Ground Defense Force! Mao-chan
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Ground Defense Force! Mao-chan (or Earth Defender! Mao-chan) is a 26-episode comedy anime, created by Ken Akamatsu, the author of Love Hina.
It stars three eight-year-old girls, Mao, Misora and Sylvia, as they try to defend the earth against invading aliens. The world's defense has fallen to these unlikely heroines because the aliens are excessively cute, and the combats with them are televised: if the forces battling the aliens were not cute, the general public would revolt. So three military leaders chose their granddaughters to be the defenders, in order to have a team that was even cuter than the aliens. They each have a cloverleaf-shaped badge that enables them to transform. (This transformation provides no special power.)
The series is rife with parodies and references, particularly to Akamatsu's earlier work Love Hina. The girls' commanding officer looks exactly like Naru Narusegawa from Love Hina, and at one point the girls have to defend a hot springs inn which is clearly Love Hina's Hinata-sou.
Characters
Mao Onigawara defends the earth from the ground by using a tank (the tank was officially named 'White Tiger,' but she refers to it as 'Mi-kun' for reasons unknown). As revealed in assorted Physical Education scenes, she is a very slow runner. Also, going by a statement she makes during the sports fest, she has no mother. Her clover pin is green.Misora Tsukishima defends the earth from the air using an airplane. Her mother (and presumably her father, as well) is a diplomat, and thus is never home. As a result of this, she lives with her grandfather. Her clover pin is blue. Her transformed outfit features a pair of white-feathered wings on her back, which she can use to fly.
Sylvia Maruyama (nicknamed 'Sylvie') defends the earth from the sea, using a submarine. Despite her occupation as a member of the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF), she cannot swim. She has a somewhat curious affection for tangerines, and is frequently depicted eating them. Her clover pin is grey.
Yuriko, also known as Yuriko-senpai, is the student council president of her high school. She is actually half-alien (her father was a human, while her mother was an alien); as a result, she has a pair of cat ears that appear when she is nervous or upset. Due to her alien heritage, she attempts to further the Cute Alien's cause. Unfortunately, she seems to suffer from something of an inferiority complex, which frequently hinders her mission. Yuriko also seems to be a fan of Mao-chan and her friends, which often prevents her from hurting them.
Chinami is the vice president of the student council; thus, she is technically lower in rank than Yuriko, but she behaves as if it were the other way around, giving Yuriko orders and formulating plans on her own. Chinami is presumably half-alien, as she has cat ears identical to Yuriko's (but Chinami's ears do not appear nearly as often as Yuriko's do).
Rikushiro Onigawara is Mao's grandfather, and he gave her the green clover-shaped pin as a present for her eighth birthday. He is also the head of the Japanese Ground Self-Defense Force (JGSDF). Rikushiro is something of a doting grandfather (he had a weapon-free tank built especially for Mao, saying that his granddaughter deserved only the best toys), but he insists that Mao address him as 'Chief of Staff' instead of 'Grandpa.'
Sorajiro Tsukishima is Misora's grandfather and the head of the Japanese Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF). His daughter (Misora's mother) is constantly away from home, so Misora lives with Sorajiro. He is always depicted as carrying what appears to be a plush-doll version of himself.
See also
Love HinaExternal links
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