The Witch From Mercury - Episode 1 [Review]
By: Mithrandiel
Miss my review of the Prologue episode? You can find it here!
The Fall season is officially underway, and with it, the arrival of a new Gundam series!
Following the tragic events of the prologue episode, we rejoin the series after a time skip: Ericht Sumaya, the young girl that lost her father and unwittingly became connected to a highly advanced mobile suit now goes by the name Suletta Mercury, is a teenager, and on her way to attend the Asticassia School of Technology. An elite school, Asticassia's students help to further the development and deployment of mobile suits, developing management and mechanical skills and of course, piloting abilities.
I appreciated the opening montage for Asticassia, demonstrating the setting as a large, thriving school with various specialties. I'm sure we'll be introduced to more of the nuance of the various schools as the series continues, but as a sweeping introduction, it served to lure me in and pique my interest.
During her arrival, Suletta notices a lone figure floating outside of the school in a spacesuit, seemingly in need of rescue. After a frantic rush to save the mysterious victim, it appears that it was a planned getaway from a young woman named Miorine Rembran. The daughter of President Delling (the antagonist who arranged the attack in the prologue), Miorine yearns to flee to Earth and escape her arranged marriage to a haughty, self-obsessed man named Guel Juterk.
Committed to taking responsibility for botching Miorine's escape, the bumbling and shy Suletta follows Miorine around like a lost puppy for much of her first day. That is, until she experiences just how much of a bully Guel is first hand. After Miorine rejects his proposal to relocate to the Juterk house, Guel begins thrashing her private sanctum, where she nurtures a variety of Earth-based plantlife. Appalled, Suletta challenges Guel to a duel.
You see, at Asticassia, matters of substance are settled via duels - from transfers of money and authority to formal marriage arrangements. In this case, Suletta just wanted him to apologize to Miorine. Still, it's a big deal. Guel is what would traditionally be known as the "big dog on campus" - Asticassia's top dueler, such a challenge would seem foolish to anyone, particularly an unknown Martian on her first day at school.
Miorine actually attempts to battle Guel herself at first, using Suletta's Mobile Suit, no less! While the activation was quite the to-do in the prologue, it would appear that this has become much more streamlined in the 10-12 years since then, as Suletta has a revelation in the moment that she effectively granted Miorine permission for access earlier in the episode.
Still, we learn quickly that despite her harsh demeanor, Miorine is far from being a skilled mobile suit pilot. Her experience is in management - not piloting. Recognizing this, and also annoyed that someone else was piloting her machine, Suletta hijacks a scooter and rushes out to the battlefield. Upon taking over the Gundam, she dispatches Guel (ok she doesn't kill him, but chops his mobile suit into little pieces), and in doing so violently disrupts the social structure of the school.
There's some fun corporate politicking happening in the background as well involving President Delling and the Three Major Branches, which you're introduced to, but I'll leave it to you to enjoy that during your own viewing!
There's been a lot of buzz around this new Gundam series, namely due to the gap since the previous flagship series and the fact that this is the first series with a female protagonist. By the end of the first episode you have a real appreciation for just how unique this series is striving to be as it sets the foundation for a yuri inspired romance between Miorine and Suletta. I'm thoroughly intrigued at how this dynamic will continue to play out as the series progresses.
The action sequences were well done, not overly bombastic - but enough to tease at what's to come. With a spin on the usual romantic tension, clean animation and a strong narrative foundation, The Witch From Mercury has got a weekly viewer here!
You can watch Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch From Mercury on Crunchyroll.
