History Anime / PumpkinScissors

[[quoteright:210:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/pumpkinscissors.jpg]]

->''"There is no war, yet peace has not graced the land... This story is about the stage in between."''

Randel Oland is a homeless refugee, one of many displaced by the war. He sleeps under a bridge and spends what little money he gets on cat-food to feed the strays. He also carries with him a blue-light lantern, and a massive handgun that can pierce tank armor at close range.

When War Relief Section III, "Pumpkin Scissors," crosses his path, Randel finds himself drawn back into the army in the wake of the energetic Lieutenant Alice Malvin. Besides the usual trouble of hunting down war aggravators, the Pumpkin Scissors crew is soon swept up in events from Randel's [[DarkAndTroubledPast dark past.]]

With initial character and storyline debts to both ''Manga/FullmetalAlchemist'' and ''Manga/{{Trigun}}'', ''Pumpkin Scissors'' nevertheless persists in pursuing a different take on themes of war and humanity.
----
!!''Pumpkin Scissors'' provides examples of:

* AbsurdlySpaciousSewer: One in which a number of families live in, being too poor and demoralized to live above ground. It's a European FantasyCounterpartCulture, so it makes some sense. Also, they share it with what can only be described a {{p|unkPunk}}rotopunk [[KillItWithFire flamethrower]] [[VideoGame/BioShock Big Daddy]].
* AccidentalPervert: "Lieutenant, [[ItMakesSenseInContext I need your breasts immediately!]]"
** And again, in a later episode: "Lieutenant, [[ItMakesSenseInContext please sleep with me]]-- [[IntimateHealing together, like sheep!]]"
* ActionDressRip: Alice's PimpedOutDress in the last few episodes.
* ActionGirl: Alice Malvin. Don't let her near a blade if you know what's good for you. Often verges on LadyOfWar, particularly when she casts aside her IdiotHero veneer and [[LetsGetDangerous gets down to business]].
* AnimalMotifs: Lionel is [[KingOfBeasts lion-themed]]. [[spoiler:More in terms of viciousness than regality, though he's got plenty of both.]]
* ArcWords: TÖTEN SIE. [[spoiler: Roughly translates to "Kill Them". Randel apparently hears this repeatedly chanted whenever he's under the influence of the blue lantern.]]
* ArrangedMarriage: Alice.
* AristocratsAreEvil: Played straight with many of them who are at the very least unconcerned about the suffering of the common people. Alice is the notable exception.
* AwesomeButImpractical:
** Anything and everything having to do with the Invisible Nine. It seems the Empire's entire SuperSoldier program was a response to horrifically bad engineering. Deconstructed somewhat, as The show takes pains to point out just how impractical their equipment is, and Martis wonders about the possibility that the Invisible Nine may have been created for purposes other than winning the war.
** [[spoiler:901ATT, the Anti Tank Troopers unit. Instead of developing an antitank fieldpiece, or a antitank rocket, they make... a SuperSoldier with a 13mm pistol to fight tanks in close-quarters.]] Great for psychological warfare, but ''really''.
*** It is implied later on that they do have more conventional antitank rifles...that has a 50% chance of blowing up after the first shot.
*** They also have the Centipede, basically a short-range grappling spear that ensures that tanks cannot get too far from them. It also means the user will be dragged along by the tanks and will likely lose a limb or two...
*** It really says something when the most normal piece of equipment they have was a pair of giant scissors that can cut through solid metal.
** Special mention really needs to go out to the "Door Knocker," which was noted as being horrifically impractical, but more likely designed to strike fear into whoever was staring down its barrel.
** [[spoiler:Frighteningly Justified in later chapters. It is revealed that the 901 troopers were never meant for actual tactical purposes; they are all human test subjects who received brain surgery to create a mental program that activates upon igniting the infamous "blue lantern". Said programming fills their mind with humans' natural killing instinct and makes them neglect everything else, including their survival. This human experiment was done only because an old genius professor feared death (since then he could not conduct research anymore) and wanted to replicate his own brain on his research team by surgical methods. The experiment on the 901 troopers was only a test to prove that such alteration to the human brain can deliver the expected results (and it did). Muse even described them as "Spare memo sheets for checking if the pen works".]]
