#now go watch g gundam!

[l-crimson-l]

HOLY SHIT NO WAY!!!!

[ayanarts-01]

norea tries to project a persona of logic and reason, but continues to make reckless decisions fueled by her spacian hatred. el5n acts flippant and irresponsible, but his self-preservation instincts make him a pragmatist by necessity. two sides of the same coin arrggghhhh

[minweber]

Never thought I’d say something like that, but the drama of space robot politics in this show doesn't quite measure up to the drama of those teenage girls’ romance.

[rellze]

So! How'd you feel about the finale? I saw some mixed reviews- some people loved it, others... not so much.

Honestly, I thought it was a pretty ok finale, I'm just disappointed that it doesn't look like we're getting another season (maybe if we make enough noise..?).

Ok here’s my thoughts!

Personally, I feel like this show should have had 50 episodes like previous gundam shows. The back of half this season was pretty rushed and I feel like some plot elements were poorly explained. This episode showed this off the most with everything being saved with rainbow space magic in a fun but messy climax (at one point I whispered to my roommate “this is really sick but I’m not sure what’s actually going on anymore”)

BUT

The epilogue was everything I dreamed of. Suletta and Miorine are married! (Offscreen. Grrr.) All of Earth House lived! Prospera and Eri live! The oppression isn’t magically solved but people are making strides to improve the situation! Butch Nika! Road trip Elan (they were so funny for that ngl).

The force ghosts of the dead characters also really hit the right emotional notes. I’d say that thematically and emotionally, the finale nailed it even if plot wise it was a little janky.

Even so, I wouldn’t be surprised if we get more Ad Stella content. We still have a few loose ends (what happened to Notrette!?) and sunrise is a business at the end of the day, the WFM gunpla sells like hotcakes (I have Aerial and Lfrith already, have preordered Schwarzette and will probably buy Calibarn), so it would be a smart decision to lean into that. (Isn’t there an event in august about the show? I’m keeping an eye out)

hell, they could make a 50 episode slice of life show and I’d probably be sated. give me shitty in law content or give me death. At least give me a wedding OVA. sunrise please.

Anyway, I’ve spent the past couple months telling you what I think, I’m curious what you’re takes are now. (and thanks for humouring me lol).

[cheswirls]

maybe I am jus not intuitive enough but the 'guel rly was considered missing' tie-up in e12 rly threw me for a loop.

like.

his dad talked abt withdrawing guel from school bc he wasn't worth it anymore and setting him up w an in-company job that was obviously beneath his dignity. then guel has that run-in w suletta and thinks through a lot w/o actually saying anything to the audience. if you could interpret that kudos to you.

and then he goes "missing." his brother is obviously out of the loop. his dad keeps playing the victim 'oh nO where could my son have gone??' all the while guel ends up w a low-prestige job w a fake name. sounds like the perfect setup to me. his father gets him the job and sends guel out to the sticks where he can't be a bother anymore. makes him go by a fake name at work to hide his ties to the jeturk family. keeps playing the emotional and concerned parent in front of various parties to keep up the charade. it makes sense. it's completely in line w the head of jeturk we've seen portrayed throughout the show.

and then this ending jus blows it away. not only did no one actually know where guel was, but his father ended up being relieved that he was alive and well. I guess it went to match the 'delling actually cares abt his daughter' point of, like, all these parents have multiple facets. but it still caught me so off guard bc I never thought guel actually ran away. it all added up to make it seem like he had been forced into exile.

[alteredphoenix]

So what I’m understanding is: there really is no point in watching G-Witch now because somehow somebody at BamCo had the bright idea to go on social media and say “Yeah you know what let’s leave it up to interpretation despite the fact the show fucking spells it out clear as day to everybody that these girls are gay and married by proxy of wedding rings and it was intended to have way more interactions to show the Main Pair was actually, romantically getting close to one another, we’re just going to ignore all that and not confirm shit because Why The Fuck Not Let’s Do Some More Executive Meddling While We’re At It”.

Like I don’t even go here but when I saw that pop up on my TL just now I was like??? Excuse me??? Hello???

[coredrill]

i can’t fucking believe tetsujin ended Like That

[genshingorlsrevengeance]

I wanted to ask, what would it be like if Fischl had an S/O who not only plays along with her, but is just as much as a Chuunibyou as her? I'd kinda like to see her reaction to that. Maybe see what the other Mondstadt folks think as well? Oh, and bonus points if the S/O does the whole Shining Finger thing. from Gundam. That "this hand of mine glows with an awesome powerrr!" thing.

(Genshin Impact/Honkai: Star Rail)

Fischl, Ayaka, Rosaria, Eula, Furina, Shinobu, Bronya, and Seele with a very dramatic S/O

YOU ACTIVATED MY SLEEPER AGENT KEYWORDS, YOU MENTIONED GUNDAM, AND SPECIFICALLY G GUNDAM

Fischl's eyes seemed to gleam when she first realized that her S/O not only indulged her antics, but even joined her!

Their title was almost as impressive as her own, 'The King/Queen of Hearts'!

(Fischl) "Tell me dear, S/O, how can the fabled 'King/Queen of Hearts' measure up to the Prinzessin der Verurteilung?"

S/O clenched their fist and raised it in front of their chest triumphantly.

(S/O) "You may have your electric arrows, but I have these GOLDEN FINGERS!"

Oz on the other hand was completely suffering.

Well, at least he didn't have to translate for S/O, they were completely blunt and to the point, unlike his master.

Fischl did adore S/O for how brave and caring they were, but it was during a battle that made her heart first skip a beat.

(S/O) "HERE I GO!-"

S/O's pyro vision flared up as their fists began glowing a flaming gold, catching both Oz and Fischl by surprise.

(Fischl) "W-What?! S/O was serious with knowing an ultimate technique?!"

