Battle Angel Alita : Collapser, Explained

 

The Collapser, as revealed by Desty Nova in Battle 26

 Battle Angel Alita : The Collapser, Explained

A Battle Angel Alita Lore Presentation

    Hello, this is Kaos Nova and this is another video of commentary on the lore of the manga known as GUNNM, or Battle Angel Alita, regarding the dangerous nanite based substance known as collapser from the manga, as well as speculation regarding the other adaptations including the film, and in the video game known as GUNNM : Martian Memory.  If you wish to remain updated on what goes on, I would recommend following the channel.  Without much further ado, let’s begin.

    In the world of Battle Angel Alita, perhaps among the most powerful types of weapons known is the Berserker Body.  Like a living organism, the Berserker Body is comprised of many microscopic berserker cells which comprise the full body, allowing for rapid healing involving the berserker cells comprising the body.  The berserker cells take in and metabolize matter to allow replication.  Being a seemingly self-sustaining cyborg body, the berserker body was among the greatest technological breakthroughs by the Venusian colonists in the past, leading up to and during what was known as The Terraforming Wars.
    The berserker body allowed for a durable, resilient, and practically self-sustaining body for the cyborg warrior, and attempts at countering the dangerous weapon, similar to the nuclear weapon, the ballistic missile, or the stealth bomber of the past, the powers at the time would not stand by with such a superior weapon to be held either alone by a sole power or without some kind of counter or defense against it.  Certain counter berserker nanites were tested in the past, but following the vast destruction of so much from the major players in the Terraforming Wars, and a change from war to an interplanetary fighting tournament known as the Zenith of All Things Tournament, or the ZOTT, the berserker technology became largely forgotten over time, if not illegalized in many cases due to the problems and implications of the berserker cell technology.
    The metabolism of the berserker cells proved most effective in creating a resilient combat body for the soldiers, but there was, unfortunately, an additional dangerous potential to the berserker cells.  The berserker cells, if control was lost, could also metabolize other materials, potentially even plants and animals, and even the berserker body itself could grow out of control.  This nightmarish potential could be seen in the manga, as well as in the video game adaptation known as GUNNM Martian Memory.
    In the manga and the video game, the nefarious Desty Nova obtained the Berserker Body owned by Alita herself, as Anita’s motor ball manager, Ed, had sold the Body to Dusty Nova to finance the continuation of Alita’s motor ball career, and Alita had ceased using the Berserker Body out of traumatic association with her failed attempt to save Hugo’s life on the freight tubes with that body earlier.
    With the berserker body in his possession, Desty Nova performed analysis on the berserker body and its cells.  In doing so, he developed a countermeasure to the berserker body on the cellular level, known as collapser.  In doing so, Desty Nova discovered, or rediscovered, a countermeasure for berserker cells, along with berserker bodies or other berserker weapons.
    Collapser is a chemical solution comprised of numerous collapser nanites.  It appears as a chemical solution, but could potentially also become an aerosol or other forms.  The collapser nanites are built to metabolize berserker cells and multiply.  The collapser nanites, when not fed with berserker cells for a time, break down into inert chemical substances.  Once in contact with berserker cells either through being a coating on a bullet, or in other forms such as aerosols or liquid forms, the collapser nanites go to work at consuming berserker cells until the collapser nanites run out of berserker cells, similar to how bacteria, fungi, or algae consume agar in a petri dish.

Alita prepares the bullets with collapser in Battle 26

    The collapser was known and confirmed to be used against an out of control berserker body by Alita herself, after being given a revolver loaded with collapser coated bullets by Desty Nova.  However, collapser nanites were suspected of being used in other times, with the finer details remaining a mystery.  How was Alita captured between the ending of Last Order and the Beginning of Mars Chronicle.  How did Alita or AR-13 lose her imaginos body when visiting Venus?  
    As a note, the Imaginos Body was a new type of body first seen in Volume 9 of the original manga.  It was developed using a similar kind of architecture and cellular build as the berserker body.  The architecture of the Imaginos Body is different, in the sense that it is more stable than the berserker body and far less likely to metabolize foreign matter, growing out of control.  However, the Imaginos Body still contained the cellular structure of the berserker body and most of the same chemical composition.  In the original Battle Angel Alita manga, in order to metabolize and replicate the orbital cable system because the cable from Jeru was about to break, dropping the entire city of Salem being dropped to the surface of the Earth.  Alita could not replicate her body to sacrifice herself and replace the cable unless given a special nanotechnology serum to fill the breaks in the orbital cable from Desty Nova.  The Imaginos Body was just that stable. 

 

Alita's Second Imaginos Body, from Battle Angel Alita : Last Order

    Given the similar chemical structure and cellular composition of the Imaginos Body compared to the berserker body, it is still hypothetical that some variation of collapser nanites could disable or break down the Imaginos Body.  However, there was either a replica or a reproduction of the Imaginos Body with a drone program that attacked the Martian Kingdom and attempted to assassinate the Martian Queen.  This situation leaves many unsolved issues.  Was the imaginos body used by Alita destroyed?  Or was the body disabled on the Venus colony, and Alita or AR-13 removed from the Imaginos Body.  While the main details of the Imaginos Body are unanswered so far, the plot twist is nonetheless in line with the situation experienced by Alita herself, fate would not have Alita remaining too powerful for too long.  
    This pattern of giving Alita humble pie has repeated throughout the series.  She got the berserker body, but then she gave it up because it reminded her of how helpless she was to attempt to save Hugo and fail.  She then had to destroy the berserker body since it was in the hands of a malevolent and irrational individual who would destroy anything to have his revenge on Alita, leaving Alita after a last-minute deal, in the less powerful TUNED body.  After the TUNED Body was destroyed by a trap laid by Desty Nova, Alita received the Imaginos Body, which she used along with upgrades in the ZOTT Tournament, but then lost it for a less powerful Agent Body as a servant of the artificial intelligence known as Melchizedek, whom you can learn more about in my episode on Excalibur in Battle Angel Alita.

    However, returning to the Collapser Nanites, they were an achilles heel, a weapon against advanced nanite weapons, an antidote for the plague of the berserker cells.  In short, the collapser is a plot device, a catalyst for the progression of the plot, a pair of shears to prune the shrubbery.  Without those moments of being humbled, Alita wouldn’t become the person she became, or the person she has become.  In the end, the collapser is a reminder that if there ever was a formidable Hunter or Warrior like Orion, then there could also be a Scorpius to bring about that same mighty hunter’s downfall.  
I wish to recommend the My Hero Arm Campaign, this charitable campaign by The #AlitaArmy, donates towards helping those who lost their arm to pay for a prosthetic arm to help them in their day to day lives, I have a link to the campaign in the description and have included a link to this video in the cards.
    I conclude this video with the plan to feature more videos on the subjects contained within the manga and other media concerning Battle Angel Alita.  It should be a fun time and I look forward to it.  If you wish to remain up to date on more GUNNM or Sci-Fi Lore, I invite you to subscribe and click the bell for updates on new productions.   As I say at the end, “Be safe out there, and I will be signing off.”