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- "This is my first time having fun around tanks."
- ―Miho Nishizumi
Episode 3 "I'll Join the Fight!" "Shiai, Yarimasu!" (試合、やります ！); English dub: "We're Having A Match!", is the third episode of Girls und Panzer, and it originally aired on October 23, 2012.
Plot[]
The episode begins with the last scene of the previous episode: with the Panzer IV escaping its attackers, and Miho standing and looking out from the turret, only to see an apparently asleep girl laying on the grass with a book on her face. When Miho screams to get her attention, the girl rises and, as the Panzer comes near, jumps aboard, tripping and catching herself by the barrel of the bow machine gun. Miho recognizes her as the girl she helped earlier that day; when Saori peeks out of the cupola, she recognizes the girl as well, calling her Mako. She tells Miho that they are childhood friends. When Saori asks Mako what she is doing there, as she is supposed to be in class, Mako evades her question. At that moment a near miss reminds them that the match is still on, and Miho hurries them all, including the new arrival, into the safety of the tank.
The tank continues to flee. Inside, Mako is groggy and lethargic, and Saori explains that she has low blood pressure, which explains why Miho had to help her during Episode 2.
Arriving at a suspension bridge over a river, Miho jumps down and goes forward to guide Hana, knowing that they have some time before their opponents can fire again. As the Panzer IV cautiously begins to roll forward, it goes too far to the left, causing a cable to snap and the tank to begin tilting dangerously as the bridge sways. The StuG III fires again, hitting the Panzer IV in its rear armor, but doesn't knock it out (because it's sitting on the bridge). After a moment of shock, the crew has another nasty surprise: Hana was knocked out and they are unable to move. Seeing the Panzer IV in trouble, both the StuG III and the Type 89B move in for the kill.
Mako Reizei takes the drivers seat
As Miho places the unconscious Hana in the radio operator seat, Mako is seen staring at the driver's position. Just as Miho realizes aloud that she'll have to step in as driver, even though she's not very good at it, the Panzer suddenly moves again, expertly regaining its stability on the bridge. Mako has claimed the driver's seat, the manual before her, and replies to the others' surprise that she "taught herself how to drive just now". However, the situation is still serious: the StuG and the Type 89B are pressing from behind, and the other two Ooarai tanks, the Panzer 38(t) and the M3 Lee, are coming from the front. As the Panzer IV begins to move once more, both the history-buffs and the Volleyball club members fire again, but they miss.
Once Hana abruptly regains consciousness, Miho realizes the need for command, and directs them to return fire: the turret is rotated, Mako brings the tank to a stop, Yukari takes the shot, and the StuG III is hit head-on, knocking it out. The girls, save for Miho, are left speechless by the sensation. On the observation tower, Ami announces that Team C is out of the match, commenting to herself that "they're good!" Miho orders the girls to get the Type 89B next; the other tank fires first but its shot goes wide, while Yukari's hits perfectly and scores another kill. The Student Council advances with its 38(t) to take on the Panzer IV, but despite it being an easy shot, Momo misses by a mile, while again Yukari scores a hit and takes them out. The freshmen, scared by the "Nishizumi style," try to run away, but in their desperation to flee they get their tank stuck in the mud: a track snaps, the engine fails, and it is declared immobilized, thus giving the victory to Team A (much to Yukari's delight and Mako's indifference).
Quietly pleased despite their defeat, the Student Council agree among themselves that they were right to force Miho to take sensha-dō.
Later, in a bathhouse, the five girls (Miho, Saori, Hana, and Yukari together; Mako a little apart) are relaxing in the hot water, excitedly discussing their experience. Despite their success, however, Saori says that she believes that Miho should be in command, to which both Hana and Yukari agree; Miho is resistant to this, but when they insist, she gets up her courage and accepts. The conversation then turns towards the other crew positions: Saori eagerly accepts the position of radio operator, as Miho tells her that she has no problem communicating with other people (even though Yukari points out, when she mentions it, that it does not matter how fast she writes text messages); Hana determinedly volunteers to be the gunner, remarking that it might help her become stronger; Yukari then jumps at the loader position. This leaves an opening for the driver, which everyone is convinced should be Mako. Mako refuses, despite their pleas and encouragements, and leaves. Losing patience, Saori yells at her that sensha-dō is the only way she can get enough credits to counter her chronic lateness and not repeat the grade, to which an irritated Mako relents and joins the team.
