Oberstein Characteristics

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# Fleet Admiral Paul von Oberstein



![Oberstein](https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/43804_6482.jpg)

"Without fail, in light, shadows must follow."

Voiced by: Kaneto Shiozawa (main series), Jun'ichi Suwabe (Die Neue These) (Japanese), J. Michael Tatum (Die Neue These) (English)

"All heroes have established their thrones atop not just their enemies, but a large quantity of allied corpses as well. There are no monarchs with clean hands."

Originally assigned to Iserlohn Fortress, Oberstein was a deeply unsettling man who wanted nothing more than to destroy the Goldenbaum Dynasty and all of its descendants. He was born with a birth defect that left him blind and had to have his eyes replaced with cybernetics. Oberstein was grateful to have been born under the current regime, as he would have been put to death under the Inferior Genes Exclusion Law in Kaiser Rudolf's day, but nonetheless believed that any government that was capable of passing such laws was not worthy of his support. After surviving the battle for Iserlohn, he returned to Odin to offer his services to Reinhard and became one of his top advisers.

What set Oberstein apart from the Twin Pillars Reuenthal and Mittermeyer was his utterly ruthless personality. He would not blanch from any task that needed to be done to ensure the security of Reinhard's power and continued to perform his duties flawlessly even though it made him unpopular with the rest of the admirals. Many of the officers felt that Oberstein's decisions had indirectly caused Kircheis' downfall. Because he kept mostly to himself, no one truly knew if he was directing all of this antipathy away from Reinhard intentionally or he simply did not care.

## Tropes associated with Oberstein:

- **Adaptation Dye-Job**: In the original novels he had dark hair, extremely pale skin and light brown eyes. His Die Neue These look is back to brown eyes, with dark hair.

- **Ambiguously Evil**: His highest concern is ultimately the greatest good for the greatest number, but he's not averse to putting fundamentally good and decent men through hell or killing them outright if that's what it takes. While there's nothing directly tying him to the two biggest murders in the series, those of Siegfried Kircheis and Yang Wen-li, some fans speculate that, at the very least, he knew what was going to happen and stood by and did nothing to stop them.

- **Animal Motifs**:
  - Snakes: Not only is he compared to a snake by other high admirals (Bittenfeld especially), but he has the sneaky, coldblooded aspects down pat. He is often referred to as venomous and unfeeling.
  - Dogs: Due to his Undying Loyalty to Reinhard even with his most unscrupulous methods of which he actively protests. He even keeps a dog as a pet, which is the only thing who likes him.

- **At Least I Admit It**: Oberstein's very upfront about what he does and their ramifications, no matter how cold or cruel they are. He also doesn't take kindly to those who wrap up their own evil, incompetence or recklessness under hollow pretensions of honor.

- **Badass Bureaucrat**: This becomes his job halfway through the series, as Chief of Military Affairs (i.e the Secretary of Defense). He is really good at it. Even before that, he is a staff officer who steps in front of an assassin's rocket launcher to protect Reinhard.

- **Bad Guys Do the Dirty Work**:
  - After basically purchasing his life from Imperial High Command, Reinhard makes it clear that it's Oberstein's job to deal with the darker, less heroic aspects off the battlefield, such as political and imperial court struggles. He expects Oberstein to use unending deceit and murder if necessary to get the job done.
  - Oberstein, for his point, invokes this in order to convince Reinhard to take him in when he's about to be Court Marshalled. He argues that Kircheis is too noble of a person to do the "dark work" Reinhard requires to take over the Empire and is more than willing to do it himself.

- **Better with Non-Human Company**: It's telling that the only time we hear about Oberstein being warm and friendly, it's when it concerns his dog.

- **Brutal Honesty**: Aside from his underhanded scheming, another reason why Oberstein's despised by his colleagues is because of how blunt he can be even to Reinhard if the situation calls for it. Conversely, this was also why Reinhard genuinely respected him, even if he didn't like him as a person.

- **Can't Kill You, Still Need You**: He keeps Heydrich Lang around for his skills and connections, despite his personal distaste for the man. The moment Lang stops being useful enough, however, Oberstein wastes little time disposing of him.

- **The Chessmaster**: He is probably the most formidable one in the story.

- **Chessmaster Sidekick**: Despite being terrifyingly ruthless and competent, Oberstein has little in the way of personal ambition. He's content to remain in the shadows as long as he deems those in the limelight are worth his respect.