** About the only Invisible Nine unit that doesn't get hit with this is 903-CTT unit, seeing as biochemical warfare is the ''least'' insane development concerning the Invisible 9, bordering on BoringYetPractical.
* BadassCreed: As soon as Randel lights that lantern, expect some enemies to start pissing themselves and madly repeating the terrifying rumors they've heard about the 901ATTs, ''all of which'' operate as badass creeds.
-->'''2nd episode mook:''' "They will be heralded by the blue light of the WillOWisp! Reload, you can't afford to play around this time! Reload! For the love of God, reload! You can burn out their eyes, even tear out their arms, but they'll never stop advancing! They will disregard their own lives, and attack at point blank range! They have marched away from life itself to pull the trigger that brings death! They are the legend of the battlefield, they are the phantom warriors of the 901st anti-tank troop! Guided by the Will-o'-Wisp! Bringers of Death! TÖTEN SIE!"
* BadassDriver: Martis, of all people.
* BadassLongcoat: Randel Oland. He also operates as a BrokenHero and GentleGiant.
* {{BFS}}[=/=]DoubleWeapon: Mahn, a double-bladed ''cavalry'' sword that Alice uses on foot.
* BecomingTheMask: See UndercoverAsLovers below.
* BerserkButton: Randel has a physical one, in form of the lamp-thingy on his hip. If you tick him off enough for him to turn it on, you're done for. It's implied that if his physical and mental states get worse, he will not even need the lamp to go on a rampage.
** It's also later to be revealed as a DangerousForbiddenTechnique as well, as Randel apparently has a limit to how much he can use it in a single day.
* BewareTheNiceOnes: Randel. While he is the most sensitive and softhearted member of Section 3, he has also seen the most combat, and is a terror to behold when under the trance of the Blue lantern. He has scared the shit out of battle-hardened soldiers, and once reduced an AxCrazy PsychoForHire to a terrified, sobbing, hysterical wreck. The Armored Train arc shows this the best. [[spoiler: Those big scissors he carries around work just as well on people as on metal, and the GoryDiscretionShot just makes it worse...]]
** The Anti-ares arc is even worse in that regard by actually fully equipping him. The result? [[spoiler: An entire tank crew burned to death inside their own tank with all the horror that implies and another tank crew cut into pieces by [[RazorFloss steel wires.]] The final survivor of that particular tank actually considered Randel shooting half his head off as MercyKill.]]
** [[GenkiGirl Stecchin]] also shows shades of this to a lesser extent, coupled with BewareTheSillyOnes. When a soldier from Section I starts making fun of Pumpkin Scissors for being a "useless" unit, Stecchin ''boxes his ears''. Later arcs show that she was actually a highly competent intelligence sorter on par with some of the best members of Section 1.
* BigBrotherIsEmployingYou: Our heroes are genuinely well-intentioned people who happen to work for a thoroughly corrupt military and government.
* BigFriendlyDog: Section 3's resident giant pupper Merc is a most amiable pooch (when he's not biting people anyway).
* BiggerIsBetterInBed: Clearly, Randel Oland suffers from this. He shatters an extra-large urine collector. The fandom has expressed some concern over what would happen if/when Alice and Oland [[VideoGame/DragonAgeOrigins tap the midnight still]].
* BigNo:
** Randel's reaction to the nurses attempts at getting a urine sample.
** Used in a much less humorous fashion at the end of Ep. 18; Randel does this after [[spoiler: [[TragicMonster Hans]] (another member of the Invisible 9 and just as traumatized from the war as Randel) is shot and killed, just as Randel had started to get through to him.]]
* BigScrewedUpFamily: The Loterian royal family. They seem to invoke [[Literature/{{Stardust}} the Stormholt Royal Family]], except it's not funny.
%%* BilingualBonus
* BodyHorror: The flamethrower suits feature faulty cooling systems. Instead of fixing them, the suits were filled with painkillers. As a result, the soldiers inside keep going ''until their muscles burn off''.
