Kidou Senshi Gundam: Suisei no Majo 機動戦士ガンダム水星の魔女

2022 fall | Episodes: 12 | Score: 7.8 (86873)

Updated every Sundays at 17:00 | Status: Finished Airing

Type: TV

Producers:Sotsu | Mainichi Broadcasting System | Bandai Namco Filmworks

Synopsis

Suletta Mercury leaves her planet and enters the Asticassia School of Technology at the behest of her mother. There, right and wrong are determined through duels between students, and the top-ranking duelist will receive Miorine Rembran as their fiancée—this prize being decided by Miorine's father. When Guel Jeturk, the best pilot in school and Miorine's current fiancé, demands that his betrothed move in with him, Suletta disapproves, so Guel challenges her. Although she emerges as champion, Suletta is subsequently detained on suspicion of piloting a forbidden type of mobile suit—a GUND-ARM, or "Gundam"—which results in her victory being voided. Miorine refuses to accept any more injustices and proposes another duel with even higher stakes. Now, Suletta must triumph a second time, otherwise she will be expelled and the Gundam Aerial that means so much to her will be destroyed. [Written by MAL Rewrite]

Voice Actors

Ichinose, Kana

Lynn

News

Reviews

Vrozty
01/12/2024, 07:11 AM
Reviewing as someone who has never watched mecha animes before, let alone the Gundam universe: [Unique, complex, yet fathomable storyline and world-building, characters with all unique personalities and backgrounds which are dived into, and main characters full of 'girlbosses' - inspirational yet humane. All comes together with top notch production and quality as an anime in general (again, not comparing with other mecha animes because I have not watched any other) with fantastic music, sfx, and vfx. 9/10] As a fantasy genre enjoyer, all I can say is Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch from Mercury's world is totally unique and original, yet so complex which is whyfrom its world-building alone, it deserves to be watched by whoever you are. Such well written lore not only for the world and settings itself, but also for each and every single character. There's no character that is an extra, in some ways, because even 'extras' are so well-portrayed that each of their single lines are so vital in whatever scene there is. The fact that they also dive into the background, the motivation, the mindset - the soul of all the main/lead characters is also such a fine work. Although, this is also where Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch from Mercury's imperfections lies. Maybe it's because the complexity of the world itself, that a lot of the character's backgrounds which are dived into and their personalities which are definitive and solid - seems unfinished, or have quite some loose ends. Nevertheless, unless you are SO into one of the characters that fall victim into this imperfection, you should be able to still enjoy all there is to their stories, their souls, as they're so well-written nevertheless. Its plot itself is quite light yet casually brutal, and this is what makes Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch from Mercury stand out from others. This kind of condition makes the anime all the more realistic, because that is life - it may be quiet but the next second can be a storm. But of course, that is to say if you accept such extreme twists in the direction of an anime, which might be a minus if you don't. However, all the twist and turns of the story is essential and is well-written, so do open your heart for them and enjoy the rollercoaster. It still contributes to me taking a point from my score for the anime, though, because I believe a nice mixture of lightness and seriousness/brutality is very much possible to be achieved in a more balanced way, maybe even in each of the episodes (which I've seen possible in k-dramas which often is romance-comedy yet also action/thriller at the same time) which the dynamic of the plot in this anime... is quite far from that. But like I said, open your heart and enjoy. The production and quality is what I'd expect from such a big franchise, which is very high in quality and detail. I mean, it's all the craze in the model kit building community with all the unique mechanics and stuff, or so I've heard. Therefore, there's nothing to comment on, other than emphasizing how well-made it is. All the visuals, the sound effects, the music - perfection. In conclusion, definitely a must-watch for fantasy anime enjoyers (even if you've never watched [or enjoyed] mecha animes before!). Unique and inspiring, a wonderful commercial creation.
Vyaiskaya
11/03/2023, 03:21 PM
Do make sure to start with the prologue. Wow. Suisei no Majo, Witch of Mercury really blew me away. The 2020's are only beginning and still, they seem to be awash with amazing advances in anime. Animation and sound are all extremely on point. What I really enjoy about GWM is just how character driven it is. While that's in mny ways true of all Gundam series, in this case, it's not just one characters philosophical ideas being put to the test, but their emotions reach new depths in GWM. Animation of emotions and subtleties betwixt characters is extraordinary. I have to say, this carriesthe torch in many ways where Evangelion took off. Pilots being real people. As for the plot, it's Gundam - it's filled with politics. This time around it's corporate politics, and framed between several settings: the school for the kids of premiere companies, the companies themselves, and the larger political/geographic bodies (Earth, Mars, the Colonies). GWM has had both some of the most touching heartfelt moments, and some of the absolutely most brutal and soul crushing episodes of drama. The characters are also adorable, and it's so easy to connect and relate with them. The framing of their psychologies is extremely articulate. It's a great medium and showcase for dealing with real world psychology and characters of diverse and rounded personalities. GWM exceeds my expectations, knocking 00 out as #2 and so far at least tying with Wing as my favourite Gundam series. Everyone in Wing is institutionable, and the voice actors were phenomenal. The series had some clunk due to restraints at the time, however, GWM is a tight ship. Happy Birthday to you.
DISKOWN
05/05/2023, 11:57 PM
Kidou Senshi Gundam: Suisei no Majo is a promising first step for the series. While the season starts off slow with a focus on character and story development, it eventually builds up to an exciting climax. The narrative is well-crafted, but unfortunately, the ending leaves the audience hanging without a satisfying conclusion. The characters are unique and compelling, each with their own motivations. However, the implementation of CG is subpar, especially in the earlier episodes, and too much screen time is given to side characters who don't add much to the plot (at least in this season). Overall, Kidou Senshi Gundam: Suisei no Majo isa decent entry, but it can't stand up on its own. It will require competent further seasons to truly shine and become something special.
seaoftranquility
05/01/2023, 01:22 PM
Abandonment, discrimination, war, pain, unfulfilled belonging and most of all bittersweet personal relationships. All the main components of a good Gundam show can be found in this installment that makes an excellent entry point for newcomers to the Gundam franchise. The atmosphere in Witch from Mercury is delicate and rough at times. The air gets warm and comes towards you for an embrace, only to violently become cutthroat in just a few seconds (just like the main character's mother). The juxtaposition of these feelings takes the main stage and the team behind the anime makes great efforts to keep you on the edge at all times.Initially, the viewer might be fooled by the pastel colour palette and the ordinary setting of another highschool mecha anime but this anime is far more than this. Watching it you will confront your childlike innerself and come to terms with the hedgehog's dilemma that getting closer to others comes at the price of being hurt yourself. Suletta Mercury, the MC, is a country bumpkin from the planet closest to the Sun. The choice of planet is important as symbolism in Witch from Mercury exists even in the finest details, making it a wonderful re-watching experience as well. For instance, the choice of having Mercury as the home planet makes great sense as it's a planet of extremes. Though plain and grey at sight, with a close look a whole microcosm of colours opens in it's atmosphere. The same could be said about this anime, Suletta is portrayed as happy go round girl that wants to live her best highschool life and tick off items from her 'finally get away from home list'. This gets quickly dismantled by the feeling of alienation and despair that she suffers due to being the only student from Mercury and one that stands out due to her unpolished behaviour. The experience of watching Witch from Mercury is similar to that of listening to the opening. You are filled with hope for a better future and are rooting for the underdog at all times. You are being drip fed with rays of sunshine and can feel the battles taking your breath away. The suspense is on point and the filmography and choreography is simply stunning. However, as all good things in life, the anime will take, at times, abrupt downturns leaving you thinking that maybe in fact everything is a lie. For this season, the only downside is not being excellent at anything. The shows is definitely very good, that meaning above mediocre with a good outlook to become great. There is a lot of foreshadowing and hopefully there will be a deeper dive into the characters as to understand more points of view. Gundam: Witch from Mercury is a good recommendation for anyone who enjoys a bit of laughter and happiness while pondering existentialist questions and debating the nature of humanity.
BrettWatchesTV
03/16/2023, 10:18 PM
This is my first gundam anime so my perspective might vary from others—I didn’t even know this was a part of other mecha anime stories! In all, this show was really fun to watch. From the start, you have Suletta, the main character who is timid and confident at the same time. A protagonist that isn’t just in your face with their confidence is always a good change of pace. She still shows confidence in that she knows when her own skills are better than those around her. She’s also firm on her beliefs. She has a 1-1.5 episode arc that has her doubt herselfa bit but ultimately that builds for more growth with Mirione. Mirione is also a really great co-protagonist. She might not sell you at first, but after a few episodes she shows that she’s really creative and quick to solve problems that Suletta couldn’t. The rest of the cast is also very entertaining. The main cast being almost entirely women is also great and this show gives them all robust personalities and no fan service nonsense. There’s a lot of themes of getting over the patriarchy, while being made from an organic premise involving controlling parents and greedy businesses. The prologue episode sold me on this, but it does change tone following that episode. I recommend watching the first two episodes and hopefully you get hooked on it as quickly as I did! I can’t wait for season two.
MurasameKills
02/19/2023, 12:42 AM
This anime can be summed up in one word. Boring. I have been a Gundam fan my entire life and this is easily the weakest entry into the series. The prequel to this series showed us a hardboiled, dark and distant future that had promise, but the actual anime is a high school drama with mecha duels. The whole premise of the show is basically Gundam girl shows up at a mobile suit academy where corporate disputes and power struggles are settled by children dueling one on one in mobile suits while they also use the duels to settle their petty high school dramas amongstthemselves. The characters are bland. The protagonist is a stuttering crybaby and a fool. The pseudo philosophy is half baked. Daddy issues abound left and right. The animation is decent and that's about the only positive that I have to share. Some may criticize the queer aspects of the anime but homosexuality is nothing new for Japan. However, having this much focus on romance and marriage proposals and fiancées really has me wondering who this anime is marketed towards? Gundam has a long history of being a shounen anime set in desperate wars that have left humanity ravaged where a hero or heroes are forged to lead us to a brighter future with tons of great mecha battles generously peppered throughout. Meanwhile this anime may as well be called "Gundam the Girly High School Drama Edition." In fact, this so called "gundam" series has a very strong resemblance to another anime titled "Revolutionary Girl Utena" which is a shojo anime and while good in it's own right, it really begs the question of who this anime is made for? I can't help but wonder who is giving this anime such great reviews other than progressive westerners who see the queer angle and are putting this on a pedestal thinking "Yes! Japan is finally embracing our wokeness!" without realizing that is not what Japan is doing. This anime is just Japan being Japan. It is Japanese creators ripping off an older anime, copy pasting yet another high school drama where kids play out the struggles of adults. This is nothing we haven't seen before a million times in other anime's, it's just the first time we are seeing it in Gundam. To be honest, (and as a side note) I am really getting tired of the school setting trope in seasonal anime as only a few have managed to pull it off well. Is there a slump in the creativity in Japan as there has been for the last decade here in the west? TL;DR Boring. If you want real Gundam action check out literally any other Gundam series as this one is the worst and is Gundam in name only. Overall Rating: 1
BabyCakesThe3rd
01/12/2023, 11:40 AM
This is not a review, mainly a short brief as to why this isn't the a gundam show you want to watch. Basically Gundam is a war story that attracts you by using giant robots instead of conventional warfare. but This doesn't mean all gundam shows have to be about the same thing, each version of the franchise brings their own flavor to the table and allows for different perspectives and topics to handle. For example: If you want a war between 2 sides, anything UC will suffice Do you want war but nothing too long winded and straight to the point, watch Wing or 00 Do you wantcool mecha fights as the main focus, watch Iron blooded orphans If you want no plot at all and just like the robots watch Build fighters But regardless of your taste, Witch from Mercury doesn't satisfy any of these, it tries to emulate some of the selling oints of other gundam shows, but fails to truly commit to any of it making it come off as half assed. Essentially this is not a review, just a rant from a pathetic fan who didn't get what I came for so I came onto the internet to complain :)
nickzz235
01/11/2023, 10:12 PM
Gundam Witch of the Mercury has a strong and promising prologue that sets the stage for a dark and intricate story of space warfare and politics. However, the approach taken by G-Witch after the prologue is to shift the focus to the daily life at an academy, following the main character Suletta. With all the typical academy tropes in modern anime, it certainly gives a different impression from what the audience might have expected from the prologue. I can understand why many people are disappointed by this. The pacing in the academy is also quite slow and uses the formula of giving each character their ownepisode arc. However, I also see potential for building up the political intrigue among the characters and organizations that is slowly unfolding in these academy episodes. This is also the first cour of the series, and I see potential for something bigger in the future. Throughout the academy episodes, we are also introduced to the character of Sulleta who embodies the INFP trope, being awkward, shy, honest, too good and naive, trying to navigate school life where other characters have their own political motives. We also see some character development from Sulleta as she tries to socialize. I might be a bit biased here because as an INFP myself, I can relate to Sulleta's character and her fears in dealing with the intrigues of academy life. Additionally, there are also racial issues displayed in the world of G-Witch and even within the academy itself, adding further complexity and intrigue to the overall story. There are also some accusations that the show is "queerbaiting," but in my opinion, it's not a problem as long as the character development is not forced (and so far for me it's not). If you find "queerbaiting" to be an issue, you may want to skip this series. In my opinion, the academy episodes could have been condensed more to avoid making the audience feel like too little is happening and causing them to drop the series. However, I want to give the series a chance because I feel that the build-up in the prologue and finale from first cour will lead to a bigger and more complex story, while still providing a light-hearted delivery (which may not be everyone's cup of tea). Overall, because of its light-hearted delivery, I also believe it could be a good starting point for the Gundam franchise, as long as you don't mind this kind of presentation (especially modern academy tropes)
Nekozah
01/10/2023, 09:47 AM
Non spoiler review. This is easily one of the greatest anime of 2022, and probably one of my favorite ever, even after watching over 600 different titles. This series takes a huge leap for Gundam and creates a series that I feel even non mecha fans can appreciate and fall in love with. The animation, dialogue, and story here is absolutely top tier. This anime is absolutely rated too low. I don't give many anime a perfect 10 but this is one of them. I 100% say you should watch this show and enjoy this amazing piece of work. The story premise isn't really your typicalGundam story, and I feel they definitely branched out with this series. The art and animation was absolutely beautiful and didn't have cheesy CGI, it felt as if the mobile suits had genuine movement and animation. There were some incredibly well written characters in this story and the stories behind them keep you hooked up until the end, where you can't wait to see how season 2 turns out. Watch. This. Show. 100%
azura444
01/09/2023, 11:09 AM
