Gundam: Witch From Mercury Violence Spurs Watchdog Complaint
Mobile Suit Gundam has a new series under its wing, and fans are loving what Gundam: Witch From Mercury has offered up so far. The sci-fi series wowed fans with its chemistry and action from episode one. So far, much of the show has been beyond reproach, but it seems episode 12 managed to draw the ire of a watchdog group in Japan for a rather wild reason.
The whole thing came to light when Gundam put out the 12th episode of Witch From Mercury. It was there fans watched the normally tame series get violent as Suletta ends up killing a man. Piloting her mech, Suletta ends up crushing a person with its hands and leaving a pool of blood in her wake. A severed arm is even shown flying off screen, and the Broadcasting Ethics & Program Improvement Organization has since shared complaints about the episode.
It seems the violence itself wasn't the issue so much as the anime's early evening time slot. Japan puts its violent shows on air late at night if not in the early morning hours. Everything from Chainsaw Man to Attack on Titan has abided by these rules, but Gundam's new series is not on too late. The show's time slot in Japan is 5:00 pm, so complaints flooded in about the graphic scene from parents.
"The scene was so shocking that both me and my child were stunned speechless," one parent shared with the watchdog group. Other members of the BPO went on to share their complaints though some defended the death's reserved nature. The crushing could have been done more violently fans admitted, but in the end, parents felt the shocking scene was too graphic to air at 5:00 pm.
"Although the blood from the severed arm is changed to a darker color when dancing through the air, it is not a scene to watch with the family at five o'clock on Sunday," one complaint read while another agreed in full. "This series was relatively light-hearted until the abrupt, violent scene. I suspect that it would have come as a shock to viewers."
Clearly, Gundam struck a cord with episode 12, but the violent scene is most definitely an outlier for Witch From Mercury. The IP as a whole is very familiar with action and violence, but Gundam's most recent project has put more focus on its pilots since kickstarting. And if it ever decides to lean into action, well – maybe Sunrise should consider pushing back the show's time slot.
What do you think about this latest reaction to Gundam's new anime? Share your thoughts with us in the comments section below or hit me up on Twitter @MeganPetersCB.