Caught up with Yuri is My Job recently and I can’t believe the formerly no-named chef is basically the main character right now?? The shift from comedy and drama to just pure drama has been interesting but I can understand it, the parody of Class S stuff only gets you so far and we’re 7 years into this series now.
Anyway please enjoy this silly relationship chart I made! (which demonstrates the increasingly funny metric of how literally no one has managed to fall for someone that liked them back at this point.) Looking forward to the anime in a few months.
Frieren speaks to me so well because I needed that reminder that getting out of bed at 1AM is something even a hyper competent immortal girlboss elf can do.
the fact that we only have “herculean task” and “sisyphean task” feels so limiting. so here’s a few more tasks for your repertoire
icarian task: when you have a task you know you’re going to fail at anyways, so why not have some fun with it before it all comes crashing down
cassandrean task: when you have to deal with people you KNOW won’t listen to you, despite having accurate information, and having to watch them fumble about when you told them the solution from the start (most often witnessed in customer service)
feel free to chime in i ran out of ideas much faster than i anticipated
Promethean task: opposite of a Cassandraean task. You have the right information, and SOMEONE has to share it. But it's all in the delivery and if you're the person to identify the problem you WILL be hated forever.
Oedipal Task: (1) Attempting to avoid an unspeakably awful outcome and in doing so creating the circumstances that will bring it about.
(2) Trying to solve an problem and discovering that you are in fact the problem you are trying to solve.
orphic task: circumstances beyond your control force you to go some place you really really don't wanna go. nobody in that place wants you to be there either. come back changed forever without the one thing that sent you there in the first place.
Combined with Suletta’s heart wrenching and desperate pleas to Eri and Prospera, these just nailed my heart straight through.
She is trying so hard, hurting so much to rescue her family. It’s heartbreaking how Prospera and Eri keep turning her away, refusing to acknowledge Suletta’s love and worth as part of the family.
Also go get her Miorine stand up for your wife to the inlaws. They’re so made for each other and in love.
Honestly one of the funniest plot points of Yuri is my job is that the manager actually went to a lesbian bar to try and pick up girls to work as her yuri cafe.
She had her sales pitch ready to go and everything.
Mobile Suit Gundam - The Witch From Mercury S2 Episode 8: The End of Hope
So, last episode was violence on earth, and this episode is violence in space! What do we call that? A cycle! That's right. Good old Gundam, perpetuating violence through one sided fixations on the other's wrongdoings, which is perfectly personified through Shaddiq in this episode. Lots of stuff to talk about for sure!
This episode is interesting in that sense, it's less methodic and progress focused than the previous, almost catching you off guard as you shift from the norm towards combat. Regardless of that though, Shaddiq is a total piece of work through it all. It's pretty incredible.
The Earthian boy that allowed space to get to his head. Shaddiq was an orphan from Earth who worked his way up through Grassley to get a spot at Astacassia, and is now using it "to his advantage" to bring equality and power back to the hands of Earthians. What he doesn't, and will probably never realize, is that he's only serving to exacerbate it by perpetuating exactly what his adoptive forefathers did. In a terrible twist of fate, all Shaddiq is able to do is dirty the lives of others. He forces Guel to kill his own father to survive, he forces Miorine to dirty her hands because she doesn't want to be owned by Shaddiq, and he ruins the lives of such an innumerable amount of people that you can't begin to quantify it. All because he wants to bring peace and equality to Earth. But he can never understand his actions. He could never understand what it's like to kill your own father, what it's like to watch on as violence is incurred in your name. And this episode illustrates that incredible well, that Shaddiq is a Spacian, more than any of these other characters he despises, as his words completely betray him.
His entire existence is centered around his ability to bring their own lives back into the hands of Earthians, but he entirely misses the point. All he does is take advantage of. He takes, and takes, and takes some more, and offers nothing but hellfire and brimstone to the people that he wants to help. He brings oppression, violence, sanctions, all manner of terrible fates to the people he cares about, because the scope of his desire is so narrow. He wants to erase the past that he existed in, rather than focus on the future moving forward. In that sense, he plays a very solid second fiddle to Prospera (and raises up Guel even more, which I'll touch on later), as their foolish grasp on history blinds them to the atrocities that they commit in their names.
