Literature / Muv-Luv Alternative: Total Eclipse

In 1973, an invasion of aliens known as BETA upon Earth is driving human civilization into near collapse. Facing an enormous, unstoppable horde of enemy forces with weapons making aircraft almost useless, mankind developed large humanoid fighting machines called Tactical Surface Fighters and deployed them to defensive lines throughout the world. However, all these efforts could do was stall the BETA temporarily, and mankind is forced to abandon continental Eurasia. For the next 30 years, mankind finds itself bogged down in an endless war against the BETA without any hope of victory.

In 1998, BETA make landfall on the Empire of Japan's Kyushu Prefecture, and in short order the Imperial Capital of Kyoto is lost despite a desperate defense.

Fast-forward to 2001. As Imperial Japan defends the front lines of the Far East, it faces difficulties in the development of a next-generation TSF. A solution appears in the XFJ program, a joint development between the US and Japan, under the aegis of Project PROMINENCE, a UN-sponsored program intended to spur next-generation TSF development, using test pilots, scientists and engineers from around the world, gathering at Alaska's Yukon Base.

Enter 2nd Lieutenant Yuuya Bridges of the US Army, for whom assignment to the Project felt too much like a demotion, 1st Lieutenant Yui Takamura of the Imperial Royal Guards, head of the Japanese side of the XFJ program and Sole Survivor of her unit from the Battle of Kyoto, and the "Scarlet Sisters", 2nd Lieutenants Cryska Barchenowa and Inia Sestina of the Soviet Army. Coming together from different backgrounds, their respective pasts and meeting at Yukon, along with the other participants in Project PROMINENCE, will have important consequences for the Project, and indeed Yukon itself.

Set in the universe of Muv-Luv Alternative, Muv-Luv Alternative: Total Eclipse is a side story first serialized in Tech Gian, and later published as a series of light novels followed by two manga adaptations. Chronologically the series takes place a few months before the main Alternative story.

A 24-episode anime adaptation by Satelite Inc and ixtl, directed by Takayuki Inagaki and Masaomi Ando, aired from 1 July to 23 December 2012; it was simulcasted on Crunchyroll and is also available on Hulu.

A visual novel adaptation and continuation was released for the PS3 and Xbox 360 in May 2013, with demos for each version available on both the PlayStation Network and Xbox Live Arcade. More information can be found here. The PC version of the visual novel adaptation was released on September 26th, 2014. An English-language localization was released on Steam July 21 2022.

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This work contains examples of:

• 2D Visuals, 3D Effects: The BETA, made more obvious if there's a human character in the same scene, such as when Yui was approached by some at the end of episode 2.
• Ace Pilot:
  • Practically all test pilots at Yukon are this, particularly those who hail from countries that have fallen to the BETA.
  • Yuuya's previous assignment was as a test pilot for the F-22 Raptor at Groom Lake, Nevada, aka Area 51.
• Ace Custom: The story focuses on a multinational team of pilots testing out custom TSF models.
  • The standard Su-37 is usually only assigned to aces and battalion commanders, like Fikasia Latrova and Natasha Ivanova.
  • The Shiranui has two ace customs: there's the Shiranui Type-1C, which was used by Yui's instructor, and the 94 Second testbed, which Yuuya pilots (which is an Ace Custom of the -1C)..
• Action Prologue: The first two episodes, which focuses on Yui while she was still a teen in Japan before it falls to the BETA. The main story then takes place three years later in Alaska.
• Adaptation Distillation: The anime has so far adapted the Light Novels by sticking to the high points, and in the case of the Soviet arc, expanding missing scenes.
• Adaptation Expansion: Compared to the Light Novels, the Blue Flag and final arcs have been expanded, with greater roles for certain characters and mecha.
• Airplane Arms: Inia.
• Alien Invasion: Type 1. The BETA were actually discovered on the Moon, but despite humanity attempting to fight them up there, they eventually made their way to Earth, and have been pushing humans back almost everywhere since.
• All Your Base Are Belong to Us: In episode 2, the BETA are seen overrunning various outposts in Kyoto, such as the supply base, as well as the command center.
  • They do it again in the Kamchatka arc.
  • Episode 21 provides a shocker when humans from a terrorist group attempt to takeover the UN test facility where the main story takes place.
• Alliterative Family: Both children of Mira Bridges, have names that start with Yu. Yuuya Bridges and Yui Takamura.
• Alternate History: Carrying over from Muv-Luv Alternative, but to recap (and since it's covered in the first couple episodes of the anime):
  • The Meiji Restoration ended differently, as the shoguns still exist alongside the Emperor and there are still titled nobility.
  • Relations between the United States and Japan are still bitter following World War II, rather than the two countries having enjoyed a close alliance. (The Pacific War ended in 1944 with a negotiated peace and the atomic bombings took place in Germany instead of Japan.)
  • Humanity had mecha and a large presence on the Moon at first contact with BETA in 1967.
  • BETA interrupted the Cold War and the United States and Soviet Union are engaged in Teeth-Clenched Teamwork against the aliens in the series' 2001 present day, with Alaska hosting the Soviet Government in Exile and a large (mostly ethnic Russian) refugee population while the remains of the Red Army hold Kamchatka.
• Always Chaotic Evil: The only goal of the BETA seems to be to "eat as many humans as possible." It's actually "eat everything" for resources, but since humans are mostly made of carbon compounds as well eating us is perfectly justifiable for resource-gathering.
• Anyone Can Die: As befitting a Muv-Luv story:
  • Yui's class is completely wiped out during the defense of Kyoto after getting a full episode all to themselves.
  • Fikasia Latrova and Zhar Battalion are destroyed due to combat losses from beta, friendly fire from bombers, and the Scarlet Twins. Although the Visual Novel continuation reveals that the Zhar battalion survived the arc.
  • Leaked images from the Total Eclipse visual novel imply that Cryska dies at the end of the story. Those same images also invert the trope for someone already mentioned, as that person is seen, alive, at the site of Cryska's supposed grave-stone.
• Arms and Armor Theme Naming: Most TSFs are named after real-life fighter jets, e.g. the American F-15E Strike Eagle, the Soviet Su-37, the Chinese J-11, etc. The Japanese TSFs have no real-life equivalent due to the Alternate History, however: the real-life JASDF uses mostly American-built jets or Japanese derivatives of same, whereas the Alternative-verse's independent Japanese Empire uses indigenous designs (although their first TSF was a derivative of the American F-4 Phantom).
• Artistic License – Geography: Inverted example. A scene from the anime version of the story shows a map depicting lost territory to BETA with our modern 21st century borders. In-Universe, the Cold War did not end and the boundaries of the USSR, East Germany, Yugoslavia and Czechoslovakia are non existent. This is despite Cryska and Inia, two of the most important characters explicitly being from the Soviet Union.
• Artistic License – Military:
  • Questionable since it's a callsign, but everyone refers to Yuuya as Top Gun as befitting his status as an Ace Pilot. The Top Gun program, however, is US Navy outfit where Aviators practice dog fighting tactics against master pilots in Nevada and Southern California. Sounds fitting doesn't it? Unfortunately Yuuya is apart of the Army.
  • The subtitles for the anime give the TSF pilots naval ranks, with Yuuya and his squadron members being said to be ensigns. Leaving aside that this seemingly underranks everyone except Yuuya (who is a rookie, though a talented one, at the start of the series) and possibly Yui^note First Lieutenant (Rikugun-Chūi 陸軍中尉) Takamura is probably not underranked for her age and time in grade, but probably is underranked for her responsibilities. Additionally, a war as bloody as the fight with the BETA has been would probably result in more rapid promotions for combat veterans like herself due to superior officers getting killed., he's (again) said to be in the Army and thus should be a second lieutenant. Ditto the Red Army characters: the twins are ranked ensign instead of junior lieutenant, and Zhar Battalion CO Fikatsia Latrova should be a lieutenant colonel (podpolkovnik in Russian) rather than commander (which wasn't even a rank used in the Soviet Navy: the equivalent in the USSR and ex-Soviet countries is captain 2nd rank).