Might be one of the most surprisingly very clean and depth Gundam Series after Gundam Iron Blooded Orphans in terms of character building and plot execution. If you thought that this is just some Gundam Build Fighters type of shit series that only focuses on battle, making friends, slice of life, and your everyday academy life with some Yuri/Lesbian spice on top of it you are completely wrong because i thought that too at first and have been completely blown away by the last 4 episode where they slowly by slowly unveil their plot and showcasing that this is not even close to become aYur SOL anime. For people who quick judge and drop this Gundam Series because of LGBT or Yuri reason please just get out of here because this anime has a lot of character building and sometimes after watching it for several episodes you asked yourself if it's too long of an introduction arc? is it too draggy? but no, all got answered in this episode number 12. This 11 whole episode were meant to setup it's first season ending and damn the setup really pays off. You've been brainwashed by it's slow paced character introduction arc to make you feel attached to Suletta. When you feel that you are comfortable with the MC everything turned upside down, Suletta is not your timid, shy tanuki that wouldn't be able to do something like that while smiling (heavily reference the ep 12). I wouldn't spoil anything but this series completely turns 180 degrees from Gundam Build Fighters vibe into Gundam Iron Blooded Orphans and honestly i'm intrigued of what will come after this because there's no more lovey dovey high school lives, this is war and Suletta holds the key to the victory itself. "nigetara hitotsu, susume wa futatsu"
robert788
01/09/2023, 04:38 AM
Kidou Senshi Gundam: Suisei no Majo (2022) Well, that prologue was an amazing setup! The first few episodes were somewhat epic but felt very much more about the damaged children as a result of parents who probably didn't really want children. It then levels out into a slice of life and ends with a conflict. Even once it's ending, you think that's it right? Wait for part 2? Nah, a post-credit scene that is about as dark as they come. What a show! Going from let's support each other forever to downright disgust in such a short time. Suletta by the end of part 2 iseither going to be the hero that unifies all or a monster that is uncontrollable to be taken down. The show is leaving a lot to our imagination. I can see her changing sides more than once based on her desire to be needed so desperately. We have seen in many shows where you have emotion-controlled monsters or 'heroes' but not very often are they the main character or so well developed. The artwork is superb, it is a modern rendition of Gundam. It is not old but new and it is welcomed in. Gundam is now sort of like Pokemon, in that it resets to every new set of viewers after a time. The soundtrack was pretty good overall, nothing really special going on. Combat does sound awesome! The characters center around Suletta who is as damaged as they come but then so is everyone here. It is another classic Japanese trope of let's have the adults watch the world burn and leave it to the kids. Overall, I enjoyed this show, the second part should be much better and more action-packed since this part has set the scene. 8/10.
WeaponWeapon
01/08/2023, 11:45 AM
"If you run away, you gain one. If you move forward, you gain two." This quote has been floating around in this series throughout the episodes. Everyone has to move forward to obtain their goal, even if it is uncomfortable to reach. Since our main character, Suletta, is sensitive and afraid of exposure to new things, she uses this idea to encourage herself to move out of her comfort zone. Miorine (Mio Mio) is also affected by this idea and stopped to run away from her father. Although the first few episodes are slices of life + mecha action on repeat, it is slowly developing itsstory and characters throughout the episodes. The season finale is satisfying and a good build-up for the second season. The story is about a school with a political and business setting in the background. The duel in the school can affect business decisions, personal decisions, school policies, etc. The winner decides over the loser. It may seem idiotic at first glance. However, this is a mobile-suit school that selects its best pilots and engineers. Presidents of the companies purposely place their children in school for their political bullshittery. For example, a political marriage can give an advantage to the companies, just as a mobile suit duel can force someone into a marriage. The school is there to help companies advertise their latest mobile suits and to use children as tools for their benefit. It is interesting to see a school as a tool for companies' power plays instead of the mundane school setting. It evolved into a more serious tone in the later episodes of the first season. Suletta is such a cinnamon roll. She is a kind person who tends to overthink things sometimes. Also, Suletta has anxiety about human relationships and communication, as she stutters a lot at the beginning of the series (the stuttering disappeared as she interacted more with people). Her experiences in Mercury (before she came to school) shaped her that way. Her critical thinking was blinded when she was questioning her mom. Lady Prospera (Suletta's mother) usually has the "perfect" answer for Suletta to swallow. Suletta will make sense of it and blindly move on. Her manipulative relationship with Suletta is crappy, and she looks very suspicious throughout Season 1. However, she made the right decisions in the show and helped our main character develop. Moreover, her ideology is not wrong and is agreeable (at least in season 1). On the other hand, Miorine (Mio Mio) is a cool-headed person who is very heated from the inside. She misunderstands her dad and slowly gets to know him more in later episodes. Mio Mio has to make the decisions that change her as a person. Overall, she is a logical person with a little bit of tsundere in her blood. 3D mecha animation has been terrorizing anime in recent years. This show has 95 percent 2D mecha animation, which is a relief for me. The animation in this show is phenomenal and exciting to watch. The 2D mecha animation is so clean and smooth to watch, unlike the jerky 3D mecha animation. This is a flesh air for me. This looks more passionate than most anime productions today. The character design and expression are also on point in this show. The face of Suletta being happy, anxious, or sad is pretty expressive. The action scenes are fluid and great to watch. The sound design during the action scenes is impressive. The shield blocks and different rifles sound sexy, and they are satisfying to listen to. The soundtrack is gorgeous and magnificent. It gains a sense of epicness and beauty in the scene. The vocal of the ost has so much power that it lifts the action from 10/10 to 11/10. When a show is mixed with fantastic animation and an epic soundtrack, it becomes a magical and unforgettable experience for the viewers. This show is perfect for newcomers and old fans of mecha. Although the show is slowly telling its story, please give it time to show the entire story; it is going to be rewarding. If you are not a fan of slice-of-life anime, this show may be a turn-off in the beginning. Suletta and Mio Mio have pretty good chemistry with each other. They are good friends who have been covering and protecting each other throughout the series. Whoever is in need, the other will come to the rescue. I love the animation, soundtrack, interesting story, and character development of this show. We can all learn from the central message of the Witch of Mercury. Gundam: Witch From Mercury rating: 8 Mio Mio out of 10
Fukiri
01/08/2023, 11:16 AM
This was written to give my honest opinion but also to clarify wrong assumptions a few reviewers have made either by not watching the show fully (this is why you should or don’t write a review at all) or by being blind/salty. Look what you made me do. You made me write this and put effort into it. So many years here and this is my first review. Damn you all. This review has no spoilers besides what you can read in the anime’s synopsis. Gundam The Witch from Mercury is the new newbie friendly entry of this franchise, which means any one not familiar with theshow can watch it standalone without having to watch previous Gundam entries. I’m one such person so I’m not going to be comparing it to other Gundam titles, not that I think it should be despite what some veterans seem to be doing, it’s a standalone show after all. Story (10/10) The story focuses on Suletta Mercury’s adventures navigating school life, which doesn’t seem to be peaceful at all for our protagonist. The school has a dueling system that decide all kind of matters depending on the victor’s stakes but also who is to marry Miorine Rembran, the daughter of the director. Suletta wins the first duel and is now declared Miorine’s groom. I will take this opportunity to say, this show isn’t queerbait and is extremely LGBTQ friendly. That being said, keep in mind this is the first cour and as I can’t yet predict the future despite my hardest attempts, I can’t speak for the next cour. However, what you see here is very genuine and there aren’t other interpretations for it. This show is focused on their budding relationship, with their ups and downs. Relationships not being a straight line of rainbows and unicorns does not a queerbait make. Besides, we gays are used to suffer for happiness, yes? Yes. Anyway… The framing of the duels and Miorine’s greenhouse, will be very reminiscent of Utena, which is understandable as the man behind G-Witch’s script, Ichirou Ookouchi, was also the one behind the manga version of this anime. (As such, to my fellow reviewers saying it’s a rip-off of their favorite anime, maybe you should have researched it better about who also helped making your favorite show good.) The level of symbolism in comparison isn’t as deep however, it’s hardly superficial as well and it’s enough for a show that isn’t surrealist like the former and is more grounded in our reality, decrying the grim realities of capitalism how ruthless it can be. Some examples of symbolism are the greenhouse as Miorine’s favorite place representing her acceptance of people and how she sees them and how they act towards her, the tomatoes representing the relationship between characters and the overall lighting in certain scenes. The show draws a stark comparison between the relationship between Suletta and Miorine and how it develops, sometimes subtly yet just as meaningfully, into a rich and tightly knit relationship based on support and the world of the adults, full of ploys and plots in desperate attempts at achieving their goals even at the cost of treating their own children as tools. All of this is enveloped in mysteries for which we can only theorize an answer, such as the incident depicted in the prologue and its repercussions and the nature of Aerial which seems to be one of the greatest question marks in the show. Regardless, expect the unexpected, that’s what this kind of story is, sometimes developments will catch you off-guard by the developments, much to my delight. Characters (9/10) The characters are expertly written and tend to be way more than it seems at first. They feel like actual people which is a breath of fresh air for me. Both Suletta and Miorine are layered and nuanced characters, each defined by their respective pasts and traumas, there is no action they make that can’t be explained by the experiences that defined them as a person, being it Suletta’s unabated helpfulness towards others or Miorine’s pragmatic yet caring personality. They are both beautifully written and their development is a joy to watch as the show doesn’t spell it out for the viewer like a shounen anime and instead trusts the audience to understand their 'show, don't tell' writing. The supporting cast is as much a joy to watch, with each of them with their own goals, motivations and struggles. They’re very layered as well (looking at you, Guel and Nika), they interact well with the protagonists, sometimes as foils, and remain important throughout the narrative instead of being treated like cardboard cutouts as you often see in recent shows. They add drama, comedy and wholesomeness to the story and they all serve a purpose. You love to see it. The adults are a bit contrasting with the kids yet just as layered, often portrayed as masterminds and looming over their children. Special mention to Prospera who seemingly plays 5D on the weekends and is very hard to get a read on. She’s a major propeller of the narrative in spite of not having as much focus as the main characters. My only complaints thus far are the characters that make up the entourage of one of the rivals, as it stands they are nothing but a checklist of tropes for me. That being said, they’re also not relevant so I’m willing to give it a pass. Animation (9/10) While it has their very rare instances of rough around the edges bits, the animation is consistently amazing. The show is mostly 2d which is impressive considering the fast pace of mobile suit battles, they sometimes swap to CGI mostly in non-key situations but it’s hardly noticeable at all in 90% of the scenes. It’s honestly a great blend and it stays consistent throughout the show. The animation of the characters’ expressions, emotional moments, even key scenes that don’t involve mechas are expertly and lovingly animated, sometimes even to the point of being reminiscent to how Ghibli works with characters’ movements and expressions. Music (10/10) It slaps as hard as Aerial does. Enough said. In short: G-Witch is an amazing, unpredictable rollercoaster of a show. It’s not a break-neck speed of a story and is meant to be enjoyed with time even if it isn’t a slow-burner either. It’s clearly a passion project and you can see the love this anime staff has for it at all times. The animation will leave both veterans and newbies satisfied and the music will hype up any scene. Don’t expect an indiscriminate anime with constant colony drops but also don’t expect a wholesome slice-of-life story where nothing happens. Prepare to see the characters fight their way to satisfying developments at all times. Assume the tone the prologue sets is the tone you will get in this show and watch it until the end before making baseless assumptions like many reviewers here. Brace your heart. A lovingly crafted masterpiece for me, I’m hoping the next cour continues the zero disappointing episodes streak.
cosmicturtle0
01/08/2023, 09:23 AM
*SPOILER-FREE* The original Gundam, the inventor of the "Real Robot" genre, thrived on a gritty, human depiction of what war might be like in the future, and it was so damn good at it that Sunrise spent the next 40 years trying to replicate and build off that success. Now I'm here after having watched all of the Universal Century (Gundam's main timeline), so obviously it's my cup of tea. But I don't blame anyone for not wanting to explore such a daunting franchise, especially when the entry point is 49 episodes of outdated 1979 animation. Over the years, Sunrise has tried with varying degrees of successto create one-off shows that appeal to current anime tastes, which has sometimes worked (Gundam Wing, Seed, 00, and Iron Blooded Orphans all had their 15 minutes of fame). But all you need to do is check out the Mobile Suit Gundam page and take a look at the spin-offs the franchise has attempted over the past twenty years to see the types of stories it has insisted on telling. Hint: every single one has the word "war," "coup," or "revolution," in it. For some people (me), it's an awesome thing. Giant robots fighting space wars--who could ask for anything more? But for the average anime fan who looks at upcoming shows and thinks, "hmm, what would I like to watch this season?", the thought of sinking your teeth into a full-blown political conflict with the weight of the Gundam name attached to it is a bit much to handle. Enter the Witch from Mercury, a show that takes everything tired and stale about Gundam and tosses it out the window. Gone are the simple days of the Earth Federation vs. the Principality of Zeon, the enemy-of-the-week types of wars of the past, and in their place comes a modern story involving mega-corporations, political factions, revolutionary technology, and a school setting. It's a breath of fresh air for Gundam and for anime as a whole, because while this show does away with a lot of old tropes and repurposes them into something new, the core of what has always made Gundam great is still there: character drama in times of conflict. It's just that the franchise has decided to tell this story in a more modern way by leaning into current anime convention. And this is what make this show stand out Nowhere is this clearer than in the characters. All the modern stereotypes are accounted for: the tsundere, the loud one, the shy one, the cute one, the popular kids, the losers-who-are-not-actually-losers. And of course, Suletta Mercury, not only Gundam's first female protagonist but also its first with red hair, and its first with a stutter. Suletta has the tragic backstory of a typical Gundam protagonist, and just like her predecessors she's involved in something greater than herself, something she doesn't really understand. But by making her a nervous girl who wants nothing more than to be liked at school, the show is really able to explore both sides of its story: the school and political worlds. Both are blended together within her, as they are within every character. Because while Gundam has always made it a priority to explore its characters, pinning these modern, conventional stereotypes up against a background of space politics makes them into real, believable, honest-to-god people who feel like a product of their world, and of our current times. And this creates, as the original Gundam did, a future that we could actually see. Because that's what Gundam is: it has something to say. It doesn't cheap out on its characters, or its stories, or its themes just to appeal to the mainstream (at one time, it was the mainstream). But what the franchise has seemingly had trouble accepting over the past twenty years is that that isn't the case anymore, and even though I'm a big fan of the Witch from Mercury and the direction that its taken, I have a hard time seeing it ever reaching those former heights. But that's fine. Gundam already revolutionized anime once, it doesn't need to do it again. What it needs to do is to tell the best story possible for the times we're living in. The Witch from Mercury has figured it out. And hopefully, it shows people just discovering the franchise what its fans have always known: Gundam fucking rocks.
Gsarthotegga
01/08/2023, 08:27 AM
