Strike Witches: The Movie

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Strike Witches: The Movie (2012)

Early August, 1945; the former members of the disbanded 501st Joint Fighter Wing, the Strike Witches, have been back in their home countries or combat theatres since the liberation of Venezia. Yoshika Miyafuji, now a regular civilian after depleting her magic to defeat the Neuroi hive over Venezia, has been sent an invitation to study (non-magic) medicine at a Helvetian (Swiss) medical school. Yoshika accepts, and sets off for Europe aboard the carrier Amagi, alongside her escort, rookie IFN Sergeant Shizuka Hattori.

Meanwhile, a new type of Neuroi starts appearing sporadically around Europe, capable blocking all forms of communication nearby; even worse, some are showing up behind the frontlines, with no clear explanation of how they got there. After arriving in Pas-de-Calais and briefly visiting with Pierrette Clostermann and Lynette Bishop, Yoshika and Shizuka depart for Helvetia. However, given Yoshika's drained magic and Shizuka's lack of combat experience, running into one of those new Neuroi could prove dangerous.

Strike Witches: The Movie is set shortly after Strike Witches: Operation Victory Arrow, and is followed by Strike Witches: Road to Berlin.

For more in-depth explanations of the lore and setting of the World Witches universe, see the first season's page.

Warning: Some descriptions and images are major spoilers for the series, read at your own risk.

The following weapons were used in the anime film Strike Witches: The Movie:

Pistols

Beretta M1934

A Beretta M1934 is seen being loaded by Squadron Leader Heinrike Prinzessin zu Sayn-Wittgenstein of the 506th JFW during a scramble. The 506th Joint Fighter Wing, or Noble Witches, is made up entirely of witches from noble families, and is split into two sub-units. A-unit, based in Sedan, is comprised of Squadron Leader Rosalie de Hemricourt de Grunne (of Belgica), Heinrike herself (of Karlsland), Flight Lieutenant Adriana Visconti (of Romagna), Flying Officer Kunika Kuroda (of Fuso), and Pilot Officer Isabelle du Monceau de Bergendal (of Belgica); all five members of A-unit cameo in The Movie. B-unit, based in Dijon, is comprised of Wing Commander Geena Preddy, Flight Lieutenant Marian Carl, Flight Lieutenant Jennifer DeBlanc, and Flying Officer Carla Luksic (all from Liberion).

Adriana Visconti also carries an M1934 as her sidearm, which makes sense given she's from Romagna, though it's not seen in her extremely brief cameo. Similarly, Heinrike uses an MG 151 as her main weapon, like fellow night witch Heidemarie Schnaufer, though Heinrike's is not seen in The Movie.

Beretta M1934 - .380 ACP

A stitched sequence of Heinrike loading a magazine, switching the safety off, and racking the slide; the first round visibly slides into the chamber as well.

Heinrike holds her Beretta as Rosalie informs her they can't contact B-unit at Dijon.

Official artwork of Adriana duel-wielding Fliegerhammers, with her MG 42 slung behind her back and her M1934 in its holster. Seeing a witch visibly carrying a sidearm is rather rare. (Art)

Submachine Guns

MP 40

Erica Hartmann carries an MP 40 submachine gun as a backup to her MG 42 on a patrol of the Rhine alongside Gertrud Barkhorn. After overheating her MG 42's barrel (and having neglected to bring spare barrels, as Gertrud did) Erica ditches her machine gun and uses the MP 40 for the remainder of the engagement. Erica's MP 40 features a brown bakelite lower reciever.

MP 40s are also seen in the hands of Karlsland soldiers in the film's opening, a flashback to 1943 in which Karlsland and Liberion infantry and tanks engage ground-type Neuroi, before an enormous flying wing Neuroi shows up, decimating the ground forces, as well as the naval ships supporting them, before being destroyed by the Strike Witches.

MP 40 - 9x19mm

In 1943, a Karlsland soldier hipfires his MP 40 as he advances.