StuG III with its 'cool' paint job
At Saori's urging they then go shopping —not for sensha-dō equipment, but to make the tank a better ride, i.e. adding cushions, air fresheners, etc. Hana joins in as well, despite Yukari's horrified reaction and Miho's surprise. Yukari is even more horrified the next day when it is revealed that the other teams have customized their tanks too: the Type 89B has slogans painted on it (to "make it easier to distinguish"), the StuG III has been painted red, yellow, light blue, and white and is sporting flags (to "make it look cool"), the M3 Lee is now a bright pink (to "make it look cute"), and the Panzer 38(t) has been repainted gleaming gold.
A pink M3 Lee?
Saori grumbles about not having repainted the Panzer IV too, while Yukari cannot believe the others did it in the first place; at first stunned, Miho then begins to laugh, saying that she never thought someone could do such a thing, and for the first time she is having fun around tanks.
Off to one side, the Student Council plots something about a real match.
Elsewhere, we see some girls are having tea in a genteel setting when they receive a phone call (from Kawashima, it is implied) with the news that Ooarai's Sensha-dō Team has been resurrected. Their leader cheerfully accepts their match proposal, declaring that they never refuse a challenge.
Sometime later, a montage shows the Ooarai teams training, including driving in formation, some gunnery practice (during which the gunsight reticle markings are explained), and the basics of tank tactics (i.e. never stir up too much dust, how to use cover, never cross a ridge carelessly, and so on).
With the practice over, the Student Council announces that the next Sunday they'll have a training match against St. Gloriana Girls College. Miho and Yukari express some concern, as St. Gloriana has a strong Sensha-dō Team, and has in the past been the national runner-up. When the Student Council mention that the match will begin early, Mako abruptly quits the team, declaring she is not a morning person. Despite the others' pleading, she refuses to accept having to get up so early, but when Saori mentions that her grandmother would be mad if she had to repeat the grade, a scared Mako finally crumbles.
Later, in a pre-match strategy session, Momo is explaining to the various teams' commanders that St. Gloriana relies on a good defense and excellent coordination, and that, since they mostly use Matilda tanks, they can't just slug it out with them. Instead, she puts forward a baiting strategy to lure the opponent into a kill zone, much to everyone's excitement. When Miho, pressed by Anzu, objects that such a strategy is pretty transparent, Momo has a tantrum, daring her to take over command if she believes herself to be smart enough for the job. Anzu intervenes to calm everyone down, but then nominates Miho to be the Team's overall commander. She tells her that if they win she'll receive an amazing gift (which is revealed to be dried potatoes, of course), but when asked about what will happen if they lose, she decides that Miho will have to perform the Anglerfish Dance.
In a fast cut to a later gathering, this news shocks Saori, Yukari, and Hana, who explain in horror that it is an incredibly embarrassing dance. Thoroughly motivated now, they declare that they'll have to win —but the three declare that if they do lose, they'll perform the dance together with Miho, much to her gratitude.
The St. Gloriana school carrier docked next to Ooarai's carrier
On Sunday morning, Miho receives a call from Saori, who is failing to get Mako out of her bed. Yukari soon arrives to sound "Reveille" on a bugle, and Miho and Hana arrive with the Panzer IV and fire a blank to definitely wake her up. As they drive towards the landing site (since the battle will take place on land), with Mako getting dressed in the tank, people take notice of the tank and call out encouragement to the girls fo the impending match.
As the Panzer IV and the other tanks are disembarking, the St. Gloriana school carrier (much larger than Ooarai's) arrives. Ooarai City, on the mainland, is evacuated for the match, and crowds gather, excited that they get to have a match on their home ground. At the match grounds, the Ooarai Team is soon joined by the St. Gloriana tanks: four Matildas and a single Churchill tank, from which emerges the team's commander, Darjeeling. Despite her obvious startlement, she makes only a polite, oblique comment on the appearance of Ooarai's tanks before offering a carefully formal greeting and an assurance of good sportsmanship. The two teams then bow to each other and head towards their starting point.