  • Various fanservice incidents would in real life be grounds for a very swift Court Martial for sexual harassment (trying to peep on your superior officer bathing in a hot spring comes to mind, as does that officer's own superiors making her take part in a swimsuit photoshoot).
• Asshole Victim: Zhar Battalion pilot Yakov gets eaten by Tank-classes. Given that he'd earlier intended to rape Inia, nobody except his friends gives a shit.
• Attack Its Weak Point: One of the main BETA strains, the Destroyer-class, is effectively a bulldozer work-alike and capable of smashing through concrete buildings with ease; it shrugs off TSF and tank cannon fire due to the thick carapace on its forequarters. The same cannons are quite effective when aimed at their unarmored rear.
• Batman Gambit: Yuuya's plan for the team mock battle in Episode 3. He takes a Strike Eagle and has Tarisa take the ACTV Eagle to lull her into a false sense of security, then maneuvers her into a position where Stella can snipe her, knowing that he can't beat her in close combat and the ACTV will allow her to evade his fire.
• Battle Harem: Much like Takeru Shirogane in the main series, Yuuya Bridges is a Chick Magnet for female TSF pilots. Yui, Cryska, and Cui all express attraction to him. Yui turns out to be his unknown half-sister, and he ends up returning Cryska's affections.
• Beach Episode: Episode 6, with lots of Fanservice.
• Beat Them at Their Own Game:
  • Yuuya first attempts this against Tarisa in Episode 3, engaging her in melee albeit not entirely by choice. And then it turns out to be a subversion, as he's just getting her where Stella has a clear shot. See Batman Gambit above.
  • Tarisa's suggestion for dealing with Bao-Feng Flight in the Blue Flag exercises. As Bao-Feng are melee-oriented, conventional wisdom suggests keeping the range open and laying down fire, but since Yifei is good enough to force a melee duel, Tarisa suggests Yuuya engage her in melee to seize the initiative, while the rest of Argos ties up Yifei's subordinates. It turns out the Shiranui's Japanese-designed sword is equipped with is balanced better for this kind of fight than Yifei's, giving Yuuya the edge he needs.
• Better to Die than Be Killed: Or rather Better to Be Shot Than Eaten Alive.
• BFG: The railgun Yuuya tests in episode 8, which wipes out virtually all of the remaining BETA
• Big Damn Heroes:
  • Yui is falling into a Heroic BSoD after her friends are eaten and she fails to Mercy Kill Kazusa, and is surrounded by numerous BETA. Then a prototype Takemikazuchi in command colors busts in and wipes the floor with the BETA.
  • Subverted with Yuuya in episode 8 when he stops a Soviet pilot from attempting to rape Inia. While he does prevent it, all of the pilot's friends grab pipes and knives and seem prepared to kill him as they surround him, Inia, and Cryska. Played straight when their commander shows up, although she doesn't seem to really be doing it to save them.
  • Then he plays it straight in episode 9 when he uses Yui's railgun to wipe out the remaining BETA. And again in episode 12 to rescue Yui when she's surrounded by BETA.
  • Latrova and Zhar bail Yuuya out after all his weapons are gone and his Shiranui is critically damaged.
  • Inia does this for Yuuya in episode 23, followed shortly by the rest of the surviving UN forces they were with, after returning due to finding Inia's TSF on radar.
  • The Infinities show up to save Yui from getting killed in episode 24. They also help mop up remaining RLF TSF's who were attempting to stop Yui's attempts to slow down the BETA attacks.
• Bolivian Army Ending:
  • The Kamchatka arc gives one to the Zhar Battalion, who are last seen charging off into the mountains to take out a battery of Laser-classes, while Colonel Latrova winds up in a Duel to the Death with the Communist Party officer who tried to kill them all to steal the Type-99. They're later shown to have survived in the VN.
  • In the tradition of Tactical Surface Fighter in Action, TE ends with Yuuya charging towards the BETA hybrid firing at the Susano'o Type 4, followed by a short epilogue giving a macrohistorical view of the outcome of Operation Cherry Blossom, without reference to any particular character.
• Boom, Headshot!:
  • Several BETA are on the receiving end of this throughout the series.
  • Then Natalie, the bar girl, gets one at the end of episode 21 for talking too much about her group's plans.
  • Mariem, one of the RLF leaders inside Alaska base, suffers from this when she attempts to surrender.
• Brain Washed: Inia and Cryska at the end of episode 24, and the first half of 25.
• Breaking the Fourth Wall: At the end of episode 19, the narrator announces the next episode will be a Recap Episode meant to get everyone up to speed on what's been going on since the show started, and to get ready for the climax episodes.
• Breather Episode: Meta example for the Beach Episode arc; it was written as a relatively light story to give the writer time to further plan and expand Total Eclipse.
  • Episode 17 has a quick battle and a brief fist fight, but otherwise largely focuses on characters developing relationships with other each other rather than focusing on the mechs and/or the BETA.
  • Episode 19 has every major character as well as several minor ones taking part in a relaxation exercise meant to build up camaraderie among everyone. So this episode is focused mainly on Fanservice.
• Bridge Bunnies: Three of them appear, monitoring Argos Flight's combat performance.
• Brother–Sister Incest: Yui finding out Yuuya is her half-brother doesn't stop her feelings towards him.
• Bug War: Which surprisingly enough, despite what the first two episodes may lead you to believe, plays a secondary role in this series.
• Cat Girl: Tarisa is dressed up as a maid version in episode 5.
• Cavalry Refusal: As in Alternative's main story, the US Navy withdraws from Japan when it's invaded by the BETA rather than uphold their treaty obligations, shown in Yui's prologue. It's justified but the reason is All There in the Manual: the Suez Canal came under attack at the same time and the US had to bolster the defenses or else the BETA would have gotten into Africa, which has been feeding much the world and housing millions of refugees from Europe and Asia. Japan, and America's credibility as an ally, unfortunately had to be sacrificed for the greater good.
• Censor Steam:
  • Used in episode 5 on Yuuya and Yui.
  • Episode 19 utilizes it heavily while they're at the hot springs, particularly as some of the female cast either weren't told to bring a swimsuit, or chose not to wear one.
• Chekhov's Gun:
  • The development plans for the Type-99 EM Radiation Cannon appear in Episode One; Yui's uncle secures R&D approval from Yuuhi. The railgun later appears in Episode 9, in Yuuya's hands. It's also intended to be installed on the XG-70.
  • Yui's watch, which she inherited from her father. In the Visual Novel, she's shot, but the bullet is stopped by her watch, which is made of the same metal as the Type-74 PB Blade.
• Chainsaw Good: The Soviet Union's current frontline TSFs carry chainsaws in their arms and legs.
• Chekhov's Gun: Yui's watch, which she inherited from her father. She's shot, but the bullet is stopped by her watch, which is made of the same metal as the Type-74 PB Blade.
• Chekhov's Lecture: Yui mentions to Yuuya in episode 5 that there's a Japanese saying that "a man and his horse are one" ^note "Jinba ittai". Yuuya doesn't understand it initially, but at the end of the episode it makes perfect sense to him once he stops trying to utilize so much brute force handling with his mech, and instead tries to utilize its strengths in finesse movements.
