Episode 16 of The Witch From Mercury gives viewers some downtime after a couple of episodes that were filled with nothing but chaotic situations and fast-paced action sequences. Or maybe, this episode represents the calm before the storm that we'll see in the upcoming episodes.
In this episode, Miorine Rembran, the other protagonist of the series, finally comes back home and reunites with her fiancé, Suletta Mercury. Unfortunately, Miorine soon finds out that Suletta’s mind is within the absolute grasp of her mother. She will do everything if her mother told her to, including being a weapon of murder. Feeling frustrated, Miorine confronted Suletta’s mother, Prospera, about what she has done to her daughter. But Prospera soon reveals the fact that although she may not realize it, Miorine is also part of the cycle of sin that has been going on for a long time.
The Cycle of Sin
Miorine is mad at Prospera because she manipulates her own daughter into a path that could lead to blood and murder. But then Prospera quickly counters with the dreadful event that happened 21 years ago. About how Miorine’s father ordered the attack on the Vanadis Institute that killed her mentor, her colleagues, and also her husband. Prosper reminds Miorine once again that as the daughter of Delling Rembra, Miorine is also inevitably involved with this cycle of sin.
It might not be obvious at first, but the concept of “Cycle of Sin” seems to be one of the central themes of Gundam: The Witch from Mercury. After all, in their attempt to push the GUND Technology forwards, the people at the Vanadis Institute created a machine that is not only capable of becoming the most powerful weapon of war, but it also acts as a death trap that will kill its user. As a response, Delling Rembran authorize the massacre of the people at the Vanadis Institute. Now, 21 years later, Delling Rembran is surrounded by greedy and vengeful people who wish to assassinate him. One of them is nearly succeeded, which is why he is in a coma right now.
The same thing can be said about the situation between the Earthian and Spacian. The Spacian colonize the Earth with an iron fist. As a response, a mercenary group from Earth wreaks havoc to one of the most important Spacian facilities, killing lots of people, and mortally wounding countless others, including Delling Rembran. As a retaliation, the Spacian, under the direction of the Benerit Group, unleashed the full might of their military power and destroyed one of the Earthian safe havens, killing tons of people, young and old, in the process. So as you can see, everything is one giant cycle of sin.
Violence And Murder
Gundam: The Witch From Mercury carefully crafted every sequence of events to be interconnected with each other. In doing so, they make sure that every action that the characters make will be met with an appropriate response. Prospera doesn’t merge the consciousness of her dearest daughter with a Gundam just for the sake of science. That is the only thing that she could do at the time given the grim situation that she and her daughter had to go through because of Delling Rembran’s relentless witch hunt.
Because of the terrifying thing that Prosepera has done, however, the world gets to see what is arguably the most advanced and powerful mobile suit in the universe, Gundam Aerial. But everything that Aerial and Suletta has done, and will do in the future, will also affect other people’s lives in all sorts of ways that nobody can imagine. Just from what we have seen so far, Aerial and Suletta have caused the death of several people, whether they intend to or not, such as the death of the fake Elan Ceres, Sophie Pulone, and lots of nameless people during the Plant Quetta attack.
The Cycle Continues
Nobody can escape this vicious cycle of sin, violence, and murder. Everybody is involved in it, whether they want to or not, whether they realize it or not. Miorine may not know about the cruel things that her parents have done in the past, but as the daughter of Delling Rembran, she becomes one of the key components of this cycle. The same things also applied to Suletta.
They might be able to stay out of this cycle had they stay within their own safety bubble. But at this point in the story, both Suletta and Miorine have already involved with, and arguably expand, the cycle. And now, they are forced to accept the roles that they unknowingly inherited from their parents.
At the end of their little discussion, Prospera offers a solution to Miorine. “Be the president of the Benerit Group, and revitalize the Quiet Zero project,” she said. Once again, Miorine found herself stuck in a situation beyond her control, and forced to make a decision that would alter not only her life, but also the lives of everybody around her, for better or worse. So the cycle continues.