Suddenly, I realize you meant a MMORPG. Which increases the awesome factor of your suggestion by a hundredfold. The only thing working against such a concept is the fact that it would appear to cheapen the value of cyborgs by making them a dime a dozen (while we're on the subject of numbers, I'll address your musings on the matter by theorizing that the SWA kids probably number no more than twenty, tops). But dude. CYBORG ARMIES.

There haven't been any hints of any animation studio poised to adapt the remaining manga material into a third season and beyond, although I'm positive that it'll be picked up someday. Can't say I'd be too thrilled though, as the direction the story took after season two's arc left me severely disinterested. This was in no small measure due to the fact that issues such as Henrietta's past will remain mysteries unless enterprising individuals among adapting studios decide to flesh these enigmas out, as they did with Elsa.

New girl's name is Beatrice, whose frustrating lack of personality often makes me wonder why she was even introduced, aside from a need to showcase that the cyborgs are capable of 'sniffing out' explosives and other munitions (possibly even bio-weapons and radiation, some among the fandom have theorized). Sadly, a number of other characters of her ilk pop up down the road - additions who seem to serve no true purpose, and who could have been omitted in favor of further developing the core cast.

Dude... a Gunslinger Girl RPG where you could create your own character and go on missions around the world? I'd be all over that like white on rice, given my fanon work with OCs and stories involving international incidents. Agreed that a rail shooter doesn't do Gunslinger Girl justice; it just seems such a... low-brow medium to tell a Gunslinger Girl story, as compared to the intelligent approach that the series takes with regards to its subject matter.

Fanfic is such a splendid way of flexing your imaginative muscles. My approach to writing such stories, however, is one where I create events and characters that can plausibly fit into the original storyline's gaps, without altering the canonical tale's flow. Nearly all my Gunslinger Girl stories are set between the first and second season, and then usually between episodes.

Take your time; we'll be right here to welcome you when you're ready. I'd be keen to know where in season two you're at now.

Interesting you should mention defecting - such a scenario actually formed the basis of the Gunslinger Girl video game. One of the handlers (Ernesto, a new guy created specially for the game) wound up absconding with his cyborg, intending to sell her to the enemy, who wanted to take her apart and see what made her tick. The clueless Pia, not knowing her mentor's true intentions, tagged along with him solely out of loyalty.

And man oh man, your talk of other countries and terrorists creating their own cyborgs tells me you'd fit right into our fandom. We've actually done a fairly extensive job of fleshing out the Gunslinger Girl universe, throwing in enemy cyborgs, foreign cyborg allies and so much more. I was the first to start that trend, creating a Mossad-run equivalent to the Social Welfare Agency whose primarily male cyborgs assist the girls during a mission to the Middle East. Since then, we've had cyborgs aligned with MI6, the CIA and many more besides - all Agency allies. As far as enemy cyborgs are concerned, I've got a mind to have the People's Liberation Army come up with their own program, and other writers among us have come up with a number of interesting and deadly boys and girls aligned with assorted terrorist organizations - the best creation so far is a particularly lethal young man created by a friend of mine for his pretty damn good Full Metal Panic/Gunslinger Girl crossover.

Where canon is concerned, however, the closest we'll get to an enemy cyborg is Pino. He's quite formidable an opponent, but I don't like him as a character and think he's a one-dimensional little shit. There was speculation at one point among the fan community that he could've been an Agency test subject who escaped, which would explain his apparently superhuman abilities. But alas, you're right - he's just a highly trained individual with no enhancements.

The Agency have well and truly won Rico over, to the point where she was willing to kill her new friend and carried the act out. You can see her experience a twinge of regret after the event, where she sheds a tear while lying in bed, but it lasts for but a moment, rapidly overcome by her thoughts of how the Agency has given her what she always dreamed of - a strong, healthy body. Utterly terrifying.

As you mention, one of Gunslinger Girl's weaknesses is that not enough time is dedicated to world-building. Many issues remain unexplained, more than twelve volumes into the whole storyline, and it doesn't appear that they'll ever be dealt with. It's an attractive situation, though, for those among us who are keen to speculate and fill in the blanks ourselves.

Gah. You made me remember what I tried so hard to forget.

Oh, you've already started watching Season Two! How far along are you, and have you any thoughts on the story to date?

