She thanks Caro and Erio and loads a cartridge. Bardiche switches to Riot Saber again (??), and Fate splits it into two swords connected by a chain. She poses and then gets ready to attack.

Uno is watching over and suddenly realizes that something’s wrong. Green binds form around her and Acous is there with his hounds to bring an end to the fun. Scach is also facing off against Sein. Sein wants to retreat, but Scach won’t let her. Scach attacks, which Sein easily dodges and then phases through a wall… but Scach then loads a cartridge and simply teleports through the wall past Sein and is there as she unphases. Scach spins and attacks.
Trei and Sette’s get ready to attack, Fate spins, and effortlessly destroys Sette’s weapons. She then flies towards Jail. He summons all sorts of threads, but she cuts them down without even pausing. Trei meets her with her laser wristband dagger things and activates her own drive to keep up with Fate’s speed. The two clash a few times, and then seperate. Fate rejoins Bardiche into one giant sword and slashes at Trei. She blocks, but then the impact destroys her blades and she’s thrown to the ground.
Fate moves on to Jail, who catches the giant blade with both hands (man, one’s unarmored, that’s gotta hurt). He says that this is wonderful, looking even more crazy, but he won’t be defeated by this, even as his hands are bleeding. Or his glove is cracking. Lines appear on the glove at any rate.

Fate backs off and charges again. He just stands there with open arms and she takes a huge baseball swing at him with the flat of the blade, knocking him through a wall. Bardiche cools off as she goes to formerly arrest him.
Shirley reports to TSAB that they’ve secured Scaglietti and Acous has main control of their HQ. Teana is still injured and facing off against Nove, who won’t give up saying that the cyborgs have only one purpose, to fight. Deed is on the ground, and gropes around to find her lightsaber. Nove notices and then attacks Nove as Deed also stands up to attack. Teana falls back in surprise, as an unknown weapon uses Snipe Shot. The shot passes just by Teana’s cheek and slams into Deed, knocking her out again. Teana charges at a shocked Nove while Vice holsters his rifle on Storm Raider. With her dagger at Nove’s throat, Teana says that the battle is over, and that the cyborgs can go beyond their fighting abilities as we see Subaru holding Ginga as she awakes with her normal eyes back. Teana and Subaru report in that their targest are captured.
Quattro was watching all this and somewhat annoyed. She turns, gives a little hair flip and takes off her glasses, and says that it’s now all up to her, “right doctor?” with her hand on her stomach.
Vivio is breathing heavily, and Nanoha is knocked out in a crater, embedded in a wall.
95 minutes until the Cradle reaches the orbit...

Nanoha StrikerS Episode 23: Star Strike

2007-11-13T14:21:00.000+08:00

The attack on the Cradle continues. Nanoha still rushes through the corridors, nearing her target. Dieci waits to confront her, thinking that it’s like a mother coming to save her child. She starts counting down to fire. Nanoha turns the corner at “1″, and the two both fire their shots, Nanoha releases a limit and her Excellion Buster crushes Dieci’s shot and blasts her away. Before Dieci can recover, Nanoha binds her. Dieci wonders if this kind of power is even human. Nanoha also seals Dieci’s cannon before rushing off.
Nanoha keeps going, but she was injured in the last fight and is bleeding from her hand. In the throne room, Quattro is watching her progress with amusement. She taunts Vivio a little bit as Nanoha blasts open the door. Quattro welcomes her to the throne room and congratulates her on getting here. She calls up all viewscreens of all the others in their various troubles. She then turns to stroke Vivio’s cheek and Nanoha tries to blast her. It was just an illusion though, and Quattro turns up the electricity on Vivio. She starts screaming and Nanoha rushes forward, but is pushed backwards by a rainbow force.
Quattro says that it’s the same ability Vivio used to protect herself from the drones way WAY back when she was in the sewer, and what they expected would protect her when they fired on Storm Raider way back when as well. It’s her Holy Emperor’s Armor or some such. It was really hard to understand Quattro with the static and Vivio whimpering.
Vivio and Nanoha start yelling to eachother as the rainbow light glows brighter and brighter. Finally, it fades and Vivio is released. She’s floating above the throne as Quattro talks to her about the mother who wouldn’t save her. Nanoha’s words are silent to her. Vivio cries out and is covered in a black battle suit. The rainbow colors then shatter, and bitchy adult Vivio floats in front of Nanoha. She asks what Nanoha did with her real mama. Nanoha tries to tell her that it’s her, but Vivio won’t accept it and demands Nanoha return her mother to her as she releases a massive amount of energy. Nanoha charges Raging Heart and gets ready to blast her.
Commander Nakajima is with the ground forces… who are not doing particularly well. They’re no match for the drones or the cyborgs.
Otto keeps working on her recon, surrounded by drones. Inside, the Numbers are fighting tons of Teana clones. They’re having troubles finding her though until they manage to pinpoint her location from outside. Cross Mirage warns Teana that they’re closing in, so Teana figures out her last plan.
The Numbers all bust in. Teana uses her daggers to block Deed, but Nove leaps in to attack. Wendi fires at an escaping Tea, but it was just an illusion. They look through the dust to find her and Nove notices that Tea took out her rollerblade, and is standing ready to fight her instead of running. They know that this is the real Tea and surround her, getting ready to attack.
In the past, Subaru is out in the yard, crying. Ginga and Quint run out to her and bandage up her knees. Quint gives her a friendly headbutt while saying how much she and her sister care for her. A little later, the two are being checked up in the lab while Quint watches on. Their genetic structure is curiously similar to Quint’s for some reason. Still later yet, Ginga is shadow boxing while Subaru watches. Subaru thinks that their power scary, so she hates it. Ginga tells her to use it for their parents though.
Fading into the present, Ginga has Subaru by the neck. Subaru struggles and Ginga moves behind her. Ginga then simply tosses her and follows up with a one-two massive uppercut combo, sending Subaru flying. As she’s in the air, she thinks that’s it’s impossible after all.
We move into another flashback of Subaru having lunch with them all. Subaru says that she wants to be more like Nanoha. Nanoha says that she really will become stronger and better.
Back in the present… again… Ginga makes a Wing Road and is about to slam Subaru to the ground when Subaru makes her own Wing Road and kicks Ginga’s punch away, and then forces her backwards. Subaru’s eyes were totally dead, but they fade back into life. Mach Calibur gives Subaru a quick peptalk, saying that at some point Subaru taught it the reason for being here.
MOVING ONTO A THIRD FLASHBACK, Subaru is back at lunch with the others, thanking Mach Calibur for saving her and for all their work together.
Once more into the present, Subaru has come to accept her power and is ready to fight for real. Mach Calibur responds with “Allright, buddy,” which doesn’t have the same ring as “Yeah, boss” but is close enough. Mach Calibur loads a few cartridges and Subaru goes into Full Drive, using her Excellion and sprouting wings from her feet.
Otto is watching her drones being destroyed. She then notices Storm Raider. Suddenly, all the drones around her are destroyed and she’s bound. Shamal and Zafira are there to take her down. Otto breaks the chains, but Zafira roars and traps her again.
With Otto down, the barrier around Tea’s building drops as well. They immediately know something’s wrong with Otto and all three get ready to attack. Teana takes the opportunity and fires at all three, destroying Wendi’s weapon, blocking Deed, who was attacking from behind, and then using her Crossfire Shots to knock out Wendi and Deed. Only Nove’s left, who she points her gun at and tells to surrender.
Subaru is finally ready to fight Ginga for real. They charge together again and again, but they’re evenly matched so far. Both load more cartridges and they collide one more time. Subaru doesn’t block Ginga’s drill and lets her barrier take it. Subaru charges a blast as she leans into the drill. Both barriers break and Ginga’s drill barely grazes Subaru’s head. Subaru brings her free hand into play and Divine Busters Ginga at point blank range. Poor Ginga.
Signum is still fighting drones outside TSAB. Inside the building, Regius is with his mini-harem of secretaries when Zest breaks in. The bitchy woman is shocked. Signum is trying to get there, but Agito has a barrier up around the area. Signum attacks, and breaks the barrier, but leaves Agito unharmed. She unfuses from Rein.
At Regius’ office, Zest wants to hear it straight from Regius who is responsible for all their deaths as he throws an old picture on the desks. He asks what ever happened to their justice.

Nanoha StrikerS Episode 22: Pain to Pain

2007-11-13T14:19:00.000+08:00

Quattro and Dieci are working on the recon for the others. Dieci is a bit concerned for the strapped down Vivio right near them. It seems odd to her to use someone so small and young. Quattro, bitch that she is, can’t stop slobbering all over the doctor and says that everything is for his dream and of course it’s fine. Dieci is less than convinced by that stunningly amazing argument and still wonders if what they’re doing to Vivio is right. She then apologizes for bringing it up, picks up her cannon and heads. As she leaves, Quattro smirks and thinks to herself that Dieci, Cinque, and Sein are entirely too softhearted and naive before bringing up viewscreens with all of Riot6 on them. Of note is Vita, now surrounded by a giant swarm of the demon drones with hordes more on the way. Quattro smiles to herself and says how fun it is.
The news is reporting on the swarms and swarms of drones and the battle with the Cradle as well as the Numbers. Watching it, and therefore not out to save Teana’s bacon, is a finally conscious Vice. Zafira is also up and chatting with him. A girl with an eyepatch walks in. Vice immediately recognizes her as Ragna. She asks if Vice is okay, and calls him brother. He’s pretty nonresponsive to her though.
She brings up the time Vice shot a girl… her… and says that she’s okay. She even takes off her eyepatch to show that while her eye is totally blind, she doesn’t look that strange and tells him to do his best. A nurse comes in though, and says that this is an intensive care ward and shoos her out. Once gone, Vice mopes a bit more over how he could do nothing, and seeing Ginga reminded him of shooting Ragna.
This awakens fangy Zafira’s fighting spirit, and he gets up, despite the obvious pain, and walks out. I missed the gist, but something about the fight still going on and not wanting to hide like Vice. Vice tries to talk to him as he leaves (funnily… calling him ‘danna,’ which is usually an informal for ‘husband’), but Zafy isn’t interesting in his intimations for furry cuddling. Vice looks over to see Storm Raider’s card on the desk next to him.
On the battlefield, Caro and Erio are trying to get Lutecia to open up to them through the power of shooting her. Lutecia just says that the Doctor is helping her find the Relic that she is looking for. She even says that she’s looking for Relic XI. She pokes at Caro some more, saying that she needs it for her mother and to be happy and Caro doesn’t understand it. She then says Caro should die, and Garyuu appears behind her.
Erio manages to block the hit, and Caro continues her pithy speech about how she is surrounded by friends, like all her bugs and whatnot. She then introduces herself, Erio introduces himself, and then he introduces Fried. Caro says that they’ll help her search for the Relic, but she has to help them stop the cyborgs from doing whatever the hell it is they’re doing first. Caro then asks Lutecia her name. Correct me if I’m wrong, but isn’t when the bad guy gives their name in Nanoha the immediate turning point to when they start losing?
Quattro is watching the whole conversation and says to herself that that wouldn’t do. Garyu either. A viewscreen opens there and Quattro says that she’ll take over Lu’s battle for her. Lutecia is a bit surprised by this. Quattro then presses a button and Lutecia suddenly freezes up. Summoning circles appear all over the place and bugs start pouring out.
Luetcia is clearing in pain. Quattro says that she’s now controlling her heart. She says that they’re the ones keeping Lu from her mother. Lutecia rocks back and forth a bit uncertainly and then opens her eyes, now red and severely pissed off. She tells Garyuu and the others to kill them. Then screams it again. What’s Garyuu to do then but sprout some tentacles… clearly Erio’s only weakness.
In the lab, Fate is still fighting with Sette and Trei. She tries to attack Sette, but she blocks and uses her boomerangs to force Fate to back off. Trei leaps in, but Fate blocks with a Thunder Palm. The boomerangs come flying back again as Sette charges up her other hand and the explosion knocks Fate to her knees. She thinks to herself how fighting in the AMF (there was an AMF there?) is getting tough and she needs to finish this off quickly.
A viewscreen opens and Scaglietti addresses her. Apparently the viewscreen also opens for Erio and Caro to see. He tells them how amusing this all is to him. He tells Fate how he looked up to Precia Testarossa and how she tried to improve humans that much and how special Fate is.
This pisses Fate off and she charges up Bardiche. She leaps upward, but Jail snaps and suddenly red threads appear out of the ground and tie down Fate. He comes walking out, wearing a clawed glove. The threads contract and destroy Bardiche’s energy form. He then shoots a red blast at her, knocking her down. More red threads come out from the ground and enclose her, while Erio can only watch on.
Signum and Zest are still fighting. Signum uses Laevantine’s chain form to attack. Zest simply knocks it down with his own blast and attacks as well. Signum blocks, but his halberd manages to slice through Laevantine’s sheath and slam her downward. Signum cushions the fall at the last moment, but Zest is already continuing towards TSAB HQ. He’s breathing pretty hard though and Agito is pretty concerned for him, but she says that she’ll be sure to protect him. He thinks about Signum and says that he has great respect for her as a warrior and a Belkan Knight. They shouldn’t be enemies at all. Agito is pretty worried that he’s going to hold back and get himself killed and says that she is an enemy and that he has to do his best.
Are we finally to Ginga and Subaru? Ginga wipes blood from her face as Subaru struggles to stand up. Ginga raises her arm and summon magic. Subaru does the same, but her vision is starting to fade. She tells Mach Calibur that she needs to save Ginga, and they load a cartridge. Ginga does the same and both create Wing Roads. They start to fight, but Ginga has the clear upperhand and uses her Revolver to drill through Subaru’s shield effortlessly and then kicks her to the ground.
Nanoha dodges through drone laser fire as she flies, exploding them along the way. She thinks back to loli Arf playing with Fate and Vivio while Scach tells her all about Vivio. Nanoha says that Vivio deserves happiness, a mother, and above all else, the same things as a normal human would have. Parasite Vivio comes up to Nanoha, but instead of latching onto her crotch as normal, pats Nanoha’s head and says that she’s a good girl. Nanoha says that Vivio is a kind girl and Nanoha will always smile for her.
Back in the real world, Nanoha continues her terribly animated dodges and kills more drones.
Dieci and Quattro are keeping tabs on the situation. Dieci is concerned that Nanoha’s closing in, but Quattro says everything is well in hand as we see all of the Riot 6 in various states of battle and distress.

Nanoha StrikerS Episode 21: Decisive Battle

2007-11-13T13:34:00.000+08:00

Chrono’s fleet is still in deep space, or wherever the hell they are. Even Lindy is around and preparing for the attack. In the Infinite Library, Yuuno is doing research on the Cradle with loli-Arf assisting him. The Cradle is a leftover from Al-Hazard, like the Lost Logia.
Yuuno gives them a run down on basically how the Cradle can’t be allowed to reach a certain point or shit will go very very bad. Chrono asks for more information on the Holy Emperor. Loli Arf butts in and says to trust in Fate, though Arf seems to have been put on ritalin or something.
Hayate and her personal squadron are exploding Gadget drones outside of The Cradle, but more just keep deploying. Nanoha and Vita are flying along the outside when they get a radio from some grunts saying that they’ve found a way in. Nanoha and Vita head there, but as they head in, an internal AMF knocks out their flight pretty quickly.
Schach is still at the Scaglietti’s base with Fate, destroying all manner of gadget drones fairly effortlessly. You’d think Fate would hold back on the giant sword while IN A CAVE, but apparently that’s not a concern. Acous’ ghost dogs are there helping them too.
The cadets and Stormrider are under heavy fire from flying Gadget Drones. They manage to lose them and reach the deployment point. They go over the battle plan one more time before they hop from the copter. The Numbers say them though and scramble to intercept. Ginga’s expression doesn’t change at all when looking at Subaru.
In the air above, Caro sees Lutecia about to attack Stormraider, so she, Fried and Erio move to intercept them. Subaru moves to follow with a Wing Road, but the numbers suddenly attack. Nove and Wendi attack Subaru while Tea is forced to fight Deed attacks Teana and smashes her through a wall. Garyu also moves to attack Fried and Caro casts a spell to deflect him.
Subaru is calling for Tea, who reports that she’s fine, but suddenly a barrier appears around her. Wendi, Nove and some Gadget drones have her trapped. Subaru moves to help her, but Ginga appears in front of her wearing a XIII necklace.
Nove and Wendi taunt the hiding Teana as they close in on her. Teana thinks that she’s going to have to take care of this one on her own and contacts the rest of the team members saying as much. Keep to the mission and whathaveyou.
In Scaglietti’s lair, Fate and Schach are looking over a ton of vials with even higher Numbers. Schach says that they have to hurry. Suddenly a Gadget Drone above them starts causing a cave in. They try to jump away, but Sein grabs Scach’s ankles from below and holds her in place. Fate tries to move to help, but is stopped when Sette throws her weapons at her. As the Drone drops on her, Scach punches the floor and breaks it.
Scach reports to Fate that she’s okay and she’s cornered one of hte combat cyborgs. Fate prepares to fight Trey and Sette.
Back in the Cradle, Vita is fighting some Gadget Drones. She’s have a tougher time than outside because of how their magic is dampened, but Vita tells Nanoha that she’s fine. The research team reports in and says that the engine and the throne where Vivio is are on opposite side of the ship. Vita says that they can’t help it. The two will split up and go to the two points seperately. Nanoha is very concerned about Vita, but Vita says that they’ll be fine and Nanoha needs to save Vivio. Vita walks off before Nanoha can say anything else, but Nanoha tells her to be careful as she flies off in the opposite direction.
Outside, they report in to Hayate, who is breathing very heavily.
Inside, Nove and Wendi are having a rough time dealing with Teana’s illusions, but Nove is able to see through them now and attacks the real Teana, kicking her away. As she crashes, she shoots another flurry at them which Wendi is forced to block, giving Tea a chance to grapple upwards to freedom… until Deed flies in from above on her and slashes her leg. Teana’s now wounded and it’s three on one, plus some drones. As she keeps bleeding, she thinks that it’s impossible, but visions of Subaru saying to keep trying and go for it flash through her head. She feels new resolve and prepares to fight.
Caro is fighting with Lutecia while Erio keeps fighting with Garyuu. They try to tak sense into their opponents, but they’re not listening. Erio uses Strada to boost up to Fried and blocks Lutecia’s attack.
Meanwhile, Zest and Agito are heading to TSAB HQ when they are intercepted by Signum and Reinforce. Signum says that they know why he’s hear, but Zest says that he won’t be kept from Regius. Both draw their weapons, and then Agito fuses with Zest followed by Rein fusing with Signum to turn her into Arche Klaine. I wonder if she fucks like a tiger too. The two rush at eachother.
Ginga is analyzing Subaru, and then prepares to attack. Subaru thinks that if she can cause enough magical damage, whatever they’re using to control her will weaken.
Back in the Cradle, Vita is killing more drones. She’s down to her last four cartridges though. Suddenly, she’s stabbed from behind through her chest. She turns around to see a new type of drone and the image of Nanoha’s grievous wound flashes through her mind showing that this was the same machine that attacked her in the past. She flips out, attacks and destroys it sending herself flying. More of these drones come pouring out to attack her, but she’s already pouring blood from her chest.

Nanoha StrikerS Episode 20: Infinite Desires

2007-08-25T19:42:00.000+08:00

Jail Scaglietti, man of the world and breeder of android harem, now with his battleship finishes taking off to the church and TSAB’s horror. As Schach reports in, Carim looks at a sealed package on her desk.
On the Asura, Hayate and Carim are having a meeting with Chrono to decide what to do about the Cradle. Chrono has an entire fleet standing by, ready to take action.
The Numbers are deployed all over the place as Euno gives them their orders. Everybody is chatting on about things when Scaglietti interrupts them to give us the legend of the Holy Emperor and how the power is different from Belka and the TSAB’s magic etc etc. The DNA from him was what was used to create Vivio. Nove says that the Holy Emperor is one of them. Sein has a question about what and why they’re doing this though. Jail responds that they’re descended from the studies and research headed by Regius in the past and that he’s responsible for the development of the androids and research into the relics for the purposes of justice.
Sein has more questions, but Jail tells them to hold off for later when the world is their’s. Sein and Wendi don’t really fully understand the doctor, but they’re willing to throw themselves in anyway. Something Jail told them about the Sei-Oh suddenly sticks out suspicisiously to Sein though.
Back to the mysterious TSAB chamber and mysterious voices talking about the fake mages and what to do about them. We finally get to see who was talking… three brains in jars.
Yes.
Brains in fucking jars.
They discuss their silly crapola for a little bit before bringing up Zest. Then an assistant comes in. She apologizes for disturbing them as they tell her what they know about Regius, Zest and Lutecia while she inputs something on a keypad. She then looks up and says that they’ve given her all the information she needs.
One of the older admirals is giving her own talk about the Holy Emperor to Chrono. The information gets passed on to Riot 6 as well through Hayate. The Cradle continues to menacingly hover over a city, surrounded by legions of Gadget Drones.
Nanoha says that they’re going to be splitting into three groups to deal with it and then their meeting is adjourned. Erio and Caro are worried about things, but Fate reassures them and tells them that Signum will be with them.
Rein, Signum and Caro are talking as they walk about Zest’s past and his history with Regius.
The eyecatch takes the Numbers down another notch…
As they approach the deployment point, they go over the final plans. Vita and Nanoha will be nearby the cadets if things get really rough, but Nanoha tells them to stick together and they’ll be fine. She then continues on with the pep talk and tells that they have something to protect and that she knows that they’re strong, so won’t lose and to not forget that.
She dismisses them, and they run off, except for Subaru. Vita dismisses herself and Nanoha tells her that they’ll make sure Ginga will be fine. Subaru is more worried about Nanoha and Vivio. Nanoha gives her a personal peptalk, saying that she knows Vivio will be okay and that she’s an S and won’t lose.
On Storm Raider, Teana is looking at Cross Mirage in thought when Subaru comes on, wiping away tears. Teana gives Subaru her own peptalk as well, though it has about 5% as much making out as I’d prefer.
Storm Raider takes off with Signum and Rein flying point. Vita, Fate, Nanoha and Hayate all skydive from the Asura to the target. As they do this, Carim unlocks all their limiters. They transform and Nanoha immediately goes into Exceed mode to lead the charge.
Fate’s still a bit worried though and says that she shouldn’t use her last limit break mode (assumably Blaster again like she was talking about last episode). Nanoha says the same to her, but Fate says that she’ll be fine. The two continue their lover’s quarrel about being worried for eachother while Vita and Hayate look on, feeling left out. This could have also used some making out, or at least a little heavy petting. Nanoha and Fate give eachother respec’ knuckles and then Fate peels off.
Nanoha keeps thinking and says to herself that the kiddos should be fine and are nearly A rank, and that there’s something special for them all to protect as they close in on the Cradle.
Inside the lab, Euno is reporting that everybody’s getting into position, either defending the Cradle or heading to “the mission point.” Jail is generally pleased and laughs to himself.
Back at the shadowy TSAB chamber, the glass vials are shattered by the secretary, now with giant claws. One brain is left, yelling about the betrayal as she gives the last brain a speech about destiny and the usual boring “your time is up.” She transforms into a Numbers suit and slashes at the final brain.
Vita, Hayate and Nanoha have made contact with the Gadget Drones and are carving their way through them. Chrono looks on from his fleet.

Nanoha Story: Something that might have happened in the manga!

2007-08-09T23:59:00.001+08:00

(This is story is not the real one, but it seems good enough. The guy who came up with this is really amazing!)

It should've been just another easy mission for both Nanoha and Vita. There shouldn't have been any problems, yet something...went terribly wrong. How could something so simple turn into something so nightmarish in the flash of a single moment?

On their way back to the Bureau from a reconnaissance mission, Nanoha's and Vita's group was ambushed by a group of renegade mages. They had been flying for an extended period of time and everyone was getting a bit tired, so Vita soon came up with a plan to quickly handle the situation. "Nanoha, we'll get them packed together, so blast them with everything you've got left, okay?" "Okay, Vita-chan." A quick exchange of mental messages and everything would be over soon. Or it should've been.

It didn't take long for Vita and her team to gather the renegade mages more or less together and all that was left was for Nanoha to shoot them all down. She had already positioned herself far above the renegades and was just waiting for Vita's mental message to reach her. "Okay, we're ready here, shoot them down!"

That was her cue. "Starlight..." Huge amounts of magical energy started amassing at the tip of Raising Heart. It didn't take long for the mass of sizzling magical energy to grow large enough to be able to take down the whole enemy unit. "Vita-chan, I'm going to shoot, get everyone out of the way, please." "Okay." After giving a mental warning to Vita she then proceeded to release all of the gathered magical energy.

"...Break-" THUMP Before she could finish the command, an unimaginable pain shot through her body causing her to yelp in both suprise and agony. It only lasted for an instant, but even that was enough to disrupt the flow of magical energy through her body, resulting in a devastating explosion of magical energy as the unfinished "Starlight Breaker" backfired on the young mage sending her plummeting towards the ground at alarming speed.

Hearing the sudden explosion Vita turned towards the direction of the sound to find bloody Nanoha falling towards the ground, her clothes in tatters. At first she was too suprised by the unexpected sight to even react, but as soon as she recovered from the initial shock, Vita started speeding up towards the falling Nanoha, mentally ordering the rest of her team to take care of the renegades as well as call the medics. It was a close call, but she managed to catch up to Nanoha just in time to save the young girl from crashing into the ground.

"Nanoha! What happened? Nanoha!! Answer me, Nanoha!! Don't you dare die on me!" Tears started forming on the little girl's eyes. "Vita...chan?" Nanoha's eyes opened just a little. "It seems like I...screwed up a little. Are you...alright...Vita-chan?" She tried to put up a smile, but ended up grimacing because of the pain. "Nanoha! Hang in there!! The medics...Where the hell are the medics?!?" Vita was clearly starting to panic as Nanoha's eyes closed again and she drifted into a blissful state of unconsciousness.

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"How is she?" Fate asked the doctor in a worried tone, while looking at her dear childhood friend lying on a bed in one of the TSAB's medical rooms. "Her life is no longer at risk, if that's what you mean", the doctor answered while reading through his notes. "She won't, however, be waking for a while and considering the damage to her body, it is highly probable that she might never fully recover."
The doctor lifted his eyes from the notes, looking straight at Fate and Hayate, while saying this. Fate immediately turned pale upon hearing this and Hayate's face gained a pained look. "Is there nothing we can do?" Hayate's eyes pleaded the doctor, but he merely turned his head to avoid her gaze. "It's still too early to say..." He sighed and continued: "But the real problem here is that this whole incident was caused by the stress her body has accumulated over many years of reckless use of magic. In other words, her body could simply not keep up with the continuous stress. So when she tried using "Starlight Breaker", a spell that uses huge amounts of magical energy, her magic circulation system couldn't take it and went haywire causing the spell to backfire."
Both girls' faces darkened upon hearing this. "In the worst case scenario" continued the doctor, "she might never be able to walk, much less fly, again." This diagnosis made the two girls gulp loudly in shock. "But..." Fate started, "Flying is Nanoha's life!" Hayate continued. A looming silence enveloped the room.

Vita quickly jumped up from the bench she had been sitting on, waiting, when the door to the medical room where Nanoha was currently being held opened. She rushed to Fate and Hayate, concern clearly showing in her eyes. "How is she? Is Nanoha going to be okay? She'll be okay, right? Right?!"
Fate and Hayate shared a pained look, but not wanting to worry Vita any more than necessary Hayate forced a brave smile on and said: "She'll be just fine. We all know how tough that girl is, don't we?" She gave Fate a meaningful glance. "Ah, yes, if it's Nanoha, then there's nothing to worry about. She wouldn't die from something like that."
Somehow, Vita knew they were just trying to comfort her, but she also wanted to believe that Nanoha would pull through, no matter what. And so she allowed herself to be dragged along by the other two, after taking but a quick peek into the room Nanoha was being held in. It was only a small peek, but even then it was almost enough to break her heart, seeing Nanoha in the condition she was in.
After lunch the three of them decided to rest in the lounge of the medical facility Nanoha was being treated at. No one word had been spoken during the lunch, and even now the atmosphere was far from relaxed. Suddenly, Vita started crying. "Sniff...It was...my fault...Sniff..." The other two were taken aback by her sudden breakdown. "Vita-chan, what are you saying? It wasn't your fault. You did all you could." "But...Sniff...I...I told her to do it. I...I never though something like this...Something like this...Waaaaah!"
Vita was now crying loudly, despite Hayate's best efforts to calm her down. It was turning into quite a scene, and people around the lounge were already giving them looks. Of course, it wasn't all that unusual to see people crying in the medical facility. After all, those that needed the special medical facility were more often than not in a life threatening condition, and not all lives could be saved, even with the advanced technology the TSAB possessed.
After a while Vita finally calmed down a little, but to avoid unneccesary commotion, Hayate thought it best to get Vita back to their quarters before she had a relapse. And since there was nothing the three of them could do for their dear friend at the moment even if they stayed, they left the facility for their own rooms in the personnel quarters.