- **The Consigliere**: A picture-perfect example. He is Reinhard's principal advisor and he tells Reinhard what he needs to hear, not just what he wants. Other admirals fear Reinhard's wrath, but not Oberstein. It's one of the main reasons he rises through the ranks as quickly as he does.

- **Consummate Professional**: He never lets personal relationships get in the way of his duty, though this is in part due to him being a very reserved man to begin with.

- **Crazy-Prepared**: When the Terrarists destroyed most of the Empire's data in the Navigation Center, the data was easily restored since it was already backed up by Oberstein the previous year.

- **Creepy Monotone**: Oberstein never raises his voice or emotes when he speaks.

- **The Creon**: He prefers to operate from the sidelines under Reinhard's aegis, as he realizes he doesn't have the charisma to be a respected leader himself.

- **Democracy Is Bad**: He is heavily implied to be a firm believer of this trope. He is against Kircheis being Reinhard's Number Two and Reuenthal getting the former Alliance's territories under his command as he feels that giving too much power to one of Reinhard's vassals is terrible for the empire's overall wellbeing.

- **Didn't See That Coming**: Downplayed. Oberstein evidently didn't anticipate Kircheis' death to be one of the consequences of his advice. Neither did he foresee Yang's assassination by the Terrarists in his attempts to curtail republicanism nor expect the same Terraists to stage a prison riot that winds up killing many of the Alliance POWs intended to be used as bargaining chips against the Iserlohn Republic. That said, he's quick to adjust his plans and acted accordingly when things don't go as intended.

- **Electronic Eyes**: This is a necessary augmentation to overcome his congenital blindness.

- **Enigmatic Minion**: He says that everything he does is "for the good of the Empire." It's hard to believe that anyone with his power and means might not have more personal motives, but at the same time, we never see anything that really contradicts his stated motive.

- **Everyone Has Standards**:
  - Even he considers brainwashing to be too tasteless, especially for someone like Ovlesser. Besides, a good old Paranoia Gambit takes much less effort to pull off.
  - As nonplussed as Oberstein is when it comes to the costs of his actions, he draws the line at needless casualties. He notably chastises three high admirals on their lust for glory due to how wasteful and pointless their quest for honor can be in the name of advancing the Empire's interests.

- **Evil Chancellor**: Is not an actual chancellor or premier, but he is a fleet admiral who is also part of Reinhard's cabinet. Combine that with a reputation for scheming coupled with power moves and the result is that people in and outside of the empire end up talking about him like he is this. Indeed, he actually has more influence in the Empire than the premier before Reinhard, Lichtenlade, ever had. When Reinhard orders an expedition from Fezzan to the Free Planets Alliance territories, he hands over civil affairs to Oberstein and the Chief of Civil Engineering, further enforcing that Oberstein is this trope in practice, if not on paper.

- **Evil Virtues**: Even if you subscribe to the idea that he is evil, you have to admit that he is also resourceful, brave, responsible, selfless, diligent, honest and patient.

- **Face Death with Dignity**: At the end of Legend of Galactic Heroes, Oberstein knows that his wound from the terrorist attack is fatal, so he refuses to be hospitalized in his final moments.

- **Foil**: A clear one to Kircheis.
  - Kircheis is a warrior, Oberstein is a bureaucrat.
  - Kircheis is affable, whereas Oberstein is cold.
  - Kircheis is upfront, Oberstein's a schemer.
  - Kircheis is the youngest of Reinhard's original flag officers. When Oberstein joins up, he is the oldest.
  - Reinhard loves Kircheis, whereas he doesn't like Oberstein.
  - The admirals speak fondly of Kircheis, they speak ill of Oberstein.
  - Kircheis dies early on., Oberstein doesn't die until the end of the series.
  - Kircheis is compassionate, Oberstein is a utilitarian.

- **The Friend Nobody Likes**: Oberstein is the most loathed of Reinhard's confidants, having next to no genuine allies among the other admirals and high-ranking officials. It is implied, however, that he's intentionally positioning himself as this, to make the future Reinhard envisions shine all the brighter.

- **Hidden Depths**: Little is known about his past before meeting Reinhard, but is shown to have a burning hatred for the Goldenbaum Dynasty and the nobles. It's implied this personal grudge comes from experiencing discrimination due to his physical condition.

- **Honest Advisor**: Oberstein is quite blunt and Reinhard does not like him, yet has this to say about him:
  "I've never once liked Oberstein as a person. But when I think back, it seems I've followed his advice the most. It's because that man's arguments are so right that they leave no room for debate."