• Child Soldiers: As per Muv-Luv in general. Inia is very young (and Cryska is implied to be as well in a Flash Back), Yui fought in the Battle of Kyoto at the age of fourteen and is 17 when Total Eclipse takes place, and Latrova aside, Zhar Battallion's pilots are all teenagers.
• Cliffhanger: The light novel has been on a hiatus since 2008, with the last chapter having Yui lie in a pool of her own blood after getting sniped by an unknown assailant.
• Clingy Jealous Girl:
  • When Yui sees Yuuya and Cryska seemingly embracing each other in episode 7, it puts her in a very foul mood when they're back in the cave in the next scene, and she puts up a Tsundere front to him. It crops up again in episode 17, although she's not as upset at him that time. And in episode 19, she invokes this trope after Lt. Cui makes him some mapo tofu.
  • Tarisa has shades of this towards Yuuya as well, such as when Lt. Cui shows up in episodes 15 and 16.
  • Lt. Cui ends up punching him twice after seeing Yuuya hanging out with the Scarlet Twins in episode 17 and claims he's "cheating" on her. She does this again in episode 19 after he invites Inia and Cryska to share in their supplies.
  • Cryska falls into this trope in episode 19, after seeing Inia do The Glomp on him while naked in the hot springs. She tries to pull him away from her, but then tosses him aside after realizing his arms were touching her breasts.
• Colonel Badass: So far there's been two: Lt. Colonel Iwaya, Yui's uncle, who was the chief test pilot for the Zuikaku, and Lt. Colonel Fikasia Latrova, commanding officer of the Zhar Battalion.
• Cooldown Hug: Yuuya does one for the Scarlett Twins in episode 25, while they're in TSFs.
• Continuity Nod: Several towards Muv-Luv Alternative:
  • During Yui's prologue, Iwaya meets with Koubuin Yuuhi, seeking her approval for development of the Type-99 Railgun.
  • Sandek speculates that Inia and Cryska's rampage is due to MK-ULTRA, a CIA brainwashing/hypnosis method. While Inia and Cryska go mad because of Soviet gear, the CIA does use combat hypnosis to brainwash an American pilot in Alternative.
  • At the end of the VN, Yuuya and Inia charges towards the purpose-bred Gravis-Magnus Lux BETA hybrid which had destroyed most of A-01 and the Susano'o's orbital diver escort, and was close to destroying the Susano'o itself. The latter also shows up as a streak of light high above Hive 26 at Evensk, on its way down to Hive 01 at Kashgar during Operation Cherry Blossom.
• Covert Pervert:
  • The commander who speaks about the relaxation exercise in episode 19. He does it under the guise of building camaraderie among the various nations due to the intense rivalry each nation's team during the Blue Flag exercise, which is true enough. However, at the end of the episode, Lt. Ibrahim reluctantly shows him footage they secretly shot which shows all the girls when they were bathing in the hot springs, but mentions never wanting to do anything like this again despite supposedly building morale. The scene ends with the commander gawking at the footage.
  • Niram, one of Argos Flight's Bridge Bunnies, used to be this, before she outed herself.
• Crazy-Prepared: In episode 21, the RLF, who has been planning their attack on the UN base for some time, and implanted not only supplies they'd need for the attack earlier in the series, but sleeper agents as well, to secure facilities when the attack finally takes place. The UN and Soviet forces there are caught completely by surprise.
• Crippling Overspecialization:
  • This is in part why Imperial Japan needed the XFJ program, as the Shiranui is too specialized to be upgraded and any improvements required a completely new TSF to be developed.
  • The BETA also subscribe to this policy, and make up for any weaknesses with Tactical Rock–Paper–Scissors and large numbers.
• Curb-Stomp Battle: A few examples:
  • Pretty much the BETA against the humans during major battles/invasions.
  • Yui easily disables VG, Tarisa, and Stella in episode 5.
  • Yuuya vaporises the BETA in Episode 9 with the railgun.
  • The Scarlet Twins are deadly on the battlefield, whether fighting BETA or other humans.
  • Lt. Cui's team from China is beaten in less than four minutes in episode 17 against the Infinities team from the US.
• Cult: Turns out that some of the RLF terrorists are actually part of a group called "Allegiance", which views the BETA as a servants of God, and therefore hinder any attempts by others to kill them. However, they don't make an appearance till episode 24 even though some of them are amongst the RLF attack.
• Date Peepers: While they weren't technically on a date, its revealed that Yui was following Yuuya around for at least a little bit once she spots him with the Scarlet Twins in town. She then gets a bit upset when Lt. Cui also shows up and confronts him about it.
• A Day in the Limelight: Both Cryska and Inia get a lot of screen time in episode 17, whereas in earlier episodes they were largely relegated to side characters.
• Death from Above:
  • In episode 11, one of the Soviet commanders says that their fleet of bombers is ready to fly within 5 minutes. However, he's told not to deploy them just yet. See The Plan for more details. When the wing of Tu-95s deploys, they employ cluster bombs that are quite effective until they're shot down by Laser-class, which had previously been undetected in the region.
  • American B-1A Lancer strategic bombers are also shown to be effective against the BETA, once the Laser-class are suppressed.
  • Most pilots would dearly love to do this, but the predominance of Laser-classes means that a TSF attempting this is suicidal.
• Death Ray: The prototype railgun that Yuuya uses in episode 9. Everyone is quite shocked at how powerful it is, but at the same time relieved as the BETA in that battlefield all get wiped out.
• Decoy Protagonist: The prologue chapter (adapted as the first two episodes of the anime) follows Yui Takamura, before it switches to Yuuya Bridges' viewpoint.
• Defeat Equals Friendship: Yui initially doesn't get along with Kazusa Yamashiro, as the latter views her as a rival. They become friends after Yui defeats her in a mock batlle.
• Despair Event Horizon: In episode 2, after Yui witnesses her last friend getting killed by the BETA, she just falls to her knees and sort of gives up, right before receiving a Gun Ship Rescue from an unknown mecha.
• Disney Death:
  • Yuuya is feared to have died after the Russian base is taken over by the BETA, but he shows up in his badly beaten up TSF.
  • In episode 24, the Scarlett Twins holds the top half of Tarisa's TSF, and Yuuya fears the worst. Then it turns out she's okay, although her TSF had to be scrapped due to the damage it sustained.
• Dodge by Braking: Used multiple times to force an overshoot. The success rate varies.
• Doomed Home Town: The Japanese put up a strong fight when the BETA invaded Japan. Unfortunately for the defenders, they were overwhelmed in just one month. Any characters introduced later that don't hail from Japan or the US have also most likely lost their countries to the BETA as well.
• Double Standard: Abuse, Female on Male: Lt. Cui hits Yuuya twice in episode 17 after seeing him with the Scarlet Twins and claiming he's "cheating" on her. She also punches him in episode 19 after he invites Inia and Cryska to share some food Yui was preparing.
• Dwindling Party: Yui's classmates in episode 2 all get killed one by one during their fight with the BETA. She also nearly suffers the same fate, were it not for a Big Damn Heroes rescue.
• Eaten Alive: Generally speaking, anyone unlucky enough to get caught by a BETA will suffer this as well. The justification underwent Adaptation Explanation Extrication: the BETA are little more than nonsentient mining equipment and don't recognize humans as living beings.
  • Implied to have happened to Yui's last friend near the end of episode 2. Despite a plea for a Mercy Kill, Yui's shots miss, and her friend is then picked up by the =[BETA=]s and torn apart.
  • In episode 8, a tank crew can be heard screaming for help over a radio as the scene cuts away from a BETA cracking their tank open.
  • Also happens to the corporal helping Yui in episode 12. Unlike her friend back in episode 2, Yui delivers a Mercy Kill by shooting and killing him before he dies from this trope.