The Prologue to The Witch from Mercury was a mostly poor and unneeded forerunner for the series. Now we get to see a new Gundam for the current generation, many of whom probably missed out on older entries to the long-running franchise. What do we get? Instead of following around adolescent male protagonist soldiers, we get our first female protagonist and school life, only this academy is a colony that may or may not get dropped, but it definitely should get the latter treatment. With the entire cast locked inside. The setting and early plot points are highly reminiscent of Revolutionary Girl Utena. We havea familiar looking academy, just updated with sci-fi scenery; d-d-duels are a primary part of the plot; a few characters are battling over waifus, corporate contracts, pride, and flat-out dumb reasons like a kindergarten show and tell of feelings. Suletta accidentally gets engaged to a very bratty, immature, whiny tsundere female named Miorine near the beginning—certain scenes held up side by side smack of imitation, and if you've seen Utena, the similarities can be a little tedious and, frankly, inauthentic. Yet these comparisons are superficial, as TWfM doesn't do anything especially notable with these ideas, as Utena did—the staff just reused a bit of the icing to dress up their Easy-Bake Oven cake. In fact, this show would be better if it were a knock-off of Utena instead of the bland Mobile Suit Gundam: Mercury Witch High School series that it becomes. A perfect comparison of the two would be to point out how Anthy in Utena tends to a rose garden, while Miorine is growing tomatoes. Roses are associated with aesthetic beauty, while tomatoes have a more basic function. Yet no one eats these tomatoes. TWfM is the non-aesthetic tomato left to rot on the vine. From what I can tell and based on commentary from the staff, it does appear TWfM is yuri bait of a very touchy-feely variety, and the two leads will remain close friends. However, I suppose future installments of TWfM could become a real yuri. Given the storytelling employed thus far, it probably SHOULD be a yuri, but it doesn't look like it will. Usually when you have these kind of unwitting fiance plots, there's tension and a possibility they might develop feelings for one another, so it at least has some significance, but that doesn't even appear to be there. What we have appears to be a weird bait and switch to get the two closely entwined and to stir controversy and generate interest in a cheap fashion. The yuri bait at first appeared to be like "No, father, I will defy your arranged marriage because it doesn't line up with the target audience's values, but instead of casting it aside all together this girl I met yesterday will be my new suitress, and it's not like I like her or anything, b-baka!" Whereas Utena also wasn't REALLY a yuri (it's complicated), it had a kind of fairytale-filtered and surreal take on themes of lesbianism and feminism, which at least were handled in a confident manner; on the other hand, TWfM is content to recycle a key plot point in a way that is merely distracting. And, indeed, it seems it will just be yuri bait in the same way that most shounen tend to engage in "romance bait," where there is this vague kind-of-sort-of-but-not-really relationship that is just a heightened affection implied by googly-eyes, blushes, stammering embarrassment (we'll get plenty of that either way...), and occasional cringe humor, but it never goes anywhere for like 200-300 episodes. Except this is even more of a not-romance than that! As this is a shounen promising the "rose-tinted" high school/university life, we're sure to get a not-romance of this nature within a not-romance of some other fashion, so this is like a matryoshka doll of banal not-romances waiting to be unraveled. The worst part of all is that I'd rather not have the plot be bogged down with OMG BESTIES! LET'S TELL EACH OTHER OUR SECRETS AND COUNT OUR BOO BOOS AND PAINT OUR NAILS MATCHING COLORS or a yuri romance sailing short ship. Romance has always been a part of Gundam, but these "intrigues of the heart" tend to be thin and secondary to politics, action, and other character dynamics. Alternative candidates for romance are Elan and Guel, but I'd rather have NO ROMANCE, as these characters are just not built for romancing. The characters are generic. Suletta stands out not so much for being a female protagonist as she does a jittery, anxious mess of a character who s-s-stutters and doesn't complett... sentences verr good, and hides behind people when things get heated and shakes in her boots. I keep thinking she's going to shake her way off a balcony or a cliff out of nervousness; that is, when she's not sounding like a self-help book, in or out of battle. We get a double-dose of tsundere push-pull, not only with the aforementioned brat, but also with "Chuchu," whose name is a direct reference to Utena, and she sports a goofy pink cotton candy Minnie Mouse-eared hairdo. When we compare characters to food, tsundere are usually "spicy," but this one is "sweet." Usually, there is a kind of balance for the most feisty of tsunderes, but they make her as irritating as possible, so her "character development" will be easier. Just a revolting character in all ways, and if the staff had any respect for the audience, she would be the first to be vaporized by a beam rifle. Though you could make that a triple latte, as Guel Jeturk (is this supposed to sound like cruel jerk?) is a male tsundere, because we just needed another one. While Elan may end up one of the more interesting characters due to plot purposes, all you need to know about him is that he's referred to as the "I-I-Ice P-Prince" and he has about as much personality as a sheet of ice. His initial arc is meant to be the first great emotional high point, but it feels so shockingly flat, part of that being a product of his emptiness as a character. The costume design consists of the most baggy "Does this make me look fat?" school uniforms I've ever seen, and the character design is mostly hampered by ill-fitting costumes, and while they're not too bothersome at first, I yearn to see the art of just about any other Gundam when watching this. The mobile suits look so shiny and brand new as to have just been r-ripped out of the plastic wrap at the toy store. It can be a mixed bag, but they actually integrate the CGI pretty well most of the time. Sometimes the mechs become very detailed or more hand-drawn looking. The battles are also surprisingly decent, fairly well-animated much of the time, and the stunts they pull during combat are inventive enough to the point that it feels like we might have different schools of combat, which is a plus. Gundam usually succeeds when it comes to combat and production values at least. Given that this is, to my knowledge, the first gundam that has a fixation on school life, as opposed to war, it's a necessity to make a few comparisons here to past series. The tone is a bit childish, and I wonder if this will remain the case once we're thrust into the war, or if the silly tone will somehow remain omnipresent for the entire duration—the characters, the visuals, etc., really make me think this will remain a circus (the ending is a hilarious contrast, though). Despite being a show targeting teens (probably younger as well) and first airing in 1979, the original Mobile Suit Gundam was a hell of a lot darker and more mature than TWfM to the point that it makes me blush. A real problem is the amount of p-p-p-plot armor stacked on Suletta. A main character, by definition, has plot armor. If they're dead, the story is over, usually. But as the duels arose, one by one, there was a clear pattern when it came to the victor, and less tension every time. Comparing this to the original MSG, Amuro started the series as an amateur who essentially learned fast and could adapt to the Gundam better than your average human, while also piloting an advanced model. Both of these perks gave him an edge over combatants, but his inexperience was often taken advantage of, especially when the seasoned Char would knock him around. The plot had enough unpredictability that Amuro would lose, have his Gundam totaled, nearly die, have to retreat, etc. War allows for a lot of possibilities. It's really not quite as varied with dueling. It's b-binary: you win or you lose. The stakes are set so high by the opponents that for Suletta to lose, would mean the series ending. Either she is forced to leave the academy or give up her Gundam or various other ultra-high stakes which would muck up the plot if she were to lose. It's possible you could make her lose with those stakes and somehow regain what she's lost by some means, but the writers seem content to not only remove nearly all tension, but to take the standard route of Suletta is like Amuro, but she starts off as an ace pilot who can't lose. They even use the she's an anxious klutz at everything, but by golly she's an adept of the highest order when she sets foot in that Gundam and fights, trope, as if to rub it in our faces. The story consists of a bunch of threads that aren't woven together in an especially compelling way. Suletta acquaints herself with various characters, the scenes being drawn out a bit longer to give her room to stutter. Shrill Miorine working out daddy issues and the yuri manipulation. There is some messy love geometry. Kids being kids, which should more accurately be referred to as high school/college freshman acting like they're in grade school. Light corporate dynamics—which are the only thing making the duels standout, so it's a shame this aspect is so weak. Multicultural/multiplanetal and inclusive Earthians (fat characters, anime, really?) without a gym versus exclusive and elitist Spacian clans with free gym membership. Drama leading to d-d-duels that span most of an episode. It might appear quite busy or complex from a distance, but when you look at the constituent parts, there's hardly anything of substance. There's so much going on that we get the bare minimum of everything, and a whole lot of mech battles with no tension, but they're cool and flashy at least. Suletta Mercury seems to be from Tomino's Dunbine school of character naming, with such classics as Frozen Marvel and Weapon Shot, and the world they inhabit in that series is a fantasy/sci-fi spin on the medieval period. Similar to early periods of history, her pseudonymous surname evokes her point of origin, which led me to imagine a solar system spanning epic like Five Star Stories, and I was thinking of the Gundam pilots as honorable knights hailing from different feudal space kingdoms. It would have been a cool revamp, but instead we get something that's supposed to be relatable to a new zoomer audience, so we get lame stuff like school competition and d-d-duels, anxious teens, manipulative teens, bullying teens, and just a whole lot of angst and attitude. Y-y-yawn.
ApocalypSnow
01/08/2023, 04:43 AM
Whether you’re a veteran Gundam fan or have never gotten into the series, Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch from Mercury will be a fun watch! This is the first Gundam anime I’ve watched. I know almost nothing about Gundam, but the world-building in the anime is excellent. By starting in space with the protagonist Suletta Mercury reporting a stray astronaut to the space police, we get a sense of the scope of this world right away. We’re up for an interstellar treat where space stations have been established to the point of a rescue system, an academy, and freaking bureaucracy. I love it. Suletta is an interestingprotagonist. She’s timid and stammers, but she has heart and stands up for herself and others when needed. By defying the space police and rescuing space princess Miorine Rembran on her own, she shines as her own character, with a lot of heroic potential. Through a series of tomato-related events, she also ends up being shipped with Miorine. I didn’t expect a yuri Gundam, but I’m all for it, especially since Suletta and Miorine have cute chemistry and plenty of moments throughout the anime that develop them as characters. Miorine is a classic tsundere, but she learns humility and shines on her own before opening up to Suletta. My main criticism is the Gundam itself. For an anime called Mobile Suit Gundam, there isn’t much mobile suit Gundam. Conflicts among schoolmates are resolved by one-sided mecha duels; they’re one-sided because one mecha is clearly superior to the other. The duels get boring when the same team keeps winning. And instead of exploring the mystery of Gundam, which I’m guessing is covered in another Gundam anime, Miorine and Suletta decide to promote Suletta’s mecha Aerial and make money. At least this plot is used to develop the main duo/ship. Bonus points for both the OP and ED being fire! YOASOBI doing the OP is a stellar choice. ^^
MakkusuUnfilwin
01/08/2023, 04:07 AM
From what I hear, Witch From Mercury was conceptualized with the intent of bringing in a whole new audience to the Gundam property—mainly modern teenagers, who apparently, according to one of the show’s producers, don’t care about the Gundam franchise because of their inability to relate to it. As an attempt to remedy that issue, and reel in this new, sought-after demographic, the leads were chosen to be two high school-aged girls, and the premise to be mapped out as a high school battle anime, in the vein of someshit like Utena, if you believe the comparisons. On paper, this sounds awful—a vein way ofappealing to zoomers, like myself, for that sweet, sweet Gunplay money, but, the strange thing is, this grand plan seemingly went off without a hitch. Witch from Mercury has, more or less, revitalized the franchise and purposefully repackaged it for the modern age. I remember the buzz around Iron-Blooded Orphans, but it was nothing like this; I see talk about this show from communities and individuals who’ve never taken an active interest in the franchise before, so yeah, whatever it is, it’s working, and working well. But what do I, a pretty avid Gundam fan, think of Witch From Mercury? Well, I can certainly tell you that I was worried, and like a night in Prague without pizza or beer, there was an absence of comfort, chief of which was the lack of the Cowboy King, Yoshiyuki Tomino. It could just be that the shows I haven’t seen, like SEED, are masterpieces, lying in wait, and that I just watched all the bad AUs, but sadly, the handful of non-Tomino Gundam projects in my catalogue didn’t exactly live up to the standard I’d come to expect from the franchise (with the exception of 0080). Simply put, no one is nearly autistic enough to replicate Tomino’s genius, aside from maybe one guy whose name has one too many “O’s” in it. Nothing is going to be as iconic and influential as 0079; nothing is going to be as insane and psychopathic as Zeta; nothing is going to be as finalizing as CCA; nothing is going to be as underrated as Victory; nothing is going to be as beautiful as Turn A; and nothing is going to be as Genki as G-Reco. If the show was veering away from franchise norms this hard, and without Tomino’s guidance, I was primed and ready for some sharks to be jumped over, signalling the permanent decline of the once great empire known as “Kidooou Sennshii Gundamuu.” In all honesty, though, it’s most definitely just my heavy, heavy Tomino bias, but I think any new Gundam project without Tomino is always going to be fighting an uphill battle, on the very hill it’ll eventually die on—you can only have so many cardboard characters smashing into each other in psychic-powered tin suits before it gets tedious. So, naturally, I’ve come into Witch From Mercury with worried and sceptical expectations, but at the same time, with my fingers crossed behind my back, secretly hoping to be proven wrong. It was then that, upon finishing the prologue on Sunrise’s YouTube channel, my worries of shark jumpery were gently put at ease, and it became immediately apparent that whoever was writing this was one smart cookie. Oh! It was Ooukouchi? I didn’t see you there, buddy. Well, doesn’t that just explain everything then? No wonder what I was watching actually impressed me. Anyways, thankfully, after dipping my toes into what this new AU had to offer, I wasn’t so much worried anymore, but I was certainly still sceptical, and rightly so. The conceit was undeniably a departure from what I was used to coming from the franchise, and that sentiment seemed to be shared throughout the online discourse surrounding the show. However, the buzz tended to be centred around how this change was somehow a bad thing—capitalizing on current trends, and pandering for the purpose of reeling in a younger audience—and yeah, normally I’d be right there beside them; I mean, who doesn’t hate secondaries, right? But then I saw her, Suletta, and all the pessimism was absolved from my body like a spike of black-tar heroin in a recovering junkie’s veins. Like a final hit of final hits, I was pulled right back into the franchise I’d come to call my favourite. With a decade-spanning, multi-universal franchise as big as Gundam’s, you get a good variety of protagonists; whether that be the idealistic, traumatized war hero Amuro, the spiteful, immature Kamille, or the laidback, gigachad Judou. But the Gundam protagonists that have always resonated the most with me are the downright autistic, idiots—a prime example being Bellri Zenam, who is, at once, both a completely oblivious, braindead autist, but also an incredibly endearing, lovable, charismatic goofball. Suletta, as a Gundam protagonist, definitely subscribes to Bellri’s special blend of autism, but with the pacifism and demeanour of someone like Loran, and, to be honest, the show wouldn’t have been the same without it. Suletta is, more or less, my favourite thing about Witch From Mercury, and I’m certainly not alone in saying that—all you need is one good look at twitter or something—but, like most things, there are detractors downplaying the quality of her character because they’ve been conditioned to lash out at anything that doesn’t fit inside their narrow purview of what a protag should be. Like, wow, this character really makes people seethe, and, unsurprisingly, it’s all old UCheads: the same people that get upset whenever a new series isn’t just 0079 with a new coat of paint. It’s ironic that I say my favourite part of Witch From Mercury is Suletta because she’s often used as a scapegoat to defame the show and devalue its credibility as a “serious Gundam.” I don’t know how to put this nicely, but yes, Sulleta is a legitimate bumbling moron, that much is true, though, when I say that, I say it with the utmost love and affection because it’s for that very reason that I, and many others, find her endearing. People argue that having a character like Suletta, front and centre for a show like Gundam, is an inherently bad idea cause of their arbitrary need for “deep,” “multifaceted,” or “serious” characters in they space opera, but what they’re missing is that Suletta is actually a smarter, stronger, and just better, character than most people give her credit for, and despite the stuttering being a polarizing character trait for some, I think her verbal ticks only add to that. A lot of the nuance in Suletta comes from Ookouchi’s prequel story, Cradle of Earth, from which details are mentioned in passing during the show but purposely aren’t elaborated on, so for anyone wanting the full context on Suletta, the story is important—she’s not a stuttering idiot for a meme, and when you look into her upbringing, her mannerisms start to make sense. Suletta grew up completely isolated from other children, robbed of the ability to make connections and socially develop, only ever experiencing snippets of a typical childhood through their portrayal in the anime, movies and novels of Aeriel’s library. She leant—and continues to lean—on her mother’s mantra like a crutch to get through even the most mundane decisions of day-to-day living, oblivious to the fact she was—and is still—being used as a tool for her Machiavellian schemes. “Don’t beg for it, earn-” wait, that’s not right, it’s “If you move forward, you gain two,” whatever that fucking means. Getting to the point, the prequel illustrates just how brave Suletta actually is, without the added mental stress of having to match pace with her—comparatively—well-adjusted peers. Suletta is confident and affluent, but as we see in the series, it takes time for her to settle in, and as we all know, even hell can get comfy once you’ve settled in. So, with all that context in mind, to me, when Suletta starts vomiting hot spaghetti all over Miorine’s shoes, it’s actually the most endearing thing about her. Despite struggling and tripping through relationships, belting out sentences like a perpetrator of domestic violence, Suletta’s almost chivalrous ideals and values hold steady, in a way so earnest, that other characters fail to replicate it. Her stumbling, rambling, mumbling, murmuring and muttering is quite literally the most charming thing about her. Speaking of Miorine, based solely on the first couple of episodes, I thought I’d hate her guts. I couldn’t tell if she was “the shit,” or just plain ol’ shit. I thought she’d be just another tsun-tsun bitch—what with how abrasive she is towards the pure wholesomeness that is Suletta—but little did I know, that with time, she would reveal herself to be one helluva stylin’, profilin’, limousine-riding, jet-flying, kiss-stealing, wheelin’ n’ dealin’ son of a gun. And in case that didn’t clear up anything, it just means she’s based and she don’t take no shit from no one—bitch smokes her stogie wherever she wants. Together, Suletta and Miorine are like a gay Kennedy and Heidi: two young girls, completely out of their element, unwittingly serving the nefarious purposes of their betters, where one is behind the wheel, steering the course, and the other is dragged along for the ride, but on this road, the steel is cheap, and the coal stretches. Now, putting the characters and plot aside for a moment, it bears mentioning that Ookouchi and the director, Kobayashi Hiroshi, styles’ clash together particularly well. I know, “clash,” isn’t the most flattering way to describe the synergy between director and writer, but with these creatives in mind, I thought it only appropriate. Kobayashi Hiroshi was not a name I was immediately familiar with, but upon taking a closer look at his body of work, I discovered he directed a couple episodes of Kill la Kill, one of which, episode 5, features the passing assassin, Tsugumu, rolling into town like Anton Chigurh and stirring all sorts of shit in the coolest way possible. The episode in question, and the specific way in which its events transpire, exemplifies what I love about Ookouchi’s, and by association, Tomino’s writing styles: chaos and kinetic energy. Now, Witch From Mercury doesn’t necessarily watch like Kill la Kill—well, actually, it doesn’t resemble Kill la Kill at all—but, it possesses this constant pace and energy that courses through its veins, in a way that reminds me of the fire and momentum of Kill la Kill, coupled with the senseless yet harnessed insanity of Valvrave. The episode, “Shall we Gundam?” illustrates the intersection of where these two different styles meet; in terms of pacing and tone, it comes off like the tournament section of KLK but with the conceit of something right out of Valvrave: a shark tank-esque battle of persuasion and logistics, in which the momentum of KLK is harnessed into the idea of promoting a business venture start-up. Albeit toned down from both KLK and Valvrave, it was a fantastic idea for an episode and it was just as fun to watch play out. I could practically see Ookouchi laughing in the background as Suletta somehow spills several glasses of champagne over herself out of literally nowhere. Thankfully, the show is smart not to squander that creativity either, as the next handful of episodes run with the idea, and are dedicated to the planning, organization and management of the aforementioned start-up, with various factions vying for potential control over the company and the eponymous Gundam, Ariel. It’s good shit. I’d say it’s the themes of Tomino’s 0079 that make it as beloved and remembered as it is, and I’d say it’s these same themes—whether it be war, environmentalism, displacement, adolescence or maternity—that give Gundam its beating heart, and Ookouchi obviously knows this. He’s careful not to completely replace the ideas of Tomino’s original work, but to expand upon them and enrich them. There’s a heavy backdrop of capitalism given to the Spacian-Earthian conflict in Witch From Mercury, and to illustrate the ensuing economic tensions, Ookouchi presents a society in which Earthian workers are forced to labour away their entire lives under the boot of Spacian economic dominance—a dominance with the power to dispose of Earthian protesters under the pretence of “business administrative laws,” which classify protesters as “illegal occupants” on public property. In a similar manner, a lot of thought is given to the portrayal of the media and how it reflects the Spacian-Earthian dichotomy. In the prologue, a political talk show broadcast is shown briefly, featuring a general poll of issues the public wants policymakers to discuss, split up to contrast the concerns of the Earthian and Spacian populations respectively. The Earthian side is filled with votes for things like poverty reduction, fair trade and the educational gap, whereas the Spacian side is more focused on defence, security, free competition and infrastructure. Small stuff like this really goes a long way as far as compelling and competent world-building, giving the audience insight into the bureaucratic happenings of the A.U. without having to explain large chunks of detail directly through exposition. It's only brief as well, which gives you the impression that we, the audience, are learning information at the same pace as the characters, as opposed to other shows, where the storyboards are like, "Look what's happening on the news! Look at this screen in the show!" which, more often than not, completely takes you out of it. Now, the really interesting part is that, 21 years later, during the main show, the media is so influenced by Spacian capital, that it makes Earthians feel like an oppressed minority group, reflecting a shift in the wider society of the show, corroborated by the Spacian prejudice towards Earthians we see often at Asticassia. Again, making a point to stop and show us the classism and discrimination rampant on Earth (and in space) with the aforementioned protest and the inherent power imbalance it demonstrates. This is the level of world-building and detail I’ve come to expect from the franchise, and what I found to be profoundly and sorely lacking from more modern entries like Furuhashi’s Unicorn and Yoshizawa’s NT. To cut to the chase, I’m thankful for this show, and I’m thankful that it was good. Witch From Mercury has, for better or for worse, reinstilled my faith in this franchise post-G-reco, and it’s reassured me that even with Tomino pretty much gone from the spotlight, Gundam will still be in good hands for the foreseeable future. Gundam, as a franchise, may be a soulless marketing machine, but it’s a good one, and I’m glad it exists and can still produce shows like this. I’m glad this anime was made, and I’m glad I picked it up. Who knows, maybe Witch From Mercury really did jump the shark, but even if it did, it sure as hell didn’t drown. There’s still a ton more to this show that I haven’t mentioned yet, but seeing as it ain’t even complete, I can’t be fucked to write anymore. Stuff like the bioethical implications surrounding the GUND format really impressed me, as does the Tempest allusions, and the sheer amount of threads Ookouchi leaves hanging for schizos on /m/ to run wild with, particularly with the ambiguity surrounding the time skip. Actually, truth be told, I’m absolutely terrified that some of those theories might legitimately come true. See you guys for cour 2 ;) Goodbye and Goodnight.
Zeniatus
01/08/2023, 03:59 AM
More than a Gundam show, the writer shines through the branding to announce to the world that it is one of his works. Thrilling, mysterious, and "political", it's a setup cour with a lot of shock factor speckled in between episodes until one big climax. If you liked his previous works like Code Geass, Valvrave and Guilty Crown you're sure to love this mix of thriller sci-fi and romance. But if you were expecting a coming-of-age, war drama like most Gundam shows, you'll miss what you were aiming for. I would love to enjoy each and every Gundam show that comes out but I don't.These sorts of thrillers that rely on the user's enjoyment of mystery boxes and shock moments disgust me. I haven't grown to like these characters at all because it's always about the mystery lore. The main protagonist has made about one decision in the entire show, and the rest has been her getting into conflicts that get resolved in the next episode. Each one was meant to reveal a little tidbit about the world and it certainly felt like they didn't give precedence to writing the characters over that. All of the motivations and plot have been shoved into the end of the season so that cour 2 can be the meat: What a waste of time. No disrespect to the people who enjoy these sorts of shows. But it's a hallmark of bad writing when you introduce a character and make his backstory so depressing, and then get rid of him after two episodes of "development". A tonally dissonant show ends with loves notes to the angst-ridden 2008-2012 era of anime. But it's the type of young adult fiction that while successful, doesn't have a lot of quality behind it. I would recommend not watching this and picking up Gundam X if you want something that sticks closer to OG Gundam Yoshiyuki Tomino shows. But if I had to pick from the year of 2022, I'd recommend watching the Build Fighters-Esque Birdie Wing: Golf Girls Story.
Mcsuper
01/08/2023, 02:19 AM
This was my first time watching a Gundam anime, and I feel like I have been bamboozled. Why, you ask? Because the prologue showed quite the dark space story that had me quite excited for what the series would bring. Instead, this show took place in an academy, and had all your academia tropes in there, which felt like a complete 360 from what I expected, which was more of a political show. Does that mean that The Witch From Mercury was bad? Not exactly, but I did have my fair share of issues with it. Now, I am quite aware that this was justthe first cour, and I am quite certain that this will be the weakest cour of this show. There was still some intrigue here, with the politics and character interactions, and I look forward to where that goes. As I said earlier, this show took place mostly in an academy so far, which, for more seasoned Gundam veterans, must have felt a bit surprising and perhaps a bit underwhelming. For me, it also felt a bit shocking considering the prologue, but the production looked pretty good early on that made it quite enjoyable. The things that I took more issue with in the plot was that the students seemed to hold so much power, and there were no higher authorities to speak of, other than the parents, but it’s not like the parents controlled the academy or anything. The students could just do as they pleased, harming each other like no one’s business. The duels were also quite a convenient plot device to settle disputes, and I felt that took away some of the potential this show had to show how good it could be. It didn’t allow for the characters to shine in ways outside of battle enough, and while the duels are cool to look at, it does get a bit predictable and repetitive. It’s not all negative though, as the political themes were still interesting enough to keep me watching. The mind games surrounding the ethics of Gundam suits, the war between the companies, Prospera’s role in all of this, it felt quite intriguing, but it’s still too early to know where the plot will go from here. Overall, quite a mixed bag, story-wise. As for the technical aspects of the show, it’s definitely the least of this series’ worries. Both the animation and music were well done, and the OP and ED were both quite the good songs. I just hope the production can stay afloat for the second cour, as we’ve already had some production issues this cour. The characters of this show are definitely the biggest source of intrigue in this show, and I’ll go over my thoughts on some of them. First, Suletta, the new Bocchi of the Gundam Franchise, just without the comedic aspect. She’s a dunce, plain and simple, and sometimes, I did get a little frustrated by how gullible she was, but as with most protagonists, she had her time to shine, but sadly there just wasn’t enough development this cour for her. She just needs more moments that rely on her skills more, and not getting bailed out by others. Her performance in the promotional video for the company was pretty cool though, I’m not gonna lie. Miorine, the other half to this relationship, could have been a great character, and when she shows her prowess, she’s quite awesome, but too much of her screen time was centred around meaningless things, such as yelling at Suletta, which was a bit repetitive. Luckily she had more meaningful moments toward the end of the cour. Shaddiq was a good side character, as I never really got a handle on his motives, though I was suspicious of what he would do. It made the climaxes a bit more shocking for sure. As for other interesting characters, Chuchu, Elan, and Nika come to mind, but it’s still quite early for me to formulate a firm opinion on them. Overall, this was a series filled with solid ideas, with middling execution at times. I enjoyed watching the characters and the politics enough, and the production quality was solid. I’d imagine the future cours will get me more interested in what this series has to offer, so if you’re interested in a more unique Gundam story that’s a slow burn, this could be the Gundam for you. This was my first Gundam show, so I can’t compare this to other parts of the franchise, but all I can say is, the GUND-ARM promotional video was the best part of all.
Marinate1016
01/08/2023, 12:45 AM
Gundam’s multiple timelines and universes often keep people away, which is a shame as shows like G Witch perfectly sum up why Gundam is one of the biggest franchises of all time. For me, G Witch is one of the best Gundam series ever, and the best modern iteration for two simple reasons. 1:Cute Girls. 2:Yuri. In all seriousness, it’s such a breath of fresh air to have two awesome female leads with such great personalities and a naturally developing relationship. Sulletta’s social anxiety is extremely relatable and you can’t help but want to see her succeed. Miorine’s prickly personality that she uses to cover upher own insecurities and fears is also something many people can relate to. The two leads just feel real and that’s one of the hardest things to nail in this medium. In a franchise that is known for insane space battles, political drama and cool mechs, it’s also a massive bonus to have loveable characters. I think the Yuri undertones have been handled really well. Pretty obvious, but not too in your face either. Suletta and Miorine’s friendship is integral to the story and the cornerstone of their growth as individuals and it’s been such a joy to see it play out in this first cour. I enjoy seeing female protagonists and romantic relationships more than traditional hetero ones as they tend to be better written and more organic. That said, there’s still a lot more room for growth and I can’t wait to see where things go in the second cour. The school setting is a really nice departure from the usual Gundam formula as well. The various cliques and politics going on within the school are a cool take on the usual political drama in Gundam. In many ways, G Witch really feels like Gundam for a modern audience which is really good because the same things that made Gundam popular in the 70s and 80s, might not be the wave to ride right now. Knowing how to modernise and adapt franchises for modern audiences is important to stay relevant and it seems sunrise have managed to just do that. The series still has that Gundam feeling, but feels very fresh. Even the character designs are a welcome upgrade. Of course you can’t talk about Gundam without talking about.. well.. gundams. In the show we haven’t seen too much action as it’s mainly been character driven over this first cour. That said, in the few action scenes we have had, I have been really pleased with the sakuga. The blending of 2D and 3D animation/CGI has been nearly flawless and the set pieces have been meticulously drawn and executed. I imagine as things heat up in the second cour, we will see even better action sequences and crazier battles, but I have no doubt in my mind Sunrise will do a great job. Minor note, but sound design has also been GREAT in the series too. I think it’s a detail that often gets brushed over in anime, but I really like it in this one. Overall, Gundam G Witch is a great watch for Gundam Vets and newcomers alike and one of my fave shows of 2022. No, you do NOT have to have seen any other Gundams to watch and enjoy this. The other gundams will allow you to see the character parallels between new characters and ones from other series, but it’s not necessary. In fact, I would say this is an excellent starting point for those looking to get into the franchise, as well as those who enjoy well written female characters, mechs and sci-fi in general. Gundam G Witch first Cour gets 10 tomatoes out of 10.