** The more horrifying part is that the substance in the fluid is not just an anesthetic, but a preservative: the wearer's body doesn't start coming apart until a few minutes after the suit is removed. By which point, it's already too late to get the suit back on, since it's a horribly complex affair that takes a long time to put on or take off. [[spoiler: Which is what saves Hans, since he was still having trouble getting his suit off when his friends started falling apart.]]
* BrainwashedAndCrazy: The entire town of Karussell has been somehow hypnotized by [[spoiler: the armored train used by the Border Patrol]] and do whatever they're ordered. Up to and including shooting [[spoiler: Randel]].
* BrokenFaceplate:
** Alice is buying time for Randel by taking on an entire division of Claymores. The captain mocks her because she's getting tired; her response is to hack right through his metal faceplate with her [[{{BFS}} double-bladed cavalry sword]], then slash through his body armour.
** The same episode has another example near the end. [[spoiler: As the body of [[TragicVillain Hans]] of the [[KillItWithFire 908th High-Temperature Troop]] is being carted away, we see the faceplate of his [[ImmuneToBullets flame and bullet resistant armour]] cracked wide open. As he can no longer survive outside his suit, this example is even more appropriate than most.]]
* [[CantHoldHisLiquor Can't Hold Her Liquor]]: Alice ''passes out'' from ''one glass of wine''.
* CarryingTheAntidote: Justified in the first episode, since the soldiers in a chemical weapons company would need immediate access to an antidote in case of a spill or leak.
* TheCharmer: Oreldo.
* ChivalrousPervert: Oreldo, always willing to get the crap beat of out him for the sake of some pretty girl he just met.
* ClothingDamage: Alice during her duel in the final episodes of the anime. Randel is also frequently subject to it, with much less accompanying FanService.
* TheConspiracy: Whoever the Silver Wheel is, they show shades of being a combination of Government and Nebulous Criminal Organization. When we find out more, they might meet the full trifecta.
* CoveredWithScars: Randel, not surprisingly for an infantryman who used to take on tanks.
* CutLexLuthorACheck: Lampshaded in one of the interludes, where the MadScientist's assistant talks about reading a six-year-old report about the "protective fluid" used in the flamethrower troopers' suits, and mentions the wonderful possibilities for treating burn victims. Said scientist replies, "Throw it away, I don't need it any more." Why, you ask? [[spoiler:It doesn't work. Just look what happened to Hans' buddies.]]
* DeathGlare: Randel has an... [[http://www.mangahere.co/manga/pumpkin_scissors/v04/c012/39.html interesting]] version of this whenever he's berserker mode.
* DeepCoverAgent : One of the tasks of the 2nd section.
* DeclarationOfProtection: By the end of the anime (ch. 12 of the manga), Randel has decided that the best way he can make use of his "gifts" is to act as a protector for Alice.
* {{Determinator}}: Alice, whenever her idealism is challenged. Randel when he turns on his lantern.
* DoggedNiceGuy: Lord Schulz.
* DoorstopBaby: Shows up in one of the earlier episodes, which leads to the AccidentalPervert moment above.
* DoubleEntendre: Stecchin once says that Martis is good at playing with himself. She means, of course, that he's good at playing whatever part is expected of him-- being a "jack of all trades", essentially-- but due to her penchant for awkward phrasing it [[ThatCameOutWrong comes out the wrong way.]] It doesn't help that as she makes this declaration, Martis is [[VisualInnuendo vigorously shaking a canister.]]
* TheEvilArmy: Corruption in the Imperial forces exists at all levels.
* EpicFlail: One of the Loterian Royal Guard's weapon of choice.
* ExpositoryHairstyleChange: Alice.
* FacelessGoons: The flamethrower troopers' armor is built like this, as is the armor for the Claymore-1 unit.
* {{Fanservice}}: Surprisingly averted when Randal is being examined by Kauplan.
