Recap / Mobile Suit Gundam - the Witch from Mercury PROLOGUE

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Mobile Suit Gundam - the Witch from Mercury PROLOGUE

The Witch Takes Flight.

"And our Cathedra... shall deny all Gundams."

— Delling Rembran

Mobile Suit Gundam - the Witch from Mercury PROLOGUE (機動戦士ガンダム 水星の魔女 ｢PROLOGUE｣, Kidō Senshi Gandamu Suisei no Majo ｢PROLOGUE｣) is the Prequel to Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch from Mercury. It was directed by Teruo Sato, written by Ichirō Ōkouchi and storyboarded by Hiroshi Kobayashi. It was originally released in Japan on July 14, 2022.

The prologue serves as a lead up for the main story. It takes place many years prior on Ericht Samaya's fourth birthday and details the events leading up to the Attack on Fólkvangr. It can legally be viewed for free here.

Synopsis

In the year Ad Stella 101, the Vanadis Institute is testing their experimental mobile suit, the Gundam Lfrith, aboard the Fólkvangr frontier space station, with the goal of eliminating issues with its GUND Format operating system. Test pilot Elnora Samaya, frustrated by ongoing difficulty clearing the thirty-third and final layer of integration, attempts to increase her Permet Score to force the connection, leading her mentor and research head Cardo Nabo to terminate testing for the day. Admonishing Elnora for her recklessness, Cardo then directs her attention to her four-year-old daughter Ericht, who snuck into the testing bay in search of her mother.

Elnora's husband and Ericht's father, Nadim, watches a news report reviewing the history of the GUND Format, which was originally developed by Vanadis for prosthetics and augmentation to assist with living in space, until they were bought by the Ochs Earth corporation, which wished to use the technology for military mobile suits instead. However, the information feedback inherent to the GUND Format, dubbed a "Data Storm", scaled up to a mobile suit, has caused repeated physical harm and even death to pilots of these "GUND-Arms", or "Gundams", raising major bio-ethical concerns and public backlash against their use and development. Shutting off the news, Nadim greets his wife and daughter as they return to celebrate Ericht's fourth birthday.

The Mobile Suit Development Council -comprised of the largest mobile suit manufacturers- pressured by both the public outcry and the risk to their businesses, discuss their plans to seize Ochs Earth and shut down Gundam development. Amidst some hesitation among the executives, Delling Rembran, assistant to Grassley Defense Systems CEO Sarius Zenelli, pushes for a heavy-handed approach, suggesting they proceed akin to a witch hunt.

Sitting down to enjoy Ericht's birthday cake, the Samaya family are interrupted first by Elnora's arm -actually a GUND prosthetic- malfunctioning, requiring her to take a moment to change its power source while explaining to her daughter how the technology and Cardo saved her life. Another interruption occurs when Nadim has to take a business call, moving to his office over Ericht's disgruntled cries. Nadim's contact at Ochs Earth informs him of the Mobile Suit Development Council holding a press conference ahead of their expected deadline to complete the Lfrith, largely due to Delling's influence. Meanwhile, Nadim and Elnora's co-workers, Wendy and Nyla, decide to meet with the incoming transport shuttle Begavent.

With her parents not paying attention to her, Ericht again sneaks into the Lfrith testing bay, venting her frustrations about feeling overlooked on her birthday in favor of the machine. Her complaints are overheard by Cardo, who had been inside the cockpit; apologizing to the little girl while admonishing her for sneaking away from her parents, she explains the purpose of their research and what the Lfrith represents. Taking Ericht into the cockpit, Cardo lets her talk to the machine to vent her feelings, suggesting she might help with its awakening. Receiving a phone call about the Mobile Suit Development Council holding their press conference without informing Ochs Earth or Vanadis, Cardo leaves Ericht inside the Lfrith while she goes to meet with her staff.