Later that night, Fate woke up from nightmare, tightly clutching the bedsheets with her hands, her whole body covered in sweat. She had had trouble falling asleep thinking of Nanoha, and the feelings of guilt she had been harboring since meeting Galder, the doctor in charge of Nanoha.
The doctor's words still rang on her ears, making her feel nauseous. "But the real problem here is, that this whole incident was caused by the stress her body has accumulated over many years of reckless use of magic" Fate tried to stop thinking, but the voice inside her head didn't go away. "You got her involved in all this. You! Because of you...Look at her now! You should be the one lying in that hospital bed, not her!"
She tried to block her ears, but it was still there. She closed her eyes, only to find out that it made the voice even stronger. She couldn't rid herself of it, and what made it worse still was that Fate knew why. The reason it didn't leave her alone...was because she knew it was right. She had dragged Nanoha into this world, and now Nanoha was paying the price. The price of Fate's selfishness. "Oh god...I'm so sorry, Nanoha! So...sorry..." Tears trickled down her cheeks, but she didn't even notice them.
Unbeknownst to Fate, there was another person who couldn't sleep that night, also haunted by her feelings of guilt. After having seen the worn-out Vita to bed, Hayate had stayed up to work, but after few hours of no progress she finally gave up on work and went to bed. Only to find out she couldn't sleep.
She recalled the conversation with Nanoha's doctor, Galder, and his words: "In the worst case scenario, she might never be able to walk, much less fly, again." Hayate had known Nanoha for long enough to know she absolutely loved flying.
She recalled an occasion where she had been on a mission together with Fate and Nanoha, and after succesfully completing the mission they had spent some leisure time in the sky, enjoying the freedom to the bottom of their hearts. That day...Nanoha had looked so happy she was practically radiating. Hayate could still remember her smile from that time.
Normally, that memory would've made her smile no matter how much stress she was under, or how matter down she was feeling. This time, though, it brought tears to her eyes. For she knew it was her fault Nanoha had ended up like that. After all, the "Book of Darkness"-incident had forced Nanoha to push herself way behind her limits, all in order to save Hayate, her knights, and Earth, Nanoha's, as well as hers, home planet. Even if it hadn't been the only reason, and even Hayate in her guilt-consumed state realized it probably wasn't, there was no denying that the incident had had a major part to play in this tragedy.
That night Fate and Hayate were both unable to get any sleep from their guilt, and Vita, who had collapsed from physical and mental fatigue earlier, experienced that horrifying moment of Nanoha's fall, over and over again in her dreams. It was truly a night ruled by darkness. And that darkness would not simply vanish with the coming dawn.

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Darkness. It surrounded her from all sides, a total, silent darkness. At first, there was nothing else, just the darkness, quietly embracing her. Am I dead? That was the first thing she could think of, as her consciousness slowly started awakening.
”Doctor, I think she might be waking soon.” A voice entered the girl's half-conscious mind. She tried opening her eyes, but for some reason, it felt like her eyelids had been sealed close. Frustrated by this discovery, she tried to bring her hand to her face, only to find she could not. Concentrating on moving her hand, she was able to flex her fingers, but that was the extend of it.
Not being able to move her hand, she was starting to panic a little. The panic then caused her mind to become more self-conscious. She tried to calm herself, but to no avail. The panic spread, and it awakened the pain that had been sleeping under the cover of her unconscious mind.
The pain started from her chest, and slowly spread throughout the body, finally reaching her legs which was when the pain reached it's peak, forcing her mind to fully awaken. The girl's eyes shot open and she started breathing heavily, trying to bear the sudden pain.
”Ah, finally awake?” Hearing the voice from near, the girl turned her head towards it, still fighting the pain. What she saw was a tall man with shoulder-length, light brown hair, wearing a white coat. The room they were in was rather small and unwelcoming. The walls were painted white, and what little space there was in the room, was taken up by medical equipment.
Turning her attention back to the man in white coat, the girl voiced the first and foremost question in her mind at the moment. ”Where...am I?”
The man gave her a bitter smile before answering. ”Just what it looks like, a medical facility. You had quite an accident during your last mission and were brought here.” She had already figured as much from her surroundings, but as her mind was still quite a mess, she needed the confirmation.
”Um...How long have I been here?” That was the second thing that came to her mind. After all, she couldn't allow something like this to get in the way of her work. ”Only for a week. But you really should get some more rest for now, you know. Your body is still quite a mess.”
This news shocked the girl. She had been out of it for...for a whole week?!? She tried getting up, only to be stopped by the horrid pain that shot through her chest. The man's blue eyes flashed behind his glasses. ”Hey, hey! Don't even think of getting up yet! Your body was severely injured in that accident. Just take it easy for now, okay?” The man's voice somehow got a forceful tone to it, and the girl unwillingly lay back down.
”Good girl. Just try to get some rest for now, and we'll see how you're feeling tomorrow.” With those words, the man turned his back on her and left the room leaving the girl alone with her thoughts.
A whole week, huh? It's been a whole week... She was now deep in thought, the pain having subsided after she lay back down. I was in an accident? The thought seemed weird to her. Ever after having joined the Bureau, she hadn't had a single accident and now she was told she was in a hospital bed for having been in an accident.
The girl tried her best to recall what had happened, but no matter how hard she focused, she couldn't remember a thing. Sigh...I wonder how the others are doing. Hayate...Fate-chan...Vita-chan... That was when it struck her. Vita-chan and I...We were...
Images started flooding into her head in such a forceful manner that she felt like her head might break down. Images of herself, Vita-chan, the renegade mages, Raising Heart, the explosion, Vita's worried face, teardrops hitting her face, and finally...darkness.
When she regained her consciousness again, the first thing she felt was the throbbing pain in her head and legs. At least my arms aren't hurting... She bitterly thought. The pain brought up the memories of the accident. My Starlight Breaker...backfired? She was dumb-struck by the thought. Such a thing had never happened before, neither had she ever heard of such a thing.
I should probably ask someone... Thinking of the possible reasons for Starlight Breaker backfiring, she was able to ward off the pain until the sweet darkness once again engulfed her in it's blissful embrace.

It had already been one and half weeks since Nanoha's accident when Galder, her doctor, finally declared she was well enough to be having guests. Although she still occasionally experienced pains, especially in her legs, and was in a pretty weak condition overall, it seemed like the worst phase had passed.
Despite the doctor's words of not getting out of the bed for months, Nanoha was already looking forward to returning to her work. Little did she know, though, how far away all of that still was.
Fate was the first person to come visiting Nanoha after Galder finally allowed her to see her friends. Nanoha, who had been reading a book Galder had brought for her earlier, lifted her gaze from the book when she heard the door open. ”Fate-chan!” Her voice was full of joy, being able to see her dearest friend for the first time since being hospitalized.
”Nanoha...” Fate was also glad to see her friend, even more so seeing how much better she had gotten in such a short time. She did, however, know that even if Nanoha was acting all cheery for her, she was still hurt.
”How are you feeling, Nanoha?” Fate asked, concern clearly showing in her voice and eyes. Nanoha rose to a sitting position, although the position made her legs ache a bit. Of course, she wouldn't let it show on her face, not in the presence of her dear friend.
”I'm just fine. See?” She gave her friend cheery smile. ”I see. That's good then. But just don't overdo it, okay? I know you tend to shoulder everything by yourself, but it's not good for you. If you ever need anything...” Fate took Nanoha's hand between her own hands. ”Okay?” Nanoha felt the warmth of Fate's hands and words, nodding slightly, ”I know.” She flashed another smile to her dear friend.
While seeing Nanoha chatting happily, even making a few jokes, soothed Fate's worries somewhat, she still couldn't help but feel that her friend was only putting up a brave face. I wonder if she's been told yet... Fate thought, looking for anything that might indicate that the girl knew about the condition of her legs. But no, Nanoha was her usual, cheery self, if a little more social than usual, which was only natural considering she had been in a hospital bed for one and half weeks.
”Fate-chan? Is something wrong?”
Nanoha's voice pulled Fate back to earth, and she quickly regained her composure, not wanting to worry the injured girl in any way. ”Oh, I'm sorry, I kinda dazed off. Eh heh...Sorry.”
In the end, Fate ended up staying with Nanoha, until Galder had to come and literally drag her away, claiming that Nanoha needed to rest. After they were out of the room, Fate's expression changed to a more serious one.
”Have you...told her yet?” She asked him. Galder flinched a little under Fate's intent stare, but replied calmly, ”No, not yet. I wanted to observe her recovery a little bit more before telling her.”
”When are you going to tell her, then?” Galder shrugged at the blonde's question, ”When the time is right..” Fate's face darkened. ”Wouldn't it be better not to? It'll be too much of a shock for her.” Galder snorted, ”And let her keep up false hopes?”
Fate's eyes jerked up at this and she raised her voice, ”False? But you said it wasn't certain!!” Galder sighed, ”No, it's not certain that she'd never be able walk again. However, it is a highly likely scenario. It's been one and half weeks, and her body has started recovering at a very high speed. Except for her legs. I don't know why, but her legs aren't recovering the same way the rest of her body is. She might be able to walk again, someday, but the way it's going that would be years away. And as more time passes, it becomes less and less likely for her legs to ever return to the way they were before. No, she has the right to know.”
Fate felt like she was being crushed by the meaning his words carried, tears starting to well up in her eyes. She felt so powerless, unable to do anything for her closest friend. She quickly turned away to hide her tears, and hurriedly started walking away.

After Fate had left, Galder returned to his office after making sure Nanoha was doing fine. He felt exhausted, but he didn't let it stop him from continuing where he had left off earlier.
He, Galder Haerlorn, had been working for the Bureau for more than ten years ever since joining as a medical trainee in the age of 17. He had had his share of hardships, but what had kept him going was his resolution to save as many lives as he possibly could. So far, his record was almost perfect, which was the reason he was often called whenever a high-ranking member of the Time-Space Administration Bureau had ended up in critical condition.
This case was no different from any other. Or so he had though, when he had been ordered to see to it that Nanoha Takamachi would survive. The order had come from somewhere pretty high up, but to him, it was inconsequential. After all, he had dedicated his life to saving others.
It didn't matter to him, whether the people he saved were high-ranking members of the Bureau or not. To him, they were all just people that deserved his attention. Deserved another chance at life.
This one had been a close call, though. The girl had been in a horrible condition, and even with his knowledge and expertise he'd thought the case lost. Suprisingly though, the girl had proved stronger than what Galder would've expected from one so young.
And so the combined strength of Galder's skill and the girl's willpower and recovery capabilities had been able to bring her back from the cold clutches of the grave. Galder had never experienced such a miraculous survival before, and it had had a great effect on him.
While the girl was unconscious, Galder would stay with her, talking to, and encouraging, her. He'd work over his normal hours and ask favours from other specialists. Even after she woke up, Galder did his best to support her recovery.
The unexpected lack of recovery in her legs hit him hard. After surviving from something like that, it would be unreasonable for her to lose something as precious as the ability to walk. Thinking that, Galder started doing research on the subject on his own. He consulted other doctors he knew, did all he could, yet in the end there was not much he could do.
Nothing...Is there nothing I can do for her? It was frustrating to him, both as a doctor and as a human being, to watch such a thing, yet not be able to do anything. Still, he did what he could, working on rehabilitation programs among other things, all for the young girl, who had survived something no other person would have.
Galder knew that statistically, the chances for her to ever walk again, much less in the next few years, were minimal, but he kept reminding himself, that the girl had already once surpassed the human limits, surviving against impossible odds. If it had happened once, who were to say it couldn't happen again. And so he clung to that small hope, and continued on his work.

It had been a month since the accident, and Galder had yet to tell Nanoha that she might never walk again. Ever since Fate's first visit, Nanoha had been getting visitors on a daily basis, Fate coming almost every day and Hayate as often as her work allowed.
Vita had also visited Nanoha a few times, but since she always broke into tears, Hayate had seen it wiser to forbid her to go see Nanoha until she could smile throught the visit. Chrono and Yuuno had sent her flowers and cards, as they could only visit every now and then because of their work.
Now, it was finally almost time for Nanoha's walking rehabilitation to begin. Galder had been reluctant of telling the girl about her legs' serious condition, despite his words to Fate way back. But he knew that it could no longer be kept in the dark. The girl had the right to know.
She had already started working on her arms, having been training them almost daily for a week now. So if she was to start her walking rehabilitation, she had the right to know that it might all prove useless. That's what he kept telling himself, as he approached his patient's room.
While walking down the corridor on which Nanoha's room was in, Galder was stopped by a voice from behind, ”Doctor Galder!” He turned around to face the blond girl, who had been regularly visiting his patient. ”Fate-san. Are you here to visit your friend again?” Fate nodded. ”I heard, she's going to start walking rehabilitation soon, so I thought I'd come and cheer her on.”
Galder thought for a moment and then said, ”Very well, I guess having you near when she hears the details might make it easier for her.” Fate looked shocked and hissed to him in a low voice, ”You still haven't told her?!?” Galder was stood firm under her gaze. ”I thought it best to tell her when she was ready to start the rehabiliatation. It also gave her time to adjust to the situation, before going and telling her something like that.”
Fate sighed, ”Well, I guess it would've been too much when she was still recovering from the initial shock, but...” Galder quickle turned and continued walking towards Nanoha's room. ”Well, it'll all be up to her from now on.”
Nanoha was doing light exercises with her hands using small weights as Galder entered the room along with Fate. ”Ah, Galder-san, Fate-chan, good morning!”
”Morning, Nanoha.” Fate's replied with a soft voice as she walked over to Nanoha's bed.
”Well, how is my favourite patient doing? Working hard as always, I see.” Galder gave the girl in the bed an encouraging smile. Nanoha nodded with a bright smile. ”Yeah.”
She turned to Fate, who had suddenly taken her hand and was now holding it tightly. ”Fate-chan? Is something wrong?” Fate couldn't bear to watch her friend in the eye, and seeing how it was turning out Galder called to Nanoha. ”Nanoha, I have something important to tell you. Please listen to me closely, and try to stay calm.”
Nanoha could sense his tenseness, and tried to brace herself for what was to come. ”What...what is it?” Her voice sounded so quiet and, at the moment, she looked so fragile that Fate was afraid she might just break into pieces.
”Now that we're about to move to your walking rehabilitation, there is something you should know.” Galder started with a neutral voice. ”As you probably know, just surviving from that accident was quite a miracle. However, your body suffered serious injuries, and even though most of them have already healed, there have been some complications...”
Nanoha had a puzzled look on her face, not quite understanding what he was talking about. ”Um...What kind of complications?” She asked, knowing she would probably not like the answer. ”One part of your body has not started recovering as fast as the others. In fact, there has not been much improvement since you were brought here. I am, of course, talking about your legs.”
As Nanoha turned her gaze to her legs, Galder continued: ”We're ready to start the rehabilitation for your legs in order to force the recovery, but there is something you should know.” Nanoha turned her attention back to Galder from her legs, ”Something...I should know?” ”Yes, something you should know...”
Galder gave Fate a meaningful look, and turned back to face Nanoha while Fate tightened her hold on Nanoha's hand. ”Even if you go through the rehabilitation, it is not certain if your legs will ever be back to the way they were. In fact, it is highly possible that you might never walk again. Do you still wish to go through with it?”
Hearing Galder's words, all color started draining from Nanoha's face, and her eyes were looking at him, pleading him to tell her he was just joking, that what had just been said was not true. She waited. No one laughed.
He's serious...He's really serious! Nanoha's mind was screaming, even as her head was doing it's best to comprehend what she had just been told. ”Nanoha...” Fate was now gripping her friends hand as hard as she could, but Nanoha was too shocked to even notice it.
I'm...never going to be able to walk again? Never? But that would mean... That's when it hit her. Not being able to even walk, how could she ever fly again? She very nearly screamed the thought out, but held herself back at the very last moment.
Wait! I can't worry Fate-chan with this...This is my dilemma.
Even as her own emotions were raging within her, she was still conscious enough to worry about her friend. So she gathered all her inner strength and put on a brave smile. ”It'll be okay, Fate-chan. I can do it. I'll definitely walk again.”
Seeing Nanoha acting brave was making mince-meat out of Fate's heart. She couldn't think of anything to say to cheer her friend, nothing at all. Even though Nanoha was wearing a smile, Fate had known her for long enough to be able to tell how she was really feeling.
Is there nothing I can do for her?!? Seeing her friend suffering behind a smile was worse than anything she had ever experienced before. She would've done anything to ease her friends pain, if only she knew what.
Nanoha, even as she was keeping up a brave face, was silently fighting against the tears that were working their way to her eyes. Not wanting to worry Fate or Galder, or perhaps it was just her not wanting to show any weaknesses, asked them to leave.
”Um, Fate-chan, doctor Galder, could you...let me be alone for a while. This is all so sudden, and I need a while to think it through.” The two knew without asking, what the real reason behind her words was. They knew it, yet there was nothing they could do about it, but allow her to let it all out, alone. And so they reluctantly left her behind in the small room.
After the they were gone and Nahoha was left alone in the now dark room, she finally let the tears out. She had thought she was getting better, that she could soon fly the skies again, even. Now she had been told she might never be able to fly again.
She curled up, tears flowing down her cheeks, wetting the bedsheets. Her body was shaking uncontrollably, which caused sharp pain to her legs, but she hardly noticed it. She tried not to think about flying, but the harder she tried, the more memories of flying flooded her memory, causing the young girl unimaginable pain.
After some time, the tears started to dry, and her body stopped shaking. She was now too exhausted to even cry anymore, and could only stare blankly at the room's ceiling. The pain at her legs was getting more intense now that she was no longer too preoccupied with her sorrow to feel it. But for some reason the pain, even though intense, felt strangely distant, as if it was someone else's pain.
Nanoha found it strangely funny, despite the situation she was in. It's like I'm not even me anymore... she thought, her mind dangerously swaying between sanity and madness. It wasn't long until her worn-out mind gave away under the stress and the girl drifted off to peaceful sleep, escaping the cruelty of reality in the world of dreams, where she could still fly unrestricted...
When Nanoha woke up the following morning, she felt suprisingly refreshed, despite the shock she had experienced just yesterday. Her resolve had built up during her sleep, and now there was only one thing left in her mind.
No matter how slight the chances, no matter how impossible it feels...I want to fly again!! I can't just give up without even trying!
And so, when Galder came to visit her, Nanoha had her answer. She would go through the rehabilitation, no matter what. And, she thought to herself, I will fly again! That marked the beginning of the young girl's struggle towards her goal, towards the sky.
But what a thorny path full of hardships that would be...

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”Nnnggg-aah!” Nanoha flinched and gritted her teeth as the searing pain shot through her legs which made her reflexively shift all her weight back to her arms.
She shivered for a moment, her hands shaking, trying to support her whole weight on the wooden parallel bars.
It had been a month since she had first begun her rehabilitation, but during that time there had been no significant progress. She still couldn't put any more weight on her feet than in the beginning.
The rehabilitation program doctor Galder had made for her consisted of three parts.
First, there was the real deal, the walking practice on the parallel bars.
She was supposed to support herself with her arms, while gradually putting more and more stress on her legs in order to strengthen them. But instead of her legs, so far only her arms had gained any strength.
Then there was also the leg massage, which had not only proven ineffective but also extremely painful for her. Since it hadn't seemed to have any positive effect, Galder had quickly discarded it from the training menu.
Lastly, the doctor had arranged for her physiotherapical sessions, but even those did nothing to promote to the girl's recovery.
”Okay, I think that's enough for today.” Galder said while walking up to her.
She, on the other hand, could only nod while the doctor helped her down to the wheelchair. Another day...Another failure.
”Hey, don't be so down. I'm sure tomorrow will go better. We've only just started, after all.” She knew he was just trying to cheer her up, but the words still rang hollow to her ears. For a month now, she had been waking up in good spirits, ready to work her way back to the sky, only to be brought down by the unbearable pain from her legs.
She could still remember how full of hope she had been on that first morning of rehabilitation.
-------------------------------------------- Flashback -------------------------------------------
”Mmmm-mm.” Nanoha slowly opened her eyes to find her body wasn't aching at all. She couldn't remeber such a thing having happened a single time since she first woke in this very same bed after the incident. Not even her legs were hurting which was most suprising.
First she thought that maybe she was still dreaming, but no, she most certainly was awake. This must be a good omen, she thought to herself when she remember what day it was.
Yes, today would be the first day of her rehabilitation. I'm going to do my best. That was the uppermost thought in her mind.
And so she waited in the dark room for Galder to show up, anxious to get out of the bed for the first time in what had felt like ages.
When the door then finally opened, Nanoha was almost ready to burst from all the energy flowing inside her.
”Galder-san. I'll do it! I'll do the rehabilitation!” She didn't even give the doctor a chance to go through their everyday routines, like asking her how she was doing and such.
”Ah!” His suprise soon turned to a smile. ”I see you've thought it through. Glad to see such resolve. It will be a great help in the next few months. It won't be easy, you know.”
”I know...But I can't give up. I still want to fly. I need to fly!”
”Is that so? Then I'll do my best to see you fly again, too.” His smile warmed Nanoha's heart and eased her resurfaced worries.
”Shall we get going then? Milae, bring it.” At his words, the nurse, who had become quite familiar to Nanoha during her stay in the hospital, came into the room with a wheelchair.
”I had this prepared for when you'd be ready to get up from the bed. It's easy to control, so you should be able to use it on your own, too. You can use it, if you want to go somewhere when there's no rehabilitation.”
”Okay. Thank you, doctor Galder!” She flashed a bright, genuine smile, something she hadn't done since that accident
”Well then, off we go.” Galder said in a cheerful voice, while helping Nanoha sit into the wheelchair.
----------------------------------------End of Flashback----------------------------------------------------------
Everything after that point had been downhill for her. The first attempt at putting any weight on her feet had almost broken her fighting spirit altogether. Never in her life had she experienced such pain as then, and she was fairly certain she never would.
She hadn't given up, though, and had continued the rehabilitation with tears in her eyes, not willing to admit defeat. But for all the pain and suffering she had went through, there had been no improvement in her condition which hurt the young girl even more.
Instead of hope, the rehabilitation had only offered her more reason for despair.
Without the support from her friends, she would surely have given up within a week of the rehabilitation's start. But with the help of those important to her, she kept struggling, chasing after the fleeting ray of hope.
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The rehabilitation for the day had ended and Nanoha was now resting in her bed.
Today hadn't been any better for her than any other day, in fact it just might've been worse.
Still, after the pain in her feet from earlier had slowly faded away, she got up and struggled into the wheelchair. Doctor Galder shouldn't be coming until much later... With that thought in mind, she slowly guided the wheelchair out of the room.
For a week now, she had been doing her own personal training on top of the everyday rehabilitation. But even with the increased exercising, there hadn't been any progress. Nothing.
Regardless, the young girl made her way to the training hall on her wheelchair, trying to forget all the other times like this, all of which had ended up in her tears. Tears and despair.
Since the hall had been reserved solely to her use for the duration of the rehabilitation, she could use it anytime without having to worry about interruptions.
The parallel bars were in the middle of the hall as always, and the girl went straight to them. Then, using her arms she lifted her body up from the wheelchair and onto the bars.
Please let it work this time...Please! The girl prayed silently while mentally preparing herself for the pain she knew was coming. Then, squeezing the bars with her hands, she slowly lowered her body letting her feet slightly touch the ground.
Here we go... She shifted some of her weight from her arms to legs. For a moment, she felt nothing. Her eyes widened. Eh?! It doesn't...hur-!
Then it hit her. The pain shooting through her legs was so sudden and intense that she lost her grip on the bars, falling down on her legs which made her scream in pain as she very nearly lost consciousness.
Lying down in the cold floor, tears welling up in her eyes, the girl couldn't hold back her sobs. Her legs were burning with pain, but even that could not compare to what she was feeling in her heart. The fall from thinking you'd finally succeeded to that of failing more miserably than ever was indeed infinitely more painful than just failing. It was nearly unbearable.
When she could finally think straight again, she crawled up to the wheelchair. It's no use... Her thoughts were cloaked in darkness as she left the hall. She was so out of it that she didn't even notice a familiar figure leaning against the fall before it spoke.
”Nanoha. I know you want to get better as soon as you can, but aren't you overdoing it a little?” The stern tone somehow sounded very familiar.
Nanoha lifted her teary eyes to see Galder's serious face. She quickly wiped away the tears before answering.
”But there's been no progress at all! It's already been over two months, too. If...if I don't work on my own, I might never walk again!” Nanoha's sudden outburst shocked Galder enough for him to realize just how much the girl must have been suffering on her own.
”Just because there has been no visible progress does not mean there has been no progress! Moreover, if you overdo it, it might end up hindering your recovery! You should know better than anyone the dangers of overdoing it!” Galder knew he must've sounded harsh, but it was all for the girl's own best.
”You...knew?” Nanoha's expression was a mix of anxiety and guilt.
”Of course, I am your doctor after all. And I'm not telling you not to exercise on your own, but you must not overdo it. Understand?!”
Nanoha knew he wouldn't compromise over this, so she had no choice but to agree.
”Yes...I'll be more careful from now on.”
”Good girl. Now, have you eaten anything yet? No? Well then, what say we get you something good to eat?” His smile couldn't erase the darkness in Nanoha's mind, but it did manage to lift her spirits a little. ”Yes!”
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That night was another of the many the girl had experienced in the last two months. Her body and mind were exhausted, but the pulsating pain in her legs kept her awake.
During those kinds of nights, it is natural for the mind, forced to stay awake, to start wandering. And the thoughts that come up seldom are pleasant ones. One tends to wonder their reason for living, among other things. It was that kind of a night.
Maybe...maybe it's really impossible. Perhaps my struggling is all in vain. Futile. Tears started wetting her eyes and all of a sudden, she felt a surge of loneliness pass through her chest.
Fate-chan...Hayate-chan, Yuuno-kun, Chrono-kun, Arisa-chan and Suzuka-chan. Mother and Father... I want to see them. Sob... I want to see them all...Sob.
The girl tried to supress the tears, calm down, but once the night gets to you, there's no escape. She was already trapped in the darkness, powerlessly struggling against it.
And just like all such nights before this one, the girl succumbed to her own misery, her suffering, her anxiety and helplessness. But, like nightmares, those nights last only for as long as the victim stays within their influence.
And once the spell has been broken, only a faint memory will remain. In time, even the memory shall be forgotten, leaving nothing behind as a reminder. And another dawn will come, and with it the new strength to struggle towards your dreams.
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It was one of the few free days Nanoha had been given since the start of her rehabilitation and she was enjoying the short break by reading some shoujo manga that Fate had brought to her as a present on one of her frequent visits.
It was a romantic story about a young girl who was summoned to another world by mistake. The girl, without a way back to her own world, then ended up tangled in the kingdom's politics and fell in love with a handsome rogue named Cail, who was actually the prince of another kingdom in disguise.
Then there was the travelling bard who had fallen for the girl and a group of justice-driven mercenaries who were planning a rebellion against the king, who had recently turned corrupt due to the influence of an evil sorcerer posing as the king's advisor.
And now the girl, whose name was Elysia, had just confessed to the man she believed to be Cail, but who was in reality an assasin, disguised as Cail, sent to kill her, when someone knocked on the door effectively ruining the mood.
”Yes?” Although she tried hard to conceal it, her voice still gave away her irritation of having been interrupted.
The door opened and a familiar face came into Nanoha's view. ”Chrono-kun! You came to see me?” Her voice immediately turned into a happy tone when she saw the visitor. ”It's been a while since your last visit.”
”Sorry...I really tried, but work just kept piling up.” The boy apologetically shook his head. Then he suddenly smiled, ”But...”, and revealed a huge rose bouquet from behind his back. ”...I brought this as an apology.” He then proceeded to hand the bouquet to the brown haired girl, whose cheeks were turning slightly pinkish.
”You, you really didn't have to, you know...” She eyed the bouquet, smelled it, and felt like maybe everything just might work out after all. ”Thanks, Chrono-kun.”
This time it was Chrono's turn to blush bright red. He tried to hide his embarrassment by turning sideways and coughing, but this only worked to further draw the girl's attention to him.
”Chrono-kun, are you alright? You haven't caught a flu or anything, have you?” Somehow, this reminded Chrono an awful lot of his mother which wasn't exactly a good thing coming from his first crush.
”I'm fine. But more importantly, are you okay? How's the rehabilitation going?”
It was the most basic of tactics, diverting the attention from yourself by turning it to someone else.
”Ehheh...Not too well, in fact.” The brown haired girl answered nervously fingering her hair. ”Or more like there's been no progress so far...” Her voice wavered a little at the end of that last sentence.
”...”
Chrono had heard it wasn't going well, but he hadn't known that there'd been no progress at all. Hearing it straight from the patient herself, he had no idea what to say.
He knew staying silent wouldn't exactly help, but he thought it would be better than carelessly saying something that might further hurt the girl, as vulnerable as she currently was.
”It's okay, Chrono-kun. It's only been two and half months. If I just keep doing my best, then...” Her voice trailed off and Chrono knew he had to say something or else the situation would certainly get out of hands.
”Th-that's right, Nanoha! If you just believe in yourself and don't give up, then anything's possible!” He gave the girl his best 'I-know-it'll-be-alright' smile, hoping she'd take the bait.
”Y-yeah. You're right. I can't give up now!” A forced smile came to her lips and she looked Chrono right into the eyes, making him blush furiously.
”Thanks, Chrono-kun. I'm really glad you came to see me today.” This made Chrono's face turn even redder, if possible, but it also eased his heart to see Nanoha's determination back.
Chrono stayed with Nanoha for a while longer after that and after he left, Nanoha had regained her lost fighting spirit. She knew she couldn't just give up after seeing her friends go into such lenghts to support her.
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It had been four months since the beginning of the rehabilitation, when the first signs of progress finally sprung forth and by the fifth month Nanoha could already walk from one end of the parallel bars to the other with only minimal support from her hands.
And now, after half a year of struggling, the fated day had finally arrived. The day Nanoha had been fervently waiting for. The day she would return to the sky, where she belonged.
The rehabilitation was now officially over and she could walk, and even run, almost normally. Moreover, Galder had finally permitted her to try flying.
Thr girl was brimming with excitement as they were nearing the area reserved just for this occasion. Galder had, naturally, demanded to be to there for Nanoha's first flight since the accident, but both Fate and Hayate had also insisted on partaking in it. And so the four of them were, Nanoha in lead, on their way to the designated place.
Nanoha was humming happily and her two best friends were also in a great mood. Even Galder was smiling as he watched the three young girls in such high spirits.
Truth be told, Galder had had his doubts throughout the rehabilitation, but now that it was over he was glad he had seen it through to the end. It was also clear to him that he would never forget this particular case, where a girl who should have died by all accounts not only survived but fully recovered as well.
Nanoha was already impatiently waiting for the others when they reached the small training area where Nanoha's flying session would take place. ”Gee, hurry up!”
Her voice was annoyed but her eyes were shining and her smile was as bright as ever.
”Come now, Nanoha-chan, what's the rush?” Hayate reprimanded the brown haired girl, even though she knew how much she'd been waiting for this.
”True, true.” Galder backed Hayate up. ”You've been waiting for this moment for over six months, what's a few more minutes to that?”
”I know that...But still!” The anxiety showing on her face quickly won over the hearts of those around her.
”Okay, okay...But first,” Galder said with a sigh, ”Are you feeling fine?”
”I'm fine! Never been better.” Nanoha impatiently replied pleading Galder with her eyes. ”So...can I?”
”Haahhh...yes, go on ahead.” Galder could understand the girl's enthusiasm, but it also made him feel old. Still, he was relieved to see her slowly rising into the air with no problems.
As soon as she had risen a few meters, a radiant smile formed on her lips. She turned to where her friends were standing, waving at them happily. ”Look, Fate-chan, Hayte-chan, I'm flying!”
Then, with her newfound confidence, she took off higher and tried some simple maneuvers in the air. As she slowly started remembering the feeling of flying, her body started taking over and the maneuvers began getting increasingly complex.
Seeing no problems with anything, Galder decided to give the girls some time together, knowing they'd contact him if anything should happen. Not that he expected any troubles now that the rehabilitation was over.
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As Fate watched her friend happily flying, tears started to well up in her eyes. This time, though, they were the tears of joy that ran down her cheeks. Then, suddenly, she thought she saw...something alongside her flying friend. Is that a...
”Phoenix.” The voice came from behind her. As she turned towards it, she found Hayate standing there beside her, also tears in her eyes, but at the same time smiling brightly. ”A mythical bird of fire, from the world Nanoha-chan and I come from.”
”Phoe...nix?” The blonde wiped her eyes from the tears, and turned back to where their friend was still maneuvering in the air. Her eyes widened in suprise.
There was a clear image of a blazing bird overlapping with Nanoha. It's feathers shone in the bright daylight, rapidly changing color from golden all the way to the color of blood. It was truly a magnificent sight.
”It is said,” Hayate's started in a soft voice. ”That when the time comes for the Phoenix to die, it burns itself to ashes, and from those very ashes a new Phoenix is born.”
A silence.
”If you think about it...It's just like what Nanoha-chan went through. When the sky was lost to her, she might as well have died. But she didn't give up. She worked her way back to the sky, just like a newborn Phoenix would, through pure effort and willpower. And now look at her. It's like she's been reborn. She's shining so brightly it's as if she was born to grace the skies with her presence.”
Fate couldn't have agreed more. That day, Nanoha really was radiating like never before, surrounded by a heavenly aura. ”Yeah...” It was all there was to say. They both knew exactly what their friend had been through, and just how much she must have yearned for this day.
”She is...”
”...our Phoenix.”
They smiled at each other and took off into air to join their dearest friend in the vast, blue skies.

