Legend of Galactic Heroes: Difference between revisions

A manga adaptation illustrated by Michihara Katsumi was released in 1990, while another manga adaptation by Fujisaki Ryū (known for his work on ''[[Shiki]]'') begun in 2015, and is still ongoing.

{{tropelist}}

* [[Armchair Military]]: Many of the Alliance Army's top brass who got there by smooching posterior. In the Empire under the Goldenbaum dynasty, many nobles got command positions because they were from the right families.

** Admiral Staden, one of the leading commanders among the Lippstadt rebels, is mentioned as being derisively known as "Succumbed to Theory Staden" by his students back in the day, due to his preference for theory over practice. Which proved to be his undoing when he was forced to deal with one of those former students, Mittermeyer.

* [[A Million Is a Statistic]]: Subverted, the series tries its damn best to make you see how awful and tragic the death of the average soldier is. The officers in the army also constantly show that the deaths of their subordinates weight on them heavily.

{{quote|'''Narrator:''' After the encounter called the Battle of Astarte, the survivors of the Imperial Fleet numbered 2,450,000 and the Alliance, 4,060,000. However, compared to the Imperial Fleet's 150,000 casualties, the Alliance's numbered ten times as many, 1,500,000.}}

* [[Casual Interstellar Travel]]: Partially averted; though large fleets move through space with seeming ease, it does take quite a bit of time. Reinhard's flight from Uruvasi to Fezzan is stated to take three weeks.

** It is also stated that the logistical cost of building and maintaining such fleets is enormous: The Empire has several gigantic fleets and even artificial worlds/fortresses that would make [[Star Wars|Emperor Palpatine nod approvingly]], but at the price of leaving many of its planet underdevelloped; the Free Planet Alliance does not fare much better: while its GDP per capita is nearly twice as big as the Empire, the constant state of war is taking the best engineers and the most apt workers away from civilian life, not counting the huge amount of resources spent on maintaining the alliance's fleets: Fezzan is the most prosperous planet in [[The Verse]] precisely because it does not have to spend so much of its resources to build and maintain huge starfleets.

* [[Chaste Hero]]: Both Reinhard and Yang remain this until fairly late in the series, even though they should have had plenty of opportunity to engage in romance earlier.

** With Yang it's strongly implied that he loved Jessica Edwards, but didn't pursue her after she chose Lapp.

** Also, {{spoiler|Kircheis}} whose death sends {{spoiler|Reinhard}} into his first [[Heroic BSOD]].

* [[Death Is Dramatic]]: Played very straight. If a character that's not very important dies, it's only barely acknowledged. When a MAJOR character dies, the character's death can be felt throughout the entire series, i.e. {{spoiler|Siegfried Kircheis}}.

** The Rosenritters, who are to a man Imperial exiles serving the Alliance {{spoiler|and ultimately, in Yang's forces}}, see themselves as this to the Empire.

** Reinhard, his allies and supporters in the Empire tend to see themselves as this to the corrupt High Nobles and Goldenbaum dynasty.

* [[Dirty Business]]: Paul von Oberstein is perfectly aware of both his lack of a conscience and the need Reinhard has for people like him to do what's necessary, however murky the wetwork needed may be.

* [[Dirty Coward]]: Arthur Lynch, a disgraced Alliance rear admiral turned prisoner of war who left El Facil virtually undefended while his fleet turned tail in the backstory, the ensuing events ironically giving an up and coming Yang Wen-Li his famed reputation as "Miracle Yang" and the "Hero of El Facil." {{spoiler|Reinhard and Oberstein eventually find him and, despite their own disgust at the man, give him orders to cause discord within the Alliance. Given the [[Civil War]] that ensues, it proved ''too'' successful.}}

** Fezzan=20th century European-style evening wear.

* [[Driven to Suicide]]: {{spoiler|Susanna von Benemünde, Prince Braunschweig, Helmut Rennenkampf, Admiral Borodin, Oskar von Reuenthal (and his mother), Hans Eduard Bergengrün...}} This series drives many people to off themselves.

* [[Forever War]]: At the beginning of the series, the war between the Empire and Alliance has been waged on and off for 140 years, with no party able to gain a decisive advantage until the first capture of Iserlohn.

* [[For Want of a Nail]]: This trope doesn't happen, but given the historical theme of the show, sometimes the narrator or one of the characters will comment on how some tiny insignificant detail had changed history.

** Both Yang and Reinhard more than once make a passing comment on the possibility of their own demise.

* [[Four-Star Badass]]: Many. This series' most distinguished characters tend to be high-ranking officers in their respective army, at least Admiral or above. There's a REASON they got that far. The most literal example of the trope, however, would be General Schönkopf, commanding officer of the Rosenritters, an elite assault infantry regiment recruited from exiled Imperials. Facing him in battle is a DEATH SENTENCE.

