In the world of Daikuuriku, everyone is born female, and chooses which sex they wish to become at age 17 with a trip to a magical spring. In this world, the peaceful theocracy of Simulacrum is guarded by magical flying machines called "Simoun", which can only be piloted by young girls who haven't chosen a sex yet. The Simoun can activate a magical power known as "Ri Maajon" (by inscribing enormous magical glyphs in the sky) that can destroy large numbers of enemy aircraft at once.When the industrialized nation of Argentum decides that it needs to invade Simulacrum to acquire the secret of the Simoun, war breaks out, drawing the Simoun pilots into a lopsided battle. Because the war is raging, the Simoun pilots are granted an exemption from going to the spring for as long as they're willing to keep flying. One such pilot in particular vows to stay with her squadron until she becomes the ultimate Simoun pilot, and badgers her squadron-mates to do the same...Simoun aired from April to September 2006 on Japanese TV, with an all-star (and all-female) voice acting cast, and two stage actresses portraying the series' romantic leads. The series has recently been licensed, and the (subtitled only) DVDs are available in North America.A serial manga of this series has been released in Yuri Hime, with a slightly altered storyline.No relation to anyone named "Simon" with his name pronounced "See-MOAN".
Alpha Bitch: Mamiina is a subversion. She acts like this at first (before her following Character Development) despite the fact she's not rich, but poor.
Anime Accent Absence: When Plumbish priestesses speak in the language of Simulacrum, they sound exactly like native Simulacrans, with no traces of a foreign accent.
As Long as It Sounds Foreign: When Plumbish officials are shown to speak their own language, what is actually heard is Japanese phrases replayed backwards.
Ascend to a Higher Plane of Existence: Aeru, Neviril, Dominura, and Rimone in one sense; Onasia and possibly (eventually) Yun in another; Mamiina and possibly Anglas in a third.
Babies Ever After: Morinas and Wapourif have a child together, and Morinas is visibly pregnant with number 2 during the final episode. Wauf also has a fairly young kid in that same episode.
Belief Makes You Stupid: Averted. The only character who thinks this is also the only character who is truly and unremittingly evil. The idea that it is somehow a sign of weakness to have faith in someone or something greater than yourself is treated as highly sketchy and hubristic.
Brother-Sister Incest: Sibling incest, at least. It isn't treated as some awful, disgusting taboo when brought up; what's important is how each party feels toward the other, not the act itself. Yet another testament to how things like gender barriers are downplayed in the world of Simoun.
Shockingly not, as her official profile lists her age as 19 years old. Talk about Younger Than They Look. Still, in the context of the Simoun universe, she qualifies, as she still has yet to choose a gender.
Cool Ship: Arcus Prima, actually a former luxury liner converted to ad-hoc aircraft carrier. Certainly one way around the foolishly expansive glass-encased rooms and lush accommodations often seen in anime. When they get transferred to the Messis after the Arcus Prima needs to be repaired, their quarters are much more spartan.
Covers Always Lie: The front cover◊ of the North American DVD release featured Neveril and Aeru sort of... hugging? Dancing? Playing patty-cake? Whatever they are doing they are close together and naked, but somehow their embrace has no sexual overtones at all, so the whole thing just looks weird. Also, there is not a single Simoun visible on the front cover, back cover, or spine. The series is namedSimoun and the machines are nowhere to be found. Without already knowing the background to the series there is no way to determine even what genre the show is, first guess would probably go to Magical Girl or an Ecchi series.
Crossdressing Voices: All-female voice cast means that the male characters sound like husky-voiced women.
Dude Looks Like a Lady: Pretty much anyone who has just chosen the male gender, as their sexual characteristics don't immediately alter. Notably, Wapourif still has very big breasts and wears his hair long.
Faceless Mooks: The enemies of Simulacrum attack in swarms and wear full-body pilot suits and helmets that obscure even the tiniest bit of flesh. This de-personalizes them not just to the audience, but to the Sibyllae as well. When Neveril looks into the eyes of an enemy pilot just before he is pulled into the Emerald Ri Majon, Amuria herself says that she will no longer be able to kill them once she has looked into their eyes.
