The official Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX X (formerly Twitter) account has shared a new image to celebrate reaching over 395,000 followers and to promote the series’ finale airing next week. The image is ominous, featuring Shuji in the Kira-Kira plane with deadshot eyes. Kira-Kira is like a plane of existence where people can communicate with each other among a sea of bright colors. Kira-Kira is directly related to the Newtype connections featured in the original Mobile Suit Gundam anime. Shuji Ito was promoted as one of the three lead protagonists of Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX, alongside Amate “Machu” Yuzuriha and Nyaan. However, he suddenly disappeared in Episode Seven, having seemingly been pulled into the same ethereal plane of existence as the Kira-Kira.
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Shuji made his grand return in Episode Eleven, the penultimate episode of the series. In contrast to the laid-back personality he displayed in the first half of the series, Shuji shows a more serious side of his character. He reveals his intention to end the world to save Lalah Sune, a vital figure within the Gundam mythology. Gundam GQuuuuuuX has two versions of Lalah, suggesting one of them comes from an alternate reality. It is also heavily implied that Shuji may also be from a different dimension than the rest of the cast.
Is Shuji The Final Villain of Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX?
Shuji was always the most enigmatic character among the leads, with his low-energy speaking and mellow personality making him hard to read. One of the biggest mysteries the show sets up is how Shuji is piloting the infamous Red Gundam, the mobile suit that led the Principality of Zeon to victory. The Red Gundam disappeared alongside Char Aznable, one of the franchise’s most iconic characters, in the last days of the One Year War. Shuji never divulges where he got the Red Gundam, leading to speculation and theorizing.
Nonetheless, the character always had a hint of darker motivations. Shuji coldly murdered Shiiko Sugai during a clan battle in Episode 4, declaring nothing would get in his way to accomplish his dreams. Even though he was friends with Machu and Nyaan, he typically acted indifferent to both girls’ feelings for him. His reappearance at the end of Episode Eleven builds on top of Shuji’s most malicious traits, suggesting he was never really the cool-headed and nice dude that charmed Machu in the early episodes.
Episode Eleven also ended with the original RX-78-2 Gundam, not the redesigned version featured in Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX, appearing out of a portal. The appearance of the classic RX-78-2 and the return of Shuji give the impression of a correlation between the two, implying Shuji summoned the iconic Gundam from a different universe. While it isn’t necessarily confirmed that Shuji is piloting the RX-78-2, it’s heavily suggested he is and will be the last opponent Machu will have to face in the final episode. The protagonist facing a mobile suit based on the RX-78-2 is a retread of the Mobile Suit Gundam 00 finale, where Setsuna fought against someone piloting a mobile suit in the same colors as the RX-78-2.
Machu’s infatuation with Shuji leaves the red-headed protagonist a dilemma if she has to fight him. Furthermore, Nyaan also has feelings for Shuji, foreshadowing a potentially highly dramatic series finale. It’s also possible that Shuji’s heel turn is a misdirect, and there’s a great antagonist the protagonists have to overcome. Maybe Shuji is right, and the world needs to end, giving Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX an Evangelion-type ending.
H/T: The Official Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX X (formerly Twitter) Account
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