By: Andrew Nickerson

Sun Tzu and Entertainment: Girls Und Panzer[i]’s Anzio Battle

            Many tactical theorists have come and gone throughout history, but none have had the influence of Sun Tzu, an ancient general/tactician/strategist whose masterwork, The Art of War, set the standard for sheer brilliance. His words, which address everything from terrain to gathering intelligence, are innovative on every level, especially their unique goal: winning. What’s more, his advice has proven not only effective but extremely flexible, hence its subsequent adoption by everyone from sports teams to businessmen to politicians.

However, there’s one medium where he’s never truly been employed: pop culture plotlines. If he’s universally applicable, why not this, too? To better illustrate this, we’ll use his knowledge to analyze a rather fun plot arc: This is the Real Anzio Battle![ii], an OVA to the famed anime series Girls und Panzer. More specifically, we’re going to look at it through its most relevant Sun Tzu elements: morality, terrain, leadership, preparation, improv, direct-indirect acts, targeting weakness, recklessness, delicacy of honor (DOH from now on), foreknowledge, underestimation and seizing an opening.

Here’s the background: in the near future, many locations operate school ships, essentially giant aircraft carriers that’re self-contained communities, all meant to teach students self-reliance and independence. However, a smaller high school ship, Ooarai Girls Academy (OGA from now on), is to be closed by Japan’s Education Ministry due to budget cuts…all due to their prioritizing an upcoming event: the Sensha-do (Tankery from now on) World Championship, set to be held in Japan in two years. This sport has teams of students operating tanks in mock battles, and the Ministry’s emphasis is on bolstering native teams for said event, leaving those without teams, like OGA (it had a team, but cut it), bereft. When the latter’s student council’s (SC from now on) protests fail, they end up displaying some impressive Sun Tzu chops by making a proposal: if they reform their team and win the upcoming national tournament, then the Ministry will keep the school open. It’s a grand display of one of Sun Tzu’s Five Essential Victory Factors, good leadership[iii], as well as the rules, “Be flexible; according as circumstances are favorable, one should modify one’s plans,”[iv] AKA improv, and if given an opening to seize victory, take it[v]. The Education Minister agrees, thinking such a win impossible, but in doing so violates a critical lesson of Sun Tzu, never underestimate an opponent[vi], something he’ll soon regret. What’s more, he’s sown another seed of defeat via OGA using another Essential Victory factor, terrain[vii], more specifically a form called death ground[viii], where combatants can’t surrender/retreat; they must fight or die, so they’ll fight with all they have.

Having gotten their chance, SC quickly gathers info on the tournament and sport, a great use of another Essential Victory Factor, preparation[ix], and the all-important rule, “What enables the wise sovereign and the good general to strike and conquer and achieve things beyond the reach of ordinary men is foreknowledge[x].” The coming tournament has four rounds, the initial pairings determined by lottery. The tanks (all WWII-era types) fight until either KO’d by damage or lack of fuel, evidenced by a white flag popping out. At the high school level, the matches revolve around teams’ flag tanks, vehicles predetermined before a match and evidenced by a small flag on their antennae; KO them, and the match ends, an obvious means for a come-from-behind win via one of Sun Tzu’s most famous rules: “Avoid what is strong and only attack what is weak[xi]”.

Now, SC needs a team, so they wield prep again by creating an impressive display emphasizing Tankery at the start of the term; they also use another Essential Victory Factor, morality[xii], by sweetening the pot for recruits with multiple incentives, like extra class credit and tardy/absentee remissions. Yet, in a curious twist, SC chooses not to explain why they’re reforming the team, most likely to avoid panic. Still, it works brilliantly, drawing many recruits…but they need a commander. Miraculously, someone more than fits the bill: series protagonist Miho Nishizumi (Miho from now on), a recent transfer from Kuromuromine Women’s Academy. A gentle, shy girl, she’s the younger daughter of the family with the longest Tankery history, making her a prime commander candidate. Therefore, SC goes to her class one day and recommends she sign up for the course, a strong use of seizing an opening.

Unfortunately, they’ve also clumsily violated prep and foreknowledge, for Miho isn’t keen on the idea. During the previous tournament, she suffered a horrible setback when a teammate’s tank slipped into a river before her vehicle, her school’s flag tank. In a wonderful display of morality, she leapt out of her tank and dove into the river, saving her teammates, but it cost her school the match and snapped the Nishizumi family’s winning streak. Her mom chewed her out for it, even hinting Miho should’ve sacrificed her teammates in favor of the win, a shameful violation of morality, as well as one of Sun Tzu’s Five Fatal Failings of Leadership, DOH[xiii]; worse, her sister Maho violated another Fatal Failing, cowardice[xiv], by not defending her. Shattered, Miho transferred to get away from Tankery, and can’t bring herself to join. However, when SC learns of her decision, they call Miho down to the office and scold her, a great use of an important leadership caveat, enforcing discipline[xv]—and it works, snapping her out of her funk.

