[Conri]

Thanks for the responses, guys. However, they convinced me of what I already felt after having written up my previous post: that despite fignae calling what I said "relatively well-articulated" (thanks ), it really wasn't.

I thought it was well written, too (and as I said, it made me think!), but feel that way about my own posts... I was hesitant to post my last long post because it felt like a jumbled, nonsensical mess.

Originally Posted by FatPianoBoy

Frankly, I don't even consider Simoun yuri since the people aren't technically female until they go to the Spring and choose to be so. I'm probably in the minority with that opinion, though.

I'm in your minority as well. Although people who have not been to the spring are referred to as "girls," the term means something quite different in the world of Simoun.

Originally Posted by Matrim

The removal would damage the story but it wouldn't ruin it, that's what I meant. And I consider the female romantic relationships as some sort of fanservice because yuri is getting more and more popular which could have justisfied deciding everyone to be female rather than androgynous for the sake of getting yuri fans hooked.

It's still more of a niche fanservice especially compared to the giant het fanservice market and the more general "bunch of cute girls in one show" (often harem) fanservice market. You're definitely right about the broad meaning of fanservice... Liking female/female romance and gender bending doesn't seem much different than when I gravitate towards something because it has great comedy.

And you're right about the conscious choice for the characters to look female instead of inbetween. While it might make some sense considering fetal development, it makes more sense on the level of thinking--how many people would want to watch a show about people of indeterminate gender? (besides me, I mean) Given the anime style, androgyny tends towards the boyish; so it might even look a bit like boyslove...while some fangirls might be pleased, that was obviously not the type of show the creators wanted ("about young girls growing up").

I'm happy they went the route they did for two reasons...
1) When it comes to fiction, I have an easier time enjoying works with well developed female characters. When it comes to all female versus all male, I'll watch the former first. I watched the first half of Gravitation, enjoyed the first half of Kyou Kara Maou, but never finished either. On the other hand, I inexplicably made it through all of Gokujou Seitoukai.
2) Floef or Vyuraf could be me. The process in Simoun mirrors what I've been through far more than a textbook female-to-male case. Obviously, I don't get to see this part of me in fiction much.