MARL

Real Name: Marl

Identity/Class: Alternate reality (Earth-81126) human technology user, possibly Japanese citizen (see comments)

Occupation: Soldier

Group Membership: Western army, his unit (#1/Waiter/Lieutenant Gimlet, Junkey, #3/Jin, #2/Rum)

Affiliations: Bartender

Enemies: Federation, Gonk-18

Known Relatives: None

Aliases: #4

Base of Operations: Central Europe or Japan (see comments)

First Appearance: Bukiyo Saraba (A Farewell to Arms), Shueisha's Weekly Young Magazine (16th November 1981);
   (U.S. reprint) Farewell to Weapons#1 (April 1982)

Powers/Abilities: Marl was a trained soldier and experienced in the use of his "K-Type protective suit" battle armor. It included an energy weapon, possibly a laser, as well carrying as hand-grenades, and was heavily armored, allowing him to walk away unhurt after stepping on a landmine, but it proved insufficient against the Gonk's arsenal. 

Height: Unrevealed; 5'7" (by guesstimation)
Weight: Unrevealed; 130 lbs. (by estimation)
Eyes: Unrevealed
Hair: Black

  

History:
(Farewell to Weapons#1 (fb) - BTS) - In the year 2020 A.D. an explosion in the far East, cause unknown, triggered World War IV. At first the East's "Red Bear" strategy seemed destined to sweep across Europe, but the West's landing in the Arabian Gulf struck at the East's most vulnerable point, and the direction of the war changed. Leaders on both sides agree to negotiate a ceasefire.

   However, while negotiations stumbled, at the front lines harsh battles ensued, employing ultra-modern weaponry. In Central Europe the West began a large-scale mopping up operation, pursuing the retreating Eastern forces.

   Marl and his compatriots were members of a Western forces unit sent to patrol a city left in ruins by the East's withdrawal.

(Farewell to Weapons#1) - As the unit rode along on their APC (armored personnel carrier) the group made small talk. Marl noted that their eldest member, Jin, had been in the army for a long time, and assumed he must have accumulated a lot of saved back-pay, with another member of the unit, Rum, adding that Jin should also be drawing a pension once he left the service. Jin responded that idea would have been nice had it been true, and admitted he'd already spent most of his money buying 30 acres of vineyard, promising to send Marl some wine if he got a good crop, though Rum cynically added "if we live." The APC's driver, Junkey, reassured them that they'd be fine, since enemy troops had already left the town they were heading to, so there should be no action to worry about. At this Rum joked that they should have packed a picnic, but Marl glanced around at the landscape, reduced to featureless desert, and noted that it wasn't good scenery for hiking.

   Some time later the APC reached the ruins of the town they were to recce, and Junkey launched some surveillance probes that flew up above the devastation. Unit commanding officer Lieutenant Gimlet ordered Marl, Rum and Jin to don their battlearmor and check their systems. Watching them do this, and about to be left behind to monitor the probe feeds and coordinate the team once they moved in, Junkey commented that it made him feel hot just to look at the heavy armor, but Marl reminded him that it had a cooling unit.

   The team headed in and split up at the remains of an intersection, with Junkey reporting that the probes had detected no heat signatures. Just as he said this Marl stepped on a landmine, but thanks to the armor it only knocked him off his feet and gave him a scare. Unfortunately, though the soldiers didn't know it yet, the sound also alerted a Gonk, an automated battle robot left behind by the other side. The team spread out once more, but Marl was close enough to witness Rum get hit by a beam of light that exploded out to engulf him; presumably some sort of EMP, as Marl called out to check if Rum was okay, he reported first with relief that he was unharmed, then with rising terror as he realized his armor's joints were no longer working, trapping him in place. Before Marl could attempt to help him a more focused energy beam struck Rum's helmet, and then he was instantly vaporized in front of Marl's horrified eyes.

   At this point the others spotted the Gonk and exchanged fire, but the soldiers' weapons did no noticeable damage. Spotting Marl peeking over some rocks, the Gonk spun it's "head" in his direction and fired a laser-like beam, but Marl ducked before the beam turned into a fiery explosion above his head. Then the Gonk fired missiles skyward, which arced away to destroy the APC outside the city limits. Enraged, Marl opened fire on the Gonk again. During the resulting heavy firefight Gimlet called command to request support, but was told none could be spared. Jin meanwhile shouted for Marl to cover him while he threw a hand grenade at the robot. Marl complied, but when he popped up to fire the Gonk's return fire hit him directly on his armor's chest plate. The grenade managed to do some damage to the Gonk, but it remained mobile, while Marl discovered that his suit had been damaged as his helmet began filling up with a gunky liquid. Gimlet ordered Marl to run to the left while he requested data on their opponent, and as he attempted to skirt his way round the Gonk while staying behind cover Marl heard HQ report that his K-type protective suit would only protect him for five seconds if struck by the Gonk's particle beam, just as some loose rubble shifted beneath his feet and dumped him prone in direct view of the Gonk. It's "head" spun towards him and he felt his back begin to sear as the Gonk's particle beam struck there. Marl was saved by Jin's intervention, as Marl's fellow soldier made a dash for the robot, leapt on the back of its treads, and opened fire at point blank range. It's "head" shifted targets to blast Jin, and moments later part of the top of the Gonk exploded at the same moment as Jin was vaporized. Struggling to move, Marl could only watch in horror, but Gimlet charged the machine. The back of Marl's armor burst into flame and he realized his air system was compromised, even as Gimlet reached the Gonk and stabbed it with an energy knife, but the Gonk extended a tentacle-like metal arm and blasted the lieutenant square in the face at point blank range, killing him. Meanwhile Marl had engaged the emergency release on his burning armor and had scrambled out of it, getting free just in time to witness Gimlet's demise. Then his armor exploded, sending Marl flying through the air.

