Earth was the Future Mother! We Were Right!

Edens Zero Chapter 272 Review/Recap

Since the flashbacks to 20,000 years ago started in the manga, Edens Zero has been teasing fans about something big. Hiro Mashima dropped hint after hint that the world seen in the flashbacks is, in fact, our present-day Earth, putting the entire series into a new perspective. Then, even more surprising, the manga foreshadowed that “Mother” came into being due to the planet achieving Overdrive. This chapter only confirms what we already knew: Mother is the future Earth. 

Recap

Mother once again reiterates the choices that Shiki has: he can save Mother and guarantee the cosmos will survive or save all those who died and let her die, leaving their future in doubt. Rebecca, Happy, and Pino are shocked at the idea. Rebecca even urges Shiki to choose to save their friends over Mother, asking the latter what gives her the right to make Shiki choose like that. However, Shiki remains calm, wanting to get all the facts. Understanding, Mother says merely choosing to save her will do just that, while letting her die will lead to humanity’s eventual extinction, as seen in the future. 

Mother then decides to show everyone what happened 20,000 years ago. In a vision, she explains that once, she was a planet called Earth. It was a beautiful, tranquil world. But the constant wars and harvesting of resources drained Earth of all its Ether. By 2025, the air was polluted, disease ran rampant, and natural disasters ruined the world. However, some tried to save it: Mio and Yuna, Hermit and Valkyrie when they were human. And they had help from Regret and Ivry, AKA Witch and Sister. Sister was sick with the illness killing people, and her doctor, Cooper (the future Clown), came up with a new treatment called Ether therapy.

That moment would change Mother’s destiny forever.

Review

As previously stated, this chapter confirmed what readers knew or suspected. Mother is, in fact, an embodiment of Mother Earth or Mother Nature, albeit on a cosmic scale. However, at the same time, it also revealed that the story’s been hinting at the truth about Mother for far longer than readers (or at least me) suspected. 

This chapter also confirms, or all but confirms, several other things. If Mother is the Overdrive form of Earth, then it’s likely that Xiao Mei is the Overdrive form of the Moon. The Moon’s Latin name is “Luna,” which checks out. If the Earth becomes a cosmic entity via Overdrive, then the same could be said for our Moon.

In addition, this chapter also confirms that all the visions and flashbacks shown since the Lendard Arc were of the Shining and Dark Stars’ human lives. The fact that Pino’s the only one in the group unsurprised but has a sad look on her face drives the point home. While we still don’t know what happened next, it must not have ended well. 

This revelation that the series takes place in a possible future 20,000 years from now takes everything into a new perspective and poses even more questions. How can a planet achieve Overdrive, much less become a cosmic entity? What’s the context of the deal Shiki made with Mother? And if Shiki chooses to save Mother and sacrifice everyone who previously died, would that include him and Rebecca? Is that one reason Rebecca asked Shiki not to save Mother despite the risks?

Overall, this is a chapter I’ve waited for for months, and it didn’t disappoint. It’s time to get the whole picture of the story. Learning the truth of the universe, about Mother, Shiki, and everything else should be interesting. 

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