In St. Trond, Erica whines about her MP 40 magazines being too hard to load. Gertrud was just loading MG 42 belts with a loading tool, seen to the right.

Having discarded her inoperable MG 42, Erica draws her MP 40 from its small-of-the-back holster.

Unfolding the MP 40's stock. Note the three magazine pouches on her belt.

Erica and Gertrud fire on the Neuroi pursuing them.

Quickly changing direction, Erica dumps more lead behind her, as Gertrud and her take down the second Neuroi.

Erica lays down more fire as they destroy the third. Holding the gun by the magazine generally encourages jams, though in most other shots Erica is properly holding her MP 40 by the magwell.

After complaining that she's tired, Erica attempts to get an in-flight piggyback ride from Trude, resulting her her knocking off nearly all of their weapons and equipment.

Rifles

M1 Garand

In the 1943 prologue, Liberion troops are armed with M1 Garand rifles.

M1 Garand - .30-06

A Liberion soldier charges forward, carrying his M1 Garand.

M1 Carbine

Later in the film, Liberion troops under sudden attack at Bastogne attempt to radio for assistance; one of them can be seen with an M1 Carbine.

M1 Carbine - .30 Carbine

A Liberion aims his M1 Carbine moments before their position is obliterated by a flying Neuroi. Note the M1919A4 on a tripod seen here as well.

Boys Mk I*

The Strike Witches' sharpshooter, Lynette Bishop, uses a Boys Mk I* anti-tank rifle as her weapon of choice. A Boys rifle is also used by the Noble Witches' marksman Isabelle du Monceau de Bergendal, often known by the nickname "Isaac".

Boys Mk I* - .55 Boys (13.9x99mm B)

In 1943, Lynette takes aim at the large flying wing Neuroi with her Boys. This engagement is a callback to the very first fight in the series, the opening to the first episode of the first season, with this fight playing out very similarly to that one (though it's not the same engagement).

Moments later, Perrine Clostermann blocks incoming fire for Lynette, allowing her to make a precise shot and expose the Neuroi's core.

Returning to 1945, Isabelle and her rifle make an extremely brief, faceless cameo as she scrambles alongside Adriana Visconti and Kunika Kuroda.

Charlotte Yeager grabs Francesca Lucchini and a less-enthusiastic Lynette to perform a combo attack.

Lynette prepares to open fire on the swarm of torpedo-like small Neuroi.

Lynette takes aim at one of the transforming Neuroi that's threatening Mio Sakamoto's F1M floatplane...

...and fires. Quality screenshots of Lynette firing her rifle are hard to get, as it's always accompanied by massive screenshake, blurring, and flash.

Lynette's enormous rifle slung across her back, as she welcomes her dear friend Yoshika back into the sky.

Lynette with her Boys as the Strike Witches break formation to engage the massive U-Boat-like main Neuroi.

A much better look at Isabelle, her Boys rifle, and Spitfire Mk 22 striker in official artwork, taking down a Neuroi in the evening sky. (Art)

Machine Guns

Bren Mk 1 (M)

Pierrette-Henriette Clostermann continues to use a Bren Mk 1 (M) as her main weapon.

Bren Mk 1 (M) - .303 British

Pierrette fires her Bren while dodging beams in the 1943 prologue.

In 1945, Perrine and Lynette look on as an enormous magic circle forms in the distance.

Pierrette combines her Tonnerre lightning with Erica's Sturm wind attack, to create an electrified gale that demolishes a bunch of torpedo Neuroi.

As Mio approaches Yoshika's position, Perrine prepares to protect the F1M with a shield.

Perrine opens fire with her Bren to cover Yoshika and Lynette.

Amused, Pierrette looks on as Yoshika and Lynette reunite in the sky. Note the Bren's smoking barrel.

With Yoshika back in the group, Perrine and the other Strike Witches prepare to take on the U-Boat Neuroi.

Perrine readies her Bren as she prepares to break formation as they approach the Neuroi.

Perrine's Bren spits lead at the U-Boat Neuroi, which has now taken flight after being "submerged" underground.

