- Stick
- Ray
- Mint
- Houquet
- Jim
- Yellow
- Aisha
We meet Stick Bernard in the first episode, Preclude to the Attack. This is not surprising as Mospeada is Stick's story. Here, we found out why Stick came to Earth, why he was making the journey to Reflex Point and why he hated the Inbit.
In Jonathan's Elegy (episode 8), it was revealed Jonathan was Stick's inspiration. Other than that, we don't know anything else about Stick's background.
Stick was a very serious person from the start and adhered to strict military discipline at all times, although he didn't impose it on others. He scolded himself for being too far away from his Legioss when the Inbit surprise-attacked in Breaking Up Ballad (episode 15). He also wore the ride armour all the time, even when Ray said it was more fun without it in Old Soldiers' Polka (episode 18). Stick retorted that he wasn't riding for fun.
Stick did learn to lighten up in the series. This was shown most clearly in Ice City Forte (episode 19). Stick wanted the team to stock up supplies, but after Ray told him off, he allowed the team to have a break and went on to entertain Aisha himself.
Ray was right that the "Martians" had no interest in the buried city. Stick didn't think much of it. Yellow and Jim were repairing the Legioss. Jim was usually busy with repairs during the team's rest time, but Yellow usually preferred lighter activities (showering or keeping watch).
Stick had very a narrow interpretation of a soldier's duty. He thought it was necessary for a soldier to fight as long as they could do so. In Old Soldiers' Polka (episode 18), he was angry when the ex-soldiers did not want to fight anymore. In Brunet's Partita (episode 23), he was angry that Shinobu did not join in the battle with her comrades. Stick treated Yellow and Jim (fellow soldiers) much better. He never scolded Yellow. Even in Breaking Up Ballad (episode 15), when Jim snapped, Stick merely gave him the option to leave the team.
Ray first appeared in the first episode. He was commonly described as a forager, a person who lived off the land, but his background was never shown.
When Ray took the Mospeada for a joyride in episode one and was chased by the Inbits, he told them to go away because he wasn't a soldier. It was common knowledge that Inbits only went after soldiers and HBT. It was strange that he had not seen a Mospeada before — they should already be around in the first invasion three years ago.
It was obvious that Ray knew the law of the land and could survive in the wild easily. Some evidence:
- Knew heat would loosen leeches (episode 4)
- Could fashion a fishing rod out of a branch (episode 4)
- Knew what kind of wood burnt best (episode 6)
- Fashioned skis out of branches (episode 12)
- Knew cactus contained water (episode 13)
- Could surf (episode 16)
- Could construct two elaborate traps in a short time to trap the Inbit (episode 17)
Some evidence of Ray's intelligence/cunningness:
- Knew the town was unkept due to the residents themselves (episode 3)
- Realized how Inbits were tracking them (episode 4)
- Pretended not to hear Houquet and kissed her on the lips (episode 6)
- Pretended to be captured to escape being really captured (episode 7)
- Realized something didn't add up in Wolf's town (episode 8)
- Realized twice that the Inbits were experimenting with evolution (episode 9 and 13)
- Knew how to rig explosives to blow up the entrance (episode 15)
- Was suspicious why the Inbits went off when they saw Rainy boy (episode 21)
Ray had no personal hatred of the Inbits. I believe he went along with Stick to see Reflex Point and the world.
Mint was always looking for someone to get married to. From the first time we saw her in March of a Girl with a Broken Heart (episode 2) to Darkness' Finale (episode 24), that was her goal throughout the show.
Was Mint interested in the guys in the team? She only expressed interest in Ray (when desperate) and Jim. She never showed any interest in Stick and Yellow.
Mint managed to get married in Mint's Wedding March (episode 14) and left the team for an episode. The team seemed to break down without her. They started to argue and even fight. Mint came back at the end of the next episode. It wasn't specified how she caught up with the team — it was not like there was only one possible route.
Mint's background was told briefly in Birthday Song In The Night Sky (episode 20).
Like Aisha, Mint did not have any combat or special skills that would help the team. However, she knew how to ski (episode 12).
Mint was possessed by the Refles in Lost World Fugue (episode 9) to explain what the Inbits were up to. This was out of character for the show; it was done for the benefit of the viewers. There was absolutely no reason why Refles had to explain her actions to potential test subjects.
In Darkness' Finale (episode 24), it was quite unlikely for Mint to have caught up with Jim so easily. Jim had quite a headstart.
Houquet first appeared in March of a Girl with a Broken Heart (episode 2) to save Stick, Ray and Mint from an Inbit ambush. She left without saying a word once the Inbits were killed. She was seen observing Stick and Ray at the end of the episode, though. Did this mean she was interested in them — as fighting companians?
Although not mentioned, Houquet seemed to have learnt how to operate her Mospeada by herself. This was supported in Requiem of the Battlefield (episode 10) when she told Stick that she was good with machines. At that time, she didn't know how to operate the Legioss or TLead yet. She drove Jim's jeep while Jim flew the TLead back to their base.
There were two episodes on Houquet: Pretend Tough Girl Blues (episode 6) and Arpeggio of a Killer (episode 21).