* FeelNoPain: Randel. When under the trance of the Blue Lantern, he becomes so focused on whatever he's trying to kill that pain can not register in his mind. This is also where his MadeOfIron qualities come from (partially). He's so used to coming out of the trance with bad injuries (bad meaning bullet wounds, burns, broken bones, cuts, etc. usually multiple at the same time) that they simply don't bother him anymore.
--->'''Alice''': Those burns look pretty bad. Are you going to be OK?
--->'''Randel''': Yeah. Used to happen to me a lot.
* FourEyesZeroSoul - Muse. Subverted with Abel, who despite being an accountant for TheMafia cares about his friends from the gang he grew up in.
** Later chapters implied that Muse actually UsedToBeASweetKid before the pressure of working with Kauplan took its toll, and that part of her personality is still buried deep down within here.
* FreezeFrameBonus When Oland reloads in Season 1 Episode 7, the Door Knocker's bullets seem to have garbled letters that read like "Door Knocker" imprinted on them. "B M (blocked by thumb) OP KNOCKTR" Which makes sense because there is little chance that any other handgun would take that caliber.
* FriendToAllChildren: Oland, as befitting his GentleGiant status, is shown to be this at least in a small way. An abandoned, inconsolable baby is only calmed when it's placed in Oland's arms, and in a later episode, Oland sacrifices a good portion of his coat to make mittens for impoverished children.
* GagPenis: Used in a running gag with a nurse trying to get a urine sample from Randel whenever he's hospitalized.
* GenkiGirl:
** Alice Malvin could be considered a Genki Girl in the tradition of ''LightNovel/HaruhiSuzumiya'', dragging her hapless subordinates along in her energetic wake. (She's also something of an IdiotHero.)
** Also Stecchin.
* GentleGiant: Randel. He's soft-spoken and a little shy, he feeds stray cats, and he is ''huge''.
* GloveSlap: Alice uses this one in the traditional manner
* GratuitousEnglish: "Anti-Tank Trooper," "Door Knocker," and "Invisible Nine."
* GratuitousGerman:
** "Töten Sie."
** We also have the sobriquets of the Invisible Nine; 901-ATT, "Gespenstjäger,"[[note]]"Ghost Hunter"[[/note]] 903-CTT, "Krankheitsjäger,"[[note]]"Disease Hunter"[[/note]], 906-FTT "Fallschirmjäger,"[[note]]"Paratrooper", literally "Parachute Hunter"[[/note]] and 908-HTT "Aldschmiedjäger."[[note]]"Old Smith Hunter"[[/note]]
*** Not really, because the German that's used is actually pretty accurate. The phrase "Töten Sie!" is actually meant to be "Töte sie!", which means "kill them!". Even more so for "Gespenst-, Krankheit- and Aldschmied-jäger", those are correct. [[note]]But the prefix "Ald-" is old German, the modern equivalent would be "Altschmied"[[/note]] The English dub suffers a bit from "Inexperienced German speaker syndrome",[[note]]See episode 11: The reporter pronounces "Die Welt" ("The World", a real newspaper) as "die welt" would be pronounced in English, as opposed to the correct pronunciation "Dee Welt".[[/note]] otherwise it's practically flawless. Especially the written German is impressively well done.
* HandCannon: Randel's anti-tank handgun, the "Door Knocker." It is a 13 mm (.51 Cal). Randel wields it with one hand.
* HandsomeLech: Oreldo.
* HappilyMarried: Both of Alice's older sisters.
* HeroicBSOD: Randel has a nearly terminal case thanks to his experiences in the 901 ATT.
* HeroicRROD: Randel, again. As he uses his lantern more often, he starts bleeding from the stress.
* HollywoodHealing: Fans suspect Oland's rapid recovery is a result of being [[SuperSoldier Invisible 9]].
* HollywoodTactics:
** Actively encouraged by Alice, unless she's convinced to go about attacking smartly. Oland does this whenever the blue lantern is on, as he's in no state to reason with while in that hypnotic trance that really was meant to make the Imperial Anti-Tank Troopers ZergRush tanks.
