Understanding Utena
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 28 ส.ค. 2024
- Hello, everyone! Revolutionary Girl Utena is one of my favorite shows of all time. It's confusing, weird, kind of poorly animated, and I wouldn't have it any other way.
In this video essay, I explore what I feel are the core ideas driving Revolutionary Girl Utena, and I provide some brief explanation into how the story of Utena works. Of course there's a lot more going on with this show than what I could cover in one, twenty-minute video, so I'd love to read your thoughts in the comments below.
Thanks for watching!
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You're the first person I've come across to talk about the power to revolutionize the world as a power that the duelists already have. Personally, I see it as not just the power to move into adulthood in general, but more specifically the ability to accept and move past traumatic events that one has weathered; adulthood is attained by recognizing what has held you back and that you possess the power to change yourself. All of the duelists have some precious memory that they both long to return to and is causing them pain, and those memories usually based around the most powerless version of themselves. Akio selects duelists with these sorts of memories, appeals to their nostalgia to manipulate them, and promises them the power to rewrite those times. In actuality, it's not until they're willing to acknowledge the roles they play in their own lives that they can grow up and eventually graduate. Akio cannot comprehend that he must move on from his past (and that he's changed to the point where the Prince has split off from him), never mind that he possesses the power to do so, and so will remain at Ohtori while Anthy, who learns she can control her own life, moves on.
Dude I like never though of it like that and looking back you are absolutely right.
Well said 👏
9:28 well yes that's the narrative we're presented about why she dresses like that, but in reality she decides to become a prince when Dios says he won't do it himself. She realizes that if the men in her life can't be bothered to save Anthy, she must do it herself.
I think what you said about Utena’s sexuality actually misconstrues the message that Utena was trying to portray. Her sexuality IS important, at least the aspect that she’s a woman who loves other women is. After all, it’s her love for Anthy that lets her revolutionize her and Anthy’s world (recall her saying the only time she was happy was when she was with Anthy, I mean, it should be clear to anyone that she’s declaring her love). It’s only until she recognizes the role that dominant gender schema plays in heteronormativity (to be a man/prince it to be with a woman/princess and vice versa) that she truly becomes self-determinant once again, but in a way much different than she did before. Realizing your sexuality is also, in a way, a revolution. It’s a recognition of the self that destroys the world, the things that she’s told, that a prince should be with a princess, and the prince always saves the day. But along the line she loses sight of what she wanted to do (which was to save Anthy) and what she should do (become more traditionally feminine and submissive, to be a princess). For Utena, her role never really mattered; it was the fairytales and the things Akio said to her (which gave her validation and the feeling that she’s loved; note that she doesn’t actually love him, but rather loves the affection and the feeling of being wanted that an orphan could only dream of. There’s a difference between wanting male validation and being attracted to a man) that made her think it should. In order for her to bring a revolution, she had to go back and remember what she decided for herself, long ago (which is literally a revolution in the sense of going back to where you started, wow). Putting what she knew then and knows now, she could truly choose for herself. But if she was straight, she couldn’t possibly have brought revolution (I mean, imagine bringing revolution to Akio, I don’t think that could ever happen). In her choice to finally decide that she wants to love and support Anthy and genuinely be a vehicle/catalyst to her own revolution (because fighting for someone’s revolution is pointless unless they choose revolution for themselves; to choose revolution for another person by saving them like a prince is to enforce that fairytale narrative that was never really true. A man can’t truly change the agency of a woman by fighting for it, as this is exactly what takes her capacity to choose away from her and is therefore redundant). Eh, sounds like a pretty healthy relationship to me. And that’s exactly what gives Anthy the courage to act, because now she sees that she has VALUE, that she can be LOVED (without all that power imbalance shit), and that she can make her own choice to be FREE. So she does exactly that. She brings about her own revolution, following Utena in suit. If Utena wasn’t at least attracted to Anthy in the slightest, she wouldn’t have gone so far as to do this. I mean, it’s also clarified in the movie so her liking women is basically canon. Without Utena’s love and support but ALSO respect for Anthy, their revolution wouldn’t have been possible.
The difference between men and women is that a woman can go to ends of earth for someone without being attracted to them.