• Energy Weapon: Laser-class and Heavy Laser-class BETA are one of the major reasons humanity is losing as their range, accuracy and power makes aircraft almost impossible to use.
• Enemy Civil War: Some of the RLF terrorists are actually part of "Allegiance", and they shoot fellow RLF members if they attempt to slow down the BETA attacks.
• Enemy Mine:
  • The remnants of the Soviet Union aren't exactly on friendly terms with the US in this universe, as evidenced by Cryska reacting with hostility to Yuuya being in their top secret area (after following Inia there), and later nearly being interrogated forcefully by one of their officers. They also don't normally train together like the other pilots such as VG and Tarisa do in the early episodes. However, the much bigger threat of the BETA allows them to at least focus on something other than fighting amongst themselves.
  • In episode 8, Yui tells Yuuya that he can drop the experimental gun (that she helped develop) he's taking into battle if he feels its slowing him down. But she tells him to activate the self-destruct feature on it first, so as to avoid leaving it behind for other nations to find and reverse-engineer. Yuuya promises he'll bring back both his TSF and the gun back in one piece.
• Every Bullet is a Tracer: The railgun's shots have this effect. It's semi-justified; while the 120mm rounds aren't tracers, they're glowing in flight due to friction with the air, caused by the extremely high speed they're traveling at.
• Everyone Can See It: Despite Yui and Yuuya's insistence in episode 7 that nothing happened between them in the cave, all of his wing mates don't believe it at all. By Episode 19, Argos Flight have now graduated to Shipper on Deck.
• Evolving Credits: In episode 17, Lt. Cui can be seen right before the opening credits end.
• Expy:
  • Yuuya is essentially a combined expy of Maverick and Isamu Dyson.
  • Yui's backstory essentially makes her an expy of Marimo, from the same franchise.
  • The various TSFs seen are expies of real world fighters, reimagined as mecha.
• Fanservice: Being based on an eroge series, the anime is not at all shy about nudity. US streaming platforms even leave it uncensored, a relative rarity.
• Foreign Ruling Class: As in real life, there is a fair amount of resentment towards the Soviet Union's mostly Russian ruling class from natives of the other SSRs. This is compounded in the series by ethnic Russians being evacuated to Alaska with the Government in Exile, while conscripts from the other republics are stuck fighting to hold the Kamchatka Peninsula against the Alien Invasion.
• Forklift Fu: After a tank BETA shows up in the warehouse where the rail gun is being stored in episode 12, it begins to chase Yui. Then the corporal who was assisting her rams it with the forklift he was driving. Although that wasn't enough to kill it, he buys her enough time to grab a high powered sniper rifle and shoot it.
• Foreshadowing: All those guys in the orange, trucks with "Coeurl" written on it that are seen about midway through the season, looking kind of suspicious in the background? In episode 21, it turns out they're part of a group called the RLF, or Refugee Liberation Front. They attempt to takeover the UN testing facility.
• Freeze-Frame Bonus: Careful observation of the cockpit block, when Major Christopher is being crushed reveals something interesting about the installed pod◊. Namely, that it contains a girl inside, one who resembles Inia.
• Fun with Acronyms: A few examples:
  • BETA is short for Beings of Extra Terrestrial origin which is Adversary of human race
  • TSF stands for Tactical Surface Fighter.
• Gorn: Episode 2. Yui is forced to watch as her friends are eaten alive, complete with internal organ removal. And then Yamashiro's head is tossed aside by BETA and lands at her feet. Squick
• Glass Cannon: Laser-class BETA can be killed with infantry small arms. The hard part is killing them before they snipe you out of the sky. The Heavy Laser-class BETA are more heavily-armored, and have to be killed with heavier-caliber fire or large melee weaponry.
• Godzilla Threshold:
  • What's left of the Imperial Navy opens fire on BETA that have penetrated Kyoto. Though they do kill some, they also unfortunately incur a lot of civilian casualties. However, considering that they would have suffered a Fate Worse than Death due to being Eaten Alive, it probably also counts as a Mercy Kill.
  • The US plan, Red Shift, which would set off a series of hydrogen bombs in Alaska should the {=BETA=} make landfall in North America. However, this move would also kill virtually everyone that's in Alaska at the time, namely the remnants of the Soviet Union. One of the Soviet commanders in episode 24 begs Mariem to have the RLF stop fighting the US/Soviet forces to prevent it from happening, and he pleas with such passion that she wonders why he wasn't acting this way towards the refugees.
• Gory Discretion Shot:
  • Episode 2 shows many characters getting killed. Scenes where some of the girls are being eaten by the BETA are either censored, or the scene is cutaway before anything beyond blood splattering is shown.
  • Episode 21 utilizes it again, such as when a driver of a jeep Yui is in gets shot in the head, and blood is splattered over her face.
  • Both of the above and many others get averted in the blu-ray release.
• Grand Theft Prototype:
  • The RLF captures many TSFs and deploys them against the UN Forces. Notable examples of this trope are the RLF's jacking of the Su-47E Berkut (in the anime) and MiG-29OVT Fulcrums.
  • Then Inia and Cryska jack the Berkut from Christopher in the final episode of the anime.
• Gun Ship Rescue:
  • Sort of. Some of the Russian TSF pilots swoop in to save a Russian line in danger of being overrun in episode 8. They then are seen regrouping and advancing on the BETA.
  • Played straight in episode 24 after American B-1 bombers arrive to wipe out the BETA that were about to activate the Red Shift plan.
• Hammer and Sickle Removed for Your Protection: Somewhat inverted and played with: Cryska in the TV series (during the Beach Episode) wears a bikini whose top sports a symbol similar to the Hammer and Sickle on the left breast (see here for screenshots). And considering she's literally from the Soviet Union...
• Heroic Sacrifice: Subverted, the Soviet officers in episode 14 were discussing their options upon the unexpected arrival of the Laser class BETA destroying their bomber fleet. One of them mentions that they could cover it up by sending out a hero. Said hero, most likely Cryska and Inia aka the Scarlet Twins, was then used to kill any remaining Soviet troops in the area, shortly after they wiped out the Laser class, and then were praised as heroes for their "sacrifice". It was more likely done to eliminate any witnesses from the officer's plans.
• Hoist by His Own Petard: Major Christopher uses a hypnotic transmission device to assume direct control of the Scarlet Twins, ordering them to destroy the world. This backfires horribly when the Twins decide that he's a threat to Yuuya, and kill him.
• Hold the Line:
  • The defense of Kyoto boils down to this. It doesn't work.
  • The Red Army is holding the Kamchatka Peninsula hell-for-leather in the finest Soviet tradition.
  • And now the Americans have gotten in on the act, by planting a series of hydrogen bombs in a line across Alaska. If too many BETA cross the line, the bombs go off, turning the overrun part of the state into an island and using the newly created strait as a defense line. Unfortunately, it also means practically all of the Soviet citizens living in Alaska would be killed off as well.
• Hope Spot: A number of these in quick succession during the Soviet arc:
  • Episode 13: Yuuya treats Yui's wounds, grabs the Type-99's Core Module, and prepares to make his escape. Tank-classes swarm his arm and eat it off, forcing him to abandon the Core Module. He then tries to escape, and gets hit by a Fort-class. Then Stella bails him out, and they try to escape using the runway, and his engines fail, leaving him stranded.
  • Episode 14: Zhar Battalion rescues Yuuya just before he's devoured by BETA. They then take losses from bombers, before Laser-class show up. Latrova sends two of her survivors to bring Yuuya to the rally point, and has Tasha lead the rest of the battalion to flank the Laser-class. Latrova ends up killed by the Scarlet Twins, and Zhar is wiped out, presumably to a combination of further combat losses and being silenced by the Scarlet Twins. Although the Visual Novel version retcons this to have most of Zhar battalion make it.