Nanoha StrikerS Episode 19: Cradle

2007-08-09T23:51:00.000+08:00

The episode begins with poor Vice still in critical condition. Alto is standing over him telling him that everybody is okay, even Storm Raider, and she’ll take over his duties for him for now. Poor Vice… he just needs some TLC from Tea. She then gets in Storm Raider and takes off.

Over on the Asura, Fate is checking in with how things are going and how Alto is handling her new job as a pilot. Everybody is also gathering for a meeting on the new setup of Riot 6. Hayate and Griffith give them a quick rundown, confirming that Jail is the main target and that they think that he’s using the Lost Logia Relics to create or augment the cyborgs. She puts Fate and Nanoha in charge of general setup and operations before heading off for another administrative meeting.

Over at TSAB HQ, Subaru is getting her final checkup and bill of good health. She throws a practice punch and seems to be in perfect form. Mach Calibur is also being repaired. Subaru apologizes to it for going out of control and causing damage to it, but Mach Calibur responds that the problem was with it and its power shortage. Shari comes in though, and Mach Calibur says that it’s for a reconfiguration meeting. Shari and a tech tell her that they’ll be upgrading Mach Calibur and making sure that it’ll be able to keep up with her power in the future. Subaru thanks them, and Mach Calibur tells her to keep her ‘well checked’ so that ’she can go as far as she wants this time.’ Silly Engrish.

Rein Zwei is also back in full health and checks in with Nanoha. She reports that all the devices are functioning well, though Rein is a bit worried about Nanoha and Raging Heart. Nanoha says that she has another mode in reserve… Buster (Blaster?) Mode beyond Exceed if things get really rough, so she’ll make sure to take care of them if there’s any trouble.

Erio and Signum are sparring in the gym. Erio holds his own, and Signum compliments him before heading out. As she leaves, Fate thanks her for taking care of Erio. The two start talking about all of the cadets and how they’re becoming a family themselves as they get stronger and stronger.

Shamal is running some checks on Vita. She seems to be pretty much completely recovered, though Vita’s being her usual cranky self. Shamal does say how the knights are all linked though. Vita keeps going on about what’s important and making sure to protect Hayate. She brings up the original Reinforce and says how much they’ve gained and that they have to protect it. Shamal agrees with her and hugs her, saying that she doesn’t want to lose any of them. Vita says that she’ll make sure to protect all their happinesses.

Subaru finally meets up with the other cadets along with a fully repaired Mach Calibur. Suddenly, the alarm goes off. A huge number of explosions are going on outside a base somewhere. Wendi, Deed, and Otto are attacking somewhere. Wendi is having a ball, but Deed and Otto refuse to respond to her. Tre checks in, apparently the attack went off without a hitch and they got all the data that they needed.

Euno reports all this to the doctor as she brings a wrapped up child somewhere. Scaglietti keeps going on about the Holy Emperor while Euno talks about her as the path to their dreams. The wrappings fall off the child, showing it to be an unconscious Vivio (SURPRISE). Scaglietti takes the opportunity to make another crazed speech.

Suddenly, their alarms go off as well. A few explosions at the entrance and then we see that Acous and Scach have dug a hole into their base. Scach is impressed with his magic, and Acous shows that he can summon green ghost dog things as well (Infinite… something… probably Hounds or Hunt). Swarms of Gadget Drones suddenly close in on their position though. Schach switches to barrier jacket mode and the two stand back to back to fight as the drones close in.

Back on the Asura, Hayate is keeping tabs on things. Acous radios in, saying that they found Scaglietti’s base, but are under heavy attack by the drones. The Asura picks up Lutecia and her knights closing in on Acous’ position. Shari immediately recognizes Zest. They also pick up the combat cyborgs en route there… with Ginga at the lead. Everybody is totally shocked… except the audience of course.

Scach and Acous have finished off the drones, but Lutecia’s summons are all over the place and begin an earthquake. Scaglietti begins another crazed broadcast to the world about how his ascension is at hand using “The Cradle.” A chunk of the earth raises as a ship takes to the air from underground. Vivio is sitting on a throne and being used as a power source for the ship. This is broadcast to the world and puts Nanoha into a state of shock. Scaglietti announces that this is the beginning of his dream and starts wildly cackling.

Nanoha StrikerS Episode 18: Wings, Once Again

2007-07-30T15:55:00.001+08:00

TSAB is picking through the wreckage and trying to figure out eachly how to deal with the criminal responsible. Regius is pissed off as all hell and demands answers. His secretary briefly meets with Hayate on her inspection.

Riot 6 members are at the former HQ. Teana is looking through the damage when Signum comes up for a status report. Teana lets her know that Vivio was taken, but the damage to people was otherwise pretty minimal. Signum thanks and dismisses her. Teana then contacts Nanoha and gives her a brief status report as well as learning what all the other Riot 6 people are doing before heading over to Subaru. Nanoha then sees Vivio’s destroyed rabbit and recoils.

At the hospital, Shirley is in tears over losing Vivio. Zafira is also seriously injured, but Shama is mostly okay. Rein is also undergoing diagnostics and repairs, but should be fine. Vice was also very seriously injured in the attack and is in intensive care.

Tea heads into the ward for Subaru and Erio. Both are injured but relatively okay. Subaru’s arm is making noises as she tries to move it around, and she says that it’s still being repaired. Caro and Erio head out to get some air, letting Teana have a heart to heart with Subaru.

Subaru apologizes, but Teana tells her that there’s nothing to apologize for. She says that Ginga will be fine and that Nanoha and the rest will help rescue her as soon as they can. Teana continues with a long speech about Subaru shouldn’t give hope and they’ll definitely work together to save her.

Regius’ secretary is still grilling Hayate about everything that happened.

There’s a huge conference on the nature of the androids being led by Subaru’s father, Genya. He tells them about how humans were being fused with machines to create the androids. Scaglietti was using humans as a base and then infusing various machines into them. His wife, Quint, led an attack on Jail and ended up saving Subaru and Ginga and then they adopted them because they couldn’t have children otherwise. The resemblence is (supposedly) just a coincidence. She eventually died, but Genya raised them since he thought it’s what she would want from him. There was a little more, but my Japanese technobabble is awful. Apologies.

Hayate is still meeting with the secretary. Hayate doesn’t have particularly complimentary things to say about Regius, saying that he used to be a radical and that his past research and proposals have aligned very strongly with Scaglietti’s… especially in terms of using androids and other machines to strengthen fighters.

The secretary throws it back in Hayate’s face, saying that her past with the Book of Darkness is no better. Hayate says that the Book of Darkness is no more and that while that is long over, this is still happening.

Regius is raging in his office once again, throwing shit around and in general being randomly pissed off. One of his assistants shows him a report of Zest. Regius recognizes it and nearly has a heart attack.

Zest meanwhile, is coughing up blood. Agito is extremely concerned (and calling him ‘husband’). She gives him a pep talk, and he says that he’s feeling a bit better and sends her off to get some tea for him. Uno then contacts him and they talk for a bit about the last mission and the relic they seized before letting him know that Lutecia is fine and with them.

In the number HQ, Ginga is in he testtube while Quattro is running tests. She’s amazed at how powerful the Type-Zeros are and how the other Type-Zero dealt with Nove and crew. Nove is pissed off and wants her revenge. Quattro gets called over to the Scaglietti.

Lutecia is looking at capsule XI. Wendy comes up and asks her how her mother is doing. Lutecia says that the doctor said that the doctor can wake up her mother if they can find the right relic.

Hayate’s next meeting is with Acous. They’re in relatively good spirits as the Asura is nearly finished and it’ll be the new mobile HQ for Riot 6 for at least a little while.

Nanoha and Fate are looking over the city. Nanoha remembers the promise she made to Vivio about coming home safely and starts crying about how she couldn’t protect her. Fate hugs her and says that they’ll save her and Vivio will be just fine.

Back in Scaglietti’s lab, Vivio is strapped down and scared witless. Scaglietti and Uno walk in with a relic box. Vivio sees it and starts screaming for her mother. They open the box (can’t see the number), and Scaglietti says that he’s going to infuse the Relic into her to awaken the Holy Emperor.

Nanoha StrikerS Episode 17: That Day, Sixth Mobile Division (Part 2)

2007-07-28T16:57:00.001+08:00

During the intro, we learn that there are twelve total numbers (11 deployed), and the two objectives are to take out the two facilities they’re attacking and capture the Emperor, with the secondary mission of capturing the Type-0.

Once the episode proper starts, we see Vita and Zest fighting. Vita notices that Zest and Agito’s unison isn’t as powerful as their’s, but they’re very powerful and experienced, so Vita doesn’t have much of an advantage. Zest needs to finish it off quickly though, so tells Agito to use their Full Drive. Agito refuses at first, saying that it’ll cut his life, but then relents and powers up.

Over with the cadets, Nove (on a wing road no less) and Wendy (Uendi?) are having problems fighting Erio and Teana because of Tea’s illusions. Caro is basically feeding magic to Teana nonstop to keep it going. Subaru and Erio manage to get the drop on them thanks to the distraction and Erio uses a Thunder Rage to blast all the drones and Wendy while Subaru knocks down Erio. They then scatter with the illusions also acting as decoys. Cinque calls in to say that she’s met up with another Type-0 and needs help… the Type-0 is Ginga.

Schach meets up with the Aces and explains that they’ve forced the main doors open. The cadets meet up with the Aces and hand off Raging Heart and Bardiche, but Subaru suddenly realizes that she’s lost contact with Ginga. They decide to split up. The Lightnings are to head back to Riot-6 HQ, which is now formally under attack, while the Stars are to find Ginga and secure the area.

Riot-6 is torched. Zafira and Shamal are the only people left while another Number (Otto) stands over them. She uses her Ray Storm to attack, while Shamal blocks. Zafira tries to attack, but another number (Diddo) slams him back down. Otto prepares to attack and Hayate suddenly senses that something happened to them.

The non-combatants of Riot-6 are huddled in an area, protected by sniper Vice, who is shooting down drones from long range as they approach.

Team Lightning is flying to Riot-6 when they’re suddenly attacked by Trei and Sette. Fate blocks the attack and orders her cadets to head to HQ. Erio realizes that they’re stuck on Fried, so can’t fight in the air, and takes off. Fate transforms Bardiche to the Zanber form and gets ready to fight.

Returning to Vita and Zest, he suddenly senses new combatants coming. Rein confirms that Signum is on the way. Zest is ready to retreat, but Agito wants to attack Rein. Vita sees Agito’s attack forming and flies to stop her, but Zest gets in the way and destroys Eisen. As Vita crashes into the ground, Agito is flipping out, and Rein is completely knocked out. Signum arrives to guard them, but the other two are already gone.

The Stars are en route to Ginga’s last position. Subaru gets there first and finds three numbers standing over a bloody and decimated Ginga, about to load her into the container. With a beep, Subaru’s eyes turn yellow, and then glow while she releases a huge burst of energy.

On the flip side, Subaru demands they give Ginga back while chargings about 5 cartridges. She rushes forward, breaking her roller blades in the process. Nove starts shooting at her, but Subaru just shrugs it off and slams Nove back. Wendy gets on her surfboard/crossbow thing, and Cinque confronts Subaru. She uses her exploding knives to keep Subaru from moving while the others take off.

Subaru starts beating relentlessly on Cinque’s shield until she destroys it and tries to follow. Cinque had more knives hidden in the air that almost get Subaru, but she puts up a shield just in time. Unfortunately, she didn’t block all of them and her arm is torn open, showing machinery underneath. Subaru keeps coming, but Sei leaps up and uses her phasing to take Cinque out safely. Mach Calibur finally stops working from all the damage and Subaru collapses as her eyes revert and Nanoha and Teana arrive.

Back at Riot-6, Vice is exhausted. As Lutecia appears, he has a flashback to a mission with a hostage. he took a shot… and suddenly sees an image of the girl again over Lutecia (assumably he missed and hit the hostage). She wastes no time and blasts him and the rest of the non-coms.

Erio and Caro are just now getting to Riot-6. They see Lutecia and crew about to take Vivio away when suddenly Erio remembers his past. He was an artificial human created in the image of the son of a dead rich family. Eventually, he was taken away from his parents.

He loses it and changes Strada to it’s second form and rushes to attack in the air. Garyuu is there to fight him, but using Strada’s booster, he’s able to stay in the air. He attacks again, but Dido appears and sucker punches him while Caro and Fried are bound by Otto and plummet from the air.

Fate is at least holding her own in her battle though, and tries to interrogate them. They respond respectfully, and say that she’s like them and ask her to join their side. Fate says that she’s nothing like them, and tells them that Scaglietti’s actions are unforgiveable. They take off, saying that Fate can’t win.

Back at Riot-6, Uno is giving a final warning to the Riot-6 members that the drones are going to raze the building and kill all within. Caro loses it and summons Voltaire, who proceeds to torch every damn drone in the area.

Scaglietti appears on a broadcast to the gathered TSAB members and says that the attack today was the result of his group developing technology as it was meant to be developed even though others call it illegal. He says that he kept deaths to a minimum, and is prepared to take in those who wish to be. Carim says that the prophecy has now come to light, but Hayate says that Riot-6 ain’t out of it yet.

Nanoha StrikerS Episode 16: That day, Sixth Mobile Division (Part 1)

2007-07-18T17:30:00.001+08:00

The opening starts with Subaru writing a letter to her father saying how everybody is in high spirits and back to training after the incidents in town. THIS ISN’T FORESHADOWING FOR THE REST OF THE EPISODE AT ALL, IS IT? Unfortunately, we still have Secret Ambition as the OP… I want my Massive Wonders already, or in Teana’s case… Modulating Wonders.

Hayte is telling all the combat troops of Riot 6 that they’ll be working on security at a public conference tomorrow. Security will be managed by a number of other divisions as well. Hayate, Fate and Signum will be meeting up tomorrow, but the rest are heading over today.

Nanoha is getting ready to head off, but Parasite Vivio doesn’t want her to go. Nanoha promises her that she’ll come back after it’s done and promises her some caramel milk for being a good girl and putting up with it.

On the copter, the cadets ask Nanoha about Vivio and how they’re getting on. Nanoha says that Vivio is still looking for anybody who will be a family for her, but the cadets disagree and think that Nanoha has already pretty much adopted her.

Over in the Nanoha/Fate lovenest, Fate gets a phone call from Lindy, who is still looking great. Lindy says hi to Vivio and tells Fate that she’ll be at the conference as well. She can’t wait to see Fate again, but since Fate will be on duty, it’ll have to wait.

Vivio sees Fate’s pictures of her families…. the Hallouens and the Testarossas, and asks Fate about them. Fate tells her that they’re both her family. We also get to see a picture of Chrono, Amy and his twins. They’re basically tiny versions of Amy. Boy wasted no time in fathering children, did he?

At TSAB central, the cadets are hanging about with drinks, except for Teana, who is bother Vice. She apologizes to him because she had a look in his army history. In the past, Vice was an Ace mage and was a top sniper. He says that his magical skills are barely half of Teana’s though. He goes on, saying that the past is past and that she shouldn’t waste her time on such. She apologizes again and runs off. Once she’s gone, he says aloud that the past is gone, and Storm Raider agrees.

The next morning, Nanoha is going inside the conference, so she hands Subaru Raising Heart and asks them to make sure Fate gives up her device as well. Ouch… defenseless? That’s not a good sign.

There’s a newscast going on about how the conference is going, and the most hotly contested item seems to be the development of the Einherjar, the Army’s new weapon.

Vita is patrolling the grounds with the Lightning cadets and wondering if shit is going to go down today. They think that it’ll probably be an attack from the outside, and that Scaglietti is not going to attack since there’s nothing to gain here. Nanoha disagrees though and thinks that it could have to do with showing off the Einherjar. They decide to just keep waiting for their superiors orders as well as how to react.

The conference is nearing the end, and nothing has happened so far. Zest and Agito are watching from the air, and are annoyed that Lulu isn’t with them because she has something else to do. Zest tells Agito to go with Lulu if she’s so worried, but Agito can’t leave Zest on his own. Zest’s final plan is to make his way to Regius.

The Numbers are also preparing to deploy and are set up. Scaglietti gives the usual mad scientist speech of being the one to change the world and the course of history and tells them to start.

Lulu chants a spell while Quattro screws up the internal security systems of TSAB using a control of the electrons in the air. In one area, Sei phases through and knocks out the guards, followed by Cinque exploding a reactor. Lulu finishes her summoning spell and Gadget Drones begin appearing all over the grounds. At the same time, Deici shoots her way into the building.

Regius is receiving a report of the situation and orders all intruders neutralized. Quattro is eavesdropping on them somehow though, and uses the drones to force them to drop the defenses and seal everybody inside. Hayate realizes the problem here and that they’re sitting ducks at the moment.

Trei and Sette, apparently the close combat specialists of the Numbers, are getting ready for Sette’s first fight before they rush into the battle.

The cadets and crew are running towards the battle. Vita gives Teana Signum and Hayate’s devices to get to them before combining with Rein and flying straight to the battle.

Nanoha and Fate are locked inside the building and can’t get out. They decide to not wait around and bust open an elevator and slide down the cable using magic to cover their hands to rendezvous with the cadets and get their devices back.

Agito and Zest are heading straight for the tower when they’re attacked by red energy. Unison Vita leaps out of the clouds and attacks them. Zest and Agito respond by combining as well. Vita and Zest introduce themselves and get ready to fight.

The cadets are still heading to battle and suddenly Nove leaps out and slams Subaru against the wall wearing a pair of Mach Calibur-looking boots. The rest of the cadets are trapped by a series of energy balls from another Number. Nove calls Subaru (or maybe her device?) “Type-Zero” and knows that it wouldn’t have been beaten that easily.

Uno tells Lulu that she can move on to attacking Riot 6 and recovering the Devices held there along with “The Emperor.” Riot 6 goes on full alert… credits.

Nanoha StrikerS Episode 15: Sisters and Daughters

2007-07-18T17:18:00.001+08:00

We start by learning that Riot 6 has a couple new members, Ginga and Marie. Ginga will be joining the forwards temporarily, and Marie, who personally handled the Aces’ devices in the past is joining the tech department. Everybody splits up for their training, the Lightning go with Fate, Vita takes Teana and Nanoha sets Ginga and Subaru against eachother in a mock battle.

The two fight, but Subaru is immediately on the defensive. Ginga charges and attack, and Subaru tries to defend, but she breaks her shield and then Subaru takes a straight shot right to the gut… or so it seems. Subaru blocked the punch with her other hand and counters with a close range Revolver Cannon blasting Ginga backwards. Subaru tries to kick her, but Ginga evades and takes a Wing Road into the sky. The two clash a few more times in the air and are more evenly matched. Ultimately though, Ginga’s experience wins over Subaru’s explosiveness and she stops short of pounding in Subaru’s face. Ginga compliments her on how she fought though.

Afterwards, everybody has compliments on how Subaru is getting faster in her attacks and is nearly approaching Erio in sheer speed. Fate and Nanoha also are very impressed with Ginga’s performance and compliment her appropriately. They then say that the next training will be Ginga and the Cadets against all of the commanders and subcommanders. Ginga’s a bit shocked, but the cadets tell her that they’ve done it before and not to worry.

Elsewhere, in the girl’s bathroom, Vivio is getting cleaned up and for reasons we won’t go into, Zafira is in there with her.

Leaving that creepiness aside, we return to the aftermath of the cadets getting beaten down by the rest, though everybody’s pretty happy with how the sparring went. Ginga is especially impressed that they do this nearly every day. Eventually, Vivio wanders over looking for Nanoha and Fate while being escorted by lady killer and bathroom stalker Zafira.

Vivio runs up to Nanoha and Fate and falls on her face. Fate goes to help her, but Nanoha, ever the heartless bitch, stops her and tells Vivio to get up on her own and keep running to her. Man… what a bitch. Vivio nearly starts to cry, but Fate’s ovaries take over and she trots over to help her up. Nanoha tells Fate that she’s spoiling Vivio, but Fate doesn’t really care.

As a side note, the music for the eyecatch was some kind of terrible synth riff. Who the fuck gave the StrikerS staff a synth?

Everybody’s heading off to get lunch, with Erio carring the world’s largest salad. Vivio isn’t being a good girl and won’t finish her greens. Caro is busy still hitting on Erio as well. Eventually, everybody disperses to do their own boring daily tasks.

Over at the TSAB HQ, Regius is preparing for a meeting with the top three admirals as we’re treated to tinkling chime music. Good ol’ blowhard is getting another rundown about Riot 6 from his evil secretary. He basically says that he wants concrete evidence of misbehavior before he comes forward with a complaint. She tells him that other people from the TSAB are also snooping around internally before checking in with a subordinate about a delayed ‘Einherjar’ (Norse term for warriors recruited by the Valkyrie) project.

There’s also a brief echoy meeting between three numbered screens that is rather generically plotty and evil. Subaru and Ginga are also due for their checkup, so they strip and get on the table.

Over in the cave of numbers, they’re getting their upgrades. Apparently Euno’s arm is cybernetic, so probably most of them are. We also see about four more numbers in tubes and they mention another few more. They also talk about the Gadget Drones, but say that they aren’t worth naming and are garbage… as are themselves, though Sein says that she likes having a name.

Scaglietti is tuning up some new numbers. Nove doesn’t really give a shit what’s going on though, she just wants to know what kind of person the ‘King’ is who will be leading them. Scaglietti turns back to his army of bots and laughes like the true insane villain that he is.

Over at the TSAB Convenience Store, Subaru is feeding Ginga chocolate by hand. Ginga really has Subaru trained well. The two talk about Ginga joining the squad and how they’re looking forward to fighting together and becoming more powerful. Ginga turns serious for a moment though and asks if they’re really serious about going up against the enemy. Eventually, Marie picks her up and Subaru also feeds Marie chocolate. Maybe it’s Subaru who is training them.

The three Aces are having a meeting where they talk about how the prophecy has been decoded a bit more and it’s clear that a meeting in a week is going to be attacked. Riot 6 will be there, but they’re not entirely certain that they’ll be completely prepared for it.

Anyway, I love the new ending of this. I heard there will be a new opening called "Massive Wonders" soon. The ending is "Beautiful Amulet".

Nanoha StrikerS Episode 14: Mothers and Children

2007-07-01T14:08:00.001+08:00

Nanoha wakes up in her huge bed across from Fate with parasite Vivio still attached to her. She detaches Vivio and goes to get dressed, but Vivio starts moaning and searching for her, so Nanoha carries her over to Fate, who acts on her instinctual urge to smother lolis with her chest and does just that.
The cadets are finished with their training for the day and head off to shower and take it easy while Nanoha meets up with parasite Vivio and Ovary-Powered Fate. Vivio finally manages her first words… a request for food.
The cadets and Hayate are doing various paperwork when Hayate calls Teana over and I believe gives her an official commendation from Chrono on how she handled the last mission and wants her to tag along for their meeting in a little while. Fate has taken the Lightning cadets and is telling them that Zafira and Eina (?) are babysitting the parasite while they’re at work.
MEANWHILE, AT THE GALATIC CORE, Barrier Jacket Chrono is commanding his ship. Acous uses his magical powers to summon a cake. Good use of magic, slick. Chrono and Verossa discuss Regius over their shared froofy man-cake. They know that he’s unhappy with Riot 6 and is trying to undermine their efforts. They’re interrupted by Hayate and Teana arriving via Star Trek teleporter.
Back with Fate and the Lightning kiddies… they’re getting a lesson in the Lost Logia and the destruction that they can cause to the world. We get a history lesson on Midchild, magic and the TSAB which is slightly less interesting than it might sound.
Fate looks at Bardiche and thinks back to her meeting last episode with Chrono and Carim. They’re discussing what exactly the prophecy means and its relation to the Lost Logia. This is even less interesting than the history of the TSAB, though the BGM was kind of nice. Carim also says that she’s at Riot 6’s command if they need her.
Subaru has finally finished her deskwork and notices that Nanoha is spacing out. The clock tower chimes, and Nanoha heads off to pick up the parasite from her babysitters while Subaru, bereft of Teana’s loving, ends up tagging along. The next thing we see is Vivio attached to Nanoha’s crotch once again. Subaru suggests that Vivio call Nanoha “mama,” which sets her crying and reattached to Nanoha once more.
Over in Chrono’s lovenest, Hayate is still eating Acous’ cake while Acous shares the data that he has about recent events with Teana in the form of a data chip. He also asks Teana about what she thinks of Hayate and says that he worries about her. Chrono and Hayate keep chattering about generic Riot 6 stuff while Acous does his best to try to snatch Teana away from Vice and Subaru. I like her and all, but why is she so hotly contested while Ginga is still unattached?
The cake apparently finally finished, and the Riot 6 pair gone, Acous and Chrono talk about Riot 6 and how they’re going to protect them. Acous says to leave it to him. I’m already getting traitor vibes from that punk. Hayate and Teana also make small talk as they leave.
In a dark room, General Nakajima is looking at a report on the Numbers attack being given by some scientist (Maria?) and Ginga. Nepotism much? He looks at a picture of their mother as they leave. We also get a quick view of Darth Vader General Regius looking generally cranky.
Back on the Fate/Nanoha honeymoon bed, Nanoha gets Vivio to call Fate ‘mama’ too. This is turning into a regular Happy Lesson. The cadets, meanwhile, are eating the strange food in the cafeteria again. Freaky spaghetti and salads. They talk about Vivio calling Nanoha mother and think about family, mothers and daughters specifically. Isn’t it nice when they work the title of the episode in?
As we fade to black we see Lutecia, Zest and Agito looking on forebodingly at the city. Next week… more Ginga. Thankfully.