Oh lawdie, I hate pointless filler. Hearkens back to the bad old days of Dragon Ball Z. "They still on Planet Nameck yet?" Filler done right, though, can be very good. For instance, episodes nine and thirteen of GSG's first season, which are both infinitely watchable, are not present in the manga.

It would be the humane and moral thing to do, treating your cyborg with love and respect. At the same time, getting too attached would be perilous. The early death of a cyborg is inevitable; their cybernetics and the drugs used to keep the cybernetics working ensure that none of the girls is going to live ten years beyond their conversions. Care too much, and their death will weigh heavily upon you. Care too little - or worse, be an outright ass (just like Lauro was a total bastard to poor Elsa in episode nine), and you're in for trouble, too. The best approach to take when mentoring your cyborg, in my opinion would be a teacher-student one - courteous and respectful, but never intimate. And yeah, most of the girls are probably jealous of Henrietta, but she's such a ray of sunshine that they don't appear to act out their envy. Notice how she invites them over for treats, and takes Rico under her wing.

I wouldn't lump Hillshire with Jean or Lauro. He does care for Triela in his own way; the guy's just a square who's not used to showing affection, especially not to a thirteen-year-old girl. Again, without letting the cat out of the bag, he's actually done far, far more for her than she thinks. The full extent of his and Triela's story is very emotionally powerful and will leave you thunderstruck.

Henrietta's okay; I just find her fairly uninteresting compared to the other girls. Her past is what we in the fandom love to speculate on - who killed her family, and why? I've written a fanfic that provides a possible explanation; if you're interested, I'll link you to it. It's a decent read, even if I do say so myself. And the further you progress through the series, the greater you'll understand why the Croce brothers treat their protegees so differently. Again, I'm not going to spoil anything for you.

Beneath that gruff exterior, Raballo had a heart of gold - he was perhaps the only handler with a true moral compass. Yeah, Jean said he met his end in a hit and run, but who knows how he really met his end, beyond the fact that we know the Agency definitely took him out, as a precaution so he did not expose what they were up to. For all we're aware, it may not even have been a hit and run - Rico may have sniped him as he walked down the street. Claes hasn't found out the truth at time of writing, but man, shit would hit the fan if she did. She loved Raballo like a father.

I like your approach to anime series and the manga that they're adapted from. The former can be used as a hook for casual viewers, who can then decide from what they've watched if they want to delve deeper or otherwise. And you're right - Japanese animation studios tend to improve on the source material more often than not, unlike what Hollywood does.

The first season (the thirteen episodes you've already watched) is an adaptation of the manga's first and second volumes, and is truly amazing. It remains one of my favorite anime series ever. What are your favorite episodes, by the way, and who are your favorite characters? I like Triela and Rico best, but admit to having a very soft spot for Angie; my favorite episode is the third one, where we're introduced to Rico and learn how chillingly deep the Agency has a hold on her.

Season two adapts volumes four and five. It's not a very good watch, purely because the animation studio is a different one and said studio's work is quite sub-par. You're better off just reading the volumes, in my opinion, although quality of presentation notwithstanding, there is a certain degree of enjoyment to be had in watching comic panels become moving pictures. Without giving away too much, the plot thickens when the girls meet their match in someone on the opposing side. A pretty good arc, especially where Triela is concerned.

Volume six and beyond have not been adapted for television, at least not yet. To be honest, I never really bothered reading anything from that stage on out, although I am up to date on what happens, thanks to fellow forum members who are willing to keep my lazy ass informed, lol. The direction of the series got pretty boring in my eyes, but your mileage may, of course, vary.

That really depends on how far you've watched the anime or read the manga. We're mostly quite up to date on our progress, so there may be a few sections in the General GSG Discussion and Character Dossiers forums that you might want to avoid.

Hey man, I noticed a post of yours in the anime thread that mentioned Gunslinger Girl - brofist for being a fellow liker of the series! I run a fan forum dedicated to the show and related material; we're a friendly crowd, and hold lots of interesting and intelligent discussions related to GSG - there's live chat sessions, fanart and fanfic sections, downloads and much more. If you feel like signing up (link is below), we'll welcome you with arms wide open.

Cyborg Central: The Gunslinger Girl Forum

Shorts film, after Toy Story 3 was released Pixar decided to continue the toy franchsie thuogh a series of short films named Toy Story Toons