Just a quick little interlude here as the grounds of Astacassia are under attack during Guel and Shaddiq's fight. I thought this was a really great piece to appear in it. Miorine's tomato greenhouse was destroyed. Not by gundvolvas or even Norea herself, but someone defending Astacassia from her. What a sad, sad fate. A peaceful existence, quashed not by the enemy, but the people she might even call allies. Such a throwaway piece, but one that speaks to the boundless and senseless act of violence. To how inescapable it can be, to both sides of the conflict.
Anyways, back to Guel and his hubris. The sheer mockery that is his existence is palpable. "If you didn't get expelled from the school, if you didn't try to make things right and help out Plant Quetta during a terrorist attack, if you didn't try to thwart my plans, your father would still be alive, if you didn't fight to be a better person, my Miorine would still be clean.". Shaddiq embodies more selfishness than Guel could ever manage to muster in his existence. Even as the self-centered Holder of Astacassia, he could never stoop to the depths that Shaddiq inhabits.
And that's illustrated perfectly here. Shaddiq blames everybody around him for everything that has happened to him. Despite being the leading son of the Grassley House. Despite having the tools to change the world at his fingertips if he so wanted. He believes he needs to deliver power to the Earthians, through terror and violence that incurs the wrath of Spacians. Despite the peaceful approach that Gund-ARM desired, despite the wishes and fears of Guel, at each step he has refused to use his power, and relies on that of the group. He relies on their reactions to violence, he relies on the hatred of Spacians by the inhabitants of Earth. He only uses his power to take from those around him, and in turn drags them further into this abyss.
Then there's this moment. This line from Shaddiq. The sheer hubris of it is hilarious. And Guel destroys it right away.
The difference in wording speaks volumes. Shaddiq could only ever acknowledge what he's doing. He can sit and there and say, "I did some bad things for the sake of Earthians", and immediately, he absolves himself of it because of why he did it. Guel, on the other hand, chooses to carry that weight with him for the rest of his life. The inescapable burden of his father's death, of that girl dying in his arms, of his inaction and what it's led to. He refuses to justify his sins in the bigger picture. And that dissonance extends to the girls around Shaddiq, as they speak of "silver spoons" while piloting their top of the line Gundams, as they sortie from the incredibly exclusive and highly expensive Astacassia school ran by Spacians.
Then there's this last part from Guel is just outstanding. Given the context of Shaddiq and his crew being out for blood, Guel's effort in bringing in the Grassley House unharmed just further widens the ocean's width between the two characters. I especially love it because it speaks to exactly what I was saying so far about Shaddiq, and because it's Guel's version of the words that Suletta gave him.
And to finish off the Shaddiq content of this episode, we have Sarius. His forced passivity through this all, in concert with this comment, speak volumes to his feelings of it. He's lived through this before, he's experienced similar issues and challenges, and he knows where this path will lead to. But in the end, he remained powerless and oblivious to the plight of his son. It's rather depressing to see the resignation on his face at his failure in raising Shaddiq.
Now then, we can move onto Norea and Elan! What an interesting pair, I do think that Norea's character is a bit overblown than need be for he purpose, but there's still plenty of great moments. I really like how despite her hatred of mobile suits and Gundams, the only thing that she thinks she has left is to pilot them. Through her short life, all she could do at the end of it was fight, she could never find a way to run, to leave behind those feelings of hatred and resentment for the life that she was forced into.
And Elan can't help but intervene. The Elan that would only ever run away, only ever fight to preserve his own life, is drawn to Norea. Forced to pilot for the sake of others, relinquishing their chances at a normal life because of the selfishness of Spacians, the pair find common ground in losing their lives and passions to capitalist money machine that is the Benerit Group. I think it's a really great and emotional moment, to bring the puppet of a clone of Peil Technologies, and the child soldier of the Dawn of Fold together in their desire to flee their lives and discover something outside of their current existences. Sadly, this Elan has his chance, but Norea's fate has already been sealed due to her actions.
