1

The seven Numbers who weren't incorrigible were adopted by Major Nakajima, so they all have the surname Nakajima. And legally they are now all sisters, with each other and with Ginga and Subaru.

In this episode Nove refers to Subaru as aneki which is really pretty awesome. It's really nice to see so many of them settling in nicely. And it was nice seeing Subaru and Nove talking to each other, because you could feel the family happening between them.

2 You would think they wouldn't let people who tried to take over the world have intelligent devices, either; unless they were completely trusted :somehow:

On the other hand, the Midchildan government let Nanoha adopt a "reincarnated" Belkan queen.  Of course, Nanoha did show she was willing to discipline the child...

3

There's precedent. Chrono convinced them to trust Fate after the first series, and she was a vital part of the victory in A's. So then Chrono convinced them to trust Hayate and the Knights -- and they were an essential part of the victory in StrikerS.

After StrikerS the good guys have a lot of silver bullets to spend, and a lot of friends in high places (Lindy, Chrono, that other admiral that's a friend of Lindy's, and the high priestess of the church, among others) and so I don't find it to be implausible that they sold the same deal yet again, this time with the Numbers.

Especially since they're not doing it with all of them. Three of the Numbers are still in prison and probably won't ever be released. Two of the Numbers died in StrikerS. It's the other seven (interestingly, the youngest seven) that are getting this chance, and only after taking Ginga's class.

And it wouldn't be much of a surprise to learn that their intelligent devices are controlled in some way, so that they allow power ups but only when it's legitimate.

4

Stilts points out: I'm happy Nove didn't get Worf'd  like I was expecting, and instead one-upped the kiddo.

Yes, and I was expecting exactly the same thing and was pleasantly surprised that they didn't do it.

5 Everything about Engvalt has screamed "not the bad guy" from the start.  I'm glad we didn't go through half a series pursuing a red herring.

6 Right now, I'm not so sure there's going to be a bad guy in this one. It's feeling a bit of Dog Days "everyone's friends".

7 I wonder what the rest of TSAB thinks of the growing power of the Harlaown/Yagami/Nakajima clan.  As much scrutiny as they were under in StrikerS, and their power levels and numbers have only increased with time...

Was there any mention of Nove being on a limiter?  Or anyone else?

8

Nanoha, Fate, and Hayate all had to wear limiters in StrikerS in order to get permission for them all to be part of Riot Squad Six. Nanoha told the four newbies about it in one episode: Nanoha and Fate ordinarily would rate S+ but their limiters dropped them two steps. Hayate rates SS but her limiter dropped her four steps.

Hayate had the ability to release Nanoha and Fate, but if she abused it she would lose it, so she's careful about it. Chrono and Carim each had the ability to release the entire squad -- but only once each. Chrono did a partial release just on Hayate at one point, giving her back three steps (IIRC) but not all four.

When The Day came and it really hit the fan, Carim released all three of them, so they were cranking full out.

Hayate is terrifyingly strong. That SS (a rank that may have been invented for her) understates her power, because that's what's left for her own use after she powers the entire WolkenRitter, particularly Vita and Signum, who are top bracket.

So yeah, there are people who are aware of it.

The six cyborgs of the Nakajima family are all quite powerful but they rank like AA or AAA, which is respectable but hardly unprecedented. Also, they're dependent on the bureau for repairs and upgrades, so they're on a leash. (The other three work for Carim at the church, so she is probably seen as keeping a close eye on them, and they need parts and maintenance as well.)

The Takamachi threat is just Nanoha (which admittedly is a lot). At this time Vivio isn't all that strong, though I've read that we'll eventually learn that Vivio is capable of setting entirely new records for power.

The Harlaown threat is mainly Fate. Chrono is good but he's out of practice and he wasn't really all that powerful anyway. Lindy is even lower. Caro and Eriol rate like AA. (Of course, if Caro summons Voltaire, then things get real.)

I saw in the wiki that Fate, Nanoha, and Hayate came to be known (just after A's) as the "Three Aces", and I would guess that it was something of a relief when Nanoha joined the Air Force, Hayate joined the Army, and Fate joined the Navy.

So when they all requested assignment to Riot Squad 6, that probably did scare some people in high places, leading to the limiters.

There hasn't been any mention of limiters so far in Vivid.

9

Also, after Riot Squad Six was disbanded, Fate when back to the Navy and Nanoha went back to the Air Force, which I'm sure reassured a lot of people.

10

I found this page at the wiki.