• Horde of Alien Locusts: The BETA.
• Hot-Blooded: Tarisa when it comes to Cryska, and especially Inia.
• Hot Springs Episode: Episode 19, which is more or less gratuitous Fanservice during the second half. As expected in such an episode, the male characters with the exception of Yuuya and Leon try to get past a big muscular guy in an attempt to peek in on the women taking a bath, but all are stopped. Hilariously they don't think to "guard" the men's side, which allows Cryska and Inia to walk right into the bath. Lt. Cui later comments that she wish she had thought of doing that. You'd think this would be a case of We All Live in Japan, and it probably is, but Alaska really does have a fairly large number of hot springs.
• Humans Are Bastards:
  • Humanity is being invaded by a hostile alien force, and despite that are still at odds with each other, such as the Soviet Union not entirely trusting the UN.
  • Then episode 21 shows that the UN is ignoring a lot of people and only interested in saving certain groups. One of the Eishi pilots mentions that more soldiers died of starvation than from BETA attacks in an African battlefield because the UN took a lot of supplies intended for those soldiers.
  • This is actually somewhat justified in Muv-Luv Alternative. When the initial BETA invasion of Earth begins, China and Russia REFUSED U.N. military assistance in an attempt to monopolize any alien technology captured as a result of the BETA's arrival on Earth. The attempt ends in an apocalyptic disaster when Laser Class BETA are introduced and aerial power is immediately denied. By the time nuclear weapons are employed, its too late to deny the BETA their beachhead and the eventual BETA conquest of Earth is guaranteed until the events of Alternative.
• Humans Are Divided: Sadly, the threat of BETA has done little to unite humanity as one despite being a common threat. The USA, USSR and Empire of Japan all have their own agendas and racism within the different Soviet republics and bigotry between Americans and the Japanese plays a huge role in parts of the story.
• Idiosyncratic Episode Naming: Following in the footsteps of the Unlimited and Alternative VNs, as well as Ayu-Mayu Theater, each episode is named after some other work (for UL/AL/TE, military or sci-fi works).
• "I Know You're in There Somewhere" Fight: Yuuya attempts this with the Scarlett Twins in episode 25.
• Innocent Fanservice Girl: Inia jumps into the hot springs Yuuya is in during episode 19 completely naked. When Yuuya asks where her swimsuit is at, she tells him she didn't bring it. He then asks why she was at the men's bath, and she replies that she wanted to take a bath with him. Cryska also arrives naked as well.
• In-Series Nickname: All of the pilots in episode 3 end up giving each other nicknames, such as Yuuya being called Top Gun due to being a graduate of that school and a former aggressor pilot.
  • VG is jokingly called Macaroni, due to being from Italy; Tarisa gets "Chobi", due to her size; and Stella gets "Venus", after the Roman goddess of beauty. Yuuya's first choice was "Giant Tits", for obvious reasons.
• Join or Die:
  • Tarisa in episode 21 is given a chance to join the RLF, Refugee Liberation Front, by Natalie, her friend that worked at the bar, who is also a member. She tells Tarisa about how the UN isn't going to save a lot of people from the BETA, but Tarisa refuses, because she doesn't want to kill other humans.
  • In episode 23, one of the RLF terrorists attempts to reason with Lt. Ibrahim to coerce him into joining them, since he performed some heroic actions in an earlier battle which saved the lives of many refugees. However, he refuses to, so they attempt to kill him, but he makes an escape.
• I Want My Belovedto Be Happy: Yui alows both Yuuya and Cryska To escape and wishes them both happiness despite the fact she's in Love with Yuuya still.
• Jack of All Stats: The F-15E Strike Eagle, being a well balanced machine with good maneuverability and powerful engines. Yuuya being used to this machine causes difficulty when he first starts piloting the 94 Second.
• Last Stand:
  • Yui's instructor does this in episode 2, when he saves her from a BETA. He then tells them to retreat back to the rallying point, while he holds off the approaching BETA. As he makes his last stand, the camera focuses briefly on a severe cut he sustained in an earlier battle.
  • Yuuya attempts one in episode 23 to buy time for Yui and the others to escape. He finds himself overwhelmed rather quickly from their superior numbers, although Inia ends up helping him out, along with the rest after they head back.
• Laserproof BETA Shield: Keith uses a Heavy Laser-class BETA to protect his Raptor from Laser-class fire in the final episode. It actually works a lot better than one would expect, as Lasers don't fire on other BETA.
• Latex Space Suit: The Reinforced Suits, which act as extremely effective G-suits (Yuuya is able to withstand a 9G maneuver that renders Yui unconscious) and fanservice.
• Lethal Chef: Lt. Cui gives Yuuya some mapo tofu in episode 19. When Yuuya comments it looks dangerous to eat, she mentions several people having tried it out already. He then looks over and sees lots of people passed out, then when she feeds him some, he screams as the camera pans up towards the sky.
• Leeroy Jenkins: Tarisa charges at Yui's mech in episode 5. Like the trope implies, it doesn't go well for her.
• Left Hanging: The anime's end at episode 25 cuts off further plot points revealed in other adaptations.
• Lightning Bruiser: Most second and third generation TSFs qualify as this.
• Locked Out of the Loop:
  • Yuuya is initially distrustful of Commander Latrova in episode 14, wondering if she's in on the Soviet officer's plans. Then he realizes she doesn't know anything either, and was simply following orders. Which makes it more painful when she and her troops are killed off by the Political Officer to silence them from a plan they knew nothing about in the first place.
  • It seems both Yui and Lt. Sandek were unaware of a back up plan the US had put in Alaska to prevent the BETA from gaining a foothold on North America. See Hold the Line for further details on it.
• Long-Lost Relative: Yuuya is really Yui's half-brother not that he finds out
• Love Dodecahedron: Yuuya, Cryska and Yui were originally part of a small Love Triangle. However, once Lt. Cui shows up and declares her interest in him, the trope is bumped up to this, particularly as the latter is not shy about expressing her feelings for Yuuya and outright declares being his wife.
• Love Epiphany: Cryska seems to realize something's wrong with her emotions when she's around Yuuya around episode 15 and 16, which affects her performance on the field. She tries to ask Yuuya about it in episode 17, but his answer doesn't resolve her feelings, particularly after he buys both of them flowers, and especially when Lt. Cui shows up and goes into Clingy Jealous Girl mode in front of them. After this episode, she's much less comfortable around Yuuya.
• Lover Tug of War: A brief one between Inia and Cryska regarding Yuuya in episode 19.
• Male Gaze: Doesn't happen too often, but it's there. Pretty blatant during episodes 6 & 7.
• Mauve Shirt: Corporal Yamamoto practically hangs a target on his chest and begs the BETA to give him an awesome death.
  • The entire Zhar Battalion falls under this in episode 14. Many of them survive the bombing run and BETA attacks from earlier, but then are killed off by the Scarlet Twins.
• A Mech by Any Other Name: The TSF, or Tactical Surface Fighter.
• Merchandise-Driven: Inverted, in a way. Total Eclipse was just meant to be a smaller story to promote a line of TSF figures, but became so popular that it outstripped the merch it was supposed to move.
• Mercy Kill: In episode 2, Yui's final friend begs her to do this, shooting her so that she can be spared the pain and torture of being Eaten Alive by the BETA's breaking into her mecha. Yui hesitates initially, but then does it. However, due to a combination of things (distance, Yui's shock, being unable to aim very well, not really wanting to shoot/kill her friend, and yelling very loudly), all of her shots miss.
