...Who was loved and respected by the Jewish people, by Winston Churchill, and by my E-9 grandpa, who was a kickass engineer in the USAF for 32 years, was at Normandy on D+2 day, and after retirement, continued to be friends with all of the US Chiefs of Staff until they also retired? Whether or not he was technically a member of the Nazi party, it's pretty well documented that Rommel opposed Hitler's policies so strongly that he was forced by Hitler to drink poison, or watch his family and subordinates put in front of a firing squad.
I'm not saying the man was perfect; I'm just saying that the parallels between him and Rias are so strong as to be downright spooky if Lindsay DIDN'T specifically have him in mind as an inspiration! Rommel's commander-in-chief was an evil asshole; Raumesys, ditto. Germany at the time was a militaristic nation out to conquer as many neighboring nations as possible; Turgonia, ditto. Rommel was a gifted tactician, engineer, and leader who rose to prominence at a young age by faithfully serving his nation in wartime; Rias ditto. Rommel wrote the definitive military textbook for his nation: Rias, ditto. Rommel won battle after battle against overwhelming odds with brilliant, new, and unexpected tactics; Rias ditto. Rommel always treated prisoners of war and citizens of occupied nations honorably and with respect; I hope and presume that Rias, ditto. Rommel risked his life, and also of course his career, by refusing to obey all the horrible orders Hitler gave him about killing and enslaving the various groups of people that Hitler hated; Rias refused to obey dishonorable orders such as assassinating the Kyattese president. And Rommel's death was faked, in that the German gov't claimed it was a natural death when it was actually a politically-motivated forced suicide; Rias's death was also faked by his government, but luckily for us, he had that happy ending Rommel didn't get!
My big point, though, is that our instant gut reaction to malign Rommel because he fought for Germany in WW2 is EXACTLY the same kind of reaction that the Kyattese, the Kendorians, the Nurians, and every other group of people the Turgonians fought (which apparently was pretty much all of them) would have had to Rias!
So, drawing parallels between Rommel and Rias brings a greater understanding of what Rias & Tikaya had to face. We're being asked to cheer on a romance between a clumsy scholar, and a good guy who fought WELL for an evil empire! And we do!
