#oops I forgot to put her in the tags! how appropriate for this episode

[branmuffins22]

Willow Park: 3, 42, 49 from this ask game

I am super curious if this works because from my perspective you're shadowbanned on Tumblr

(Well, I couldn't find it in my inbox or my messages (neither of those features load at all for me), but I found it in my activity feed, so I'll take it!)

3. Obscure headcanon I've got a few for Willow, but my most obscure is probably that Willow wasn't always afraid of ladybugs: she became afraid after Luz went into a bit too much detail telling her how some ladybugs wrecked the Noceda's garden, and Willow interpreted the whole thing as a bit of a horror story about some Horrible Murderous Alien Bug.

42. 3 comfort items - The hairclip with the flower with the eye (obv) - The photo album of the squad's time in the Human Realm - (headcanon, but) A watering can that her dads got her shortly after she switched to the plant track, emblematic of their support.

49. Favorite toy as a child This is a tough one, because we really only see her as a young kid in one episode, in which time she doesn't interact with any toys, and we don't spend a lot of time with kids in general in the show, mostly just teens, so we don't have a great idea of how toys might be different in the Demon Realm. (Doesn't really help that I wasn't much of a toys kid myself, so I'm a bit creatively bankrupt on that front) Perhaps she had a junior gardener's kit? Like, plastic trowel, fake plants with velcro fruits, the whole works? Or maybe she had a plush to match/parallel either Amity's Otabin plush or Hunter's Sprig plush? Something smallish and sentimental... Either way, it was probably destroyed by Boscha when she brought it to school one day, shortly after Amity's party. That feels like appropriate angst.

Thanks for the ask!

Edit: oops forgot to put literally any tags at all lmao

[tirorah]

In ‘Shizuka, Come In!’ Everyone Still Has Much to Learn

That’s right, kids, it’s that time of the week again! I’m back with yet another Strike Witches rant!

This week we had the Shizuka episode, or at least, that’s what the episode’s title led me to believe. But interestingly, this wasn’t totally a Shizuka spotlight. Although it did show us how far she’s come, it also hammers home one of the central themes of Road to Berlin: everyone has flaws, and they need to overcome them to win the day.

The Hattori Dilemma

I’ve had mixed feelings about Shizuka so far. When she was first properly introduced, her hero-worship of Yoshika was understandable but grating. Thankfully, that only lasted for one episode, and she became a nice support character thereafter. Through her, we’ve also gotten a bit of an outsider’s perspective of how the 501st behaves, showing us how much their lofty reputation can deviate from reality. But I wouldn’t say she’s filled any particular roles that couldn’t be handled by one of the other members of the cast. The fact this has come at the cost of so much potential Lynne screen time is a bit disappointing.

When I went into this episode, the above was the number one thing I hoped to see resolved, or at least somewhat alleviated: giving Shizuka a clear role that would justify adding her to a roster of 11 already-developed characters.

Did this episode do that?

No. But I don’t think that was the intention either.

Shizuka Is a Great Soldier

Although this episode wasn’t all-out combat, owing to the setbacks the cast faced, this was definitely the start of a three-part finale. And I think we’re going to see more of Shizuka in the rest of it, all the way up to the ending. Plus, there’s still the matter of what her special magical ability is (if she has one; it might be cool if she didn’t), and this episode seemed more about showing us how much she’s improved since joining the 501st.

In particular, I really enjoyed how much Shizuka valued communication. She’s good at following orders and protocols, and she showed that here: constantly communicating with Minna whenever needed, and holding her own in the meantime. In fact, Minna implicitly trusts her to do well, as when Shizuka reports she’s fighting a new Neuroi solo, Minna doesn’t sound all that concerned. She doesn’t immediately send someone over to help, either (although Shirley did show up to catch her later.)

Did you notice the pool of blood is bigger later on? RtB has been so good at these little details.