@@Anime-chan-gl4pecool, Utena’s pretty clearly attracted to Anthy though 🤷♀️
Way too long. But it's widely known that Utena has never been attracted by Anthy in a romantic way, it's an abstract force that binds them together, which they are in fact , unable to escape from, they're slaves to it. In fact this is discussed in one episode.
It's pretty clear that she was bisexual but was in love with anthy
@ExelArts I wouldn't say it was clear that she was bisexual. But she is definitely inlove with Anthy. Anytime I tell people about this series I always explain "Listen, everyone in here is at minimum bisexual."
The revolution in Utena is bigger than coming of age, even though coming of age is part of it: it's coming out of the shell that imprisons every human being since birth, which is the ego. If you pay attention to the songs in the duels, it's clear that there is a theme of rebirth and liberation (usually in opposition), which is related to the buddhist concept of nirvana, and the hinduist concept of moksha. Anthy even has a dot on her forehead, is it just decorative? Utena deals with the idea of enlightenment, and what are the means to obtain it, and if it's a worth pursuit, by questioning the dogmas of every religion, and their ideas of salvation. But it's pretty clear to me that Utena represents a soul that's seeking to end the cycle of birth and death.
In hinduism and tantric buddhism, grossly speaking, the female principle is related to the material reality, while the male principle is related to the universal soul or atman. As reality is harsh and full of suffering, philosophers and mystics seek a solution to it, usually by rejecting the world and seeking virtue, God, high ideals. But why do we reject reality in the first place? Why all the hatred towards Anthy? She was just hiding the prince away from people, to protect him. But people are always busy dreaming about the infinite, the highest, the most virtuous, the must pure, the most ideal world, they cannot cherish what is in front of their eyes. Utena is the only one who learned to love Anthy, and stopped seeking the ideals of purity represented by Akio, which are all illusions in the end of the day.
Your interpretation is also valid, as the show has many layers of meaning, and that includes the coming of age of Utena. But in a deeper level, the soul that continues to reincarnate is in an endless coming of age process, until one day it find it's liberation. But what is it? Most of the duels reflect on that.
Best comment 👍
Nailed it
"If it doesn't break out of it's shell, the chick will die without ever truly being born."
I was lucky to watch Utena when I was a teenager in high school. This show saved me. I watched each episode a dozen of time. To tell the truth, I watch Utena once a year even now. It s my own cycle and a time for think about myself.
I share Utena with a lot of friends. Each time the magic is there. Anyone has an interest and a vision of their own.
Utena makes me feel better even now. I would like other anime which can make me feel that. Serial experiment Lain has the same way.
I don’t care about Utena sexuality. Utena is Utena. That s it. Utena makes people more understanding about differences and not just about sexe or gender or psychologies issues.
Every character has difficulties. And the real world is the same. Utena is just the messiah of Ohtori garden.
Good works. Make the rose bride bless you.
If you don't mind me asking, how did it save you? Just curious.
I own the series and make it a point to rewatch because it is so amazing to me. It changed how I felt about the world, and stayed with me long after finishing it for days. Weeks. Months. Ultimately years...until I rewatched it again. And the cycle repeats itself as I watch it each time. It definitely is one of my favorite animes and has a lot of things that stand out to me more than the first watch.
Utena at the end of the anime, leaves school because she has matured, has reached adulthood.
In the anime it is explained that students will not be able to leave school until they become adults.
There they overcome all their traumas, it is the age of adolescence.
Utena overcomes her complexes, her existential voids, her lack of identity, her ego ... and when she is saved by Anthy (who sacrifices herself so that Utena does not take her place as a witch), Utena manages to free Anthy and at the same time she becomes an adult and that's why she leaves school.
Last week, I found something interesting: In rosicrucianism, the rose is the symbol for conscience and for a figure of a sacred king which would come and restart the world from the beginning. (In a certain way, to "revolutionize the world".)
Rosicrucianism also features the legend of a hidden castle of a prince, which only a few select people deemed worthy can reach.
That is fascinating!
Read up on this further and came across The Chymical Wedding of Christian Rosenkreutz, where the protagonist goes on a perilous journey to a wedding of the king/husband and bride in a magical castle. Well, then.
