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Set in modern-day Italy, Gunslinger Girl follows the exploits of the Social Welfare Agency (often referred to as simply "the Agency"), ostensibly a charitable institution sponsored by the Italian government. While the Agency professes to aid the rehabilitation of the physically injured, it is actually a military organization specializing in counter-intelligence and counter-terrorism. It comprises two independent branches, Public Safety (公安部 ,kōan-bu?) and Special Ops (作戦部 ,sakusen-bu?), with Public Safety being its surveillance and intelligence-gathering arm and Special Ops its anti-terrorist division.[1] Special Ops is itself divided into Sections 1 and 2,[2] the latter of which employs young girls fitted with cybernetic implants as agents. The implants, which consist of synthesized muscles and carbon fiber frames, result in heightened strength and reflexes as well as high resilience to damage and pain. Each girl is paired with a male trainer, or "handler", and together they are referred to as a fratello (Italian for "brother"). The handler is responsible for the training, welfare and field performance of his charge, and is free to use whatever methods he considers suitable. While these methods vary according to the handler, a common part of each girl's regimen is brainwashing called "conditioning", which produces a deadly assassin with unquestioning loyalty to her handler.

♥♥ALL ABOUT THE CHARACTERS♥♥

The core characters of Gunslinger Girl are the fratelli. To date, all of the fratelli shown are male handlers (usually in their 30's or 40's) with female cyborgs (usually in their early to mid-teens). The relationship between a handler and a cyborg can be a complex one and each fratello exhibits a unique dynamic. Most of the handlers have police or military backgrounds and were recruited directly into Section 2. Most handlers also chose their own cyborgs, though there is evidence that some had specific cyborgs assigned to them. Supporting the fratelli is the rest of Special Operations, Section 2. This includes the medical staff who both created the cyborgs and maintain them, other human operatives, and administrative and support staff. Arrayed against the fratelli are the members of the Five Republics Faction—also known as the Padania Republic Faction or PRF. These people and their backers seek an independent northern Italy through acts of terrorism and bribery and operate throughout Italy, though they are strongest in the northern regions.

♥♥ALL ABOUT MANGA♥♥

Gunslinger Girl, written and illustrated by Yu Aida, first premiered in Japan in the November 2002 issue of the monthly Dengeki Daioh magazine. As of April 2008, 51 chapters have been published in the magazine. The chapters are also being published in collected volumes by MediaWorks, with the first volume released November 27, 2002. Nine volumes have been published in Japan so far.

When ADV Manga was formed in 2003, the Gunslinger Girl manga series was one of the first titles the new branch of ADV Films licensed for an English language release in North America. The first volume was released on November 18, 2003, with the next two volumes not released until 2005. At the 2005 Anime Next convention, the ADV representative David L. Williams said the slow schedule was due to ADV Manga feeling the market was too saturated with new manga titles at the time and that they had rushed into the manga market. However, after the third volume was released that year, the series went on a two year hiatus. The series was restarted in July 2007 with the publication of the fourth volume, and six volumes have been released as of April 2008.

♥♥ALL ABOUT ANIME♥♥

Gunslinger Girl was adapted into a thirteen-episode anime series which premiered in Japan on Fuji Television from October 8, 2003 to February 19, 2004. The series, which was directed by Morio Asaka, was produced by Madhouse, Bandai Visual, Marvelous Entertainment and Fuji Television with music by Toshihiko Sahashi and based on the first two volumes of the manga. The series also aired in Japan on the satellite television network Animax, who also later aired the series in its networks worldwide, including its English language networks in Southeast Asia and South Asia (where the series received its English language television premiere). Gunslinger Girl was later aired in the United States on the Independent Film Channel. In late 2004, FUNimation licensed the rights to release the first season of Gunslinger Girl across North America via a three volume DVD series, releasing the last volume on September 6, 2005. On September 19, 2006, Funimation released the complete Gunslinger Girl series in a three-DVD box set, with another version released on December 11, 2007. FUNimation's release of the first season is also available for download on iTunes, PlayStation Store, and Xbox Live Marketplace.

A second season of the series, entitled Gunslinger Girl -Il Teatrino-, was officially announced in the October issue of Dengeki Daioh. It premiered on Tokyo MX TV on January 7, 2008 and ran for thirteen additional episodes until its conclusion on March 31, 2008. This second season was animated by Artland and featured a new staff, with Gunslinger Girl creator Yu Aida being fully involved as the project's chief writer and supervisor. FUNimation has also licensed the second season and is currently streaming subtitled episodes on their website as well as on Veoh, promising a Region 1 retail release in 2009. Two additional episodes were released on DVD in Japan on October 24, 2008. In 2008, Madman Entertainment has acquired the license, and will release as a complete set in 2009.