Fanservice: Kiss-powered airships, several kinds of skintight outfits.
Freedom from Choice: A major theme. Choice (specifically the gender choice, but encapsulating other things as well) is the source of most of the main characters' internal conflict throughout the story not directly related to the war. The availability of choice is a good thing, but actually engaging in either/or decision-making erases other possibilities and hence, paradoxically, stunts potential, particularly spiritual potential. Characters sometimes attempt to go the traditional Freedom from Choice route and submit to military, political, or social marching orders, but the only actual freedom lies in a particular kind of simultaneously static and "wavering" mindset.
Gainax Ending: Definitely more sweet than bitter, but it's not clear exactly how and to what extent everything's been made right, where the Eternal Maidens are, and where Simulacrum is going as a country.
Gainaxing: In one of the commentaries, the character designer admits to having drawn Paraietta as if she wasn't wearing a bra.
Huge Schoolgirl: Paraietta, despite being around the same age as the rest of the Sybillae (barring Rimone) can stand almost eye-to-eye with Dominura.
Hopeless War: The series starts with the protagonists' nation easily fending off all comers through superior Applied Phlebotinum... and then the neighbors start catching up.
It Gets Easier: Though the Sibyllae are originally very clear that they are priestesses, not soldiers, and that they are praying, not fighting, (See Insistent Terminology above), as the series progresses they stop "Offering prayers to Tempus Spatium" and begin "patrolling," and they stop "inscribing Ri Maajon" and begin "fighting." No one notices the transition as it happens, until one day it is pointed out that even the Sibyllae have begun to "fight." Needless to say, they do not take this realization well.
Japanese Pronouns: Yun refers to herself as ore, which is a practically non-existant case in a woman.
Snub by Omission: As mentioned under "Funny Aneurysm" Moment, when Chor Tempest gets asked to show a Plumbum priestess around their ship, they naturally start off with introductions, with the priestess repeating each name as she's told it... except Aer's.
Spell My Name with an S: In spades. Aaeru/Aeru/Aer/Aelle, Rodoreamon/Lodreamon/Roatreamon, Angulas/Anguras/Angurasu, and more... It doesn't help that the official spellings, which were insisted upon by the Japanese owners, don't seem to fit how the names are actually pronounced.
Stable Time Loop: Two of the pilots find themselves transported back in time and wind up founding the tradition of flying Simoun.
Stripperiffic: Stockings and exposed garter belts... worn by fighter pilots. Luckily their cockpits are heated, during the fight in the blizzard at episode 5 Alti says "It must be pretty cold out there", but still...
Suicide Attack: Under the guise of a peace conference, a Kyuukkoku priestess commits a suicide attack with something like an explosive belt to destory the Simouns.
Team Dad: Technically Neviril, but Dominura fills in for her a lot.
Team Spirit: Kiss-powered airships, and the more powerful Ri Maajon effects require the coordinated action of several Simoun.
Temporal Paradox: One country intentionally tries to change history to avoid losing a war.
10-Minute Retirement: Subversion. Three characters actually stay retired, and one is shell shocked into inactivity for several episodes after coming back.
What Measure Is a Mook?: Amuria herself points out that, once you look an enemy in the eye (And thus recognize them as a person, instead of just "the enemy") it is suddenly a lot harder to kill them.
We Have Reserves: The enemies of Simulacrum have thousands, perhaps millions, more planes than there are Simouns, but even in such lopsided battles they will still suffer massive casualties. Their only viable option in the war is to keep replacing their slaughtered soldiers with fresh fodder as they slowly grind down the Simoun, which exist only in very limited numbers.
Zerg Rush: The predominant tactic of all enemies of Simulacrum. There is simply no way they can match the Simoun on a 1-to-1, or even 100-to-1, basis, so they throw thousands of their own fighters at them in the hopes of downing even one or two. Since they have reserves, this becomes surprisingly (and disturbingly) effective.
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