Kidou Senshi Gundam: Suisei no Majo 機動戦士ガンダム水星の魔女

2022 fall | Episodes: 12 | Score: 7.8 (86873)

Updated every Sundays at 17:00 | Status: Finished Airing

Type: TV

Producers:Sotsu | Mainichi Broadcasting System | Bandai Namco Filmworks

Synopsis

Voice Actors

Ichinose, Kana

Lynn

News

Reviews

Vrozty
01/12/2024, 07:11 AM
Reviewing as someone who has never watched mecha animes before, let alone the Gundam universe: [Unique, complex, yet fathomable storyline and world-building, characters with all unique personalities and backgrounds which are dived into, and main characters full of 'girlbosses' - inspirational yet humane. All comes together with top notch production and quality as an anime in general (again, not comparing with other mecha animes because I have not watched any other) with fantastic music, sfx, and vfx. 9/10] As a fantasy genre enjoyer, all I can say is Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch from Mercury's world is totally unique and original, yet so complex which is whyfrom its world-building alone, it deserves to be watched by whoever you are. Such well written lore not only for the world and settings itself, but also for each and every single character. There's no character that is an extra, in some ways, because even 'extras' are so well-portrayed that each of their single lines are so vital in whatever scene there is. The fact that they also dive into the background, the motivation, the mindset - the soul of all the main/lead characters is also such a fine work. Although, this is also where Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch from Mercury's imperfections lies. Maybe it's because the complexity of the world itself, that a lot of the character's backgrounds which are dived into and their personalities which are definitive and solid - seems unfinished, or have quite some loose ends. Nevertheless, unless you are SO into one of the characters that fall victim into this imperfection, you should be able to still enjoy all there is to their stories, their souls, as they're so well-written nevertheless. Its plot itself is quite light yet casually brutal, and this is what makes Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch from Mercury stand out from others. This kind of condition makes the anime all the more realistic, because that is life - it may be quiet but the next second can be a storm. But of course, that is to say if you accept such extreme twists in the direction of an anime, which might be a minus if you don't. However, all the twist and turns of the story is essential and is well-written, so do open your heart for them and enjoy the rollercoaster. It still contributes to me taking a point from my score for the anime, though, because I believe a nice mixture of lightness and seriousness/brutality is very much possible to be achieved in a more balanced way, maybe even in each of the episodes (which I've seen possible in k-dramas which often is romance-comedy yet also action/thriller at the same time) which the dynamic of the plot in this anime... is quite far from that. But like I said, open your heart and enjoy. The production and quality is what I'd expect from such a big franchise, which is very high in quality and detail. I mean, it's all the craze in the model kit building community with all the unique mechanics and stuff, or so I've heard. Therefore, there's nothing to comment on, other than emphasizing how well-made it is. All the visuals, the sound effects, the music - perfection. In conclusion, definitely a must-watch for fantasy anime enjoyers (even if you've never watched [or enjoyed] mecha animes before!). Unique and inspiring, a wonderful commercial creation.
Vyaiskaya
11/03/2023, 03:21 PM
Do make sure to start with the prologue. Wow. Suisei no Majo, Witch of Mercury really blew me away. The 2020's are only beginning and still, they seem to be awash with amazing advances in anime. Animation and sound are all extremely on point. What I really enjoy about GWM is just how character driven it is. While that's in mny ways true of all Gundam series, in this case, it's not just one characters philosophical ideas being put to the test, but their emotions reach new depths in GWM. Animation of emotions and subtleties betwixt characters is extraordinary. I have to say, this carriesthe torch in many ways where Evangelion took off. Pilots being real people. As for the plot, it's Gundam - it's filled with politics. This time around it's corporate politics, and framed between several settings: the school for the kids of premiere companies, the companies themselves, and the larger political/geographic bodies (Earth, Mars, the Colonies). GWM has had both some of the most touching heartfelt moments, and some of the absolutely most brutal and soul crushing episodes of drama. The characters are also adorable, and it's so easy to connect and relate with them. The framing of their psychologies is extremely articulate. It's a great medium and showcase for dealing with real world psychology and characters of diverse and rounded personalities. GWM exceeds my expectations, knocking 00 out as #2 and so far at least tying with Wing as my favourite Gundam series. Everyone in Wing is institutionable, and the voice actors were phenomenal. The series had some clunk due to restraints at the time, however, GWM is a tight ship. Happy Birthday to you.
DISKOWN
05/05/2023, 11:57 PM
Kidou Senshi Gundam: Suisei no Majo is a promising first step for the series. While the season starts off slow with a focus on character and story development, it eventually builds up to an exciting climax. The narrative is well-crafted, but unfortunately, the ending leaves the audience hanging without a satisfying conclusion. The characters are unique and compelling, each with their own motivations. However, the implementation of CG is subpar, especially in the earlier episodes, and too much screen time is given to side characters who don't add much to the plot (at least in this season). Overall, Kidou Senshi Gundam: Suisei no Majo isa decent entry, but it can't stand up on its own. It will require competent further seasons to truly shine and become something special.
seaoftranquility
05/01/2023, 01:22 PM
Abandonment, discrimination, war, pain, unfulfilled belonging and most of all bittersweet personal relationships. All the main components of a good Gundam show can be found in this installment that makes an excellent entry point for newcomers to the Gundam franchise. The atmosphere in Witch from Mercury is delicate and rough at times. The air gets warm and comes towards you for an embrace, only to violently become cutthroat in just a few seconds (just like the main character's mother). The juxtaposition of these feelings takes the main stage and the team behind the anime makes great efforts to keep you on the edge at all times.Initially, the viewer might be fooled by the pastel colour palette and the ordinary setting of another highschool mecha anime but this anime is far more than this. Watching it you will confront your childlike innerself and come to terms with the hedgehog's dilemma that getting closer to others comes at the price of being hurt yourself. Suletta Mercury, the MC, is a country bumpkin from the planet closest to the Sun. The choice of planet is important as symbolism in Witch from Mercury exists even in the finest details, making it a wonderful re-watching experience as well. For instance, the choice of having Mercury as the home planet makes great sense as it's a planet of extremes. Though plain and grey at sight, with a close look a whole microcosm of colours opens in it's atmosphere. The same could be said about this anime, Suletta is portrayed as happy go round girl that wants to live her best highschool life and tick off items from her 'finally get away from home list'. This gets quickly dismantled by the feeling of alienation and despair that she suffers due to being the only student from Mercury and one that stands out due to her unpolished behaviour. The experience of watching Witch from Mercury is similar to that of listening to the opening. You are filled with hope for a better future and are rooting for the underdog at all times. You are being drip fed with rays of sunshine and can feel the battles taking your breath away. The suspense is on point and the filmography and choreography is simply stunning. However, as all good things in life, the anime will take, at times, abrupt downturns leaving you thinking that maybe in fact everything is a lie. For this season, the only downside is not being excellent at anything. The shows is definitely very good, that meaning above mediocre with a good outlook to become great. There is a lot of foreshadowing and hopefully there will be a deeper dive into the characters as to understand more points of view. Gundam: Witch from Mercury is a good recommendation for anyone who enjoys a bit of laughter and happiness while pondering existentialist questions and debating the nature of humanity.
BrettWatchesTV
03/16/2023, 10:18 PM
This is my first gundam anime so my perspective might vary from others—I didn’t even know this was a part of other mecha anime stories! In all, this show was really fun to watch. From the start, you have Suletta, the main character who is timid and confident at the same time. A protagonist that isn’t just in your face with their confidence is always a good change of pace. She still shows confidence in that she knows when her own skills are better than those around her. She’s also firm on her beliefs. She has a 1-1.5 episode arc that has her doubt herselfa bit but ultimately that builds for more growth with Mirione. Mirione is also a really great co-protagonist. She might not sell you at first, but after a few episodes she shows that she’s really creative and quick to solve problems that Suletta couldn’t. The rest of the cast is also very entertaining. The main cast being almost entirely women is also great and this show gives them all robust personalities and no fan service nonsense. There’s a lot of themes of getting over the patriarchy, while being made from an organic premise involving controlling parents and greedy businesses. The prologue episode sold me on this, but it does change tone following that episode. I recommend watching the first two episodes and hopefully you get hooked on it as quickly as I did! I can’t wait for season two.
MurasameKills
02/19/2023, 12:42 AM
This anime can be summed up in one word. Boring. I have been a Gundam fan my entire life and this is easily the weakest entry into the series. The prequel to this series showed us a hardboiled, dark and distant future that had promise, but the actual anime is a high school drama with mecha duels. The whole premise of the show is basically Gundam girl shows up at a mobile suit academy where corporate disputes and power struggles are settled by children dueling one on one in mobile suits while they also use the duels to settle their petty high school dramas amongstthemselves. The characters are bland. The protagonist is a stuttering crybaby and a fool. The pseudo philosophy is half baked. Daddy issues abound left and right. The animation is decent and that's about the only positive that I have to share. Some may criticize the queer aspects of the anime but homosexuality is nothing new for Japan. However, having this much focus on romance and marriage proposals and fiancées really has me wondering who this anime is marketed towards? Gundam has a long history of being a shounen anime set in desperate wars that have left humanity ravaged where a hero or heroes are forged to lead us to a brighter future with tons of great mecha battles generously peppered throughout. Meanwhile this anime may as well be called "Gundam the Girly High School Drama Edition." In fact, this so called "gundam" series has a very strong resemblance to another anime titled "Revolutionary Girl Utena" which is a shojo anime and while good in it's own right, it really begs the question of who this anime is made for? I can't help but wonder who is giving this anime such great reviews other than progressive westerners who see the queer angle and are putting this on a pedestal thinking "Yes! Japan is finally embracing our wokeness!" without realizing that is not what Japan is doing. This anime is just Japan being Japan. It is Japanese creators ripping off an older anime, copy pasting yet another high school drama where kids play out the struggles of adults. This is nothing we haven't seen before a million times in other anime's, it's just the first time we are seeing it in Gundam. To be honest, (and as a side note) I am really getting tired of the school setting trope in seasonal anime as only a few have managed to pull it off well. Is there a slump in the creativity in Japan as there has been for the last decade here in the west? TL;DR Boring. If you want real Gundam action check out literally any other Gundam series as this one is the worst and is Gundam in name only. Overall Rating: 1
BabyCakesThe3rd
01/12/2023, 11:40 AM
This is not a review, mainly a short brief as to why this isn't the a gundam show you want to watch. Basically Gundam is a war story that attracts you by using giant robots instead of conventional warfare. but This doesn't mean all gundam shows have to be about the same thing, each version of the franchise brings their own flavor to the table and allows for different perspectives and topics to handle. For example: If you want a war between 2 sides, anything UC will suffice Do you want war but nothing too long winded and straight to the point, watch Wing or 00 Do you wantcool mecha fights as the main focus, watch Iron blooded orphans If you want no plot at all and just like the robots watch Build fighters But regardless of your taste, Witch from Mercury doesn't satisfy any of these, it tries to emulate some of the selling oints of other gundam shows, but fails to truly commit to any of it making it come off as half assed. Essentially this is not a review, just a rant from a pathetic fan who didn't get what I came for so I came onto the internet to complain :)
nickzz235
01/11/2023, 10:12 PM
Gundam Witch of the Mercury has a strong and promising prologue that sets the stage for a dark and intricate story of space warfare and politics. However, the approach taken by G-Witch after the prologue is to shift the focus to the daily life at an academy, following the main character Suletta. With all the typical academy tropes in modern anime, it certainly gives a different impression from what the audience might have expected from the prologue. I can understand why many people are disappointed by this. The pacing in the academy is also quite slow and uses the formula of giving each character their ownepisode arc. However, I also see potential for building up the political intrigue among the characters and organizations that is slowly unfolding in these academy episodes. This is also the first cour of the series, and I see potential for something bigger in the future. Throughout the academy episodes, we are also introduced to the character of Sulleta who embodies the INFP trope, being awkward, shy, honest, too good and naive, trying to navigate school life where other characters have their own political motives. We also see some character development from Sulleta as she tries to socialize. I might be a bit biased here because as an INFP myself, I can relate to Sulleta's character and her fears in dealing with the intrigues of academy life. Additionally, there are also racial issues displayed in the world of G-Witch and even within the academy itself, adding further complexity and intrigue to the overall story. There are also some accusations that the show is "queerbaiting," but in my opinion, it's not a problem as long as the character development is not forced (and so far for me it's not). If you find "queerbaiting" to be an issue, you may want to skip this series. In my opinion, the academy episodes could have been condensed more to avoid making the audience feel like too little is happening and causing them to drop the series. However, I want to give the series a chance because I feel that the build-up in the prologue and finale from first cour will lead to a bigger and more complex story, while still providing a light-hearted delivery (which may not be everyone's cup of tea). Overall, because of its light-hearted delivery, I also believe it could be a good starting point for the Gundam franchise, as long as you don't mind this kind of presentation (especially modern academy tropes)
Nekozah
01/10/2023, 09:47 AM
Non spoiler review. This is easily one of the greatest anime of 2022, and probably one of my favorite ever, even after watching over 600 different titles. This series takes a huge leap for Gundam and creates a series that I feel even non mecha fans can appreciate and fall in love with. The animation, dialogue, and story here is absolutely top tier. This anime is absolutely rated too low. I don't give many anime a perfect 10 but this is one of them. I 100% say you should watch this show and enjoy this amazing piece of work. The story premise isn't really your typicalGundam story, and I feel they definitely branched out with this series. The art and animation was absolutely beautiful and didn't have cheesy CGI, it felt as if the mobile suits had genuine movement and animation. There were some incredibly well written characters in this story and the stories behind them keep you hooked up until the end, where you can't wait to see how season 2 turns out. Watch. This. Show. 100%
azura444
01/09/2023, 11:09 AM
Might be one of the most surprisingly very clean and depth Gundam Series after Gundam Iron Blooded Orphans in terms of character building and plot execution. If you thought that this is just some Gundam Build Fighters type of shit series that only focuses on battle, making friends, slice of life, and your everyday academy life with some Yuri/Lesbian spice on top of it you are completely wrong because i thought that too at first and have been completely blown away by the last 4 episode where they slowly by slowly unveil their plot and showcasing that this is not even close to become aYur SOL anime. For people who quick judge and drop this Gundam Series because of LGBT or Yuri reason please just get out of here because this anime has a lot of character building and sometimes after watching it for several episodes you asked yourself if it's too long of an introduction arc? is it too draggy? but no, all got answered in this episode number 12. This 11 whole episode were meant to setup it's first season ending and damn the setup really pays off. You've been brainwashed by it's slow paced character introduction arc to make you feel attached to Suletta. When you feel that you are comfortable with the MC everything turned upside down, Suletta is not your timid, shy tanuki that wouldn't be able to do something like that while smiling (heavily reference the ep 12). I wouldn't spoil anything but this series completely turns 180 degrees from Gundam Build Fighters vibe into Gundam Iron Blooded Orphans and honestly i'm intrigued of what will come after this because there's no more lovey dovey high school lives, this is war and Suletta holds the key to the victory itself. "nigetara hitotsu, susume wa futatsu"
robert788
01/09/2023, 04:38 AM
Kidou Senshi Gundam: Suisei no Majo (2022) Well, that prologue was an amazing setup! The first few episodes were somewhat epic but felt very much more about the damaged children as a result of parents who probably didn't really want children. It then levels out into a slice of life and ends with a conflict. Even once it's ending, you think that's it right? Wait for part 2? Nah, a post-credit scene that is about as dark as they come. What a show! Going from let's support each other forever to downright disgust in such a short time. Suletta by the end of part 2 iseither going to be the hero that unifies all or a monster that is uncontrollable to be taken down. The show is leaving a lot to our imagination. I can see her changing sides more than once based on her desire to be needed so desperately. We have seen in many shows where you have emotion-controlled monsters or 'heroes' but not very often are they the main character or so well developed. The artwork is superb, it is a modern rendition of Gundam. It is not old but new and it is welcomed in. Gundam is now sort of like Pokemon, in that it resets to every new set of viewers after a time. The soundtrack was pretty good overall, nothing really special going on. Combat does sound awesome! The characters center around Suletta who is as damaged as they come but then so is everyone here. It is another classic Japanese trope of let's have the adults watch the world burn and leave it to the kids. Overall, I enjoyed this show, the second part should be much better and more action-packed since this part has set the scene. 8/10.
WeaponWeapon
01/08/2023, 11:45 AM
"If you run away, you gain one. If you move forward, you gain two." This quote has been floating around in this series throughout the episodes. Everyone has to move forward to obtain their goal, even if it is uncomfortable to reach. Since our main character, Suletta, is sensitive and afraid of exposure to new things, she uses this idea to encourage herself to move out of her comfort zone. Miorine (Mio Mio) is also affected by this idea and stopped to run away from her father. Although the first few episodes are slices of life + mecha action on repeat, it is slowly developing itsstory and characters throughout the episodes. The season finale is satisfying and a good build-up for the second season. The story is about a school with a political and business setting in the background. The duel in the school can affect business decisions, personal decisions, school policies, etc. The winner decides over the loser. It may seem idiotic at first glance. However, this is a mobile-suit school that selects its best pilots and engineers. Presidents of the companies purposely place their children in school for their political bullshittery. For example, a political marriage can give an advantage to the companies, just as a mobile suit duel can force someone into a marriage. The school is there to help companies advertise their latest mobile suits and to use children as tools for their benefit. It is interesting to see a school as a tool for companies' power plays instead of the mundane school setting. It evolved into a more serious tone in the later episodes of the first season. Suletta is such a cinnamon roll. She is a kind person who tends to overthink things sometimes. Also, Suletta has anxiety about human relationships and communication, as she stutters a lot at the beginning of the series (the stuttering disappeared as she interacted more with people). Her experiences in Mercury (before she came to school) shaped her that way. Her critical thinking was blinded when she was questioning her mom. Lady Prospera (Suletta's mother) usually has the "perfect" answer for Suletta to swallow. Suletta will make sense of it and blindly move on. Her manipulative relationship with Suletta is crappy, and she looks very suspicious throughout Season 1. However, she made the right decisions in the show and helped our main character develop. Moreover, her ideology is not wrong and is agreeable (at least in season 1). On the other hand, Miorine (Mio Mio) is a cool-headed person who is very heated from the inside. She misunderstands her dad and slowly gets to know him more in later episodes. Mio Mio has to make the decisions that change her as a person. Overall, she is a logical person with a little bit of tsundere in her blood. 3D mecha animation has been terrorizing anime in recent years. This show has 95 percent 2D mecha animation, which is a relief for me. The animation in this show is phenomenal and exciting to watch. The 2D mecha animation is so clean and smooth to watch, unlike the jerky 3D mecha animation. This is a flesh air for me. This looks more passionate than most anime productions today. The character design and expression are also on point in this show. The face of Suletta being happy, anxious, or sad is pretty expressive. The action scenes are fluid and great to watch. The sound design during the action scenes is impressive. The shield blocks and different rifles sound sexy, and they are satisfying to listen to. The soundtrack is gorgeous and magnificent. It gains a sense of epicness and beauty in the scene. The vocal of the ost has so much power that it lifts the action from 10/10 to 11/10. When a show is mixed with fantastic animation and an epic soundtrack, it becomes a magical and unforgettable experience for the viewers. This show is perfect for newcomers and old fans of mecha. Although the show is slowly telling its story, please give it time to show the entire story; it is going to be rewarding. If you are not a fan of slice-of-life anime, this show may be a turn-off in the beginning. Suletta and Mio Mio have pretty good chemistry with each other. They are good friends who have been covering and protecting each other throughout the series. Whoever is in need, the other will come to the rescue. I love the animation, soundtrack, interesting story, and character development of this show. We can all learn from the central message of the Witch of Mercury. Gundam: Witch From Mercury rating: 8 Mio Mio out of 10
