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Armitage III: The OAVs

This page provides overviews of the four OAVs. In each overview, only those scenes that did not appear in Poly-Matrix will be described, with reference points from Poly-Matrix to help determine when the cut scenes take place. The plot remains essentially the same, so a placement of the cut scenes in their proper time should be all that is needed to understand the full story of Armitage III.
 

Episode One: Electro Blood

This OAV lacks the introduction of Armitage and her motorcycle attack, as that scene was new for Poly-Matrix, and postpones Ross’ nightmare until later. The nature of female Seconds as eye candy is revealed as Ross arrives, as the stewardess is wearing next to nothing, a trend that continues for most other female Seconds throughout the anime. She even has the words “don’t touch” written on her butt, possibly by an airline employee but more likely by a prankster who views her as a target for graffiti like any other object. Ross witnesses an argument between McCanon and her manager before he arrives. Upon arrival at the station, Ross and Armitage are met by the press but give out no information. After viewing the McCanon broadcast, Ross sees an interview with Julia Blanshin, a neo-humanist who denies involvement in the murder by those of her movement. She claims that though they want robots gone from society, violence is not their chosen path.

It is during his first night on Mars that Ross has his nightmare, and it is much longer. When he is given his keys later by Eddie, his car is revealed to be a Ferrari, and to have robot-drive capability that Ross doesn’t use. Chris much admires the car, and his statements indicate that few people drive their own cars on Mars, as it is considered unsafe compared to robotic driving. Before finding Armitage, Ross visits Hu-Gite, the other major robotics company, but receives no help there. When D’Anclaude and Ross fight at the church, Armitage’s taking control of the crane is much more obvious. D’Anclaude’s reaction to her announcement that she is a Third is quite different- he is astonished, because her name isn’t on his list.

After defeating D’Anclaude, Armitage is badly beaten up, confused as to her place in the world, and despairing of ever feeling at home. Her solution is to throw herself into the water to drown. She nearly succeeds, but Ross leaps in after he and pulls her to safety. Angry at still being alive, Armitage leaps off into the night, leaving Ross confused. The final scene shows various parts of St. Lowell and reveals how little the life of most humans has been affected by what is happening, illustrated by the uncaring treading of people on a fallen Kelly McCanon poster.
 

Episode Two: Flesh & Stone

This episode opens with Armitage on a beam high up on an unfinished building, awakened by a nightmare about her recent life. We then see Lavinia Whateley fleeing for her life in a tunnel in the main memory, then being tied to a lift and shot. Her mysterious killer then sends the lift to the surface for the workers to find. This murder allows the viewer’s suspicion of Armitage as the killer to develop more than in Poly-Matrix. After Armitage receives Ross’ plea for her to come back, she is accosted by two lowlifes who think her easy prey. They are the targets of opportunity for her anger, and she beats them up.

Meanwhile, Eddie has found a message from Pluto in Armitage’s mail and begins trying to decipher it. Ross then visits Conception to meet with Eugene H. Allen, Vice-president of Public Relations and a bit of a slimeball who stonewalls Ross’ inquiries. Ross sneaks back in and steals Allen’s access code, but still learns nothing.

While Ross is at the Jessica Manning crime scene, Eddie decodes the list of Thirds from Armitage’s mail. Lt. Randolph tells this to Ross, and also reveals that Lavinia Whateley was pregnant. This makes much more sense than the scene in Poly-Matrix where Ross is told by Eddie that Kelly McCanon was pregnant. After all, the first five dead Thirds were given to Conception to examine, and they would naturally want to hide the Third’s reproductive capabilities, so it seems unlikely a Third given to them would be allowed to be seen by TCS. Lavinia Whateley, on the other hand, was examined by Lowell first, and as Conception hadn’t got their hands on the body yet couldn’t hide the information. As Lavinia’s murder was cut from Poly-Matrix, however, it seems likely that other references to were ordered to be cut as well.

After meeting Julian, he reveals that he is incapable of maturing and is trapped in his teenage body. After the battle in the memory server, Ross passes out and the body of the second D’Anclaude is shown bobbing in the water far below, seemingly dead--until his eyes open.
 

Episode Three: Heart Core

Heart Core opens with a news broadcast by an incredibly annoying and peppy Second, who explains that the third terrorist bombing of the month occurred during the night. The bombings were done by packing a Second with explosives and sending them into the target area, then detonating them. Later, after two more bombings, the TCS is put on the case which means they have to drop the Third case as they lack manpower. The terrorist bombings make a handy excuse for the government to occupy the TCS, and it seems likely that the bombings are orchestrated by the government.

Ross tries to visit D’Anclaude in Shenora Hospital but they refuse to let him in. As he is leaving, he sees the doctor he just spoke to shaking hands with Eugene H. Allen from Conception. Later he is contacted by Chris, who tells him that the board from one of the puppet bombs looks identical to the board from a Third. Ross breaks into Allen’s house and physically threatens him until he reveals that Rene D’Anclaude, originator of the Assassinroids, is the man in Shenora Hospital, and that the other D’Anclaude was a robot. Ross leaps from the building just before one of Allen’s Seconds explodes, then receives a call on his damaged Navi from Armitage asking for help.

After burying Julian, Armitage decides to visit him in cyberspace. Ross is able to go along as well due to his new nervous system but cannot enter as fully as Armitage. As soon as he arrives he finds himself unable to move, though Armitage appears floating gracefully on invisible currents and frees him. They then find Julian’s backup and learn that all of the murdered Thirds are in cyberspace as well. Ross again encounters a barrier to his movement, and finds he cannot get close to Julian or the Thirds while Armitage can. Julian confirms that the original D’Anclaude is in Shenora Hospital, and they head there. Armitage attacks the second D’Anclaude, but he doesn’t become pure data, as in Poly-Matrix; he simply explodes. The OAV ends with the explosion of Shenora, leaving the fate of Ross and Armitage in question.
 

Episode Four: Bit of Love

Outside of the burning Shenora Hospital, Ross and a damaged Armitage ride a motorcycle away from the scene. She remembers what happened after D’Anclaude exploded. She sat watching with a piece of rebar in her shoulder as the original D’Anclaude breathed his last breath, and as she and Ross prepared to leave the nearly-severed head of the second D’Anclaude threatened her. Her response was to remove the rebar from her shoulder and throw it through his head, finally killing him. This explains why he failed to become pure data in Heart Core--he wasn’t actually dead yet.

After Ross and Armitage arrive at Dunwich Hill, they find Dr. Asakura, who mistakes Ross for spare parts he had ordered. Later, the attack on Dunwich Hill begins and so does the broadcast of that attack to the Seconds of Mars. The dead Thirds in cyberspace are revealed to be the source of the mysterious broadcast.

Several months later, Ross returns from Earth to Mars and is met by Armitage at the spaceport. He hands her a registered ID card for Earth giving her a new identity as Annalisa Bradford but she throws it away. Ross then suggests they go visit Julian, but she tells him she wants to wait until they are three. A surprised Ross learns Armitage is pregnant and is overjoyed, and the two of them drive into St. Lowell to make their new life together. This is quite a bit different from Poly-Matrix’s ending, where Ross and Armitage agree that they would like to have a baby together and start a new life.


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Armitage III, Poly-Matrix, and Dual-Matrix are TM and Copyright © 1994-2003 Pioneer Entertainment Inc. (USA)
Used without permission. No infringement or challenges to ownership intended.
Page created by Steve Miller, August 12, 2003
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