- For the chapter of the same name, see Chapter 25.
| Episode 9 | |
|---|---|
| |
| Episode | 9 |
| Manga chapters | Chapter 25-Chapter 27 |
| Original air date | June 5, 2012 |
| Story arc | Dragon Shooter Arc |
| Episode Navigation | |
| previous Episode 8 |
next Episode 10 |
Dragon Shooter Phase 1 (ドラゴン・シューター・フェーズ 1 Doragon Shūtā Fēzu 1?) is the ninth episode of the anime and the first episode of the Dragon Shooter Arc.
After some R&R, Koko's Squad undertakes their new assignment, an aerial delivery into the Autonomous Region X of Republic T. However their cargo also includes ten members of Outspoken Doctors for Human Rights, who the local militia leader, Dragan Nikolaevich, tries to get handed over to him after they arrive, provoking a showdown.
Summary[]
Koko's Squad takes some time to relax on the beach of a deserted island while traveling on the Atlas. Jonah realizes that Koko Hekmatyar smiles all the time to hide everything else and also has an element of reckless danger. After Wiley swings Jonah around to throw him high into the air before landing in the water, Ugo joins in. Tojo and Lutz admire Valmet’s figure, but caution themselves to be careful that they are not caught doing so. When they attempt to get a better viewing angle, R beats them to it by talking to her and giving her a shoulder massage. His hand "slips" and touches one of her breasts, which enrages Valmet. She launches a somersault kick that sends R flying (while yelling, that her breasts are only for her and Koko to touch), knocking him out. Jonah is drifting along until Koko stops him, as he has already floated some distance from shore. As they swim back, she tells him that he is hers.
Koko with her squad shortly after Mao was recruited.
Back on the Atlas, Jonah tries to wait out his science lesson with Mao, but is told that he can eat only after he finishes. Jonah learns that Mao is married and has a son and daughter who are younger than him. Mao is floored when told that his children look more like his wife, but reveals that no one else in the squad has a family, although Lehm has been repeatedly married and divorced to Chiquita. This causes Lehm to suddenly sneeze on Tojo. However when Mao tries to bring the subject back to the lesson, he is asked what kind of soldier he was. He reveals that he used to be in the artillery and never saw actual combat. After he was discharged following a training accident, a meeting with Koko in Asia resulted in him joining the team. However he keeps this a secret from his children, and they think that he is still in the army but traveling the world. When Koko learned about this, she accepted it, but advised Mao to make sure that being kind would not undo him and to be proud of his comrades. Before he can continue, Koko calls the cabin and tells him that it is dinnertime. Jonah slips out of the room in the meantime.
Koko learns who her passengers will be.
After dinner Koko briefs the team, telling them that their next job will be in the sky. Lehm notes that this is one area he does not want to see Koko working in. She tries to brush off the idea of a superstition, but Lehm does not buy it. At an airport where they will depart in an Antonov An-12, Koko learns what they will deliver: goods to Planina Airport in Autonomous Region X of Republic T and a team of ten doctors from an NGO named Outspoken Doctors for Human Rights (ODH) who were denied entry to somewhere where the local military will not notice them. They must get in without the local military finding out about them. Koko is apprehensive about taking the job, but learns that HCLI has already received 60% of the payment and the balance will arrive after the delivery. After she furiously reacts following the call, Lehm voices his doubt about the mission with a smile on his face. When Koko tells the pilot and Ugo that they will be taking the doctors, she is thanked by their leader, Leon Riviere. Although she tells them that they will be treated like cargo, not passengers, they accept this as they are used to it. Tojo asks Jonah if he has met people like the ODH before and he responds that he has, but they feel different from the Red Cross. Lutz observes that they seem more like soldiers than the squad themselves and comments that he thought thatLeon was a former mercenary. The An-12 departs soon after.
The next day, one of the doctors, a woman named Marguerite Mesner, introduces herself to Jonah, who gives his real name, Johnathan Mar. He gives his nickname after she tells him to call her Maggie. Jonah is then called to the cockpit by Koko and Maggie observes that he is a cute child soldier. She tells Tojo that this sort of thing is not unusual when he asks, as she has seen soldiers like him all over the world. Koko has Jonah climb down into the nose of the An-12, where he gets an excellent view of the countryside below through the canopy.
The An-12 approaches Region X.
As the An-12 approaches Autonomous Region X, Leon tells his fellow passengers that if the Balkans are the powderkeg of Europe, then Region X would be the firing pin. It has a history of being fought over for centuries and is the home of numerous displaced peoples. He tells them about Dragan Nikolaevich, the leader of the Balkan Dragons militia and the son of a Republic T general. Dragan was a criminal as a young man but got away with due to his father's connections and now 30 years later runs the militia like criminal organization. Although HCLI has an agreement with the local military, if the Dragons gain enough influence it will be as troublesome for Koko as it is for ODH. Nonetheless he rallies his people, which causes Lutz to comment on their enthusiasm and leads Valmet to ask if he wants to join them. Jonah then advises everyone that they will be landing soon and has Maggie get all the ODH people to hide under plastic sheeting as if they are cargo. They will stay inside the An-12, whose arrival is reported by Dragon militiamen on the ground.