  • She does it correctly in episode 12 after the corporal helping her gets caught by the BETA and is in the process of being torn to pieces.
• Mid-Season Upgrade:
  • Yuuya gets a new TSF after they return from the front lines in the Soviet Union.
  • Tarisa also upgrades from the F-15 ACTV Eagle to the XFJ-01.
  • Both Stella and Valerio upgrade from F-15E Strike Eagles to F-15 ACTV Eagles.
• Mission Control: Lt. Ibrahim, and occasionally Yui.
• Misery Poker:
  • It's a source of significant tension in Yui and Yuuya's early interactions, especially in the anime where she takes an immediate dislike to him. Yui watched all her friends die horribly when the Imperial Capital fell in 1997 and has spent the rest of her life bottling up her grief and trying to atone for failing to protect them. Yuuya was raised in a deeply troubled family with an absent father and a mother who deluded herself into thinking her estranged husband would come back, to say nothing of the relentless bullying he suffered. They eventually warm up to each other.
  • It also shows up when the members of Project XFJ interact with those on the front lines, with the Soviets in an early arc being notably callous and cruel towards them.
• Modesty Towel: Yui wears one in episode 19, but its because she wasn't told to bring a swimsuit like the other women were. Inia and Cryska also have one, but at least in Inia's case, she chose not to bring it. All three of them either get the towel taken away, or it falls off them when they go in the hot springs.
• Mood Whiplash: During the Soviet arc, and during the RLF arc, the tone of the series becomes much Darker and Edgier. Body counts go way up compared to many of the episodes which precede and come after them.
• More Dakka:
  • American TSF doctrine firmly believes in this. It's followed to a lesser extent by other nations.
  • Despite being optimized for close combat, the Type-94 Shiranui can have four 36mm autocannons firing at once, on the same target. In fact, this 'Gun Sweeper' loadout can be fitted on pretty much any TSF and is a central part of TSF combat doctrine.
  • In supplemental materials, this is the entire point of the A-10, which carries a ridiculous number of guns, and is the only TSF to have shoulder-mounted gatling guns.
  • The Type-99 Electo-Magnetic Induction Launcher turns out to be a railgun... with an 800 rounds per minute rate of fire, that combines rapid fire with hard-hitting shells. It doesn't kill BETA, it literally vaporises them.
• A Mother to Her Men: Commander Latrova, the leader of the Zhar Battalion. She is so respected by the soldiers under her command that whatever she asks, they'll do, whether its to break up a potential rape scene, or to save Yuuya's life and get him out of the combat zone even though her soldiers hate his guts.
• Ms. Exposition: Natalie in episode 21. She turns out to be part of the terrorist group, the RLF, Refugee Liberation Front, who claim to be fighting for oppressed people everywhere who the UN doesn't consider worth saving due to the BETA invasion. Yuuya even wonders why she's talking so much, only to then get killed by one of her own members after she starts to reveal a little too much information.
• Multinational Team: Argos Flight, which has Nepali, Swedish, Italian, and American pilots, and is commanded by a Turkish officer. For bonus points, they're attached to a joint US-Japan development program run by a Japanese officer.
• My God, What Have I Done?: After Cryska and Inia break out of their brainwashing in episode 25, they realize they just stabbed Yuuya's TSF. There is also a lot of fluid leaking from it, but it turns out he wasn't hit, or at least was only nicked in the arm.
• New Meat: Yuuya is viewed as this by the combat veterans in the Soviet army in episode 9 since he has no combat experience. They mock him and hope that he gets killed within the first 8 minutes of combat like many new soldiers often do. Yuuya being a nervous wreck at the time doesn't help it much more either.
• "Not So Different" Remark: Yuuya finds out about this with the Latrova in episode 10. Yuuya questions why her troops attacked Cryska and Inia in episode 7. She tells him about how both girls are about as elite as one can get in the Soviet Union, while the ones bearing the brunt of the fighting are non-Russians. So therefore they are understandably irked when Russians walk around the base as if they own it and did most of the fighting. She then asks Yuuya if the US doesn't have its share of racism, which instantly brings back his memories from childhood.
• Not What It Looks Like: When Cryska goes out to find more firewood in episode 7, she collapses after a brief conversation with Yuuya. He manages to grab her before she slumps to the ground, and tries to get her back on her feet. Unfortunately, it also seems like they're hugging each other, which Yui isn't too happy to see when she shows up a few moments later.
• Nuclear Option: The Americans have very little problem using their massive nuclear arsenal and the newer G-Bomb against the BETA. This is viewed negatively by most given Japan's Nuclear Weapons Taboo, but even in the main Alternative story several characters admitted it was an effective tactic. They used one to stop the BETA orbital drop into Canada cold in the backstory, which means North and South America remain BETA-free, and are established to have a secret line of nuclear mines ready to split Alaska in half down the middle to create a new firebreak if the BETA ever manage to cross the Bering Strait.
• Obstructive Bureaucrat: In episode 9, some Russian officers are discussing the current battle, and why they haven't sent more reinforcements in to help out. One of them mentions that should they lose any real valuable resources such as planes, some idiot in the government is going to want to know why. So they purposely held back air support to prevent losing any of them, even though they would lose a lot of soldiers in the process.
• Oh, Crap!: It would not be a Muv-Luv Alternative sidestory if these didn't happen:
  • Yui's reaction to seeing Tank-class BETA entering the hangar where the Type-99 railgun is stored.
  • Latrova's reaction to learning that the Scarlet Twins are being sent to eliminate Zhar.
  • In Episode 15, Yui has a more amusing and Adorkable Oh, Crap! moment, when she realises she's fallen for Yuuya.
  • Mariem, one of the RLF members, has this look in episode 24 when Soviet Spetsnaz and US Delta Force troops begin their assault to retake Alaska base.
• One Dialogue, Two Conversations: When Vincent is talking to some buddies visiting from the US military in episode 16, they ask about the girl they saw Yuuya with earlier. Vincent assumes they were referring to Yui, and describes her a bit. But when they mention other characteristics, such as silver hair, it dawns on him that they're actually referring to Cryska.
• Out of Focus: Surprisingly, the BETA seem to be suffering from this. When they are shown, they're pretty vicious and brutal, but many episodes are devoted to the human characters, and their dealings and manipulations against each other. To be fair, the main characters are test pilots, so therefore wouldn't normally be fighting in the front, but even Yuuya at one point wonders why they're developing TSF to combat the BETA, when all they seem to be doing is fighting other humans with them.
• Placeholder Titles: Episode 2 plays the opening song, but has scenes from the first episode in it instead of the intro used in later episodes after the main cast is introduced.
• Pocket Protector: A bullet is blocked by an item not made for it. Explained due to the material being really strong, for some reason. It's Yui's watch, inherited from her father and made of the same metal as the Type-74 PB Blade.
• Psychic Powers: Cryska Barchenowa and Inia Sestina who are among the last survivors of Alternative III, an attempt to communicate with the BETA using psychics.
• Rank Up: Inverted. Ibrahim and Sandek are mere 1st Lieutenants in the UN Army; however Ibrahim was a Captain in the Turkish Army and Sandek was a Major in the Soviet Army.
• Real Robot: The TSFs are just another component in the military forces' combined arms doctrine, and many are just as easily destroyed by the BETA as tanks and other soldiers.
• Reassigned to Antarctica: Played straight for Yuuya, who views his reassignment to Project PROMINENCE as a demotion. The other pilots don't seem to share his opinion, given that Yukon Base is at the forefront of TSF development.
• Recap Episode: Episode 20 gives the gist of what's been happening in the series up to that point. It also introduces a new opening and closing song for the remainder of the series.