In Pretend Tough Girl Blues, we learnt of Houquet's younger days as a gang member and how she was beaten up by a rival gang. It was commonly believed that she was raped, but it was not really supported in the show. Houquet did not show hatred for what the Snakes did to her. She was angry that Romy — her ex-boyfriend — did not go to rescue her. Regardless, it was a tramatic experience for her. It prompted her to leave her town, learn to strengthen herself and begin a crusade to protect the weak.
Did Houquet still have feelings for Romy? It was very likely, in episode 6 at least. However, she always put her friends before her. She got Ray to pretend as her boyfriend so that Romy and her sister could be together. In Arpeggio of a Killer (episode 21), she was willing to sacrifice herself in place of her friends.
Perhaps because of her past, Houquet disliked bullying. She stepped in after the local bullies started to bullying Yellow in Midday Duel Concert (episode 3).
Houquet acted tough in front of others, but she showed a more sensitive and caring side with the girls and the weak. This was commented by Mint when the three girls took a bath together in Birthday Song In The Night Sky (episode 20). This was evident with Rainy boy in Arpeggio of a Killer (episode 21). Houquet treated his wounds without asking any questions at all. She told him she did not like to probe into other people's business.
Houquet had no personal hatred of the Inbits. She just went along for the companianship.
Jim first appeared in Midday Duel Concert (episode 3). He was chased by his town's gangsters whose remedy to vent their frustrations was to hunt down soldiers, and Jim was one. According to the gang leader, Jim had managed to hide his identity for three years.
Jim portrayed himself as a coward. However, he never exhibited such a trait ever since he met Stick.
Jim introduced himself as a mechanic for the Legioss. Without him, it was doubtful the Legiosses could last such a long journey. Twice, in episode 16 and 19, the team had to take a break while Jim repaired a damaged Legioss.
Jim's preferred mode of transport was his jeep. He drove it in all the episodes, even into Reflex Point! It was damaged during the journey, but not destroyed. It was still in use at the end of the show. The jeep was dismantled and put inside the TLead for transport across the ocean in episode 16. In places where the jeep could not be driven, like in episode 19, it was carried in mid-air by the TLead.
It seemed strange that Jim continued to drive his jeep after episode 10, after everyone got a Legioss or TLead. The speed differential must be huge! It would be more plausible to put the jeep into the TLead's cargo hold (if it fitted) and use it for short distance supply and reconnaissance.
Jim could fly a TLead, as shown in episode 10, but he was shaking and declared that he wasn't good at piloting. Jim wore the ride armour in episode 24, but he was never shown riding the Mospeada.
Jim's background was shown in Ragtime for a Brave Dead Man (episode 7). He was trying to deliver a book from his best friend, whom he failed to save in a battle with the Inbits due to his cowardness, to an old man whom his friend got the book from. Although Jim did not meet up with the old man, he was able to close this chapter and live with one less regret in life.
It was not known why Jim went into battle when he was a mechanic.
Jim broke down in Breaking Up Ballad (episode 15) when the team was trapped underground. Here, Jim demonstrated his brute strength and explained why he joined the military. Although he planned to leave the team, he decided to continue the journey to Reflex Point at the end of the episode to fulfill his duty as a soldier.
Yellow first appeared in Midday Duel Concert (episode 3). "She" followed Stick, Ray, Houquet and Jim to rescue Jim's captured friend. After witnessing the team's battle with the Inbits, "She" decided to reveal herself as a man and asked Stick to allow him to join them in their journey to Reflex Point.
How many people knew Yellow was a cross-dresser? It appeared quite a number of people knew. His manager in Live-in Robbery Operation (episode 5) knew. Simone in NY Bebop (episode 22) also knew, although the two never met. How did Simone know Yellow when he was in North America? The most likely explanation was that some people crossed the two continents, although it wasn't easy even for Stick's team.
Yellow was very patient. He waited a long time for Stick and the rest of the team in Feeling Like a Survival Song (episode 4) before deciding to look for them. He also loved to keep himself clean. He took showers at stopovers in episode 6, 14 and 16. He also accepted reality more readily, so he wasn't angry when faced with old soldiers who had given up fighting in episode 18.
Yellow had his background shown in Lullaby of Distant Hope (episode 11). It was revealed that he was shot down in his Legioss in the first invasion. He was dressed as a woman by Carla, the woman who rescued him, to avoid being captured by the Inbits. It was only then that we knew Yellow was a soldier — it was never mentioned before. One clue was that in episode 10, he was operating a Legioss with ease.
Did Yellow like Carla? I suspect yes. However, he did not want her to get involved with the war. Even when he met up with her, he just wanted her to go another town and not follow him into battle. When Dogarbo demonstrated his love for Carla, Yellow seemed to give up on Carla.
Unlike Stick, Yellow did not hate the Inbits at a personal level. In fact, even after he suspected Aisha to be an Inbit, he continued to treat her normally. He also did not mind Sorji was an Inbit.
I believe Yellow joined Stick to go to Reflex Point to fulfill his duty as a soldier.
Aisha is discussed in a separate page.