- **Hyper-Competent Sidekick**: Reinhard von Lohemgramm may be a brilliant and ambitious fleet commander, but his personal sense of honor and lack of interest in most civilian affairs give him certain blindspots. Oberstein, a ruthless schemer, covers those weaknesses quite well.

- **It's Personal**: The one thing that he takes personally is how the Goldenbaum dynasty treated people like him. The Inferior Genetics Exclusion act was created to kill people like him, purely because they were born a certain way. He makes it clear that he hates the Goldenbaum dynasty just as much as Reinhard does.

- **Jerkass Has a Point**: Despite being rather immoral and dishonorable, most of his advice and actions are the quickest way to get the job done.
  - While it's left vague whether Oberstein's claims that Lichtenlade really was actively plotting against Reinhard to solidify his own power are true, or if he's making that up to justify eliminating the last real hurdle to seizing power after the Lippstadt rebellion's end, the other high admirals (and Reinhard himself) find it logical. As whichever way, Lichtenlade would remain a threat so long as he's still in power.
  - Even his advice that indirectly caused Kircheis' death was originally meant to suppress favoritism. Episodes 89 (him giving an explanation for his decision-making while Reinhard, Hildegard, Lutz and Kesler look on in utter horror) and 103 (chewing out three high admirals on their lust for glory) are fantastic examples of Oberstein's cold and calculating thinking.
  - Oberstein's scheme of rounding up scores of former Alliance politicians and high-ranking military officers to use as leverage in negotiations with the Iserlohn Republic is meant to disarm further republican reprisal and hasten a peaceful resolution, instead of wasting more lives in "honorable" combat. It's rendered moot, however, thanks to the Terraists foiling Oberstein's plan by staging a prison riot that kills many of said captives.

- **Let No Crisis Go to Waste**: Oberstein is also known to see opportunity even in chaos.
  - He exploits the growing instability in the Alliance following its failed invasion by setting the pieces in place for the Alliance Civil War. Both to cripple the Alliance further and to keep it distracted while the Lippstadt Rebellion is ongoing.
  - He sees the political turmoil at the end of the Lippstadt Rebellion as a perfect opportunity to have Lichtenlade, the last high-ranking obstacle to Reinhard, removed.

- **Loyal to the Position**: Oberstein proves to be as loyal to the institutions being remade in Reinhard's image as with the man himself.

- **Major Injury Underreaction**: His fatal wound after the Terrarists' bomb his room and he lies dying is ghastly. Oberstein is as calm as ever.

- **Mirror Character**: His lack of friends aside, he is in many ways a dark mirror of Yang Wen-li.
  - He is introduced to us as a strategic advisor to a pig-headed admiral and that admiral not listening causes disaster.
  - He quickly achieves one rank after another once he is released from that admiral. He is a captain when he meets Reinhard, a commodore once he enters his service, a vice admiral during the Lippstadt Rebellion (skipping rear admiral) and a high admiral afterwards (skipping admiral). He jumps from Captain to Fleet Admiral in the space of 3 years, with months to spare. The only other guy to accomplish that is his boss.
  - Has a great understanding of war and it's politics (moreso than any admiral, save for perhaps Yang himself), but is nonetheless not a warrior at heart, unlike other admirals.
  - Neither really gives a damn about fame or glory and see themselves as protectors of the people, rather than as conquerors.
  - Both men are far more socially awkward than the people they work with.
  - Both can be cold and calculating. It's easy to forget but Yang (rightly) advised his commanding officer to abandon a fleet encompassing over a million soldiers, because that fleet would be destroyed before they could do anything.
  - Both believe that government should work in the best interest of the people, not for the ones holding power.
  - Neither of them believe they are suited to be the man at the top and don't have a very high view of themselves.
  - They're the only admirals known to have pets. We constantly see Yang (and Julian's) cat, while we often hear about Oberstein's dog.
  - They both die due to Terraist assassinations and they both die alone, in a sense. Oberstein had people at his side, but they didn't actually know him. Reinhard and his main admirals weren't there when he died.

- **Morton's Fork**:
  - How he carefully rationalizes the need to have Lichtenlade disposed of as the Lippstadt Rebellion ends. Whether or not Lichtenlade was really plotting to kill Reinhard, he's certainly a major threat to any future plans going forward.
  - He similarly devises the Treaty of Ba'alat following the FPA's surrender to the Empire to play out in such a way the no matter what the Alliance does, there's a strong likelihood for Reinhard to intervene in some manner, effectively finishing the job. As it turns out, he's proven right.