(Oz) "I thought they were in a similar boat to you, mein Fräulein-"

(S/O) "THIS HAND OF MINE IS BURNING RED! IT'S LOUD ROAR TELLS ME TO GRASP VICTORY!"

They rushed past Fischl and Oz, who could only watch in awe.

(S/O) "ERUPTING, BURNING...FIIINGEEEEERRRR!"

Their fist immediately crashed through a Ruin Guard (somehow), and lifted them off the ground with one arm.

(S/O) "AND NOW, HEAT END!"

The Ruin Guard exploded violently afterwards, with S/O's fist going back to normal.

(Oz) "Wow, really?"

(Fischl) THAT IS SO COOL! "...Ahem, a fine display, dear S/O."

Everyone in Mondstadt thought that Fischl had just found another roleplayer that took things way too seriously and were somewhat dreading talking to them.

Only to realize S/O wasn't doing a bit, despite the fact they were just as dramatic as her.

They were just insane.

Ayaka knew her S/O was a bit on the...flashy side, to put it gently.

They screamed all their attack names at the top of their lungs, yet she knew no one was better and hand to hand combat than they were. Especially when they began actually glowing red or ignited into flames.

All that did not matter terribly much to Ayaka. S/O was someone she loved, for their caring and valiant nature.

But, someone like S/O was something she had never expected to face, and they both drove her insane, and yet brought contrasting calmness to her life.

Nothing however would ever compare to meeting S/O's master for the first time.

Ayaka and S/O were travelling down the streets of Inazuma, until everyone, including the guards were watching someone coming down the street.

(Ayaka) "...Is...that person standing on their horse?"

Suddenly, S/O's eyes widened, and rushed through the crowd, unintentionally leaving Ayaka behind. She quickly followed behind and saw a man standing perfectly on the horse as it trotted along the streets of Inazuma, arms crossed and an expression that was razor focused.

(S/O) "MASTER!"

The man's head turned to S/O, and both of them exchanged a glance before Ayaka saw their master leap off the horse, extending a fist as they landed perfectly in front of them.

(Strange Man) "Answer me, S/O! THE SCHOOL OF THE UNDEFEATED OF THE EAST!"

S/O knelt down as they struck a dramatic pose, answering their master.

(S/O) "THE WINDS OF THE KING!"

In the middle of the city, they began exchanging rapid punches that traded perfectly blow for blow, so fast that even Ayaka struggled to keep track of.

(Strange Man) "ZENSHIN!"

(S/O) "KEIRETSU!"

(Both) "TEMPA KYOURAN!"

Both their fists collided before their other arms extended outwards in sync, screaming once again.

(Both) "LOOK! THE EAST, IS BUUUURRNING REEEED!"

Ayaka watched with a strange mixture of horror, second-hand embarrassment, admiration, and jealousy.

(Ayaka) ...I-Is it possible for S/O to teach me how to do that too...?

When Rosaria first met S/O, she thought they were going to be a troublemaker.

She was correct, but they fought to keep Mondstadt safe as much as she did.

But while she did it with subtlety, S/O grabbed subtlety with their literal shining golden fingers, and made it violently explode, all while screaming their attack.

The first time she had watched S/O perform their "Shining Finger" attack on a treasure hoarder, she stood there completely slackjawed.

(Rosaria) "...Oh my Bratabos, you're completely serious."

Rosaria thought S/O was doing some kind of bit like this 'Fischl' character she had heard about.

No, they were just that dramatic for no real apparent reason, and they had the strength to back their nonsense up.

She even doubted that herself could take S/O in a straight fight.

In a strange way, it attracted her to them. They were clearly not afraid of what anyone thought of them, only caring if the people they loved were safe. She had respect for that.

But...why were they like this?

They couldn't just defeat their enemies normally, no, they HAD to explode. Every single one of them.

Sometimes S/O's Vision wasn't even active, she would just see them explode after they had shouted "HEAT END!".

(Rosaria) "You are both the best and the worst person I know of to clean up a mess of bandits discreetly."

(S/O) "Hah! The King/Queen of Hearts doesn't need to fight discreetly! I only fight with my fists!"

Honestly, as strange as this was, she also found it to be the funniest thing in the world. Maybe there SHOULD be more people like S/O and Fischl after all.

Eula couldn't exactly call anyone out for being "flashy".

But her S/O took that word to a whole new level. Especially with their manner of speech.

It made Eula look polite in comparison. S/O appeared to be playing the bit of a mysterious, strong, and rude warrior who only thought with their fists.

She had seen them become soft and loving, hell they were a couple, she knows they can become serious.

But after watching them fight a few times, she's starting to believe that S/O wasn't doing a bit like herself, and she did not know how to feel about that.

Eula watched S/O pull out a sword made of pure flames from their hands, wielding it in both their palms.

(S/O) "THIS HAND OF MINE GLOWS WITH AN AWESOME POWER! IT'S BURNING GRIP TELLS ME TO DEFEAT YOU!"

S/O slashed apart the Ruin Hunter with every swing, scorching the grass ablaze with their passion.

(S/O) "TAKE THIS! MY LOVE, MY ANGER, AND ALL OF MY SORROW! SHINING FINGER SWOOOOOOORD!"

With one final slash, the Ruin Hunter was split in half, with S/O leaping back as their pyro vision died down slowly.

Honestly, Eula didn't know if she should be impressed, cringing, or not be thinking that was one of the coolest things she had ever seen.

Probably a mixture of all three.

Honestly? Furina kind of gets it.

You spend so long doing a bit, it kind of becomes a part of you.

That being said, Furina isn't entirely sure if S/O's behavior was entirely theatrics.

But that's fine! It's a part of them after all, not like she had any room to criticize.