I immediately saw these themes when I revisited it recently 🤙🌹
@@DreamseedVR thnks
There is heavy Rosicrucian imagery in the series, as well as the movie.
"Revolution" meaning "Cycle" only works in English. The original Japanese word "Kakumei" can only refer to rebellion. It differs from "Hangyaku" in that the latter implies prior loyalty (treason), while the prior refers more to a "barbarian" uprising. So while it can fit with the idea of overthrowing authority, and rejecting predetermined rules and ideals, the idea of cycles doesn't apply here.
Saar Korren The opening theme explicitly uses the English word "revolution" and features Anthy and Utena spinning or 'revolving' on roses.
Whether or not Ikuhara studied the English word, the show itself is a standalone entity, and can be interpreted by an American audience. Death of the author, blah blah blah; but as a creator myself I can attest to the fact that, despite your thorough involvement with it, your work gains a life of its own, almost like a child achieving self-actualization.
"Révolution" also means a "Cycle" in French and in the interlude we see "La fillette de la Révolution Utena" so they might be using the french meaning of the word
@@DeathofHeavens "la fillette de la révolution Utena" hm... what? The french title is Utena La Fillette Révolutionnaire
@@dreamingdeadgirls im not talking about the french title of the show, im talking about the card that shows up during the interludes of the show
I just "became" an adult. This just stabbed me in the chest.
Due to the release of a new anime series directed by Kunihiko Ikuhara (Sarazanmai) there is currently considerable online reference to his earlier collaborations. Having had no previous exposure to Ikuhara and seeking to understand what Utena was all about (and whether it was worthwhile for me to watch), I was extremely fortunate to land on your review "Understanding Utena." Even apart from the stated aim of reviewing an anime, and even for me at age 72, your insightful words are weighty and worthy of sincerest consideration. So thank you for this contribution. My best wishes..
Something you didnt mention is if utena is about adolescence, then adolescence doesnt only happen once. Mikage participated in adult society and was somewhat of an adult yet he needed to transform once again because when we become adults we replace old ideas with new ones, and theyre not always good the second time either. Some would call this a midlife crisis but i just think humans constantly change. The neverending cycle of death and rebirth or somethinf
Great video, glad too see more people get into analyzing the show. 10:36 however, I do feel the need to say something about this small part. Yes, japnese society isnt so accepting f girl's being different, but to say that utena is revolutionary because she posses the manly/princely quality's is not so true in the shojo media. Many shows and comics have done the manly like women trope before, look at rose of versailles and princess knight, but those shows were about how you need to become a man to be a strong person. Utena is revolutionary because she is a girl who wants to be a prince. Not a boy wannabe.
Another point I do want to bring up, and am ashamed no one brings it up, is the allegorical story that utena presents. In the 90's, japan went through the gay boom, a sudden shift in the media to represent gay characters. However, that was mostly implied for gay men, not lesbians. So utena has too allegories, one for the gay boom and one for the start of a new revolution which destroys the shallow yuri manga that were before utena and into making a new revolution for queer women, like japan had for gay men.
Sounds confusing, but look it up, maybe you can polish it better the me...
ILostTheGame wow sorry i know this comment is like super old but I had to respond as this is something I’ve always thought about.
I know a lot of people really liked the short hair from Adolescence of Utena, but actually I really liked the long hair, from a symbolic point of view. Utena as a character is totally I constrained by the confines of social norms & gender roles. She feels totally and full heartedly like a girl, as she says explicitly on many occasions throughout the show, but also wants to be a prince, and she sees no contradiction in those two things. So to me, the long floaty hair paired with her suit was a visual cue to her embracing her femininity and her princedom. Obviously it’s a simplification but yeah that’s just one point .
I doubt you'll ever see this but can you talk a little bit more about that gay boom? Didn't find anything and I'm interested
Yeah, Utena trying to fit into the archetype of the Prince is just as stifling as trying to be a princess. It’s girlboss feminism. In the movie, Anthy explicitly offers her the chance to fulfill the role of the prince and she rejects it, choosing instead to escape to the outside world. The real world. The Prince was dead all along.
the end of Juri's duel still gets me
Fun fact: the stair sequence was Key animated entirely by Yutaka Nakamura. That Nakamura. This was back when he was freelance animating for Sunrise and J.C. Staff.