Finally, we arrive at the end of the conflict. A mass of rubble and bodies litter the ground from the conflict as we find Suletta on her own moving earth to try and help the people beneath it. I think it's a really important piece, both in regards to Suletta and the relations between Earthians and Spacians at Astacassia. Though they're meant to be cogs in the cycle of perpetuated violence and control, some of the students at this school have found ways to connect with one another past the boundaries of Earth and Space. Working together to defend Astacassia, or helping save injured students, or removing those trapped from the rubble. It speaks to the passion and desire to good that the Earthians aboard Astacassia have spread and infected those around them with. Alongside Suletta, they've broken the curse of Prospera's words, and in doing so, have helped free Suletta. Without Aerial, without her mother or Miorine or any of the other crutches that brought her this far, she remains in the dark, with bloodied and bruised hands, searching for life amidst the destruction.
It's an astoundingly good GWitch episode, and moves the characters forward in incredible ways. Shaddiq's hubris arrives at his doorstep as Guel find vindication in bringing him to justice, while Norea makes peace with the life that was stolen from her that Elan carries onwards, and Suletta and the Earth house continue their calling of peace and helping others even in spite of the atrocity that was committed in the name of their company.
The cycle of violence leaves nobody untouched, but it doesn't mean you must succumb to it. This episode speaks to that greatly. That you are justified in your hate and resentment for what life has done for you, but that you also hold the tools within your own hands to change that. To rally against it and make a difference, to speak out against those actions and to fight to find ways to break that cycle. Whether it's within the scope of the school you go to, or the whole of humanity.
Shaddiq is quite interesting. His hubris is that he's a romantic at heart. He's styled as a Prince and idealizes Miorine. He dreams of being the triumphant liberator of his people, Prince of Earth itself and heir to a fallen family. It's the makings of a grand romantic story. Yet it was those delusions of fairytale grandeur which led to his downfall
His relationship with Miorine is one-sided but he pictures slowly winning her heart with patience. He refuses to intrude upon her sanctuary because it would ruin the narrative. Rapunzel needs to let the prince inside.
If Shaddiq insists he's different, a prince and not a beast, then surely she'll love him.
But then someone earned her heart the way he always dreamt. Suletta, who Miorine changed for and allowed into her castle of flowers while he's kept firmly at a distance.
It briefly incenses him that this pauper girl, someone not special from Mercury of all places, has earned his princess. He challenges her and their exchange reveals how little he thinks of Miorine's agency. The groom controls the bride. His anger deepens the moment Suletta contradicts him. As the groom, she'll believe in her bride.
During the duel he reveals his world view. Only a person with vision, someone special and destined for greatness like himself can wed a princess. He's soundly struck down because he underestimates Miorine and Earth House, factors he didn't account for while focused on Suletta.
When we next see him, Shaddiq appears oddly resigned. His hostility towards Suletta is completely missing. Yet in the context of S2, we finally understand why. Because this preserves the fairytale. Suletta is the knight who fairly won the princess' heart. He recognizes Suletta sees Miorine as something sacred; a divine beauty worthy of worship. He can concede so long as that image is upheld.
When Guel becomes holder, he doesn't react until this moment. Because he believes Guel has stained Miorine's hands with blood. She's no longer the princess in the tower. Miorine's pure image is ruined and it's entirely Guel's doing. This anger once again leads him to another downfall.
Considering Utena, this is such a clever use of the message princely/fairytale ideals are inherently nonsensical. You cannot paint yourself as a savior and disregard a person's agency. Life does not mirror romantic illusions and instead it's those dreams which blind you to reality. A child's view of the world, not an adult's. Shaddiq remains that orphan who imagined a heroic life for himself. And you can't help but pity him for it.
Ofc, whether he stays out of the game post ep 20 remains to be seen...
it’s the way that miorine tried so hard to protect suletta’s innocence only to come face to face with the true horrors of war herself while suletta’s hands ended up dirty again regardless bc as guel said “there are no [peaceful] worlds like that”
We’ve seen Suletta face the scene of people’s deaths a lot in this show, from the two soldiers in Plant Quetta to Sophie’s. Each time she’s frozen up in shock, and her response to each was to change. In Plant Quetta she was manipulated by Prospera into killing again, in Sophie’s case to question her mother’s motives. This time though, she simply gets to work saving others, carefully and as best she can.
She’s so strong despite first impressions. Hoping she can get her wife back and leave the divorce arc behind.