Whenever S/O wasn't in the room, she would be clenching her fists and throwing punches in the air, mimicking their tone.

(Furina) "How did they say it...? Ah, right! This hand of mine glows with an awesome power!"

Furina giggled as she said it out loud before putting on a 'serious expression' frowning as she concentrated.

(Furina) "It's loud roar tells me to grasp victory! SHINING, FIINGEEER!" giggle

As she turned to face the door, she nearly leapt out of her skin to see S/O watching her with a highly unamused face.

(Furina) "GAH! S-S/O! How long were you-"

(S/O) "The School of Master Asia cannot be replicated by simply mimicking my actions, Furina. It comes from within!"

Furina pouted a little.

(Furina) "It doesn't look that different from theatre, S/O! You're as dramatic as I am!"

(S/O) "Dramatic? Don't be absurd, I'm completely-"

(Furina) "You are not telling me you can say all that with a straight face every single time!"

(S/O) "...Can you not?"

...Either S/O was the best actor, or they lacked the self awareness that she (kinda) had.

Oh good Archons, please no.

Shinobu already had to reign in Itto and the others, now her lover was adding fuel to the fire.

Or more like an explosion to it.

S/O had taught Itto and the other members of the Arataki gang their strange dances.

Now instead of dealing with one, she had to deal with seven other idiots shouting about Erupting Burning Fingers.

(Shinobu) "S/O, you're a terrible influence."

(S/O) "Huh? What are you-"

(Shinobu) "Sara had just told me that Itto and the others were making a ruckus in the public square."

(S/O) "What ruckus can the dances my master and I-"

(Shinobu) "They're trying to match the speed of you and Master Asia, but end up only punching themselves in the face."

(S/O) "Hah! Looks like I need to train them harder-"

(Shinobu) "S/O."

S/O sighed loudly, adjusting their red headband.

(S/O) "Fine. I'll reign them in myself."

Personally, she thinks their nature is...strange, to put it mildly.

She has no idea how S/O and their master became so eccentric, but they meant as well as she and the others did so...Not too much harm could be done?

And admittedly, she did find it really cool that S/O's vision could make things explode in such a spectacular fashion.

But why did so many people in her life have to have some kind of screw loose with them?

There was only one word that could come to Bronya's mind watching S/O in action.

(Bronya) "What?"

She had been trained all her life to be noble, courteous, and elegant.

And here came S/O with all the elegance of a cannon.

S/O fought inside a machine that mimicked their actions 1 to 1. While the suit itself was strong, it was S/O who made it surpass the limits.

Their knowledge on martial arts was unsurpassed by anyone she had ever known.

But in a strange way, it made Bronya admire them. They wore their heart on their sleeve, with no one telling them how to live. That was really admirable.

And secretly, she found herself quoting S/O many times as she was training with her weapons. Much to her amusement and horror.

But the first time she watched them in action could not compare to anything.

The machine's wings flared out and formed an energy halo, with S/O's hand becoming a blinding fiery light.

Their chest opened up and revealed a large glowing orb, with the symbol of the King/Queen of hearts flashing in front of it.

Before Bronya could even question what S/O was doing, she watched them fly past all the Silvermane guards and save them by driving their robotic fist into the enemy.

(S/O) "BURNING, FIIIIINGEEEER!"

On command, the creature exploded into a brilliant light, making everyone recoil as their enemies fled in terror.

S/O turned around, their machine crossing its arms and standing dramatically on top of a hill, staring down at everyone.

(S/O) "Behold, THE SCHOOL OF MASTER ASIA! THE UNDEFEATED SCHOOL OF THE EAST!"

(Silvermane Guard) "...O-Okay...?"

Bronya had much of the same reaction, but a slight blush overtook her cheeks.

(Bronya) "That was...incredible!"

(Silvermane Guard) "Ma'am?"

(Bronya) "A-AHEM! Men, we continue onwards! Remember our training, and show that we are not to be surpassed!"

It was completely stupid how S/O shouted their moves but...damn, if it wasn't effective.

Seele sighs whenever she watches S/O in action.

Their moves were completely unnecessary, way too flashy, and the thing that annoyed her the most?

They worked. Like, there was nothing to counter S/O's idiotic moves, nor anything that could actually survive them.

It worked, and she hated that it did.

Seele simply steps out the way of an incoming monster part that had exploded spectacularly.

(Seele) "I will never understand how that machine of yours makes everything it touches detonate. It's like everything's made out of Natasha's grenades to you."

(S/O) "HAH! You are just watching the King/Queen of Hearts in action, Seele! Try to keep up!"

Her eye twitched. Oh now it was ON!

She had a great deal of respect for her S/O, truthfully. But it was dwarfed by her annoyance of them as well.

They would go on about complete nonsense, and yet when they were together, S/O could be a surprisingly normal and honest person.

Then she would watch them in the fight club and watch S/O in their machine grab someone's head, ready to make it explode.

(S/O) "Article 1: A Unit whose head section has been destroyed is disqualified!"

(Man) "H-HEY! THAT'S MY ACTUAL HEAD!"

(S/O) "Then I have won this fight."

Seele had never heard about these articles, or schools on this planet. Maybe it was an offworld thing.

...God, she hoped that whoever trained S/O wouldn't meet Natasha or the kids.

[gojosmovingcastle]

gojo's moving castle - g. satoru

☄. *. ☄⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ☾ ⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ⋆☄. *. ☄☄. *. ☄⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ☾ ⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ⋆☄. *. ☄

Satoru walked through the family home with bags full of souvenirs dangling at an alarming bag breaking weight. 

"Papa's home!" He sang through the entry hall, trading out his curse bloodied shoes for warm cat themed slippers. He lifted the bags of souvenirs back up with deep confusion etched on his face. There was no shushes from Y/n over yelling at one in the morning, nor Megumi's protest at his Papa statement were heard which worried him a bit. Tsumiki wasn't even waiting for him with a mochi she had hidden away since the night he left for his mission.

