It’s been several months since the initial title reveal for the next mainline Gundam series, Mobile Suit Gundam THE WITCH FROM MERCURY. And it seemed a little early compared to when the first teases for IRON-BLOODED ORPHANS came out, but we now have an initial teaser for the next Gundam series, as well as the tie-in prequel story.
The teaser doesn’t reveal any story details, but it does show our still unnamed female protagonist. Yes, we finally have a female protagonist for a mainline Gundam show, much to the delight of many in the fandom. Now some may argue that Christina Mackenzie was technically the first female Gundam pilot, but if we’re going with that train of thought, then that credit should belong to Emma Sheen from Z Gundam, or even Sayla Mass from the original series. As for our new female heroine, nothing was revealed outside of this shot from the teaser.
Regardless, I’m really optimistic of this upcoming series as just this teaser alone gives a different vibe and feels quite refreshing, like Ecole du Ciel vibes. The same teaser shows us the new lead Gundam, the Gundam Aerial in kind of like the same stance as we first saw Gundam Barbatos in the early IRON-BLOODED ORPHANS teasers. It’s also shown to have glowing elements on its main body and head. And speaking of Gundam Aerial, they’ve also revealed its full design.
I totally dig it. Once again, we are taking a fresh design approach from the previous series which is really awesome. Not sure if it’s just how it was illustrated but it looks like it might have larger upper legs than the lower ones. Also prominent in its design are the vent-like grills you can see from the torso to the kneecaps and even through most of the rear parts of the mobile suit.
The light-up bits you see in the trailer are the gray sections on the torso, on the head above the v-antenna jewel piece, and the upper legs. For weapons, it comes with your standard assortment of a beam rifle, shield, and a couple of beam sabers stored in the backpack.
Prologue
Much like previous mainline Gundam series, we are also getting a prequel project for this one, simply titled Mobile Suit Gundam THE WITCH FROM MERCURY “PROLOGUE”. It will feature its own story and mobile suits, two of which have been revealed as well.
First is Gundam Lfrith which shares a similar aesthetic to Gundam Aerial. It doesn’t have a plethora of vents/grills as seen with the latter but the two are likely connected in some capacity.
We also have, what I assume, is the antagonist mobile suit, the uniquely named Beguir-Beu. Personally, it gives off the same vibes as the mobile suits from Reconguita in G, but I totally accept them, especially when compared to the stuff we’ve seen in older works like Gundam SEED or SEED DESTINY. It does strike me that the chest detail appears to be the face vents you’d typically see with a standard Gundam design, but that’s just me.
And of course, we are getting Gunpla to coincide with the premiere of this series, and I’ll cover those in the next post.
Overall, I’m really excited about THE WITCH FROM MERCURY. Not only are we getting a female main protagonist, but it seems everything seems new and different in tone when compared to IRON-BLOODED ORPHANS which was all gritty and dirty. I appreciate the direction they’re taking the franchise and I’m all up for it.
Mobile Suit Gundam THE WITCH FROM MERCURY is set to premiere in October 2022.
