Simoun ep 1-15
It’s been a long time since I’ve seen a good anime, aside from Ghost in the Shell SAC. I think the last time I tried something new and liked it enough to post, it was Strawberry Panic. Which, with the lifting of the veil of insanity, is kinda like enjoying garbage scraps because you happen to be sitting in the alleyway. Well, scratch that travesty off the list.
Simoun is another yuri anime, but that can be considered a pity because it’s actually not about yuri, even though it technically has (romantic or platonic emotional) female-female relationships. It’s more about a group of characters and their interactions, based in quite a creative fantasy world, the premise of which is that all humans are born female and are considered children until the age of 17, at which point they go to a sacred spring to choose the sex they wish to be for the rest of their lives and hence become adults. The story follows a group of priestesses, children who have not yet gone to the spring, who have traditionally taken the roles of worship to their God by singing to sacred “chariots” - the flying machines known as Simoun - and offering prayers by tracing lines in the sky.
However, war has broken out as the surrounding countries covet the mysterious technology of the Holy Land. The Simoun are now used as a fighting force and the lines they draw wreak destruction on thousands of enemy targets. Oh, and there’s some political plotting and hidden agendas too, otherwise it wouldn’t be a Bandai Visual anime.
Seriously however, Simoun sounds kinda bleh, but it looks really nice. The production values are very high, the art is generally of high quality (you couldn’t do this in OVA even 8 years ago, much less a 26 ep TV series), and the music is really good while being really weird (orchestra and tango, anyone?). I don’t mind the CG; it seems to add to the ethereal quality of the world. The only thing that really bugged me at the beginning, and still does now sometimes, is the voice-acting of some of the characters. Very flat and dissonant from the images on screen, which leads me to wonder if they took the take first then did the animation after.
I basically mini-marathoned Simoun, hitting about 7 eps in one night, 2 the next, 5 the next, and 1 this morning when I woke up. I discovered last night that eps 24-26 are not yet out, UGH!! And so I try to exercise some restraint.
I’d seen this series when it first came out, and dropped it after the first ep. I guess I watched because it was supposed to be yuri, but I didn’t like the character designs, the story was really weird, and I really didn’t like the yuri fanservice at all. Pointless kissing, bleh. The reason I decided to give it another try was because some blogs had called it the best series of the year (and in a good, story-centric, well-executed etc etc kind of way, not in the ZOMG!! Shizuka pwns Nagisa!! kind of way). Also, I was seriously sick with a cold. :P
Well, now that I’ve seen 15 eps, I thought I’d try to put down what I find so addictive about this show. I think it’s the characters. 12 characters was pretty overwhelming at the beginning, but they’ve each got their little bit, I’d assume. Some have their backgrounds covered, others are fascinating because of how they are depicted in their reactions to the current situation. I have to say I really like Paraetta, not because she is likeable, but because she is so flawed and insecure and painfully inadequate - just a child even though she looks the oldest. The two “main characters” Aeru and Nevriril, I’m not too sympathetic about, but they are the focus for Paraetta’s helplessness and a fulcrum for the cohesion of the team, and hence they become relevant too. The others aren’t terribly interesting in their own right, you just want to know what happens, you just want to see all the complex human dynamic unfold and crisscross and tear through.
There’s not much about the outside world, as most of the focus is on Simoun girls, so it’s a rather narrow focused view of the progression of the war from their point of view. With all that angsting going on, usually I’d drop this like a hot potato, but this time it’s not annoying and whiney. Overdramatic, perhaps, but I never detest a character, just feel pity. Some of the dialog is actually really good too. It’s like Gundam, done the right way. Perhaps if Amuro Rei had been a girl I might have been more accepting. Or maybe not.
In ep 2 or 3, when Nevriril goes to the Spring with her friend. The aftermath was one of the most emotionally shocking and memorable scenes I’d seen in anime. I think this was when I decided whoever was writing this thing had something down right.