When Satoru pulled up he could hear the television sound system from the garage so he had known they were home. 

"Miki?" He peaked around the corner while following the television sounds. "Gumi?" The bags grew heavier in his hands and his brows drew with worry, he picked up his pace as the television light grew brighter. "Sweetie pie?" 

Satoru's feet came to a halt as he came around to the family room.

In front of him, there was an intricate castle built almost as tall as their very high ceiling. A smile graced the young mans face as he set the bags down. A calming tune pulled his attention to the TV to see the ending of Howl's Moving Castle.

His lips pulled even wider, remembering when Suguru had compared Y/n and Satoru to Howl and Sophie. 

His eyes had drifted down to see the Ghibli movie set Tsumiki and Megumi had gifted Y/n this most recent mothers day after she had promised to watch them all with the two.

As he grew closer to the front his heart nearly beat out of his chest, and he couldn't help the coo's that left his lips. 

There in the deep pillow castle, curled in the thick blanket Satoru had brought back from his last mission in Johannesburg, Tsumiki, Megumi, and Y/n were curled up asleep. Surrounding them were the many stuffed animals Satoru had brought Tsumiki back after every far away mission he had to go on. Which had seem to add up to a lot as it looked like the source of bedding for the three. 

Megumi was curled up into Y/n's side, clutching his Gundam action figure against her stomach. While Tsumiki was using Y/n's upper arm as a pillow as she hid her nose deep in her neck.

Satoru could tell Y/n was deeply uncomfortable, so he quickly snapped a picture and dived in to his family's castle. 

Firstly, he lifted Tsumiki and pulled her close to his chest as he settled into the couch. He then lifted Y/n's head slightly waking her up and pulled her close, legs intertwined and spread across his own. Causing Megumi to fall fully onto Y/n's stomach. 

The four were now a ball of cuddles. 

"Toru?" Y/n groggy tilted her head to him making him reach out and brush the hair from her eyes. 

"Hello, sleeping beauty." She blushed in her half-asleep state, nudging her head into his hand. He put two fingers over her lips as he saw her open her mouth to ask about his mission. "Go back to sleep, we can talk in the morning." She nodded and placed a soft kiss to his fingers and curled further into his lap, circling her arms around Megumi.

Satoru looked to the three with more love than he thought he could handle. Never in his life did he think he would experience such small but meaningful family things.

Each and every moment he spent with Y/n and the kids he thanked whatever being above that they gifted him with them after being alone for so many years. 

"I love you, Miki," he pulled Tsumiki closer to his side and wrapped the pink Hello Kitty blanket tighter around her and him. "I love you, Y/n," He wrapped his free arm around her upper chest. "I love you, Gumi." He smiled at the boy who he now sees as a son.

It was silent for a few seconds before the boys voice shocked him, "Love you too, dad, now shut up and go to sleep." Megumi grumbled, hiding his ear in Y/n's stomach, and holding his Gundam over his other ear.

Satoru didn't think he could smile any wider, but he managed.

He cherished every slip up Megumi had. A tear escaped his eye as he watched his sons face pinch as the movie got louder. He quickly reached for the remote and turned the television off, and the fireplace on with the opposite remote to encompass his loving family with more warmth.

Satoru wouldn't want to come home to anything more or less. He had everything he needed right here in this small castle. 

The warm and welcoming Gojo Castle.

[the-eeveekins]

Why The Witch From Mercury is Important to Me

This will be a long, somewhat rambling and mostly personal thread. It's not about the show's quality or any issues I had about it (and YES, the show is flawed and has issues), but about why G-Witch's characters and themes were important to me and I think many others. Most of this I've already shared to a degree, but I wanted to expand my original thoughts, and put them all into one post.

I've been a Gundam fan for over 20 years, I got into the series with Wing on Toonami and have watched the vast majority of the animated series. As a woman, I longed for the day Gundam would have a female main character in the spotlight of a major show, but honestly at some point I'd given up on it. I just thought that if they hadn't done it by now, they never would.

Then, last March, they released this short 30 second trailer revealing The Witch From Mercury, and showing off Suletta and Aerial, and I was ecstatic! Finally, a female MC in a Gundam series, I was so excited for a new Gundam series for the first time since 00! I watched that short clip countless times over the months in anticipation of the series airing, I even grew addicted to the little song that plays during it.

Over time, the characters and key art were revealed and I saw some people float the idea that maybe Suletta and Miorine would be love interests. I didn't pay it any mind at the time. I was sure they'd milk their relationship for bait along the way, but there was no way they'd commit to Gundam's first female MC being gay. Even after the first episode aired I was still skeptical: There was the bait I was expecting, they're not seriously going to go through with it though.

And here we are, almost 10 months after G-Witch started airing, and Suletta & Miorine are married. It not only wasn't bait, but they committed to it in a way I never would have imagined coming from a franchise I loved like Gundam. It was done with care and respect for the characters, it didn't feel like it was exploitative or added just for fanservice, but was a very real relationship.

I'll admit, I was initially among those disappointed we didn't see a kiss or the wedding at the end, but my greatest fear was the ending would be as ambiguous as possible, or even worse, walk back what we'd seen, so as not to offend people. Instead we got the sister-in-law line, the matching wedding rings, how close they were and they way they looked at each other with love and talking about going home together. We didn't see them kiss or see the wedding, but we got to see them married, and I think that's incredible.

As a gay woman, and a Gundam fan of over 20 years, Suletta is an immensely important character to me. Suletta and Miorine's relationship, and it being a central focus of the story, is immensely important to me. They're things I dreamed of having in Gundam, but never really thought would ever happen. I've been so happy about them for a long time now, but these last two days I've been so unbelievably happy that I was given their story. I love them so much and I'm never going to forget these two.