This video is fantastic, and anyone who watches the series and doesn't get it, can easily understand due to your clear and concise writing that is to the point and literal to understand the non-literal.
I sort of got it, but I have a feeling you have to see it several times!
That honestly makes SO much sense.
Similar to your theory, i think a core component to Utena's setup is that all of the duelists are totally capable of being adults, but they are each holding onto a "fairytale" that they refuse to abandon, like a kid child refusing to give up sucking their thumb. They desperately want to not have to give up their fairytales, which have begun to fester into complexes, so they decide to "revolutionize/change the world" as an alternative to changing themselves. To use the same metaphor again- they'd rather create a world where an adult CAN suck their thumb, rather than give up the habit. The anime, I believe, also works to explore in great detail how holding onto childish delusions can fester into toxic behaviours and mindsets, which then lead to abuse AND being abused. In S1 we see how each of the duelists is willing to hurt others, rather than give up their delusions. in S2 we see how their abuse has effected and poisoned those near them, and then in a S3 we see how the duelists and vulnerable to BEING abused by others when their delusions are used to manipulate them. This is also the core to Akio and Anthy- both would rather try to change the world, or accept living perpetually in their cycle of agony, than give up their delusions. Their fairytales turned into delusions, which became coffins. In the most childish, selfish, and final defiance against accepting their reality cannot be, they say "i'd rather die than give up on my fairytale"
Let'a not forget our little bit of asexual representation in this series: Miki! He expresses romantic attraction, but when given the choice to act on it in a sexual way, he rejects it (and loses the duel with Utena). His sister calls him a coward, but I think it's really brave to reject society's expectations of everyone to be a sexual being. Miki is awesome!!!
I know this doesn’t make him any less ace but didnt he get in the sex car with anthy? Or was that? Illusory? He was shown in the driver’s seat with Anthy lying down beside him. Omg I just finished the show and I need to rewatch right now
He might be but he definitely has had ‘sex’ per the car allegory
I love Utena she's my Prince 😄
My fav thing is how she takes what was given to her and makes it her own while freeing everyone who wants to be freed. To me that's the message, follow your Way.
Thank you for striking the right balance when discussing Utena. I watched this series as soon as it was available legally (and less so after the first season via the same channels that brought me Sailor Moon S.Stars) and it hit me while I was in my own adolescence. Utena is a brilliant examination of the social morays tied to becoming an adult and you really captured that in your examination. Well done!
Utena is one of my all time favorite animes and I love hearing people talk about it
Same!
I think at least in the movie the Adolescence of Utena, when Utena turns into a Car and Anthy drives her out of the castle and institution, it is all about having the free will to go out into the world and live on your own independently even helping another loved one to do the same on her own and both Utena and Anthy face the world together on their own as they break away from relying on school for their daily routine and in a way, the outside world is like a society where they live their lives even with the challenges facing them.
Also the school itself, those who want to stay in school for longer periods of time and not wanting to get jobs, only to keep on going to school they no longer have the strength to become fully grown adults.
And Anthy being the rose bride, her own childlike innocence as well as the way she would do whoever wins her tells her to is part of her own reliance on someone to make the decisions for her and not making the decisions herself.
And the part where Nanami turns into a Cow, well that goes into how fashion accessories just to be popular with people at school is more like a folly where it is a false interpretation of being a celebrity while being a school student.