Shizuka did everything right, and others even comment on how much she’s improved. But her strong suit is also her glaring flaw: she’s stiff and is incapable of thinking on the fly at times, making her less adaptable in the heat of combat. This is most clearly seen when she realizes the Neuroi’s core isn’t where it was last time; shocked and flat-footed, she stops moving around, and it’s in that moment that the Neuroi’s drones surround her and self-destruct, wounding her. This stiffness also stems from her inexperience; as she matures, she’ll likely learn to adapt to rapidly changing battlefield conditions. And she’ll probably loosen up a bit like Trude has.

This comparison to Trude isn’t accidental: in the Movie, she was introduced as an inexperienced Trude knock-off at first, and in the tail-end of this episode, their similarities are on display once again. As Shizuka sees what’s happened to Yoshika, despite having done everything perfectly fine, she blames herself for her friend’s condition. Yes, her injury did put everyone else in a very tight spot, but there was nothing she could’ve done better. There’s also the factor of her self-confidence; while she’s improved in this regard, there are still moments in this episode where she feels useless—lesser—compared to her more experienced colleagues.

And Shizuka isn’t the only one whose flaws were shown this episode. Episode 10 was, surprisingly, more of an ensemble work than previous episodes; Yoshika, Minna, Trude and Shirley were all given some time in the limelight.

Yoshika Is a Terrible Soldier

Let’s start with Yoshika, because oh boy, she was flawed as all hell. Longtime viewers of Strike Witches will already know that Yoshika isn’t much of a soldier. She starts out as a pacifist, and only takes up the gun when she realizes she can use her power to protect others. Protecting people is so ingrained into her psyche that it’s the very foundation of almost everything she does in this show, and nowhere is this as apparent as here.

This means that although she’s a sweet girl who will happily follow orders, she also disregards those orders the moment it conflicts with her desire to protect people. This trait ebbs and flows throughout the episode: at first, she does her bit for the plan, but when things go tits-up and she’s ordered to retreat fully, the lives lost around her push her to defying her orders. Shizuka manages to placate her by saying she’ll fight in Yoshika’s stead, and Yoshika does end up doing as she’s told; a fact that has Lucchini and Shirley ribbing them, stating that’s the biggest headline of all.

Ah, but then in come Patton and Bradley, and when they find out what’s wrong with Yoshika, they tell her not to use any magic until they go for another attack on the Hive. Before Yoshika can respond to this, a Neuroi appears to attack their facilities in Kiel.

When the need is this great, Yoshika ends up undermining her earlier character growth and runs off to the hangar before Minna or anyone else can even get a word in. She remains adamant when Minna stops her; it’s only Mio’s stinging reprimand, saying she should trust in her comrades, that makes her relent.

You say this, Minna, but it didn’t do much good in the end, did it? Also, another good Commander moment for Minna.

Keep in mind: this relapse of sorts may be frustrating for us as viewers (it did annoy me a little), but it’s all part of the struggle to become a more balanced person. Whether Yoshika will move past this compulsion is hard to judge at this point, but setbacks are also a natural part of progressing as a person.

Finally, when Shizuka is wounded and the others are struggling to stop the bomber Neuroi from crashing into Kiel, Yoshika decides to use her amazing shield to save everyone. Unlike the previous situation, this action is at least justified: Kiel is important for the operation, and had it been wiped out, Operation Southwind would be back at square one and many people would’ve died, including high-ranking personnel.

Her condition is unknown by the end of the episode, leaving us to wonder if she’s finally pushed herself too far again. I suspect the ramifications of this ending won’t be fully felt until the show’s final episode, at which point Yoshika may pull another deus ex machina and fly once again. (I think there’s still one shot of the first PV left unused, where she’s alone in a hangar and she says she wants to protect people.)

Minna Is a Great Commander

Yay, Minna got more to do! She actually gets to fight again, and she also gets to lead the 501st into battle, meaning we were finally shown some more of her leadership abilities in the field. She keeps a cool head, and this time suspects the trap before it’s sprung. She also has to rein in Trude a little this time around. Best of all, she somehow finds the time to give Shizuka some pointers even though they weren’t fighting alongside each other. It’s this grasp of the bigger picture where Minna performs better than anyone else.