Nanoha StrikerS Episode 13: Reason For Living

2007-07-01T13:50:00.001+08:00

Agito wakes up in a white room, not knowing where she is. Her wings are tattered, she is chained down and naked, and then a man comes up to her with a syringe and injects her with something that causes her to yell and convulse while flames appear around her and others stand by with note pads. Then the room explodes. Zest and Lutecia are there, and Zest picks her up off her examination table. The two prepare to leave, but Lutecia stops him, and picks up the tiny Agito to bring with them.
Agito wakes with a start from her dream and thinks back to the encounter with Vita and Rein. She doesn’t know many things, but she does know that she’s sticking with Lutecia, and starts yelling in general at the sky about people who get in her way.
Signum is driving Nanoha in her own pimp-mobile as the two chat about Vivio’s status. Signum then receives a call from Schach that the girl has suddenly disappeared. Schach and Signum search the indoors while Nanoha checks the outside. Nanoha’s the first one to find her, but Schach sees her shortly after and immediately changes into battle mode (her device sounds like “Interceptor” and is a pair of tonfa).
Poor Vivio immediately loses her smirk and goes into terrified mode. Nanoha thanks Schach for the help, and comforts poor Vivio. She asks the kid what she’s doing, and Vivio says that her mama is gone. Nanoha offers to search for her with the kiddo.
Elsewhere, Hayate and Fate are chatting about how the status of the division. They put in a call to Nanoha, only to find Vivio clinging to Nanoha, bawling her eyes out and surrounded by the cadets. Fate and Hayate run over to save Nanoha from the skirt clinger, but not before Hayate gets in a jab at Nanoha finally meeting an opponent that she can’t defeat.
Fate picks up Vivio’s bunny and starts playing with her while mentally chastising the cadets for scaring her shitless. Clearly Fate is the only one of the whole lot with any sort of maternal instincts. Vivio is eventually pacified enough to let the Aces leave, and she gets left in the care of the cadets while the three take Storm Raider over to Carim’s Pad.
Subaru and Teana are filling out reports and whatnot on the latest mission, and of course, Subaru is probably illiterate and Teana finishes first. Subaru is thinking some overly heavy thoughts about the Numbers, so Teana flicks her forehead and knocks her out of her chair and tells her to get back to work.
Carim officially welcomes the Aces to her love nest where Chrono is also hanging out. Hearing Fate call Chrono “onii-chan” is kind of strange and disquieting, but thankfully, he’s as embarrassed by hearing it as I am.
Vivio is finally put to bed by Erio and Caro, letting them have some private time. Erio starts thinking about how she’s probably an artificial mage and her possible relations to Project F.
Chrono and Carim are filling in the Aces on the current shake-ups in the TSAB administration and how it relates to Riot 6. Carim brings out a deck of cards and uses what sounds like “Prophet Sift,” to divine the future. Two of the cards are sent to Nanoha and Fate, who read them and nod. Carim tells them that she has forseen that the Logia will be gathered and that they will be activated and that the TSAB/Riot 6 is going to have… well… let’s just say shit will be ruined. The important part of her prophecy though is “A King will perish, a Tower will fall, and a Ship will sink.” I’ll leave the wild guessing about the meaning to somebody else.
We go back to General Windbag and his evil secretary, who are still discussing Riot 6. They have the complete chart set up of the rankings and relations of it. He notes that Hayate is at the center and thinks more about how Hayate shouldn’t be in charge of it.
Fate and Nanoha excuse themselves from Hayate and prepare to head home. Hayate stops them and says that they’re very important friends and she doesn’t want anything to happen to them, etc etc. Basically a talk between the three about being friends and how everything will be fine. Very droll really.
Erio and Caro are reading to Vivio again when Fate and Nanoha walk in. Vivio immediately jumps up and clings to Nanoha. Hayate heads back to her room and takes out her Book of the Night Sky amulet. She then opens a desk drawer and takes out an old picture album and thinks about Admiral Graham and the death of the first Reinforce and how she is not going to waste the life that those two gave to her.

Nanoha StrikerS Episode 12: Numbers

2007-06-18T20:59:00.001+08:00

This episode starts off with a bang as Agito lays down some carpet fire and the Garyu presses the attack. Teana tries to figure out a plan to deal with them, but luckily, Vita and Rein are just about there and bust into the scene. Rein casts a freezing spell around Agito and Lutecia while Vita knocks away Garyu. Unfortunately, it looks like all three of them escaped. The area is starting to collapse so Subaru creates a wing road to the surface.
Hayate is still up above beating down Gadget Drones, but she’s starting to get tired too. The cranky general from an episode or two isn’t particularly pleased with how things are going with the situation, especially how Hayate’s the one in charge of the situation. He seems mostly uninformed though, while his assistant Shirou is the one full of all the angry looks.
Back with Lutecia, Agito is yelling at ‘Lu-lu’ for dealing with Sacglietti and getting them into this issue while there’s a giant beetle sitting below doing… something. I’m not really sure what. Chains appear out of nowhere and seal the beatle and the Cadet crew leaps to the attack again. Erio’s speed lets him get the drop on Lutecia while Agito finds herself surrounded by daggers. Both are bound and taken in.
Up on a rooftob, we see Quatro and another of the numbers (Siete? We’ll go with that) scouting out the ship where Shamal is holding Vivio (the KOed sewer-loli). I missed the number/name though, sorry. She unveals her weapon, a giant gun cannon and they receive their orders to attack.
Lutecia gets a message from Quatro chewing her out for getting into trouble and asking if she needs help. The team then senses a massive magical buildup for the S-level as Siete charges her weapon. Quatro begins speaking through Lutecia and warns them. Siete fires her gun and tags a direct hit on the copter.
HQ has lost contact with it completely and another artificial human shows up and snatches the Relic-device from Erio by phasing through the ground. The number then saves Lutecia by phasing in the same way. The numbers are celebrating their victory, but the copter reappears out of the debris, protected by Nanoha.
Quatro and are attacked by Fate and chased. Hayate helps to corner them and then rains death on their faces in the form of a giant evil energy ball. They run, but end up trapped between Nanoha and Fate. Another numbers is on the scene though and powering up. Nanoha and Fate shoot at the two, but they sense that it missed.
The new number saved their asses and it looks like she has a technique close to Nanoha’s own flight one. HQ has lost the signals of every one of them. Vita’s a bit cranky and yells at Subaru when she tells Vita that there’s something about the Relic.
The numbers and Lutecia open up the container they stole from Erio… and there’s nothing inside, but it’s marked as VI. They open up the old scans and realize that the cadets hid the Relic in Caro’s hat instead of the case. Furthermore, Teana gave it the illusion of a flower. Up on a building Signum and some unnamed swordswoman dressed like her are watching on.
The numbers are puzzling over the Relic’s case while Lutecia and Agito wander off. At HQ, Vivio has yet to wake up and the staff is still debating on how to deal with her when she wakes up. Nanoha buys a small stuffed bunny for her and places it on the bed next to her and then settles in to wait.
Next episode has more Zest and Agito chained to a wall. Scary.

Nanoha StrikerS Character Lexicon

2007-06-17T21:02:00.000+08:00

PLEASE NOTE: The Pictures, Information are all not by me. I got them from a site. I won't tell you what the link to the site is. LOL. NA-I-SHO!

The Commanders
Chrono Hallaown
Admiral in the Time-Space Administration Bureau. One of the few people who can release Hayate’s limiters. Married Amy and fathered twins at some point. Staff Device: S2U. Spear Device: Durandal

Hayate Yagami
Commander of Riot and Response Division 6. Owner of the Book of the Night Sky. One of the last users of Belka style magic.

The Subcommanders
Nanoha Takamichi
The titular (heh… titular…) character. Needs no introduction. Combat Instructor. Staff Device: Raising Heart. Callsign: Stars 1.

Fate Testarossa-Hallaown
Artificial human created to hunt down the Jewel Seeds long long ago. Adopted into Chrono’s family. Has a girlcrush on Nanoha. Ax Device: Bardiche. Callsign: Lightning 1.

Vita
One of Hayate’s personal knights, the Volkenritter. The eternal loli. Has a girlcrush on Hayate and Nanoha. Hammer Device: Graf Eisen. Callsign: Stars 2.

Signum
One of the Volkenritter. Firm believer that bad children should get the fist. Sword Device: Levantine. Callsign: Lightning 2.

Zafira
You guessed it, another Volkenritter. One of the last two furballs to remain in the show.

Reinforce Zwei
Embodiment of the core program of the Book of the Night Sky. Has been known to wrestle grizzly bears.

The Cadets
Subaru Nakajima
Explosive mini-mecha. Doesn’t mind straddling other girls in their sleep. Gauntlet/Rollerblade Device: Mach Calibur. Callsign: Stars 3.

Teana Lanster
Token twintail tsundere illusionist. Chest size is in constant flux. Gun Device: Cross Mirage. Callsign: Stars 4.

Erio Mondial
Fate’s adopted son. Likely also an artificial human. Has a patented loli-detecting radar. Spear Device: Strada. Callsign Lightning 3.

Caro Ru Lushe
Exiled dragon summoner. Commands Friedrich the white dragon. Can sense other nearby summoning magic. Doesn’t mind being groped. Cock goes where? Glove Device: Kerykeon. Callsign: Lightning 4.

Riot Division 6 Support
Shamal
The last of Hayate’s Volkenritter. Head of Riot 6’s trauma department. Prone to stealing pants. Ring Device: Klarwind.

Shari Finieno
General administrative duties and Nanoha’s adjutant. Dated a mime through college.

Griffith Lowran
Hayate’s personal adjutant. Moonlights at Chippendales.

Vice Granscenic
Ace pilot of the Helicopter Device Storm Raider. Trying to work his way into Variable-Breast-Size-Teana’s bed.

Others Related to the TSAB
Yuuno Scrya
Librarian of the Infinite Library. Nanoha’s old flame. Also… a ferret.

Verossa Acous
Another one of the Belka mages. Hayate’s boytoy and one of her bosses. Voted Nader in 2000.

Carim Gracia
Church mage. The final of the Belka mages. Card carrying Shriner.

Ginga Nakajima
Subaru’s older sister. Veteran investigator for the TSAB. Closet fan of Metallica. Gauntlet/Rollerblade Device: Blitz Calibur.

The Antagonists
Lutecia
Insect Summoner. In search of the Relics. Can summon small insects which strengthen other objects as well as Garyu, a man sized combat-bug-thing. Glove Device: Asclepius

Zest
Lutecia’s guardian knight. Subsists solely on Chinese takeout and pizza.

Jail Scaglietti
Creator of the Gadget Drones. Trying to track down the Jewel Seeds. Has an entire lab full of artificial humans. Probably insane.

Nove
Redheaded artificial human. Eats paste.

Quatro
Bespectacled artificial human. Fancies self an expert sommelier. Victim of Nanoha staff running out of cars to name characters after.

Agito
Tiny angry Etna clone. Doomed to be hit with a copyright violation. In show just to give Rein a rival.

Unknown
Vivo
Escaped artificial human. Discovered leaving sewer by Erio’s loli-radar.

There we are. Hopefully they won’t throw another 4 new characters at me tomorrow.

Nanoha StrikerS Episode 11: Mobile Section Six's Day Off (Part 2)

2007-06-13T15:16:00.001+08:00

We see Carim and Chrono socializing when Signum comes in. We then get the alert that Hayate’s unit is active and we switch back to pimp Erio and all his bitches trying to figure out what’s up with the escaped loli while Nanoha and Fate are en route.

Hayate is briefing Carim, Chrono and Signum on the girl and the Relic-like object chained to her. Meanwhile, the Aces and Shamal have met up and are treating the loli. Suddenly a battalion of both the flier gadget drones and the normal ones start to converge on their location. Vita is in flight and already in full battle mode. Ginga is also preparing to rendezvous with them. Fate and Nanoha are assigned to combat the air units while the cadets are to sortie against the drones.

The cadets all transform in slightly shorter versions of their previous transformation scenes. Basically the exact same thing as before minus the exploding clothes at the start. Nanoha and Fate also transform, though we skip their sequences entirely… thankfully and Rein also heads out of the copter to run wingman for Vice.

Lutecia is lurking on a pole nearby and gets a call from somebody who asks her about sister. Lutecia summons a small black blob thing and teleports with it away to search for something.

The drones are moving at a faster speed than expected, so the cadets and Ginga are having to scramble to get into position. On the way, Erio asks Subaru about Ginga. Ginga also transforms en route, no sequence though.

Fate and Nanoha are easily handling the sky units while Ginga does some last minute briefing to Hayate and Carim/Chrono about the nature of the things she found and that they may need to be careful about the girl that they found as she was artificially created as a result of powerful magic.

Caro’s Kerykeon glows again and they realize that they’re nearby the drones. Vita and Rein have pretty much finished off the drones in the air, but then suddenly a gigantic fleet of them appears and surrounds them and the two Aces lead by a previously unseen female mage.

The number of air drones is astounding, so Hayate prepares to deploy. Nanoha and Fate are holding their own for the moment, but they’re under heavy attack and aren’t entirely certain how to handle the situation.

Hayate radios in that she’s on the scene and ready to fight alongside them. Chrono is also standing by and releases her limiter a couple levels to let her deal with the situation allowed her to become Super Sayajin Magical Girl Level S.

The cadets are still guardin the sewers from the drones, but Kerykeon is still showing that Lutecia is nearby. Then a wall explodes and Ginga bursts out. Her gauntlet and roller blades are similar to Subaru’s in use.

Hayate thanks HQ for their good work and lets herself run wild with the book of the night sky. There’s some really nice BGM here, if not particularly well suited to the scene. Hayate charges up a blast and annihilates the area, which takes out the vast majority of the drones.

The cadets are still fighting in the sewers though and we get to see Ginga and Subaru’s combo attack against one of the sphere drones. Ginga distracts it, and then Subaru tags it with a point blank Divine Buster.

Every thing is done, but suddenly they hear a series of richochets, and a nearly invisible beast attacks Caro. Erio leaps to block it but gets tossed aside. It then becomes visible which distracts them long enough for Lutecia to pick up the Relic box. Subaru and Ginga attack the beast, and knock it back.

Lutecia was walking away, and Subaru yells at her to stop. She pauses for a moment, and invisible Tea materializes with her gun dagger at Lutecia’s throat. Before Tea can take her hostage, the red-haired girl drops a huge magical flash, distracting Tea long enough for the beastie to kick her away. She tries to shoot Lutecia, but the beast jumps in the way and takes the shot.

Our tiny little redhead (seriously looks like an Etna clone) tells them to prepare for a fight… episode end. Next episode, we get more action, more Hayate, and more of the new mages.

Nanoha Episode 13: Call My Name (END)

2007-06-04T12:41:00.001+08:00

As expected, the final episode is mostly a denoument, with bits of humour thrown throughout. It does, nevertheless, have plenty of touching scenes, making for a memorable end to the series.

So without further ado, I suppose I should wrap this up, ne?

Of note here is that the episode title for episode 12 were characters on a black background, while for this episode, they're characters on a white background. I'm feeling cheery already.

As the Garden of Time explodes, Nanoha-chan grabs Fayt-chan, again with a white background. Nanoha-chan presumably guides Fayt-chan out safely, as next we see them the action is over and everyone's on the Asura.

Nanoha is suitably rewarded for her efforts - a scrap of paper she'll never be able to show anyone at home (well, not and have them believe her). Still, of course, it's the intangible benefits that count, right?

They have one final meal together, discussing Precia's fate. Interestingly, everyone seems very intent on dismissing both her, and Alhazred, denying to themselves that anything will come of it. They were adamant enough that I almost expected Precia to show up right then and there - but I suppose they're saving that for the sequel :).

Nanoha-chan beams home (Yuuno-kun in tow) in a scene reminiscent of old-school `Star Trek', after a suitable good-bye, and a promise to meet again. Fayt-chan (and Arf by proxy) are awaiting trial but Chrono assures Nanoha-chan they'll get off. After all, she was only doing what she was required to do as Precia's mother (giri). A subtle hint, perhaps, that one should do what the group demands, and then things will work out in the end.
Of course Nanoha-chan's homecoming is full of happiness and such. Everyone's thrilled to see her back. Bonds are revisted yet again.
Then Nanoha-chan gets the news that Fayt-chan is being transferred for her trial, but she gets one chance to see her before she goes. Notably this is the first time in the series that Fayt-chan smiles (that I recall, anyway). She asks to be friends, officially. How does one do that? Simply call each other by name, Nanoha-chan replies.
Well, that was easy enough.
Arf comments on how much Fayt-chan is smiling. Yuuno-kun puts his hand on her cheek. Very cute. :)
The two exchange hair ribbons. Notably they're the only two main characters to wear hair ribbons - everyone else just lets their hair out. Thus, the ribbons are a sense of each character's identities, and by exchanging them, they're exchanging a unique part of themselves (The ED credits show them each wearing the others', in tribute).
Fayt-chan waves goodbye to Nanoha-chan, but the theme of this whole episode is on beginnings. Part of this is to set up the sequel, I'm sure, but it's also part of the cycle of life. Even endings, Nanoha comments in the intro, are really beginnings.

And so the series is over at last. Those last few episodes went by pretty quick.

Overall, it was a nice series. It's got a nice theme - I'd not be afraid to label it `wholesome', and is a nice intro piece for the mahou shoujo genre. The plot may be a little simple for some folks - I found it wrapped up a little too neatly, overall. There were a couple places where I anticipated plot twists, but there were none, so in that respect I'm a little disappointed :).

As well, at thirteen episodes the series is a little short to empathize too much with the characters. Not that I didn't, but it can't match the longevity-induced empathy found in [[Card Captor Sakura]], for example.

That said, no one should shy away from the series (unless they're allergic to mahou shoujo in general). It does the genre proud, and is worth a few hours of your time, if for nothing more than to ponder the bonds in your own life. The people you depend on, the people who depend on you - they all make up a complex network we know of as society.

And, as we see here, each bond in that society is precious.

Nanoha Episode 12: The Time of the Sealing of Our Fates

2007-06-04T12:37:00.001+08:00

Fate-chan collapsed last time over the dissolution of her primary (and most `real') amae bond. Arf takes her to the infirmary, then leaves to join the others, fighting to stop Precia. Fayt-chan awakes to see Arf and Fayt-chan, commenting over her relationship with each. She resolves to join them, and takes off..
Another parallel here. Fayt-chan appears to help out Nanoha-chan while in a pinch, and, of course, her aiding strike comes from above. Divine redemption indeed.
Arf and Fayt-chan's bond is reaffirmed...
and one is forged between Nanoha-chan and Fayt-chan, as the latter takes the former up on her offer of friendship.
There's an awful lot of white used here in the background - perhaps an indication of them having found `truth'? They've certainly found their path (as was noted a couple episodes ago, for Nanoha-chan, and just now, for Fayt-chan). They've `seen the light' (heh). Indeed, here Nanoha-chan appears to be `showing the Way' to everyone. The symbolism of a shepherd guiding sheep may be a little too much, but the idea of a shepherd as a guardian and guide is certainly appropriate.
One final time, Fayt-chan offers to rebuild the amae relationshp between her and her mother - because she's obliged to (giri). Precia, however, turns her away. Precia herself disappears into a dimensional rift (or something) taking the tank containing Alicia with her.

The majority of the next episode seems to be the denoument, so there may not be many new points to bring up, but certainly plenty are raised here.

It's important to note that in mahou shoujo series in general, magic is used as a realization of more abstract concepts - feelings, bonds of friendship, et cetera. The genre as a rule tends to be aimed to the younger set, so such concepts are fairly easy to spot (I often feel as though I'm belabouring the obvious), but that does not diminish their importance.

Well, one more episode to go, so stay tuned. You never know, something really neat might happen.

Nanoha Episode 11: Memories That Lie Beyond Time

2007-06-04T12:34:00.001+08:00

Lots of interesting stuff here. I'll try to highlight a few points. First, Fayt-chan remembers some of her past, when her mother called her `Alicia'. However, in these flashbacks, she rebells at being called thus. The name seems wrong..yet this is the one time in the series where the amae relationship between the two unfolds. Precia's description of their bond speaks exactly along these lines.
The Nanoha-chan vs. Fayt-chan battle commences. Throughout the series, Precia has delivered `divine punishment' to Fayt-chan in the form of lightning from the sky. Note that here, as Nanoha-chan delivers the winning blow (after a long battle), it is also from the sky, in a form of `divine redemption'. Nanoha-chan `forgives' Fayt-chan after the win.
We learn lots about `Alicia' - she's the girl in the tank behind Precia's throne room. A reincarnation of her daughter whom she lost due to a screwup in a magical experiment a long time ago. Fayt-chan is a `doll' to her, instilled with Alicia's memories to tide her over until she got the `real' Alicia up and working.

Note the parallel here between Precia (creating) Fayt-chan and Fayt-chan (creating) Arf. There is an amae relationship in the latter, almost as though it's what Fayt-chan, in the mother role, wished there to have been in the former.

The final blow in the Precia - Fayt-chan relationship is struck. Precia never loved Fayt-chan, in fact, she always hated her. Despite Fayt-chan being obligated (giri) to return to her mother, Precia here has disintegrated the amae bond. Amae is always a two-way street, and with Precia's dismissal of Fayt-chan, the bond is destroyed without a trace.

Nanoha Episode 10: Everybody's Separate Heart-felt Vows

2007-06-04T12:32:00.001+08:00

The fates are being rather unkind to Fayt-chan (pun intended). Her mother (whom we learned is named Precia) seems more preoccupied with herself and someone named Alicia. Who might that be?, one wonders. In previous episodes, it seems as though Fayt-chan was the only person with whom Precia shared a bond, but now things aren't as clear.
Arf had confronted Precia about Fayt-chan's latest beating, and escaped by the fur on her teeth. Who but Arisa-chan should find her, wounded, in a woodland trail? This scene is eerily reminiscent of finding Yuuno-kun in the very first episode.
Is there some kind of rule that mahou shoujo heroines (and supporting characters) all enjoy venturing around into the wilderness to rescue injured animals? Isn't that kinda dangerous? Even for a Yankee like Arisa-chan?
Anyway, Arisa-chan invites Nanoha-chan and Suzuka-chan over to have a look at this nifty big dog. Nanoha-chan and Yuuno-kun of course recognize her and get her to spill the details of what's going on. Precia is messing with illegal magical experiments, and has to be stopped before world start getting destroyed. In return, she asks Nanoha-chan to save Fayt-chan.
Time for a bit of bonding between friends. The three girls get to chat a bit and reaffirm their bond.
We then cut to Nanoha-chan and her family, re-establishing her familial amae relationships. I don't know what Captain Lindy told her parents (we aren't told), but it sounds like it was quite inventive. :) Again, contrast this with Precia's orders to Fayt-chan to recover more Jewel Seeds.
Next day, Nanoha-chan challenges Fayt-chan to a final battle, with their respective Jewel Seeds on the line. Everyone from the Bureau meanwhile is preparing to arrest Precia (one they track her down, that is).

It's worth noting here that both Arf and Nanoha-chan attempt to talk Fayt-chan out of her mission, but she refuses - her relationship with her mother is too strong. This sounds a little trite (espeically because I just learned of this the other day!), but it seems to be a conflict between 義理 and 人情, just like in classic yakuza films (Amae relationships are prevalent in this genre as well). In such films, however, giri inevitably wins out, and the junior in the relationship is bound to return to the group. If she keeps screwing up, though, her mother may not want her...

Nanoha Episode 09: The Decisive Battle Above the Ocean!

2007-06-04T12:29:00.001+08:00

There are six Jewel Seeds left to be found. Fayt-chan does some reckless stuff and tries to activate all six at once. Interestingly the crew of the Asura have been watching over her (and Nanoha-chan) all this time. Their responsibility is to keep anyone from messing with space-time, though, and they aren't afraid to lose a rogue mage or two in the process, if need be...
Nanoha-chan has a heart-to-heart with Yuuno-kun, and they speak about their experiences being alone, growing up.
The two head out to keep Fayt-chan from getting killed, and Nanoha-chan sees Fayt-chan is as sad as ever..
..and finally gains enlightenment - what people want when they're sad is someone to take even just half of that burden away..interdependency :). She offers to be Fayt-chan's friend (again, I think).
Arf butts in though, taking Fayt-chan away. Arf only has this one relationship - if Fayt-chan weren't dependant on her, where would that leave her? While I don't doubt her intentions that she wants to ensure Fayt-chan's safety, she doesn't want to leave the job to anyone else. In an odd kind of way, Fayt-chan needing to be protected likewise provides Arf a reason for existence.

Likewise, this incident was generated by (ostensibly) Fayt-chan's mother attacking both Fayt-chan herself, and the others, via lightning. Her mother has only one relationship, as well - with Fayt-chan. And she isn't going to let anyone else take her away, either.

As a result, Fayt-chan is at the middle of three incomplete amae relationships: a twisted one with her mother, one with Nanoha-chan which hasn't come to maturity yet, and one with Arf in which she takes a motherly role in (yet hasn't had the best in guidance in that regard..). Each opposite is likewise trying to pull her in their direction. So, which way will she get tugged next?

Nanoha-chan and friends are left behind. Things didn't go quite as well as planned. If my numbers are right, Fayt-chan and her mother have 9 Jewel Seeds between them, quite a catch. And since even a few could cause worlds to be destroyed...well, better strap on those running shoes, Nanoha-chan. There's only a few more episodes left, and you've got a lot of ground to cover.

Just a few more episodes left..it'll be interesting to see who's dependant on whom, after the dust all settles.

Nanoha Episode 08: There's A Really Big Crisis?

2007-06-04T12:25:00.001+08:00

We get a few light moments in this episode as Nanoha-chan adjusts to the new interdimensional reality. Her mission is a lot more important than she realized. And, more importantly, Yuuno-kun's a guy :).
We learn a bit about the Jewel Seeds (Lost Logia), which are essentially the artefacts of an Atlantean myth - a hyper-advanced culture that ended up destroying itself (shades of Escaflowne, anyone?). The allegory here seems to be on the consequences of power exceeding responsibility - in this case, carried to the extreme, as while the responsibility of the citizens in the lost world were confined to one world, the consequences were actually felt across many other worlds.

In a way, this series seems to try to one-up others in its genre ("what, you're just trying to save your own world? I'm trying to save a whole bunch!"), while also emphasizing the power at use here. Why random 10-year olds are entrusted with this power is beyond my ken, but there it is. I suppose if Nanoha-chan were not so pure of heart I would not be typing this today.

We get a short glimpse into Fayt-chan's past - her mother does look a fair bit kinder back then. Again, this is the amae that Fayt-chan is desperately trying to regain.
Nanoha-chan meanwhile speaks with her mother, and explains as much as is believable. Note that the amae culture tends towards mothers allowing children to take on such tasks, unlike Americans which tend to be more strict about such things :p. Anyway, this scene empahsizes the dual dependancy between Nanoha-chan and her mother.
Fayt-chan and Arf's relationship, on the other hand, is a bit strained. While they do have each other, they're acting alone, and on the run. Arf isn't thrilled about this, but promises to back Fayt-chan as long as it's for her sake, and no one else. That is, Arf will allow Fayt-chan to depend on her, but won't let her mother depend on her.

About Nanoha/A's/StrikerS

2007-06-04T12:16:00.000+08:00

Description:
Alternative Titles
Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha (Japanese)
魔法少女リリカルなのは(ストライカーズ）(Japanese)

Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha:

Yuuno Scraia is a mage from a distant planet working to fix the problem he started when Jewel Seeds were accidentally spread around the world. In a failed attempt to seal a seed properly, he winds up on Earth in the form of a ferret. However, his battle with the seeds did not end upon reaching the Earth and he needs somebody else's help to seal the seeds for him. Takamachi Nanoha hears his telepathic cries for help and comes to his rescue. When she is given a pearl known as the Raging Heart she is able to transform into Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha and wield a staff to fend off the evil that lies within the Seeds. In order to help Yuuno complete his mission, she needs to seal all 21 Jewel Seeds away, but Fate may be playing a hand in the matter to prevent Nanoha's goals.

Magical Girl Lyical Nanoha A's:

Several months after Nanoha first became a Magical Girl, she still is unable to personally meet with her new close friend, Fate Testarossa, who is being tried in the Space / Time Administration Bureau for her association in the Lost Logia case. They still communicate through video-mail and hope to see each other in-person once again. Their reunion is not a happy one, unfortunately, as several people who call themselves "Velka-Type Knights" battle Nanoha above the city. Their objective is to fill the pages of the Book of Darkness by stealing the magical power of anyone they can find. Nanoha and Fate must once again team up to stop their plans and save the world.

Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha StrikerS:

Set 10 years after Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha A's, Takamachi Nanoha, Fate T. Harlaown and Yagami Hayate are now working full time in the Time-Space Administration Bureau. Following her dream of creating an elite squad, Hayate forms the 6th mobile division to deal with any emergency including the Lost Logia cases. Nanoha and Fate have taken 4 new recruits under their wing and they must prepare them for battle as a new Lost Logia appears. Combat Trainer Ace Nanoha, Enforcer Ace Fate and Commanding Officer Lieutenant Colonel Hayate must unite once again to save the dimensions.

Nanoha StrikerS Episode 10: Mobile Section Six's Day Off (Part 1)

2007-06-04T01:00:00.001+08:00

The episode starts with Subaru straddling and groping Teana. Really… anything after that is a disappointment.

“Tea! Asa da yo!” I’m having Kanon flashbacks. Except I’m pretty sure that Nayuki never straddled Yuuichi and grabbed his chest to wake him up. Tea finally awake, she kicks Subaru off her and starts stomping on her. Erio and Caro are also getting along more and more, yada yada, things are back to normal.

Nanoha gives the cadets promotions and a day off with the permission of Fate and Vita, and they’re also told to go check in with Shirley about having their limiters altered to allow them to use their devices’ second modes.

Over in the lunch hall, the aces and Velka Knights are listening to a news cast about some Aegis thing. A general comes on and starts ranting about increasing militarization and the like while everybody just sort of glares at the TV. The aces recognize a few of the people sitting behind him and talk about them instead of listening to the windbag.

Tea is trying to pick up Griffith for his sweet motorbike, or perhaps trying to pick up the bike. I’d have loved a Golden Boy motorcycle scene here… if you catch my drift. Man… I’m really dating myself here. Anyway, Griffith lets her have the bike and she rides off.

Erio is being groomed by Fate who tells him to make sure to be a proper pimp escort to Caro. Erio is speechless at Caro in formal wear. It is pretty cute I suppose. Tea and Subaru take off into town on the bike while the lightning runts walk. I swear, all the magical power in the universe and they end up on foot and a motorcycle.

The background music here begins to excessively abuse the synth. That’s what I took more from a brief conversation between Signum, Nanoha, Fate and Vita than actual content. Shirley and Rein are doing general checkups on the devices… Raising Heart in particular.

Then it turns out that Rein needs to inspected as well, so she strips and summons the book and enters a testtube. I’m honestly not kidding here.

Subaru and Tea are enjoying their bike ride while Erio and Caro are looking over the schedule prepared for them by Shirley. Erio and Caro chat about Fried for awhile on the train and how Fried really likes Erio now, blah blah blah. Then in a true dating game moment, Caro is bumped on the train and ends up holding hands with Erio.

