Die Rückkehr des Adlers is the fourth episode of the Black Lagoon anime. It originally aired in Japan on April 29, 2006.
Summary[]
The Lagoon Company is sent on a mission to retrieve a valuable painting from the wreckage of a sunken World War II-era U-boat near Jakarta, but they are not alone in the area.
Plot[]
At sunset, Black Lagoon returns to Roanapur. In the bridge, Dutch comments on the sea's tranquility, with Rock remarking that he did a little scuba diving long ago at Ishigaki Island. Though Dutch jokes that it sounds privileged, Rock states that drinking beer while feeling the sea breeze feels far more privileging for himself. In a flashback 50 years ago, at the naval base at Kiel in 1945, the German U-boat U-1324 begins to depart from Nazi Germany. On deck, the Japanese passenger Matsudo notes the gray skies, and the Kriegsmarine captain Wentzel H. Ahbe replies that the cover has thinned the Allies' patrol. He elaborates that they will be near Spain and later near Africa's coast once they pass the Shetlands and exit the North Sea. Whereas Matsudo and Ahbe get along, the Schutzstaffel officer Spielberger silently keeps to himself. Back in the present, the exhausted Rock walks through town carrying some boxes. Seeing Mr. Lun with some scuba diving equipment, he offers to buy it but pulls out due to Lun's high price.
Near the Cape Verde Islands in 1945, the crew members of U-1324 relax on deck and capture some sea turtles to make soup. Later, in the Indian Ocean, the German sailors observe an Allied freighter heading to Ceylon from South Africa. Speaking to Ahbe, Spielberger rhetorically asks him if he is ignoring his orders by attacking the freighter. Ahbe orders Fritz to load the torpedoes, and he reminds Spielberger that the ship belongs to Britain, a sworn enemy of Nazi Germany, and is carrying fuel for an Allied invasion. Ahbe in turn asks the SS officer if he wants to not avenge the Nazis who have died, but Spielberger responds that sinking the ship will have no effect on their home country. Apologizing, Ahbe then orders his men to prepare for their attack. In the present, at the Lagoon Company office, Rock calculates the fuel efficiency of the torpedo boat when Dutch returns with some scuba equipment, surprising him. Smiling, Dutch admits that he saw Rock eyeing the equipment earlier, advising him to tell him when he wants something. In the past, on March 25, 1945 near the Nicobar Islands, Indonesia, U-1324 travels beneath the ocean surface as a U.S. battleship has just passed them. Nonetheless, more ships appear in the area, making the German sailors feel uneasy. Ahbe orders his men to power the engines at full speed and fire a torpedo.
Immediately, an enemy ship goes away, prompting Ahbe to request for the engines to run silently. To their surprise, another U.S. battleship navigates right above them and drops depth charges, hitting the U-boat. At the bottom of the ocean, the engine room begins to flood rapidly, so the sailors cut off the room from the rest of the vessel. To Ahbe's shock, Fritz informs him that the engines and electric generator are damaged beyond repair, adding that Matsudo has committed suicide as a result and thus cannot travel to Batavia. Addressing all of his men, Ahbe commends them for their loyalty through the war, telling them that they are stuck at 57 meters below the ocean surface. Claiming that they will run out of oxygen in two hours, he relieves them of their duties and permits them to choose how they get to spend their final moments. Going to the barracks, Ahbe relays to Spielberger their situation, causing the latter to chastise him. Spielberger retorts that their mission is far more important than Ahbe realizes, declaring that the painting he holds is important to deliver because they need it for the day when Nazi Germany rises. Smoking a pipe, Ahbe disparages him for accepting the idea that they will lose the war. He asks Spielberger about his family and says that he is proud knowing that he fought for his country.
Although he has no regrets, Ahbe expresses his disgust that he has to share an underwater coffin with Spielberger since the latter is not even thinking of his family in his dying moments. Hearing Ahbe joke that he is glad that they are sunken if it means his children will never have to see the Nazi flag, Spielberger pulls out his pistol and warns him to retract his words. Enraged, the SS officer shoots him dead. Back in the modern day, much to Revy's annoyance, Rock complains about the Lagoon Company's current mission, claiming that Dutch tricked him. Soon, the pirates gather in the hold of Black Lagoon, and Dutch asks Benny to brief everyone on the salvage mission. Using his computer, Benny shows everyone the painting, The Twelve Knights Led by Brunhilda, from the sunken World War II-era U-1324 that left Germany at the eve of Nazi Germany's defeat. Mentioning that the U-boat was sunk by the United States Navy near Batavia (now Jakarta), Benny recalls that Ahbe's mission was to deliver Lt. Col. Matsudo of the Imperial Japanese Navy to Batavia, whereas the SS officer Spielberger was supposed to keep the painting with him.
Speaking up, Dutch tells everyone that their client is an antiques collector from Spain who has a penchant for collecting Nazi artwork. Benny then points out that the U-boat wreckage was discovered last year by a French telecommunications company while laying down undersea cables, gaining their client's attention. Because the territory containing the wreckage is in dispute between several countries, the Lagoon Company has the opportunity to retrieve the painting for $50,000 plus expenses. Pulling out a map of the U-boat structure, Benny instructs Rock and Revy to enter the submarine via its torpedo tubes and create a hole to exit. Above the salvage site, Rock puts on his scuba outfit when Revy asks him if he is done checking the equipment, threatening to leave him in the ocean if he drowns due to improper inspections. Preparing the scuba tanks, Dutch informs Revy that he will only be able to track her with a beacon after she dives. When Dutch gives her an APS underwater assault rifle from Balalaika, Revy becomes excited, and she and Rock begin descending.