* [[Gender Is No Object]]: The Alliance makes no real distinction between men and women in their ranks, much like in their society at large. In the Empire meanwhile, women serve only as auxiliaries in the military, though wield considerable influence in civil and political life.

* [[General Failure]]: Distressingly common in the Alliance's officer corps; in fact, aside from Yang's allies and subordinates, this trope would seem to fit most of the FPA's brass. The same applies to most of the Old Guard nobles in the Empire as well; those who are not either ally themselves with Reinhard eventually or flee the country.

* [[Generican Empire]]: The two opposing factions are known simply as the Galactic Empire and the Free Planets Alliance.

* [[Genki Girl]]: Marika von Feuerbach, at least some of the time.

** However, while Reinhard & Company are specifically out to change the prevailing social order, Yang himself doesn't hold such ambitions and [[Honor Before Reason|he serves the government no matter how obviously rotten it is, and how often they screw him over]].

* [[The Greatest Story Never Told]]:

** The mystery surrounding Bruce Ashbey, the 730 Mafia and his tragic demise is this. Despite Yang's research, he realized that either Ashbey took the truth with him to the grave or that there are still those keen on making sure it's never told.

* [[Glory Hound]]: SUPERFICIALLY the motivation behind many politicians' and officers' support of the war. The politicians, however, have less idealistic reasons, and the officers don't last long...

*** Yang Wen-li even goes so far as to say that if the Alliance was formed to oppose a ruthless dictatorship, and that it is now a BENEVOLENT dictatorship, that there's no real reason for there to be an Alliance anymore. Considering the dreadful state of the Alliance government and his position within it, those are words DANGEROUSLY similar to treason. But then again, it's [[Honor Before Reason|Yang Wen-li]] we're talking about.

*** And on the other side, during the third season, Reinhard states {{spoiler|that he would never have won if the idealistic people who still believed in the founding principles of the Alliance had been allowed to lead}}. What is interesting here is that it is stated that the empire was decadent because it was ruled by aristocrats who believed to be the embodiment of value and greatness, and became better {{spoiler|once Reinhard, who was a lot more cynical even about himself, but also way more ''competent'' took over}}, while the Alliance which still had some efficient politicians and intellectuals among its leaders (Truenicht was a full fledged [[Smug Snake]], but was way smarter that the Empire's nobility) {{spoiler|but their lack of idealism was what caused the Alliance downfall}}. In other words, the [[Sliding Scale of Idealism Versus Cynicism]] is actually the most important plot point of the whole series, as it resumes the ideological differences between Yang (for whom idealism comes first, even if it means serving worthless elected officials) and Reinhard (who values efficiency above all else even at the risk of crossing the [[Moral Event Horizon]]): '''[[Fridge Brilliance|Brilliant]]'''

** Some defeated Imperial nobles attempt this. Reinhard von Lohengramm does not approve.

** As the Alliance crumbles, a handful of exiled republican governments emerge, the most lasting one founded by Yang {{spoiler|and becoming the basis for the Alliance remnant based on Heinessen in the ending}}.

* [[Grey and Gray Morality]]: Neither The Empire or the FPA are inherently better or worse than the other as both sides have vaild points and often suffer from the same problems.

** [[White and Gray Morality]]: While the war between the two nations is full on gray, the conflict between Yang's group and Reinhard's group can be seen as this.

* [[Guile Hero]]: Yang Wen-li is a textbook example: Smarter than any Chessmaster or [[Magnificent Bastard]] in the series, managed to control a personnal [[Badass Army]] of one million soldiers, {{spoiler|overthrew a junta with insulting ease, fought Reinhard to a standstill while being hopelessly outmanned and outgunned, raised his foster child to become able to keep working for his cause after his death}}, and yet, still obviously a good guy

* [[Hair Colors]]: Most characters have plausible hair, except for greenhaired Attenborough and grey-haired Müller, who is stated to be the youngest of Reinhard's admirals.

* [[History Repeats]]: "In every time, in every place, the deeds of men remain the same..."

* [[Hollywood Tactics]]: Save for the likes of Merkatz, most of the nobles in the Lippstadt Rebellion behave like this. But as they couldn't command themselves out of a paper bag, they get brutally crushed by ''actual'' professionals.

** Reuenthal also follows this principle when he {{spoiler|decides to rebel against Reinhard, even though he knows perfectly well that he's been set up}}.

** Alexander Bucock and many of the older Alliance officers ultimately lead their forces to one final act of defiance against Reinhard {{spoiler|knowing fully well that they'll all die}}. All this in the name of democracy.

** Some of the old guard admirals in the Empire take "better die in glory than live in shame" to hopeless extremes, dragging whole fleets down with them. Ironically, Yang ''hates'' the notion as he sees it as one of the reasons why such conflicts could never end.