** Randel is a rather unnerving take on this trope. Several times, when he is in said state, he ''has'' used tactics and quick thinking to win a fight (examples: using his gun to take out roof supports above a nest of snipers, whipping his coat in front of him to absorb an acid splash, holding a man down in front of a runaway carriage) instead of just blindly advancing. Not only does this show that he is ''not'' mindless in that state, it also shows that he ''knows'' the full extent of what he and his equipment can do. The implications of that are scary as hell. The armored train and Antiares arc shows just exactly what he's capable of when he's fully equipped, and it's not pretty...
* HonorBeforeReason: Alice will take on ''anyone'' she sees perpetrating or enabling injustice, from common criminals all the way up to the Emperor himself. Highlighted within the first five minutes of the first episode, when she, two soldiers, and a dog are scouting a dam-turned-merc fortress.
--->'''Alice:''' [[LeeroyJenkins Now, ATTACK!]]
--->'''Martis:''' Lieutenant, I just finished telling you that they have a ''tank''!
--->'''Alice:''' They're nothing but a bunch of anarchists! Destroy the evil-doers!
** The Empire's military. [[spoiler: Because they fear the peasants realizing that they can overthrow the nobles. In a later chapter, for example, the Empire never implemented effective anti-tank weapons because it would help the common people learn to work together.]]
** An egregious example during the Anti-Ares attack. A tank commander with the diplomatic security corps challenges a terrorist armored car over the radio like he's challenging an opponent to a duel. The armored car shoots a hole in his gut mid-challenge.
* HotBlooded: Alice in an non-Super Robot, female example.
* HugeGuyTinyGirl: Alice is of average height, and shorter than most of her subordinates. Randel, who already towers over the entire cast, makes her look like a child. He's still taller than her even when he ''kneels''. Frankly, he fulfills the 'Huge Guy' role for ''anyone''. He's tall enough that he has to ''duck'' in order to get through most door frames (He is also huge down there).
* HuntingTheMostDangerousGame: A noble in the second episode of the anime (as well as in the manga) does this. ''With a [[TankGoodness tank]].'' Against unarmed peasants who are chained together at the wrists.
* IdiotHero: Alice. CharacterDevelopment helps her avoid this as time goes on but she never loses her idealism.
* IAmAMonster: Randel struggles with this:
-->'''Randel''': It's bothered me... when I turn on the lantern, I just kill everything. But then I worry about being useless without it.
* ImplacableMan: See MadeOfIron below.
* ImprobableAge: Alice is justified, as she's a noble out of officer school (in the prologue). She's still in her teens in the series proper, but younger people have fought in UsefulNotes/WorldWarI (see below).
** She's at least 18 in the earlier chapters, and probably a bit older in the more recent ones, assuming the story happens over the period of several months.
* ImprobableWeaponUser: Randel uses a pair of giant scissors that are capable of ''cutting through a tank's armour''. Possible reference to meaning of the series title?
** In case you're thinking they're actual scissors, they're more like glorified [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bolt_cutter bolt-cutters]] with pointed jaws. You'd have to be suicidally brave to attack a tank with them - which is what the lantern does. As a weapon they're impractical[[spoiler: - a flashback shows a tank covered with 901 troops ''slowly'' gnawing away at its armour with their 'can-openers'.]] Presumably, they use them to open a hole they can shoot through... and human wave tactics to ensure there's enough left to shoot. It's proven to be quite effective in CQC combat situations with infantry, however, [[spoiler: when Randel used it to great effect during the armored train mission. They're pretty effective at cutting up human bodies too...]]
* IncompetenceInc: As of the Karrussell story arc, the Empire's various military departments are quickly shaping up to be as such.
* JabbaTableManners: After hearing of commoner children dying by the hundreds of starvation, YOU would want to kill the nobles too when you watch them waste food that could have been used to save their lives.
* {{Kaiserreich}}: This is very much Germany, especially in the dub, where German accents abound and the occasional German word sneaks into the dialogue...which, if history is to be followed, [[UsefulNotes/WorldWarII means things are about get a lot worse]].
* KindheartedCatLover: Randel shares the underside of a bridge with several stray cats. He enjoys looking after them.