Above the ocean's surface meanwhile, Benny jokes that Revy seemed to accept the job with the gun. Soon, the two divers' beacons activate, and Benny compliments Revy's quick speed. Dutch notes that Revy is beneficial to their company not only because of her firearm proficiency but her diving skills too. As he relaxes on deck, Benny spots an unfamiliar ship approaching in the distance, so he alerts Dutch. Benny explains that the ship cannot be from the telecommunications company since they will not be in the area until three days. Ordering Benny to put up a Thai Navy flag, Dutch hears the ship radio to them, so he claims that Black Lagoon is actually PT-377 of the Thai Navy. The unfamiliar sailors ask the pirates where their mother ship is, causing Dutch to answer that it is classified information. He requests once more for their ship info, but they cut communications. Suspicious of the ship's behavior, Dutch heads back to the control room and tells Benny that they can pick up Rock and Revy anytime by tracking their beacons.
Inside the large ship, Blitz Stanford tells Rachmann that there are no naval vessels in the area, and therefore the PT boat are thieves. Proclaiming that they have the right to inherit the contents of the gravesite, Rachmann permits a powerful attack on the alleged bandits. Using binoculars, Benny sees the group of neo-Nazis prepare some heavy equipment. Realizing that the enemy is loading TOW missiles, Benny yells to Dutch, who immediately speeds the PT boat away. Benny hangs on for dear life as they escape the missiles, and the neo-Nazis mock the pirates for thinking they can steal the painting. At the bottom of the sea, Revy and Rock enter the U-boat's torpedo tubes, with Rock narrating to himself that they are opening an underwater grave.
Characters and cast[]
- Rokurō "Rock" Okajima — Daisuke Namikawa (Japanese), Brad Swaile (English)
- Revy — Megumi Toyoguchi (Japanese), Maryke Hendrikse (English)
- Dutch — Tsutomu Isobe (Japanese), Dean Redman (English)
- Benny — Hiroaki Hirata (Japanese), Brian Drummond (English)
- Wentzel H. Ahbe — Shigeru Ushiyama (Japanese), Brian Drummond (English)
- Spielberger — Takaya Kuroda (Japanese), Michael Dobson (English)
- Fritz — Tōru Nara (Japanese), Alistair Abell (English)
- Lieutenant Colonel Matsudo — Hitoshi Bifu (Japanese), Hiro Kanagawa (English)
- Rachmann — Ryūji Nakagi (Japanese), Richard Newman (English)
- Blitz Stanford — Yōichi Nishijima (Japanese), Mark Gibbon (English)
- Mr. Lun — Non-speaking role
Songs used[]
- Opening Theme — Red Fraction (by Mell)
- Lagoon Company returns to Roanapur — A Cold Wind in My Mind
- Rock carrying boxes, looks at scuba equipment — It's an Easy Afternoon
- 1945, Nazi U-boat crew relaxing — Unknown
- Dutch gives Rock scuba equipment — After the Rain
- Rachmann is informed of the pirates' presence, neo-Nazis watch the PT boat speed away — Hakujin Shakai Shugi Danketsu Tou Uta
- Ending Theme — Don't Look Behind (ending version)
Differences from the manga[]
- The U-boat in the manga was originally called the U-234, whereas in the anime the U-boat's name is U-1324.
- In the manga, the arc immediately begins with the U-234 being attacked. In the anime, the story switches back and forth between 50 years ago and modern day of the events regarding the U-boat's journey and the Lagoon Company's activities respectively.
- Lieutenant Colonel Matsudo is a character exclusive to the anime, but there was an Imperial Japanese Naval officer on board the U-234 in the manga.
- All the 1945 scenes preceding the depth charge attack of the U-1324, including the boat departure, the crew and passengers lounging on the boat near the Cape Verde Islands, and the conversation between Ahbe and Spielberger on deck about the British freighter in the Indian Ocean, are exclusive to the anime.
- In the manga, Ahbe and his men frantically try to plan repairs and ditch the torpedoes right after the depth charges and soon crash onto the ocean floor. In the anime, this is omitted, and the scene is shortened to the U-1324 getting hit and immediately crashing onto the ocean floor.
- The scenes involving the Lagoon Company which precede their meeting in the boat's hold, including the Black Lagoon docking at sunset, Rock walking around town, and Dutch bringing him the scuba equipment, are only in the anime.
Trivia[]
- The U-1324 (originally the U-234 in the manga) was based on the real WWII German submarine U-234 with different events. Whereas the real U-234 left on March 25, 1945 from Kiel and surrendered in May 1945 to Allied Forces, in the manga/anime, that date was the day when the ship got attacked in the ocean. The character Lieutenant Colonel Matsudo was based on the real passenger Lieutenant Colonel Genzō Shōji, who also studied aeronautics in Nazi Germany. There were no SS officers aboard the U-234 in real life.
- In the English version of this episode, Matsudo's name is changed to Matsuto.