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Thoughts on 'Utena", and how I see more than I should.
Review originally over at LeetNEET. I have tried minimizing as much spoilers as I can. Of course I wanted to expound on the psychological aspects of the show, but I would probably need a more in-depth rewatch. Complete with note-taking. Considering I'm still in the middle of a heat wave, I am so unmotivated right now.
How does one go about reviewing arguably one of the most well-known anime series in this generation? Shoujo Kakumei Utena, or Revolutionary Girl Utena, at first, seems like a parody on the Prince and the Princess parallel that seems to run in many shoujo series. We have Tenjou Utena, a tomboy excelling in sports, idolized by the girls, as well as some of the boys. Her goal is to find the mysterious Prince that saved her from despair many years ago. The Prince left her a ring and the ring led her to Ohtori Academy, a seemingly ideal school, where everyone is good-looking, and nothing traumatic takes place on the surface. Through defending her friend Wakaba's honor, Utena is dragged into the malicious undercurrent of said idyllic institution: The Rose Duels. And the winner gets to claim the Rose Bride, Himemiya Anthy, who will serve her Prince. All the duelists are battling for an unknown power to "revolutionize" the world. Hence its title, "Revolutionary Girl Utena" (because we all know the main character has the power).
While the whole premise sounds outrageous, this is truly one of the most thought-provoking series I've ever had the pleasure of watching. There's a reason why Utena remains a classic, even beyond the over-simplistic "Oh it's about two girls, and kissing and stuff" hearsay that I seem to get when asking how do you watch or read Utena? Yes, it does have yuri in the Japanese sense of two girls bonding over time, and the relationship between them, as well as others. I haven't read the manga, but the anime series and movie I marathoned in about four days. I can safely say, and without bias (SHUT UP I'M NOT), Utena is more than it's cracked up to be. Once you start watching the beginning episodes, it plays out like a fairytale. Utena wants to be just like the Prince that saved her, and so she is, donning a boy's uniform, mannerisms, and behaviors as well. However, she does not fully assimilate to being a boy, still keeping her femininity somewhat by voicing her disdain for sweating in the first episode. In another time, place, universe, Utena is the embodiment of a modern...girl-woman. Although her age is speculative, I believe Utena is around fourteen- sixteen years of age; basically she is on the cusp of womanhood, and it is a central theme to the series.
If Utena is supposed to be the modern perspective on what a female teenager can/wants to be, then Anthy is the anti-Utena. Simply put, at first glance she has the personality of a doormat. People walk all over her, and viewers will rage inwardly as to why she doesn't stand up for herself. Well, as the Rose Bride, she is the embodiment of the eternal Damsel-in-Distress. Even Princess Peach is more engaging than Anthy throughout the whole series (and believe me, it was a long 30 something episodes before I saw something else in her). However that is only the surface. Anthy is probably the most unassuming character in the series, even more malicious than the actual antagonist. However, if you have a Prince, then where is the villian? Utena has no black-or-white villain, and it is a commentary of the nature of man. Or it could be about the subversion of a traditional fairytale. The unique aspect is that the interpretation is up to the viewer. Even more amazing is the amount of references to dreams, philosophy and psychology. In fact, it holds so much that Freud will roll over in his grave, and even his daughter as well. But that is exactly what the series is aiming to do.
In short, mindfuck the viewers. It does it in a way, that the viewers will never suspect it. Even seeing the ending, I had some people (including one illustrious staff member at leetNEET) say "I don't get it". The point is how you interpret what happened. The clues are all there, scattered across the series. And the key to revolutionizing the world? Did Utena obtain it? I say, watch the entire series, then re-watch it. I guarantee you'll notice something with each and ever re-watch. Because the key to understanding the entire motifs of the show rests upon the last five episodes, and the viewer's imagination. Can it be all about puberty? Yes. In fact, a filler episode was all about menstruation via one of the other characters not pictured above, laying an egg in the middle of the night. Could it be a commentary on the decay of the traditional patriarchal system? Why yes, that too, if you imagine what the antagonist stood for, and Utena's wishes and desires. Utena is striving to become a Prince, yet she is a girl, how is that possible?
