Alright everybody, let’s get back into another episode of the rich and beautiful Simoun! Episode eighteen saw the Holy Empire suffer a tremendous breakdown in its traditional structure, as the decision by Onashia to hold a ceremonial funeral for the foreigner Angulas served as the last straw for a great deal of Simulacrum’s military. Having seen their own sacred traditions trampled on, as well as having learned that Onashia’s loyalty isn’t even necessarily tied to their own country, has essentially broken the power that custom and ceremony had over them. Where once they deferred to the religious branch and its priestesses, they have now lost their faith and respect in these institutions, and without faith or tradition, it turns out the people holding all the guns ultimately also hold most of the power.
Of course, the crisis of faith that is now splintering Simulcrum’s government has been playing out on a more personal level all through this series. Characters like Aaeru, Neviril, and even Floe have consistently grappled with what it means to be a symbol, a soldier, and an individual human being at the same time, with various members of our team all settling on their own relationship with faith, and reasons to fight. And outside of the specific priestess-versus-soldier conflict, characters like Para have struggled mightily with the fear of leaving a comfortable assigned role, and embracing their own messy personal desires. The way these larger societal assumptions and structures shape these characters’ lives and even identities has been illustrated thoughtfully from the start, and I’m eager to see how they all cope as those structures begin tumbling down. Let’s get to it!