No, the movie is about enlightenment. The series is about nirvana, which is a "lesser form of enlightenment". Utena in the series gets rid of all delusions of her mind, like reaosn, love, ego, and each of them is one of the characters. Touga is her ego. In the movie, she ditches him at the beginning, and he is drowned when she is in the elevator, she says goodbye, thank you for what you've done to me... Then after her ego disappears, she becomes a car because buddhism talks about "vehicles", that are the different schools of buddhism. She takes Anthy, which I believe represents reality, and takes her away from her brother, who represents the idea of the "eternal" (which just jumped of the window). She goes beyond the world, with all the different cars representing false vehicles to enlightenment, and the castle in the end is the ultimate illusion, which just crumbles away. The brother of anthy in the end is nirvana, but she doesn't want to just be taken by hm, so she goes beyong nirvana, reaching the full-elightenment of a Buddha. But all teh characters are just aspects of the mind, I guess Utena represents the vow to liberate oneself...
love the vid m8.. but doesn't she kiss the rose bride in the movie and the second ending theme? that's not mentioning the heavy romantic subtext between the 2 throughout the show I'd say that she is pretty in love with himemiya so why would some say she isn't? genuinely asking btw
She and anthy kiss at least twice in the movie, there’s no way either are heterosexual, and I’d be comfortable saying that they’re lesbians, considering most attraction to men either of them express comes from situations of grooming or otherwise being controlled.
A useful heads up for those who maybe confused about the name "End of the World". In English there is kind of a duel meaning to the phrase. But in the Japanese what they literally say is "Edge of the world".
Oh, in addition, I do hope you've seen Princess Tutu - and if you have, I hope you enjoyed it! I feel that Tutu and Utena are bosom buddies in terms of themes.
takeagalbythehand omg are you single 😂 it's so rare to find someone like this. my type lol
That moment when you realize you commented this to the wrong comment. I'm so sorry 😂
Great analysis. I love how you decide not to delve in Utena's sexuality as a way to respect her challenge of standard categorization.
Few people manage to approach her sexuality without boxing her into a stereotype
You've touched on the main reason why I avoided tackling sexuality in this video, and summarized the point very well. I think my treatment of this topic was poor and unclear, so thank you!
i really think that a lot of people have overblown the importance of sexuality, patriarchy, heteronormativity, queer theory etc etc etc in the show, due to their own projection (but i guess thats the point of open-ended styled shows). and thats not to say these ideas AREN'T a part of the show, because they definitely are, but i think the show is definitely more about individual introspective battles that we all go through, than it is a socio-political statement against the "man" or whatever
I watched this show as a teen and just rewatched this show as an adult and had a whole new perspective on it. Such a good show. I think it was really ahead of its time!
I agree. One of my favorite Animes of all time. You wouldn't think me a fan of such a meduim watching me brushhog my fields with my John Deere tractor bit I love a well written well shot animation that pushes your perceptions of the world and your place in it.
As a fellow yeehaw farm girl I agree
I'm so glad I found out about this show unintentionally while looking for videos of another Utena. Your video went a long way in convincing me to actually watch it instead of just essays dissecting it.
"kind of poorly animated" this visually shits on every anime that has been made after 2000 but ok...
most of the shitting is thanks to the art and style, than the animation really. it definitely has a lot of great money shots with regards to the animation, but the average scene isn't really that good (not necessarily bad either) in that regard
Thanks a lot for this. Utena is indeed possibly my fave anime ever and I've been looking for an elaborate and nuanced treatment since I got done with it. Yours is by far the best I've found. This was a good job running down the foundational themes of the show- which I had a little trouble self-articulating for my own benefit despite the powerful impressions by the end of the series. Watching your essay helped me clarify those thoughts and it's very satisfying to find that your critical sensibilities seem to run close to mine. Besides sexuality, it might also be interesting to further investigate the intertextuality of the series, vis-a-vis the anime, movie, manga and various musicals of it, along with subsequent efforts in the shoujo genre. Character depictions and interrelationships were something I'm glad you touched on well in this essay too, though that could again be investigated in more detail. But I'm just airing out fancies right now lol. Thank you again, have subscribed and look forward to more content from you. Will check out the other vids on your channel.
Really good thoughts here. I truly believe utena is the most interesting anime ever
I was never a huge Utena fan, but I met my ex on a Xenogears message board 20 years ago, and we were both into anime, Eva naturally being the big one we both had in common. She introduced me to Utena, I bought everything that was available on VHS at the time, then a few years later when it was released on DVD I upgraded. According to my Amazon purchase history, the last one I bought was a volume titled "Temptation" in May 2004. Anyway, the point is: for all of these years I thought there were only two seasons.