* [[Improbable Age]]: Reinhard and Siegfried not only made it to the admiralty at age twenty, they also had their first commands at fifteen or so and were apparently able to make the decision to enter the military academy at age ''ten'' without having to get approval from their parents. Having teenagers as junior officers is consistent with several historical aristocratic societies, but the rest makes little sense. There is also the Alliance practice of letting 15-year olds like Julian and later Katerose pilot starfighters and participate in combat. Even the Imperial admirals seem rather young to hold such high rank: Mittermeyer is 32 or 33 at the end of the series, Oberstein 38, and none of the others seem to be older than them.

** Note, though, that in the story Reinhard and Kircheis' military career is treated as extraordinary, and the FPA tends to be strapped for soldiers (in fact, it's an in-story problem that most of their youth die at the battlefield).

* [[Intergenerational Friendship]]: Yang and Bucock, Schneider and Merkatz, Julian and just about everyone else after he gets a little older (but always with Yang).

* [[Irony]]: The story is teeming with all kinds of it.

* [[Minovsky Physics]]: This series goes one better with Zephyr Particles, which are invisible, directional, and ''extremely flammable even in vacuum''.

* [[Mismatched Eyes]]: Oskar von Reuenthal, much to his chagrin.

** Civilian life in the FPA seems to be rather like this. Aside from wall- or deskmounted picturephones and personal vehicles with optional autopilot, their material culture seems to be very similar to what you would find in first-world countries during the 1980s, down to the hairstyles and fashions. The main series takes place in the 3590s.

** Humanity in general is implied to have reached a socio-cultural plateau of sorts at some point, freezing certain aspects of culture even as technology continues to advance.

** As of 2016, the series ''is'' at last getting a formal English release via Sentai Filmworks.

* [[Norio Wakamoto]]: Oskar von Reuenthal, one of his earlier roles.

** While Fraulein Mariendorf prefers pursuing more peaceful and gentle means to dealing with situations compared to Oberstein, both of them share a habit of coldly manipulating others and plotting Machiavellian schemes to meet their ends. Something that Reinhard himself brings up with her.

** Yang Wen-Li is at times compared to Rudolf von Goldenbaum, especially given his rise to fame and popularity. Yang himself is all too aware of said comparisons, the people around him wondering whether they really hold any weight.

** Grimmelshausen in the side stories. On the surface he is a frail old man suffering from dementia who is indecisive and over-catious when commanding his fleet. In his more lucid moments, however, he reveals that he is fully aware of his own lack of talent and that because others consider him a harmless fool they act indiscreetly around him, enabling him to gather plenty of incriminating evidence of the nefarious deeds of the High Nobility. {{spoiler|Grimmelshausen entrusts Kesler to deliver said evidence to Reinhard in order to help him bring down the nobles. Though Reinhard appreciates the intent, he refuses to make use of it, preferring to bring them down in a more honest fashion.}}

** Kaiser Friedrich IV. On the one hand, he's a former hedonist who's long since deferred power to his ministers, preferring to indulge in hobbies like gardening instead. On the other hand, up until his death he's painfully aware of the fact that the Goldenbaum Dynasty's days were numbered and that change was needed to ensure the Empire's survival. {{spoiler|He's also aware of Reinhard's ambitions and rise to fame ''from the very beginning'', but nonetheless saw in him the hope for the Empire's future.}}

** Schönkopf, who usually doesn't hesitate in killing Imperials, at one point spares a young-looking soldier after asking the youth whether he has a girlfriend, then hearing a yes. {{spoiler|Later on, he initially tries to secretly keep his illegitimate daughter, Katerose von Kreutzer, out of harm's way upon learning that she's in Yang's fleet.}}

* [[Planet of Hats]]: Fezzan, where everyone is a scheming, moneygrubbing merchant.

** Fezzan in general (especially under Adrian Rubinsky) takes advantage of the conflict between the Empire and Alliance, even selling arms and intel to both sides. Filling its merchants' coffers with bountiful profits in the process. {{spoiler|At least until Reinhard has enough of Fezzan's shenanigans and assumes direct control over the planet. Making it the new Imperial capitol world in the process.}}

** The {{spoiler|Terraists}} have been doing this for centuries in the hopes of wiping out both great powers {{spoiler|and once again making Earth humanity's heart. They ultimately fail.}}

* [[The Promise]]: "Please win the universe, Lord Reinhard!"

* [[Proud Merchant Race]]: Fezzanis are portrayed as such.

* [[The Quisling]]: Seen amongst the less honorable on both sides when the opposing side invades.

* [[Ragtag Bunch of Misfits]]: The 13th Fleet, which was hastily scrambled together from new recruits and survivors from the Battle of Astate, along with a helping of Imperial expatriates that serve as special task forces, an enemy defector, a demoted Chief of Staff, and a turncloak.