* LargeHam: Alice boasts an exhuberant, dramatic personality complete with declarations of [[ForGreatJustice justice]] and punishing evildoers.
* LeftHanging: The anime ended with most questions left unanswered.
* LowerDeckEpisode: Sorta, Steccin replaces Alice in screentime for a {{breather episode}}.
* MadScientist: Muse, who also overlaps with FourEyesZeroSoul.
* MadeASlave: Randel alludes to a childhood episode of this kind, in a recent chapter of the manga.
* MadeOfIron: When his lantern is on, Randel seems practically invincible. Even without. Most people can't hurt him without some kind of weapon (A big one; for example a ''sledgehammer''). Understandable, as he's apparently ''95% scar tissue''. Highlighted in episode 4; he wakes up with a cat on his face and sits up. The cat hangs from his cheeks, then ''drags its claws down the side of his face'' while it slides off. He doesn't even flinch. A strike to the back of the head can still knock him out, however.
** And it's not just cats. In episode 2, Randel finally finds his way to the Section III office--with the jaws of the unit's canine runner clamped firmly onto Randel's skull. The big lug doesn't even ''notice''.
* {{Malaproper}}: Lili pulls this off at one point while accosting Oreldo.
---> '''Lili''': Good grief, you're nothing but a leecher, Oreldo!
---> '''Oreldo''': If you're going to insult me, at least get your terminology straight.
---> '''Lili''': It's sensual harassment!
* MaleGaze: Seen [[http://mangahere.co/manga/pumpkin_scissors/v04/c013/24.html here]].
* MalevolentMaskedMen: The Silver Wheel organization have only ever been shown wearing bizarre face masks when shown.
* MeaningfulName and ThemeNaming: Imperial units tend to name themselves after bladed implements, and choose those implements based on a metaphor they hold in relation to the unit's purpose.
** Pumpkin Scissors: As Alice so eloquently puts it, scissors used to cut through the thick pumpkin-like skin of corruption.
** [[{{BFS}} Claymore One]]: The Empire's sword. The first unit to deploy in serious crises, also hailed as their most elite strike force, operating with ruthless efficiency.
** [[AnAxeToGrind Axe Force]]: Axes have mundane uses outside of war. Serves as the Empire's special police force for domestic affairs.
** A Section II unit is named after the shotel, a curved, semi-circular blade which somewhat resembles a sickle, which reflects their indirect stealthy spy approach.
** On another note, Randal's HandCannon, the "''Doorknocker''", is named such because the only way to make effective use of it is to "[[NoRangeLikePointBlankRange blast away at point blank range]], Knocking on the door (to the afterlife)", so to speak.
* MildlyMilitary: Played with throughout the series, as the Pumpkin Scissors are often derided by the public and other military bodies for being this way, and it was because of this reputation that Oreldo joined. Given their dangerous missions during the series, this label doesn't really hold up, although the relationships among the protagonists does kind of fit the MildlyMilitary idea.
* MsFanservice: Alice's older sister, Solice. See [[http://www.mangahere.co/manga/pumpkin_scissors/v05/c018/13.html here]].
* MoodWhiplash: The show combines light situational comedy and deadly serious drama, often switching between the two without warning.
** Also, the cheery ending music after many of the more serious episodes. This can create a rather inappropriate CrossesTheLineTwice effect...
--->'''Randel Oland:''' What's wrong? You're usually eating like wildcats now.
--->''Cats stare blankly at him, refusing to move.''
--->'''Randel Oland:''' Oh... I get it. I smell like blood... I guess I just got used to it...
---><Upbeat J-Pop accordion solo time>
*** This is particularly bad at moments such as the end of episode 19, where the last thing we see before said upbeat harmonica solo is Corporal Oland getting hit in the head with a sledgehammer.
* MookHorrorShow:
** In the Armored Train arc, [[spoiler: the way Randel takes on the operators of said vehicle is very much like a slasher movie villain, where he used his giant scissors to snip up people when they're not behind armor. Alice may be good at swordplay, but Randel is simply ''merciless''.]]