The Strike Witches form up for their final attack.

Browning M1918A2

Charlotte Yeager uses a Browning Automatic Rifle, and it gets considerably more time to shine in The Movie compared to Operation Victory Arrow.

Browning M1918A2 - .30-06

Back in '43, Charlotte's Merlin engines roar as she zooms in low to hit the Neuroi from underneath with her BAR.

A great closeup as Charlotte grabs her BAR from the launch unit, as her and Francesca scramble to intercept the unexpected Neuroi over Venezia.

Charlotte and Francesca take off from their patrol boat.

Shirley reminds Francesca to stay close, as their radios aren't reliable around this new Neuroi.

Charlotte opens up as the pair catches up to their enemy.

A good shot of the BAR's receiver, as Charlotte tells Francesca to lure the Neuroi away from the city.

Working with Fernandia Malvezzi, Luciana Mazzei, and Martina Crespi of the Ardor Witches (who appear again in The Movie, but unarmed, and thus didn't make it onto this page) Charlotte leads the Neuroi through the city's canals, and into a trap.

Shirley, Minna, and Trude lead the formation against the U-Boat Neuroi.

A shot of the left side of the BAR's receiver, as Charlotte breaks formation and follows Francesca.

Francesca and Charlotte perform a synchronized roll while laying down fire, as they approach the main Neuroi.

Browning M1919A6

Francesca Lucchini continues to use a Browning M1919A6 modified with an attached, but quickly swappable ammo box as her weapon.

Browning M1919A6 - .30-06

Francesca pulls her M1919A6 off the launch unit as her and Charlotte scramble.

Seeing the Neuroi's beam moving towards the city, Francesca zooms in to block it.

A great shot of the custom ammo box mount. The darker-coloured "shelf/basket" on the bottom is permanently mounted to the gun, while the lighter-coloured ammo box sits inside, held in by the latch on the left (shooter's perspective) side of the mount. The hinge at the bottom of the latch is even visible here.

Francesca protects Venezia with a hail of .30-06.

With the Neuroi seemingly on the run, Francesca takes aim to finish it off.

A first-person view down the Browning's sights.

Lynette, Charlotte, and Francesca get close during the finale battle. Note Francesca's continued use of the handle on top of the ammo box as her offhand grip.

After Shirley goes supersonic again, with the shockwave disorienting a bunch of torpedo Neuroi, Francesca mops them up with her M1919A6.

Francesca moves in to attack with the rest of the 501st.

Francesca and Shirley open fire on the cloud of torpedo Neuroi. Note how in this situation Francesca is hipfiring her Browning, pressing it down against the sling, while supporting it with her offhand.

MG 42

As always, Minna-Dietlinde Wilcke, Gertrud Barkhorn, Erica Hartmann, and Eila Juutilainen use the witch-version MG 42, redesigned to use Patronentrommel 34 drum magazines. One of Gertrud's pair is borrowed by Yoshika during the climactic battle.

MG 42 - 7.92mm Mauser

MG 34 with Patronentrommel 34 for reference - 7.92mm Mauser

In 1943, Eila effortlessly dodges beams as usual.

After expending her Panzerfausts, Gertrud charges her MG 42s. Note the metal tubes hanging from her waist, which are protective cases for her two spare barrels.

Back to back, Erica lays down fire at the three Neuroi they're facing.

As the camera pans around, Gertrud does the same.

A fantastic stitched sequence of Gertrud performing a barrel swap.

Erica, however, didn't bring any spares, and tosses aside her MG 42 to use her MP 40 instead.

Adriana Visconti takes off, with her MG 42 barely visible, tucked under her arm. Note the woodland camo on her C.205V Veltro striker; while most Romagnan/Italian aircraft tended to feature arid colour schemes and small-stripe patterns, this rich/dark green and larger-stripe style was used on the real world prototype C.205, and fits with Adriana being stationed in Gallia/France.