Tea and Subaru are enjoying ice cream, and I swear to Zeus, Teana’s chest has grown again. That’s about the extent of that.

Back at the office, Rein reports that she checked out just fine to Hayate.

Caro and Erio are watching kids play with their parents in the park and Caro reminisces about Fate taking care of her when she was sad. Subaru calls Erio to check up on them and see what they’ve got planned, whereupon they recite Shirley’s schedule. A little later, wife mode Subaru is feeding Tea on a bridge.

At the sight of an accident, Ginga is investigating destruction caused by a relatively unknown force. She then comes upon a destroyed drone and some new type of container.

We go over to our insane doctor who is chatting with some new purple haired woman. A new person comes in who sounds like Yuuno honestly, but looks like she’s wearing a jacket designed after Nanoha’s. She’s has short red hair though and some facial marks/tatoos, I’ll get a cap when a better raw comes up. The doctor dismisses her as we see that Lutecia is watching the city from the top of a sky scraper.

In the sewers, a small brunette girl dressed in rags is chained to and dragging a couple giant weights. Erio suddenly senses something and looks around. He takes off running and looks down an alley to see the girl crawl out of the sewer. Caro sends out an emergency alert that they found a girl with relic-looking devices chained to her. HQ tells them that they’re on their way and to protect her and the relic devices attached to her.

Nanoha StrikerS — the S is for Sucks!!!

2007-06-03T14:30:00.000+08:00

I did not write this, and i hate the guy who did. Read the following:
"It seems like the entire world is against me on this, but I hate Nanoha. The entire series is generic and uninspired. The story is cliched and predictable. The characters are flat (in more than one way) and uninteresting.

I thought that maybe it’s because I am not a lolicon. Maybe it would be better if the girls were older. Nanoha StrikerS sounded like a pretty good idea. But apparently, I was wrong. It’s just as boring as ever. Let me summarize the first episode the way I saw it…

First we are introduced to Subaru, a generic hyperactive (as emphasized by her bandanna, her hand guards and her rollerskates) girl who was rescued by Nanoha from a fire and spent the following years of her life fantasizing about having hawt lesbian relationship with her saviour. I hate her.

Next to her is Teana, a generic tsundere twin-tail redhead who obviously has the hawts for Subaru but refuses to admit it due to her over-inflated pride. She is secretly jealous of Nanoha’s position in Subaru’s heart but at the same time she refuses to be true to her feelings and desperately tries to convince herself that she is straight. In other words, she’s a textbook example of tsunderekko. She carries a revolver that can also act as a grappling hook, making it one of the most innovative weapons in the entire series. Not.

The two of them are taking the qualifying exam to become serfs of the Space Time Administration. In order to pass the test to become agents for this paramilitary organization that seems to hire nearly nothing but girls, something that would’ve gotten it sued by ACLU if Japan were America, Subaru and Teana must destroy a bunch of targets within a set amount of time. Targets that move slower than the Earth’s tectonic plates and shoot tiny pulses of beams that look like they can’t even power a pocket calculator.

But somehow Teana manages to get owned anyway. The over-confident tsundere girl getting owned by a puny target drone? How unexpected. Clearly a new benchmark for future plot twists in the series.

And what is even more unexpected is that despite the leg injury suffered by Teana, the two of them managed to come up with a daring and vague plan to destroy the final boss which happens to be a large generical spherical object. Shocking. I was so touched by the friendship and love they displayed through their splendid teamwork that I weeped. Or maybe it’s just sand.

At this point I decided that maybe I should stop watching before the awesomeness of this show overwhelms my brain’s capacity and drives me insane with its sheer brilliance. But it was too late. My body refused to respond and I couldn’t lift my hands to reach for the left mouse button. I resigned to my fate (LOL FATE).

So anyway the two girls passed their test. Hurray! I didn’t see that one coming. Nanoha makes her grand entrance with a face that’s just as loli as ever. Apparently people in this show don’t grow older, they just grow bigger and taller. Either that or the character designer needs to work on his proportions.

Subaru immediately goes into wai wai fangirl mode and attempts to glomp Nanoha. Teana pretends to not care but curses Nanoha in her heart. And they live happily ever after. The end.

Actually, I admit that I’m not being fair to the episode with this summary… I made it sound more interesting than it really is. :/"

Sorry about the bad language and everything. And the reviews of the episodes were not by me either. I took them from other websites. The difference is that I have videos and the name of the episodes and they don't. MOHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

Nanoha Episode 07: The Third Mage!?

2007-06-03T13:50:00.002+08:00

After a recap we see a segment in which Nanoha-chan watches her sister practice swordsmanship in the morning. She speaks telepathically with Yuuno-kun about wanting to know more about Fayt-chan. The scene cuts back and forth between Miyuki's sword strikes and images of Fayt-chan. The meaning of this isn't terribly clear here, but gets revealed somewhat in episode 10.
Meanwhile Fayt-chan is going to visit her mother to give her a status update. Arf doesn't look too happy about this prospect - she terms her mother either `あの人' or `あの女'. Nanoha-chan herself seems awfully sad when she senses the two beam up (or whatever you want to call it).
Turns out the apprehension was justified. It's difficult to find a loving kind of amae between Fayt-chan and her mother. While they are dependant on each other in a way, it seems to be a rather sado-masochistic dependency.
We do get hints that there used to be a `normal' amae between Fayt-chan and her mother. For now, however, the relationship has been supplanted, in part, by a more conventional emotional bond, between Fayt-chan and Arf. Fayt-chan here acts as a mother figure (she created Arf, after all), but we can clearly see the two-way dependancy. Arf is terribly worried (to the point of seriously freaking out), and only wants Fayt-chan to be happy (as any good daughter should :p), but Arf also functions as a protector for Fayt-chan.
A charming fellow by the name of Chrono comes in from the spaceship Asura, on behalf of the `Time-Space Administration Bureau'. We met him and some of his fellow crewmates earlier, interestingly to the tune of military music. In his capacity today he seems to be acting as a mediator..but Arf doesn't wait, and gets Fayt-chan out of there as fast as she can. It seems the two really have something to hide...
We see this even more in upcoming episodes, but Arf is taking a more proactive approach to protecting Fayt-chan - likely a result of the beating she took earlier at the hands of her mother (Arf commented afterward that, had she knew what was going to happen, she would have stopped Fayt-chan, no matter what..).

At this point, Fayt-chan seems almost senile (and she's what, ten years old?). She's trying to get her mother back the way she used to be - to regain that amae dependency. She's very dependant on her mother (she is ten, after all - who wouldn't?), but as her mother isn't responding in a very helpful manner, Fayt-chan instead latches on to the memory of her mother, who she could depend on. It seems, however, that she's descending more and more into this escapist fancy, and clearly can't go on indefinitely.

Nanoha Episode 06: Feelings That Can't Be Understood?

2007-06-03T13:42:00.002+08:00

There are times in one's life where one begins to excel at a certain task - either by chance, in the course of pursuing your dream, or because circumstances force it upon you. One reaches a point where they are confident in their own skills in this area - no one is better than they.

But, we all live in a bubble - a small subset of the real world. As we grow and our understanding of the world expands, so too does that bubble expand. And it isn't long before one finds out that there is indeed someone better than themself - even at the thing that one has been striving for their whole life. This is a critical point for many - how does one handle this realization? For some, they acknowledge to themselves that there must be someone superior, somewhere - but even so, facing them for the first time can be daunting. Moreso for those who refuse to admit such a fact.

Under this pressure, it is easy to crack, and feel as though one is inferior to everyone - taking the inverse to the extreme. One withdraws from the world - there is already someone better than they - so there's no point in them even trying, ne?

Of course, we also each have our own unique take on any one thing - there are plenty of people out there better than I at summarizing anime, but none ramble on quite the same way I do ^_^. And it's that realization - the knowledge than one can provide something unique to the world, even if that uniqueness isn't perfect - that is really needed at a time like this.

Currently it seems as though Nanoha-chan is facing that crisis. What will she do, I wonder?

Nanoha-chan is feeling a little overwhelmed after the last incident between her and Fayt-chan. She's taken a propensity to zoning out and not paying attention to her friends, which Yankee Arisa-chan takes offense to.
Both Arisa-chan and Suzuka-chan are certain Nanoha-chan is worrying over something, but she won't tell them (for what, we know, are obvious reasons). Still, they'd like to be able to help her, even if it only means commiserating with her..
A short scene as it's apparent Nanoha-chan brought them all together. The two of them obviously feel in debt to her - but Nanoha-chan isn't the type of gal who'd ask others for help.
Nanoha-chan ends up walking home alone - the first time in quite a while. So she's alone both emotionally and physically. Not a conducive environment to lifting one's spirits.
Arisa-chan is riding along with Suzuka-chan in Arisa-chan's limo (must be nice to have a rich Yankee as a friend). They chat a little - Suzuka-chan was even shier before they met, while Arisa-chan was even more Yankee-ish (can you believe it?). It seems as though meeting Nanoha-chan showed them both the postive aspects of themselves, and brought them together. I can definitely see a little of each of them in Nanoha-chan.

A series of flashbacks reveal what happened - Arisa-chan had taken something of Suzuka-chan's (her headband, it looks like) and was teasing her about it - when Nanoha-chan stepped in and slapped her. And then said:

Does that hurt? The hearts of people who have their precious things taken away from them, hurt a lot more.
I think it's quite a relevant quote, although it may not become fully apparent until later on. Suffice it to say that Nanoha-chan obviously places a higher value on emotions than on material things (rather endearing, really).

(Nanoha-chan stops on the way home to try to pull herself together.)
So, Arisa-chan and Nanoha-chan had gotten into a bit of a fight, and it was Suzuka-chan who'd stepped in and broken them up. (On another level, a case could be made for the symbolism of traffic - while they're talking about the gap between them, and their first fight, the limo was stuck in a traffic jam. As they realize they have to let Nanoha-chan do what she can on her own, and offer her encouragement, a lane suddenly opens and the limo takes off..)
Nanoha-chan made it back home, and tells Yuuno-kun about the events of the day over some taiyaki. She wants to go looking for some Jewel Seeds that evening..(presumably, to redeem herself - to make her feel as though she really is doing the right thing.)
Cut to Arf, in full kawaii-kitsune form, munching on some snacks. She goes to check on Fayt-chan. She hasn't eaten much (if any) of her dinner, doesn't look too happy, and seems to have some scratch marks on her back..she didn't make it out of their last meeting unscathed.
Well, she's going out hunting, too. Even though she's really pushing it. Since, of course, her mother really wants those seeds...
We're back at Midori-ya (Nanoha-chan's family's famires - I almost said 'Angel's Kiss'!), where Shinobu-san (Suzuka-chan's older sister) is conversing with Kyouya-san, Nanoha-chan's brother. Seems she's noticed Nanoha-chan is kinda down in the dunps. She offers to speak to her..but as Kyouya-san mentions, Nanoha-chan is the kind of girl that keeps her problems to herself. Even though this is a pretty blasted big problem for a third-grader.
It's a little after 7pm, and Nanoha-chan still hasn't found anything. Yuuno-kun offers to look around a little while she heads back to dinner. She pauses momentarily to check her email on her cell phone..no one's sent her anything. It's pretty clear that while she doesn't want to ask anyone for help, she really does want someone's help.
Or maybe, need someone's help. Fayt-chan is on the scene, and Arf releases a blast of magic to try to get a jewel seed to activate. Considering that it blacks out the city and causes a serious transformation in weather patterns, I'd say it's a big blast of magic.
Nanoha-chan detects this and transforms. Yuuno-kun detects it and thinks "Oh my god, we're screwed!". All right, not exactly, but I bet he's thinking that. Arf notices Nanoha-chan's transformation, and Fayt-chan sets up to seal the jewel seed before anyone can get in her way.
Nanoha-chan and Fayt-chan's sealing spells hit the seed (number 14, for the bean-counters at home) at exactly the same time.
In a flash of cluelessness, Nanoha-chan walks up to the seed and gazes at it, remembering the aformentioned meeting between her, Arisa-chan, and Suzuka-chan. Meanwhile Fayt-chan is, no doubt, heading there at full speed.

She does bring up an important point though - communication is the most important part of a relationship (right? ^_^) There's a parallel between that meeting, and the gap between her and Fayt-chan now.

Still, the whole let's-all-be-friends-okay? sequence, while destined to take place someday (this is mahou shoujo, so there's no getting around it), it doesn't mean it's going to happen right now. Fayt-chan has her own goals, and she needs the jewel seed to satisfy them.

Cut to Arisa-chan and Suzuka-chan, after music practice, where Suzuka-chan is sending an email to Nanoha-chan. And man, is she fast at it or what.
Back to the battle between mahou shoujo.. Once again Nanoha-chan gives up her advantage to explain that she wants to learn more about Fayt-chan.. She explains why she's doing this (originally to help Yuuno-kun, and now to protect the city). Fayt-chan is about to answer her..but since it is Too Early In The Series ™, Arf interrupts and tells her not to bother...they're there for the jewel seed, not to have tea.
The two girls dash for the jewel seed, each of them hitting it at exactly the same time with their staff..and the resulting magical force cracks them both, sending up a brilliant light that even Suzuka-chan seems to notice.
Suzuka-chan sees that she hasn't got a reply back yet from Nanoha-chan (it's been what, five minutes?), and so she gets into Arisa-chan's to head home... and credits roll.

So we'll have to wait until next time to see what happens. Judging by the preview, though, it looks like Fayt-chan doesn't come on top, and her mother is none too happy.

I think there's an important theme running through the episode. In the intro, I talked about how each person brings their own uniqueness to the world, and implied that Nanoha-chan needed to learn this for herself. While that would make a 'good lesson (i.e. 'Everyone is special', I think that's more of an artificial theme based on recent circumstances. It could be ironic, actually, given that the characters are all stereotyped rather heavily.

So let me try again, and pick a theme more or less at random. The first one I can think of that might apply is 'belonging' - a kind of relationship where one feels at ease (or at home) with another.

First off, we have the 'simple' belonging, such as Nanoha-chan's parents with each other, Shinobu-san with Ryouya-san. While it's more outspoken in the first can than the second, it's obvious the two pairs feel at home together.

Nanoha-chan's sense of belonging with her friends is under strain right now - she's keeping her mahou shoujo-ness from them. The other two, though, seem resolved to stick by her, even though they don't know what it is that troubles them.

Fayt-chan's belonging with her mother is still to be revealed, but it seems to be a bit darker than Nanoha-chan's. Still, she doesn't question it one bit. It will be interesting to see how this works out. How does Fayt-chan feel that she belongs with her mother?

Even though it's been a while since I've seen the last episode, and I'm very behind writing about them, this one episode has got me back into the flow already. More to come. ^_^

Nanoha Episode 05: This is Like a Town of Hot Water, The Uminari Hot Springs!

2007-06-03T13:39:00.002+08:00

Well, we've had our rival appear, and it looks like Nanoha-chan has her work cut out for her. I don't think she feels much like a 'normal third grader' anymore. At least, with her (usual) optimism and all-around niceness, she has folks like me cheering for her ^_^...

As we begin this episode Nanoha-chan is dreaming, or at least deep in thought. She believes that everyone has many paths in front of them, and that they just end up following one at random (or by choice?). She obviously is not a believer in predestiny..which could become important later on since it looks like her rival is pretty set in her ways.
Well, enough of that pondering. It's Golden Week! And everyone's off to enjoy their week off at an onsen (except for some of their lowly peons employees, who stay behind to tend their shop).
It's a pretty big vacation for them, as not only are Arisa-chan and Suzuka-chan coming along, but so is Shinobu-san, and the Tsukimura family's maids, whom we met last episode.
Yuuno-kun cautions her to relax and enjoy herself, which she really needs after the stress of her last battle..er, loss.
Well, time to relax, then! This being a hot spring, there's lots of bathing, and towels, and ... stuff. Now, Yuuno-kun may be a guy and all, but remember that cute lil' ferrets get exclusive admission to female baths. He's not taking it too easy. Even though it's predictable, it's still funny. These are the least fanservice-y pics I could take out of the whole scene.
So despite Yuuno-kun's pleas, he of course ends up in the women's bath along with Nanoha-chan.
Short scene here with Nanoha-chan's parents. Enough to signify that there's more to their past than they're letting on. To wit, Shiro-san (the father):

Well..you and the kids don't need to worry about me anymore.
How many times have I said that mahou shoujo's magic is inherited more often than not? How many times? Well, here's one more.

Well, baths are over for the kids, and so Arisa-chan, Suzuka-chan, and Nanoha-chan are wandering around, deciding where to go next..
A rather cunning-looking lady (as in evil cunning) spots the three of them and walks up to Nanoha-chan, asking if she's the one 'that she was talking about'. If the odd jewel in her forehead doesn't mark her as strange (probably not, with what 'normal' teenagers do nowadays..), then her not-so-subtle remarks about Nanoha-chan definitely should.
Having a Yankee friend does come in handy as Arisa-chan uses her Gaijin Smash ability to fend off this annoying woman.

Under that pressure, the lady feigns innocence and remarks that she must have the wrong person. Nanoha-chan, of course, immediately falls for it, but Arisa-chan looks a little wiser..

Nanoha-chan gets an abrupt call back to reality as the lady telepathically calls out to her..and warns her to stay out of other people's business. Given hair colour (and the OP), and all that's gone on, I think I'm allowed to safely conclude she's Rival Girl's partner by now (I've already seen up to Episode 6, but I'm trying to keep from saying things too early... ^_^).
Arisa-chan's all in a huff about 'that woman'. Especially ironic is her comment that she should should observe 'moderation', when Arisa-chan herself is rather...lacking, in that department.
The lady engages telepathic contact with Rival Girl, aka Fayt-chan (the subbers translate her name as 'Fate', but I'll stick to the more literal writing here). The lady herself is Arf, suitable I suppose for a fox/dog-like being. Status update, blah, blah, but we hear that Fayt-chan has found the location of a jewel seed, and is closing in. She's going for it tonight. And we see Arf's animal nature manifest itself, too :) Any kitsune-mimi fans out there?
Time passes for the our heroine and her friend, until the aforementioned night happens to arrive. Nanoha-chan chats a bit with Yuuno-kun..he doesn't want her involved it in any more, but she ain't hearing none of it.
Hmm..a suspicious blue glow by the riverside. Wonder what that could be? Seed number 17 activates, and both Nanoha-chan and Fayt-chan notice it.
Fayt-chan and Arf are watching the seed activate, while Nanoha-chan is rushing towards the scene (we skip her transformation sequence, thankfully, giving us another minute of plot). Most important out of the conversation between Fayt-chan and Arf is that we see Fayt-chan doesn't know herself why her mother wants them, but is simply following her mother's orders.
After a rather long and involved transformation, Bardiche seals the jewel seed (note that that transformation scene is for the staff, not one of the mahou shoujo themselves. Nanoha-chan arrives just in time just a bit too late.
Boo-yeah. Arf goes into Wild Mode and faces off against Nanoha-chan and Yuuno-kun. We learn that Arf is actually a familiar - created by Fayt-chan herself. And devoted to her master/mistress.
Yuuno-kun shows his mettle as he, a wittle tiny ferret, blocks Arf off, telling Nanoha-chan to go for Fayt-chan. Arf doesn't seem too willing, but Yuuno-kun manages to teleport her somewhere. Probably up the creek without a paddle (har har). Yuuno-kun also disappears, of apparently to the same place.
Fayt-chan is somewhat impressed by Nanoha-chan's familiar. But he's not a familiar, he's her friend! (How cliché is that?)
Nanoha-chan tries to negotiate with Fayt-chan.

Fayt: Simply talking ... nothing will change through words alone.
Well, that sort of puts a damper into Nanoha-chan's efforts.

Fayt-chan challenges her to a duel. The loser gives one jewel seed to the victor. Nanoha-chan doesn't agree or anything, but it's not like she can just stand around.

And so the fight goes on (with a short cut to Yuuno-kun and Arf, who seem to be more or less evenly matched).

I know these intelligent devices talk in English, but even so:

Bardiche: 'Thunder Smasher.'

Raging Heart: 'Divine Buster.'

*evenly matched blasts*

Nanoha-chan: ライジング　ハート、　お願い！

Raging Heart: 'All right.'

Too funny. This sort of stuff makes the show for me. If you didn't quite get the 'joke' here, I guess you have to try watching it. I'll just note here that quotes I wrote in English are in fact, spoken in (native) English during the show (the credits include two Americans).

Anyway, looks like Nanoha-chan pulled it off, there..her strength is superior to Fayt-chan's. However, as Arf point out, she's still too 甘い. Fayt-chan comes right back and points her scythe at her throat (it's written 'Size Slash', heh)..with no other choice, Raging Heart releases a seed and gives it to Fayt-chan. Nanoha-chan might not be too happy about it, but she keeps her life.
Fayt-chan leaves, but not before giving Nanoha-chan a final warning (i.e. don't mess with me). We also learn her full name: TESTAROSSA Fayt. However, Fayt-chan takes off before Nanoha-chan has a chance to give hers. (Since learning someone's name makes it that much harder to kill them...)
Well, doesn't this vacation just suck so far.

Looks like the next episode focuses on the conflict between Nanoha-chan and Fayt-chan, as well as the relationship Nanoha-chan has with her friends. Since I've already seen this episode a while ago, I won't speculate on anything here :)

Look forward to next time!

Nanoha Episode 04: A Rival!? Another Magical Girl!

2007-06-03T13:35:00.002+08:00

If I recall correctly, this is the episode where Nanoha-chan's rival is about to be introduced, so without further ado, let us go on...

(As an aside, it feels weird watching anime with subtitles again. Hunh, imagine that.)

We start off this time with a rather serious-looking girl, atop a building (not Tokyo Tower. This isn't CLAMP's work). She says she's looking for the 'Lost Logia', otherwise known as jewel seeds. Oooh, rival! And her partner looks a mite more ferocious than Yuuno-kun. Much bigger, at least.
Well, enough of the doom and gloom, as it's daybreak at Nanoh-chan's house. Her brother Kyouya-san is taking her over to Suzuaka-chan's house (the rich girl). Can't wait. Neither can he apparently, as Shinobu-san (Suzuka-chan's elder sister) just may happen to have an interest in him. A mutual interest.
And so they're off on the bus. All this chipper music is a nice break from some of my previous entries.
Well, Suzuka-chan's house is large as expected. They're greeted by the requisite maid, in this case called Noel-san. (Ooooh, a foreign maid!)
Well, Suzuka-chan is there waiting for her, along with Yankee Arisa-chan. And an SPCA office's worth of cats. Someone who looks a lot like Suzuka-chan is also there, and is the obvious candidate to be Shinobu-san. (I keep thinking of that other Shinobu from Love Hina.
We also meet Farin-san, Suzuka-chan's personal maid. She goes to get them some tea, while Kyouya-san and Shinobu-san are going to 'spend some time in her room'. This is a kid's show, so we stick with Nanoha-chan's perspective.
Oh yeah, and I mentioned there were cats, right? Yuuno-kun is a bit taken aback at their somewhat overwhelming presence..
Suzuka-chan suddenly becomes more subtle than the Yankee and asks Nanoha-chan if there's anything on her mind. She seemed a little under the weather lately, so ... That's why she got invited over. Not 'cause they were friends or anything.
The moment is broken as one of the aforementioned cats (I did mention about the cats, ne?) takes off after Yuuno-kun, who is not too thrilled with this development.
The chas continues on underfoot Farin-san, who'd just made it in with the tea. Wanna guess where the tea goes? Despite the efforts of Nanoha-chan and Suzuka-chan to help out, a lot of it, indeed, ends up anywhere but on the tray it came in on.
We cut to Kyouya-san and Shinobu-san (both looking rather formal). Apparently this isn't the first time Farin-san has...ah... not quite excelled at her job.
A fresh batch of tea and cookies later (outside, and with Yuuno-kun safely tucked away), the topic turns to those cats, which I'm sure I've mentioned by now. Suzuka-chan mentions she has to give some of them away..but she's happy that they'll grow up nice and strong. I mention this since I do think there's a double meaning to it (beyond the fact that one of them is likely to end up encountering a jewel seed...)
Cue a kitten and a pretty blue light. Guess what happens?

Nanoha-chan and Yuuno-kun sense the jewel seed simultaneously. How do they get there without raising suspicion? Yuuno-kun dashes off (remember, he's a stupid little ferret), giving Nanoha-chan an opening to take off after him.

The little kitten activates the seed, and Suzuka-chan's desire for it to grow big and strong are fulfilled, and then some.
Yuuno-kun puts up a barrier - the only kind of thing he doesn't suck at, which, like X, prevents harm to those outside it.
Kinda necessary since kitty is now King Kitty. Nanoha-chan, ever the purveyor of wisdom:
It'd probably be a big problem for Suzuka-chan if it stayed that size.

Ahem.

Well, Nanoha is just about to seal it nice and gently, when a blast comes out of nowhere and nails the poor kitty.
Looks like our foreboding mahou shoujo is here. Along with her English-speaking wand, Bardiche, she dishes out the hurt.
Nanoha-chan's minute-long henshin seems refreshingly short after the minute-twenty seven of Magical Canan, but still.
She takes off to the kitty's defense and engages her 'wide area protection' spell, blocking any further photon rays.
Wide area protection isn't wide enough to protect against the kitty's feet, so the rival mage blasts those, causing the kitty, and Nanoha-chan, to go crashing down...
Nanoha-chan looks kinda ticked. Yuuno-kun looks kinda inferior.
Yuuno-kun remarks that she must be from his world, and that she knows the 'true identity' of the jewel seeds. Wait, there was a hidden meaning to them? No one told me!
A short battle ensues. Now, I have to wonder how smart these 'intelligent devices' (i.e. wands) really are. I mean, they blasted well announce what programs they're running beforehand. I can see it now:

Rival: "I'm going to attack you!"

Bardiche: "Attack Mode Set Up."

Nanoha-chan thinks 'Ah, she's gonna hit me!'

*Rival goes to swipe at her*

Raging Heart: "Dodge Left"

*Rival swoops left and strikes Nanoha-chan*

Nanoha-chan: "But..but..how'd you know I was going to be there..!?! Sniff.."

Right.

... Actually what happens isn't too far off from that. Nanoha-chan asks her rival why she's doing this, but gets rebuffed with 'It'll probably mean nothing to you'.

We square off with Nanoha-chan's 'Divine Buster' against the rival's 'Photon Lancer'. Since Bardiche sounds more.. I dunno...war-like, I'm guessing things aren't looking up for Nanoha-chan and company.

The kitty starts to get up, and Nanoha-chan, distracted by this, is caught off guard by her rival's shot. She did mumble an 'I'm sorry' beforehand, leading me to believe the two are going to end up pairing up sometime in the future.. (who am I kidding? That always happens!)
Nanoha-chan got blasted pretty bad, but Yuuno-kun's little cushion-barrier seems to somehow save her, even though she was falling at terminal velocity.
Her rival seals the jewel seed this time, of course. I just checked and it took 22 seconds for the girl to engage 'Sealing Mode' on Bardiche. It may be tough but man, it's slow. Needs a RAM upgrade, maybe?

Anyway, Jewel Seed 14 has fallen into the evil clutches of an alien 3rd-grader.

After that rather over-expositioned scene, Nanoha-chan's rival silently regards her prone form..and walks off.
He went and got her brother, who took her in to Suzuka-chan's house. Her story of having tripped and fallen in the woods might have tricked them this time, but it doesn't look like it's gonna be easy to keep this kind of thing secret for very long.
Back in her room, Yuuno-kun explains the girl is from his world. Is she going to meet her again? Nanoha-chan isn't scared..just sad, and confused.
A scene in a high-rise apartment with the rival mahou shoujo clears that up pretty quick. She wonders how many seeds Nanoha-chan has. Well, they both probably need all of them. Not really a situation that lends itself to quick reconciliation.
Anyway, it looks like Rival Girl is doing this for her mother..if anything, her devotion is far stronger than Nanoha-chan's. Strong enough that she isn't going to let little things like compassion, kindness, or morality, get in her way, that is. :p

I'm going to go another couple episodes before I try any full-fledged analysis, but a couple points to ponder:

The jewel seeds act upon the desires of those who hold them, but I think it may also hint at Nanoha-chan's inner desires as well (to fall in love, to grow up, etc.). None of these are spelled out per se, as Nanoha-chan seems to have a 'good' life, but I'll be on the lookout in future to see how this applies.
Secondly, Nanoha-chan's rival holds an awful lot in common with Nanoha-chan herself. Almost as if she is how Nanoha-chan would be if she didn't have the close family ties, friends, etc., that she does now. Rival Girl has her mother, but no apparent friends, and given Rival Girl's rather dark and moody tone she doesn't seem to have had the most laughter-filled childhood. If Nanoha-chan were raised by evil stepparents, could she have turned out the same way? Perhaps...

Nanoha Episode 03: The Town's in A Lot of Danger?

2007-06-03T13:32:00.003+08:00

Episode 3 starts to pick up in terms of seriousness, as we see the cloudier side of the Jewel seeds...

