Gundam GQuuuuuuX Ep 4 Review: The Witch’s Hunt
Ever since the series started, many viewers have been wondering: Is this show actually Gundam? It doesn’t feel like Gundam at all. There’s no ongoing war, there’s no adults screaming at children to kill people, and an overall lack of political tension – and most of all: no deaths. However, this episode bust that door open as GQuuuuuuX introduced us to a new character – a cute, loving girl who has a family. Oh, and she also has severe PTSD and obsessed with the Red Gundam!
GQuuuuuuX has been brimming with gremlin energy whenever Machu isn’t in a mobile suit, and this episode is no exception. Machu tricking a space dog and called it “baka inu” is absolute cinema. And it was so fluidly animated as well. And this is another good point for a Khara animated series, you can expect smooth character animation whenever.
We are introduced to a new character this episode: Shiiko Sugai. At first glance, she looks quite petite, a young girl with a gentle demeanor. But as our keen “anime sense” keeps tingling, you can easily see that her facial expression is quite…fake. The (^ v ^ ) type of face that looks really cute and gentle at first, but you can see they are just a mask for their true intent. And soon enough, it was revealed that she is a “unicum” (yes, that’s the exact term) – an ace pilot that defeated more than 100 MSes. Shiiko is a Federation pilot known as “The Witch” – an absolute terror for Zeon during the war. Amuro – who was in his teen in the 0079 series – shot down 142 MS and various spacecraft as well. And there are many Zeon and Federation pilots that have very impressive kill count, but none looks the way Shiiko does. One must wonder how she was in the war…
But now, with the Federation losing the war, Shiiko was basically released from the military, and was able to get married and had a kid. So yeah, she was able to make a family and raised her kid. Which is an extremely rare thing for ace pilots. Some really shining examples are Shiro Amada and Arno Seabook for the UC timeline, but not many else.
We are introduced to a new character this episode: Shiiko Sugai. At first glance, she looks quite petite, a young girl with a gentle demeanor. But as our keen “anime sense” keeps tingling, you can easily see that her facial expression is quite…fake. The (^ v ^ ) type of face that looks really cute and gentle at first, but you can see they are just a mask for their true intent. And soon enough, it was revealed that she is a “unicum” (yes, that’s the exact term) – an ace pilot that defeated more than 100 MSes. Shiiko is a Federation pilot known as “The Witch” – an absolute terror for Zeon during the war. Amuro – who was in his teen in the 0079 series – shot down 142 MS and various spacecraft as well. And there are many Zeon and Federation pilots that have very impressive kill count, but none looks the way Shiiko does. One must wonder how she was in the war…
But now, with the Federation losing the war, Shiiko was basically released from the military, and was able to get married and had a kid. So yeah, she was able to make a family and raised her kid. Which is an extremely rare thing for ace pilots. Some really shining examples are Shiro Amada and Arno Seabook for the UC timeline, but not many else.
So…what is the purpose of her character in the story? Shiiko came to find Anqi – who runs a “junk shop” as a front to hide her Clan battle team. Shiiko came to her to ask for info about none other than the infamous OYW Mobile Suit: the Red Gundam. It turns out that the Pomeranians have made a name for themselves, and it caught Shiiko’s eyes – or rather, the Red Gundam did. It turns out that even though she settled down and built a loving family, she still couldn’t escape the grip of war. She suffered from PTSD where the death of her Mav had been haunting her non-stop. He was shot down by Char during the OYW, and even though Shiiko was an exceptional pilot, she couldn’t save him. From the way she talk about her old Mav, it seems she had some romantic interest in him – definitely more than just normal camaraderie or friends.
Machu was shocked to actually met a veteran of war – and even more shocked when she asked Machu “What’s the Red Gundam’s pilot like?”. Shiiko saw through Machu almost instantly because her facial expression when Shiiko explained her purpose revealed that she knows something about the Red Gundam itself – quite intimately in fact. Even though Shiiko has only shot down people through her Mobile Suit, she was such a veteran that she can read other’s quite easily. Also because Machu is, well, still naive, so she was seen through quite easily. Furthermore, Machu also wondered why someone who has lived through such a horrific war, and even managed to return to peace and built a family, is now actively seeking for the Red Gundam – a phantom from the war era. And indeed, the Red Gundam is Shiiko’s phantom.
Machu was shocked to actually met a veteran of war – and even more shocked when she asked Machu “What’s the Red Gundam’s pilot like?”. Shiiko saw through Machu almost instantly because her facial expression when Shiiko explained her purpose revealed that she knows something about the Red Gundam itself – quite intimately in fact. Even though Shiiko has only shot down people through her Mobile Suit, she was such a veteran that she can read other’s quite easily. Also because Machu is, well, still naive, so she was seen through quite easily. Furthermore, Machu also wondered why someone who has lived through such a horrific war, and even managed to return to peace and built a family, is now actively seeking for the Red Gundam – a phantom from the war era. And indeed, the Red Gundam is Shiiko’s phantom.
So…what is the purpose of her character in the story? Shiiko came to find Anqi – who runs a “junk shop” as a front to hide her Clan battle team. Shiiko came to her to ask for info about none other than the infamous OYW Mobile Suit: the Red Gundam. It turns out that the Pomeranians have made a name for themselves, and it caught Shiiko’s eyes – or rather, the Red Gundam did. It turns out that even though she settled down and built a loving family, she still couldn’t escape the grip of war. She suffered from PTSD where the death of her Mav had been haunting her non-stop. He was shot down by Char during the OYW, and even though Shiiko was an exceptional pilot, she couldn’t save him. From the way she talk about her old Mav, it seems she had some romantic interest in him – definitely more than just normal camaraderie or friends.