** The Alliance, of all people, resort to it to resupply after Reinhard von Lohengramm destroys their supply ships during their "liberation" of the frontier territories.

** Reinhard makes it a point to make this unquestionably ''verboten.'' Mittermeyer in particular even goes so far as to have one of his own men executed for partaking in said rape, pillage and burn.

* [[Rapid Aging]]: Downplayed, but when Alexander Bucock returns from retirement after a few months, he's noticeably weaker and more frail to the point of relying on a cane to get around. It's implied that decades' worth of stress and fatigue had finally caught up with him.

* [[Reasonable Authority Figure]]: Alexander Bucock, Sidney Sitolet

* [[Reassigned to Antarctica]]: In the 2015 manga, a freshly graduated Reinhard and Kircheis are sent to a remote ice world contested with the Alliance at the Iselohn corridor. It's strongly implied that this was at the behest of some corrupt nobles in league with Susanna von Benemünde, who even tried to have the two assassinated. Suffice to say, they didn't stay on that world for long.

* [[Reality Ensues]]: Throughout the series, many of the characters are forced to confront the consequences of their actions as well as how the realities on the ground don't always match their expectations. Sometimes with tragic results.

* [[So What Do We Do Now?]]: After {{spoiler|the Empire defeats the Alliance,}} many of the [[Proud Warrior Race Guy|military characters]] on the winning side ([[Badass Army|talented men]] [[Glory Days|who have made their living through war]]) suddenly find themselves with very little to do. [[Tragedy|Tragedy ensues.]]

* [[The Sound of Martial Music]]: In addition to the heavy Prussian influence, the Empire also incorporates elements of the Habsburg Austrian monarchy. Tellingly, there's a more pronounced 19th Century Austrian flavor to the Empire once Reinhard takes more direct control.

* [[Space Elevator]]: Fezzan has one of these.

* [[Space Is an Ocean]]

* [[The Stoic]]: Oberstein, Merkatz and Eisenach.

* [[The Stool Pigeon]]: An Imperial soldier who broke protocol through an inappropriate comment was snitched on by another. Reinhard von Lohengramm asked Fräulein Mariendorf to use her judgment on how to handle the situation. Hildegard did punish the soldier that broke protocol, but she punished the snitch even worse by demoting him. Lohengramm was pleased, saying that it was wise of her to prove the point that no soldier can expect reward from him for duplicity and betraying his comrades. Classy attitude from both of them.

* [[The Strategist]]: Yang, celebrated as Hero of El Facile, finds himself in this role as the story progresses.

* [[Suicide Mission]]: The first time Yang Wen-Li is sent to capture Iselhorn, it was in fact a suicide mission given by superiors who wanted to get rid of him.

** Further lampshaded in the 2015 manga. It's mentioned that the Imperial capital world of Odin not only has stringent building restrictions but also intentionally keeps much of its high-tech facilities like spaceports hidden away to maintain the old world facade.

* [[This Loser Is You]]: Job Trünicht serves as this to the Alliance and to republican democracy in general. Trünicht isn't even afraid to admit that him getting into positions of power at all despite his antics is a testament to the people's ineptitude.

* [[Took a Level In Jerkass]]: Frederica Greenhill eventually becomes more bitter and vengeful, though she never loses her caring and amiable side. {{spoiler|Given that this is due to Yang's death, her anger is more than justified.}}.

* [[Tomboy and Girly Girl]]: Hildegard (short hair, wears pants, takes an active role in politics) compared to Annerose (long hair, frilly dresses, makes handicrafts). Hildegard becomes girlier {{spoiler|during her pregnancy}} by wearing dresses and growing her hair longer. Frederica Greenhill and Hortense Cazerne probably also qualify.

* [[The War of Earthly Aggression]]: In the backstory, United Earth found itself in this situation as it waged a brutal and ultimately losing war against the colonial worlds. The end result was a defeat so crushing that several centuries later, the planet is [[Insignificant Little Blue Planet|still little more than a backwater]] at the fringes of the Empire. Albeit a position that the Terraists exploit to their advantage.

* [[War Is Hell]]: This series does not shy away from showing the senselessness of war and the misery it causes.

* [[Wave Motion Gun]]: Both Iserlohn and Geiersburg Fortresses have them. {{spoiler|As does Fahrenheit's flagship, the Ahsgrimm, though you only see it fired once.}}

** Also, in a definite [[Crowning Moment of Awesome|CMOA]], Yang Wen-li actually IMPROVISES one by having all the ships in his fleet fire at the exact same point in space, causing the beams to fuse into a bigass beam that cuts through the enemy fleet like a knife. '''''WOW.'''''

[[Category:The Epic]]

[[Category:Anime]]