The press conference begins with Sarius announcing the council's decision to freeze all Gundam-type mobile suit development, seize Ochs Earth and its assets, and establish the auditing organization Cathedra, led by Delling. Joining other workers watching the conference, Cardo attempts to stop the Begavent from docking, but her order comes too late, an assassination squad disembarking from the shuttle immediately beginning to execute Fólkvangr's staff, including Nyla, who manages to save Wendy before being shot through the head. As Delling takes the podium, additional reinforcements led by his assistant Rajan Zahi move into position, deploying mobile suits to prevent any escape from the station. With communications cut off, Nadim and Elnora decide to split up, with Elnora continuing to search for Ericht while Nadim launches in a pre-production Lfrith Gundam to buy time against the council forces, soon joined by Wendy in another. When the Gundams prove superior to their grunt suits, Rajan has ace pilot Kenanji Avery sortie in his Beguir-Beu.

As the battle at Fólkvangr continues, Delling gives a speech to the conference, calling on his experience as a military veteran, condemning Gundams as "cursed" for taking the lives of their users as well as those they are used against, which he believes to be morally reprehensible, taking the matter of condemning acts of war out of the hands of those subject to them. While Sarius is apparently informed of Delling's actions in attacking Ochs Earth, Kenanji intercepts Wendy's Gundam, deploying a countermeasure which paralyzes the machine, allowing him to execute her easily before beginning to fight against Nadim. Inside Fólkvangr, Cardo is cornered by the leader of the raid team, declaring her ideology before pulling a gun on her assassins.

Finally finding Ericht in the Lfrith testing bay, Elnora embraces and reassures her sobbing daughter. Attempting to activate the Gundam, Elnora overhears a radio message informing her of Cardo's death, before Ericht alerts her to the Lfrith successfully activating, thanks to Ericht's vitals achieving the final layer integration. Launching, the awakened Lfrith easily destroys three enemy mobile suits before being confronted by the Beguir-Beu, which is again able to paralyze the Gundam. Before he can kill the mother and daughter though, he is tackled and flown away by Nadim's Gundam.

Making a final call to his wife and daughter, Nadim bids them to flee, sacrificing himself to keep Kenanji away from them, pushing his Gundam to Permet Score Four to ensure he creates enough distance. Delirious from the strain, Nadim experiences a flashback, beginning to sing "Happy Birthday" to Ericht, which is broadcast over all communications in the area. Ericht joins him in singing, ultimately finishing the song herself, oblivious to her father passing away before the final lines.

Fólkvangr is destroyed, erasing all evidence of what happened there, while Delling concludes his speech with a declaration that his Cathedra shall deny the existence of all Gundams.

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Mobile Suit Gundam - the Witch from Mercury PROLOGUE provides examples of:

