TV-Series
Description
Martha Vist Carbine is a powerful businesswoman and one of the main antagonists of Mobile Suit Gundam Unicorn. She is a granddaughter of Syam Vist, the founder of the Vist Foundation, and was born into the influential Vist family. Her early years were marked by tragedy when her father was killed by her grandfather, an event that significantly shaped her callous personality and ruthless approach to business. To maintain the Vist Foundation's control over the Earth Sphere, she strategically married Melanie Hue Carbine, the chairman of Anaheim Electronics, becoming known as the Empress of the Moon due to her position at the head of the Carbine family, which established the major arms manufacturer. This alliance gave the Vist Foundation considerable influence over both the arms industry and high-ranking Earth Federation officials.
Martha possesses a sharp intellect and ruthless business acumen that surpasses even her husband's abilities. She is known for her shrewd negotiating skills and willingness to employ underhanded methods to achieve her goals. Her elegant appearance, featuring shoulder-length blonde hair and cold green eyes, masks a calculating and ambitious personality. She has a pragmatic approach to family relationships, viewing them primarily through the lens of utility and control. Her primary motivation is to preserve the Vist Foundation's power and influence, particularly by keeping Laplace's Box under family control and preventing its contents from being revealed. She believes in maintaining the status quo and the Foundation's supremacy, opposing her brother Cardeas's philosophy of revealing the truth to correct the flaws of the Universal Century.
In the story, Martha seizes control of the Vist Foundation from her brother Cardeas after manipulating her nephew Alberto Vist into fatally shooting his father during a Federation raid on the Vist mansion. She then orchestrates a destructive campaign to prevent the opening of Laplace's Box. Following Cardeas's death, she takes control of the RX-0 Unicorn Gundam and its pilot Banagher Links, relocating operations to the Augusta Newtype Laboratory in North America. There, she subjects the captured Cyber Newtype Marida Cruz to reconditioning and provides Alberto with schematics for the RX-0 Banshee, manipulating Marida into piloting it against the Unicorn. Her operations culminate aboard the Garuda-class vessel in low orbit, where she attempts to extract the La+ coordinates from Banagher through coercion and manipulation, even revealing that Cardeas was Banagher's father. When her plans are thwarted, she proposes using the Gryps 2 colony laser to destroy Magallanica and prevent the opening of Laplace's Box. She is ultimately arrested by Bright Noa for her role in the incident.
Her key relationships are defined by manipulation and strategic utility. Her relationship with her elder brother Cardeas is marked by fundamental disagreements over the future of the Vist Foundation and Laplace's Box, leading her to orchestrate his death through Alberto. As Alberto's aunt, she serves as a maternal figure during his youth, exploiting his hatred of his father's philosophy to manipulate him. Despite some familial sentiment, she ultimately views Alberto as a useful tool and distrusts his abilities. Her marriage to Melanie Hue Carbine is primarily strategic, though built on mutual respect for each other's business acumen. She initially views Banagher Links merely as a means to access Laplace's Box, showing little regard for his wellbeing, though she demonstrates tactical respect for his abilities as the Unicorn's pilot.
Following her arrest, Martha is tried and imprisoned for her involvement in the Laplace Incident. During her confinement, she maintains her confident attitude and remains dignified. In UC 0097, during the so-called Phoenix Hunt, she is broken out of prison by the private army of Luio and Company, who seek her cooperation and information regarding the testing of the RX-0 Unicorn Gundam Unit 3 Phenex. Throughout her appearances, Martha's notable abilities lie not in personal combat but in her exceptional strategic thinking, political acumen, and mastery of corporate and institutional power. She wields authority over Anaheim Electronics security teams, the Garuda-class flagship, and access to experimental mobile suits such as the RX-0 Banshee, using these assets to enforce her directives. She demonstrates considerable tactical planning, manages intelligence assets, and is skilled in psychological warfare, as seen in her manipulation of Marida Cruz and her attempts to control the Unicorn Gundam.
Martha possesses a sharp intellect and ruthless business acumen that surpasses even her husband's abilities. She is known for her shrewd negotiating skills and willingness to employ underhanded methods to achieve her goals. Her elegant appearance, featuring shoulder-length blonde hair and cold green eyes, masks a calculating and ambitious personality. She has a pragmatic approach to family relationships, viewing them primarily through the lens of utility and control. Her primary motivation is to preserve the Vist Foundation's power and influence, particularly by keeping Laplace's Box under family control and preventing its contents from being revealed. She believes in maintaining the status quo and the Foundation's supremacy, opposing her brother Cardeas's philosophy of revealing the truth to correct the flaws of the Universal Century.
In the story, Martha seizes control of the Vist Foundation from her brother Cardeas after manipulating her nephew Alberto Vist into fatally shooting his father during a Federation raid on the Vist mansion. She then orchestrates a destructive campaign to prevent the opening of Laplace's Box. Following Cardeas's death, she takes control of the RX-0 Unicorn Gundam and its pilot Banagher Links, relocating operations to the Augusta Newtype Laboratory in North America. There, she subjects the captured Cyber Newtype Marida Cruz to reconditioning and provides Alberto with schematics for the RX-0 Banshee, manipulating Marida into piloting it against the Unicorn. Her operations culminate aboard the Garuda-class vessel in low orbit, where she attempts to extract the La+ coordinates from Banagher through coercion and manipulation, even revealing that Cardeas was Banagher's father. When her plans are thwarted, she proposes using the Gryps 2 colony laser to destroy Magallanica and prevent the opening of Laplace's Box. She is ultimately arrested by Bright Noa for her role in the incident.
Her key relationships are defined by manipulation and strategic utility. Her relationship with her elder brother Cardeas is marked by fundamental disagreements over the future of the Vist Foundation and Laplace's Box, leading her to orchestrate his death through Alberto. As Alberto's aunt, she serves as a maternal figure during his youth, exploiting his hatred of his father's philosophy to manipulate him. Despite some familial sentiment, she ultimately views Alberto as a useful tool and distrusts his abilities. Her marriage to Melanie Hue Carbine is primarily strategic, though built on mutual respect for each other's business acumen. She initially views Banagher Links merely as a means to access Laplace's Box, showing little regard for his wellbeing, though she demonstrates tactical respect for his abilities as the Unicorn's pilot.
Following her arrest, Martha is tried and imprisoned for her involvement in the Laplace Incident. During her confinement, she maintains her confident attitude and remains dignified. In UC 0097, during the so-called Phoenix Hunt, she is broken out of prison by the private army of Luio and Company, who seek her cooperation and information regarding the testing of the RX-0 Unicorn Gundam Unit 3 Phenex. Throughout her appearances, Martha's notable abilities lie not in personal combat but in her exceptional strategic thinking, political acumen, and mastery of corporate and institutional power. She wields authority over Anaheim Electronics security teams, the Garuda-class flagship, and access to experimental mobile suits such as the RX-0 Banshee, using these assets to enforce her directives. She demonstrates considerable tactical planning, manages intelligence assets, and is skilled in psychological warfare, as seen in her manipulation of Marida Cruz and her attempts to control the Unicorn Gundam.