• Red Shirt Army: Pretty much anyone who's not a TSF pilot main character.
  • The non-Russians are pretty much treated this way by the Soviet Union, which fuels much of their hatred and contempt for Russians such as Cryska and Inia (although interestingly enough they respect Commander Latrova, who is Russian. But in her case its likely because she's fighting out there with them day in and day out). The Far East arc in episodes 8-14 also shows that they're treated as disposable as well, and any losses they suffer are deemed acceptable. Whereas other assets, such as bomber planes, are valued more highly.
• The Remnant:
  • Alaska houses a Government in Exile for the rump Soviet Union, which is leasing half of the state from the US.
  • Project PROMINENCE is intended to give nations that've lost their homelands to BETA a chance to continue developing TSFs.
• Russia Called, They Want Alaska Back: Russia, which sold Alaska to the US, is now leasing the northern half of the state.
• Sacrificed Basic Skill for Awesome Training: Cryska is unaware of what a "date" is and asks Yuuya what it is in episode 16.
• She Is Not My Girlfriend: Yuuya uses this a couple of times in the series, first with Yui, and later when Lt. Cui shows up and declares herself to be his wife.
• Shipper on Deck:
  • Yuuya's friend Vincent suggests this to him regarding Yui in episode 5 since they think a lot alike. Yuuya doesn't take that suggestion very well.
  • The Argos Flight personnel are totally this for Yui and Yuuya, even though the Bridge Bunnies think she's wasted on him.
• Ship Sinking: The Total Eclipse VN sinks the Yuuya/Yui by having Yuuya fall for Cryska, then sinks Yuuya/Cryska by having her die of esper-related complications. And if that wasn't enough, Yuuya/Shiranui is also sunk!
• Shout-Out:
  • The series can be described as Muv-Luv Plus, especially given who Yuuya is an Expy of.
  • Episode 1 also has some strong Gunbuster vibes.
  • Yuuya and Yui's encounters strongly evoke Maverick and Charlie.
  • Zhar Battalion's second-in-command is named Ivanova.
  • In Episode 14, Latrova sends Tasha and Zhar on a Laserjagd mission; the use of this term is a shoutout to the serial novel Shwarzesmarken, which followed an East German TSF squadron tasked with Laser-class hunting missions.
  • Episode 18 is a shoutout to Top Gun. Yuuya's old CO was killed in a training accident indirectly caused by him, and he's a more handsome version of Goose. Also, the inquiry's result is taken almost word-for-word from the movie.
• Shower of Angst: Twice in the 5th episode.
• Slasher Smile: A few examples:
  • Both Inia and Cryska display one in epiosde 9 when fighting in their TSF.
  • Lt. Cui displays one in episode 16 when fighting Yuuya.
• Spin-Off: This series takes place in parallel to Takeru Shirogane's dimension-hopping adventures trying to get Alternative IV up and running in Muv-Luv Alternative. Yui Takamura was in another unit that defended Japan during the BETA invasion depicted at the start of that game.
• Spit Take: Vincent does two in episode 16 while talking to some buddies who are visiting from the US when they ask him about Yuuya.
  • Yui does one in episode 17 after the bartender asks her if the carrots she bought were to make something for Yuuya. Which she likely bought after asking him if he liked carrots earlier in the episode.
• Suicide Pact: Several of the RLF terrorists are also part of a group called "Allegiance". Many of them killed other people first, then broadcast over the radio that they "won", then commit suicide.
• Super Prototype: There are several in-series:
  • The Takemikazuchi prototype that rescues Yui in the prologue.
  • The Su-37UB Terminator piloted by the Scarlet Twins.
  • The F-22A Raptor EMD Phase 2, the final preproduction model of the Raptor, piloted by the Infinities (in a welcome subversion, the mass production Raptor is superior to the EMD Phase 2 machines).
  • The Su-47E Berkut in a TSFiA sidestory, set after the anime, and in the final anime arc.
• Spoiler Opening: The new OP gives hints to the final arc, such as Yifei standing in front of a Strike Eagle, RLF members, and the Berkut trampling on Tarisa's Shiranui Niigata.
• Spy Speak: A disguised RLF member and Natalie engage in this at the start of episode 21.
• Storming the Castle: The Soviet Spetsnaz and US Special Forces do this when retaking Alaska base back from the RLF terrorists.
• Stupid Evil: No other words can describe the Snideley Whiplash-esqe villainy of the Soviet military leaders.
• Survivor Guilt: Yui displays this a little in episode 8 when she tells Yuuya she doesn't want to see him get killed, and reminisces about her friends who died early on.
• Tactical Rock–Paper–Scissors: Engagements with BETA tend to follow this. The Destroyer and Grappler-class BETA are powerful close combat bioforms, but can be easily dispatched from the air, which is why Laser-class BETA escort them to deny air superiority. Also, the sheer volume of fire required to get artillery shells past the laser spam is impractical for major engagements, as artillery batteries will run out of ammo long before making a significant impact. Sidestories show that there are dedicated TSF squadrons deployed to hunt Laser-class, in order to allow airstrikes and artillery bombardment.
• Tactical Withdrawal:
  • Yui's commander has them do this in episode 2 after their base is overrun, and there were more BETA approaching their position. Unfortunately many of them get shot down by the laser BETA while attempting to flee the area, including the commander.
  • The Zhar commander in episode 9 tries to do this to lure the BETA into range of Yuuya's railgun. It doesn't go smoothly however, due to the sheer amount of BETA present, along with a small group of them attempting to flank them as they withdraw, which he warns them about.
• Take a Third Option: When they seem to be out of ideas on what to do next in episode 23, Yuuya suggests they attack the Soviet hangars. Although the hangars are under RLF control, he says they probably wouldn't expect an attack there, and in guerrilla warfare, it's best to take enemy weapons whenever possible. Since they don't have enough fuel or ammo to make it to a friendly base in time, or take out the newly discovered BETA, no one protests it.
• Taking You with Me: One of the critically wounded RLF soldiers piloting a TSF attempts to do this to Lt. Cui in episode 23, by setting off her self-destruct while simultaneously bear-hugging Lt. Cui's TSF after the latter attempted to retrieve her weapon.
• Tanks for Nothing: Tanks are shown to be largely ineffective against the BETA. TSFs are only slightly better, depending on the pilot and how much Plot Armor they're wearing that episode.
• Tempting Fate: In episode 2, after surviving past the 8 minutes that most soldiers normally last against the BETA's, one of the girls happily exclaims that she survived it. Cue a BETA then rushing past, and her mecha promptly getting chomped in half and blowing up.
  • In episode 10, when the BETA attack again, many of the human characters comment that there's not that many of them attacking. One character comments that the ones attacking are the remnants from the first wave in episode 8. One of them wonders if this battle is going too well. Then it turns out there's a large horde of them burrowing underneath, and they reappear close to the base as the episode ends. Another character comments that the BETA are doing this to avoid the railgun Yuuya used in episode 8.
• Tranquil Fury:

— After Yuuya stops "fighting" with his mech and trying to force it to do things it wasn't designed for in episode 5, he begins to realize its potential strengths in combat.

• He utilizes this trope again in episode 16 to defeat Lt. Cui by utilizing his sword's strengths in speed rather than simply trying to overpower her, which he wasn't able to do anyway.

• Translation Convention: Most of the series takes place in either the US state of Alaska or the southeast corner of the Russian SFSR. All the dialogue is still rendered in Japanese even though the In-Universe Common Tongue is almost certainly English for everything but the Kamchatka arc.
• The Unfought: The Argos Test Flight never battles the Infinities in the anime due to the attack on Yukon Base.
• Twincest: Downplayed. Although they're clearly not in romantic love with each other Cryska and Inia share a bath in one episode and are otherwise rather intimate even when naked.