HARLAOWN CLAN:
Fate S+ (StrikerS)
Caro A+ (after StrikerS)
Eriol AA (after StrikerS)
Chrono AAA
Lindy unknown, but less than Chrono

TAKAMACHI:
Nanoha S+ (StrikerS)
Vivio unknown, but not very high yet

NAKAJIMA:
Ginga A
Subaru AA (after StrikerS)
Cinque AA
Dieci A
Nove AAA
Wendi AA

YAGAMI:
Hayate SS (StrikerS)
Zafira AA
Signum S-
Shamal AA+
Vita AAA+
Agito and Rein Zwei rank A+

Other interesting people:
Teana S
Lutecia S
Zest was S+

Prescia is estimated to have been SS, so I guess I was wrong about Hayate being the only one. Still, Hayate may be the only one who is alive right now. Surely people ranked SS are not common.

11 One thing that happened at the end of StrikerS was Nanoha suffered at least a little stress injury - not on the scale of what happened when she was 12, but enough that it's juuuust about plausible that she's not on the front line these days.

Also, if I recall correctly, the Air Forces aren't an independent military service in Midchildan service, but instead a branch of the Ground Forces. Within that they're something of an elite (well, you gotta be able to fly comfortably well, so that puts a floor on the ability of anyone who's recruited into them...)

StrikerS had the sub-plot where a significant faction of the ground forces were... skeptical of the special treatment of high-ranking mages and which preferred a more traditional (as an Earthling would understand it) command structure and reliance on technology. There was a little resentment there - and well there might be. Grant that the big three are all veterans beyond their years, and you can say that they would merit the rank of first lieutenant, but captain or major? To say nothing of lieutenant colonel!

And then the faction with the most, and the most vocal, of the complainers was demonstrated to be militarily impotent, criminally unprepared, and riddled with traitors. Whoops. That argument's over.

As for the Numbers, the reformed ones just about all helped out in the Ixpellia incident in Sound Stage X, which presumably acts in their favor too.

12

I remember reading somewhere that in StrikerS when Nanoha fought Vivio that she went way, way deep into her power and damaged her linker core, resulting in a permanent reduction in her peak power. (Not that she has any regrets; if she had it to do over she'd do exactly the same thing.)

But the Wiki doesn't say anything about that, and it's the kind of thing I'd expect to see there, so it may have been speculation by a fan or some sort of non-canon story  rather than word-of-god.

The wiki does say:

In ViVid, which takes place four years after StrikerS, Nanoha, now 23, is on leave, working as a civil servant on Mid-Childa and raising Vivio.

But it doesn't say why. And damage to her linker core isn't the only plausible excuse; she might have applied for leave in order to take better care of Vivio.

13

It's not unknown for parents in this series to make career sacrifices for their kids. I'm thinking of Lindy after she adopted Fate.

It was obvious that Fate needed to grow up in a fairly normal setting, surrounded by other kids her age. In fact, she needed to grow up with Nanoha. Growing up on a starship just wasn't going to cut it.

So Lindy retired from command of her starship and pulled strings to get a permanent outpost established on Earth, with her in charge.

Vivio was 6 when Nanoha adopted her, and at that age a kid needs a parent around all the time, not just when at home between missions. Foster care is no substitute. I would find it completely believable that Nanoha decided to put her career on ice for 12 years so she could do a good job raising Vivio. (You can tell at the end of StrikerS and the beginning of Vivid that Nanoha has gone all in on being a parent. Vivio is the most important thing in the world for her.)

Once Vivio is 18, Nanoha will be 30, which provides plenty of time for her to pick her career back up.

14 For some reason, I had it in my head that Fate had picked up Tea's guardianship as well, but the wiki doesn't say anything about it.  I guess she could instead be considered part of the Nakajima clan, perhaps though not quite to the extent that Nanoha could be considered a Harlaown.

Avatar, that subplot is what I was drawing from--it was already an issue, and then TSeeleAB gets gutted, and senior Ground leadership only slightly less litterally so.  Meanwhile, the All-Girls' (And Erio) Befriending Society not only proved themselves to be massively powerful, but have since become even more so.  As a result, it seems like the underlying issue has only gotten worse; Section 6 might have been disbanded (I'm guessing as a result of said subplot, since the prophecy had been dealt with), but still, you're talking about ~3 very-close-knit clans with enough firepower to befriend half a planet.  If I'm an outsider, that makes me nervous--what, other than the fact that they're all kind-hearted goodie-two-shoes who would never think of such a thing, keeps them from turning their magic powers into power over others?  Who befriends the befrienders?

15

By the way, a correction. Above I said,

The seven Numbers who weren't incorrigible were adopted by Major Nakajima

That's not correct. He adopted four of them.

16 I had it in my head that Fate had picked up Tea's guardianship as well...

Teana is working as Fate's aide in the epilogue of StrikerS... that's probably why.