REVIEW: ‘Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch From Mercury,’ Episode 7 – “Shall We Gundam?”

After one of its most harrowing mecha battles yet, Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch From Mercury attempts to take things slow in its seventh episode, “Shall We Gundam?” But complications arise since this is an entry in the Mobile Suit Gundam franchise. The Witch From Mercury Episode 7 finds Suletta Mercury (Kana Ichinose) and Miorine Rembran (Lynn) attending an “Incubation Party,” which is held by the three houses that make up the Asticassia School of Technology, where attendees can pitch their newest business ventures.

Suletta attends to talk to Elan Ceres (Natsuki Hanae), though she remains unaware of his troubled history. And to make matters worse, Peil Technologies—the house Elan belongs to—has revealed that Suletta’s Aerial is a Gundam and therefore outlawed technology. With her Mobile Suit on the line, Suletta’s caught between a rock and a hard place. But who will come to her rescue?

Once again, we have an episode dedicated to the politics behind the Gundam universe. Throughout the party, multiple characters try to advance their various goals. Peil Technologies wants to ensure that Elan’s Pharact is the only Mobile Suit. The Jeturks and Miorine’s father also have agendas that depend on Aerial’s destruction.

And caught in the middle is Suletta, who had no idea she was piloting a Gundam. Throughout the series, she’s talked about how Aerial was a part of her family, and she responds to its potential destruction like any of us would a family member’s death or illness. While this isn’t the first Gundam series to treat its mobile suits as more than war machines, it genuinely feels like Suletta and Aerial have an unbreakable bond.

The real star of The Witch From Mercury Episode 7 is Miorine, especially during her interactions with Suletta’s mother, Prospera (Yume Miyamoto). At first, seeming ecstatic to meet her daughter’s “bride,” Prospera then delivers a cutting speech about how Miorine needs to throw away her pride. Those words come back to haunt Miorine during Suletta’s impromptu trial and lead her to make a decision that she’d never have considered otherwise. Lynn’s performance undergoes a shift throughout the episode. Usually, she plays Miorine as cold and haughty, but this is the most emotion she’s shown throughout the series. It shows that no matter what she might say or do, Miorine truly cares about Suletta.

Animation-wise, The Witch From Mercury Episode 7 is chock full of fashion and good-looking food. Viewers’ mouths will water, seeing crystal flutes full of bubbling orange liquid, perfectly cooked prime rib, and buttery mashed potatoes. Once again, I’m reminded that anime makes food look better than it does in real life. And the main characters change out of their school uniforms into glamorous dresses, with Miorine’s a deep blue and Suletta’s a fiery red. Not only do the gowns compliment the complexion of their skin and the color of their hair, but the animators also make the dresses flow with each step the girls take. And then there are the facial expressions. Suletta’s face goes through several changes, from relief when she encounters “Elan” to horror when she learns that Aerial might be in danger. It’s a marked contrast to her mother, whose face is covered mainly by her silver helmet and betrays no expression.

Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch From Mercury Episode 7 delves into the politics governing its universe in an episode full of glitz, glamour, and Gundams. The episode ends with a significant development that offers a whole new challenge for Suletta and Miorine and sets the stage for future episodes. After all, a Gundam series can’t just thrive on mobile suit battles alone.

Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch From Mercury is available to stream on Crunchyroll. New episodes premiere on Sundays.