- For the chapter of the same name, see Chapter 37.
| Episode 14 | |
|---|---|
| |
| Episode | 14 |
| Manga chapters | Chapter 37-Chapter 40 |
| Original air date | October 16, 2012 |
| Story arc | Dance with Undershaft Arc |
| Episode Navigation | |
| previous Episode 13 |
next Episode 15 |
Dance with Undershaft phase.1 is the 14th episode of the anime, the second episode of Season 2, Perfect Order, and the first episode of the Dance with Undershaft Arc
How R and Hex began working for George Black is revealed. Hex assembles a team dubbed Cutthroat prior to launching her operation against Koko Hekmatyar in the Czech Republic.
Summary[]
While making a delivery, Koko Hekmatyar comments that she thinks they are lost, halting the convoy. While the directions are sorted out Jonah admires the countryside and is joined by R. When he points out its beauty R agrees and points out that it was formerly the largest battlefield since World War II. Jonah asks if the country was fought over when because the people wanted its beauty for themselves.
A flashback shows Renato Socchi when he was a sergeant in the Bersaglieri reporting to his commander, who is with George Black. George comments that he is young but will do, and introduces himself, asking for Renato's help as he has been involved with intelligence gathering from the locals. The commander reveals that George is with the CIA, with whom they have been cooperating on shared intelligence, and asks him to work with him. Before he leaves he calls George "burattinaio", meaning "puppeteer" in Italian. George points out that this is a nickname and that Renato can call him whatever he wants. R recalls that he gave George the nickname of "Saw" based on his perception of the CIA.
George and R in Bosnia.
George used R's intelligence to crack down on genocide suspects and handled multiple sources, living up to his nickname of puppeteer. While driving through the streets R sees the local militia executes some civilians, causing him to fear for a family who had assisted him. When he gets to their house he finds a Black Hawk taking the family away with George on the ground. George points out that the value of intelligence lies in its speed. If he is one second late his comrades will die but if he is a second ahead he can save lives. After the family is taken away George invites R to join him full time. Back in the present R reflects that his life in Bersaglieri was real and that afterwards it was fake after he joined Koko's Squad. Regardless he cannot betray Saw.
Back at CIA headquarters George studies a photo of Hex as a member of the 3rd Special Operations Group, Wide Range Communications Platoon, which was an attempt to create an all-female special forces unit. Hex became a member of it after successfully passing training and was good enough to join the Green Berets. However the unit caused controversy and was disbanded because of its high washout rate. Unofficially however the actual reason is thought to be resistance from a general opposed to women in the special forces. Instead of accepting a promotion to buy her silence Hex resigned and was afterwards recruited by the CIA. George himself met with her and found her to be a radical patriot who took pride in being a better soldier than many men. While a paramilitary operations officer in Eastern Europe her fiance was killed in the September 11 attacks and she flew to Afghanistan to prove her worth. However her activities turned into a terrorist hunt that barely passed international law. Despite loving her country she has always been betrayed by it, but is a part of Operation Undershaft because she would otherwise have destroyed the useful arms dealer along with the terrorists.
At the black site Hex is out by herself at night when George calls her and asks if she has sent assassins after Koko. She denies having done so and pretends to realise that Koko is the focus of Operation Undershaft. She concedes that they crossed paths in Eastern Europe but repeats her denial. George tells her to keep it that way and hangs up. Hex laughs that George tried to rein her in and thinks that there are other ways to hit at Koko without actually targeting her. Her computer is then shown to have information pulled up on Jonah.
A flashback shows Hex during a night mission attempting to take out Koko but stymied by her bodyguards. When a sniper hits the tree near her head, she calls for a smoke grenade. Lauren, one of her squad members, pulls one out but it is shot out of her hand before she herself is hit in the head. Her squad advances but someone in front of her is hit and a second shot just misses her. Hex marvels that her opponents can see them in the moonlight despite the smokescreen and wonders if there are special forces among them. She refocuses on her view of Koko as a terrorist and rallies her squad. While advancing she notices blood on some leaves before she is confronted by one of Koko's bodyguards, who vows that she will not lay a hand on Koko. When he aims at her she fires. Hex then awakens back in the present and thinks that she still cannot sleep when there is a full moon.
Echo reassures Koko.
Koko's perspective of the same event is then shown. She is fleeing with Valmet and panics, crying out for Valmet to save her. Valmet halts and slaps her to bring her to her senses when Echo comes upon them. He promises to protect her and not for the money. After he places his hand on her cheek Koko notices that he was hit but Echo continues that he will protect her on the condition that she always have a smile on her face, which is how a boss should be. In the present Koko too realises that she cannot sleep when there is a full moon.
Koko later meets with Amalia Torohovsky on a dock in France. Amalia thanks her for helping her with an import deal before asking if she has been doing something to attract attention. When Koko plays innocent, Amalia informs her that the DGSE has tipped her off that the CIA is on to her. Moreover it is someone more dangerous than normal. Koko realises that she cannot stay in France for long as Amalia recalls her prior run-in with Bookman, who Koko quickly identifies as George. Amalia reveals that she met him in Rome and that he believes that arms dealers can be turned into his puppets. However the DGSE forced him to back off. They then have a laugh at this while the Dassault consultant and Lehm watch. As they drive away Lehm notes that they seem to be getting along. Koko replies that Amalia is the kind of person who can make a living out of anything and Lehm adds that he feels the same way about her. However Koko insists that being an arms dealer is for her.
Koko test fires the SP 2022.
