| Lehm | |
|---|---|
 Lehm in Episode 17. | |
| Aliases | Lehmbrick |
| Status | Alive |
| Origin | United States |
| Affiliations | Koko's Squad Delta Force (former) |
| Occupation | Bodyguard Delta Force operator (former) |
| Relatives | Chiquita (wife, divorced) |
| Weapons | Various |
| Manga debut | Chapter 1 |
| Anime debut | Episode 1 |
| Japanese voice | Unshō Ishizuka |
| English voice | Christopher Smith |
Lehmbrick (レームブリック Rēmuburikku?), more commonly known as Lehm (レーム Rēmu?), is a former Delta Force officer and the second in command of Koko's Squad as well as its senior member. He is Chiquita's ex-husband.
Appearance[]
Lehm is a fair skinned middle aged man with fair hair and perpetual stubble. The anime depicts him with grey eyes and medium grey hair. Prior to becoming Koko Hekmatyar's bodyguard his hair was a light blond.[1][2] Lehm's body bears numerous scars from cuts and bullet wounds.[3][4] Lehm has worn various standard equipment and uniforms when Koko's Squad has been outfitted with them in addition to civilian attire. A heavy smoker, he is rarely seen without a cigarette in his mouth, sometimes even in combat.
Personality[]
As the oldest member of the squad, Lehm has a strong leadership presence and typically acts as a voice of reason. He is able to remain calm under most circumstances and rarely gets flustered. Because of his much wider combat experience, he had no problems with shooting Chinatsu, although Lutz himself had earlier been unable to shoot her because of her gender and young age. Because of the nature of his work he has reconciled himself to the possibility of his death and has stated that if he were to be killed in the line of duty that he should not be avenged.[5] However he also strives to ensure that his behaviour as well as that of any of Koko's other bodyguards is at soldierly standards and does not degenerate into thuggery.
Relationships[]
Lehm and Chiquita with Floyd Hekmatyar in the background in Episode 9.
Lehm and his ex-wife Chiquita have had a turbulent relationship, having married and divorced each other repeatedly.[4] After they went their separate ways, the relationship is still cool but they do get along with each other. He is highly trusted and respected by Koko and the other members of the squad and is the only one who can apparently get away with openly voicing his doubts or disagreements with her plans, although it normally takes the form of ribbing. Because of their shared experiences during the Gulf War, he has much mutual respect for Wiley, which grew after the latter joined the squad and became a master with explosives. Lehm also has good relationships with Valmet and Mao as they are among the senior members of the squad. Despite knowing that Valmet dislikes his smoking around her whenever they are in the same vehicle, he still has to be reminded not to light up. Lehm has also acted as a mentor to Jonah, who still has much to learn despite his combat experience.
Abilities[]
Sniper: Lehm acts the squad's secondary sniper, favouring a Remington Model 700 PSS chambered in 300 Winchester Magnum. He snipes either alone or in conjunction with Lutz although unlike the latter he does not utilise a spotter. Lutz has suggested that when Lehm was younger he was a much better sniper than he himself is.[6]
Weapons handling: Like most members of the squad, Lehm is proficient with a variety of firearms. His weapons of choice prior to the squad's adoption of standard firearms were a CAR-15 and a Heckler & Koch Mark 23 and he was the only member of the squad to use a suppressor.
History[]
Lehm during the Gulf War in a flashback in Episode 19.
A young Koko with her squad in a flashback in Episode 19.
Lehm was a captain in Delta Force during the Gulf War. He commanded a small squad consisting of himself, Echo, Arkin, and Howe that was assigned to destroy an Iraqi chemical weapons plan within 40 hours. As they needed a demolitions expert, Lehm recruited Wiley for the job and led the raid on the plant. Following its successful demolition, he wrote up a commendation for Wiley. Lehm was afterwards deployed to Somalia where he witnessed a child soldier destroy an AFV carrying 30 men with an anti-tank mine.[7] He rose to the rank of major before leaving the army to go to work for HCLI. He and Chiquita were bodyguards for Koko's father, Floyd Hekmatyar before they and Wiley became among the first three members of Koko's Squad.[8] During this time, Lehm gained a further appreciation for Wiley's abilities and expertise with explosives, as Koko was often a target for would-be assassins, all of whom were foiled by Wiley turning their own bombs against them.
Plot[]
Fire Hare Arc[]
Lehm recalls his experience in Somalia in Chapter 1.
When Koko arrived outside the squad's hotel room in a certain Eastern European country with Jonah, Lehm was having a drink behind the hotel room door and was thus hit with it when Koko abruptly threw it open. He recalled his experience in Somalia with the child soldier after Jonah was introduced.[9] Lehm and Valmet were then assigned to accompany her as backup when she drove down to the port to recover the MiG-29 upgrades. During the drive, Lehm asked Valmet what her impressions of Jonah were, but she did not have much time to form any, as the meeting had been too brief. He then annoyed her by lighting up and was forced to put out his cigarette.
