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「逃げ出すよりも進むことを」 (Nigedasu Yori mo Susumu Koto wo)
“Keep Marching On Instead of Running Off”
Well, let’s just say that extra week’s wait for this finale was worth it. We got the cliffhanger alright, with a hearty helping of shock, awe, and the promise of some interesting developments to come once the dust finally settles. What can I say, it’s going to be one hell of a wait for spring.
Right out the gate is this episode’s first casualty – and what proved to be a death no one saw coming. Delling getting offed sure (and his status is very much up in the air), maybe Prospera for the true wild card, but Guel’s father? And Guel himself doing the killing? And Guel actually realizing it right away? Oh damn, that one really came out of left field. Characters like Guel usually rub me the wrong way yet it’s very hard no sympathizing with the kid right now, having done everything he thought right only to get browbeat, humiliated, exiled, and now stuck with the knowledge he took his own father’s life. It’s tragedy distilled into its purest form, and also something which makes what Guel gets up to next a major mystery. Not the getting back behind a mobile suit and seeking revenge mystery mind you – that’s already a given – but who exactly he targets. Does he blame Earth specifically, or will he latch onto his father’s enemies? Something tells me that Shaddiq might wind up being the ultimate target for Guel’s undeserved agony.
Guel, however, isn’t the only shock this week, Suletta too winds up raising more than a few eyebrows. It’s not hard seeing why: to go from rightfully terrified to nonchalantly pulverizing the enemy before an equally scared Miorine is major whiplash, especially given how quick the flip occurred. I’m honestly hard-pressed making a lot of sense of this given the Suletta we’ve seen to date, but one inkling is that the real weapon might not be Aerial as much as Suletta. The ease at which Prospera can mold the girl into doing downright brutal acts is legitimately impressive in its own right, plus the ease at which Suletta can out-pilot other Gundams and maximize Aerial’s potential is starting to become very noticeable. It’s not to say that Suletta is a literal weapon in her own right, but rather that she’s the key to mitigating all the current risks associated with GUND technology. Methinks those clone arguments and Prospera not actually being Suletta’s mother just got a major leg up in possibility.
And that then gets us to what happens next. Safe to say the Earth-based Gundams, their moles, and their masters will be the next antagonist of the moment, with Delling’s status and Miorine’s role key components in establishing direction. I’m going out on a limb and saying Delling will survive, but that he’ll offload his duties and responsibilities to his daughter given moments like these don’t end with things returning to normal. Chalk on how Miorine winds up treating Suletta going forward and we’re in for some colourful episodes in a few months, particularly if Witch from Mercury has an additional season or two lined up further down the line.
I’ll hold onto any final impressions until we see where this series concludes, but suffice to say we’re in for some very interesting times come spring. Catch you all next season, because there’s no way I’m letting go of this one anytime soon!
End Card
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I’ll be honest. I was one of the people who thought about dropping the show because the classroom drama didn’t seem to be going anywhere or match the content of previous Gundam series. I was wrong. The cuteness of the beginning of the series was just set-up for the writers to pull the rug out from under us. This was some of the most graphic content I have seen in a Gundam series, and they needed the audience to not see it coming. My mouth was hanging open in the last couple minutes of this episode, and I look forward to season 2.
IMO it’s not the most graphic, but it’s definitely the first Gundam material which comes out left field. It’s so at odds with what we got to date that it really makes what’s coming in the second season tantalizing because how do you top this?
We finally got the Gundam of old, where no one is innocent, everyone is guilty of something, and the children, the children have blood on their hands too…so does Ariel.
I don’t know for sure if Suletta is Prospera’s legitimate child, but what I do know is that GUND-Arm Corp has its first bad press so soon.
The earlier episodes had me asking, “Are Sunrise/Bandai going soft on Gundam for us?” They’ve been setting us up for this episode of fecal-matter-hits-the-fan, This is the 1st episode of this series that we can really say, “This is Gundam,” with all the delicious pain to come.
And just think, this is only the first act 😛
In the immortal word of Asuka:
“Heftig!”
With all the drama around, lets pause for a moment and look at the situation with cool strategic eye:
“Shady” Shaddiq: if he can keep his involvement secret, he can play schoolboy for some time yet, though I presume things will get out sooner than later. This will also mean his adoptive father will have not much longer to live, since his straight anti-gundam politics completely crash collide with Shaddiq’s use of Gundams.
Whatever his faction is up to – my bet is gaining power by using Earth resentment of spacefaring powers – will now to be gained in open warfare.
The three houses:
Jeturks just got decapitated, and I wonder if Guel will be even capable of regaining control after being the one to kill his father. If he manages to do that, I expect bloody vendetta on Shaddiq and his forces.
Zenellis have been taken over from within by Shaddiq. Whatever resources they have, will be thrown into Earth’s cause.
Ceres company seems to be content to sit out this war, for now. I expect them to enter conflict if one side or the other gives them a good enough offer – or an offer you cannot refuse. But for now they hope others will kill each other and they will be left up to pick up the pieces, not a bad strategy in itself…
Delling and the witch hunters (Dominicus).
Delling is heavily hurt, and possibly will die. One way or another this will thrust Miorine into command position regardless of her wishes. She has the most powerful military force of the in-story universe, facing determined band of guerillas. But guerillas do have resources of the one of the 3 houses at disposal, and more adept commander, it seems, and very high morale due to Earth’s population despising spacers. So the conflict might be much more even than first glance suggests… On the another side, Aerial is the one thing Shaddiq could not counter. Had he secured Aerial for his side, the results of Battle of Quetta station would be much more decisive in his favor.