Yet, more challenges await the recruits when they reach the old team’s warehouse, where they find only one tank. SC quickly uses improv again by having the recruits search for more vehicles around the ship, reasoning they’ve got to be somewhere. It bears fruit when four tanks are eventually located, all of which are recovered by the Automobile Club, who’re contracted to handle maintenance, a great use of prep and another leadership caveat, knowing how to use all forces[xvi], by SC. When said vehicles are brought back, the following teams form:

-Duck: Consisting of four former Volleyball Club members, they crew a Type 89 Medium tank. It’s quick, has an average 57 mm gun, and is fairly mobile, but has light armor and a low effective shooting range due to said gun’s short barrel.

-Rabbit: Consisting of six skittish girls, they crew an M3 General Lee. It’s got average armor and mobility, plus two turrets—an oscillating (rotating) 37 mm turret and a 75 mm swivel turret in the chassis. However, it’s tall, making stealth difficult, the former turret is fairly weak, and the latter can only move up and down independently; moving it right or left requires moving the whole chassis.

-Turtle: Consisting of SC, they crew a 38t, a tank with a short 37 mm gun. It’s highly mobile, but has light armor and a gun with a low effective range like its predecessors.

-Hippo: Consisting of four military history enthusiasts, they crew a Sturmgeschultz III Ausf-F, a self-propelled gun (mobile artillery piece) with a long-barreled 75 mm cannon. It’s got average armor, a gun with great range/penetrating force, and its low profile enables better stealth, but said gun is fixed, giving it the same problems as Rabbit team, and it’s not very mobile.

-Anglerfish: Consisting of Miho and her four BFFs, they crew a Panzer IV. It’s the most balanced vehicle, with great mobility, good armor, and a decent 75 mm main gun. Yet, the latter’s barrel is short, providing the same issues as Duck, Rabbit, and Turtle teams.

Shortly after, their instructor (requested from the Ministry, another nice use of prep by SC) arrives and throws the teams into a mock battle, a good use of improv to help build experience and learn everyone’s capabilities. It immediately proves fruitful when Miho, in a grand display of leadership and improv, guides Anglerfish to an incredible win. Thus, their instructor and Miho begin using prep by training the teams, culminating in another mock battle, this time with another school, St. Gloriana’s. OGA loses, but Miho’s incredible use of leadership and improv throughout the match greatly impresses their foes, something that’ll prove beneficial down the road. Tragically, it’s the last chance OGA gets for such good practice due to the tournament starting. Miho draws her team’s place in the lottery, their first opponent being Saunders High, an extremely wealthy school (wielding primarily American tanks) and highly favored to win. Yet, OGA gets an unexpected boost in prep via team member/tank fanatic Yukari, who famously infiltrates Saunders and learns their dispositions/flag tank, an exceptional use of one of Sun Tzu’s favorite methods of gaining foreknowledge, spies, for, as the man himself said, “Knowledge of the enemy’s dispositions can only be obtained from other men.”[xvii] Equipped with this, plus Miho’s usual brilliant improv and leadership, OGA pulls off a very close win.

That leads to the current bout, pitting OGA against Anzio Girls Academy, a school bringing Italian culture to Japan, thus it’s use of Italian armor. As is revealed at a meeting with SC, it’s led by Commander Anchovy and her two sub-commanders, Carpaccio and Pepperoni, who’re primarily equipped with the two vehicle types: Carro Veloce 33s (CV from now on) and Semovente M41s (SV from on). What’s more, they’ve apparently just acquired a “secret weapon”, all speculation of which ends when Yukari pulls off another spy venture. According to the footage she shot, Yukari (posing as a transfer student), finds an event ongoing because Anzio’s underfunded. Even more incredibly, she meets Pepperoni and broaches the question of the new tank…only to find the latter, in a horrifying violation of another Fatal Failing, recklessness[xviii], as well as underestimation, not only admits to having a new weapon, she confirms it’s a P-40 when Yukari suggests it. Her violations hit insane proportions when Pepperoni further declares Anchovy is so thrilled about their new acquisition she drives it everywhere—even though Anzio’s low on fuel. As if that weren’t enough, Yukari heads to a recreation of the Coliseum, where she spots both the P-40 and Anchovy openly violating recklessness and underestimation, to say nothing of leadership, herself by proclaiming such as their secret weapon.

