Jormungand

[Kraco]

Cute that Koko has more influence than the CIA. She's got her own contacts, and not solely thanks to her last name. Her political/business savvy has me in awe.

Despite how civilized and shiny that city looked on the surface, it must have been in some banana republic, after all. So, the power balance between the CIA and arms dealers would be ambiguous.

This show keeps degrading in my eyes, but I guess I'll watch one more episode. The sniping action wasn't bad in this ep.

[Buffalobiian]

gg - Episode 05

[Buffalobiian]

gg - Episode 06

[shinta|hikari]

I like how even if the rest of the team are monsters, Johann is able to excel in his own way.

So wait, Koko is actually much older than she looks?

[Buffalobiian]

I like how even if the rest of the team are monsters, Johann is able to excel in his own way.

Yeah. It's good that he's not at all the "fresh disciple" character who ends up learning everybody's tricks, just the youngest, least experienced of the group who benefits from all the tips offered to him, yet able to bring something of his own to the table.

So wait, Koko is actually much older than she looks?

She's as old as his brother I think. I vaguely remember them saying that the pair were twins or something, and his brother looked around... 22? Koko's more like 16.

Karen's hot. And has good taste for underwear. Quite probably unrealistically hot when you consider how well she fights - Valmet would still be how pretty you can expect a pro military chick to be (one who can match up against men in strength and speed).

Still, Karen is now my new favourite chick here as far as appearances go, even if she's kinda cold. Valmet will still keep me with her bursts of Koko-happiness overall.

PS: for those who may not be familiar, shaojiang translates to principal. Putting the pieces together, Chang is (or was) the leader of some sort of systematic martial training academy and was the guy who half of Valmet's vision in his prime. Karen appears to be his best (or perhaps only surviving) student.

Or just his hottest.

[Ryllharu]

I watch this show for Valmet. She's so adorable and vicious.

The way she was toying with Jonah while teaching him brightened my day. Almost as much as Koko throwing a shitfit over the pirates. Valmet could have "stabbed" him with the knife while he was in mid-air, but instead she just caught him on one arm, displaying exactly how much of an opening it makes. She's well muscled, which is a rarity in series like this. Her appearance and physical conditioning actually match her capability.

Karen doesn't even come close to Valmet. She's right back into Combat-Anime Fantasy land.

[shinta|hikari]

I sense a fan fight coming on...

[Ryllharu]

Don't bring a gun to a knife-fight.

[gg] Jormugand - 07

-------------------------





♥ Valmet ♥
Good god she was awesome this episode. I really expected more out of Karen, but once Valmet closed into melee range, it really was all over. Pistols are good and all, but once combatants are in that close, it's really a toss-up, and Valmet is obviously a master of the knife. More impressive than the combat was that she was so rational about being talked down by Lehm. Sure, she's obsessed with finding out about who killed her squad, but she's not willing to let the mission get compromised for her personal vendetta.
And then the airport scene...just because.

I do expect to see Karen again, especially since she just got humiliated the same was Valmet once did. Not sure how the outcome would be any different. She'd have to prevent Valmet from closing in on her or her men.

Koko and Chocolade were funny too. A drunk Koko is indeed a dangerous thing, because she's so unpredictable. I'm kinda floored that she got Scarecrow to help her out. Major airhead CIA contractor + drunKoko = fun times indeed.

[Buffalobiian]

♥ Valmet ♥
Good god she was awesome this episode. I really expected more out of Karen, but once Valmet closed into melee range, it really was all over. Pistols are good and all, but once combatants are in that close, it's really a toss-up, and Valmet is obviously a master of the knife. More impressive than the combat was that she was so rational about being talked down by Lehm. Sure, she's obsessed with finding out about who killed her squad, but she's not willing to let the mission get compromised for her personal vendetta.
And then the airport scene...just because.

I do expect to see Karen again, especially since she just got humiliated the same was Valmet once did. Not sure how the outcome would be any different. She'd have to prevent Valmet from closing in on her or her men.

Yeah. Valmet was just that much stronger. I don't think it was an issue of pistols vs knife, since Valmet got her pistol disarmed with a kick.. meaning that Karen wasn't exactly useless in melee range neither. Karen's build is unrealistic for her abilities as we said last time, but in the same way it's pretty impossible for Valmet to have flown backwards past Karen, only for her to come flying in again to grab her arm and cut it up. I'll call it a draw in the realism department.