At Planina Airport, an air force captain takes delivery of the goods and thanks Koko. He mentions that he has heard rumours that HCLI transports surplus goods beyond what is delivered and offers extra for any that she has, but Koko turns him down. She then directs Mao’s attention to their cargo, D-30 ammunition. After he briefly reminisces, she tells him that they will leave as soon as the paperwork is signed.
Lehm stops Dragan from executing Leon.
Right then, Dragan himself arrives in a Mercedes-Benz and asks to see Koko’s cargo in the form of the ten ODH doctors. Koko stands firm despite his belligerent attitude and Dragan takes his anger out on the captain Koko dealt with by smashing his walkie-talkie into his face. A truck bearing more militiamen pulls up and Koko asks the captain why he lets Dragan push him around. He admits that the militia leader is considered a hero in the region and also has the support of his own troops, suggesting that she leave immediately as he will not pry into what else she has on board. After addressing his men, Dragan issues an ultimatum that he will not leave until he has found the doctors and shot them while recording the whole event on video to upload it on the Internet. On the plane, the doctors observe the goings on and Leon resolves to try to talk to Dragan. He steps out and introduces himself to Dragan, who quickly draws his pistol and shoots him in the shoulder. Telling him that people like him undo his work, making him his enemy, Dragan then grazes Leon's cheek with another shot. Lehm steps in by knocking Dragan’s pistol away and telling his subordinate to stop filming. When the man protests and tries to attack, Lehm grabs his gun and smashes his jaw with with it. When he asks Koko what to do next, she tells her squad to attack the militia and they open fire.
Anime and manga differences[]
Chapter 25[]
- Jonah and Wiley's boat ride from the Atlas is only shown briefly.
- Koko is not wearing a sunhat and a blue jacket.
- Jonah runs over to Wiley before getting thrown.
- Lehm and Mao are both in the shallows with everyone else.
- Valmet is standing in the shallows while Tojo and Lutz check her out.
- When Jonah notices how far out he has drifted he is opposite everyone else.
- The Atlas is shown from a different angle when the scene shifts to it.
- Jonah's cabin is different and Mao is seated next to him for the lesson.
- Mao wears a patterned shirt.
- The features of Mao's family are more indistinct. Mao puts his head on the table when Jonah points out the children's resemblance to their mother.
- Lehm is drinking water when he sneezes on Tojo.
- Mao is shown by himself in his and the guns are oriented differently. Other artillerymen are shown nearby in shadow. The background of Mao and Koko's meeting is different. Koko is shown to have walked to Wiley, Lehm and Valmet after talking to him.
- Koko's meeting occurs during the day and she wears pants instead of a skirt.
- The squad is shown arriving at the airport.
Chapter 26[]
- ODHR is abbreviated as ODH.
- Koko's Squad does not wear camouflage parkas or utility vests in the same pattern.
- R is eating a sandwich instead of a burger. Lutz feeds a tortoiseshell-and-white cat instead of a Dalmatian puppy.
- The scene of Lehm, Koko, and Valmet boarding occurs before Koko talks with headquarters and Lehm replaces Mao. The takeoff sequence is shorter.
- Jonah and Marguerite are oriented differently when they meet. Jonah picks up his FN FNC when he heads to the cockpit.
- The perspective of Dragan noticing the An-12's arrival, which occurs before Leon describes the Balkan Dragons, is different. The chapter only shows corpses under tarps when Leon mentions the atrocities committed in Region X.
- Mao is standing close to a D-30 when Koko notices him.
- Dragan's Mercedes-Benz is light coloured.
Chapter 27[]
- Jonah is the only one to release his safety when Dragan confronts Koko. He is standing near Koko when she replies to him.
- Lehm and Jonah's reaction are shown when Dragan smashes his walkie-talkie into the captain's face.
- Dragan is not shown explaining the situation to his newly arrived men.
- The doctors are hidden behind a tarp marked HCLI in the cargo bay. The male doctor who responds to Leon tries to restrain him.
- D-30s do not appear in the background when Leon comes out to try and talk to Dragan. Dragan's reply after shooting Leon and his second shot are not shown from the perspective of the camera.
Debut appearances[]
Organisations[]
Trivia[]
- Valmet and Lehm are featured in the shell cartridge during the ending credits for the first time since Episode 3.
- The episode has a reference to Rule 61 ICTY. This is Rule 61 of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, which allows the International Criminal Court to try accused people in absentia and issue a warrant for their arrest after all reasonable attempts to locate them have been exhausted.