   Getting back to his feet Marl swore at the machine that had killed his entire unit, then picked up a rock and ran over to hit the Gonk with it. However the Gonk had registered the destruction of Marl's armor and concluded all its targets had been eliminated, and so was busy radioing its command center to request repairs. Ignoring Marl, it began to chug away on damaged treads until Marl screamed at it to not run away. As it turned back towards him, Marl realized he might have made a mistake, but the machine merely looked at the man armed only with a largish rock and confirmed out loud that he had no weapons and hence was non-military personnel. It informed him he was in a fighting zone where civilians were prohibited, and, ignoring as he began hammering it repeatedly with his rock, it asked him to leave the area since any injuries he received would not fall under the agreement the two sides had made and thus not be covered by insurance. Marl screamed at it to shut up as he continued to hammer it with his rock, then paused in fright as it suddenly extended its tentacle again. However, instead of firing on him it handed him a pamphlet which it stated would explain why the Federation's cause was just. Marl stood holding it dumbfounded for a second, then crumpled it up in rage and picked up a larger rock, insisting the Gonk was going to leave over his dead body. He tried futilely to stand in front of it and push against it as it set off, but the Gonk's only response was to inform him that he could enlist on the Federation's side if he wanted to. As it set off into the desert Marl continued to pursue, despite falling further and further behind.

 

Comments: Created by Katsuhiro Otomo.

   The story was adapted into a segment of the animated movie Short Piece in 2013. Issei Futumata voiced Marl in the original Japanese dub, while John Swasey voiced the slightly renamed Merle in the English dub. There was also apparently a video game version of the story released in 2017.

   The Epic title's introduction blurb clearly states that the story takes place somewhere in Central Europe, and during a war between the West and East, meaning that Marl and his fellow soldiers were presumably not Japanese, but the anime movie is set in a devastated Tokyo. I've been unable to locate a copy of the original manga version of the story to check the text there, but I suspect that Japan was the original setting, and it got shifted by Robert Spaulding, who the Epic comic credits for translating the story. There are other subtle changes, some of which were mirrored decades later in the movie version when it got dubbed into English. For example, Jin becomes Jim but only some of the time.

   This profile was completed on 08/09/2026, but its publication was delayed as it was intended for the Appendix 25th anniversary's celebratory event to represent Farewell to Weapons.

 

Profile by Loki.

 

CLARIFICATIONS:
Marl has no known connections to:

Gimlet

Lieutenant Gimlet was the commanding officer of Marl's unit. His armor number was 1. His call sign when dealing with HQ was Waiter, while they were Bartender. When he lost two of his team to the Gonk he tried to call in back-up, only to be informed that they had trouble elsewhere and thus couldn't spare any additional forces. After it slew Jin and disabled Marl's armor Gimlet attacked it up close with an energy blade, but it blasted him in the face, killing him. 

--Farewell to Weapons#1

Rum

Rum was one of Marl's unit. His armor number was 2. He was the first victim of the Gonk, an initial blast leaving him unharmed but locking the joints of his armor, rendering him unable to move, so that a second, more powerful shot could vaporize him. 

--Farewell to Weapons#1

Jin

Apparently the longest serving member of Marl's unit, Jin had been using his pay to purchase 30 acres of vineyard, and promised to send the others wine if he had a good crop. His armor number was 3. He died saving Marl's life, jumping onto the back of the Gonk's treads to fire on it at point blank range. 

--Farewell to Weapons#1

Junkey

Junkey was the unit's driver. When the others suited up to recce, he stayed with the APC to provide long range cover using the vehicle's sensors and missiles. He was apparently slain by missiles fired by the Gonk, which struck and presumably destroyed the APC, given that Junkey stopped responding to the rest of his team after they saw the explosion in the distance.

--Farewell to Weapons#1

Gonk-18

The Gonk was an autonomous computer-run firing platform used by the other side in the conflict. It carried missiles, a laser-gun, and a particle beam, as well as an unidentified weapon, possibly some sort of directional EMP, which could disable the joints of K-type protective armor. It was programmed to attack enemy soldiers but not civilians, and mistook Marl for one after his armor was destroyed and uniform damaged.

--Farewell to Weapons#1

images: (without ads)
Farewell to Weapons#1, p24, pan2 (main)
Farewell to Weapons#1, p5, pan3 (in armor)
Farewell to Weapons#1, p2, pan1 (on APC, in undamaged uniform)
Farewell to Weapons#1, p5, pan6 (unit members in armor)
Short Piece promo image (Marl in the anime movie)
Farewell to Weapons#1, p3, pan3 (Gimlet)
Farewell to Weapons#1, p3, pan4 (Rum)
Farewell to Weapons#1, p3, pan2 (Jin)
Farewell to Weapons#1, p5, pan7 (Junkey)
Farewell to Weapons#1, p23, pan5 (Gonk)

Appearances:
Farewell to Weapons#1 (April 1982) - Katsuhiro Otomo (writer, art), Marie Javins (editor)

First Posted: 09/10/2026
Last updated: 09/03/2026

Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.

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