But Minna is still incredibly protective of her girls, so when Shizuka’s out cold and they seem to be in an unwinnable situation, Minna gets a bit crazy again and flies at the Neuroi to slow its descent with her shield. This, at least, is born purely out of compassion; she wants to give the others more time to rescue Shizuka. But it is a loss of self-control in a way, not a good look for the person who’s supposed to keep everything under control.

Trude Is Put on the Back Foot

It was interesting to see Trude in this episode. She seemed her usual, level-headed RtB self…right up to the moment things started going wrong. Even though the Wall-type Neuroi have drastically altered the situation—making it clear the Neuroi were prepared to deal with them—she disregards Minna’s warnings and dives at the core. And when the retreat is ordered, she makes it obvious she’s unwilling to leave. Fortunately, for her sake, Minna hits back with this:

Trude does follow orders again after that, but these are curious lapses in her self-control that we haven’t seen for quite a few episodes. And now that Trude is officially the second-in-command of the Wing, such errors in judgement potentially spell disaster for the very people she wants to keep safe.

She indirectly faces a similar challenge later in the episode: when Shizuka is stranded and unresponsive, everyone tries to save her, only for the Neuroi to crowd its explosive drones around her prone body. Trude and the others stop short, and as Shirley asks her for orders, it becomes clear that she has none to give. She doesn’t know what to do. At least she doesn’t lose her cool, which is a small victory.

To contrast her actions earlier in the episode, when the Neuroi starts descending toward Kiel, Trude’s role shifts from attack to support. It’s very fitting that when Minna attempts to slow down the Neuroi to save Shizuka, Trude first once again calls her an idiot—and then goes in to help her anyway, because damn it Minna, you can’t do it by yourself. The two of them, plus Erica, go completely on the defensive, trusting in the others to save Shizuka.

Shirley Is Overconfident

Shirley had a very interesting role this time around. Early on, everything seems to be going smoothly and she gets quite cocky, even saying they might not need Yoshika at all. But she does change her mind once things start going awry; she’s obviously matured a fair bit since the early days, and in this episode, she’s very responsible and quickly feels like things have become dicey.

There are also a few moments where she’s supportive of the others, like telling Yoshika they’re almost in firing range and she just needs to hold on a bit longer, or telling Shizuka she did well and kicked lots of Neuroi ass. This is important, as Shirley technically has a responsibility for many of her younger comrades. But instead of Minna’s nurturing, motherly attitude, or Trude’s mix of tough love and gentle attentiveness, Shirley is the fun big sister who tells the best stories during parties. You need all three.

She also saves Shizuka’s life twice, first when Shizuka faints after defeating the bomber Neuroi solo, and later, when Shizuka is stranded on the Neuroi with a wounded leg. That second rescue is especially nice to see: Shirley zipping between Neuroi mines and grabbing Shizuka’s hand so precisely at that speed; it’s quite impressive! It also rewards the trust Minna and Trude placed in their subordinates (who would then, technically, be under Shirley’s command) to find a way to save their friend while the Karlslanders bought them time. Shizuka’s rescue is a nice team effort, spearheaded by the woman who used to be far more concerned with her own dreams instead of being a responsible figure.

Patton Is a Goddamn Idiot

I would not at all be sorry if he got blasted into space by a Neuroi beam.

What, you thought there’d be more here? Nope. The man is so flawed he wraps right back around to a void of nothingness.

More Importantly, There’s Also Something Fishy Going On

At least Patton and Bradley had some narrative weight in this episode, though, first with the reveal of Yoshika’s old prototype Striker, and then…with this:

For the first time in the season, we see hints of the military being dumbasses by holding onto some sort of secret weapon. Ah, Strike Witches traditions, what wonderful things they are. Anyway, the weapon seems to be some sort of huge tank with two frontal cannons. (Other commenters think it’s this thing, and I believe them.)

