Komaki Sayoko (駒木 咲代子) is a character first appearing in both in the Muv-Luv Alternative manga, and subsequently in The Day After. So far, she is portrayed as a strict and disciplined IJ/MDF officer in both series that she appears in.
Alternative[]
An original character introduced in the Muv-Luv Alternative manga, Komaki Sayoko is a Lieutenant of the 1st Tactical Armor Regiment, participating in the 12/5 Incident as Captain Sagiri Naoya's adjutant. Highly loyal to Sagiri, she believes in his ideals, and to that end works to support his goals.
Fiercely loyal towards Sagiri, the two also have a long work relationship dating back to the Yokohama Hive Battle in 1999, where she served as his subordinate. During the 12/5 Incident, she led a force of TSFs against the UN's Special Task Force A-01. Sayoko herself engaged Isumi Michiru in combat, and was subsequently defeated, although her efforts allowed Sagiri to set up his blockade around the loyalist forces via tactical insertion. She survived the incident, and in the anime it's seen that she was arrested and likely charged along with other surviving members of Sagiri's rebel forces.
Following her arrest, she was assigned to the 999th Penal Battalion for the Operation 21st, the upcoming mission to retake Sadogashima, where she'd witnessed its invasion years before. As a part of this battalion she was placed in high traffic areas with a very low survival rate. Late in the operation, it was suggested that these penal battalions be sent to A-02 where all BETA on the island were rushing to attempt to retrieve A-01's Captain Isumi. This was essentially a suicide mission had the order gone through, but that suggestion was denied by Isumi herself.
By the time she was given the order to retreat, her TSF was battered and missing limbs, and she was rescued by Tsukuyomi Mana and the Royal Guards' 16th Guard Battalion. She was the only surviving member of the 999th Penal Battalion, much like she'd been one of the few surviving pilots of the invasion of Sadogashima. Following the retreat, she was hospitalized for recovery and imprisoned once again. Whether or not she was assigned to another penal battalion to fight in Operation Ouka is unknown, but it is highly likely.
Alternative Anime - The Beta Invasion of Sadogashima[]
Komaki appears as the point of view character for the first episode of the Muv-Luv Alternative anime adaptation. Soon after the fall of Kyoto she assumes her post on the Sadogashima base in September 1998 and gets to know her new wingman Kusano Tetsuya who shows her around the base. During the BETA invasion of Sadogashima that follows soon after, Kusano sacrifices himself to rescue her from a blow by one of the fort class BETA. Ordered to help the remaining civilians escape, she finds a single survivor in a bunker that was overrun by the BETA and helps her escape the island as it succumbs to the BETA invasion.
The Day After[]
Komaki returns in The Day After as a supporting character, with the addition of a rank jump, and greater interaction with the rest of the cast. Like in Alternative, she shares a past history with Sagiri Naoya.
Episode 02[]
Komaki Sayoko replaces Jinguuji Marimo as the temporary field commander of the 1st Tactical Armor Regiment stationed in Seattle, following Marimo's unauthorized acquisition of an S-11 for combat use during the Defense of Seattle. She serves as the official commanding officer of the 1st Tactical Armor Regiment's 1st Battalion, with the callsign of Pheasant Leader/Pheasant-1. As the field commander of the 1st Tactical Armor Regiment, she was present at both the Seattle Food Plant Hijack, and at the 8th Border War.
Compared to Marimo, Sayoko, now a Captain, is more demanding of Wardog Squadron's performance levels, and is stricter with their commanding officer, Lieutenant Tatsunami Hibiki. Her cold style of commanding is efficient, but has alienated her from her fellow pilots in the 1st Tactical Armor Regiment.
Etymology[]
- Komaki means "piece, pony, horse, colt" (駒) (koma) and "tree, wood" (木) (ki).
- Sayoko means "blossom" (咲) (sa), "generation" (代) (yo) and "child" (子) (ko).
Trivia[]
- While several female voices can be heard amongst Sagiri's insurgent forces in Muv-Luv Alternative, none of them were given character portraits or named in any manner until the manga, making Sayoko the first to be given this treatment.
- The Muv-Luv Alternative manga introduced several insurgent side characters (with faces set to specific dialogue) during the coup; Sayoko is the first of them to reappear in a visual novel set in the Muv-Luv metaverse.