When the Voskhod 6 appeared Lehm reacted calmly when Jonah began firing on their pursuers. An armoured van then maneuvered to separate Lehm and Valmet's CR-V from Koko's Volvo. Valmet was unable to damage it with her FN Minimi and had Lehm bring her in closer so that she could jump to its roof. To cover his approach he fired his pistol at it and backed off when the troops inside fired back at him. After Valmet took out the van's occupants she was picked up by Lehm and they followed Koko on to the port. The following morning Lehm complimented Jonah while he was cooking breakfast on stopping the FGM-148 Javelin that had been fired at them the previous night while he prepared a breakfast of fried eggs, which got everyone except for Jonah sick.
Gunmetal, Calico Road Arc[]
Lehm talking with Jonah in Episode 1.
A few nights later Jonah joined Lehm for a patrol shift outside the hotel rooms where the squad was staying. On being asked he told the boy why he enjoyed working for Koko as well as his respect for her when she suddenly wandered into the hallway. He then directed her back to the bathroom. That morning after she briefed the squad about the threat posed by C. K. Kloshkin, Lehm, Ugo Lutz, and Mao were assigned to provide security for her and Jonah while they dealt with Kloshkin. On the way over he and the others were happy to hear that Koko had given them permission to hunt. They succeeded in taking out Kloshkin's snipers who had been positioned in the building opposite his office and Lehm told Lutz to hold his fire when the latter suggested that he could shoot Kloshkin. He answered when Kloshkin called and revealed the bombshell that his snipers were dead. Following Kloshkin's execution he and the others returned to the hotel. That night he asked Jonah how things went and reassured him that although she had gotten hurt that this was part of the plan.[10]
Pulsar Arc[]
After the convoy delivering a MIM-104 Patriot launcher to a certain Eastern European country halted, Lehm joined Koko on a nearby hillside and observed that the fighting over the nearby oil pipeline, which they could both see, was why she could not get any reception, as the communications infrastructure had been damaged. Following Koko's meeting with Pollack and Curry, Lehm asked Koko what their plan was after she had been maneuvered into providing Pollack a replacement radar unit.
Lehm finds Lu in the factory in Episode 2.
The following night he scouted out an abandoned factory, encountering Lu before bringing the squad in. After Koko offered to clear the way for CCAT, Lehm pointed out to Koko that Pollack's men had surrounded them. During their flight back to their vehicles, he asked Jonah why he was laughing as they ran away.
Musica Ex Machina Arc[]
In Dubai Lehm was relaxing in the squad's hotel room when Koko headed out with Valmet. After they were pinned down by Orchestra he made it to the square and radioed their situation to the rest of the squad. When Jonah tried to take out Orchestra all by himself, Lehm stopped him by snagging him with a rope and pulling him away. He explained how he saw things to an angry Jonah and convinced him that sacrificing himself was not how they operated. He then gave Jonah his headset when Koko and Valmet reached them and bought time for Koko to escape with Jonah by firing his silenced pistol at Orchestra. Chinatsu however sensed the threat and blocked the shots with her ballistic shield. After Shisho sparked a discussion about the true nature of a gunfight with Lehm when they traded fire, he and Chinatsu retreated when they ran out of ammunition. Lehm then helped Valmet walk and they discussed how Orchestra operated. They met the rest of the squad when they arrived in the CR-V and Lehm retrieved his CAR-15 and had Tojo accompany him on foot while Ugo took the others to protect Koko and Jonah.
Anime and manga differences[]
- In the anime Lehm was shown with the rest of the squad and Minami Amada watching a Hek-GG rocket launch from a naval launch platform prior to Jonah's addition. After Koko introduces Jonah to the squad Lehm did not recall his experience in Somalia. The scene with Jonah cooking a meal was changed to dinner and sickened the entire squad.[11]
- When the squad is taking a break on the island he and Mao are lounging on the beach instead of being in the shallows. Lehm is drinking wine when he sneezes on Tojo and when Mao talks about his and Chiquita's history the two of them are wearing the same combat uniform. During Koko's briefing about their next job, Lehm comments to Wiley that the mission will be jinxed.[12]
Trivia[]
- Lehm placed 6th in a character poll conducted by Sunday GX which ran from June through September 2012.[13]
- He is the only character to be voiced by the same seiyū in both the drama CD and the anime, Unshō Ishizuka.
- Lehm makes a cameo appearance in the crossover mini chapter Asian Sea Merchants.
- Lehm is German for clay so his alias could mean "clay brick" if interpreted this way.