Fukiri
01/08/2023, 11:16 AM
This was written to give my honest opinion but also to clarify wrong assumptions a few reviewers have made either by not watching the show fully (this is why you should or don’t write a review at all) or by being blind/salty. Look what you made me do. You made me write this and put effort into it. So many years here and this is my first review. Damn you all. This review has no spoilers besides what you can read in the anime’s synopsis. Gundam The Witch from Mercury is the new newbie friendly entry of this franchise, which means any one not familiar with theshow can watch it standalone without having to watch previous Gundam entries. I’m one such person so I’m not going to be comparing it to other Gundam titles, not that I think it should be despite what some veterans seem to be doing, it’s a standalone show after all. Story (10/10) The story focuses on Suletta Mercury’s adventures navigating school life, which doesn’t seem to be peaceful at all for our protagonist. The school has a dueling system that decide all kind of matters depending on the victor’s stakes but also who is to marry Miorine Rembran, the daughter of the director. Suletta wins the first duel and is now declared Miorine’s groom. I will take this opportunity to say, this show isn’t queerbait and is extremely LGBTQ friendly. That being said, keep in mind this is the first cour and as I can’t yet predict the future despite my hardest attempts, I can’t speak for the next cour. However, what you see here is very genuine and there aren’t other interpretations for it. This show is focused on their budding relationship, with their ups and downs. Relationships not being a straight line of rainbows and unicorns does not a queerbait make. Besides, we gays are used to suffer for happiness, yes? Yes. Anyway… The framing of the duels and Miorine’s greenhouse, will be very reminiscent of Utena, which is understandable as the man behind G-Witch’s script, Ichirou Ookouchi, was also the one behind the manga version of this anime. (As such, to my fellow reviewers saying it’s a rip-off of their favorite anime, maybe you should have researched it better about who also helped making your favorite show good.) The level of symbolism in comparison isn’t as deep however, it’s hardly superficial as well and it’s enough for a show that isn’t surrealist like the former and is more grounded in our reality, decrying the grim realities of capitalism how ruthless it can be. Some examples of symbolism are the greenhouse as Miorine’s favorite place representing her acceptance of people and how she sees them and how they act towards her, the tomatoes representing the relationship between characters and the overall lighting in certain scenes. The show draws a stark comparison between the relationship between Suletta and Miorine and how it develops, sometimes subtly yet just as meaningfully, into a rich and tightly knit relationship based on support and the world of the adults, full of ploys and plots in desperate attempts at achieving their goals even at the cost of treating their own children as tools. All of this is enveloped in mysteries for which we can only theorize an answer, such as the incident depicted in the prologue and its repercussions and the nature of Aerial which seems to be one of the greatest question marks in the show. Regardless, expect the unexpected, that’s what this kind of story is, sometimes developments will catch you off-guard by the developments, much to my delight. Characters (9/10) The characters are expertly written and tend to be way more than it seems at first. They feel like actual people which is a breath of fresh air for me. Both Suletta and Miorine are layered and nuanced characters, each defined by their respective pasts and traumas, there is no action they make that can’t be explained by the experiences that defined them as a person, being it Suletta’s unabated helpfulness towards others or Miorine’s pragmatic yet caring personality. They are both beautifully written and their development is a joy to watch as the show doesn’t spell it out for the viewer like a shounen anime and instead trusts the audience to understand their 'show, don't tell' writing. The supporting cast is as much a joy to watch, with each of them with their own goals, motivations and struggles. They’re very layered as well (looking at you, Guel and Nika), they interact well with the protagonists, sometimes as foils, and remain important throughout the narrative instead of being treated like cardboard cutouts as you often see in recent shows. They add drama, comedy and wholesomeness to the story and they all serve a purpose. You love to see it. The adults are a bit contrasting with the kids yet just as layered, often portrayed as masterminds and looming over their children. Special mention to Prospera who seemingly plays 5D on the weekends and is very hard to get a read on. She’s a major propeller of the narrative in spite of not having as much focus as the main characters. My only complaints thus far are the characters that make up the entourage of one of the rivals, as it stands they are nothing but a checklist of tropes for me. That being said, they’re also not relevant so I’m willing to give it a pass. Animation (9/10) While it has their very rare instances of rough around the edges bits, the animation is consistently amazing. The show is mostly 2d which is impressive considering the fast pace of mobile suit battles, they sometimes swap to CGI mostly in non-key situations but it’s hardly noticeable at all in 90% of the scenes. It’s honestly a great blend and it stays consistent throughout the show. The animation of the characters’ expressions, emotional moments, even key scenes that don’t involve mechas are expertly and lovingly animated, sometimes even to the point of being reminiscent to how Ghibli works with characters’ movements and expressions. Music (10/10) It slaps as hard as Aerial does. Enough said. In short: G-Witch is an amazing, unpredictable rollercoaster of a show. It’s not a break-neck speed of a story and is meant to be enjoyed with time even if it isn’t a slow-burner either. It’s clearly a passion project and you can see the love this anime staff has for it at all times. The animation will leave both veterans and newbies satisfied and the music will hype up any scene. Don’t expect an indiscriminate anime with constant colony drops but also don’t expect a wholesome slice-of-life story where nothing happens. Prepare to see the characters fight their way to satisfying developments at all times. Assume the tone the prologue sets is the tone you will get in this show and watch it until the end before making baseless assumptions like many reviewers here. Brace your heart. A lovingly crafted masterpiece for me, I’m hoping the next cour continues the zero disappointing episodes streak.
cosmicturtle0
01/08/2023, 09:23 AM
*SPOILER-FREE* The original Gundam, the inventor of the "Real Robot" genre, thrived on a gritty, human depiction of what war might be like in the future, and it was so damn good at it that Sunrise spent the next 40 years trying to replicate and build off that success. Now I'm here after having watched all of the Universal Century (Gundam's main timeline), so obviously it's my cup of tea. But I don't blame anyone for not wanting to explore such a daunting franchise, especially when the entry point is 49 episodes of outdated 1979 animation. Over the years, Sunrise has tried with varying degrees of successto create one-off shows that appeal to current anime tastes, which has sometimes worked (Gundam Wing, Seed, 00, and Iron Blooded Orphans all had their 15 minutes of fame). But all you need to do is check out the Mobile Suit Gundam page and take a look at the spin-offs the franchise has attempted over the past twenty years to see the types of stories it has insisted on telling. Hint: every single one has the word "war," "coup," or "revolution," in it. For some people (me), it's an awesome thing. Giant robots fighting space wars--who could ask for anything more? But for the average anime fan who looks at upcoming shows and thinks, "hmm, what would I like to watch this season?", the thought of sinking your teeth into a full-blown political conflict with the weight of the Gundam name attached to it is a bit much to handle. Enter the Witch from Mercury, a show that takes everything tired and stale about Gundam and tosses it out the window. Gone are the simple days of the Earth Federation vs. the Principality of Zeon, the enemy-of-the-week types of wars of the past, and in their place comes a modern story involving mega-corporations, political factions, revolutionary technology, and a school setting. It's a breath of fresh air for Gundam and for anime as a whole, because while this show does away with a lot of old tropes and repurposes them into something new, the core of what has always made Gundam great is still there: character drama in times of conflict. It's just that the franchise has decided to tell this story in a more modern way by leaning into current anime convention. And this is what make this show stand out Nowhere is this clearer than in the characters. All the modern stereotypes are accounted for: the tsundere, the loud one, the shy one, the cute one, the popular kids, the losers-who-are-not-actually-losers. And of course, Suletta Mercury, not only Gundam's first female protagonist but also its first with red hair, and its first with a stutter. Suletta has the tragic backstory of a typical Gundam protagonist, and just like her predecessors she's involved in something greater than herself, something she doesn't really understand. But by making her a nervous girl who wants nothing more than to be liked at school, the show is really able to explore both sides of its story: the school and political worlds. Both are blended together within her, as they are within every character. Because while Gundam has always made it a priority to explore its characters, pinning these modern, conventional stereotypes up against a background of space politics makes them into real, believable, honest-to-god people who feel like a product of their world, and of our current times. And this creates, as the original Gundam did, a future that we could actually see. Because that's what Gundam is: it has something to say. It doesn't cheap out on its characters, or its stories, or its themes just to appeal to the mainstream (at one time, it was the mainstream). But what the franchise has seemingly had trouble accepting over the past twenty years is that that isn't the case anymore, and even though I'm a big fan of the Witch from Mercury and the direction that its taken, I have a hard time seeing it ever reaching those former heights. But that's fine. Gundam already revolutionized anime once, it doesn't need to do it again. What it needs to do is to tell the best story possible for the times we're living in. The Witch from Mercury has figured it out. And hopefully, it shows people just discovering the franchise what its fans have always known: Gundam fucking rocks.
Gsarthotegga
01/08/2023, 08:27 AM
The Prologue to The Witch from Mercury was a mostly poor and unneeded forerunner for the series. Now we get to see a new Gundam for the current generation, many of whom probably missed out on older entries to the long-running franchise. What do we get? Instead of following around adolescent male protagonist soldiers, we get our first female protagonist and school life, only this academy is a colony that may or may not get dropped, but it definitely should get the latter treatment. With the entire cast locked inside. The setting and early plot points are highly reminiscent of Revolutionary Girl Utena. We havea familiar looking academy, just updated with sci-fi scenery; d-d-duels are a primary part of the plot; a few characters are battling over waifus, corporate contracts, pride, and flat-out dumb reasons like a kindergarten show and tell of feelings. Suletta accidentally gets engaged to a very bratty, immature, whiny tsundere female named Miorine near the beginning—certain scenes held up side by side smack of imitation, and if you've seen Utena, the similarities can be a little tedious and, frankly, inauthentic. Yet these comparisons are superficial, as TWfM doesn't do anything especially notable with these ideas, as Utena did—the staff just reused a bit of the icing to dress up their Easy-Bake Oven cake. In fact, this show would be better if it were a knock-off of Utena instead of the bland Mobile Suit Gundam: Mercury Witch High School series that it becomes. A perfect comparison of the two would be to point out how Anthy in Utena tends to a rose garden, while Miorine is growing tomatoes. Roses are associated with aesthetic beauty, while tomatoes have a more basic function. Yet no one eats these tomatoes. TWfM is the non-aesthetic tomato left to rot on the vine. From what I can tell and based on commentary from the staff, it does appear TWfM is yuri bait of a very touchy-feely variety, and the two leads will remain close friends. However, I suppose future installments of TWfM could become a real yuri. Given the storytelling employed thus far, it probably SHOULD be a yuri, but it doesn't look like it will. Usually when you have these kind of unwitting fiance plots, there's tension and a possibility they might develop feelings for one another, so it at least has some significance, but that doesn't even appear to be there. What we have appears to be a weird bait and switch to get the two closely entwined and to stir controversy and generate interest in a cheap fashion. The yuri bait at first appeared to be like "No, father, I will defy your arranged marriage because it doesn't line up with the target audience's values, but instead of casting it aside all together this girl I met yesterday will be my new suitress, and it's not like I like her or anything, b-baka!" Whereas Utena also wasn't REALLY a yuri (it's complicated), it had a kind of fairytale-filtered and surreal take on themes of lesbianism and feminism, which at least were handled in a confident manner; on the other hand, TWfM is content to recycle a key plot point in a way that is merely distracting. And, indeed, it seems it will just be yuri bait in the same way that most shounen tend to engage in "romance bait," where there is this vague kind-of-sort-of-but-not-really relationship that is just a heightened affection implied by googly-eyes, blushes, stammering embarrassment (we'll get plenty of that either way...), and occasional cringe humor, but it never goes anywhere for like 200-300 episodes. Except this is even more of a not-romance than that! As this is a shounen promising the "rose-tinted" high school/university life, we're sure to get a not-romance of this nature within a not-romance of some other fashion, so this is like a matryoshka doll of banal not-romances waiting to be unraveled. The worst part of all is that I'd rather not have the plot be bogged down with OMG BESTIES! LET'S TELL EACH OTHER OUR SECRETS AND COUNT OUR BOO BOOS AND PAINT OUR NAILS MATCHING COLORS or a yuri romance sailing short ship. Romance has always been a part of Gundam, but these "intrigues of the heart" tend to be thin and secondary to politics, action, and other character dynamics. Alternative candidates for romance are Elan and Guel, but I'd rather have NO ROMANCE, as these characters are just not built for romancing. The characters are generic. Suletta stands out not so much for being a female protagonist as she does a jittery, anxious mess of a character who s-s-stutters and doesn't complett... sentences verr good, and hides behind people when things get heated and shakes in her boots. I keep thinking she's going to shake her way off a balcony or a cliff out of nervousness; that is, when she's not sounding like a self-help book, in or out of battle. We get a double-dose of tsundere push-pull, not only with the aforementioned brat, but also with "Chuchu," whose name is a direct reference to Utena, and she sports a goofy pink cotton candy Minnie Mouse-eared hairdo. When we compare characters to food, tsundere are usually "spicy," but this one is "sweet." Usually, there is a kind of balance for the most feisty of tsunderes, but they make her as irritating as possible, so her "character development" will be easier. Just a revolting character in all ways, and if the staff had any respect for the audience, she would be the first to be vaporized by a beam rifle. Though you could make that a triple latte, as Guel Jeturk (is this supposed to sound like cruel jerk?) is a male tsundere, because we just needed another one. While Elan may end up one of the more interesting characters due to plot purposes, all you need to know about him is that he's referred to as the "I-I-Ice P-Prince" and he has about as much personality as a sheet of ice. His initial arc is meant to be the first great emotional high point, but it feels so shockingly flat, part of that being a product of his emptiness as a character. The costume design consists of the most baggy "Does this make me look fat?" school uniforms I've ever seen, and the character design is mostly hampered by ill-fitting costumes, and while they're not too bothersome at first, I yearn to see the art of just about any other Gundam when watching this. The mobile suits look so shiny and brand new as to have just been r-ripped out of the plastic wrap at the toy store. It can be a mixed bag, but they actually integrate the CGI pretty well most of the time. Sometimes the mechs become very detailed or more hand-drawn looking. The battles are also surprisingly decent, fairly well-animated much of the time, and the stunts they pull during combat are inventive enough to the point that it feels like we might have different schools of combat, which is a plus. Gundam usually succeeds when it comes to combat and production values at least. Given that this is, to my knowledge, the first gundam that has a fixation on school life, as opposed to war, it's a necessity to make a few comparisons here to past series. The tone is a bit childish, and I wonder if this will remain the case once we're thrust into the war, or if the silly tone will somehow remain omnipresent for the entire duration—the characters, the visuals, etc., really make me think this will remain a circus (the ending is a hilarious contrast, though). Despite being a show targeting teens (probably younger as well) and first airing in 1979, the original Mobile Suit Gundam was a hell of a lot darker and more mature than TWfM to the point that it makes me blush. A real problem is the amount of p-p-p-plot armor stacked on Suletta. A main character, by definition, has plot armor. If they're dead, the story is over, usually. But as the duels arose, one by one, there was a clear pattern when it came to the victor, and less tension every time. Comparing this to the original MSG, Amuro started the series as an amateur who essentially learned fast and could adapt to the Gundam better than your average human, while also piloting an advanced model. Both of these perks gave him an edge over combatants, but his inexperience was often taken advantage of, especially when the seasoned Char would knock him around. The plot had enough unpredictability that Amuro would lose, have his Gundam totaled, nearly die, have to retreat, etc. War allows for a lot of possibilities. It's really not quite as varied with dueling. It's b-binary: you win or you lose. The stakes are set so high by the opponents that for Suletta to lose, would mean the series ending. Either she is forced to leave the academy or give up her Gundam or various other ultra-high stakes which would muck up the plot if she were to lose. It's possible you could make her lose with those stakes and somehow regain what she's lost by some means, but the writers seem content to not only remove nearly all tension, but to take the standard route of Suletta is like Amuro, but she starts off as an ace pilot who can't lose. They even use the she's an anxious klutz at everything, but by golly she's an adept of the highest order when she sets foot in that Gundam and fights, trope, as if to rub it in our faces. The story consists of a bunch of threads that aren't woven together in an especially compelling way. Suletta acquaints herself with various characters, the scenes being drawn out a bit longer to give her room to stutter. Shrill Miorine working out daddy issues and the yuri manipulation. There is some messy love geometry. Kids being kids, which should more accurately be referred to as high school/college freshman acting like they're in grade school. Light corporate dynamics—which are the only thing making the duels standout, so it's a shame this aspect is so weak. Multicultural/multiplanetal and inclusive Earthians (fat characters, anime, really?) without a gym versus exclusive and elitist Spacian clans with free gym membership. Drama leading to d-d-duels that span most of an episode. It might appear quite busy or complex from a distance, but when you look at the constituent parts, there's hardly anything of substance. There's so much going on that we get the bare minimum of everything, and a whole lot of mech battles with no tension, but they're cool and flashy at least. Suletta Mercury seems to be from Tomino's Dunbine school of character naming, with such classics as Frozen Marvel and Weapon Shot, and the world they inhabit in that series is a fantasy/sci-fi spin on the medieval period. Similar to early periods of history, her pseudonymous surname evokes her point of origin, which led me to imagine a solar system spanning epic like Five Star Stories, and I was thinking of the Gundam pilots as honorable knights hailing from different feudal space kingdoms. It would have been a cool revamp, but instead we get something that's supposed to be relatable to a new zoomer audience, so we get lame stuff like school competition and d-d-duels, anxious teens, manipulative teens, bullying teens, and just a whole lot of angst and attitude. Y-y-yawn.
ApocalypSnow
01/08/2023, 04:43 AM
Whether you’re a veteran Gundam fan or have never gotten into the series, Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch from Mercury will be a fun watch! This is the first Gundam anime I’ve watched. I know almost nothing about Gundam, but the world-building in the anime is excellent. By starting in space with the protagonist Suletta Mercury reporting a stray astronaut to the space police, we get a sense of the scope of this world right away. We’re up for an interstellar treat where space stations have been established to the point of a rescue system, an academy, and freaking bureaucracy. I love it. Suletta is an interestingprotagonist. She’s timid and stammers, but she has heart and stands up for herself and others when needed. By defying the space police and rescuing space princess Miorine Rembran on her own, she shines as her own character, with a lot of heroic potential. Through a series of tomato-related events, she also ends up being shipped with Miorine. I didn’t expect a yuri Gundam, but I’m all for it, especially since Suletta and Miorine have cute chemistry and plenty of moments throughout the anime that develop them as characters. Miorine is a classic tsundere, but she learns humility and shines on her own before opening up to Suletta. My main criticism is the Gundam itself. For an anime called Mobile Suit Gundam, there isn’t much mobile suit Gundam. Conflicts among schoolmates are resolved by one-sided mecha duels; they’re one-sided because one mecha is clearly superior to the other. The duels get boring when the same team keeps winning. And instead of exploring the mystery of Gundam, which I’m guessing is covered in another Gundam anime, Miorine and Suletta decide to promote Suletta’s mecha Aerial and make money. At least this plot is used to develop the main duo/ship. Bonus points for both the OP and ED being fire! YOASOBI doing the OP is a stellar choice. ^^
MakkusuUnfilwin
01/08/2023, 04:07 AM