And this ties into why I think G-Witch has been important to so many people, regardless of how they feel about it's quality, because of it's representation and themes. Suletta, the main character of the show, is a queer, neurodivergent, disabled woman of color. She was well written, and she got to have a happy ending married to the woman she loves, where she's thriving and happy despite her mobility. She's not treated with pity or remorse, and she's still pursuing her dreams of making a school.

And not just Suletta, there were so many characters belonging to different minority groups that got strong representation and happy, satisfying endings. If you're a woman, if you're queer, if you're a POC, if you're any sort of ND, if you're disabled, The Witch From Mercury not only gave you good representation, but also said you're deserving of love, empathy and happiness.

With regard to it's themes, I absolutely love how G-Witch stressed love, empathy, compassion, acceptance and forgiveness over hate, vengeance, punishment and karma. Suletta and Miorine made many mistakes during their journey that they could never take back, but they accepted each other, including their mistakes, and resolved to move on together and makes amends for them if possible. Suletta never got mad at Miorine, Prospera or Eri for the things they did to her and she never blamed them, all she did was understand and accept why they did the things they did, and move forward with her love for them. She accepts the people she loves, mistakes and all, because of her unrelenting love and compassion for them.

Even Prospera, the main antagonist, ultimately rejected revenge for the sake of saving her daughter. She was a less than stellar parent to Suletta, and her actions lead to a heavy death toll, but ultimately Suletta accepted her and her actions to save Eri. And rather than go for an easy karmic death, she was allowed to have a happy ending: Eri was saved, and she's living a peaceful life with her family. A life that was robbed from her 24 years prior.

And ultimately, those themes are why we had an ending where literally no one died, and nearly every character got to have a happy ending. Gundam has always said that violence is bad, but The Witch From Mercury was the first to say "Alright, then we'll solve the problem without violence." We got a big magic spell that was a Gundam Pride Parade in space, and combined with Miorine's actions, events were resolved peacefully.

That's why G-Witch is important to me. It gave me and many others representation in ways you almost never get from a major franchise like Gundam, and without feeling like it was doing it to just check boxes off on some executive's diversity list. It stressed themes of love, empathy and acceptance and rejected hate, revenge, karma and even death. And I think that's incredibly important in this day and age. Representation Matters. Love Matters.

I've been very emotional over this show the last two days because I've been loving it for a while now, and while I'm sad to see it end, I'm so grateful that it happened, flaws and all. I've been crying on and off since the last episode ended and I've had trouble sleeping, but I've been so unbelievably happy over what this one show did and how much it's meant to me. The characters may not be real, but the happiness Suletta & Miorine have brought me is very much real.

For me; Suletta, Miorine, and The Witch From Mercury were truly a blessing.

[wanderersrest]

Mecha's "I'm Not Like the Other Girls" Problem

Preface: I'd like to apologize to everyone who reads this post. Normally, my posts are pretty lighthearted and informative. This one, however, is not lighthearted.

I feel it is important to talk about this topic though, as this is a problem that has been plaguing mecha shows for a long time now. It bothers me when people dismiss the things that I like *gestures at G Gundam*, so it should be of no surprise that I have strong feelings about this topic. It's pretty adjacent to the reason why I don't like the "Real vs Super Robot" dick-measuring contests that happen between fans, especially as someone whose favorite mecha show gets a lot of heat because of that stupid debate.

Part of what makes it worse is that I don't dislike these shows a whole lot. Okay, two of them I don't like a whole lot, but one is because its second season really drops the ball on things while the other is, in my opinion, a pretty mediocre show that is being propped up as the hottest thing since sliced bread by its fans.

I'm also going to be talking about gen:Lock, a show that I hate from pure pop cultural osmosis. So content warning: suicide, children getting killed, and gen:Lock, among other things.

Stop me if you've heard this one before:

"Evangelion's not like other mecha shows because it focuses on the character drama instead of the robots."

If you've ever watched any mecha show ever, you'd realize just how bizarre this line really is. There's always some variation where it'll be the favorite series of the person saying this and, when confronted, will bare their ass out for the world to see by showing that they have not watched any other mecha show. If you're lucky, they might have watched one or two other mecha shows, and chances are likely that it will be one of the other "Not Like the Other Girl" shows.

So today, for something a bit lighter in comparison to my soul-crushing Abbreviated History of Mecha, I'm going to take my turn dismantling this braindead take. Really take my turn at this dead horse, because it is something that plagues this genre of stories.

Context: Evangelion's Legacy Is Exaggerated

Thank you, cast of the hit anime series Neon Genesis Evangelion. I felt brave just saying that.

Jokes aside, I feel it is important to get this out of the way now. And, to be fair, Evangelion is critically acclaimed for a reason. Eva's success did leave an impact on the rest of the industry. A whole generation of anime shows have tried to capture the same energy that Eva had, leading to the rise of the extremely nebulous sekai-kei trend. This isn't even touching on the fact that Eva is also one of the most popular mecha franchises of all time.

That being said, the problem with Eva's legacy is that people in the west exaggerated its legacy. So instead of it being an important series that builds off of the legacy of the shows it was inspired by in order to create something new and just as noteworthy as its forebears, it is now this transgressive series that brutally deconstructs mecha on top of everything mentioned prior. Evangelion became a series that was more than most mecha shows, since it really spends a lot of its time with its characters, particularly the Eva pilots and their handler. Evangelion was different because it was about the characters and not the giant robots.

...Except, that's not true.