Either way, they seem to highly regard this thing as some sort of trump card, and Bradley also had this bizarre line:

…Luck?! I’m pretty sure that’s not how commanding works. If it did, I’d be much better at strategy games.

To me, their dialogue about the secret weapon seems to indicate they have some sort of ulterior motive. But they don’t seem to dislike Witches like Maloney did; it’s more like they’re using them as tools, ready to discard them when they think Witches are no longer needed to achieve victory. That was obvious when, after two tense episodes of retaking Kiel, the military just rolled past the Karlsland Trio with a cheery “Hey, good job! We’re going to go and retake Berlin now, choo choo!” They didn’t even inform Minna and co. of that before their arrival.

There’s also this little fact that Trude—of all people—points out:

Because Operation Southwind has faced delays and the like, the military’s apparently decided to keep the public unaware of their struggles. Instead, the newspapers paint a rosy immediate future, even though they failed in their objectives.

I’d also like to point out that this tidbit, while not followed up on in this episode, was impressive to see mentioned. War propaganda is a real thing—we’ve seen some examples of it in headlines before, such as when Shirley was reading the paper in Episode 4—and it makes perfect sense that the narrative’s been twisted like this to keep people calm. Minna doesn’t show much of her personal feelings on the matter, but while Trude doesn’t show any anger, it’s clear she’s not a fan. I really hope this gets some payoff later, and RtB’s track record gives me confidence it will.

But yeah, all this secrecy and stuff is a bit suspicious. I can’t put my finger on it.

…Or maybe I’m overthinking this. Maybe the military’s higher-ups aren’t as bad this time around. After all, Mio was witness to the whole thing with the secret weapon.

…

Oh shit, Mio!

O Mio, Mio, wherefore art thou Mio?

Considering we heard her in the preview, I was 100% expecting Mio to have a big role in this episode. Except…she didn’t? She barely did anything important. I was very thankful when she told off Yoshika, as Yoshika’s flaw was getting out of control, but she didn’t do much else of note, mostly serving as a link between scenes or conveniently broadcasting Shizuka’s injury just before the chaff cuts off communications.

Heck, she didn’t even have any dialogue with Minna! I was fully prepared to roll my eyes at their drama-filled shipbaiting (wholly different from Minna and Trude’s drama-filled shipbaiting, of course), but no, nothing.

I assume she’ll still have a role to play in things to come. That plane of hers has been teased all season, and in an earlier post I alluded to a way she might be able to fly into combat with it. Well, we’re almost at the end, so I might as well tell you my theory:

I think this has been set up as far back as Episode 2. In that one, we found out some sort of anti-Neuroi technology has been invented. It can be incorporated into an object (like that ship) and it will give that object a certain degree of resistance to Neuroi beams.

It seems to show up as red dots in the material itself, whenever a beam hits it. This shielding isn’t infinite, but it did allow the Doge to survive several otherwise fatal hits. With this technology, as well as the maneuverability of a fighter plane and Mio’s experience and skills, she could be capable of contributing somehow.

Road to Berlin

Is the title of episode 11, which is intriguing. Usually, namedropping the title is reserved for final episodes, or very special ones. As we know, the ‘Road’ is the personal challenges and setbacks the cast must overcome along the way. With some of their flaws built up in this episode, it seems natural for episode 11 to continue this theme, as the final offensive on Berlin begins, Patton and Bradley reveal their weapon (which I assume will backfire in some way), and we’re treated to an ominous shot of Mio watching over a bedridden Shizuka. Will Yoshika and Shizuka recover? Will Mio finally fly into combat?

Interestingly, the preview doesn’t have Mio’s voice in it at all, which makes me wonder how big her role is going to be. Instead, it’s Minna, Erica and Trude we hear, signaling we may have more Karlsland Trio goodness coming our way. I know which I prefer, but I do hope Mio gets one awesome scene all for her, so that Mio fans who’ve been waiting for her return all season won’t be left disappointed.