There’s something shady as hell about Prospera, what did she do to Suletta to cause that total about-face in her attitude to fighting? Or is it something Ariel and the GUND Format did to her?
And Guel killing his own father? That’s tragedy with a capital T, almost straight out of Sophocles. The gods don’t like patricides, it won’t end well for him.
When she is unmasked, her face is so kind.
However, when she is “Prospera”, she had all the crimes of the world in her.
Prospera even cut off from episode 1 the former Cardo corporation. You will notice that the man cut off is the same manager of Eri’s dad who fled by himself and probably is a mole of episode 0.
Yeah, this is the reason some people are thinking of brainwashing or similar.
Before Prospera’s pep talk, Suletta seemed “normal”. Aka “terrified by the violence and having difficulty with the idea of killing people right in front of her”. But only a talk is enough to turn her into a cheerful killing machine that doesn’t mind splashing someone like a bug or getting splashed in his blood? That turn is too sudden.
The thing is, the talk itself didn’t seem suspicious. Yes, it’s an adult convincing a child to take arms and kill people, but that’s nothing new in Gundam and Prospera actually sounded more caring and supportive than other examples in this franchise (coughBrightslapcough).
Yeah the talk itself wasn’t weird, it was perfectly in line with Prospera’s personality thus far. We are missing one big piece of the puzzle and I’m really hard-pressed thinking it doesn’t have anything to do with the intimate link Suletta and Aerial share.
Dear Miorine, when someone asked where da f* is your safety stuff, that means they worried and concerned. Okouchi, do we need another Cagalli Yulla Atha like character,?frankly i’m not too fond with her archetype, instead give me more Sochie Heim. Better character, better energy and better development and she is more genuine as character.
Holy shiiii- Shaddiq, your code name, Prinz reek of…. yuck, unhealthy dose of self entitled narcism. So because you’re an orphan and adopted…. you need this kind of title to bolster your fragile ego? Geezz… here i thought Guin San Rainford is the most loathsome and disgusting character in gundam i’ve ever seen,…
Vim Dady Jeturk, hot headed fella, nice and caring parents…. but piloting your own mobile suits….. not even Bask Om did this, even he is sensible enough to care about his own safety first.
BOOOBBB!? WHY!? That’s a hell of character development, Okouchi…. are you sure he is not the main character? Suletta barely has any character development, she is as bland and empty as that robot egg dude from Aldnoah Zero…. that bullying doesn’t count (i can accept what she did in mercury novel, though).
Suletta debut pilotting for upgrade is so bad, she barely hit anything. And Aerial Rebuild looks like a terrible rip-off of AshSaber WeissSaber from SRW. Btw, Daddy Deling can pat his back in pride, Miorine being clueless of cruelty of outside world means he done well to raise an innocent kind and dumb daughter .. her daddy issues is getting annoying, frankly.
Even in another Gundam Guel wouldn’t be the main character, but he would already be established as a key antagonist or rival. This sort of development is significant as it implies Guel will have a bigger role – there’s simply too much catharsis to mine to leave him lounging in the backfield.
@Pancakes
Yeah, bob was given a trial tribulation worthy of a CHAR. I guess HE IS A CHAR in the next season, hopefully so. Because those two throne-ur ilfrith aren’t good enough to be villains.
…. so long he is not a sissy like Chronicle Asher (i prefer Tassilo Vago though), a cuck like Carrozzo Ronah, a simp like Gyuunei Guss, a cringe like Mister Bushido (Graham Acker in season 1 is cool though), treated as laughing stock or Weekly Sunday Cartoon Villain like Corin Nander (he is cool pilot, but his treatment undermines his threat and presence).
I will be happy if he is loyal and crazy like Mashymere Cello when piloting Zaku III, dangerous like Rakkan Dahkaran. Or overall like Anavel Gato, Shin Matsunaga, Norris Packard while having solid chemistry like the cyclops team.
@Mistic
There is a wild speculations that Deling will survive but paralyzed that needs him to rely on prosthetic, and miorine will provide him one. In the end, miorine was just a “Well done, son.” trope yearning for a good manly daddy’s head pat.
True enough, I didn’t expect Guel to kill his own father. That was definitely the moment where I started going “holy s***”, and it got better (worse?) afterwards. Not that there weren’t serious issues beforehand, but those felt like “part of the plan”, so to speak (a certain father being injured, a certain mole being exposed). Indeed, it would be a fitting conclusion for his arc if he ends up killing Shaddiq. His father was in cahoots with him before the attack, he might have left some incriminating information behind .
It’s funny how Delling got more good father points in this episode, sacrificing himself for his daughter. The guy is a jerk, but deep down he still cares. And his words imply some past trauma and ifficult decisions.
It’s funny to think that this episode might have confirmed the fears of some Japanese Gundam fans, while delighting others (particularly Western ones). Only the ending will tell, I suppose, but I’ll be enjoying the ride in the meantime.
From what Delling was lamenting on it sounds a lot like his actions have been to shield Miorine or at least convince her to pursue a path different from his. Pretty much his form of tough love which certainly would mesh with how the usual Gundam character subplots play out.
Quite looking forward to seeing how this chaos works out in the end!