This is Ideon Erasure

One of the shows that inspired Evangelion, Space Runaway Ideon, is about as serious as they come. It's a story about the horrors of war, and the characters have to contend with this and press on. And while it might not be as introspective as say Evangelion, the difference is what both had as inspiration: Ideon only had shows like Space Battleship Yamato, Voltes V, Zambot 3, and Mobile Suit Gundam as reference points. Evangelion has all four of those shows as well as other shows like Fang of the Sun Dougram, Super Dimension Fortress Macross, and Legend of the Galactic Heroes among other shows to reference

I'm not saying that those shows also influenced Evangelion. I'm just pointing out that, in the history of mecha, Eva has more things to be compared to. And to be fair to the people who kickstarted the "Eva's not like the other girls" mentality, the west's experience with mecha prior to Eva was either shows like Transformers, which existed largely to sell toys, or shows like Gundam Wing, where a lot of the show can be seen as "Wow, cool robot." So along comes Evangelion with its esoteric Christian imagery, brooding protagonists, and eldritch antagonists. It's really nothing anyone in the west has seen before, and so the "Not Like the Other Girls" meme is born.

And now, I'd like to go into debunking this line of thinking with a lot of the big offenders. Because it turns out that Evangelion is not the only show to get this treatment. And if you thought Eva was a bad example of "Not Being Like the Other Girls," then oh boy are these examples somehow worse.

Case Study 1 - Code Geass: Casval Lelouch of the Rebellion

Code Geass is probably the closest example to in terms of being "Not Like the Other Girls" that isn't Evagenlion itself. Like Evangelion before it, Code Geass has more of a focus on its characters than its mech action. A fair bit of screen time is spent focused on the politicking and strategizing and brainwashing (with actual, factual magic) of our main character, Lelouch Code Geass Lamperouge, with all of the shenanigans that ensue. It's a series with a unique spin on the military robot shows of old due to its inclusion of magic (namely the titular Geass) and advanced super materials like Sakuradite (based off of the mythical metal hi'hiirokane or scarletite).

The problem with Code Geass being a "Not Like the Other Girls" show is twofold:

The robots of Code Geass, here known as Knightmare Frames, play a pivotal part in the story. The Knightmare Frames are what allow Britannia to take over the world as well as they do, and a big focus on the series is just how advanced the latest Knightmare Frame, Lancelot, is compared to the other Knightmare Frames. Season 2 exacerbates this problem when the elite Knightmare Frames like Lancelot are constantly getting exponentially more upgrades throughout the season.

It's also hard not to ignore the similarities between this show and Mobile Suit Gundam (the original, not the franchise as a whole). Consider that Code Geass' main character is, for lack of a better word, a Char clone. He wears a mask and oftentimes hides his true motives, which helps when it comes time for politics. He's even got a special power that helps him with his core skills. The only thing Lelouch is lacking is the piloting skill, which is where Kallen Kouzuki comes in (and fun fact: her signature Knightmare Frame, the Guren MK II, is red).

Oh, I should also mention this here: before working on Code Geass, Goro Taniguchi worked on Gun x Sword, which is unabashedly a giant robot anime. Does this really add anything to my point? Not really. I just think it's interesting to point this out due to Gun x Sword's proximity to Code Geass in terms of release dates.

Case Study 2 - Tengen Toppa Getter Robo Gurren Lagann

Probably the single most insane version of this is when people treat Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann as being "Not Like the Other Girls."

Y'know... Gurren Lagann. The show where the giant robots grow as large as the known universe. A show where one of the major thematic elements is a celebration of giant robot shows that's reflected in the four major story arcs representing a distillation of the four decades of giant robot shows from as early as Mazinger Z. A show where the main character draws a lot of his self worth from, among other things, how well he pilots his mini robot (a gender-swapped Noa Izumi, if you will).

Oh, and most important of all: this is also the show written by, and I'm not making this up, a man who refers to himself as Getter Robo's number one fan.

This doesn't even touch on other shows that one could argue also had a hand in influencing Gurren Lagann like Mobile Fighter G Gundam and The King of Braves, GaoGaiGar. Look me in the eye and tell me that Kamina wasn't written with characters like Domon Kasshu and Guy Shishioh in mind. Or the fact that Simon the Digger is less Ryouma Nagare and more Domon Kasshu by way of Guy Shishioh.

In the case of Gurren Lagann, though, it should also be of no surprise that this is the series brought up the least amongst the "Not Like the Other Girls" shows. A big part of this stems from, as I mentioned earlier, the fact that Gurren Lagann is a celebration of giant robots.

...What's that? Why does it sound like an axe is being sharpened in the background? No, reader, you're hearing things. I clearly don't have an axe to grind with the next show.

Case Study 3 - Armored Trooper 86: Eighty Six

Part of what I hate about the modern seasonal anime release schedule is that it's created an entire generation of anime fans who refuse to watch any series that released before 2010. This line of thinking can be pretty dangerous, and this is coming from a guy who's always saying the newer Pokemon games are generally better than the older ones. The difference is twofold:

Pokemon isn't anywhere near as old as all of anime. Like it's not even close to being that old.

This only really applies to core game mechanics in the mainline non-Legends games. It doesn't really take into account things like story elements, Pokemon rosters, or generation design differences (read as: is the game pre- or post-Physical/Special split).

I'm bringing this up because I feel like the seasonal anime format is the reason why 86: Eighty Six became a "Not Like the Other Girl" show. As someone who watches a lot of mecha shows, 86 is just...

...it's there. It exists. In my opinion, 86 doesn't really have a whole to say outside of racism is bad and look at how much Shin and company suffer because of it. Everything 86 does has been done before in some fashion by literally every military robot series that existed prior to 86's first publication in 2017. Heck, two years prior to it's publication was the first airing of Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron-Blooded Orphans, the then-latest entry in the Gundam franchise. And that series is all about how unfettered capitalism makes it almost impossible for the marginalized to survive without having to resort to violence.