For me, only in my teen years, I would say I find it..different for me as I'm not lighthearted but I'm still a child. I always think that when I'm an adult, I'll become less naive but I'll also become more peaceful.
Yep. Sadly, not all children lives a light hearted world. Those who lived under abusive and hipocrysys often took other things from utena anime. I remembered very fond of the red head male character and symphatize to the green ones. I am a very violent child in sort of cold and sneaky way, angry at the world and my parents, and seeing utena as a loser once, but then becoming understanding of her after i gets older. Still cannot do what she does tough, i'd know i'll ditch anthy after being rejected 2x maximum. :D
omg this video is amazing! im a little bit sad that i cant understand 100% of it 'cause my english is not that good but if it takes to me watch 50 times to understand every single word then i'll. Utena is my fav anime of all time and i really loved your video!
I found Utena really amazing because of all of the interesting details and allusions to where the story was going, there was never a moment I felt something came out of nowhere because it subtly implied something progressively less subtly before formally revealing it. Good job looking at Utena, maybe I can use this to convince people to watch it.
I believe this one of the smartest videos I have ever seen, and I am lucki enough for it to be about one of my favourite pieces of art of all time. Thank you so much for making it. I enjoyed enormously listening to your opinions and reading everyone else's.
That's very flattering and I'm glad you find the overall discussion interesting, too. Thanks!
I come to this video every now and again when I feel the Utena vibes. After watching the show for the first time about a year ago, I was frustrated and angry because I didn't get it. I knew people thought it was one of the most important shows in the last 20 years, and I had to find out why. Then I found this video and a whole new world opened up to me, and I had to watch the show again. Since then I have worked out my own interpretations and theories. I really love this video for that, thank you for opening me a whole new world. I broke trough my old world with your help.
Love this video! Really helped me start to sort out my feelings after viewing the full anime + movie for the first time. I really enjoyed it but found myself really perplexed by the symbolism (especially in the movie omg). Your analysis also really drove home Utena's influence on RWBY for me, because I saw it a lot stylistically but now I feel like they also borrowed some theming.
Wonderful and succinct description of Utena's themes. The only thing I disagree with is I don't think it actually has much to say about educational institutions. I feel that the school is just a setting that gives us a reason for all these characters to be in proximity to each other.
Well researched and articulated! I agree with all of it. I always thought of it as a destruction/rejection of archetypes but the archetypes depicted in the show = childish ideals each character has. I think you friggin' nailed it and I'd love to hear more detailed break downs of the individual arcs.
I've never been able to get into this show, even though I've tried several times. Your video has inspired me to try again! :)
It really seems like something I should enjoy and I certainly enjoyed your analysis.
Thanks for the kind words!
Utena is definitely not a show for everyone, and I think the show takes a little too long to get to the interesting parts. I've never found anything else quite like it though, and the fact that it's just so unique has kept it high on my personal favorites list. I hope you enjoy watching it!
@@SamWatchesAnime the visual aesthetic, and the intrigue of this surreal world was enough to keep me interested before things got really good. i think the problem with a lot of younger people is that if they don't have plot progression constantly whipped in their face like a brick every other minute, they go into conniptions due to their ever shortening attention span
Fantastic analysis! I hope you'll make another someday, Utena is a show that certainly inspires multiple interpretations, and I always find something new to appreciate in it.
Thanks, glad that you enjoyed it! I do plan to return to Utena at some point once I've got a better handle on video production.
penetratingly lucid and very well argued. I watched this show waaay back in the day and had no idea what was going on, but its special brand of eccentricity has always occupied a special little corner in my mind; after watching your reading I'm more than tempted to jump back in again.
Rather than framing the narrative into the recommended time or experiential frame of adolescence, I'm personally a bit more inclined to read the series as a metaphorical portrayal of the inherent and constant human capacity, or even compulsion, for engendering change and difference--such that even seeming traditionally masculine and chivalric virtues finds new inflections in Utena. a tale of a repetition (cyclic revolution) that manages not to repeat itself (radical revolution).
i feel that it's a show full of interpretive possibilities, and am quite frankly delighted to find a video that inspires an exchange of ideas. looking forward to more.