• Ace Pilot: While all the pilots of the Vanadis Institute have a notable measure of skill, Kenanji Avery of the Dominicus Corps is the sole best pilot featured at the time, carving a swath through the Lfrith Pre-Production Models like a knife through butter.
• Act of True Love: Nadim performs the ultimate one in the conclusion, buying time against Kenanji Avery and his superior CEK-040 Beguir-Beu to allow Eri and Elnora to escape.
• Affectionate Nickname: Ericht was known as "Eri" to her parents.
• Alphabet News Network: The INN (Interplanetary News Network) from the beginning certainly counts.
• Artificial Limbs: Elnora has a prosthetic right arm that utilizes the GUND technology.
• The Bad Guy Wins: Ultimately, Delling almost completely annihilates the Vanadis Institute and moves up politically.
• Big Damn Heroes: Nadim saves his family from Kenanji and the Beguir-Beu and covers their escape.
• A Birthday, Not a Break: Eri's fourth birthday (outside of her knowledge) was marked by the slaughter of the Vanadis Institute and the death of her father.
• Boom, Headshot!: An offscreen soldier scores a shot to Nyla's head after she shoves Wendy out of the line of fire. It is reduced to a Gory Discretion Shot in the GundamInfo streaming version, though it is shown in full in the TV version.
• Bowdlerise: Nyla's death has been edited in three different versions depending on the broadcast/stream:
  • The "Gundam Next Future" stream only showed the fired shot from the smoke, without blood over Wendy Olent's shocked reaction.
  • While the later versions added blood over Wendy's reaction:
    • The GundamInfo streaming version only shows the close-up of the blood spilled from Nyla's head being shot.
    • The TV version replaces the close-up with a full depiction of Nyla being shot in the head.
• Curb-Stomp Battle:
  • To avenge Nyla's death, Wendy in her in the Gundam Lfrith Pre-Production Model takes on Kenanji Avery and his Beguir-Beu. Wendy is absolutely helpless, unable to land even a single hit on the Beguir-Beu before Kenanji suppresses her mobile suit's GUND Format (rendering her suit itself useless) and killing her.
  • When Eri instinctively performs a Layer 33 callback on the XGF-02 Gundam Lfrith, it goes on to destroy three Heingras effortlessly on autopilot. Eri, completely oblivious to what she just did, crows happily at the sight on-screen, likening the explosions to birthday candles.
  • Just after this, Kenanji and his Beguir-Beu arrive, immediately overpowering the Lfrith before chopping its arm off. If it wasn't for Nadim's intervention, Eri and Elnora would have been goners.
• Children Are Innocent: Eri is never fully aware of the gravity of the situation: her inadvertently killing three mobile suit pilots, the announcement of the deaths of her friends, or the death of her father.
• Defiant to the End: In her office, Dr. Cardo Nabo reached for a firearm in her desk drawers when the assault unit commander of Cathedra entered to execute her. After stalling them with a speech on the GUND Format, she aims her pistol at them before the scene cuts away. When we cut back to her, she has been shot to death.
• Doomed Hometown: The prologue details the destruction of Fólkvangr, the home of Ericht Samaya and her mother, where a covert operation intent on killing all those connected to the GUND Format's development forces both to flee for their own safety.
• Dying Moment of Awesome: Many of the Vanadis Institute members have such moments, but Nadim's final push trumps them all.
• Even Evil Has Standards: Though they don't have any objections to wiping out Fólkvangr, the Dominicus Corps do seem rather horrified to hear Eri singing "Happy Birthday" with Nadim as he dies, unaware a child would be among the population of the research station.
• From Nobody to Nightmare: Delling isn't part of the Mobile Suit Development Council—just a subordinate of Sarius Zenelli, one of its members—and is even hushed when he provides his opinion, but by the end of the prologue he has set himself up as the story's Big Bad. Subverted, as the true villain is ultimately Elnora Samaya, who later re-emerges as Prospera Mercury.
• The Gift: Eri was seemingly born with it, being able to callback Layer 33 on the XGF-02 Gundam Lfrith at the age of four.
• Gory Discretion Shot: Most of Cathedra's slaughter of the Vanadis Institute's members consists of this.
• Green-Eyed Monster: Eri envies the Lfrith due to the crew focusing their attention on it instead of her.
• Heroic RRoD: When the GUND format was repurposed for military mobile suits, physical and mental damage to its pilots due to data storms soon emerged as a problem.