This episode begins at night, nearby Nanoha's school, where she starts off by capturing Jewel Seed #20 (for those counting, she has 5 seeds right now, out of 21 total. We've apparently skipped one in the meantime). She's a little tired after using her magic so much...it drains the user, which is especially tiring on those who aren't used to using it.
Yuuno-kun convinces Nanoha to take a break for the day (it's Sunday) so she ends up going with her father (who I'll call Takamachi-san) to watch a soccer game (a little league team that Takamachi-san coaches and sponsors (her family owns the Midoriya coffee shop/ famires)). Arisa-chan and Suzuka-chan come along too.
Yuuno-kun doesn't know about the game (of course) so Nanoha explains it to him. We see that a certain female spectator seems to have a something of a crush on their team's goaltender...who helps them to a 2-0 win. Takamachi-san invites everyone over to their restaurant for some snacks (with perks like that, who wouldn't want to try hard to win?). Nanoha and friends sit outside and have some cake...though the cake is soon forgotten as Yuuno-kun becomes the center of (not entirely welcome) attention.
The goaltender seems to have something for the aforementioned girl, and walks off with her, putting something shiny in his pocket. It looks rather familiar...a Jewel Seed! Nanoha sees it out of the corner of her eye, but dismisses it as her mind playing tricks on her.
Nanoha heads home with her father, dead tired..and collapses on her bed. Yuuno-kun tells her to at least change into pajamas..which she does without a second thought, much to Yuuno-kun's embarassment (remember, we know he's actually a guy, but to Nanoha he's a cute little magical ferret mascot).
With Nanoha fast asleep, the action cuts to the soccer goaltender and his female companion. He offers her the Jewel Seed (thinking it's a pretty stone of some sort), but when the two touch hands..out sprouts a humoungous tree from inside the ground. Nanoha jerks awake at the sensation of the seed activating, and dashes off outside..
She reaches the roof of an apartment, and calls upon Raging Heart..The standard long transformation sequence commences. After that's done, Nanoha gets a good look at the devastation around her..more huge trees have sprung up all over town than Greenpeace could have planted in a decade. Yuuno-kun explains that when a human comes into contact with a Jewel Seed, a tremendous power results, much more than the dog from last time. Nanoha berates herself for not believing herself earlier..that kid did have a Jewel Seed after all!
Her first job to clean up this mess is to find the Jewel Seed. It looks like it will take forever but Nanoha releases her searching magic (Yuuno-kun is continually amazed at the things she can do instinctively - she's much stronger than he, and she just started.) She finds the source of the power (the boy, girl, and Jewel Seed). It's pretty far away, but who needs public transit when you can nail the thing from afar? Her staff morphs into a cannon-like form and fires a bolt of light at the Jewel Seed. She seals it from about 2 miles away (interestingly, she knows it's number 10, even when she's that far away..either her eyesight is really good, or Raging Heart is somehow telling her..).
The girl and boy wake up, a little disoriented (after what happened, how can you blame them?). The trees are gone (so much for a short-term lucrative forestry contract), but the damage they caused remains. Nanoha vows never to let something like this happen again.

So things certainly are starting to turn serious (well, sorta). Nanoha is beginning to realize the implications of what the Jewel Seeds portend, as well as the burden placed upon her. What's more, she's all alone in doing so, except for Yuuno-kun (who she's already exceeded in terms of skill level). She mentioned that she felt apart from everyone else in the first episode, and she still is. She's trying to prove herself by gathering the Jewel Seeds, but can she really do it by herself?

Next episode her rival appears, and this question will become even more important...

Nanoha Episode 02: My Magical Incantation is "Lyrical"?

2007-06-03T13:28:00.002+08:00

Well, we continue on with Episode 2 of the series, wrapping up the first battle and getting a handle on the backstory..

After a quick recap, it's back to the battle between Nanoha and Dark Slimy Monster #1. It dives for her..luckily her wand comes with built-in protective measures.
Little Ferret-san explains that Nanoha has to seal the monster using her new-found powers, and to do that she needs an incantation ... "Lyrical Magical!"
She defeats the monster, and receives Jewel Seed Number 21. Yup, you guessed it, that means there are at least 20 others, somewhere. Nanoha takes off out of the area to evade the police (you'd think they'd be grateful she trashed the place sealing the monster..), and ends up in a park with the ferret. The ferret introduces himself as Yuuno SCRYA, and after some initial difficulties calling Nanoha by name, finally manages it (cute :)).
Nanoha and Yuuno-kun attempt to make it back to her house...but aren't quite successful in making it past her brother and sister. After a little talking, though, the entire family is besotted with cute lil' Yuuno-kun...who bears it as well as he can. (We also get a glimse of something shiny on the ground at a local shrine.. foreshadowing, perhaps?)
In the meantime, Nanoha's gotta go to school, and can't stay to talk to Yuuno-kun about...well, whatever this whole thing is about. Not to worry, the Raging Heart jewel that Nanoha carries functions pretty well as a telepathic receiver. Apparently things are pretty boring at school, because she spends most of her day conversing with Yuuno-kun.
We learn that he's an archaelogist on his home world, and that he uncovered the Jewel Seeds, mystical gems that can grant the bearer great powers, and allow one to do great deeds. However (there's always a catch) they can also, of course, be used for not-so-good things. So, when the jewel seeds went missing, and nasty icky monsters like the fella from before get a hold of them, well, bad things happen. (This makes you wonder why people go around making collections of powerful magical items that can go haywire so easily. Then again, it's getting us an anime series, so I won't complain too much). So Yuuno-kun, our eternal and stalwart hero, decided to go get them back. Too bad he's not good enough on his own. Nanoha offers to help, though, and won't take no for an answer..
On her way home, Nanoha senses a strange presence..yup, it's another jewel seed. Nanoha and Yuuno-kun dash off to the aforementioned shrine. Thankfully the transformation sequence is abbreviated a little here (Nanoha even, somehow, skips past the activation password that is supposed to trigger the Raging Heart), because that gives Nanoha the extra 30 seconds she needs to defeat today's monster - a possesed dog. Turns out all she has to do is block the monster's attacks, and repels it, sufficiently stunned, so that she can extract the Jewel Seed from it (number 16 this time). This is good because Nanoha still hasn't learned any attacks.
So, we have another happy ending, as Nanoha and Yuuno-kun head home for some much-deserved (and much-needed) sleep.

So, the backstory has begun to be revealed. We still don't know much about Nanoha or her family or friends, though that's likely to change in upcoming episodes. Yuuno-kun was rather apologetic about the jewel seed incident, even though it wasn't him that lost them..either he's an apologetic guy by nature, or he has some more to do with the current situation than has appeared so far. Other than that, we've seen two mage battles in one episode, so I suppose we can't expect much character development just yet...stay tuned until next time, I guess :)

Nanoha Episode 01: Is This What You Call A "Mysterious Encounter"?

2007-06-03T13:07:00.002+08:00

We begin with a short intro by Nanoha, then get treated by the wonderful opening song. You'll have to watch the episode to hear it, though, I'm afraid :)
We see a young boy attempting to fend off some kind of monster. He tries to seal it, but fails. Both he and the monster are injured - the monster retreats, and the boy collapses on the ground, crying out silently for help..as he changes form..into a small rodent-looking thing..
As all mahou shoujo are apt to do, Nanoha, the title character, seems to have a slow time getting up. She is assisted by her pink cellphone, and its mp3 ringtone :p We hear a short introduction - Nanoha introduces herself as TAKAMACHI Nanoha, her father TAKAMACHI Shiro, her mother TAKAMACHI Momoko, her elder brother TAKAMACHI Kyouya, and her elder sister, TAKAMACHI Miyuki.
Everything is just fine until we see that Nanoha is, surprisingly, NOT late for school. She meets up with her best friends, TSUKIMURA Suzuka (think Tomoyo DAIDOUJI from Cardcaptor Sakura, and Arisa BANNINGS (foreigner & daughter to rich parents). They proceed to class, where it's "Let's talk about our careers" lesson time. Never mind that the kids are in third grade, they're supposed to have their careers planned out by now. Arisa-chan is going to run her parents' company (if she makes it thru school :p), while Suzuka-chan wants to be an engineer (my advice: No! Don't do it, girl! :p). Nanoha isn't quite clear on what she wants to do, though. (So, of course, she needs help from a magical creature! Be patient, just a few minutes longer..)
The three are heading to cram school together, and Arisa-chan suggests a shortcut. In all the anime I've watched, something unexpected always happens when you take a shortcut. This time, of course, they happen by the boy earlier (though now he looks like a ferret with a mullet, or something..) Nanoha hears his voice (although, no one else does) and rushes to pick him up. Just like in her dream! (Imagine that)
They take it to the vet for some quick (and free?) first aid. After a short while, the ferret wakes up, recognizes Nanoha, and heads over to her..licks her finger..and collapses again. They decide to let the little guy recuperate at the vet and come back tomorrow to check up on him, but fate has other plans.
At cram school (yeah, they were heading to school, remember? That shortuct?) the three debate what to do about the ferret..Nanoha decides to try to keep it at her place. At this point the animation seems to go a little wild, with every small move being accentuated...like everyone's uncomfortably shifting around all the time. It's especially noticable here because of how much it contrasts with all the other scenes in the show. In any case, Nanoha wins out, and Ferret-san is in.
Everything seems fine, until later that night, when Nanoha gets a strange sensation. We all know what happens when title characters in a mahou shoujo series get a strange sensation, right? Yup, something's about to happen. It's Ferret-san, and he needs help. The monster that got away earlier..is back!
Slightly overwhelemed, Nanoha nevertheless heads straight over to the vet. She finds a huge scary monster after her and the ferret..and the ferret can talk! He briefs Nanoha a bit - he's from another world, and looking for something in this one. Unsurprisngly, there are monsters in the way (there are always monsters in the way..)
The ferret hands Nanoha his little jewel/pendant collar and..it's henshin time! And yes, her wand, the Raging Heart, talks in English. This (and the opening) made the series for me at this point. Every time that wand says something, I can't help but crack up..
Anyway, time to transform...Nanoha needs a staff and armour (aka ruggedized school uniform, complete with bow, choker, and hair ribbons), and they magically appear! Well, after around 40 seconds.
Well, she did it! Oh, and there's still a small matter of that monster still hanging around...but that will have to wait for the next episode!

Well, overall, it's not turning into too bad a series. Rather formulaic at this point, to be sure, but there are at least a couple new things thrown in here and there. At the time I write this, I've seen the first six episodes, so without trying to spoil things I'll simply say that it does get more original and interesting later on.

Nanoha A's Episode 13: Standby, Ready (END)

2007-06-02T18:17:00.001+08:00

Hayate-chan will be just fine, but Reinforce has a favor to ask of Nanoha and Fate. If they don't destroy her now the defense program will reactivate... At the park on a snowy day, Nanoha and Fate prepare to carry out Lin Force's final wish... but Hayate comes up in her wheelchair, crying and asking Lin Force to not leave her. Lin Force comforts Hayate... she's got to go. But she'll still be with Hayate....

With this incident behind them Fate and Nanoha talk about what they'll do next. Both still plan to help out the Space-Time Administration as they've done. Yuno comes along and Nanoha walks home with him, talking about what he'll be doing in the future... the next day Nanoha and Fate go to visit Hayate at the hospital. She seems to be doing well, and so does everybody in Volkenritter. Hayate's decided to become a mahou shoujo just like Nanoha and Fate, using the power that Lin Force left for her. Hayate, Nanoha, and Fate go to visit Arisa and Suzuka and tell them all about what's been going on. Lindy also pays a visit to Nanoha's family to explain things... and with that, the Book of Darkness case was closed....

6 Years Later... (start the ED... otona ni natte mo wasurenai~)

(つд⊂)ｺﾞｼｺﾞｼ

（゜д゜）ポカーン

Yup, six years later... Hayate-chan is still as cute as ever :) She seems to be living quite a happy life with Shamal, Signum, Vita... Vita hasn't grown at all. She's a dream girl fry... (And Zafira is now in cute puppy mode, lol. Fate is now officially former Captain Lindy's kid.. Chrono is a captain now, and Amy is still pretty much Amy ;) Yuuno-kun is in charge of the Infinite Archives now... though still no signs of any Nanoha x Yuuno flag. Oh well :P Graham is living back in his home country of England.. with twin cat girls. Bastard :P And Nanoha is... ehhh... Nanoha, Fate, and Hayate go to the roof of the school and take out their devices...

Chibi Reinforce is extremely cute :) Anyways... Ready, set up....

And no henshin scene for y'all :P Well, if the henshin scene when they were 9 is like that, when they're 15.... it'd prolly need an R-15 rating (^^;;) Honestly, Hayate-chan was the only of them I thought cute... everybody else was kinda.. bimyou~ (kinda not right...), I guess I'd say. Anyways, a nice conclusion to the show... and by the looks of this ending the Nanoha series overall, I'd guess...

Though it doesn't quite measure up to the first Nanoha, Nanoha A's still had its share of strong points. First of those being the excellent fighting scenes and extremely cool weapons and moves.. save for that battle with the last boss, but anyways ;) Another would be Hayate-chan and her relationship with Shamal, Signum, Zafira, and Vita. You could perhaps call them the main characters this time instead of Nanoha and Fate. They really are a family, and it was pretty easy to sympathize with them, though they were the "bad guys" at first. Nice job getting all of that through to the viewers, I think. We did get some good Nanoha x Fate moments here and there (though perhaps not enough), and Fate's dream in episode 11 was especially good.

Animation was consistent and pretty high quality for the most part, save for those couple of episodes where the animation director diverged from the norm too much (^^;;) Background music didn't exactly stand out to me, but it was still suitable for the most part. The OP, like Nanoha's OP, was the top class of the season, and even the year. I especially like how the lyrics tie in with the overall theme of the series so well -- that isn't the case in a lot of stuff I've watched. ED, once again like Nanoha, was good, and used to good effect there at the end ;)

I came into the fall season anticipating Nanoha A's the most, and I was more than satisfied with it in the end. A just about perfect blend of 燃え moe and 萌え moe, though weighted more towards 燃え moe than Nanoha. It wouldn't seem like we'll get another sequel, but I'm happy with how things ended so it's okay :)

btw, most of the Nanoha A's staff will be working on Inukami in the spring. Guess I'll have to check it out then ;)

Random Stats:
Interest: Very High, wanted to watch the next episode ASAP
Blogging: 13 of 13 (100%)
Favorite Episode: 11
MVP: Hayate-chan!
Keeping it? You bet I am ;) Once again, another one that'd prolly be worth it to get the DVDs, but...... ＿|￣|○

Nanoha A's Episode 12: Evening's End, Journey's End

2007-06-02T18:13:00.001+08:00

Hayate, Fate, and Nanoha speak this time before the OP. It should sound familiar since most of what they say is taken from the OP lyrics. Very nice :)

Anyways, we start off this time with Hayate and the yaten no madousho, now Lin Force. It's been completely separated from the protection program that will soon go on a rampage... Hayate brings back Shamal, Vita, Zafira, and Signum who are ready to serve the master of the yaten no madousho once again. Hayate shows a radiant smile to Nanoha :)

魔法少女はやてｷﾀ━━━(ﾟ∀ﾟ)━━━ ！！！
Mahou shoujo Hayate kita---!

Hayate gives the set up command to Lin Force and raises her staff and transforms into a barrier jacket, along with getting a change of eye/hair color. Very cute :) Vita's very happy to see Hayate again, and Hayate's happy to see all of them again as well. Lin Force told her about all that went on, but that's for discussing later. Hayate apologizes to Nanoha and Fate.. Chrono arrives, breaking up the party for now. They've got to figure out how to get rid of the protection program.. they can either stop it with the strongest magic they've got.. or the Asura can fire its magic cannon, Arcansil, to destroy it. Chrono asks the others what they think -- the first would probably be difficult. But Vita says they absolutely can't fire the Arcansil since it'd destroy even Hayate's home. Yeah, it's pretty dang powerful (^^;;;) Nanoha and Fate both agree that they can't use it. Chrono and the captain don't want to use it either, but if there's no other choice... Arf suggests they just kick its ass, basically. Go figure ;).. but it seems that's given Nanoha, Fate, and Hayate an idea. They can't use Arcansil here, but if it were somewhere else... like up in space...

Meanwhile, Arisa and Suzuka watch from afar, not really knowing what's going on. But Suzuka feels like everything's going to be fine since Nanoha and Fate are fighting. Arisa would like to know what's going on since it's not making any sense to her ;)

Chrono agrees with the plan Nanoha, Fate, and Hayate have come up with. They'll have to break through the multiple barriers to damage the program, then use a simultaneous attack to damage the core, then use Yuno's teleportation magic to teleport it right in front of the Asura so it can fire Arcansil. That seems to be the best plan that there is.. Chrono brings out Durandal -- they can't change what's already happened; but they can change the future. Nice line for once, Chrono ;)

With 2 minutes left until the protection program goes wild, Hayate has Shamal heal Fate and Nanoha -- looks like a Curaga to me ;) The barrier around the program drops, showing off a last boss suitable for any number of Japanese console RPGs.

Yuno, Arf, and Zafira attack first... I feel a song coming on -- "Brave Phoenix" by Nana Mizuki to be exact :) Vita, actually saying Nanoha's name correctly for the first time, goes next...

...attacking with a rather huge golden hammer, breaking one of the barriers. Nanoha breaks the next barrier with Raging Heart's Excelion Buster. Signum and Levantine in a new bow form are up next. Signum fires an explosive arrow, breaking another barrier. Fate and Bardiche go after that, breaking the last barrier. Zafira fires off another attack then Hayate casts stone (is this an RPG or something?). Chrono casts an ice spell with Durandal, freezing the whole thing. Fate, Nanoha, and Hayate attack at the same time (like a triple tech attack from Chrono Trigger) to probably bring it down to around 1 HP. Shamal gets its core, allowing Arf and Yuno to transfer it right in front of the Asura, which fires Arcansil for 99,999 damage, blowing it away (insert victory fanfare).

Snow starts falling on Nanoha and the others as Aimee reports that the plan worked. She also says that she returned Arisa and Suzuka back to where they were, confusing Arisa even more. But Hayate seems to have passed out.....

But Hayate's only exhausted from the battle, right? Hopefully... seems we'll see Reinforce in human form once again next time, so we'll see. Anyways, what was the darkness part of the Book of Darkness was quite weak for a last boss. Nanoha, Fate, and Hayate must be at level 90 or something. Anybody going to make a Nanoha RPG now? ;) I guess I would've liked to have seen a bit more of a fair battle, but we got to see all kinds of kakkoii special attacks and such (shoot, even Chrono was useful for once) so that's fine by me. Not to mention we got to see mahou shoujo Hayate. Hayate kawaii yo Hayate!

Seems the same animation director that did the previous episode where characters looked a bit odd in places was back this time. However, most of the time things looked fine so no complaints here ;) We'll be wrapping up things next time... it's over already? It's gone by too quickly ＿|￣|○ The last episode of Nanoha was quite something, so the last ep of Nanoha A's has quite a high bar to measure up to, so we'll see how it goes.

Nanoha A's Episode 11: A Gift for Christmas Eve

2007-06-02T18:10:00.001+08:00

Nanoha's left alone to fight the will of the Book of Darkness after Fate was sucked into the book. She, along with Hayate, are having an endless dream that they'll never awake from...

Nanoha: "There's no such thing as eternity. Everybody changes -- they have to change"

Nicely said, Nanoha (is she really only in 3rd grade?).

Meanwhile, inside the Book of Darkness.... Fate awakens in a bed to find another girl there. A woman, Rinisu, who seems to be the one in charge of taking care of Fate and the other girl comes in to tell them to wake up. Alf (in cute puppy form) finally wakes up. That other girl finally wakes up... her name is Alicia. Fate and Alicia go down to have breakfast with Fate's mother, Precia. Fate's hesistant, but this Precia is very different from the one she knew -- very gentle and loving... it can't be real, they're all gone.. but it's what she's always wished for...

Hayate opens her eyes... the will of the Book of Darkness tells her to go back to sleep, saying that she'll fulfill her wishes... but what did she wish for? To dream, for all of the sad reality she had to face to become a dream.

Meanwhile, Nanoha fights the will of the Book of Darkness, but she's too strong for her to handle. With only a few catridges left what's she to do? Raging Heart has a suggestion -- use Excelion Mode. But if Nanoha messes up then Raging Heart would... The will of the Book of Darkness tells her it's her time to sleep, but Nanoha isn't ready quite yet -- she'll save Hayate, Fate, and her as well. Nanoha actives Excelion Mode...

A very cute, but also quite sad eyecatch this time... 。゜・（ノД`）・゜・。

Fate and Alicia take refuge from the rain under a tree.. Fate realizes that it's all a dream. She and Alicia never existed together.. her mother was never that gentle towards her... It is a dream -- but Alicia asks Fate to stay with her and Arf and Precia and everybody else forever.

The will of the Book of Darkness says much the same thing to Hayate -- if she dreams she can stay with her friends forever. But that would be only a dream, nothing more.

Nanoha continues her battle with the will of the Book of Darkness, finally charging up Raging Heart to attack with Excelion Buster. And she manages to break through the shield, getting a direct hit from point blank range. But it doesn't seem to have had any kind of effect at all...

Hayate didn't wish for this, and the will of the Book of Darkness should be the same. The will of the Book of Darkness is deeply linked to Volkenritter, so she feels the same kinds love for Hayate, but there's nothing she can do to stop what's happening. When Hayate awoke to the power of the Book of Darkness she realizes a bit of what was going on, and she could relate to the sadness that Volkenritter must have gone though... but you can't simply forget it all. Hayate's the master of the Book of Darkness now -- she's got to listen to what she says.

Alicia gives Bardiche to a crying Fate as they embrace each other then part...

Hayate's going to give the Book of Darkness a new name -- she can do that as her master. I feel a song coming on... "Snow Rain" sung by Kana Ueda... Hayate manages to take control of the Will of the Book of Darkness and speaks to Nanoha. So long as the automatic protection program (what's fighting Nanoha) is running Hayate can't change its name, so she wants Nanoha to stop it. Yuno's got an idea and explains it easily to Nanoha. Basically -- use everything you've got to blow it away. Nanoha can definitely do that ;)

With Nanoha keeping the program stopped with a barrage of attacks, Hayate gives the Book of Darkness a new name -- Lin Force... Fate activates Bardiche's Zambar Form, changing it into a buster sword rather large sword that happens to be able to cut through dimensions as well. Very cool :) So now Fate's back with Nanoha... but there's still something coming, a rogue program that's not under Lin Force or Hayate's control. Chrono is on his way to the scene...

Well, what exactly can I say besides that it was awesome. Nanoha quality at its best :)

I thought that perhaps Fate would have something to do with helping out Hayate, but that didn't quite turn out... more than a bit surprised to see Alicia and Precia show up. Happy to see them together as sisters finally, but so sad that it's not reality （ノД`） Fate's a strong girl to be able walk away from that. Same goes for Nanoha, who had some very good lines this time. She and Raging Heart in Excelion Mode were extremely カッコヨス. Fate and Bardiche in Buster Sword Zambar Mode, too :) And of course Hayate showed us just how strong she is this time, giving the Book of Darkness a new name. Absolutely perfect timing with the insert song (which was pretty good as well) to go along with that scene.

Nanoha A's Episode 10: Destiny

2007-06-02T18:06:00.001+08:00

Flashback: Chrono's father Clyde, refuses to leave his ship as the Book of Darkness unleashes its power. Graham is forced to shoot his ship down, so Clyde goes down along with it.... back in the present, Graham still blames himself for what happened...

Fate and Nanoha deal with the "Will of the Book of Darkness" while Chrono catches the hentai kamen guys with a bind spell. Surprise, surprise, they turn out to be the Lize catgirls. Yuno and Arf arrive to assist Fate and Nanoha as the Book of Darkness starts to cast another spell...

Chrono speaks with Graham and the Lize catgirls back at HQ. Chrono had it all figured out -- he knew that Graham was searching for a way to permanently seal the Book of Darkness and also that Graham knew Hayate was the current master of the Book of Darkness. Graham didn't like seeing her suffer like this, but it was her fate so that others' wouldn't suffer from the Book of Darkness. He had posed as her father's friend to support her and give her at least a bit of happiness before it all ended -- she, along with the Book of Darkness would be sealed away in another dimension never to come back. Hayate, having done nothing wrong, isn't deserving of such treatment -- Graham's actions are illegal, says Chrono. Besides that, someday, somewhere, someone will try to gain the power of the Book of Darkness and break the seal. Before Chrono leaves, Graham gives him the "Freezing Staff" Durandal, leaving it up to him as to how to use it.

Fate and Nanoha continue to fight, but the will of the Book of Darkness is quite strong. Being able to block both Nanoha's Divine Buster Extension and Fate's Plasma Smasher at the same time is definitely nothing to sneeze at. And that's not all -- it seems that after taking Nanoha's linker core earlier on she's learned Nanoha's Starlight Breaker. Nanoha, Fate, Arf, and Yuno make a hasty retreat... but there are some others still within the barrier. And...

Suzuka and Arisa!? Uh-oh.... looks like Nanoha and Fate's secret is out. But there's no time for that as Nanoha and Fate put up barriers to protect Suzuka and Arisa from the Starlight Breaker attack. Nanoha and Fate ask Yuno and Arf to take care of Suzuka and Arisa and leave... Nanoha and Fate try to communicate telepathically with the will of the Book of Darkness and Hayate, trying to tell them that they weren't the ones that hurt her friends. However... the will of the Book of Darkness says that she's only carrying out the wishes of her master for destruction -- she's only a tool to be used for that purpose alone...

...and here comes another attack, this time.. tentacles (^^;;) Nanoha tries once again to speak with the will of the Book of Darkness, asking her if she's really granting her master's wish. She can speak, she must have some kind of heart inside somewhere. Though she cries, she says that the tears aren't her own, they're her master's -- she's only a tool, she doesn't feel anything. Fate changes her barrier jacket to Sonic Form and breaks herself and Nanoha free. She asks for Hayate to be released.. but it's no good. The will of the Book of Darkness says she'll soon disappear, but so long as she's there she wants to fulfill her master's wish. Fate, having had enough, uses Sonic Drive and flies towards her to attack.. but her attack is blocked and she disappears, sucked into the Book of Darkness.....

Fate-chan!..... but, judging from the next ep preview she'll be doing her best inside the Book of Darkness to somehow save Hayate-chan, so things seem to be looking up :) Anyways, back to this time... it pretty much unfolded as expected, with Graham being the one behind things. I can understand him wanting to seal away the Book of Darkness because of what happened to Clyde, but still. It's rather cruel the way he's doing things... poor Hayate-chan 。゜・（ノД`）・゜・。 Seems he's given up on his plan, so we'll have to see how Chrono goes about things with Durandal. Perhaps finding a different way to seal away the Book of Darkness, or perhaps somehow reprogramming it to bring it back to its original form, the yaten no madousho.

However, what I did not expect was Suzuka and Arisa finding out that Nanoha and Fate are mahou shoujo. That's pretty much the first rule for mahou shoujo -- don't let anybody else know that you're a mahou shoujo. Be interesting to see how Suzuka and Arisa cope with things, and how much they'll be told about what's happening and such. Though finding all this stuff out has to be quite surprising, I don't doubt that they'll support Nanoha and Fate with all they've got in the end ;)

Next time, as mentioned, Fate is inside the Book of Darkness trying to save Hayate, and Nanoha takes on the will of the Book of Darkness by herself. Three episodes left, so we should be nearing the climax. Can't wait to see how things end up... hopefully happy for everybody ;)

Nanoha A's Episode 09: Christmas Eve

2007-06-02T17:52:00.001+08:00

December 22nd: Hayate is all by herself in her room at the hospital as Shamal speaks to Signum, who's out gathering pages for the Book of Darkness. Only 60 pages left...

December 23rd: Nanoha and Fate have dinner together with all of Nanoha's family for once. Arf is in full cute puppy mode ;) Seems Midoriya is pretty busy on Christmas Eve with couples and like coming in until late at night. After dinner, Suzuka, Fate, Arisa, and Nanoha trade text messages back and forth about going to see Hayate-chan to give her some Christmas presents on Christmas Eve...

Meanwhile, back on the Asura, Chrono seems to be busy doing some research... a picture of Graham comes up on the display. When Aimee comes in Chrono quickly shuts it down and says he was just looking up some stuff for himself... seems the report about the past of the Book of Darkness has been sent to Nanoha and Fate as well...

December 24th: While Vita, Shamal, and Signum are visiting Hayate at the hospital Suzuka and Arisa, along with Nanoha and Fate show up. Had to happen, didn't it... Suzuka and Arisa have absolutely no idea what's going on. In order to not alarm Hayate, Shamal and Signum act as if nothing's wrong. Vita stares at Nanoha. Kinda cute :) After Suzuka and Arisa leave, Nanoha and Fate meet Shamal and Signum on the roof of the hospital. Shamal and Signum won't allow them to get in their way... Nanoha tries to tell them what will happen to Hayate once the Book of Darkness is completed, but Vita comes flying in and attacks Nanoha with her hammer. Shamal's put up a barrier to stop communication, so Nanoha and Fate can't contact anyone... Vita cries as she attacks Nanoha.. Nanoha walks out from the flames and Vita calls her a devil. Then Nanoha will act like a devil to get her to listen to what she has to say ;)

The eyecatch this time...

Fate tries to tell Signum what'll happen to Hayate as Nanoha and Vita battle. Nanoha asks Vita why she doesn't know the real name of the Book of Darkness. Vita hesistates... Fate changes into her sonic form lightweight barrier jacket. She'll be able to move faster, but if she takes a hit that's it... Signum changes into her barrier jacket.. If they hadn't met like this then who knows how good comrades they might have been.. Fate thinks there's still time for them to be that... Nanoha asks Vita yet again if she knows the real name of the Book of Darkness. But as she does so she's caught up in a bind spell... so that means? Fate searches for the hentai kamen masked guy and attacks... but she's kicked.. by another hentai kamen masked guy!? One of the masked guys binds everyone with his magic... the other brings out the Book of Darkness and steals Shamal, Signum, Vita, and finally Zafira's linker cores to complete it. They all disappear.....

As Nanoha and Fate are bound and trapped in a crystal cage, the two hentai kamen masked guys transform into Nanoha and Fate and bring Hayate out to the roof. They tell her that her sickness is caused by the Book of Darkness and that she can't be cured, even if the Book of Darkness is completed. There's no way for her to be saved. Hayate asks them to release Vita and Zafira... they say they're broken, along with the Book of Darkness which was broken since long ago, thinking they could still use its powers... Hayate looks behind her to see only Shamal and Signum's coats.... Broken machines are useless.. so they'll break them. Hayate screams for them to stop.. they say she's free to force them to stop. Fate is cruel, isn't it?... the hentai kamen masked guys posing as Nanoha and Fate pull back...