All interpretation is up to the viewer. Now, readers here might ask for my own personal opinion/interpretation/analysis of the series. While I strongly theorize that Utena is about reaching adulthood, and the breaking down of gender roles and norms, it's also a commentary on human nature, and the concept of "revolution". What is Utena revolutionizing, in fact? If the viewer interpreted "revolutionizing the world" as changing Ohtori (for in fact, that is all the viewer sees), then she has done her job. Ohtori has changed by the end of the series (I really did try minimizing spoilers). There are literally a plethora of Freudian symbols (as well as Jungian archetypes) that point to a story about...as Britney Spears famously sang "I'm Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman". For simplicity's sake, I'll only mention a couple to get you readers started. For one, phallic imagery is everywhere; most prominent are the swords used for dueling. The entire matter that it's over for a woman (AKA the Rose Bride) suggests sexual prowess and maturity to win. Or in layman's terms, my sword is better than yours. The campus of Ohtori Academy is filled with towers, spires, and things that point upwards in the sky. This connotes a male-oriented world. Even deeper (I made a pun?) it's the implication that Ohtori is a male-DOMINATED world. As for the girls, roses are everywhere. Especially roses that are getting watered/dewy roses/ roses soaked in liquid, period. If roses aren't a symbol for sexual arousal, virginity, or even the vagina, then I must have been watching a different show, because this one is chock full of wet flowers. Now the duels combine sword stabbing with roses (AKA put two and two together). How to win the duel, the duelist must aim for his or her opponent's rose, perched on their right breast pocket. Basically stabbing the tip of the sword, scattering the rose petals, de-flowering the duelist.
I'll end it here to avoid any second-hand embarrassment from just typing sexual innuendos. A point of caution though; if you are looking for a mindless series to watch, then do not watch Utena. While you can understand the cracks and jokes the series makes (and sometimes I think they make fun of themselves), the last episodes have the tensest mood I have had the pleasure of enjoying. Oh, the angst is delicious. Delicious still is the movie (I'll review it later.), which was just fluffy icing on the crack-laced cake that is Utena.
Overall, I absolutely enjoyed watching Utena (and trust me, I don't say that very often), and I would recommend it...on the condition that the viewer keeps an open mind about it all. Work that imagination, for there isn't any other way to make sense of the ending.
How does one go about reviewing arguably one of the most well-known anime series in this generation? Shoujo Kakumei Utena, or Revolutionary Girl Utena, at first, seems like a parody on the Prince and the Princess parallel that seems to run in many shoujo series. We have Tenjou Utena, a tomboy excelling in sports, idolized by the girls, as well as some of the boys. Her goal is to find the mysterious Prince that saved her from despair many years ago. The Prince left her a ring and the ring led her to Ohtori Academy, a seemingly ideal school, where everyone is good-looking, and nothing traumatic takes place on the surface. Through defending her friend Wakaba's honor, Utena is dragged into the malicious undercurrent of said idyllic institution: The Rose Duels. And the winner gets to claim the Rose Bride, Himemiya Anthy, who will serve her Prince. All the duelists are battling for an unknown power to "revolutionize" the world. Hence its title, "Revolutionary Girl Utena" (because we all know the main character has the power).
While the whole premise sounds outrageous, this is truly one of the most thought-provoking series I've ever had the pleasure of watching. There's a reason why Utena remains a classic, even beyond the over-simplistic "Oh it's about two girls, and kissing and stuff" hearsay that I seem to get when asking how do you watch or read Utena? Yes, it does have yuri in the Japanese sense of two girls bonding over time, and the relationship between them, as well as others. I haven't read the manga, but the anime series and movie I marathoned in about four days. I can safely say, and without bias (SHUT UP I'M NOT), Utena is more than it's cracked up to be. Once you start watching the beginning episodes, it plays out like a fairytale. Utena wants to be just like the Prince that saved her, and so she is, donning a boy's uniform, mannerisms, and behaviors as well. However, she does not fully assimilate to being a boy, still keeping her femininity somewhat by voicing her disdain for sweating in the first episode. In another time, place, universe, Utena is the embodiment of a modern...girl-woman. Although her age is speculative, I believe Utena is around fourteen- sixteen years of age; basically she is on the cusp of womanhood, and it is a central theme to the series.