9:55 she expresses attraction to both men and women, so she's bi.
Layla Hellsing Not necessarily. Utena seems to be more pansexual than simply bisexual. Pansexuals are attracted to a person's personality. They don't care if a person is male or female. Utena shows these traits in her own dual nature. As a 'girl', she becomes attracted to the idea of the prince - Dios, Touga, Akio. Yet she is shown to be equally appalled by Touga's womanizing ways and Akio's true cruel nature.
As a 'prince', Utena takes up a more masculine role in her mind, which shows her protection of her female friends. Anthy and Wakaba, and even Juri to a degree, are all girls that Utena wants to help. She can be the noble prince who saves the damsels.
It's not until Akio seduces Utena that she has a sexual awakening, but that does not indicate a heterosexual one. If Utena romantically loved anyone in the series, it's Dios and Anthy. Dios was a first love, the driving force behind her goals. Dios saved her from herself and allowed her to keep living. Utena in turn did the same thing for Anthy. They started as awkward friends, but that friendship grew into something more over the course of the series. And it's because of Utena's love and sacrifice that Anthy gains her own strength to leave the school and her brother.
That would be besides the point the characters are not even humans they are all ritual processes.
Sorry to bud into a conversation six months later but what you are describing sounds more so like Utena is asexual and bi romantic?Isn't Pansexual a term used for when someone doesn't care about the gender identity of their partner rather they are cis male or female or trans or don't identify as a specific gender at all? I'm not an expert on these matters. From what I've in the movie Utena doesn't seem to care about sex and seems kind of bothered by how sexually forward Anthy is. It does seem like she doesn't care about sex but she is a teenager so she can also simply not have been exposed to it. The end scene did have her and Anthy making out naked.
It is actually entirely possible to do a reading of Utena as a lesbian struggling with compulsory heterosexuality. The main arguments in such a reading are 1. Her crush on the Prince - he's an ideal, a "safe" crush, a crush she doesn't have to actually realize, and one she can (and DOES!) use to dodge OTHER'S romantic interest. It's very common for young lesbians to sort of 'hide' behind heterosexual crushes on ideal & unachievable men like celebrities because it (consciously or not) gives an excuse not to be interested in any OTHER men. 2. The heterosexual relationship that IS realized in Utena is incredibly predatory and it's clear she's being manipulated. 3. Prince talk again! He's her One True Love, her defining childhood moment - and then it turns out that whole meeting wasnt about him at all, but about Anthy. The Prince is continuously held up as Utena's romantic ideal... and then we find out the significant person was a girl instead.
So, yeah! I'm not trying to say she's for sure a lesbian or anything, just that it's definitely possible to read her as something other than bi.
She is no shit. She is an anime character. Don't puto your shits in such a great history.
Great video. I particularly had never thought about this metaphor you pose, of the series being an allegory for growing up and leaving adolescence behind, but I loved it. Also thanks for bringing up Demian, I was always curious about that dialogue in Utena but never knew it had an inspiration. As for Utena's sexuality, I agree its never made clear. Personally I choose to read her as bisexual, as I think it fits better to the story as a whole in all three medias it is told (anime, mangá, and film).
Thanks!
I interpret Utena as a girl curious with her sexuality. Both the anime paired Utena with a specific character. Anime Utena was paired with Anthy while Movie Utena was paired with Touga. In a way it still makes way for Utena's love for Anthy but it differs in interpretation. Anime Utena's love for Anthy is clearly romantic love while Movie Utena's love for Anthy is familial love with elements of friendly love.