Miho, in an incredible display of prep, heads to Hippo Team’s dorm, where its residents have numerous tank texts available. Even better, when said texts are found to be written in Italian, one team member, Caesar, translates them due to her being fluent. This nice use of prep that provides the following incredible foreknowledge:

-CV: An extremely light tank, it’s short and highly mobile, making it a difficult target. However, its armor is flimsy and it’s only armed with machine guns, meaning it can’t fight armored vehicles.

-SV: A medium tank, it’s got an okay gun, average armor, and is somewhat mobile. Unfortunately, its gun is short, limiting its range/penetration, plus it’s got the same gun movement limits as both Hippo and Rabbit teams.

-P-40: Another medium tank, it’s slightly better than Anglerfish due to its cannon’s longer barrel. Yet, it’s tall, making it an easy target, and has similar limits.

            Afterward, Miho and SC promptly use both foreknowledge and prep to commence training to handle these vehicles, ultimately giving her side a hefty boost in the coming bout.

            The day of the match arrives, at which time all have an interesting revelation: not only is Caesar close friends with Carpaccio, but both are loaders in their assigned vehicles (the latter in an SV). After greetings are exchanged, we see Anzio’s line-up: 6 CVs (Pepperoni leading), 3 SVs, and the P-40 (commanded by Anchovy), the latter being the flag tank (Turtle team is OGA’s flag tank). The match commences, and Anzio moves out, Anchovy quickly ordering her team to commence Operation Macaroni. Immediately, Pepperoni heads for a set of crossroads on a nearby hill, where they lay a set of decoys on its north and south sides to make it look as if Anzio has seized it. The intent is to use the decoys to keep Oarai’s team focused on the center while Anzio’s team circles to hit them from behind, an ingenious use of one of Sun Tzu’s favorite tactics: use a direct act to focus your enemy’s attention and an indirect to win.[xix]

Unfortunately, things go wrong right away, since Pepperoni was repeatedly told to only use nine decoys between the two spots, but instead uses eleven (the original nine plus two back-ups). It’s a colossal violation of recklessness, foreknowledge, and a little-known caveat of leadership: “If orders are unclear and commands not explicit, it is the commander’s fault the troops do not obey; but, if the orders are clear, it is the subordinate officers’ fault the troops do not obey.”[xx] It quickly costs them when Miho, showing wonderful leadership, sends Duck team to recon the crossroads from the north, where they soon spot the five decoys planted there. She then dispatches Rabbit team to check the south, which finds that locale’s six decoys, immediately arousing suspicion because the total number of tanks allowed in that round is limited to ten. In a nice use of improv, Miho has Rabbit and Duck teams bombard both locations, exposing the decoys…and enabling the former to instantly realize Anzio’s plan. Thus, Miho expertly wields leadership, foreknowledge and improv by sending Duck and Rabbit teams south to intercept the coming attack.

As Pepperoni moves to rendezvous with Anchovy, her unit spots Duck team approaching from behind and quickly engages, claiming they’ll never keep up with her troops’ renowned agility. It’s a shameful violation of recklessness, DOH, and underestimation but, nonetheless, her CVs promptly open fire. Meanwhile, Rabbit team encounters two SVs on the road and the former’s gunner promptly violates recklessness herself when, assuming they’re more decoys, she fires at them. They turn out to be real, causing the latter to chase the former; Miho promptly instructs her teammates to prevent the SVs from rejoining the P-40, a great use of leadership and improv.

The scene now shifts to Anchovy, who learns of Pepperoni’s blunder and orders her tank, along with its two escorting vehicles (a CV and Carpaccio’s SV) to move out. In the process, she meets up with Anglerfish, Hippo, and Turtle teams, prompting her to quickly assert leadership by ordering her vehicles to halt and engage while informing her comrades. As Miho does the same, Carpaccio inadvertently winds up using foreknowledge when she realizes Caesar is in Hippo team by recognizing said vehicle’s logo, which matches her friend’s online profile pic. Her SV immediately targets Hippo, leading to a brutal shootout/maneuver bout between the two, ultimately ending in a double KO. As for Anchovy, she and her CV escort get into a heated shootout with Anglerfish and Turtle, each hoping to win via targeting weakness by aiming for their respective flag tanks.