If Utena is supposed to be the modern perspective on what a female teenager can/wants to be, then Anthy is the anti-Utena. Simply put, at first glance she has the personality of a doormat. People walk all over her, and viewers will rage inwardly as to why she doesn't stand up for herself. Well, as the Rose Bride, she is the embodiment of the eternal Damsel-in-Distress. Even Princess Peach is more engaging than Anthy throughout the whole series (and believe me, it was a long 30 something episodes before I saw something else in her). However that is only the surface. Anthy is probably the most unassuming character in the series, even more malicious than the actual antagonist. However, if you have a Prince, then where is the villian? Utena has no black-or-white villain, and it is a commentary of the nature of man. Or it could be about the subversion of a traditional fairytale. The unique aspect is that the interpretation is up to the viewer. Even more amazing is the amount of references to dreams, philosophy and psychology. In fact, it holds so much that Freud will roll over in his grave, and even his daughter as well. But that is exactly what the series is aiming to do.
In short, mindfuck the viewers. It does it in a way, that the viewers will never suspect it. Even seeing the ending, I had some people (including one illustrious staff member at leetNEET) say "I don't get it". The point is how you interpret what happened. The clues are all there, scattered across the series. And the key to revolutionizing the world? Did Utena obtain it? I say, watch the entire series, then re-watch it. I guarantee you'll notice something with each and ever re-watch. Because the key to understanding the entire motifs of the show rests upon the last five episodes, and the viewer's imagination. Can it be all about puberty? Yes. In fact, a filler episode was all about menstruation via one of the other characters not pictured above, laying an egg in the middle of the night. Could it be a commentary on the decay of the traditional patriarchal system? Why yes, that too, if you imagine what the antagonist stood for, and Utena's wishes and desires. Utena is striving to become a Prince, yet she is a girl, how is that possible?
All interpretation is up to the viewer. Now, readers here might ask for my own personal opinion/interpretation/analysis of the series. While I strongly theorize that Utena is about reaching adulthood, and the breaking down of gender roles and norms, it's also a commentary on human nature, and the concept of "revolution". What is Utena revolutionizing, in fact? If the viewer interpreted "revolutionizing the world" as changing Ohtori (for in fact, that is all the viewer sees), then she has done her job. Ohtori has changed by the end of the series (I really did try minimizing spoilers). There are literally a plethora of Freudian symbols (as well as Jungian archetypes) that point to a story about...as Britney Spears famously sang "I'm Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman". For simplicity's sake, I'll only mention a couple to get you readers started. For one, phallic imagery is everywhere; most prominent are the swords used for dueling. The entire matter that it's over for a woman (AKA the Rose Bride) suggests sexual prowess and maturity to win. Or in layman's terms, my sword is better than yours. The campus of Ohtori Academy is filled with towers, spires, and things that point upwards in the sky. This connotes a male-oriented world. Even deeper (I made a pun?) it's the implication that Ohtori is a male-DOMINATED world. As for the girls, roses are everywhere. Especially roses that are getting watered/dewy roses/ roses soaked in liquid, period. If roses aren't a symbol for sexual arousal, virginity, or even the vagina, then I must have been watching a different show, because this one is chock full of wet flowers. Now the duels combine sword stabbing with roses (AKA put two and two together). How to win the duel, the duelist must aim for his or her opponent's rose, perched on their right breast pocket. Basically stabbing the tip of the sword, scattering the rose petals, de-flowering the duelist.
I'll end it here to avoid any second-hand embarrassment from just typing sexual innuendos. A point of caution though; if you are looking for a mindless series to watch, then do not watch Utena. While you can understand the cracks and jokes the series makes (and sometimes I think they make fun of themselves), the last episodes have the tensest mood I have had the pleasure of enjoying. Oh, the angst is delicious. Delicious still is the movie (I'll review it later.), which was just fluffy icing on the crack-laced cake that is Utena.
Overall, I absolutely enjoyed watching Utena (and trust me, I don't say that very often), and I would recommend it...on the condition that the viewer keeps an open mind about it all. Work that imagination, for there isn't any other way to make sense of the ending.