One of the current antagonists in the manga, alongside Dr Xeno. Based on something new we learned about him in the last chapter (Something he also admitted to himself), we wanted to take a deeper look into him as a character. Because like all the major antagonists who came before him, he is quite layered.
He told Francois that he would not shoot them, which has been pretty much a staple of his character so far.
Ever since his introduction, he has shown a certain sense of morality. A sense of morality which was also present in Tsukasa as an antagonist. That is, not needlessly killing one’s foes. Sparing life where possible.
He fires at the Kingdom of Science’s ship, the Perseus, but who would not attack in that scenario? They were quite literally trespassing within foreign soil. Without passports to boot!
An attack he later follows up with an aerial one, but once he loses control of the plane, he immediately leaves it. His curiosity about the new group is piqued once he hears them talk about scientific terms on the ship.
Senku sends out Gen, Kohaku, and Chrome as envoys. When Stanley first meets Gen, he does not gun him down. Frisk him, yes, an obvious security measure. His first personal encounter with a member of the Kingdom of Science. But Stanley treats him decently, even leading him back to their base.
When Xeno gives him the order to snipe Senku later, it is an order that Stanley is willing to carry out. He has somewhat of a prideful persona, considering how angry he was at learning that Senku was still alive.
Also, his failure to kill Senku directly led to Xeno being kidnapped, so there is that as well.
Despite his irritation at Xeno being kidnapped, he did not gun down Senku's allies. Even when they were acting like meatshields, and buying time for Senku to leave the United States of America safely.
He does ask Xeno if he is sure he wants Senku dead, after learning of how the two scientists were connected. Which again, is a show of humanity.
Once Senku is presumably dead, both Xeno and Stanley go ahead with their plan of subduing the Kingdom of Science. While attacking the Perseus, he runs into two of their strongest members aboard. Mozu and Matsukaze. Of course, he could just have easily shot them dead considering how dangerous they are. Instead, he effortlessly disarms them. The wounds he gave them were not lethal as well, considering he shoots their arms.
Senku one-ups Stanley by kidnapping Xeno right behind his back, an act which enrages Stanley. He is determined to get Xeno back from the enemy, but he first needs to know where they are going. Matsukaze (Now injured), is a valuable source of information. Stanley interrogates him at gun point, but never gives any indication he will shoot him. This is further made clear by the lighter that shows up in the next panel.
The chase begins. Stanley’s crew follows Senku’s group all over South America. There is a short interlude whereby the two meet each other in Ecuador (?). By this time, Senku has devised motorbikes. Stanley’s group catches them just as they have finished constructing them. As they escape, Stanley targets Hyoga and Tsukasa, shooting both. Again, he does not target vital organs. Or even go for a head shot. Instead, he shots them in non-lethal areas, with the intention being clear: weakening them enough for them to stop their motorcycles.
What do all these examples prove to us? Pretty much what Francois deduced in the last chapter: Stanley is a soldier. And not just him. His entire group of people are all soldiers, and as such they do uphold a moral code.
Stanley has shown a certain level of respect for his enemies as well. When Kirisame and Senku combined to bring down his initial aircraft, he was visibly impressed.
When the Medusa turned out to be a dud, and a decoy, a plan that fooled him, he was also impressed. Mind you, this is while Xeno is in the middle of being kidnapped.
He also described the decoy plan at the Panama Canal as being clever. There was the chance of it being fake, but it was still a plan that caught him offguard.
Something amusing about Stanley. Ever since the start of the series, we have only seen him effectively kill two people. The first one was the pack of wolves that were in his introduction.
The second, well, it is a dear comrade of ours. One that will be sorely missed and lives on in our hearts forever. It is…. mobile lab.
All this does make you wonder what will happen when Stanley and Senku eventually meet face to face. Will he still be out to kill him, based on Xeno's orders in America? Or will his morality come into play?
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