Machu was shocked to actually met a veteran of war – and even more shocked when she asked Machu “What’s the Red Gundam’s pilot like?”. Shiiko saw through Machu almost instantly because her facial expression when Shiiko explained her purpose revealed that she knows something about the Red Gundam itself – quite intimately in fact. Even though Shiiko has only shot down people through her Mobile Suit, she was such a veteran that she can read other’s quite easily. Also because Machu is, well, still naive, so she was seen through quite easily. Furthermore, Machu also wondered why someone who has lived through such a horrific war, and even managed to return to peace and built a family, is now actively seeking for the Red Gundam – a phantom from the war era. And indeed, the Red Gundam is Shiiko’s phantom.
To noone’s surprise, the Pomeranians’ next opponent is the Witch herself. And this time, she has got a major upgrade that she didn’t have during the OYW – a new maneuver system developed by none other than Mosk Han – the extremely talented Minovsky particle engineer who orignally put magnetic coating on the RX-78-2 Gundam – allowing it to keep up with a Newtype pilot’s reflexed. And that’s exactly what he did in GQuuuuuuX – he applied his new technology to Shiiko’s mobile suit, which wasn’t finished in the war. Shiiko believed this will help her settle the score with the Gundam.
Machu was shocked to actually met a veteran of war – and even more shocked when she asked Machu “What’s the Red Gundam’s pilot like?”. Shiiko saw through Machu almost instantly because her facial expression when Shiiko explained her purpose revealed that she knows something about the Red Gundam itself – quite intimately in fact. Even though Shiiko has only shot down people through her Mobile Suit, she was such a veteran that she can read other’s quite easily. Also because Machu is, well, still naive, so she was seen through quite easily. Furthermore, Machu also wondered why someone who has lived through such a horrific war, and even managed to return to peace and built a family, is now actively seeking for the Red Gundam – a phantom from the war era. And indeed, the Red Gundam is Shiiko’s phantom.
To noone’s surprise, the Pomeranians’ next opponent is the Witch herself. And this time, she has got a major upgrade that she didn’t have during the OYW – a new maneuver system developed by none other than Mosk Han – the extremely talented Minovsky particle engineer who orignally put magnetic coating on the RX-78-2 Gundam – allowing it to keep up with a Newtype pilot’s reflexed. And that’s exactly what he did in GQuuuuuuX – he applied his new technology to Shiiko’s mobile suit, which wasn’t finished in the war. Shiiko believed this will help her settle the score with the Gundam.
And here comes the fateful Clan Battle. Shiiko’s mobile suit at first glance look like a buffed up GM – buuuuut this is GQuuuuuuX so the line between Zeon and Federation aesthetic are quite…blurred. And Shiiko’s MS is revealed to be a Gelgoog. Yes, a Gelgoog that looks almost exactly like a GM. The lines between the Goog and Jim are so blurred that they might as well be one in this universe. I can’t even imagine the confusion of collectors when they eventually search for GQuuuuuuX’s version of the Gelgoog and then see some wildly different variations.
Coming to the fight, this episode is solely focused on Shuji and the Red Gundam – which is nice. Machu is basically bogged down by Shiiko’s new Mav and had to sit on the sideline for this battle. And for the first time, Machu witnessed what her Mav is capable of, because she knew Shiiko is an insane pilot – even though she hasn’t fought for a while, her skills are still top-notch. And furthermore, she’s a Newtype as well!
Shiiko’s duel with Shuji was absolutely crazy. Not mentioning the fact that Shiiko’s face while piloting is that of a yandere lunatic, her tactics and skills are amazing. She took a page from AoT and Code Geass’ book of using hooks to enable fast movement. And her Newtype ability allows her to navigate the battlefield in a split second – deciding which direction to go and made it seemed like she “teleported behind you”. The slow-motion scenes in the fight really showcased the power of CG in animation – a seamless and perfect animation sequence. And even though Shiiko was powerful, she still couldn’t accomplish what she wanted. Shuji – who seemed like he has melded together with the Red Gundam, was able to defeat Shiiko…and killed her. Yes, this marks the first major death for the series – a female character that was just introduced in this episode has already been killed off – how very Gundam-like. During the last moment, Shiiko, Shuji and Machu was seen in the “Kira-Kira” Newtype space where they were able to communicate. This is basically the same as when Amuro, Char and Lalah fought against each other and Lalah took the hit for Char.
Shuji did said “The Gundam said we won’t lose”. This further hinted at a consciousness inside the Red Gundam itself. Furthermore, Shuji mentioned earlier in the episode that the Gundam is searching for the “Rose” – which is the “Rose of Sharon” that was mentioned in “The Beginning” movie and not the anime version. The Rose of Sharon was in Zeon’s hands during the OYW under Kycilia’s control – and it seemed like the “Rose” is actually a “person” – which could be a Lalah’s expy in this universe. This could be something interesting explored later on in the series.
Machu also witnessed the first “brtual death” in her life. And it’s also coming from Shuji – a boy her age that she kinda have a big infatuation for. Surprisingly, her reaction was completely different compared to Miorine – who was absolutely stunned by fear and shock when Suletta squashed a dude in front of her. In Machu’s case, her Mav just Bernie’d a mother with a loving family right in front of her, and her reaction was “In order to reach Shuji, this level of determination is required” which shows that if she wants to understand Shuji, she must be prepared to commit such acts. That’s a really impressive and scary reaction in and of itself. She might be a young gremlin, but Machu’s development might not be a cheerful and wacky one like we thought. Looking forward to more Tsurumaki’s writing – but maybe tone down on the one-off murder please XD
=Aaron=
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