From what I hear, Witch From Mercury was conceptualized with the intent of bringing in a whole new audience to the Gundam property—mainly modern teenagers, who apparently, according to one of the show’s producers, don’t care about the Gundam franchise because of their inability to relate to it. As an attempt to remedy that issue, and reel in this new, sought-after demographic, the leads were chosen to be two high school-aged girls, and the premise to be mapped out as a high school battle anime, in the vein of someshit like Utena, if you believe the comparisons. On paper, this sounds awful—a vein way ofappealing to zoomers, like myself, for that sweet, sweet Gunplay money, but, the strange thing is, this grand plan seemingly went off without a hitch. Witch from Mercury has, more or less, revitalized the franchise and purposefully repackaged it for the modern age. I remember the buzz around Iron-Blooded Orphans, but it was nothing like this; I see talk about this show from communities and individuals who’ve never taken an active interest in the franchise before, so yeah, whatever it is, it’s working, and working well. But what do I, a pretty avid Gundam fan, think of Witch From Mercury? Well, I can certainly tell you that I was worried, and like a night in Prague without pizza or beer, there was an absence of comfort, chief of which was the lack of the Cowboy King, Yoshiyuki Tomino. It could just be that the shows I haven’t seen, like SEED, are masterpieces, lying in wait, and that I just watched all the bad AUs, but sadly, the handful of non-Tomino Gundam projects in my catalogue didn’t exactly live up to the standard I’d come to expect from the franchise (with the exception of 0080). Simply put, no one is nearly autistic enough to replicate Tomino’s genius, aside from maybe one guy whose name has one too many “O’s” in it. Nothing is going to be as iconic and influential as 0079; nothing is going to be as insane and psychopathic as Zeta; nothing is going to be as finalizing as CCA; nothing is going to be as underrated as Victory; nothing is going to be as beautiful as Turn A; and nothing is going to be as Genki as G-Reco. If the show was veering away from franchise norms this hard, and without Tomino’s guidance, I was primed and ready for some sharks to be jumped over, signalling the permanent decline of the once great empire known as “Kidooou Sennshii Gundamuu.” In all honesty, though, it’s most definitely just my heavy, heavy Tomino bias, but I think any new Gundam project without Tomino is always going to be fighting an uphill battle, on the very hill it’ll eventually die on—you can only have so many cardboard characters smashing into each other in psychic-powered tin suits before it gets tedious. So, naturally, I’ve come into Witch From Mercury with worried and sceptical expectations, but at the same time, with my fingers crossed behind my back, secretly hoping to be proven wrong. It was then that, upon finishing the prologue on Sunrise’s YouTube channel, my worries of shark jumpery were gently put at ease, and it became immediately apparent that whoever was writing this was one smart cookie. Oh! It was Ooukouchi? I didn’t see you there, buddy. Well, doesn’t that just explain everything then? No wonder what I was watching actually impressed me. Anyways, thankfully, after dipping my toes into what this new AU had to offer, I wasn’t so much worried anymore, but I was certainly still sceptical, and rightly so. The conceit was undeniably a departure from what I was used to coming from the franchise, and that sentiment seemed to be shared throughout the online discourse surrounding the show. However, the buzz tended to be centred around how this change was somehow a bad thing—capitalizing on current trends, and pandering for the purpose of reeling in a younger audience—and yeah, normally I’d be right there beside them; I mean, who doesn’t hate secondaries, right? But then I saw her, Suletta, and all the pessimism was absolved from my body like a spike of black-tar heroin in a recovering junkie’s veins. Like a final hit of final hits, I was pulled right back into the franchise I’d come to call my favourite. With a decade-spanning, multi-universal franchise as big as Gundam’s, you get a good variety of protagonists; whether that be the idealistic, traumatized war hero Amuro, the spiteful, immature Kamille, or the laidback, gigachad Judou. But the Gundam protagonists that have always resonated the most with me are the downright autistic, idiots—a prime example being Bellri Zenam, who is, at once, both a completely oblivious, braindead autist, but also an incredibly endearing, lovable, charismatic goofball. Suletta, as a Gundam protagonist, definitely subscribes to Bellri’s special blend of autism, but with the pacifism and demeanour of someone like Loran, and, to be honest, the show wouldn’t have been the same without it. Suletta is, more or less, my favourite thing about Witch From Mercury, and I’m certainly not alone in saying that—all you need is one good look at twitter or something—but, like most things, there are detractors downplaying the quality of her character because they’ve been conditioned to lash out at anything that doesn’t fit inside their narrow purview of what a protag should be. Like, wow, this character really makes people seethe, and, unsurprisingly, it’s all old UCheads: the same people that get upset whenever a new series isn’t just 0079 with a new coat of paint. It’s ironic that I say my favourite part of Witch From Mercury is Suletta because she’s often used as a scapegoat to defame the show and devalue its credibility as a “serious Gundam.” I don’t know how to put this nicely, but yes, Sulleta is a legitimate bumbling moron, that much is true, though, when I say that, I say it with the utmost love and affection because it’s for that very reason that I, and many others, find her endearing. People argue that having a character like Suletta, front and centre for a show like Gundam, is an inherently bad idea cause of their arbitrary need for “deep,” “multifaceted,” or “serious” characters in they space opera, but what they’re missing is that Suletta is actually a smarter, stronger, and just better, character than most people give her credit for, and despite the stuttering being a polarizing character trait for some, I think her verbal ticks only add to that. A lot of the nuance in Suletta comes from Ookouchi’s prequel story, Cradle of Earth, from which details are mentioned in passing during the show but purposely aren’t elaborated on, so for anyone wanting the full context on Suletta, the story is important—she’s not a stuttering idiot for a meme, and when you look into her upbringing, her mannerisms start to make sense. Suletta grew up completely isolated from other children, robbed of the ability to make connections and socially develop, only ever experiencing snippets of a typical childhood through their portrayal in the anime, movies and novels of Aeriel’s library. She leant—and continues to lean—on her mother’s mantra like a crutch to get through even the most mundane decisions of day-to-day living, oblivious to the fact she was—and is still—being used as a tool for her Machiavellian schemes. “Don’t beg for it, earn-” wait, that’s not right, it’s “If you move forward, you gain two,” whatever that fucking means. Getting to the point, the prequel illustrates just how brave Suletta actually is, without the added mental stress of having to match pace with her—comparatively—well-adjusted peers. Suletta is confident and affluent, but as we see in the series, it takes time for her to settle in, and as we all know, even hell can get comfy once you’ve settled in. So, with all that context in mind, to me, when Suletta starts vomiting hot spaghetti all over Miorine’s shoes, it’s actually the most endearing thing about her. Despite struggling and tripping through relationships, belting out sentences like a perpetrator of domestic violence, Suletta’s almost chivalrous ideals and values hold steady, in a way so earnest, that other characters fail to replicate it. Her stumbling, rambling, mumbling, murmuring and muttering is quite literally the most charming thing about her. Speaking of Miorine, based solely on the first couple of episodes, I thought I’d hate her guts. I couldn’t tell if she was “the shit,” or just plain ol’ shit. I thought she’d be just another tsun-tsun bitch—what with how abrasive she is towards the pure wholesomeness that is Suletta—but little did I know, that with time, she would reveal herself to be one helluva stylin’, profilin’, limousine-riding, jet-flying, kiss-stealing, wheelin’ n’ dealin’ son of a gun. And in case that didn’t clear up anything, it just means she’s based and she don’t take no shit from no one—bitch smokes her stogie wherever she wants. Together, Suletta and Miorine are like a gay Kennedy and Heidi: two young girls, completely out of their element, unwittingly serving the nefarious purposes of their betters, where one is behind the wheel, steering the course, and the other is dragged along for the ride, but on this road, the steel is cheap, and the coal stretches. Now, putting the characters and plot aside for a moment, it bears mentioning that Ookouchi and the director, Kobayashi Hiroshi, styles’ clash together particularly well. I know, “clash,” isn’t the most flattering way to describe the synergy between director and writer, but with these creatives in mind, I thought it only appropriate. Kobayashi Hiroshi was not a name I was immediately familiar with, but upon taking a closer look at his body of work, I discovered he directed a couple episodes of Kill la Kill, one of which, episode 5, features the passing assassin, Tsugumu, rolling into town like Anton Chigurh and stirring all sorts of shit in the coolest way possible. The episode in question, and the specific way in which its events transpire, exemplifies what I love about Ookouchi’s, and by association, Tomino’s writing styles: chaos and kinetic energy. Now, Witch From Mercury doesn’t necessarily watch like Kill la Kill—well, actually, it doesn’t resemble Kill la Kill at all—but, it possesses this constant pace and energy that courses through its veins, in a way that reminds me of the fire and momentum of Kill la Kill, coupled with the senseless yet harnessed insanity of Valvrave. The episode, “Shall we Gundam?” illustrates the intersection of where these two different styles meet; in terms of pacing and tone, it comes off like the tournament section of KLK but with the conceit of something right out of Valvrave: a shark tank-esque battle of persuasion and logistics, in which the momentum of KLK is harnessed into the idea of promoting a business venture start-up. Albeit toned down from both KLK and Valvrave, it was a fantastic idea for an episode and it was just as fun to watch play out. I could practically see Ookouchi laughing in the background as Suletta somehow spills several glasses of champagne over herself out of literally nowhere. Thankfully, the show is smart not to squander that creativity either, as the next handful of episodes run with the idea, and are dedicated to the planning, organization and management of the aforementioned start-up, with various factions vying for potential control over the company and the eponymous Gundam, Ariel. It’s good shit. I’d say it’s the themes of Tomino’s 0079 that make it as beloved and remembered as it is, and I’d say it’s these same themes—whether it be war, environmentalism, displacement, adolescence or maternity—that give Gundam its beating heart, and Ookouchi obviously knows this. He’s careful not to completely replace the ideas of Tomino’s original work, but to expand upon them and enrich them. There’s a heavy backdrop of capitalism given to the Spacian-Earthian conflict in Witch From Mercury, and to illustrate the ensuing economic tensions, Ookouchi presents a society in which Earthian workers are forced to labour away their entire lives under the boot of Spacian economic dominance—a dominance with the power to dispose of Earthian protesters under the pretence of “business administrative laws,” which classify protesters as “illegal occupants” on public property. In a similar manner, a lot of thought is given to the portrayal of the media and how it reflects the Spacian-Earthian dichotomy. In the prologue, a political talk show broadcast is shown briefly, featuring a general poll of issues the public wants policymakers to discuss, split up to contrast the concerns of the Earthian and Spacian populations respectively. The Earthian side is filled with votes for things like poverty reduction, fair trade and the educational gap, whereas the Spacian side is more focused on defence, security, free competition and infrastructure. Small stuff like this really goes a long way as far as compelling and competent world-building, giving the audience insight into the bureaucratic happenings of the A.U. without having to explain large chunks of detail directly through exposition. It's only brief as well, which gives you the impression that we, the audience, are learning information at the same pace as the characters, as opposed to other shows, where the storyboards are like, "Look what's happening on the news! Look at this screen in the show!" which, more often than not, completely takes you out of it. Now, the really interesting part is that, 21 years later, during the main show, the media is so influenced by Spacian capital, that it makes Earthians feel like an oppressed minority group, reflecting a shift in the wider society of the show, corroborated by the Spacian prejudice towards Earthians we see often at Asticassia. Again, making a point to stop and show us the classism and discrimination rampant on Earth (and in space) with the aforementioned protest and the inherent power imbalance it demonstrates. This is the level of world-building and detail I’ve come to expect from the franchise, and what I found to be profoundly and sorely lacking from more modern entries like Furuhashi’s Unicorn and Yoshizawa’s NT. To cut to the chase, I’m thankful for this show, and I’m thankful that it was good. Witch From Mercury has, for better or for worse, reinstilled my faith in this franchise post-G-reco, and it’s reassured me that even with Tomino pretty much gone from the spotlight, Gundam will still be in good hands for the foreseeable future. Gundam, as a franchise, may be a soulless marketing machine, but it’s a good one, and I’m glad it exists and can still produce shows like this. I’m glad this anime was made, and I’m glad I picked it up. Who knows, maybe Witch From Mercury really did jump the shark, but even if it did, it sure as hell didn’t drown. There’s still a ton more to this show that I haven’t mentioned yet, but seeing as it ain’t even complete, I can’t be fucked to write anymore. Stuff like the bioethical implications surrounding the GUND format really impressed me, as does the Tempest allusions, and the sheer amount of threads Ookouchi leaves hanging for schizos on /m/ to run wild with, particularly with the ambiguity surrounding the time skip. Actually, truth be told, I’m absolutely terrified that some of those theories might legitimately come true. See you guys for cour 2 ;) Goodbye and Goodnight.
Zeniatus
01/08/2023, 03:59 AM
More than a Gundam show, the writer shines through the branding to announce to the world that it is one of his works. Thrilling, mysterious, and "political", it's a setup cour with a lot of shock factor speckled in between episodes until one big climax. If you liked his previous works like Code Geass, Valvrave and Guilty Crown you're sure to love this mix of thriller sci-fi and romance. But if you were expecting a coming-of-age, war drama like most Gundam shows, you'll miss what you were aiming for. I would love to enjoy each and every Gundam show that comes out but I don't.These sorts of thrillers that rely on the user's enjoyment of mystery boxes and shock moments disgust me. I haven't grown to like these characters at all because it's always about the mystery lore. The main protagonist has made about one decision in the entire show, and the rest has been her getting into conflicts that get resolved in the next episode. Each one was meant to reveal a little tidbit about the world and it certainly felt like they didn't give precedence to writing the characters over that. All of the motivations and plot have been shoved into the end of the season so that cour 2 can be the meat: What a waste of time. No disrespect to the people who enjoy these sorts of shows. But it's a hallmark of bad writing when you introduce a character and make his backstory so depressing, and then get rid of him after two episodes of "development". A tonally dissonant show ends with loves notes to the angst-ridden 2008-2012 era of anime. But it's the type of young adult fiction that while successful, doesn't have a lot of quality behind it. I would recommend not watching this and picking up Gundam X if you want something that sticks closer to OG Gundam Yoshiyuki Tomino shows. But if I had to pick from the year of 2022, I'd recommend watching the Build Fighters-Esque Birdie Wing: Golf Girls Story.
Mcsuper
01/08/2023, 02:19 AM
This was my first time watching a Gundam anime, and I feel like I have been bamboozled. Why, you ask? Because the prologue showed quite the dark space story that had me quite excited for what the series would bring. Instead, this show took place in an academy, and had all your academia tropes in there, which felt like a complete 360 from what I expected, which was more of a political show. Does that mean that The Witch From Mercury was bad? Not exactly, but I did have my fair share of issues with it. Now, I am quite aware that this was justthe first cour, and I am quite certain that this will be the weakest cour of this show. There was still some intrigue here, with the politics and character interactions, and I look forward to where that goes. As I said earlier, this show took place mostly in an academy so far, which, for more seasoned Gundam veterans, must have felt a bit surprising and perhaps a bit underwhelming. For me, it also felt a bit shocking considering the prologue, but the production looked pretty good early on that made it quite enjoyable. The things that I took more issue with in the plot was that the students seemed to hold so much power, and there were no higher authorities to speak of, other than the parents, but it’s not like the parents controlled the academy or anything. The students could just do as they pleased, harming each other like no one’s business. The duels were also quite a convenient plot device to settle disputes, and I felt that took away some of the potential this show had to show how good it could be. It didn’t allow for the characters to shine in ways outside of battle enough, and while the duels are cool to look at, it does get a bit predictable and repetitive. It’s not all negative though, as the political themes were still interesting enough to keep me watching. The mind games surrounding the ethics of Gundam suits, the war between the companies, Prospera’s role in all of this, it felt quite intriguing, but it’s still too early to know where the plot will go from here. Overall, quite a mixed bag, story-wise. As for the technical aspects of the show, it’s definitely the least of this series’ worries. Both the animation and music were well done, and the OP and ED were both quite the good songs. I just hope the production can stay afloat for the second cour, as we’ve already had some production issues this cour. The characters of this show are definitely the biggest source of intrigue in this show, and I’ll go over my thoughts on some of them. First, Suletta, the new Bocchi of the Gundam Franchise, just without the comedic aspect. She’s a dunce, plain and simple, and sometimes, I did get a little frustrated by how gullible she was, but as with most protagonists, she had her time to shine, but sadly there just wasn’t enough development this cour for her. She just needs more moments that rely on her skills more, and not getting bailed out by others. Her performance in the promotional video for the company was pretty cool though, I’m not gonna lie. Miorine, the other half to this relationship, could have been a great character, and when she shows her prowess, she’s quite awesome, but too much of her screen time was centred around meaningless things, such as yelling at Suletta, which was a bit repetitive. Luckily she had more meaningful moments toward the end of the cour. Shaddiq was a good side character, as I never really got a handle on his motives, though I was suspicious of what he would do. It made the climaxes a bit more shocking for sure. As for other interesting characters, Chuchu, Elan, and Nika come to mind, but it’s still quite early for me to formulate a firm opinion on them. Overall, this was a series filled with solid ideas, with middling execution at times. I enjoyed watching the characters and the politics enough, and the production quality was solid. I’d imagine the future cours will get me more interested in what this series has to offer, so if you’re interested in a more unique Gundam story that’s a slow burn, this could be the Gundam for you. This was my first Gundam show, so I can’t compare this to other parts of the franchise, but all I can say is, the GUND-ARM promotional video was the best part of all.
Marinate1016
01/08/2023, 12:45 AM
Gundam’s multiple timelines and universes often keep people away, which is a shame as shows like G Witch perfectly sum up why Gundam is one of the biggest franchises of all time. For me, G Witch is one of the best Gundam series ever, and the best modern iteration for two simple reasons. 1:Cute Girls. 2:Yuri. In all seriousness, it’s such a breath of fresh air to have two awesome female leads with such great personalities and a naturally developing relationship. Sulletta’s social anxiety is extremely relatable and you can’t help but want to see her succeed. Miorine’s prickly personality that she uses to cover upher own insecurities and fears is also something many people can relate to. The two leads just feel real and that’s one of the hardest things to nail in this medium. In a franchise that is known for insane space battles, political drama and cool mechs, it’s also a massive bonus to have loveable characters. I think the Yuri undertones have been handled really well. Pretty obvious, but not too in your face either. Suletta and Miorine’s friendship is integral to the story and the cornerstone of their growth as individuals and it’s been such a joy to see it play out in this first cour. I enjoy seeing female protagonists and romantic relationships more than traditional hetero ones as they tend to be better written and more organic. That said, there’s still a lot more room for growth and I can’t wait to see where things go in the second cour. The school setting is a really nice departure from the usual Gundam formula as well. The various cliques and politics going on within the school are a cool take on the usual political drama in Gundam. In many ways, G Witch really feels like Gundam for a modern audience which is really good because the same things that made Gundam popular in the 70s and 80s, might not be the wave to ride right now. Knowing how to modernise and adapt franchises for modern audiences is important to stay relevant and it seems sunrise have managed to just do that. The series still has that Gundam feeling, but feels very fresh. Even the character designs are a welcome upgrade. Of course you can’t talk about Gundam without talking about.. well.. gundams. In the show we haven’t seen too much action as it’s mainly been character driven over this first cour. That said, in the few action scenes we have had, I have been really pleased with the sakuga. The blending of 2D and 3D animation/CGI has been nearly flawless and the set pieces have been meticulously drawn and executed. I imagine as things heat up in the second cour, we will see even better action sequences and crazier battles, but I have no doubt in my mind Sunrise will do a great job. Minor note, but sound design has also been GREAT in the series too. I think it’s a detail that often gets brushed over in anime, but I really like it in this one. Overall, Gundam G Witch is a great watch for Gundam Vets and newcomers alike and one of my fave shows of 2022. No, you do NOT have to have seen any other Gundams to watch and enjoy this. The other gundams will allow you to see the character parallels between new characters and ones from other series, but it’s not necessary. In fact, I would say this is an excellent starting point for those looking to get into the franchise, as well as those who enjoy well written female characters, mechs and sci-fi in general. Gundam G Witch first Cour gets 10 tomatoes out of 10.

