「父と子と」 (Chichi to Ko to)
“Father and Child”

Seems Witch from Mercury has been listening to all those complaints about it being purely school-life Gundam, at least if this week is anything to go by. Gone are the halcyon days of introverted redhead letting equally redheaded – yet thoroughly digitized – sister crush the student competition, replaced by the more familiar form of Gundam dispute settling. And teenage melodrama, cannot forget that either.

Considering how last season left off, it was a tad surprising that Guel didn’t show up until now. The kid after all was disparaged by his father, banished for his hotheaded pride, and rewarded for it at the end by committing patricide. It’s effectively fall from grace taken to its logical extreme, a guy who pulled the short end of the stick once and has always been reminded of the fact since. Such brutal setups, however, are always made with the intent of redemption down the line, and Guel’s is no exception. Having wound up on Earth as a hostage, he’s not only exposed to the dirtier side of what his own father (and his father’s company) got up to, but also forced to face his own actions and accept he must move past them. In Guel’s situation there’s no room for wallowing in self-pity – your life is literally on the line and no one has any interest in helping you survive. As Olcott (himself certain to be a noticeable character shortly) succinctly alluded Guel has hit rock bottom and it’s his responsibility to now start ascending from the depths.

Where this leads too is growing increasingly clear as every major player starts making their move. Shaddiq of course is obvious: he wants the big chair, and in the usual Gundam fashion thinks he can ride the tiger and keep the free-for-all of war and politics nicely controlled through some deliberate donation of corporate resources. In practice he’s destined to fail, and not just because of his hubris – Guel for one will be coming for Shaddiq once he learns who was responsible for the latest course of events, and I wouldn’t necessarily count Shaddiq’s adopted father Sarius out either, especially considering how many companies part of Benerit who might have a problem with their assets being arbitrarily sold off. Then there’s the matter of Prospera, Quiet Zero, and Miorine’s own actions which are guaranteed to put that little scheme into action and commence the true conflict of this series.

All roads now are leading towards a grand showdown, one that will see some interesting alliances and even more fascinating dilemmas on the part of some key characters. The only major thing we have to find out now is just what Quiet Zero is actually meant to do – and just how Suletta is going to factor into its use.

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