| Retainers | |
|---|---|
| |
| The Retainer, as seen in Madness Combat 9.5. | |
| Debut: | Madness Combat 9.5 |
| Appearances: | 1 |
| Role(s): | Antagonist |
| Kills: | 3 |
| Deaths: | 1 |
| Allies: | A.A.H.W |
| Enemies: | Hank, Tricky |
The Retainers are A.A.H.W. units found in The Other Place, one of them appears as the main antagonist of Madness Combat 9.5.
The Retainers' purpose seems to be to retain Hank and other individuals in The Other Place, preventing them from escaping or being retrieved by external allies. They fulfill this with the use of psychic powers, which enables them to fly, teleport, use telekinesis, and summon Spikes, as well as having the ability to regenerate any damage sustained to them. It is unknown if they possess any other powers than the ones shown so far. According to Krinkels, Retainers may be summoned if one becomes a serious problem in The Other Place.[1]
Description
Retainers are larger than the average character, roughly the size of a G03LM. They wear a distinctive, intimidating mask with red lenses that resemble angrily glaring eyes. This mask is implied to be surgically implanted, as suggested by a pair of wires attached to a metal plate on the side of their head. They also have what appears to be burn marks on their face behind the mask, and wear a jacket over their suit.
Appearances
Madness Combat 9.5 Part 1
One of them appears at the last part of the animation as the main antagonist, and proceeds to engage Hank in battle. He quickly proves to be more than a match for Hank, as he dodges and counters every attack that he throws at him, with the animation ending on a cliffhanger as the Retainer picks up Hank after partially crushing him with the environment.
Madness Combat 9.5 Part 2
A Retainer (presumably the same Retainer from Part 1, and given the label Retainer #909) attacks Hank once again, and after a brief interruption by Tricky the two duel to a standstill. The Retainer is able to regenerate from all of Hank's attacks, and is unable to land any meaningful attacks on Hank. Eventually Tricky returns and kills the Retainer with a chainsaw.
Trivia
- The description of Madness Combat 9.5 Part 2 heavily implies that the Retainers answer to the Higher Powers, with their purpose being described as "maintain[ing] orders from above." It is unclear which of the Higher Powers they serve, though the Auditor is the most likely candidate, given their association with the A.A.H.W., an organization that the Auditor is in charge of, as well as them presumably being native to, and essentially the law enforcers of The Other Place, suggesting that they share the same otherworldly nature that Auditor does.
- The Retainers are also stated to patrol multiple 'other' realms that exist outside of Nevada, though it's uncertain as to what other realms this may be referring to.
- When asked about The Retainer's loss in telekinetic ability was a result of fatigue and that he was trying his best.
- The Retainer is the first A.A.H.W. unit in the series to be seen directly attacking Tricky.
- There are or were at least 908 Retainers in existence, as the one that dies in Madness Combat 9.5 was the 909th.
- Some of the code visible at the end of Madness Combat 9.5 implies that a Retainer cannot be permanently killed, with the code making reference to "reactivating" a "damaged" Retainer (presumably the one Tricky killed in the episode, referred to as "Disabling" the Retainer).