On a firing range Tojo test fires a Magpul Masada, which Koko reveals will be their new standard weapon. She is pleasantly surprised by the positive reactions with the exception of Jonah, who comments about the Masada not being new. Koko continues that the idea is to use the same magazines and ammunition. When Lutz asks about the handguns Koko pulls out a SIG Sauer SP 2022, which will become the new standard sidearm, so now everyone will use the same 9 mm ammunition. She agrees to try it out as suggested by R and walks over to the range, where she fires three quick shots, putting two in the bullseye. Koko adds that anyone who shoots worse than her will be punished, causing Lutz to complain about R asking her to show them.
The squad then runs through a drill involving quickly getting Koko into the Volkswagen Touareg when it pulls up, with Lehm supervising and Tojo playing Koko. On one go through he trips over Lutz's leg and falls into the mud, earning a laugh from the others as he looks like Two-Face. Koko is working on her laptop back at the shelter when R comes back for some water. She asks him if he knows about Bookman and he replies that he does from his time in Bosnia Herzegovina and that he helped him out with intelligence gathering. Koko reveals that she looked him up as she heard some rumours and is asking him as she thought that he may have come across George. R adds that George likes to eat and Koko speculates that working for the CIA makes one hungry, thinking of Schokolade. R informs her of the origin of George's Bookman nickname as well as of his tenaciousness when pursuing a target. He wonders if George is connected to Dominique but Koko responds that they are unrelated as she doubts that a section chief would use such methods. She then asks about Hex but R has no idea and thinks it is a male. When she corrects him he quickly senses that Hex is a sore subject from her and tells her that she does not need to reveal more than she wants. He vows to protect her as Lehm calls him back to the range. Here Lehm instructs Jonah on how to hit a moving target, following up with a demonstration. As R fires his SP 2022 he wonders who Hex is.
Cutthroat cuts loose.
Back at the black site Hex and a team she has dubbed Cutthroat execute several suspects. She then comments that they need to get to the source as no matter how many she kills more pop up before addressing the group. Having seen action in Iraq and Afghanistan and subsequently getting kicked out of the military or the PMCs, she promises them more action to sate them. On her command Cutthroat then fires their pistols in the air in celebration.
In a command centre George is informed when Hex and Cutthroat launch their operation. He then receives an email from R asking for information on Hex before having his team continue their surveillance as he leaves. He receives subsequent updates from Carabiner and Toon that Jonah is the target and that Hex made a landing request at Časlav air base in the Czech Republic. He then goes to the cafeteria as Koko's Squad flies into Prague Ruzyně Airport. Spin sends George an update while he is eating that Hex ordered 9,000 rounds of ammunition from a Czech dealer.
In Prague the following day George calls R back, who is frustrated that it took him ten hours to respond. George counters that his lack of response was an indication that he could not answer as Hex is as highly confidential as R himself is. R however does not buy it as he has noticed signs of Hex and suspects her behind the recent trouble they have had, arguing that she threatens Operation Undershaft. When he reminds George that he told him that he would find the source the latter promises to call him back. He later informs R that if he is his right hand, Hex is his left and that she is crucial to Undershaft. Additionally, she is highly effective against terrorists and that if necessary he will give her the life of a child. R is shocked to learn that this means Jonah.
Debut appearances[]
Anime and manga differences[]
Chapter 37[]
- The shot of Hex and two of her men is of them going to the black site.
- The angle of Hex executing the suspect who refuses to talk is different.
- The convoy does not show the Touareg. Tojo has a laptop pulled up when directions are sorted out.
- The chapter is more clear that the convoy is in Bosnia.
Chapter 38[]
- The angle of R reporting to his commander is different. The commander has a different appearance and enters his truck from a different angle.
- George is not shown meeting with one of his other sources.
- R is not shown meeting with the family he used as a source. The Black Hawk is notshown flying away.
- Only part of the photo of the 3rd Special Operations Group, Wide Range Communications Platoon is shown. The episode adds an additional shot of the platoon in the field.
- Only George is shown speaking to Hex.
- The shot of the World Trade Center is different and Hex's reaction to learning the news of the attacks is not shown. She is shown with a boonie hat on by herself with her hair grown out when George reflects on her background.
- Hex wears a different shirt when George calls her which shows less of her cleavage.
- The intelligence photos of Jonah on Hex's computer are different.
- The wall hangings in George's office are different.
- The sniper shot that draws Hex's attention misses her. Lauren's finger is blown off by the shot that takes out the smoke grenade.
- A second of Hex's squad members is not shown being hit through the smokescreen. Less her squad is shown responding when she rallies them as well as one who is dead when she sees the blood on the leaves.
- Echo is not shown about to shoot Hex. The angle of her waking up from her dream is different.
- Valmet does not slap Koko.
Chapter 39[]
- The chapter identifies Marseille as where Koko and Amalia meet.
- The sequence of Tojo shooting at the target is shorter and he is wearing a utility vest, which is camouflaged and identical to the other vests that the squad later puts on.
- The chapter shows that Lutz asks about the plastic magazines. Jonah is shown holding a Masada magazine but it is not shown how he got it.
- Koko holds up the SP 2022 differently. The chapter shows that R asks Koko to test fire it for them.
- It is not clear who complains when Koko announces that anyone shooting worse than her will be punished.
- The drill is shorter and it is not as clear what the squad is practicing.
- The chapter does not show the spent cartridges from Cutthroat's celebratory fire falling.
- The menu that George orders from and the chef are shown.
Chapter 40[]
- R's shirt is a lighter shade.
- Less of George's office is shown.
- What Jonah and Koko are admiring in a shop window is not shown.
Trivia[]
George's office.
- The American flag in George's office has 14 stripes instead of 13.
- The items on George's menu include "frit mist" (onion rings), "patriot's meatballs", "NSC fried chicken", and "Langley steak".