But I think it's folly to suggest fans of 86 to go watch Iron-Blooded Orphans. Not because it's bad, which I'd argue that it's not. No, it's more because IBO is too recent. Part of the problem with the "Not Like the Other Girls" mentality is that people will limit themselves into only watching one show, oftentimes failing to see that part of what makes their favorite show so special is the fact that it is inspired by other works. For people who like 86, it would be better to recommend shows like Armored Trooper VOTOMs, Fang of the Sun Dougram (or really any military robot series directed by Ryousuke Takahashi), or even the original Gundam from 1979. But as harsh as I may be on 86, it's not the worst offender. I'd even go so far as to say that 86 is, at worst, a symptom. I think the real problem lies with the next series I'm going to talk about.

The Worst Offender - gen:Lock

If you thought I disliked 86 because of how its fans hype it up as being better and so much different than the rest of the canon, at least 86 is a pretty entertaining watch.

gen:Lock makes me turn into AM from I Have No Mouth And I Must Scream. To describe the enmity I have towards gen:Lock is not something I want to fully unload on this blog, as it is this series that really kicked the "Not Like the Other Girls" mentality into overdrive. gen:Lock was once described by one of its executive producers as being about the characters and not the robots. Which kind of spits in the face of the canon of mecha in its entirety, as the entire genre has almost never really frontlined the machines as being the main character. And when mecha stories are about the machines, the machine tends to be a character in its own right.

And if I'm being honest, part of what makes me so livid about gen:Lock is how this series basically funneled away funds from other projects at Rooster Teeth. That's what got series creator Gray Haddock fired, after all. So you can't even say that season one, which I've been told is a pretty decent season, is okay in comparison. So even if the "It's not about the mecha" line is supposed to be marketing speak, the behind-the-scenes nonsense still sullies the show. I don't even think I need to touch on the mess that is gen:Lock season 2; between the poorly animated sex scene, the sudden killing of a recently-outed queer character, and the fact that one of the main characters, and later the entire main cast, get rewarded for committing suicide... Yeah. Let's just move on before a blow a fuse.

Magic Knight Rayearth Is Actually Not Like the Other Girls

I think part of what makes all of this so absurd is that there is a series that can actually be considered "Not Like the Other Girls."

It's Magic Knight Rayearth.

A lot of what helps in this case is that Rayearth is, primarily, a magical girl series. That is not to say that Rayearth is not a mecha show though, as the Rune Gods play a pivotal role in the series. Not helping things is the fact that the Rune Gods are literally an extension of their magic knight's personalities, which is true of pretty much every giant robot ever. But, by being a magical girl series first and foremost, Rayearth approaches giant robots from a unique angle due to the world of Cephiro being similar to that of a fantasy JRPG setting where willpower determines everything. So the Rune Gods end up being real, living creatures that take the form of giant robots, as opposed to just being giant robots that exist in the setting.

Except it's still a giant robot series. Everything I just said doesn't suddenly mean that Magic Knight Rayearth is no longer a mecha show.

Conclusion

Look. I get it. These shows are great. Okay, gen:Lock isn't, but the other four are. I get it. The people who trot out this line do it because they love the series they're putting up on a pedestal. My issue comes with the putting it up on a pedestal part. It has a tendency to displace other shows that are just as worthy of praise, and in some cases maybe even better depending on the viewer, than the "Not Like the Other Girl" shows. So, to close this rant out, I'd like to suggest some shows for people whose only experience with mecha are one of the "Not Like the Other Girls" shows.

If you like...

...Neon Genesis Evangelion, you might be interested in checking out Ultraman, Mobile Suit Gundam, Space Runaway Ideon, Aura Battler Dunbine, Patlabor (either the TV or OVA timeline), or Gargantia on the Verduous Planet.

...Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion, you might be interested in checking out Mobile Suit Gundam (again), Fang of the Sun Dougram, Patlabor (the OVA timeline this time), Gun x Sword, or Psalm of Planets Eureka Seven.

...Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann, you might like Mazinger Z, Getter Robo, Gunbuster, Mobile Fighter G Gundam, The King of Braves GaoGaiGar, Back Arrow, SSSS.Gridman, SSSS.Dynazenon, and Gridman Universe.

...86: Eighty Six or gen:Lock, you might like Mobile Suit Gundam (pretty much any series that isn't G or Build), Armored Trooper VOTOMs (or really anything related to Ryousuke Takahashi), Metal Armor Dragonar, Patlabor (See Evangelion above), or Full Metal Panic!.

...Magic Knight Rayearth, you might be interested in Aura Battler Dunbine, Panzer World Galient, Patlabor (the TV timeline), Mobile Fighter G Gundam (yes really), or The Vision of Escaflowne.

And thanks for reading my rant. Next time, something else!

[l-crimson-l]

No Fucking Way

Go watch G Gundam and tell me what you think. Right Now!

[kaxtwenty]

It's fun looking back on that original post now--two months later and having now completed both Iron-Blooded Orphans and The Witch from Mercury. I wanna say, "I didn't know what I was getting myself into," but that'd be a lie. I was expecting to watch a pair of space operas revolving around giant robots fighting with stories that would probably get me emotional. Both shows are generally well regarded so I expected them to be good going in. Suffice it to say they both still managed to exceed my expectations.

I firmly believe that these shows should be watched together. If you watch IBO, move on to WFM--if you watch WFM, go back to IBO. WFM very much feels written with IBO in mind (the similarities between the GUND Format and Alaya Vijnana System being the most obvious example of IBO's influence) and I feel that having the immediate context of one going into the other enhances your experience. WFM is IBO's little sister through and through and watching IBO before it made me appreciate the show (especially its ending) more than I would have otherwise.