** The Antiares arc also shows what a fully equipped 901-ATT member can do to a tank crew. One of them considered getting half his head blown clean off by Randel's Door Knocker an [[MercyKill ''act of mercy'']].
* MoralityPet:
** Stecchin, many times, can come off as this with her GenkiGirl attitude.
** To some extent, Alice is this to Randel.
* MysteriousPast: Randel's history remains unclear for a good portion of the series.
* NoodleIncident: Used in episode 5 by Oreldo against Martis when he's given the cold shoulder, using a paper roll loudspeaker.
--->'''Oreldo:''' My childhood friend here, Sub-lieutenant Martis, is one HELL of a soldier. Why we've done nearly EVERYTHING together. Matter of fact, that reminds me of a story when we were seven years old, and went out to the woods for the old number one. That Earthworm? Didn't. Stand. A chance. So then-
--->'''Martis:''' HEY! TOO MUCH INFORMATION!
** [[spoiler:What happened in District Zero that made Hanks tell Alice not to go there ever again]]?
* NotWhatItLooksLike: Stecchin says the trope name verbatim after Oland walks in on her practicing a silly and embarrassing song and dance she came up with in an attempt to improve morale. Being [[NiceGuy Oland]], he mistakes it for some sort of religious practice and shyly offers his support before politely closing the door in her mortified face.
** Randel himself has had this happen to him several times.
* OfficerAndAGentleman: Alice is Section 3's field commander and the daughter of the noble class.
* PeelingPotatoes: Oreldo is an ''expert'' potato-peeler.
* PhotoOpWithTheDog: The reason Section 3 exists, and assumed by many to be the motivation of its actual ''members''. [[WideEyedIdealist It's not.]]
* PlayingWithSyringes: Mad science abounds in the setting!
* PreMortemOneLiner: Randal throws out a pretty scary one right before he begins his one-man assault on the armored train.[[note]]Normally this would be classified as a PreAsskickingOneLiner, but given what happens next...[[/note]]
--> '''Randal''': (switches on lantern) ''Why don't you guys come and join me in my nightmares....!!''
* PsychoSerum: Subverted in that the serum has consequences. Anti-Ares dishes out two types of injectors to their forces. One functions like a stereotypical psycho serum, but the other is designed to try and counteract the side-effects such as nausea.
* TheRemnant: Anti-Ares, a coalition of former ethnic groups all crushed by the Empire and united to see it suffer.
* TheRevolutionWillNotBeCivilized: The Anti-Ares uprising purposefully causes high civilian casualties as part of their revenge on the Empire.
%%* RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething: Alice
* RunningGag: The hospital nurse's inability to get a urine sample from Randel. It borders on obsession, to the extent of obtaining a decidedly non-standard container for the purpose.
* ScarsAreForever: There's no GoodScarsEvilScars for Randel -- his entire body is a mesh of scars, often as a result of the injuries sustained while [[ImplacableMan under the trance of the blue lantern]].
* ShellShockedVeteran: Subverted: Randel was all but broken by the war, his mind is a complete mess, and the innumerable people he killed continue to haunt him in his dreams (and, sometimes, his waking hours). But instead of numbing his emotions, this left him unbelievably sensitive and very reluctant to harm other people.
* ShelteredAristocrat:
** Septieme of [[{{Ruritania}} Loteria]].
** Alice has some of this to her. "Do commoners drink water?"
* ShirtlessScene: Has a tendency to happen to Randel, [[ScarsAreForever though it's not really meant to be fanservice]].
* ShooOutTheClowns: Lord Shulz leaves the party in the final episodes just before the band of angry peasants shows up.
* SlidingScaleOfIdealismVersusCynicism: The main characters fall various places on and to the side of this.
* SmugSnake: In the manga, the viscount who amuses himself by HuntingTheMostDangerousGame is most certainly one. Along with his little hobby, he also treats his household staff like crap and is supremely confident in his own [[ScrewTheRulesIHaveConnections untouchable status]] (and possession of a tank) when the Pumpkin Scissors confront him. He tries his little hunting schtick on [[MuggingTheMonster Randel]]. [[spoiler:It's rather satisfying to see how badly this goes for him; his overconfidence rapidly disintegrates into weeping, begging for his life, and wetting himself.]]