Kidou Senshi Gundam: Suisei no Majo 機動戦士ガンダム水星の魔女

North American Anime & Manga Releases for September

Fall 2022 Simulcast List [Update 10/30]

Fall 2022 Preview

'Kidou Senshi Gundam: Suisei no Majo' Reveals Additional Cast, Second Promo

'Kidou Senshi Gundam: Suisei no Majo' Unveils Cast for Prologue and Main Series, Second Teaser Promo

'Kidou Senshi Gundam: Suisei no Majo' Unveils Production Staff

'Kidou Senshi Gundam: Suisei no Majo' Unveils Teaser Promo, Prologue for Summer 2022

Gundam Franchise Announces 'Suisei no Majo' TV Anime, 'Cucuruz Doan no Shima' Anime Film for 2022

Kidou Senshi Gundam: Suisei no Majo 機動戦士ガンダム水星の魔女

North American Anime & Manga Releases for September

Fall 2022 Simulcast List [Update 10/30]

Fall 2022 Preview

'Kidou Senshi Gundam: Suisei no Majo' Reveals Additional Cast, Second Promo

'Kidou Senshi Gundam: Suisei no Majo' Unveils Cast for Prologue and Main Series, Second Teaser Promo

'Kidou Senshi Gundam: Suisei no Majo' Unveils Production Staff

'Kidou Senshi Gundam: Suisei no Majo' Unveils Teaser Promo, Prologue for Summer 2022

Gundam Franchise Announces 'Suisei no Majo' TV Anime, 'Cucuruz Doan no Shima' Anime Film for 2022

Kidou Senshi Gundam: Suisei no Majo 機動戦士ガンダム 水星の魔女

North American Anime & Manga Releases for September

Fall 2022 Simulcast List [Update 10/30]

Fall 2022 Preview

'Kidou Senshi Gundam: Suisei no Majo' Reveals Additional Cast, Second Promo

'Kidou Senshi Gundam: Suisei no Majo' Unveils Cast for Prologue and Main Series, Second Teaser Promo

'Kidou Senshi Gundam: Suisei no Majo' Unveils Production Staff

'Kidou Senshi Gundam: Suisei no Majo' Unveils Teaser Promo, Prologue for Summer 2022

Gundam Franchise Announces 'Suisei no Majo' TV Anime, 'Cucuruz Doan no Shima' Anime Film for 2022

Kidou Senshi Gundam: Suisei no Majo 機動戦士ガンダム 水星の魔女

North American Anime & Manga Releases for September

Fall 2022 Simulcast List [Update 10/30]

Fall 2022 Preview

'Kidou Senshi Gundam: Suisei no Majo' Reveals Additional Cast, Second Promo

'Kidou Senshi Gundam: Suisei no Majo' Unveils Cast for Prologue and Main Series, Second Teaser Promo

'Kidou Senshi Gundam: Suisei no Majo' Unveils Production Staff

'Kidou Senshi Gundam: Suisei no Majo' Unveils Teaser Promo, Prologue for Summer 2022

Gundam Franchise Announces 'Suisei no Majo' TV Anime, 'Cucuruz Doan no Shima' Anime Film for 2022

Kidou Senshi Gundam: Suisei no Majo 機動戦士ガンダム水星の魔女

Kidou Senshi Gundam: Suisei no Majo 機動戦士ガンダム水星の魔女