Things get particularly ugly with Duck team, which can’t seem to KO Pepperoni’s CVs due to their somehow surviving each hit, leaving the former panicking. Thankfully, Miho quickly calms them by telling her comrades their foes’ light weight is merely softening each impact; also, if a CV is knocked onto its side, their crews simply get out, right them, and return to the fight. It’s a phenomenal display of enforcing discipline and foreknowledge, and it works wonders by refocusing Duck team. The latter then promptly use improv by bracing their gun, allowing better aim, plus targeting weakness by aiming for the CVs’ engine coils. Yet, a tragedy nearly occurs when Rabbit team, still dodging its pursuers, clumsily violates recklessness by not relaying its position to its teammates…and pays for it by nearly ramming Duck team. Thankfully, no serious damage is caused, and the latter continues with their plan, which quickly pays off when they KO four CVs.

At this point the CV near Anchovy is KO’d, causing her to make a crucial mistake: in a sloppy violation of recklessness, cowardice, and leadership, she orders all troops to abandon their current actions and rejoin her. Pepperoni and the two SVs hurriedly comply, foolishly violating recklessness and underestimation themselves by dismissing their current opponents. The latter soon pay for this when the SVs start up a steep slope, Rabbit team’s gunner shooting but not hitting anything…until the tank’s commander, in an impressive use of leadership, orders the vehicle to halt to stabilize its aim. What’s more, when another shot misses, the commander uses improv by having her gunner correct her trajectory accordingly, the follow-up round KO’ing an SV; sadly, the other SV escapes, at which point Rabbit team pursues.

Meanwhile, Miho opts to act while the P-40 is alone, so she has Turtle team draw the P-40 toward a nearby cliff; Anglerfish will then use the forest to screen itself while climbing said cliff, allowing it to fire from above. It’s an impressive use of direct-indirect acts, and it works perfectly: Anchovy chases Turtle team, expecting an easy win, but then stops when she spots Anglerfish above. Her earlier mistake in ordering the rendezvous then catches up to her when the last SV, in a clumsy violation of recklessness and terrain, tries to drive down a steep slope, only to flip end over end and land behind the P-40; said tank then pays for underestimating Rabbit team when the latter appears and KOs them, cutting off Anchovy’s retreat. Worse, Pepperoni shows up too, only to pay too when Duck team KO’s them from behind too, further blocking Anchovy, whose gunner fires at Anglerfish…and misses. The latter then returns fire, KO’ing Anchovy and ending the match. It’s an impressive win for OGA, and Anchovy displays great morality in the aftermath by sharing a massive banquet with her foes.

This was a chaotic bout, but Sun Tzu’s guiding hand was there through every success and mistake, showing how valid he still is in the modern age. After all, as has been said countless times, if you follow Sun Tzu’s advice, you’ll win; if you ignore him, you’ll lose.

---

[i] Girls Und Panzer: Complete TV Series, dir. Tsutomu Mizushima (2013)

[ii] Girls Und Panzer: This Is The Real Anzio Battle, dir. Tsutomu Mizushima (2017)

[iii] Lionel Giles, The Art of War (New York, NY; Fall River Press, 2011), 3.

[iv] Giles, The Art of War, 4.

[v] Giles, The Art of War, 46.

[vi] Giles, The Art of War, 33.

[vii] Giles, The Art of War, 3.

[viii] Giles, The Art of War, 41.

[ix] Giles, The Art of War, 3.

[x] Giles, The Art of War, 50.

[xi] Giles, The Art of War, 21.

[xii] Giles, The Art of War, 3.

[xiii] Giles, The Art of War, 28.

[xiv] Giles, The Art of War, 28.

[xv] Giles, The Art of War, 4.

[xvi] Giles, The Art of War, 11.

[xvii] Giles, The Art of War, 51.

[xviii] Giles, The Art of War, 28.

[xix] Giles, The Art of War, 15.

[xx] Art of War, dir. David Padrush (2009)

                                                                  Bibliography

Mizushima, Tsutomu, director. Girls und Panzer: Complete TV Series. 2013; Sentai Filmworks, 2013. 300 min. DVD.

Mizushima, Tsutomu, director. Girls und Panzer: This is the Real Anzio Battle!. 2017; Sentai Filmworks, 2017. 38 min. Blu-ray.

Padrush, David W., director. The Art of War. 2009; A&E Television Networks, 2009. 94 min. DVD.

Sun Tzu. The Art of War. Translated by Lionel Giles. New York: Fall River Press, 2011.

###

      Andrew’s originally from Massachusetts, and is a lifelong reader. He has a BA in History (English minor) from UMASS Lowell and JD from Mass. School of Law. He can be found on Twitter (@AndrewNickers19) daily, analyzing characters via Sun Tzu.