- **My God, What Have I Done?**: Has this reaction when his advice causes Kircheis' death, as while they don't really get along he recognized his valor and importance.

- **Necessarily Evil**: Which he pretty much admits himself. He knows that his actions and policies are reprehensible, but considers taking them necessary in order for Reinhard and other more noble figures to achieve their goals.

- **The Needs of the Many**: At his core, this is what Oberstein is all about. He will sacrifice a million to save a billion without batting an eye. He will also sacrifice himself to ensure the survival of Reinhard's dynasty.

- **No Historical Figures Were Harmed**:
  - Like Talleyrand, Oberstein is loyal to his vision of what the empire could and should be, rather than a ruler. Both men would prefer that their emperor would work to consolidate his gains rather than head off to war. The difference is that Oberstein never works to undermine Reinhard (despite what some Imperial admirals think), whereas Talleyrand did try it with Napoleon.
  - The fans call him Cyborg Machiavelli for a reason. Reinhard even compares his thinking to that of Machiavelli.
  - The guy is in many ways what Maximilian Robespierre would have been like had he been reined in....To a degree. Their ruthlessness and utter commitment to their ideal of government is comparable, but Robespierre was famed for his intensely charismatic oratory, whereas Oberstein... isn't. (And of course, more superficially, Robespierre was a dedicated republican, while Oberstein clearly prefers Enlightened Despotism.)
  - Shares similarities with Marshal Louis-Alexandre Berthier, one of Napoleon's most renowned commanders. Berthier was Napoleon's chief of staff and later Minister of War and not renowned as a battle commander, but could execute the emperor's commands to the minutest detail. Berthier supported Napoleon's coup, but also worked against policies that he didn't agree with.

- **No Place for Me There**: Another interpretation behind Oberstein's actions is that he carries out the dirty work needed to make Reinhard's vision for the Empire come to pass so that there would be little need for people like him in the future.

- **No Social Skills**: Perhaps best demonstrated by the one time he interrupted a wedding — and Reinhard's own, no less — to bring Reinhard's attention to some pressing matter of state. Time and place much?
  - It's possible he did it on purpose, to remind Reinhard once more that government business must always precede everything else.

- **Non-Action Guy**: Oberstein is no warrior and doesn't lead any fleets, with his rank being more of a formality than anything else. That said, he is very skilled administrator and spymaster.

- **Pet the Dog**: In a rather literal application of the trope, Oberstein takes an old stray dog into his home for no reason other than simple humanity. As Bittenfeld remarks: "So people hate him, but dogs like him? I guess dogs tend to get along."

- **The Peter Principle**: Played With. When Oberstein is tasked with restoring order in Heinessen alongside Bittenfeld and Müller, he proves to be a very pragmatic yet competent administrator even putting side his plan of rounding up scores of former Alliance politicians and high-ranking military officers to use as bargaining chips against the Iserlohn Republic. On the other hand, his acerbic criticisms of his colleagues and decision to put Bittenfeld under house arrest for insubordination show that he's well outside his element. Had Müller and Wahlen not intervened, it would have led to a bout of needless infighting.

- **Plausible Deniability**: Oberstein has Duke Lichtenlade framed for being complicit in killing Kircheis, and by extension attempting to kill Reinhard himself. Whether or not Lichtenlade really was actively plotting, it helped that Goldenbaum-era law not requiring solid proof makes such charges believable.

- **Psycho Supporter**: Played with. His modus operandi certainly fits, his loyalty to Reinhard as to the key figure in his plan is indisputable.

- **Pragmatic Villainy**: His methods are often reprehensible, but they work, and they often cost less time and effort in the long run to implement. He even accepts the responsibility for them himself which include letting the Westerland Massacre happen, so as to deflect the criticism from falling on Reinhard and derailing his vision of a galactic system built on order and merit.

- **Psycho Sidekick**: Reinhard Doesn't like Oberstein, but keeps him around for this.

- **Token Evil Teammate**: Nobody likes Oberstein (perhaps aside from his aide Ferner) — but it's heavily implied that he wants people to view him as this. Behold, the other admirals' feelings personified in one picture◊.

- **There Can Be Only One**: Why he sees Democracy Is Bad and justifies indirectly getting rid of Kircheis and Reuenthal, as he believes only one central leader is necessary and extra people of competitive power is outright detrimental.

- **The Quiet One**: Not to Eisenach levels, but Oberstein still doesn't talk much.