Nanoha and Fate break out of the crystal cage but it's too late for them to save Hayate. She screams and awakens to the true power of the Book of Darkness, releasing the seal on the Book of Darkness, then transforming... no longer herself, she readies a spell of destruction......

Hayate-chan... 。゜・（ノД`）・゜・。
And Shamal and Vita and Zafira and Signum... 。゜・（ノД`）・゜・。

It had been speculated in other places that Hayate might end up being the "last boss", but I don't think quite like this... I was （ﾟдﾟ）ﾎﾟｶｰﾝ a good bit with all that happened so quickly this time...

So there are two hentai kamen (sorry, that's what a lot of the Japanese bloggers call them, I can't help it) masked guys now. It would seem that the possibility that they're the Lize catgirls is rather high. One of them seems to be good at ranged magic, the other good at close-range fighting as they are.. It seems Chrono has gotten pretty suspicious of Graham as well... seems like next time we might find out who they actually are, and we might see Chrono's father as well... We are going to get a happy end out of this somehow, right? I want to see Hayate-chan's smile again

Nanoha A's Episode 08: A Sad Resolve and A Courageous Choice

2007-06-02T17:48:00.001+08:00

Captain Lindy informs the others that though Fate's linker core suffered some major damage she's in no mortal danger or anything. Aimee wants to take the blame for what happened... but they did manage to get a good shot of the masked man. He's pretty powerful... perhaps part of some organization? When Arf arrived on the scene he was already gone, and Signum was holding Fate.. it's a bit quicker than planned, but they'll be going back aboard the Asura.

Signum and Shamal talk about the masked man. He seems to want the Book of Darkness to be completed. But even if he steals it then he wouldn't be able to use it since he's not its master. But just in case... Zafira suggests that Shamal stay close to Hayate. Vita asks if when the Book of Darkness is completed and Hayate becomes its true master if she'll be happy. Hayate will gain enormous power as its master... but Vita feels like they're forgetting something very important... When Hayate wakes up and tries to get out of bed she collapses to the ground in pain...

Lindy talks to Fate about what's going on as Arf sleeps at her bedside. When Fate realizes Lindy's holding her hand she blushes a bit :).... at the hospital it seems that Hayate's doing just fine. Hayate says she just felt a bit dizzy and fell, that's all, no big deal. The doctor says wants to do some more tests and such while she's there, then takes Signum and Shamal outside. She wants them to put Hayate in the hospital for a bit because of what happened. They agree to do so and tell Hayate. Vita'll visit her every day! ;) After they leave Hayate clutches her chest in pain....

And the eyecatch this time. Cute :)

Yuno reports to Lindy, Aimee, and Chrono on what he's found out about the Book of Darkness from the records in the Infinite Archive. Seems the Book of Darkness isn't the original name.. it was originally called the 夜天の魔道書 Yaten no Madousho (guessing the kanji for "yaten") and was meant to be used to collect information on the spells of powerful mages all around for research. It gained the destructive power, along with the power to transfer and infinitely reappear it has now because someone changed its program. If it's not completed before a set time it starts eating away at the magical power of its master... and when it's completed it uses its master's magical powers without limit for destruction. All of its previous masters died soon after completing it... as for stopping or sealing it, it's probably next to impossible to stop or change the program before it's completed. Wow, Yuno can be useful sometimes, can't he? ;) Aimee, Chrono, and Lizalotte talk about the masked man... neither Chrono nor Lizalotte would be able to take him on...

Fate and Nanoha go to school as usual. There, Suzuka tells them of Hayate's condition. Arisa comes up witha very good idea -- why don't they all go to the hospital to visit Hayate after school? Suzuka sends a text message to Shamal to ask if it would be okay to see her, and... Shamal is very surprised at what she sees next -- a picture of Suzuka, Arisa, Nanoha, and Fate holding up a "Get Well Soon" banner. Shamal hurriedly talks to Signum to figure out what she should do... Signum says not to worry about it too much... Shamal goes secret agent as she listens in on Nanoha, Fate, Suzuka, and Arisa when they visit Hayate. Hayate's doctor takes Shamal to talk for a bit. Hayate's sickness is a very difficult one, but they're doing all they can. And all the support Hayate's getting from Shamal and all of her friends is helping her as well...

After Suzuka and the others leave Shamal comes into Hayate's room. It's almost Christmas (December 13th to be exact), Hayate's first Christmas with everybody so she wants to have a lot of fun... At home, as Shamal prepares catridges for their next battle she talks to Signum of Hayate's condition. At this rate Hayate will only last perhaps another month at most. As Vita flies in a stormy world to gather more linker cores she thinks that something is odd about what they're doing.. but that's all they can do for now. She doesn't want Hayate to die... Graf Eisen changes into a huge gold and silver hammer as she attacks.....

Graham's catgirls, who call him their "father", talk to him as he looks over data about the Book of Darkness. He apologizes for making them be with him, but they don't mind -- his wish is their wish. This time around they'll be able to seal the Book of Darkness...

Hayate-chan... shinanaide! (don't die!). And she's trying her best to still show a happy face to everyone even though she's going through so much pain... such a good girl 。゜・（ノД`）・゜・。Vita seems to be the only that realizes that something's not quite right, perhaps about to remember what actually happened to her previous masters when the Book of Darkness was completed... hopefully she'll realize quickly as Hayate-chan hasn't got much longer... The next episode takes place on Christmas Eve, so... but I can't think they'd do it... I can hope for a happy ending where the Book of Darkness goes back to its original condition and Shamal, Signum, Zafira, and Vita don't disappear, and they all live together with Hayate in happiness forever, can't I? ;) Of course there's still the question of the masked man and what kinds of things Graham might know about what's going on and such.... next time it looks like y'all will need to have a box of tissues ready as everybody's crying. And there's no "na no" at the end of the title as usual, just "Christmas Eve", so it seems we'll have a pretty heavy story as Signum and the rest seem like they'll be fighting Nanoha and Fate again. But hopefully it won't come to that...

Nanoha A's Episode 07: With A Broken Past and Present

2007-06-02T17:45:00.001+08:00

Character design was off in places this time (sometimes more, sometimes less), so I guess that dampened my usual enthusiasm for blogging a bit. And where's Hayate-chan! Anyways, on with things.... ;)

Fate looks intently through a catalog for a cell phone. Geez, 3rd graders these days. Back when I was that age(ry :P Anyways, Fate finds a good one and Lindy buys it for her. Very cute :) Meanwhile, the catgirls and Yuno look for information about the Book of Darkness in the 無限書庫 mugen shoko (infinite archive), as the name implies a place full of the records of just about anything and everything.. Nanoha and Fate speak as Aimee comes back with some groceries, and soon after the emergency alarms go off -- Signum and the rest are at it again in another world, so Fate prepares to go.

Fate finds Signum having some problems with a rather big monster. I suppose this is tentacle monster week with Mai-Otome and now this (^^;;) Fate destroys the monster, saving Signum. Meanwhile, Arf and Zafira are ready to go at.. Aimee tells Fate she's supposed to capture Signum, not save her -- but she did destroy the monster that Signum was trying to obtain a linker core from -- stopping bad guys is her job ;) Though Signum's not really a bad guy as we all know...

Lindy and Graham speak with each other at the Time-Space Administration's HQ. Graham asks how progress is going in regards to the Book of Darkness. It's rather difficult, but Graham trusts her not to make a mistake like he did. Lindy says it wasn't his fault... Yuno searches through books in the Infinite Archive using his magic as one of the catgirls -- I'm sorry, I can't remember who is who. I'll stick names in to line up with the sub whenever that is ;) explain what happened the previous time the Book of Darkness showed up 11 years ago. Seems Chrono's father, Clyde, was involved, and ended up dying...

Signum and Fate continue the fierce battle from the previous time, with Fate showing off a new skill or two, including the "Plasma Smasher". As Arf and Zafira fight, Zafira tells Arf that their master knows nothing of the fact that they're gathering pages for the Book of Darkness -- they're doing it completely of their own will. Arf, not expecting to hear something like that, is a bit taken back...

Vita speeds towards the scene of the battle with the Book of Darkness as Shamal explains the situation to her. However, somebody is there to stop her -- Takamachi Nantoka! Nanoha! ;) Nanoha once again asks if they would talk things over. Vita doesn't want to talk to anybody of the Space-Time Administation, but Nanoha's simply someone who's working with them. Vita, however, doesn't want to talk, setting off a blast that gives her some time to get some distance. Nanoha readies Raging Heart, using two catridges to fire off "Divine Buster: Extension" at Vita. It seems a direct hit, so Nanoha worries that she overdid it -- nah, that's okay according to Raging Heart (^^;;) Actually, the masked guy somehow stopped it from hitting Vita... and even from that distance he manages to bind Nanoha. Signum and Fate, battered and beaten from their battle, comtemplate their next moves... but as they ready to attack, a hand appears out of Fate's chest.. the masked guy takes Fate's linker core out and offers it to Signum...

Nanoha A's Episode 06: It Was A Small Wish (Part 2)

2007-06-02T17:42:00.001+08:00

Continuing with the explanation of the Book of Darkness and Volkenritter, the "programs" that are only there to serve the master of the Book of Darkness. Fate seems to think she's like Volkenritter... Lindy replies with an emphatic no, she's an actual living human being. Signum and the others aren't supposed to have any emotions, but Nanoha saw Vita get mad and such, so something's going on... Chrono wants to gather some more data on the Book of Darkness, so he's got a favor to ask of Yuno... As Nanoha walks home she wonders what the master of the Book of Darkness is like. Yuno says (telepathically) that the Book of Darkness goes around randomly, so.. Nanoha wonders what if he/she were a kid around the same age as her. Bingo~ ;) And coincidentally, Suzuka sends Nanoha a pic of her and Hayate, saying that she'll introduce Hayate to her next time.

Hayate says goodbye to Suzuka the next morning and heads back home. Back at her house, Signum, Shamal, and Zafira wait. Vita seems to be out and about again... Shamal's a bit worried about Signum since she senses that her magical powers have gone down, but Signum will be okay. Shamal mentions that Signum's changed a lot -- not just her, but everybody has changed after Hayate became their master. One of Suzuka's maids gives Hayate a ride home -- Hayate explains that she's living with relatives, and every day is really fun for her. It's already been half a year since they came...

..moving back to the day when the Book of Darkness activated. Signum, Zafira, Vita, and Shamal appeared, wearing just black clothes, awaiting the command of their new master.. who is kinda out of it as Vita points out. They end up taking Hayate to the hospital... and of course they look rather suspicious. Hayate covers for them, saying they're relatives who came for her birthday, and the dressed up in costumes and such.. but don't Zafira's ears kinda give him away? (^^;;) Hayate was very different from their previous masters according to Signum. The Book of Darkness was there with Hayate as far as she can remember, but she didn't hear its voice or anything like that as Shamal asks. But she does know one thing she should do as the book's master -- take care of Signum and the rest. Unlike their previous masters, Hayate didn't treat them just as objects to be used or anything, she treated them like her family.

And it's bath time now for Vita and Hayate. After the bath, they all have dinner together. Vita doesn't seem to know how to use chopsticks properly.

Hayate's with Shamal and Signum in the library. Apparently Hayate needs to make suitable clothes for them to use while fighting. Hayate doesn't want them to fight or anything, but she's got an idea, so they all go to a toy store. There, Vita spots that rabbit we've always seen her with. And Hayate does get it for her of course.

And after Vita takes it out of the bag she shows us a big smile. Too cute :) So time went by pretty leisurely for all... Signum carries Hayate out (ohime-sama dakko~) one night and asks her if she wants to gain the power of the Book of Darkness. If she does, she should be able to cure her paralysis in her legs. but Hayate doesn't want to trouble other people, she's plenty happy with things as they are. Though her parents are dead, a friend of her dad's is helping with expenses, and more than anything else she's together with Signum and the rest.

Awwww... so sweet :) Vita comes running up, asking if she can have some popsicles in the freezer. She's still hungry after already eating so much? Well, Hayate's cooking is gigauma (giga-yummy), she says. Not terauma? ;) Hayate does have one command for Signum -- she has no interest in the power of the Book of Darkness and wants everybody to forget about it so long as she's master. She only wants everybody to get along well, that's all.

However, those carefree days were not to last. Hayate's doctor says that the paralysis in Hayate's legs is slowly spreading up her body, and will soon place her life in danger. Signum blames herself for not realizing what was going on earlier... it's the curse of the Book of Darkness. The book has been intimately connected with Hayate ever since she was born, and since Hayate's linker core is still immature the book's strong magical power ate away at her, causing her paralysis. And ever since Signum and the rest appeared the spread of the paralysis has gained speed... Vita wants to save Hayate no matter what, so there's got to be a way. They all start gathering pages to the Book of Darkness, thinking that if it's completed that Hayate can be saved by its power.

Back to the present, Vita is on another world fighting and gathering pages as usual, and she's rather beat up. But that doesn't matter to her. She's not hurting at all. She's doing it all for Hayate...

Chrono, Yuno, and Aimee head to HQ to see some people that can help them out in learning more about the Book of Darkness. They happen to be two catgirls (Graham's familiars) who were Chrono's teachers. One of them jumps Chrono behind a couch and "eats" him (^^;;;) Said girl is also interested in eating Yuno (but he ain't a rat, you know). Chrono wants them to help Yuno in finding out more about the Book of Darkness.

Nanoha A's Episode 05: It Was A Small Wish (Part 1)

2007-06-02T17:37:00.001+08:00

Hayate's out shopping for groceries with Shamal. She mentions that Shamal and the rest have been out more than usual lately, leaving her by herself. But she knows it's part of their job so she's just fine. Shamal says that it'll be over pretty soon, and if she says so then Hayate believes it...

Signum arrives to back up Zafira and Vita as they prepare to take on Nanoha and Fate. Nanoha and Fate aren't there to fight them -- they wish to talk and find out their motives for completing the Book of Darkness. Vita's not interested in talking -- especially with someone who's got out a weapon like Nanoha :P Nanoha and Fate ask both Yuno and Arf to not interfere with their fight. Chrono and Yuno decide to split up and search for the master of the Book of Darkness. So it's time for Nanoha and Fate to show off their new powers, giving the cartridge load command to Raging Heart Excelion and Bardiche Assault. Nanoha takes on Vita, and unlike before, Nanoha's able to block her attack pretty easily. And with her new Axel Shooter she's even able to break Vita's shield. Meanwhile, Fate takes on Signum, and just as Nanoha, Fate's doing much better this time. After a Plasma Lancer attack, Fate manages to get in a swipe with Bardiche in sycthe form. Signum's impressed with Fate and Bardiche's strength now -- Bardiche says "Thank You" after being complimented :)

Arf takes on Zafira... Zafira realizes that the situation isn't looking too good for them, so he suggests to Shamal, who's outside the barrier, that they pull back for now. But Shamal's magic isn't strong enough to break the barrier... and as she talks Chrono sneaks up behind. Good job, Chrono! Well... it doesn't last long, though, as a masked man kicks Chrono out of the way. The masked man suggests to Shamal that she use the power of the Book of Darkness to break the barrier. As Chrono confronts the masked man, Shamal calls forth the power of the Book of Darkness... while it charges up, Signum and Fate call of their fight for now, and Nanoha and Vita do the same after introducing themselves to each other. Vita thinks Nanoha's name is hard to say :P The power of the Book of Darkness is released, destroying the barrier (it looks much like the Ultima spell from the Final Fantasy games), and Fate and Nanoha are safe thanks to Yuno and Arf's protection...

Hayate's over at Suzuka's house playing with her cats. Kawaii~ :) Signum calls her to apologize for being so late that they couldn't have a nabe together. But Hayate's okay with things.. she's got dinner made, along with dessert for them. Hayate talks with Vita as Shamal and Signum step outside to talk about the battle. They have no idea who that masked man is or what his goals are... since she had to use the Book of Darkness they lost some pages, and there's not much time left. They have to work as quickly as possible to make Hayate the true master of the Book of Darkness....

Aimee explains Bardiche and Raging Heart's new systems to Nanoha and Fate. The catridge system wasn't originally intended to be used in Intelligent Devices since it could be dangerous, but since they wanted to become stronger, no matter what, to protect their masters they went through with it. Both have three modes, two normal modes then a full drive mode.

Raging Heart
Axel: Middle range projectile attack
Buster: Even more powerful projectile attack

Bardiche
Assault: General purpose mode
Haken (hook): Scythe mode

Aimee warns Nanoha and Fate not to use the full drive mode since it could damage the devices, especially Raging Heart's Excelion mode. Chrono and Lindy, along with Arf, talk about the Book of Darkness. It seems to Chrono that the Velca knights were trying to complete the book of their own will. It wouldn't odd if they were doing it for someone who wished to have the power of the Book of Darkness. However, unlike the Jewel Seeds, the power of the Book of Darkness can't be controlled well, and it can only be used to destruction. The Velca Knights are neither human nor familiar -- they're artificial personalities created by the book's magic, and they're supposed to be programmed only to follow the orders of their master, nothing more....

...but it's clear that they've gone beyond that to having their own feelings, especially in regards to Hayate. Hayate-chan's such a good girl... wonder how much she really knows about what's going on. I would guess that she doesn't know that Signum and the rest are just "programs" to be used by the Book of Darkness, and as such they could just disappear and such...

Anyways, fighting this time was good as usual, though they had to save the finish for another time :P Raging Heart's Axel Shooter is pretty cool... all that training Nanoha did really paid off, didn't it? ;) And poor Chrono looked like he'd have his time in the spotlight, but it wasn't to be thanks to that mysterious masked man who helped out Shamal for some reason or another. To gain the power of the book for himself somehow? Perhaps he'll be the "last boss" since I can't see Shamal or Vita or Zafira or Signum as really bad....

Looks like next time we'll learn more about the past of the Velca Knights, as well as what happened when Hayate first met them. Sounds interesting :)

Nanoha A's Episode 04: New Powers, Activate!

2007-06-02T17:29:00.001+08:00

Hayate's day starts early at 6:30am as she gets up to make breakfast for everyone. Vita doesn't seem to be a morning person. kawaii~ :) Nanoha and Fate's days start early as well, both going out to train...

It's Fate's first day of school in Nanoha's class. She introduces herself (kawaii~), then gets a barrage of questions from her new classmates, asking her where she went to school before and such... Chrono and Aimee discuss the current situation. Seems that Volkenritter is now going to other worlds to obtain linker cores for the Book of Darkness. The Book of Darkness uses the magical power from the linker cores to complete pages, and when all 666 pages are filled its true power will be released, power strong enough to interfere with dimensions. Even if its destroyed, or its master dies, it will reappear in another world, so all they can do is secure it before its completed...

Signum takes Hayate to the hospital for a check-up. The current treatment doesn't seem to be producing any results, but they'll keep with it for now. After Hayate leaves the doctor speaks with Signum, asking her how Hayate's day-to-day life is going. Other than her legs being paralyzed (麻痺 mahi) she's perfectly healthy, Signum answers. In order to prevent the paralysis from progressing, the treatment will be a bit more rough on Hayate from now on...

After a fun-filled day at school, Fate talks with Nanoha in her room. Nanoha asks her what she thinks about the people they're fighting against. Fate says she can't sense any ill intent from them... somewhat like she was before meeting Nanoha. She couldn't express herself and wouldn't listen to others who were trying to talk to her. She did whatever she could to please her mother, even though she was abused... But it's not impossible to express your feelings -- that's what Nanoha taught her. And if fighting is neccessary to accomplish that, then she'll do it. She'll become stronger.. and so will Nanoha.

Hayate meets up with Suzuka once again in the library... meanwhile, Zafira and Vita are gathering linker cores in another world from those giant creatures Aimee mentioned earlier. But they're only worth about 3 pages in the Book of Darkness... and so things go on as usual for everyone until that night...

Nanoha and the gang go to the Space-Time Administration headquarters to retrieve Bardiche and Raging Heart, but as they do so a situation comes up. Zafira and Vita have been surrounded by Space-Time Administration mages, and Chrono attacks them from above with his magic. Aimee says she's sending reinforcements -- Fate and Nanoha arrive on the scene and activate Bardiche and Raging Heart. However, they won't react.. Aimee tells Nanoha and Fate to call them by their new names...

レイジングハート　エクセリオン！
Raging Heart Excelion!

バルディッシュ　アサルト！
Bardiche Assault!

And it's time for what we've all been waiting for ;)

With the upgrade comes new transformation sequences, Nanoha then Fate's. Vita and Zafira realize that Nanoha and Fate now can use the same cartidge system they use and...

Nanoha A's Episode 03: Reunion, and Moving!

2007-06-02T17:21:00.001+08:00

At the headquarters of the Space-Time Adminstration Nanoha's healing from her injuries from the battle. Her linker core, the source of magical power, is much smaller than it was before, but it's already started to recover according to the doctor so everything's fine. Fate comes in to visit Nanoha. They're both happy to finally be able to see each other again :) Fate, Nanoha, and Crono go to see Yuno and Arf who are looking over Bardiche and Raging Heart. They won't be able to recover themselves so they'll need some replacement parts. But what were those weapons Vita and the rest were using? Crono explains: their magic is different than that of Bardiche and Raging Heart, using a cartidge system to increase their power...

Fate, Nanoha, and Crono go to visit an advisor of the Space-Time administration, Admiral Gil Graham. He's a very nice person, and he happens to be from Earth like Nanoha. He even got his powers in much the same was as she did. He only has one request of them: that they not betray each other as friends. He won't limit their actions if they do so...

Shifting scenes to Hayate's house, where everybody's taking it pretty easy. It's time for Vita and Hayate to have a bath. But Signum doesn't want to go along like she normally would... Zafira knows she's worried about the recent battle. Turns out Signum was injured... and now what y'all have all been waiting for:

Really cute eyecatch this time :)

Nanoha talks with Aimee about Fate. Seems that Lindy's going to be Fate's mom now, which would make Crono her onii-chan (lucky). The Asura's currently under repair so they've got to think of a way to carry out their mission of investigating what's going on. Lindy meets with the members of her crew. In order to carry out their duty they're going to be moving into a place pretty close to where Nanoha lives :)

So everybody moves in, with Arf showing off her new kawaii puppy form, and Yuno being the usual ferret. Nanoha seems to have forgotten that Yuno's a boy given how she cuddles him. Yuno, you damn lucky bastard ferret! ;) Suzuka and Arisa come over to say hi to everybody. They're pretty much already friends with Fate since they've been sending video letters back and forth. They all go to have tea at Midori-ya and Lindy greets Nanoha's parents. Someone from the school comes with a uniform for Fate. Turns out that Fate's going to be going to the same school as Nanoha, and in the same class as well.

Crono and Aimee talk about the Book of Darkness. It eats linker cores to write pages, and once all the pages are completed... Crono doesn't know exactly what'll happen, but it'll be something big... Vita and Hayate sleep together, but Vita wakes up to go meet up with Signum, Zafira, and Shamal. They realize that the Space-Time Adminstration is investigating them now.. Vita asks how many pages of the Book of Darkness they've completed. They've gotten 340 pages written in the Book of Darkness so far, more than halfway through (there are 666 pages in total). Vita wants to finish it quickly so that she and Hayate can live peacefully together forever... they all transform and go about their business...

Aimee gets a call from HQ from someone who was trying to fix up Bardiche and Ranging Hearts. Seems there's an error -- both display a message saying that they're lacking a certain part, "CVK-792". Aimee knows what that part is... a cartridge system.

Nanoha A's Episode 02: The Storm of Battle Once Again

2007-06-02T17:17:00.001+08:00

After Arisa and Suzuka talk over the phone about Fate coming back and doing a welcoming party and such for her, we continue from where we left off last time with Yuno and Fate arriving on the scene to assist Nanoha. Fate and Viita fight it out, and Alf is there, too. They've got the number advantage so they should win... well, no, since Vita's comrades, Signum and Zafira come to assist her. Signum fights Fate with her huge flaming sword (that reloads.. I want one of those... those cartridges seem to have some kind of magical energy in them). Signum's strong.. really strong (^^;;) Bardiche gets cut in half and Fate gets sent flying down through a building. Bardiche is just fine since its core isn't broken and regenerates itself. Yuuno comes to assist her and they devise a plan to break through the barrier somehow. Fate goes back to fighting with Signum and Yuuno takes on Vita, with Alf trying to take care of Zefira. All Nanoha can do is watch...

Hayate makes dinner as she talks to Shamal over the phone. Shamal's busy so she'll be coming back a bit late, but Hayate can take care of things on her own just fine. Shamal's at the scene of the fight with the Book of Darkness... Fate, Yuno, and Arf are having a pretty tough time with their opponents as Nanoha looks on. Raging Heart tells Nanoha to use the Starlight Breaker to break the barrier. Though in that condition... Raging Heart trusts her master so the countdown begins... and gets stuck on three. As the camera pans up we see an arm sticking out of Nanoha's chest -- it's Shamal. She was a bit off so she sticks her arm in again and takes out the linker core, the energy that the Book of Darkness uses to write its pages. Nanoha manages to stay composed enough to fire away the Starlight Breaker, which destroys the barrier. Lindy, Aimee, and Crono aboard the Asura can now see the situation there as Vita, Signum, Zefira, and Shamal get away. Nanoha collapses and Fate comes to support her... Chrono spots Shamal holding the Book of Darkness.. He seems familiar with it...

Nanoha A's Episode 01: The Beginning Was All Too Sudden

2007-06-02T17:04:00.001+08:00

June 3rd, 9:05PM: A girl in a wheelchair checks the answering machine and has a message from her doctor. Seems her birthday is tomorrow so the doctor will take the girl, Hayate, off somewhere to eat to celebrate. As Hayate reads in her bed a book on the shelf suddenly emits a dark light and the chains holding it closed break. It then speaks... in German (thankfully there are subtitles), saying it's activating...

December 1st, 6:35AM: Nanoha Takamachi is up early for some shooting practice with Raging Heart. She shoots a can up into the air then shoots it with her magical powers more than 100 times in the air, though she misses the wastebasket by just a bit. Still rather impressive, though. At home Nanoha gets ready for school and we see a picture she has of Fate, along with a DVD with a video message from Fate. Her family's doing fine as usual, though a bit sad since Yuuno's not around. Nanoha receives yet another video message from Fate in the mail...

Meanwhile, aboard the Time-Space Administration ship Asura, Captain Lindy and Aimee seem to be doing well as usual, getting ready to dock at headquarters. Chrono, along with Yuuno, Fate, and Arf prepare for the trial concerning the incidents of last season.. Chrono calls Yuuno a ferret, rather pissing him off. Fate and Arf try to calm him down a bit... Seems not all is well at headquarters. The Lost Logia are apparently showing up in various worlds again, and the most sought after of them has surfaced, so the Asura will have to be ready to go once again. Fate takes a look at the photo of Nanoha she has -- Nanoha's been sending her video letters as well... Back in Nanoha's city, an unknown mahou shoujo has easily beaten two others. She's got the book Hayate had in her room earlier, and collects something from the two fallen magic soldiers, food for the Book of Darkness.

Suzuka is browsing at the library when she sees Hayate trying to reach a book and goes over to help. They introduce themselves and find out they're the same age and all. Hayate leaves with two other women who take care of her, Signum and Shamal. Hayate asks where Vita is.. She's out playing around according to Signum, but Zafira is with her so she'll be okay. But even though they might be apart at times they're always by Hayate.

That night, Vita (that girl from earlier) and Zafiru are out above the town searching for something. Vita's been sensing magical power from somewhere off and on... if she can get whoever it is she'd be able to add 20 pages in one shot to the Book of Darkness. She casts a barrier around the town and pinpoints the location of the magical power.. it's Nanoha, and Vita speeds towards her. Nanoha's able to stop one of Vita's attacks but Vita comes from behind and knocks her off the building she's on. Time to transform!... But it's the same as the previous season so no need to go over it again. Nanoha and Vita go at it, attacking each other as the fly around, with Nanoha putting Raging Heart into Shooting Mode and letting go a Divine Buster that nearly gets Vita. It did mess up her hat so she's really pissed off.. she comes at Nanoha full bore with her hammer, now powered up, and eventually breaks through Nanoha's shield and cracks Raging Heart, sending Nanoha flying through a window. Vita attacks again and knocks Nanoha backwards again.. looks like it's over for Nanoha. But someone shows up to protect Nanoha from Vita's next attack. It's Fate (and Yuuno, too)! Fate says Nanoha's her friend, and she prepares to fight Vita..