If you wanna know which one's my favorite, it's Iron-Blooded Orphans. Largely because I love a good tragedy, but also because it felt more complete than its successor. It's kinda obvious in WFM season 2 that they wanted more episodes than they got and had to cram a lot near the end. I could especially feel this in the last 4-5 episodes. Was it bad? Hell no! But there were a lot of plot threads awkwardly left hanging and some others that were under-cooked or felt contrived (the Space Assembly League are painfully under-cooked). I feel like WFM needed at least one more season to reach its full potential, but what we got was still damn good and had me crying waaaaayyy more than I usually do watching television.

In summary uhhhhh...

Mobile Suit Gundam is really good and words cannot describe what these two kids mean to me.

I'm still letting G-Witch settle in my mind before I move on to the next Gundam show and while I know I should go back to the original and start my UC journey; y'know, to enrich my experience through the AUs and mecha anime as a whole...

There's still one other Gundam show I got unfinished business with...

[dynared]

My general observation of the Earthspark reactions is that somehow the show managed to be the worst of both worlds.

Season 1, for all its endless faults, did legitimately try to do new things with the settings and characters, based off of the divisive IDW comics, although hardly subservient to them. It didn't work as far as the toy sales went, like, at all, and the rumors from sources such as the Transformers Slag podcast persist that the only reason a Season 2 was greenlit was because the 40th anniversary was this year and Hasbro wanted something on TV for the sake of the optics. But even with all that, they were trying new things.

The problem is that it didn't work, Season 2 (which rumors indicate will be the last season) seems to have had its budget slashed, and a lot of its writing staff let go (most notably Mae Catt, Ms. "I am the Gay Agenda!" getting kicked to the curb) with the show clearly showing elements of a retool. The Decepticons are back to being the bastards everyone knows and loves and Starscream is his stereotypical self again.

The problem is that the retool didn't go nearly far enough. Most of the elements from Season 1 and the skeleton of the big themes of family and the small town are there, but they're now in direct conflict with the more conventional theming of Season 2.

Now you need to couple that with a lower budget, animation courtesy of the brain trust behind Megamind vs. The Doom Syndicate, and in general, a show that doesn't really know what it wants to be anymore, with themes, characterizations, and conflicts all seemingly in conflict with a whole that is assuredly less than the sum of its parts while Hasbro executives are probably wondering if they would have been better off just dubbing Shinkalion episodes while waiting for Transformers One to hit theaters.

The next show that comes out (Which Dollars to Donuts will be a One spinoff the same way Tales of the TMNT is a spinoff of Mutant Mayhem) needs to accomplish a very simple goal Earthspark failed to, and that's just get the kids invested so they can buy the toys. It doesn't need to redefine the core tenets of the franchise only so it can backpedal on them later, nor does it need to use deep comic lore to get those same adults to watch. It just needs to be something that the kids can engage with and actually make them interested in getting some products, via fun visuals or an engaging story that they can get.

It's another reason why I really don't know what they're going to do if One bombs. At that point, it probably will be time for something more in the vein of what Beast Wars was to G1 (Or G Gundam was to the Universal Century Gundam entries), a radical shift from the status quo designed to shock the brand back into relevancy.

[tinyorcenthusiast]

This, uh, this is a bit awkward. I went to a convention last Sunday and bought a lot of kits. So, uh. Like i alluded to in my Gouf post, here's the second kit that I bought: Chuchu's Demi-Trainer!

Now, I know I usually come to bear some fanfic lore for the suits I have, but I... I'm going to be honest, I haven't seen Mobile Suit Gundam: Witch From Mercury yet, so idk what she's like or how her character ends up (no spoilers) since I've been chipping away at the original 1979 Mobile Suit Gundam anime. Plus, I'm always a bit weirdly wonky when it comes to using canon characters in my fanfictions since I'm obsessed with making it fit in, but I suppose after I watch G-Witch I'll figure out how to add her into my fanfic lore. Also, here's a bonus shot of Lenja admiring Chuchu's Demi-Trainer :3c

[average-transdalorian]

As you said yourself, you're a girl whos so normal about mobile suit designs, so i want to know, whats your top 5?

There’s no WAY I can choose JUST five, so have my favorite from each show I’ve watched so far!

First off, for The Witch From Mercury, we have the MD-0064 Darilbalde!

Next, from Iron Bloodee Orphans, we have the ASW-G-11 Gundam Gusion Rebake! (I personally like the rounder shapes better than Full City’s sharp edges)

None of 0079’s suits SUPER stood out to me, so for that I’ll go with the funny name; the MS-14A Gelgoog

Now. Zeta had some good stuff going on, what with the RX-178 Gundam mk II’s original color scheme, the ORX-005 Gaplant, and the Psyco Gundam, but none of it beats out my queen the AMX-004 Qubeley!

ZZ had some even better stuff going on, with a second Psyco Gundam, and a better color scheme for the Qubeley, and a silly name (the Bawoo), but they’re all DEMOLISHED by the absolutely GORGEOUS NZ-000 Quin Mantha/Queen Mansa

Char’s Counterattack didn’t have as many going for it, but the RX-93 Nu Gundam did stand out to me!

And with the Char Divorce Quadrilogy over, it’s time to move on to the OVAs! Starting with War In The Pocket, which really didn’t have very many mobile suits, but! The RX-78NT-1 Gundam Alex, specifically when it had the additional armor, is really cool!

08th MS Team is about as bad in its variety, so naturally I’m going to go with the RX-79[G]Ez-8 Gundam

Now. MS IGLOO was. Rough. But y’know what? The RTX-440 Ground Assault Type Guntank is actually really cool, regardless of what was going on with. Everything else there

0083: Stardust Crusaders gets a lot of shit, for a lot of valid reasons, but good LORD is the RX-78GP02A Gundam Physalis a sexy machine

And I’ve hit the photo limit, so I’ll finish this in a reblog lmao