• Heroic Sacrifice: Nadim saves Elnora and Eri from Kenanji at the last minute, shooting down the Beguir-Beu's Antidote pods before grappling the enemy suit to give them a window to escape.
• Hope Spot: Nadim and Wendy initially put up a great showing against the Heingras; it seems like they might win... until Kenanji arrives and starts tearing them apart with his Beguir-Beu.
• Internal Deconstruction: The prologue analyzes what it would mean to be physically linked to a giant suit of iron.
  News Correspondent: An 18-meter-tall giant frame moving with non-biological mechanisms, controlled by forcibly linking it to a human body. The burden placed on the pilot must be immeasurable!
• The Juggernaut: The CEK-040 Beguir-Beu piloted by Kenanji Avery is damn near unstoppable and while Nadim is able to push it back from his family, it ultimately emerges completely unscathed. Notably, the Lfrith easily destroys three Heingras, yet the Beguir-Beu instantly makes short work of it.
• Killed Mid-Sentence: Nadim does not get to finish the happy birthday song he was singing to his daughter.
• Killed Offscreen: Most deaths are obscured from the viewers.
• The Klutz: Eri is extremely clumsy and trips several times.
• Leave No Survivors: Cathedra is ordered to gun down everyone at Fólkvangr to ensure not only the GUND Format experiment's closure, but its absolute destruction.
• A Minor Kidroduction: A Major Kidroduction in this case. Eri is four years old for the entire runtime. Subverted as in a complete twist, Episode 1 picks up with Suletta Mercury, her cloned sister as a teenager. Or played straight when you hear that Eri is Gundam Aerial.
• No Range Like Point-Blank Range: After immobilizing Wendy's Lfrith Pre-Production Model with his Beguir-Beu's Antidote, Kenanji stabs the mass-produced Gundam and then blasts it up-close with the Beguir-Beu's Beam Guns, killing Wendy.
• Oh, Crap!:
  • Wendy gets this reaction when Kenanji immobilizes her Lfrith Pre-Production with his Beguir-Beu's Antidote and prepares to point-blank her.
  • Elnora can only stare in horror when her daughter gets a Layer 33 callback and kills three Heingra pilots.
• Phlebotinum Overload: The GUND Format can have this effect on its pilots, frying their nervous systems and/or raising their blood pressure to dangerous levels.
• The Purge: The prologue concludes with all of those involved in the GUND Format project being systematically killed as part of a witch-hunt, with the main character Ericht and her mother Elnora being forced to flee and live in hiding with new names.
• "Ray of Hope" Ending: The Vanadis Institute is completely annihilated. Fólkvangr is blown up, but Elnora and Eri are able to escape with the XGF-02 Gundam Lfrith.
• Roaring Rampage of Revenge: Wendy goes feral when Nyla is killed, and attempts to avenge her by going out in a Lfrith Pre-Production Model and attacking the Dominicus Corps. While she does shoot down a few Heingras, she is ultimately no match for Kenanji Avery, who kills her with little effort.
• Smug Super: Kenanji Avery belittles his opponents after his victories. His cockiness is justified, as he is the best pilot in the prologue and emerges from the Fólkvangr bloodbath unscathed.
• Start of Darkness: Being a prologue to the series, Elnora Samaya goes from being a kind and loving mother to the vengeful and scheming Diabolical Mastermind that she would become as Prospera Mercury.
• State Sec: To maintain order and ethics in the development of mobile suits, the Council would establish the auditing organization named Cathedra. In reality, they are Delling's personal army.
• Strong Family Resemblance: Eri inherited her father's unique eyebrows (causing Japanese fans to liken her to a tanuki) and his tanned skin. Her hair and the rest of her features are from her mother. In the past, Elnora looks like Suletta does in the series proper.
• Taking the Bullet: When Cathedra forcibly boarded the Fólkvangr, Nyla noticed smoke grenades in the hallways, but was shot dead by Cathedra shortly after warning Wendy to run.
• Third-Person Person: Eri speaks like this due to being a child.
• Villain Has a Point: Delling truthfully points out that the GUND Format can be and usually is lethal to its pilots with prolonged exposure.
• Well-Intentioned Extremist: Delling presents his opposition to the GUND Format as a humanitarian issue, condemning the system as unethical and dangerous. This is a Downplayed Trope, as his lust for power is obvious. However, later revelations in the mainline story show that he did genuinely believe that erasing all traces of the GUND Format was the best decision. Therefore, this trope is played straight.

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"Happy Birthday, dear Ericht..."