- The girls gather to say goodbye to their tanks, thinking they'll never see them again... and then Anzu sets up an improvised airstrip and Kay arrives with a Saunders C-5M Super Galaxy to help liberate Ōarai's tanks from MEXT, with a promise to drop them off later once they're resettled on the mainland. Later, Saunders arrives to do just that, and Arisa tells Miho that this is a big favor and needs to be repaid in a big way:"You keep practicing Senshado, okay? Don't give up!"
- Miho's love of Boko is adorable. It also shows us that Miho does indeed have something she loves other than Senshado.
- Shiho's meeting with Renta Tsuji, the Minister of Education, is cold, formal, and logical, but for her it is heartwarming. She joins Anzu in defense of Oarai by refusing a prestigious position in the pro-league that Renta is trying to create in protest of his decision. Then she insists that Oarai's victory definitely wasn't luck. It is indirect, and not to Miho directly, but she's basically saying "my daughter won fair and square; how dare you say otherwise!" She's looking forward to crushing them in next years high school tournament.
- Ōarai is going to be closed (again) unless their sensha-do team can win an annihilation battle against the University Team. Outnumbered 30 to 8, with vastly inferior equipment and under-experienced tank crews, Miho walks up to the enemy commander to exchange greetings on the day of the match knowing that she has a nigh impossible task. Then members from various high schools all turn up as "short term transfer students", bringing with them their personal tanks to make up the shortfall. Finally, Ooarai has a realistic chance of victory. And the first to arrive were the tanks from Kuromorimine lead by Maho.
- Chi-Ha-Tan shows up with twenty-two tanks by accident. Incompetent yes, but they're not about to leave their friends in trouble. Also heartwarming in that, even if none of the other teams came through, Nishi alone would have brought enough tanks to fill out the team.
- To facilitate this, Darjeeling sends an encrypted message note to every tankery team that have faced Ōarai previously (including Continuation High):
Long sobs of Autumn Violins
Wound my heart with a monotonous languor
Only to drink this cup in the Northern Lands
It's some boiling black tea - After the Public Morals Committee's descent into delinquency, Mako of all people tell them the school still needs them. And that she feels lonley without Sodoko.Mako: What are you doing?Sodoko: None of your business.Mako: We're assembling.Sodoko: No.Mako: Just come with me!Sodoko: What are you doing!? Let me go! Forget about us!Mako: Without Sodoko, the school morals will be gone! I'm a bit lonely too.Sodoko: We're not lonely!
- The movie further reinforcing what was first shown in Little Army- that Maho loves her sister and always has. The flashback to their childhood was particularly heartwarming given that we rarely see the sisters on screen outside of their tanks. It includes eating popsicles, playing tag in a field, and falling into mud after descending a tank and laughing about it. This makes Little Army's interpretation of Maho canonical through the major adaptations, which is significant as the anime has contradicted manga characterization before such as in the case of Anchovy.
- There's also the fact that Maho spares Miho from having to confront their mother by outright lying to her that she brought a "friend" over to visit, and then forges their mother's signature on Miho's transfer document. It goes to show the lengths Maho would go through to help her sister.
- The very small, gentle smile Maho has as she shushes Miho to keep quiet about it
◊. It's there for less than a second, but it cements that more than anything in the world Maho loves her little sister with all her heart.
- The very small, gentle smile Maho has as she shushes Miho to keep quiet about it
- The following flashback of their younger days is nothing short of heartrending adorableness. The sight of the two sisters riding their Panzer II through the countryside, with Miho excitedly hopping in the commander seat and Maho in the driver's seat. What tugs at the heartstrings is the knowledge that this is before Shiho forces her Second Place Is for Losers philosophy on them, which would be the force that ultimately separates the sisters.
- When Miho starts to have doubts about her ability to command (due to an earlier strategic miscalculation that resulted in the loss of several units including Clara, Nina, and Nonna's units), Maho gave her a short pep talk about how she's relying too much on a predictable strategy, which is not her style, and that she should just stick to her own way. This shows that Maho will provide whatever support her sister needs, including emotional support and encouragement.
- There's also how Maho's probably the most loyal and supportive of Miho's subordinates outside of Oarai. She reminds the girls from the other schools that Miho's in charge when they argue about tactics, and when Katyusha chides her for supposedly not trusting Miho, Maho points out that trust isn't the same as a cult of personality.
- There is also a moment during the climax battle against Alice's Centurion before their Fast Ball Special plan. As she points her Tiger I's gun (loaded with a blank) right on the back of Miho's Panzer IV, she has a face of worry. She's really uncomfortable with having to shoot Miho's tank, even if it is part of a plan to win the battle. This is a sharp contrast to Maho's usual attitude in the show and further illustrates how much Maho cares for her little sister.
- Finally, the ending credits show the Nishizumi sisters happily holding hands with each other. Maho is also shown smiling during their return trip to Kuromorimine.
- So is Erika, which is arguably even more special.
- There's also the fact that Maho spares Miho from having to confront their mother by outright lying to her that she brought a "friend" over to visit, and then forges their mother's signature on Miho's transfer document. It goes to show the lengths Maho would go through to help her sister.
- There's the fact that Miho gets unanimously chosen by every single commander as the CO of their combined forces. Even the egotistical Katyusha, whose only complaint was she wasn't chosen as a platoon commander, never objects to Miho being the CO. In the battles themselves, everyone follows Miho's commands, and even after Miho's miscalculation that cost them several units, everyone still thinks Miho should command them. This shows that everyone recognizes Miho's ability as a commander and has absolute faith that she will lead everyone to victory.
- After the match, Alice rides a Boko doll to Miho. That alone is too adorable for words, but then she offers the super-rare Boko doll that Miho earlier gave to her, back to her as a medal.
- At the end of the match, you can see that Katyusha has been following the match sitting on Erika's shoulders and Erika seems mostly amused about the situation. Considering the rivalry between the two schools, as well as the abrasive personalities of both characters this is quite impressive.
- Viewers that are familiar enough with the franchise to remember the Running Gag of "the protection of the Ankou God" note can't fail to notice how when Momo is at the edge of her Despair Event Horizon, the light (shaped as an Anglerfish's) of an actual ankou-kami statue starts shining upon her. Cue Anzu's return.
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