Gunslinger Girl

Anime Review:

Gunslinger GirlGenre Sci-Fi, Action

PLOT

Set in modern-day Italy, Gunslinger Girl follows the exploits of the Social Welfare Agency (often referred to as simply "the Agency"), ostensibly a charitable institution sponsored by the Italian government. While the Agency professes to aid the rehabilitation of the physically injured, it is actually a military organization specializing in counter-intelligence and counter-terrorism. It is composed of two independent branches: Public Safety, its surveillance and intelligence-gathering division, and Special Ops, the anti-terrorist division. Special Ops is itself divided into Sections 1 and 2, the latter of which employs young girls fitted with cybernetic implants as agents. The implants, which consist of synthesized muscles and carbon fiber frames, result in heightened strength and reflexes as well as high resilience to damage and pain. Each girl is paired with a male trainer, or "handler", and together they are referred to as a fratello–the Italian term for "brother". The handler is responsible for the training, welfare and field performance of his charge, and is free to use whatever methods he considers suitable. While these methods vary according to the handler, a common part of each girl's regimen is brainwashing called "conditioning", which produces a deadly assassin with unquestioning loyalty to her handler.

Each fratello exhibits a unique dynamic. Most of the handlers have police or military backgrounds and were recruited directly into Section 2. Most also chose their own cyborgs from a list of candidates, though some appear to have been assigned a cyborg. The Social Welfare Agency primarily concerns itself with dealing with the Padania Republic Faction, an organization seeking an independent northern Italy through acts of terrorism and bribery.

MAIN CHARACTERS

Henrietta (ヘンリエッタ^?)

Voiced by: Yūka Nanri (Japanese), Laura Bailey (English) in Gunslinger Girl

Voiced by: Kana Akutsu (Japanese), Laura Bailey (English) in Gunslinger Girl: Il Teatrino

Left for dead after the brutal murder of her family, Henrietta suffered severe psychological trauma, making her suicidal. Henrietta's favorite activity is to spend time with her handler, Jose, whom towards she has strong feelings. She shows signs of jealousy when she feels Jose is paying attention to other women. Henrietta is starting to forget past events, which causes her great distress. Henrietta's preferred weapons are the SIG Sauer P239 Two-Tone, the Fabrique Nationale P90 PDW, and the FN FAL. She and her handler have also used the Walther WA 2000 sniper rifle and Ingram MAC-10.

Rico (リコ, Riko^?)

Voiced by: Kanako Mitsuhashi (Japanese), Luci Christian (English) in Gunslinger Girl

Voiced by: Anri Shiono (Japanese), Luci Christian (English) in Gunslinger Girl: Il Teatrino

Confined to a hospital by severe birth defects , Rico's parents signed her over to the SWA on her eleventh birthday. Rico loves her new body and life at the SWA, viewing each day as a blessing and maintaining a happy disposition. Rico appears to be the only cyborg with a clear memory of her life before coming to the SWA. Rico's preferred weapons are the CZ 75 pistol and the Dragunov SVD. She has also been shown wielding a Beretta SCP-70/90 and is additionally shown training with a SIG SG 551 carbine and a Benelli M4 Super 90 shotgun. Her preferred support weapon is the MG 3 multipurpose machine gun.

Triela (トリエラ, Toriera^?)

Voiced by: Eri Sendai (Japanese), Caitlin Glass (English) in Gunslinger Girl

Voiced by: Atsuko Enomoto (Japanese), Caitlin Glass (English) in Gunslinger Girl: Il Teatrino

Originally from Tunisia, Triela was kidnapped and smuggled to Amsterdam by the Mafia, where she was assaulted during a taping of a snuff film.. She was rescued by Hillshire, who took her to the SWA where she was converted to a cyborg without his knowledge. Extremely pragmatic with just a hint of rebellion, Triela has a sarcastic wit and prefers to wear masculine clothing, though she is seen wearing more feminine clothing in later chapters. She serves as a sort of mentor to the other girls of the SWA and retains a realistic outlook on her situation within the Agency. Triela's preferred weapons are the SIG-Sauer P230 SL pistol (after losing her P230 to Pinocchio, she is given a 232-SL as a replacement) and the M1897 Trench Shotgun with bayonet attachment. She has also been shown using a selection of Heckler & Koch weaponry, including the H&K G3A3 battle rifle, the H&K P7M8 pistol, H&K UMP submachine gun and H&K MP7 PDW.

Claes (クラエス, Kuraesu^?)

Voiced by: Ami Koshimizu (Japanese), Alese Johnson (English) in Gunslinger Girl

Voiced by: Risa Mizuno (Japanese), Alese Johnson (English) in Gunslinger Girl: Il Teatrino

Born Fleda Claes Johansson and the daughter of a professor who instilled in her a love for books at an early age. It is unknown how she arrived at the Social Welfare Agency. In the beginning, Claes is confined to the Agency, unable to participate in missions with the other girls because her handler, Raballo, has died. She is used as a test subject by the cyborg engineers, who utilize controlled situations and equipment to monitor the usefulness of her implants. Claes wears glasses from her life before her cybernetic operation as a visual reminder of the promise she once made to Raballo. Re-conditioned to remove memory of Raballo, her life subconsciously reflects his influence through things like her painting of fishing, accessing the books in Raballo’s former dorm room and her enjoyment of gardening. Before he left, Raballo told Claes to “be kind” when she wears her glasses, but over time she’s come to believe that she can never use violence when wearing glasses which causes complications when she and Petra are sent to capture some suspected weapons smugglers. While part of a fratello with Raballo, Claes employed the H&K VP70M and the MP5K PDW.

Angelica (アンジェリカ, Anjerika^?)

Voiced by: Hitomi Terakado (Japanese), Monica Rial (English) in Gunslinger Girl

Voiced by: Kana Hanazawa (Japanese), Monica Rial (English) in Gunslinger Girl: Il Teatrino

Almost killed in a hit-and-run accident staged by her father to collect the life insurance he had on her, Angelica was the first girl converted to a cyborg^[9]. Originally she remembered her family, but later she was conditioned to forget them. This conditioning significantly dampened her gregarious and outgoing nature, which alienated her from her handler, Marco. As the first cyborg to undergo the conditioning process, she became the first cyborg to suffer the deleterious effects. The Angelica/Marco fratello exclusively use Steyr-Mannlicher weapons including the Steyr AUG A2, TMP compact submachine gun, M-1A pistol and the AUG H-BAR LMG.

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