Kunika Kuroda speeds out of the hanger, with her own MG 42 slightly more visible. Unlike most Fuso witches, Kunika converted to more local equipment upon arriving in Europe, using an MG 42 and a Bf 109 K-4 striker. Kunika is the protagonist of the Noble Witches novel series (and its manga adaptation).

With the Neuroi blocking regular forms of communication, Minna-Dietlinde Wilcke tells Heidemarie Schnaufer that her antenna is their only hope. In an interesting twist, the white fragments the new Neuroi are dropping to block comms is a reference to "Window"; while Window was specifically created to counter only radar, the Neuroi version counters everything except the night witches' radar-inspired antennae.

Erica uses her Sturm attack, combining it with Perrine's Tonnerre.

With her predictive abilities, dodging Neuroi beams from one direction, not getting hit by Sanya's rockets from the other, while also laying down fire with her MG 42 is a piece of cake for Eila.

Gertrud lends Yoshika one of her MG 42s as a welcome back gift. This is also a nod to early in the first season, when a recently-injured Trude borrowed Yoshika's Type 99 to replace one of her MGs.

A nice side shot of Eila's MG 42, as she follows Heidemarie into combat.

Back in action, this shot provides a good look at Yoshika's borrowed MG 42, as well as her J7W1 Shinden striker.

After blocking a beam, Erica opens fire again with her MG 42.

Yoshika zooms past the "bow" of the U-Boat Neuroi, putting Trude's MG 42 to good use.

An excellent shot of Gertrud and Minna's machine guns as the group forms up again.

Yoshika leads the final charge, MG 42 in hand.

Type 99-2 Model 2 Kai

As an Imperial Fuso Navy witch, Shizuka Hattori uses a Type 99-2 Model 2 Kai iteration of the Type 99 cannon, designed specifically for use by witches. Shizuka's Type 99 is also used by Yoshika.

The Movie marks the first time the charging "button" is used on-screen, although it was intended as part of the design all along; this function is noted in the design sketch seen below, which predates the first season. For the rather lengthy technical explanation of the witches' Type 99-2 Model 2 Kai variant, see its first season entry.

Type 99 Mark 1 in pintle mount configuration - 20x72mm RB

Type 99-2 Model 2 Kai design artwork - 13.2x99mm

Shizuka launches from the besieged town, Type 99 in hand. Being such a rookie witch, she talks herself though the memorized steps of going into combat.

"Ammo... loaded." Shizuka charges the Type 99, the first time in the series this is done on-screen.

"Safety... disengaged." Note that the colours have been corrected from the first season, with Fire now being red and Safe being white. Also, in a small design update, while in the first season the fire position was 90-degrees vertical, it's now depicted as only moving to a 45-degree angle.

"Use your shoulder to steady the rifle. Get close enough that the target won't fit in your sight."

"Put the first phalanx of your index finger on the trigger."

"I did it! Just like the drills!" Shizuka takes out four Ba 349 Natter inspired Neuroi in quick succession.

Shizuka shows off her lovely N1K2-J striker as she pursues and destroys the fifth and final Natter Neuroi.

Moments later, one of the much larger transforming, "Window"-dropping Neuroi shows up. Shizuka takes aim...

...but it forces her to dodge, and the beam blows a massive crater into the town. Distracted and distressed, the next beam knocks Shizuka out of the fight, crashing into the town below.

With the arrival of a huge subterranean periscope-inspired Neuroi and no working radio, Yoshika hauls the Type 99 into their jeep in an attempt to lure it away from the town. Without her magically-augmented strength, carrying the roughly 40kg/90lb gun to the jeep isn't a trivial task.

Yoshika parks the jeep and sets up the Type 99 on the steering wheel, bracing herself with her feet as best she can.

"I'm over here!" Yoshika opens up with a long burst of 13.2mm rounds.

After the Neuroi goes underground and reemerges in front of her, left with no options, Yoshika rams the jeep into the Neuroi at full speed, grabbing the gun and bailing at the last possible moment.

No magic. No shield. No backup. Just grit and bravery, as Yoshika makes her last stand.