As the match is about to begin, the Student Council again tells Miho that they're counting on her. A moment later, the signal is given, and Ooarai's tanks roll forward.
| Previous episode: | Next episode: |
| Episode 2
"I'll Board the Tank!" |
Episode 4
"I'll Do My Best as Commander!" |
Characters Introduced[]
- Noriko Isobe
- Taeko Kondou
- Shinobu Kawanishi
- Akebi Sasaki
- Erwin
- Caesar
- Saemonza
- Oryou
- Azusa Sawa
- Ayumi Yamagou
- Saki Maruyama
- Karina Sakaguchi
- Yuuki Utsugi
- Aya Oono
- Darjeeling
- Assam
- Orange Pekoe
- Kanon Sasagawa (Seen on screen, not named)
- Remi Takashima (Seen on screen, not named)
- Hibiki Inatomi (Seen on screen, not named)
Tanks Appearing[]
Main Events[]
- The practice match ends with the victory of Team A.
- Mako Reizei joins the sensha-dō club, becoming Team A's driver.
- The Sensha-dō Team of Ooarai Girls Academy challenges St. Gloriana Girls College to a friendly match.
Trivia[]
- Despite Yukari's reaction, Saori's skill at text messaging and calling with her cellphone will turn out to be important in the match against Saunders depicted in Episode 5 and 6.
- "Fibel," written on the instructional booklets various team members are at times seen reading, means "primer" (a book of basic instruction), in German. The graphic on the cover references the famous Westinghouse "We Can Do It!" poster.
- Despite the outrageous paint job eventually chosen for the StuG III, Erwin remarks that she would have chosen the paint scheme of the Afrika Korps.
- The M3 Lee is one of only two tanks in the anime to be immobilised during combat entirely due to a mechanical failure. The other is in Das Film, during the match against the All-Stars University Team, when the Tiger (P) catches fire after Leopon Team overtaxes their engine while pursuing the Pershings.
- Six other tanks are knocked out due to circumstances other than direct gunfire: two in Episode 12, when Turtle Team's Hetzer breaks down after being damaged by the weight of the Maus, and then when Kuromorimine's Jagdtiger falls into a drainage channel; and four more in Das Film —first Klara's T-34/85 is buried under rubble after crashing into a building and being struck by Rosehip's Crusader, then the KV-2 is tipped over by its top-heavy turret when it strays onto uneven ground, then one of the All-Stars University Team Pershings is disabled by falling debris after Mika lures it under a collapsing viaduct, and finally Rosehip's Crusader is wrecked after leaping a canal and crashing into a stone wall.
- In OVA 7, Anzio's tankettes remain operational even when flipped over.
- Brief scenes in the first training montage foreshadow important elements of future matches: the StuG III being highly visible due to its banners (practice match with St. Gloriana), the Type 89B kicking up dust (match with Saunders), the 38(t) hiding in the bushes (after its Hetzer modifications, match with Kuromorimine), and the M3 Lee having difficulty at a river crossing (National Championship, final round, with Kuromorimine).
- The ending chibi sequence features Turtle Team in their Panzer 38(t).
Gallery[]
_gold_painted.jpg "Panzer 38(t) gold painted.jpg (66 KB)")
| Girls und Panzer Anime | |
|---|---|
| First Anime Season Episodes | Episode 1 ♦ Episode 2 ♦ Episode 3 ♦ Episode 4 ♦ Episode 5 ♦ Episode 6 ♦ Episode 7 ♦ Episode 8 ♦ Episode 9 ♦ Episode 10 ♦ Episode 11 ♦ Episode 12 |
| Recap Episodes | Episode 5.5 ♦ Episode 10.5 |
| OVA Episodes | OVA 1 ♦ OVA 2 ♦ OVA 3 ♦ OVA 4 ♦ OVA 5 ♦ OVA 6 ♦ OVA 7 ♦ OVA 8 ♦ OVA 9 ♦ OVA 10 |
| Animated Movie | Girls und Panzer der Film |
| Final Chapter | Part 1 ♦ Part 2 ♦ Part 3 ♦ Part 4 ♦ Part 5 ♦ Part 6 |