This ending has divided fans. Some argue she got off easy for the crimes of Quiet Zero. Others view it as the ultimate punishment: the woman who wanted to give her daughter the universe is reduced to pushing a ghost around a garden.
Once the Prologue concludes and the main series begins, The Witch from Mercury makes its second radical departure: the setting. Traditionally, Gundam series are set against the backdrop of massive wars between Earth and Space colonies. While geopolitical tensions exist in this timeline, the primary stage is the Asticassia School of Technology.
Suletta Mercury is a protagonist unlike any before her. Where Amuro Ray was a reluctant soldier and Heero Yuy a hardened assassin, Suletta is a socially anxious, sheltered girl. Her growth from a timid pawn into a confident individual who learns to question the systems controlling her is the heart of the show. Her catchphrase, "If you run away, you gain one thing... but you lose another," becomes a recurring motif that challenges the characters to face their traumas rather than flee from them.
When the mask finally breaks in Episode 22 ("The Unrelenting Path"), we see the burned visage of Elnora. But crucially, she does not have a redemption arc. She doubles down. She tells Suletta the truth—that she is a clone, that Eri is the real daughter, and that Suletta was a spare part.
Her legacy is a question posed to every parent watching: What would you sacrifice to save your child? Prospera’s answer—her sister, her clone, her morality, and thousands of strangers—makes her terrifying. But her final, silent apology in a wheelchair makes her tragic.