Wow, really heating things up here in just the first episode! Having this much fighting this first episode and in the OP would seem to indicate that we'll see much more of it this time around. I'll welcome it if it's done as well this time, though hopefully not all the time. Love that Fate called Nanoha a "friend" :) She and Nanoha are as cute and cool as they were last time. Looking forward to seeing them fight together... though they're gonna have a tough fight with Vita. That girl's pretty dang powerful.. would've liked to see a different transformation sequence for Nanoha, but the previous one was just fine so I can't complain much (not saying it's good because of that, okay?).... but seeing the double transformation from the OP in the actual episode would be nice ;)

Nanoha StrikerS Episode 09: Precious Things

2007-06-01T20:53:00.001+08:00

Teana wakes up in the infirmary under Shamal’s care. The last thing she can remember was being blasted by Nanoha, but there’s no lasting physical damage. On the other hand, she does notice that Shamal has taken her pants. As she gets them back, she notices that she’s been out for pretty much the rest of the day.
Nanoha is off at work on something when Fate walks up. The two start talking about how she handled the situation with Teana, and Fate reassures her and says that Teana and Subaru will understand what she did.
As the two return to the dorm, the alarm goes off. Our generic evil doctor has sent out some Gadget Drone Fliers as a test while Luetcia, sans her babysitter talks with him about these latest versions and the relic. She wishes him luck and then says goodnight while he evilly laughes to himself.
Back at Riot 6, instead of deploying, everybody is standing around and asking each other what the heck the Gadget Drones are doing since they’re not really moving anywhere near a suspected Relic. Hayate gives the go-ahead to Nanoha and Fate to go engage while the rookies are left in the command of Signum.
Nanoha has a few choice words for Teana before they take off and Teana throws everything back into her face before Signum steps in and gives Teana the fist. Poor Teana is not having a particularly good day. Nanoha, Fate, and Vita leave and Subaru starts yelling at Signum for how she’s treating her subordinates.
Shirley steps in this time and talks pretty much everybody down, saying that Nanoha had a good reason for doing what she did and that she’d explain everything. Over in the lounge, we get a quick refresher course on Nanoha’s childhood and receiving Raising Heart as well as Fate’s relation to her and her past with Precia. They’re all pretty surprised that the two had such a past.
We then also get a refresher course on the A’s stuff, complete with them telling about the cartridge system and the Book of Darkness and fighting with the Velka knights. Back at something interesting, Nanoha, Fate and Vita deploy to attack the drones, who have already been engaged. That lasts for about 15 seconds before we go back to boring flashbacks.
As Shamal tells them about the drain magic can have on the body, we see a shot of Raising Heart broken and Nanoha completely bloodied being held by Vita. Apparently she hadn’t recovered from her last mission and was caught by surprise and didn’t have the power to fight back. We also get to see a couple scenes of her trying to recover, apparently she couldn’t walk after the attack, though we never learn what the attack actually was. All we really learned from this extended flashback is that magic drains people a ton, especially prolonged use thereof. Whoopie.
Back in interestingville, Vita charges to the attack and finishes off the last Gadget Drone. And that’s the end of the action for this episode. *sigh* As Nanoha comes back, Shirley apologizes for telling them about their past without her permission, but Nanoha doesn’t really mind.
Teana is moping on the deck later and Nanoha goes to talk to her. Never mind the other cadets plus Shirley hiding in the bushes. The two have a long talk about how Nanoha expects a lot from her and how the entire squadron was specially made, Erio for his speed, Caro for her enhancing magic, etc etc and Shirley as the brains behind it, which is why Nanoha can’t afford to let her lose control of the situation like she did.
Nanoha then takes Teana’s device and releases the limiter, and Teana charges it to the second power level, where it becomes sort of an energy chakram gunblade thing. Nanoha says that she trusts her with the power, and Teana breaks down in tears. Nanoha apologizes to her, and Teana pretty much just continues sobbing.
The next day, they’re back to training with Fate, and Teana’s feeling quite a bit better. Fate tells them about the elite rankings in the Squadron, Aces and Stikers. The gist is that the Aces are the absurdly singly powerful and the Strikers are the veterans that everybody depends on and looks to, and that Nanoha is hoping they can all become Strikers.
Nanoha is finishing setting up the training for the day, and all the cadets come running up all happy again. Fate and Nanoha exchange a glance over their heads and… end credits. Bwa-?

Nanoha StrikerS Episode 08: A Wish, Together

2007-06-01T20:51:00.001+08:00

This episode is pretty much Teana centered as we get a long glimpse into her past as well as how she’s (poorly) handling being bitched out by Vita in the previous episode. The whole episode is basically her destructive impulses spiralling out of control until Nanoha skips the nice talk and lays the smack down. Kind of a slow episode up until that point, but the end of it really does give me shivers. Nanoha has really come a long way from her “I don’t want to hurt anybody” mentality and has now learned the value of a fist to the face.
Also, and this is important, Teana’s bust changes size at least three times this episode.
The episode begins with Teana still moping about almost accidently shooting Subaru while the corps people pick through the debris. Nanoha and Fate are debriefing the cadets and Nanoha takes Teana aside for a talking to about if there’s anything bothering her, she can talk to Nanoha. She also tells her that everybody is depending on her and that she needs to keep her spirits up and all that business.
Teana goes back to Subaru and apologizes, but Subaru, having the attention span of your common housefly, has pretty much already forgotten about it. Caro sees Fate and Yuuno talking together and asks Shirley about him and gets the rundown of his past. Fate tells him that the new case is about the Jewel Seeds again and the two earn their ‘old’ status by remembering the old times and talking about how nostalgic things are.
Nanoha comes trotting up and Fate leaves the two awkwardly together. Nanoha’s all blushes and says that it’s quite the coincidence to run into him here. The two start chatting, and we fade away to Hayate and her plaything having coffee and chit-chatting about nothing particularly interesting. Everybody’s got a boy toy now except poor Fate, although we’re not really certain what she’s doing with Erio and Caro… maybe it rhymes with ‘freedom.’
Later that evening, Teana wants to go train with Subaru and the other two cadets also want to tag along, but Teana says that it’s to make Subaru and Teana work together better. Vita, Signum and Shirley also ambush our two cadets to talk about Teana and their concerns over her and we get a split of Subaru telling the other two cadets, and the aces briefing eachother about her brother. He joined the corps and quickly became one of the elite members. On a mission though, he was killed, and ended up being basically just a footnote in the grand scheme of things and a disappointment to all his peers. Teana’s not exactly on her way to becoming too much better so far as yet with all her pyrrhic tactics.
While this is going on, Teana is shown training on her own and trying to become better in order to not be forgotten and cast aside like her brother was. Her training goes on until well after her white shirt can hold out until Griffith comes by and tells her to go to sleep. He reassures her that Nanoha and Signum will take care of them, but she ignores him and keeps training. She eventually heads back to the room and immediately goes to sleep.
By the by, the eyecatch is loli Teana with a water pistol in her brother’s arms.
The next morning, Subaru wakes Teana up early for the training she wanted.
IMPORTANT PLOT POINT: Teana sleeps in her bra, Subaru doesn’t.
Anyway, after some fanservice random chatter, they head out to train. We skip forward a little bit later to Nanoha hooking up with them to start training proper while we strangely get a flashback to what we just saw along with insert song while Teana talks about how she’s working hard. We also see that Caro and Erio ended up showing up early anyway and brought them water and a towel and the like. We also get to see Teana vomit in the bushes from pushing herself too hard. Now that’s… well… wonderful.
Later that night, Teana and Cross Mirage are chatting when casual-wear Subaru comes in and tells her that everthing will be fine. Skipping on to the next day, Erio and Caro are going to be training with Vita while Teana and Subaru work with Nanoha. The two cadets are sparring with her in full barrier jacket form while all the others observe. Teana shoots a Cross Fire blast to push Nanoha into Subaru’s path. She tries to knock her off the path, but Subaru blasts through and punches her staff. She’s shot back while Nanoha keeps dodging Teana’s shots.
Nanoha chastises her for a reckless attack, but she says “Sorry, I was just doing what I was told” at which point Nanoha realizes that she’s lost sight of Teana. She sees her powering up a shot away, and Subaru leaps to attack again. The far away Teana is shown to be an illusion as Teana charges up one of Subaru’s paths with a blade out of her pistol. Nanoha releases Raising Heart, catches Teana’s blade in one hand (complete with blood drenching her hand) while still holding Subaru off, and then bitches out both of them for being totally reckless with their safety in their attacks and that training like this is a complete waste since they’ll just get themselves killed in a real battle. Teana loses it, tries to shoot Nanoha anyway, and gets tossed back with a Cross Fire Shoot and then a Divine Buster in the face for her troubles while Subaru is bound by Nanoha. Tough fucking love for Teana. Nanoha calls an end to the training while Subaru is in tears and basically livid with rage at Nanoha.
Next episode, we finally get to see what happened to Nanoha all those years ago in the manga with her shit being fucked up. Broken Raising Heart and blood everywhere. Deeeelicious.

Nanoha StrikerS Episode 07: Hotel Augusta

2007-06-01T20:48:00.001+08:00

The Velka Knights return to the fray.
A decent, if somewhat unspectacular episode. For spending about 15 minutes with the drones attacking them, there really was very little particularly impressive fighting, but it’s nice to have some drama in the series, and pissed off Vita really is pretty damn pissed off. Maybe we’ll get to learn soon about whatever it was that happened to Nanoha in the A’s to StrikerS manga.
On the way to their next mission, Fate and Hayate are briefing the cadets on the evil doctor. They’re heading over for guard duty on a conference/auction on Lost Logia and will be lead by Vita and Shamal while the Aces guard from inside/mingle in their terrible evening dresses. We get to see Yuuno chatting with some professor with long green hair briefly as well.
Everybody stands around pretty bored and chatting about various things, mostly ranks and Hayate while they wait for something to happen. I think it was mostly an excuse for some narrative while they didn’t need to bother animating moving mouthes.
Lutecia and her big guardian dude are lurking in the woods nearby and she receives a little drone which tells her about the doctor. The drones start moving in, Shamal immediately senses them, and Signum deploys the Lightning kiddos, who are amazed that Zafira can talk. The Stars team also moves to better positions to receive the attack.
The Velka knights get very short transformation sequences at this point. I think all three together were about as long as Fate’s alone. Vita and Shamal head off the intercept while Fate and Nanoha lurk in the auction hall and keep tabs on the situation.
Vita uses her croquet ball attack to take down a handful of drones and Signum somehow slices right through the AMF field to take down one. Zafira is taking fire, but puts up a shield and then creates stalagmites to pierce the ones attacking him. Teana and Subaru are watching the action and amazed at how easily they’re handling the situation. Lutecia and the doctor are not particularly pleased with how things are progressing, and the doctor tells her that her device, Ascelius, wants the data from the others. She powers it up and Caro’s Kerykerion reacts to it.
She creates some tentacles from the ground which become a swarm of mini-drones and attach themselves to the other drones which makes them power up. Signum’s sword bounces off them, and Vita starts to miss with her attacks. Caro senses a summoning spell and a ton of drones suddenly pop from the ground in front of the cadets. Rein is meanwhile encountering the mini drones in the air and is minorly wounded by one of them, but can’t fight back at all. One of Lutecia’s drones has finally found what it’s looking for, and she shoots a beam of energy into the air.
The cadets are fighting and barely winning against the drones right outside the gates. Teana has Subaru distract them while she casts a spell and tries to take them out all at once with a CrossFire Shoot. One of her shots goes stray though and almost hits Subaru. Vita intercedes and yells at her for endangering her comrade. She’s pretty damn pissed and really rips both of them a new one.
Off in the garage with the Relic/minidrone, the stupidest guard ever turns and sees a truck that has literally been torn apart and decides that a flashlight is sufficient protection to check things out. He’s as lucky as he is stupid though, and the drone has already absconded with whatever it was that they were after.
Lutecia and her big man withdraw while Shirley gives Hayate the low down. Our green haired buddy comes up to Hayate and the two talk and flirt for a little bit, including Hayate giving him a straight shot to the gut and getting her head patted for her troubles.
Over in the auction hall, Yuuno finally makes it to the stage to the surprise of Fate and Nanoha. The Velka knights are surveying the damage outside. Teana is sulking while Subaru tries to talk her out of the funk saying that it’s not her fault, but she’s crying and blaming herself.
Next episode is a Teana and Subaru team building affair as she appears to be training herself to exhaustion to make up for her screwup.

Nanoha StrikerS Episode 06: Development

2007-06-01T20:45:00.001+08:00

Anyway, a pretty decent cool down episode from last week that reintroduces us to the eternal gothic lolita, Vita, and gives her the opportunity to hit on Nanoha train the cadets in the finer marital martial arts. Next week we return to some actual dramatic action and are hopefully finished with all this training, although I could be persuaded to watch Signum and Fate give the cadets some pointers in the finer arts of mud wrasslin’.
The episode begins with Rein reviewing the last mission as well as the status of the Relic. It turns out to be number IX in a series and has been sent elsewhere for further study. Shirley comes to check up on Rein and ask about the devices.
Over on Generic Training Island, Vita is sparring with Subaru. Vita takes a swing and Subaru blocks it, but is thrown back anyway. Vita then gives a long speech about how their job is to protect and support Nanoha, as well as the differences between a shield and barrier and how Subaru needs to learn how to use both. Fate is training her two recruits on predicting enemy movement and using your speed to stay ahead of the enemy and how to use cover to your advantage. Even Erio is amazed at the speed that she can dodge the shots. Nanoha and Axel Shooter is training Teana in her reactions and shooting abilities, especially when forced to do both on offense and defense. Teana also seems to be able to control her shots to a much better degree than before.
Signum and her boy toy are looking on and making their own judgements about the cadets and how they’re progressing. She’s relatively impressed with their progress, but notes that they’ve still got a ways to go. The cadets are worn out by their training, so the three call it a day for the kiddos and go to check in with Hayate. Hayate asks Subaru about her sister and father, who she’s going to meet before taking off.
In the mess hall, everybody is eating some kind of mutant spaghetti beast which seems to contain something green. I’m betting it’s the shrubbery. (editor’s note: It’s yakisoba, you spaz) They chat about how people joined the service and family, especially Erio and his foster mother Fate and Subaru and her military father and sister.
Over with Hayate and Subaru’s father, they talk shop for a bit about how things are progressing with her division when Ginga walks in. Hayate briefs Subaru’s father on the relic and she talks about how her direct subordinates are doing while Rein and Ginga chum it up. They end up talking about Subaru and devices, but nothing particularly interesting. Hayate and Nakajima’s meeting comes to an end and Hayate thanks him for his continued support before we flip over to the research facility where the device is being kept.
At this point, I’d like to point out that the raw’s audio wavelength about triples and everybody sounds like they’re possessed for about a minute.
Fate recognizes something in one of the Gadget Drones, and sees that they’re powered by Jewel Seeds… though a closer examination reveals a panel that says Jewel Scarlett. They bring up the information on the person studying them, and to the surprise of nobody, it’s a rather evil looking scientist that we have totally never ever seen before. Fate tells Shirley about her and Nanoha’s former encounter with the Jewel Seeds and has her try to dig up as much info as possible. She also fills in Hayate on her discovery, who is having lunch with the Nakajima duo. They refuse to let her pick up the check.
In Fate’s Lovemobile, Fate continues telling Shirley about what she knows of our good doctor and we’re treated to a shot of him and his army of clones with a few tanks empty. He talks about the Relic Weapon, and we see our mini-Rider wandering the streets with a glove fairly similar to Kerykeion.
The cadets are finishing another training session with Nanoha and Vita. Vita prods Nanoha on how things are going and how she’s doing with all the new work and the Relic case. Vita is a bit slackjawed at the response while she talks about everything and says how amazing it is that everything is coming together. Vita remains the eternal uppity loli and gets cranky when Nanoha pats her head and gives us a few final words silently about protecting Nanoha. I’d also like to point out that Nanoha’s hips shake a lot more when walking next to Vita than any other time in the series so far.

Nanoha StrikerS Episode 05: Stars and Lightning

2007-06-01T20:43:00.001+08:00

This episode opens with Caro having a flashback to her youth in a sort of tribal culture where her parents tell her about her power and she remembers that she’s afraid of it. She then has a vision of stigmata on her palms and gasps before snapping back to reality.
Back at Riot 6 HQ, things are getting worse with the Gadget having pretty much taking over the train. Nanoha and crew deploy straight from the copter, while Nanoha has some words of encouragement for Caro about the people watching them. On the ground, Fate transforms and we get out first magical girl transformation scene of the show, and let me tell you… Fate bounces, as well as wears some lacey underwear. Nanoha also transforms, but her underwear is a lot more functional, and she doesn’t bounce.
Rein gives the rest of the crew their final instructions and information on the train while Nanoha and Fate rendezvous in flight. A set of air things start trying to shoot them out of the sky, but Nanoha dodges and takes out a ton with an Axel Shooter. Fate also carves up a few with a generic scythe slash.
Subaru and Teana leap from the copter and they get their own transformation sequences as well, followed by Erio and Caro and their own transformations. Their underwear isn’t nearly as interesting as Fate’s, and Erio never goes to the exploding underwear level… thankfully. Anyway, the foursome immediately begins attacking. Subaru has a little trouble controlling her device, and it’s kind of silly to see her talking to her shoe. Teana also has her second gun, which she can apparently summon at will and she chats with her new Device as well.
Hayate finally makes it to Riot 6 HQ and takes over command of the operation. Erio and Caro are meanwhile fighting one of the advanced Gadget drones, which knocks Fried’s shots away without effort. Erio tries to attack, but the magic dampener stops his attack and nulls Caro as well. Erio starts struggling with it until it starts blasting lasers and slams him against the wall. Caro flashes back again to people discussing her in the S-T crew and her abilities… and Fate is shown taking responsibility for her.
Back in reality, Erio has been caught and tossed into the air by the drone and is out cold. He falls off the train while Caro starts emitting some kind of wave and she jumps after him. Nanoha is also nearby and tells HQ to not worry. She grabs his hand and her Device uses a Drive Ignition to enclose both in a bubble which slows their fall before she turns Fried into a giant dragon and the two fly on him back to the train.
The others look on at big Fried while the big drone pulls itself out of the train, only for Fried to try to flame it and fail because of its shield. Caro casts another spell on Strato as Erio leaps to attack. He slashes off the tendrils, Strado then loads a cartridge, and he spits it, and then slashes upward to finish it off.
The train has now been cleared of all drones and everybody is relieved while the suspected Relic-related device is secured by Subaru. Meanwhile, someone more sinister is looking on and collecting data on the heroes… and it fades out as he laughes to himself.

Nanoha StrikerS Episode 04: First Alert

2007-06-01T20:40:00.001+08:00

The art too a minor dip this episode, but otherwise it was still pretty well done. Nanoha’s utter domination of the new recruits was nice to see, though I’m interested in how they’re going to leverage that for later episodes since at the moment, she/Fate/Hayate could just show up and trash anything that the cadets are having problems with. The first real battle for the cadets is next week, though the preview was almost exclusively Caro, so we’ll see how the kids do.
Teana and crowd are getting used to their new surroundings and lodgings, while Erio and Fried are already forming the male core on their own. Poor guys. Teana gives a voice over about the division and all they’re doing and another round of training with Nanoha starts. This time, they need to evade Nanoha’s Axel Shooter or manage to get a clean hit on her.
Nanoha shoots at them and they scatter. Subaru and Teana try to surround her, and Nanoha zaps them, only to be revealed as illusions while Subaru attacks from above. Nanoha blocks Subaru and then redirects her two shots at Subaru who is forced to retreat. Teana’s gun misfires and she almost lets Subaru get shot down.
Caro is enchanting Erio’s spear. She boosts it a bit too high, and Nanoha continues dodging Teana’s shots as well as Fried’s attacks. Erio blasts forward straight into the moving Nanoha and he’s repulsed backwards, but since in the collision he managed to scratch Nanoha’s jacket, they pass the training, though Subaru’s rollerblades are totally fried. Nanoha also tells them that they’ll be getting their real Devices soon.
On the way back, they run into Fate and Hayate in their slick ride and do a general check-in on how they’re doing and how training is going before Fate and Hayate continue on to their meeting. Hayate chatters on at Fate about various things. I think 90% of Fate’s responses were “I see.”
Then, the important part of the episode, naked time. A little bonding the female showers while poor Erio and Fried are stuck on the stairs. Fried’s forlorn “gao” was so pathetic.
BACK AT THE GALACTIC CORE… Calina (Calima?), is doing random administrative work. Hayate’s meeting is with her, and she fills in Hayate about a new object that they believe is related to the Gadget drones and the Relic stuff. Hayate thinks there’s something strange about it though, and tells her to not worry and everything is going to be fine.
Back at Riot Six HQ, Shirley is giving the cadets their new Devices as specified by Nanoha and Raging Heart. Rein gives them the final details on the devices before Nanoha shows up and they officially get the details on them. All devices (including the ones belonging to the Aces) also have a power limiter on them so now we have the potential for Super Magical Sayajin Nanoha II. She also lets them know about their own rankings as well as her own and a few other people’s for comparison.
Back at Fate’s Car, she’s talking to Griffith about the recruits when an Alert suddenly starts. A train is out of control due to the Gadget drones attacking it. Hayate deploys Nanoha’s team for its first real mission while Fate is told to rendezvous with them. Nanoha gives them a brief peptalk on the copter while on the way there and tells them that they’ll be fine since Fate and Hayate will also be there, but Caro is distracted and tense.

Nanoha StrikerS Episode 03: Gathering of Troops

2007-06-01T20:37:00.001+08:00

Overall a pretty enjoyable episode, and it basically fills in most of the gaps that you’d be lacking if you hadn’t read the A’s to StrikerS manga. Nanoha’s…er… encounter… with the drones still hasn’t come up yet, but I’m pretty sure it will in an episode or two. Elio and Caro also got to strut their stuff.
Rein and Hayate are maxing and relaxing in their office when the other two Aces come in dressed in full regalia. They report for official duty to Hayate and officially introduce themselves to her and there’s laughter all around before another officer comes in and introduces himself to them. I missed the name, but they recognized him although I didn’t. I’m a disgrace to my Nanoha fandom.
Over to all the new recruits and workers for Hayate’s unit where she gives them a peptalk as it pans over everybody and they applaud. Signum and Fate do a little catching up after the peptalk while some really strange music plays. I think someone got a little slaphappy with the double reeds. Nanoha is meanwhile escorting the 4 subordinates (Subaru, Teana, Elio and Caro) to get changed for training.
Lots more wandering around and chatting with the various troops and whathaveyou, including, but not limited to a sentient helicopter. A girl named Shirley also comes running up to Nanoha and crew as they’re getting ready to go through the training course. She gives them a brief rundown of the course and the simulator and whatnot, and starts up the course. Vita and Signum are watching the training course while Shamal is managing her own little info crew. Nanoha gives the four the final rundown on the course and the enemies they’ll be facing on it before setting them loose.
And then, because we’d so much rather see a briefing after the eyecatch than action, Hayate is giving a rundown on some of the recent disasters (including Subaru’s ship) and how they believe that they’re related to a certain Lost Logia that destroyed a world, and now the drones that they believe are related to it have started to invade their worlds.
Back to Subaru, who is having trouble keeping up with the speed of the training drones. Spiderman Elio is also having issues hitting them and whiffs completely. Caro’s glove is an intelligent device and she helps Teana take a few shots, but they’re cancelled by the Anti-Magic-Field (which Nanoha tells them about after they notice it) that the drones have. Subaru’s a little dense and decides to use her magic road to go after them, which falls apart as she gets close.
Teana (calling Caro a midget), finally introduces herself to the poor kid, and starts actually organizing the other three into some semblence of strategy. Elio’s spear (Strado?) loads a cartridge and he destroys a bridge to try to drop it onto them taking out two, while Suzaku tries to punch them again and fails, only to tackle one behind her and have the punch finally work. Caro and Friedrich set the whole mess on fire, and then Caro grabs another couple by using chains from the ground. Teana creates a charged shot with her gun (which Nanoha remarks is AA power). It manages to pierce through multiple AMF barriers and finish off the last of the drones, and she collapses, exhausted.
BACK AT THE GALACTIC CORE, Hayate and her knights are meeting up for lunch while Rein is taking a nap in her briefcase. Poor Zafira has to eat on the floor. She really doesn’t treat her knights all that well, all things considered. Anyway, more chatter about Nanoha and the new recruits and what-have-you and that’s pretty much all she wrote, other than some hardcore Rein vs A Cherry Tomato action.
And possibly Nanoha and Fate undressing to get into bed together. But you didn’t hear that from me.

Nanoha StrikerS Episode 02: 6th Mobile Division

2007-06-01T20:33:00.001+08:00

We rejoin Nanoha and crew as Subaru tearfully reunites with them. Reinforce tells them that Nanoha is going to be their instructor while Teana recounts Nanoha’s rank and fame in the corps. Hayate also gives Fate a peptalk about her own responsibilities.
Another flashback to Fate remembering what happened on the night that Nanoha saved Subaru. Hayate is directing traffic with Reinforce II while Fate is charging into the fray. She’s also discussing the crisis with Subaru and Ginga’s father, and talking about how to handle things. Nanoha reports in about Subaru and then Hayate transforms and joins Fate and Nanoha.
Fate finds a family in the flames protected by a barrier and creates another one around their’s. Meanwhile, a girl (Subaru’s older sister, Ginga) is looking for Subaru. Fate finds her and rescues her as the floor collapses. Nanoha checks in with Fate showing that Subaru’s been rescued and the two fly off to the safe area. Then, with everybody out of the ship, Hayate casts a spell to freeze the entire thing. A team of other mages come rushing in finish off the mission.
Cut to the aces lounging around in their nightclothes for some fanservice and general existential Hayate angst which goes on for far longer than it should have. I swear, the melodrama in the series at the moment is so silly. Hayate wants to form her own unit to deal with random problems like this, and asks Fate and Nanoha to join her, which they obviously do.
Back to present times, Fate and Hayate are briefing Subaru and Teana about various things relating to the background of the series and Hayate’s own unit. Takase Mizuki comes in and gives them a dressing down. She then gives them permission to retake the test in a little while.
Later, Subaru and Teana are off lounging around the courtyard, talking about how lucky they are to be teamed with Nanoha. Some good natured rubbing by Subaru leads to Teana smacking her around a bit and Subaru’s generic talk about wanting to become stronger and better and as good as Nanoha, plus a backhanded compliment at Teana earns more of her wrath.
Nanoha and Hayate were watching them from above and talk about how they work together and whatnot. Fate also joins them and they talk about how Nanoha is holding up with all the work and friendship and yada yada before heading off.
Cut to an airport-looking area where Elio is waiting impatiently. Signum comes up and Elio greets her officially. Fate and Nanoha are en route to the place as well. Elio is looking for someone named Lushe (pronounced Lucia), who comes running down the stairs until she trips and Elio’s intelligent device (looks like a watch) activates and he uses a Sonic Move to catch her, sending both flying and him ending up getting a ‘handful’ of Caro. Her little dragon pops out of her bag and gets introduced.
Finally we get to some (brief) action, in the form of Vita, Zafira and Shamal fighting some generic mecha things that look pretty similar to the training bots from episode one, though a lot more spikey and dangerous. I’m told they’re the same drone things as from the prequel manga. Shamal is in corps outfit, and Vita is also in a much sleeker and less goth-loli outfit as well. And to end the episode, Teana and Subaru are shown in a train in a similar looking area to where those three were fighting.
Whew. Not a bad episode, but definitely lacking in the action. The melodrama is also especially silly. The preview shows Teana shooting at something (looks like the same area as the test), as well as Caro and Elio joining up officially as well.

Nanoha StrikerS Episode 01: Wings To The Sky

2007-06-01T20:25:00.001+08:00

It opens with the scenes of a ship on fire with a child Subaru trapped inside while firefighters rush about. She cries for someone to save her, and Nanoha rushes in to block a falling statue and then Divine Busters the fuck out of the ceiling to carry the two off to escape.
Fastforward and Subaru is shadowboxing in full equipment while Tiana checks her equipment. Reinforce calls them up and prepares them for their excercise while Fate and Hayate watch from a copter overhead and chatter about various things. Nanoha also does a final check over the course with Raging Heart. The exercise starts and the Big Three watch on. They go through various obstacles and shoot targets/dodge lasers, the works. Subaru uses her cartridge enabled Device too (though Tiana doesn’t… assuming her normal bullets aren’t cartridges at any rate.)
At one point the two are pinned down, and they use an invisibility spell as well as tossing Tiana’s gun to the ceiling to break free. Tiana also shows that she’s got some magical skill here too. After pushing Subaru out of the way, Tiana twists her ankle and takes out Nanoha’s observational camera off a ricochet.
Subaru gets all sad about Tiana saving her and hurting herself while Tiana goes all stoic on her. Nanoha loads her barrier jacket and goes to personally observe them. Subaru and Tiana argue about losing people and/or leaving them behind while some really cheesy adventure BGM plays until Tiana yells at Subaru and the two decide to continue on.
Tiana runs out along the path, until she’s gunned down by a turret… only to emerge from the wreckage still running. The running Tiana is shown to be an illusion as more spawn and distract the turrets. Subaru watches from above and charges her magical gauntlet before creating a path to the building where the turret is and then rushing down it and attacking it, busting the shield, but then getting shot away. A magical shot later and the turret is toast.
Subaru crosses the finish line with Tiana riding on her back and shooting down the last couple defense turrets. Subaru gets a little overzealous and turns on the nitro and almost pancakes them into the debris before Nanoha and Fate stop them short. Reinforce yells at them… and there my raw stops. Sadness.
OverallNanoha’s side ponytail is looking more and more like Takase Mizuki with every passing day. I’m sorry, I’m not going to be able to hold back the Card Master Peach jokes, but I’ll try.
Animation is hot stuff from start to finish. Even though they don’t really fight anything except harmless training drones. That kind of knocked back the action a little bit since there really wasn’t much drama to it, but as a pilot it was still quality. Subaru’s bow still looks silly though.
Fans of the first two seasons won’t be disappointed in the action at all. I fully expect and hope to see Carol and Fate’s boytoy in the next episode or two. This one is definitely pacing itself for the 24/26 episode haul, and I’ve got no complaints at all with how it started… other than the cheesyness of the BGM as Tiana and Subaru were arguing.

Nanoha StrikerS

2007-04-18T15:32:00.000+08:00

i heard that there is going to be a new season. hmm...

not shown here in singapore...*sob*

the title is "Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha StrikerS".

i got a lot of pictures here of StrikerS. wanna see it? okay!!!

got more... LOADING... LOADING...

what? don't know what it means? okay, i will tell you. Fate is asking her staff wherether she shoul change her outfit or not. and of course, Bardiche replied, "No problem, my master."

some how i think this is wierd because Bardiche always call Fate "Sir". all of them has a different call out name. let's see now...

Nanoha: my master

Fate: sir

Hayate: mistress hayate/hayate

Chrono: boss

that is all i know. i got a lot more pictures but something tells me there won't be enough space for it...

anyway, if you happened to have some information about StrikerS, do let me know. don't tell me about it having 26 episodes or they are 19 years old or who the most powerful person is. i already know that. maybe if you want to find out something about it, tell me and i will tell you the answer.

good bye!!!

Rainbow