Bayonett pistols make it easier flick between shooting and cutting, but it really reduces your ability to make powerful trusts or cuts with your wrists aligned like that.

While I wouldn't mind seeing Karen again, I think an OL skirt and blazer suits her better. I wasn't particularly fond of her yelling and grunting during fights.

Chocolade's a funny ditz with the surprising common sense.

[shinta|hikari]

Karen was distracted, making the gap between the leap back and the rush forward that Valmet did to cut her leg seem much shorter than it was.

[Buffalobiian]

Karen was distracted, making the gap between the leap back and the rush forward that Valmet did to cut her leg seem much shorter than it was.

No, I understood that. I'm talking about how Valmet went flying on her back (which should mean she lands on her back and has to get up again), Karen fires some blind spots behind her (because she didn't have enough time to turn around, that's how quick it was), then Valmet dashes in behind Karen, grabs her left arm, tells her she's about to cut it, and cuts it.

It's that dash that I was describing. Karen's shocked and distracted state (reflecting how she couldn't reload) and subsequently got her legs cut was fine.

[shinta|hikari]

Oh that was indeed pretty imba. She was dodging (all the) bullets too, to Karen's surprise.

[Buffalobiian]

[VNS]_Kawada_Mami_-_Jormungand_OP_-_Borderland_[FLAC]
川田まみ - Borderland(320K MP3 RAR)(2012.05.30)

So couldn't tell it was Kawada Mami when I watched the OPs during the eps.

[Ryllharu]

That's because her English is almost as bad as MELL's.

[Buffalobiian]

gg - Episode 08

[Ryllharu]

Two things I really liked about this episode:

(a) Chocolade.
(b) Koko almost got wrecked by a fairly laid back retired actress.

I really hope this season (or the next) ends with Scarecrow getting demoted and Chocolade becoming his commanding officer. She's got enough sense in her air-filled head to know that the US and HCLI don't have to be enemies. With a little intel and a little legwork thanks to her own connections, both Koko's business and the US industrial base can make a ton of money. Scarecrow takes the whole thing so personally, that he can't see the advantages of using Koko to aid in the CIA's plans. Chocolade is still an airhead, but at least she appears to have some pragmatism underneath it.

I really liked the retired actress arms-dealer. Glad she (and her business) survived for another round. She was probably Koko's toughest opponent, because she knew how to wheel and deal. She cornered Koko very effectively, enough to actually upset Koko (giving the audience some great reaction shots to look at), and not just have her throw a fake hissy fit while she unveils her trap. Koko had to hole up in a hotel room and send her troops out for fresh recon just to work out a plan. The old lady was a bit naive in terms of the backstabbing lethal force Koko and other arms dealers know they have to use, but she manipulated leaders like no other character we've seen (not even Koko is that smooth) and could tell time after time that Koko was lying. She's a dangerous foe.

I would have respected her even more if she actually did have some snipers to take out that corporation's low-class ones, but at the same time, I kinda appreciate that she's nearly as effective as Koko just using persuasion, careful planning, and personal connections.

[Buffalobiian]

I can see where Scarecrow is coming from, though it depends on whether he's taking the law enforcement route (and thereby arms dealers need to be prosecuted), or whether he's being all CIA and just looking out for America's interests, in which case hooking up with HCLI isn't out of the question.

Chocolade's the more enjoyable agent, but it feels like Koko could totally take advantage of her should she want to. Or maybe not ( something like "Ehhh? That doesn't sound like a very good idea Koko-chan.." might do her airheaded genius justice.)

I like how she's slightly chubby but still great looking.

[Buffalobiian]

gg - Episode 09

[shinta|hikari]

Dumbass doctor, but thanks to him we get to see some deaths. I hope the death flagged guy actually dies.

[Buffalobiian]

The Knife Collection was right. Koko really was even better a few years back.

lol at Lutz checking out his sister along with everyone else.

edit: went back and checked... all of Tojo, Lutz and R have called Valmet "Anego" at one stage. Damn confusion.