• Unknown Rival: Yui's main reaction towards Lt. Cui regarding Yuuya, although the latter likes to bring it up to her a lot.
• Unwanted Harem: Yuuya seems to be developing one around episodes 15-16. While he had female admirers before this, some of the new ones, such as Lt. Cui, seem a bit more proactive in declaring their interest in him.
• Villainous Rescue:
  • Yuuya and the Zhar battalion are saved from the Soviet bombers by the arrival of some Laser class BETA in episode 14.
  • Inia is saved in episode 22 by the Infinities, who may or may not be her enemies at this point due to the confusion of the RLF attack on Yukon Base.
• Watching Troy Burn: Yui is forced to watch Kyoto fall in episode 2.
• Weak, but Skilled: Yuuya deliberately invokes this in episode 3, taking an F-15E Strike Eagle against Tarisa in the F-15 ACTV.
• We ARE Struggling Together: While they're fighting an alien invasion rather than a corrupt government, the trope is still played straight, as the Soviet Union's forces, largely represented by Cryska and Inia, don't exactly work alongside the same way the other characters do, such as Yuuya, Stella, VG, and Tarisa. This is a recurring problem in Unlimited and Alternative.
  • Episode 8 shows that even within the Soviet Union, many of the non-Russians strongly resent people like Cryska, who they feel got special treatment. They tell her that many Russians were evacuated to Alaska while non-Russians such as Georgians and Kazakhs bear the brunt of the fighting against the BETA in Russia. It seems to be a shock to Cryska that they resent her and Inia so much despite supposedly being on the same team.
  • In episode 11, the Soviet Union suggests a retreat from the base as the BETA approach it. They also prioritize evacuating the UN forces and their crew members first while their own forces hold off the advancing enemies. Then the UN pilots and Yui figure out that they were deliberately doing this in an attempt to acquire the rail gun the Japanese government built, but without making it look like they were. This backfires on the Soviets: they launch Tu-95 heavy bombers to level their own base as a cover-up, but the mission brings them into range of the first BETA Laser-classes ever to appear in Kamchatka and the Soviets' biggest advantage over the aliens in the theatre is lost to Anti-Air fire in seconds.
  • Episode 21 provides some powerful drama when it turns out that not all humans are struggling the same way. The Refugee Liberation Front, or RLF, are opposed to what the UN is doing because they're spending a lot of money and not doing much to save people who are suffering around the world due to the BETA invasion.
• We Have Reserves:
  • Played straight with the BETA. Though they can be killed, their sheer numbers usually overwhelms any defenses the humans put up against them. Some characters may be given a Hope Spot where they manage to defeat some, only to find out there are several dozen more still heading their way.
  • Painfully subverted in episode 9. While the humans have a decent sized force, it's nowhere near the size needed to protect Yuuya and his squad due to the sheer amount of BETA in the field. Justified since one Russian commander mentions that they haven't been able to get new reinforcements to replace ones lost from recent battles. Another also hints at some Obstructive Bureaucrat in the Soviet government who purposely held back a large portion of their force so as to try and cause the UN test with the railgun to fail. The Zhar commander is not happy that her troops were meant to die, and Yuuya ends up saving many of the troops when he test fires the railgun, and wipes out the remaining BETA.
• Well-Intentioned Extremist: The RLF has a motive for doing what they're doing in episode 21. They're basically standing up for people whom the UN has deemed not worthy of being saved, and are either ignoring their plight, or at best not giving them adequate supplies/troops to help them counter the BETA attacks in their various homelands.
• Wham Episode: Episode 21. Surprisingly enough, it's not about the BETA, but rather, a human terrorist/resistance movement, who attempts to take over the testing facility where the main story takes place. They're doing it largely because they feel the UN/US/USSR are spending lots of money and are only interested in saving certain people, at the expense of everyone else who's considered expendable.
• What Is This Thing You Call "Love"?:
  • In episode 17, Cryska asks Yuuya about why thinking about him is causing both her and Inia to have lapses in their concentration. Yuuya, for whatever reason, says that those feelings are the result of stress from their superiors in order to perform better. At first Cryska seems to accept this answer, but then after seeing Inia admiring some flowers, he buys some for both of them, and then Lt. Cui shows up, gets upset at him and hits him twice, it only further confuses her as to why she feels this way towards him.
  • At the end of episode 24, Cryska asks Yui something. After the credits roll, Cryska asks if they're enemies now. Yui says they're something much worse and more complicated than that, love rivals for Yuuya.
• Wounded Gazelle Gambit: Lt. Sandek speculates about this in episode 22. He thinks the RLF terrorists may either be Americans, or at the very least, a terrorist group that the US has knowingly allowed to infiltrate and take over the base. He then mentions that the US has done this many times in the past, so as to look like the victim, and therefore be justified in any military actions they take. While no specifics are given, he's probably alluding to events such as the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor during World War 2 and the Gulf of Tonkin Incident which sparked the Vietnam War.
• Xanatos Gambit:
  • The Soviet Union devised an elaborate plot set up in order to steal the rail gun the UN forces were testing out in their lands in episode 11. Without trying to look like they were, as Yui concludes when she sense something wrong with the evacuation of the base, the priority given to get the UN forces out first, and the fact that her self-destruct codes weren't working when she was trying to destroy it as the BETA began to overrun the base. The Soviets also have a bomber fleet ready to fly within 5 minutes, but chose not to deploy them right away despite there being no laser class BETA in the area. It's likely they wanted to get the UN forces out of their base first, then order the bombers to decimate the BETA, after which they could take the rail gun and send it back to Moscow for analysis, while plausibly claiming that the rail gun was destroyed.
  • Episode 14 takes it further. The Soviets finally send out the bombers, but in addition to wiping out the BETA, the bombers were meant to kill any remaining Zhar Battalion soldiers who were still alive in the area. Since their latest orders were to retake the base, the officers could simply bomb the base, then claim they were lost to the BETA. Only the unexpected arrival of Laser class BETA saved them from the bombers, but then they send out the Scarlet Twins to mop up any remaining BETA, as well as kill any remaining Zhar soldiers, so as to eliminate any other witnesses in the area, and then paint the fallen soldiers as heroes who gave their lives to protect the Motherland.
• You Are in Command Now: Yui briefly takes over for her squad in episode 2 after their commander is shot down by a laser BETA. Unfortunately all she can really do is tell them to release a smoke screen and fly really close to the ground to avoid being shot down.
• You Have Outlived Your Usefulness: Mariem in episode 24, who gets killed by Allegiance plant, when she attempts to have the remaining RLF members help stop the BETA attack which would trigger Red Shift.
• Your Terrorists Are Our Freedom Fighters: Episode 21 introduces the RLF, or Refugee Liberation Front. They claim to be a group of people who are fighting to save all of humanity, not just certain groups of people the UN is considering.
• You Shall Not Pass!:
  • In episode 2, Yui's instructor does this against the impending BETA invasion to buy her and her remaining friends time to escape to the rally point. After they leave, the camera pans on the instructor, who's holding his side, which appears to be bleeding heavily.
  • Guylos McCloud pulls a more comedic version (plus smother by his massive pecs) of this trope against the guys in Episode 19, to keep them from peeking in at the girls' hot springs.
  • The Scarlet Twins, Yui and Tarisa attempt this in episodes 24 and 25. They don't quite kill all the BETA, especially with the Twins gone beserk, but they hold off the BETA long enough for American bombers to arrive.
• Zerg Rush: The BETA's greatest strength. They typically move in groups of at least several thousand and it's quite likely troops run out of ammo before they run out of BETA to kill even if they don't get overrun.

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