* SociopathicSoldier: Played with with Randel Oland. Played straight with most antagonists, especially those from the Invisible Nine.
* SpiderSense: Alice gets a chill at the back of her neck when something important is about to happen.
* SuperSoldier: The Empire's Invisible Nine program was meant to create legions of these on demand. Some of them even survived.
* StevenUlyssesPerhero:
** R. Oland = "Roland", a heroic knight from the Charlemagne saga.
** Of course, his first name probably also comes from Roland's sword, Durandal.
* TheSyndicate: The Silver Wheel.
* TanksForNothing:
** The series has quite a few tanks, [[spoiler:none of which can stand up to Oland and his "Doorknocker".]]
** {{Lampshaded}} in episode 10, when the heroes are once again pinned down under fire, when they hear the sound of tank treads.
--->'''Oreldo''': Oh come on, are we the only outfit in the empire that ''doesn't'' have a tank?!
* TeamPet: Mercury, Private First Class, Section III's messenger dog. Also an example of a MeaningfulName, since said dog is both a messenger and a trouble-maker.
* ThereAreNoCoincidences: Averted. While there is a conspiracy afoot, it really was just a coincidence that Randal and Alice bumped into each other during the events of the first episode.
* TomboyAndGirlyGirl: Alice and her older sisters.
* TooDumbToLive: Oh ''Lord'' does the Empire have this in spades.
** During the war, it's implied that the Empire encouraged these kinds of tactics among their soldiers [[spoiler: to prevent the commoners from rising against the nobility.]]
* TragicMonster: Hans, the last of the flamethrower troopers.
* TranquilFury: When switching on his blue lantern, Randel enters a trance that focuses him single-mindedly on his goal, making him impervious to pain and turning him into a fearless, heartless, ''lethal'' automaton. He only retains enough humanity to know when to switch it off, and then he returns to normal.
* UndercoverAsLovers: [[spoiler:Witter and Francia. However, [[BecomingTheMask the former falls for the latter]], and it ends in tragedy]].
* WaifFu: Alice is on the shorter side, but still a strong melee combatant.
* WhyDontYouJustShootHim: The peasants finally figure it out.
--->'''Peasant 1: You think we're just going to stand around while you have a duel?''
--->'''Peasant 2: Kill um all!''
* WideEyedIdealist: Alice, of the most admirable sort.
* WordSaladTitle: Subverted, surprisingly. "Pumpkin Scissors" isn't a nonsense phrase -- it's the nickname of the squad, and thus very significant to the story. It even has a meaning behind it!
* UsefulNotes/WorldWarI: It's blatantly a fantasy analogue of post-WWI.
* WillOTheWisp: Invoked. At a distance, in the dark, the 901-ATT's blue-burning Lanterns looked like them, and whenever Randal lights his, his opponent begins raving about how they were "Guided by the Will-of-the-Whisp." It gave them their nickname "Geispenjäger," or "Ghost Hunters."
* WretchedHive: District Zero, a crime ridden, escort filled slum in the Empire's capitol city. [[spoiler: Also Randal's home.]]
* YouShallNotPass: A minor one occurs in episode 23. After the first WhyDontYouJustShootHim moment mentioned above, one of the more vengeful peasants tries to do it again. Randal (who, keep in mind, is over seven feet tall, heavily muscled, and covered in scars) loudly clears his throat, steps in front of him, and looms over him with a DeathGlare. The peasant looks at him, then nervously glances at a guy that had earlier fought with Randal (who is currently curled up on the ground, covering his head, and sobbing hysterically), and wisely decided to keep very still.
----

%%* KindheartedCatLover: Randel... again.
%%* LargeHam: Alice

* IncestIsRelative: Appears to be the main means by which female members of the royal family of Rodelia navigate and rise to power.

* KindheartedCatLover: Randel... again.
* LargeHam: Alice