Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch From Mercury

Episode 9

All right, yuri fans, crucify me if you wish, but I'm just gonna come right out and say it: Shaddiq and Miorine is a good ship.

In general, it is pretty amusing how much this show ship teases the major male characters with Suletta or Miorine, considering that those two are engaged and all. But teasing is all it is; the story nips any possibility of an actual reciprocated relationship in the bud. Shaddiq didn't get physically obliterated like Elan did, but there's still a bit of pathos to his story of a lost opportunity with Miorine. The episode title "More Than a Childhood Friend, But Not True Love" sums it up perfectly*. Mind you, I'm glad he didn't succeed in his scheme, but his defeat still leaves a bittersweet aftertaste. This episode struck the perfect balance between empathizing with the loser and making it clear that he did not deserve to win.

After the sucker punch with Elan several episodes ago, Shaddiq's match with the Earth House feels like the show pulled its punches—though not necessarily in a bad way. I was expecting this storyline to drag out longer, but everything gets neatly resolved by a duel in one episode. Shaddiq's crew finds a weakness to the GUND Format, but Suletta clears it with the power of friendship. It's all pretty predictable stuff. But this show is still in its buildup phase, and with Shaddiq's introduction now properly complete, I expect the heavier plot twists to start coming. We still don't know what form Nika's betrayal will take, even though this group battle was the obvious moment for it to happen. In that sense, this episode was one big feint leading up to the inevitable mid-season cliffhanger.

Visually, the character animation is still plainly struggling, but the brief mecha action holds up nicely. While the plot beats this time were predictable, I liked the setup of a group duel because it allows a wider variety of Mobile Suits and side characters to see action. Renee won me over instantly when she picked a fight with Lilique for "stealing" her 12th backup boyfriend, and ChuChu's aggression was as delightful as always. The duel only really feels underwhelming in its climax, when a cornered Suletta promptly finds her resolve. The faltering character animation fails to sell her tension in the crucial moments before the turning point, which goes to show that an effective robot battle needs more than good robot animation.

Overall, this was a good episode, but the weakest of the duels. I'm still enjoying the ride, but now that the major character introductions are done, I'd like to see this show move past the duels as the primary means of settling conflicts. We've seen what all the mechs are capable of; now let's see the consequences. There's only so much foreshadowing this series can do before the audience starts getting impatient about the payoff.

(*UPDATE (12/6): This title is a mistake on Crunchyroll's part—it's the title of episode 9 of More Than a Married Couple, But Not Lovers. The actual title of the episode is "If I Could Take One More Step Towards You." Crunchyroll hasn't fixed this title as of this update, but hey, the theme fits!)

Rating:

Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch From Mercury is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.