- **Realpolitik**: Oberstein is an ardent practitioner of this, being as willing to manipulate enemies as he is exploiting his own allies. That said, even at his most calculating and amoral, he consistently keeps the Empire's best interests to heart.

- **Red Right Hand**: His bionic eyes have a way of creeping people out. It doesn't help that his original blindness came from a genetic condition, which in the Empire is still seen as a mark of inferiority; Oberstein himself has noted that, in the bad old days of Kaiser Rudolf, he'd probably have been killed outright under the Inferior Genes Exclusion Act.

- **Riddle for the Ages**: As the narrator himself muses, just how much did Oberstein know and was otherwise aware of? Whatever the answer, he took it with him to the grave.

- **Rule of Symbolism**: His fleet admiral cloak is gray, fitting as you can never quite tell where Oberstein stands on the moral spectrum.

- **Secret-Keeper**: Befitting a spymaster and intelligence officer of his caliber, Oberstein was privy to various secret plans, schemes, and conspiracies, advancing or countering them in the Empire's interest as he saw fit. Yet due to his reclusive nature rather than any ulterior motive, he never discussed much of these to anyone other than perhaps Reinhard or his own subordinates. With his death, the full extent of what he knew would remain a mystery.

- **Sparing Them the Dirty Work**: Oberstein willingly takes up the unenviable task of overseeing, and executing, the wetwork he believes to be necessary for Reinhard's dream to become reality.

- **The Spock**: He places a premium on acting logically and not being swayed by emotional appeals. Next to the rest of Reinhard's admirals, this makes him appear especially ruthless.

- **The Spymaster**: In an official capacity, his duties as a staff officer include gathering intelligence on the enemy and making sense of the reports. Unofficially, while he never acts as head of a security agency, he keeps his ear close to the ground on any matters that involve subterfuge... including taking actions to dispose of rebellious admirals if he deems it necessary.

- **The Stoic**: He keeps his emotions hidden from those around him.

- **Taking the Heat**: When a would-be assassin breaks through Reinhard's security cordon and confronts him over the Westerland Massacre, Oberstein steps forward to take full responsibility, while also explaining in detail why allowing the nuking of two million people saved 10 million more lives and prevented the Lippstadt Rebellion from becoming a much worse bloodbath. While it initially doesn't seem to work on said assassin as he's dragged away it's later revealed that he committed suicide in his cell upon realizing what Oberstein meant.

- **This Is Unforgivable!**: He's the one who allowed the Westerland Massacre. As expected, it shattered the morale of the Lippstadt League's troops, firmly swung the public opinion against them and shortened the Imperial Civil War, but at the price of letting the League nuke two million people, with the very act of using nuclear weapons against a world being considered unforgivable.

- **Totalitarian Utilitarian**: He's unapologetically ruthless about destroying anyone who could pose a real threat to Reinhard or his vision within the Empire, even if only hypothetically, but he justifies this on the basis that it ultimately saves lives in the bigger picture. At one point, in an uncharacteristic display of exasperation, he outright declares that he finds the other admirals' willingness to sacrifice their men's lives at the drop of a hat simply to satisfy their honor as wasteful and pointless.

- **The Unfettered**: There are very few means he won't consider when eliminating a threat — and most of those he won't are more a matter of Pragmatic Villainy than any sort of ingrained revulsion.

- **Verbal Tic**: Take a shot every time he says "desu ne" and make sure you call an ambulance.

- **Vicariously Ambitious**: Oberstein has precious little in the way of personal ambition, but he works to support and elevate Reinhard because he sees him as the Empire's best chance for a strong, enlightened despot.

- **Well-Intentioned Extremist**: His goal is to replace the Goldenbaum Dynasty with one that will not produce monsters as rulers, and unite Mankind under a powerful but just government. His methods are amoral and dishonorable at best.

- **The Extremist Was Right**: His methods work, as shown multiple times, starting from that time he overstretched the supply lines of the Alliance Liberation Fleet (and exposing a large chunk of their transport fleet to a devastating attack) by taking all the food from the planets in its path (as soon as the overstretched supply lines were cut off, the invasion collapsed).

- **What a Senseless Waste of Human Life**: Chews out Reinhard's admirals and even Reinhard himself (though not to his face) for wasting human lives for the sake of glory.

- **Zero-Approval Gambit**: It is suggested that Oberstein takes on the role of an dirtyhanded schemer so Reinhard can remain a popular, heroic figure. This may also have been to relieve tension between some of Reinhard's highest subordinates by giving them someone to hate. (And hate him they do, especially Bittenfeld and Mittermeyer.)