@@flipkiller8521 I think you totally missed a lot of the very obviously gay things in the movie, like Utena and Anthy dancing together, Anthy making a bunch of clear sexual advances on Utena, and the two of them finally kissing at the end; I saw it as a pretty obviously sexual and romantic thing where both Utena and Anthy grew up by fully embracing their love for and attraction towards one another, and Touga was just a past relationship Utena had that she had to let go of to move forward into the future. I am also someone who views the movie as a continuation of the anime, where the anime followed them first doubting the rigid heterosexual narratives of their society going through all of the tense first-questioning-your-sexuality stuff and denial that young queer people tend to go through. The anime's portrayal of Utena and Anthy's relationship does tend to be more ambiguous and subtextual rather than overt; the main creator of the show, Kunihiko Ikuhara, definitely wanted to make the romantic attraction between Utena and Anthy clearer, but his hands got tied because Chiho Saito, one of his creative partners and the main creator of the manga, caught on to the fact that he wanted to do this, and basically threatened to totally sabotage the entire project if he made Utena and Anthy's relationship and attraction to each other more unequivocally queer. Thus, for the duration of the anime, the queerness of Utena and Anthy's relationship was stuck in the subtext. Ikuhara wasn't bound to Chiho Saito during the production of the movie, and had full creative control, so he wanted to do all of the things he couldn't do with Utena and Anthy's relationship in the show, and that's a big part of why the queerness is so in-your-face in the movie.
@@tardigradeColonies Can you give me a source for Chiho Saito opposing lesbianism in the Utena anime? I've definitely heard that before, but I've also heard that it isn't true. I'm not sure what to believe.
This was really helpful. I just finished and well. I suppose it goes to show, that it's difficult for people who've already passed through their own "Revolution" to understand those who've only just started their own. Thanks for the video definitely helped clear up a lot of confusion.
Man, that was amazing. You make so many points that I never thought about this show. I discovered it on TV when I was way too young to pick the subtext, and liked it since. I mostly thought about Utena as a critique on gender roles and social norms, but not as a story about adolescence too. Hope you make many more subs soon
Thanks for watching! I encountered Utena in pretty much the same way. Came across it while I was a teenager, didn't get it, ran into it again later and it blew me away.
The meaning of "revolution" as the completion of a cycle is used in the famous book "Revolt/Revolution against the modern world", which was written by a friend of Herman Hesse. In this book, it is stated that the world is in a stage of decline and corruption and thus, we need a "Revolution" against this. This explicitely does not mean an uprising. Instead, revolting against the modern world, here means accelerating the process of history so much, which would then result in a catastrophic event, permitting a rebuilding of society to get to the lost golden age of the past.
Most people misunderstand this book and think the author wants people to mindlessly preserve the past, but the point of the author is the opposite: To save the ideas of the past, people ultimately need to be willing to destroy them. The author thought "yes, the past was far more superior to today and the glorious days of the past were better", but the ideas of the past ulitmately have become sick and corrupted. If people want to preserve them without thought, they save the "corruption". Instead, to be able to save everything, people need to let go of the past and to tear it all down, to make space to rebuild it.
I think there are certain aspects of this idea which make perfect sense in the context of Utena.
(And ironically, in one of his later books, the author thought that there were some secret knightly orders who fought duels to be engaged to a holy bride. When I read that, I had to laugh, because that reminded me on utena.)
"Revolutionary girl Antenna"
I don’t understand how the idea of officially assigning her a sexuality leads to taking away the characters self-determination or would replace that self-determination as the reason for her being unique.
It doesn't, if i had to guess he just didn't want to talk about it because he feels unqualified which is a shame because the show spends a lot of time on themes of sex and sexuality
This is one of the best explanations I have ever seen! :)
I just finished watching this anime for the first time and I watched this in hopes of getting some of the answers to questions I had, but no luck. :/ I wanted to know why Akio orchestrated it all in the first place. What was the point? What did he gain? I personally think magic did exist in the anime because then he has a motive for it and when he shows her that she is just in a planetarium and all she was seeing were illusions, I think he was trying to make everything she thought was fake in hopes of breaking her motivations. If she was in the planetarium the entire time, how did she get there is she had went to the forest? How did the swords and the magic that happens to the characters happen outside the planetarium and forest? Why did she have a flashback of Anthy as a child and wanting to help her? How did any of that climax happen if it was all an illusion? Where did Utena go if there was no magic? The magic was there and they had to stick to what they believed to be true in order to break from Akio's world and his deceptions. At least that's my interpretation of it.
You've got some good questions in here, and some that are very hard to answer well. I'll do my best, but I don't have my notes or the show in front of me to fact check. Sorry in advance if I let you down!
Let me take a stab at your first question. I don't think Akio's tangible goals are too complex - he wants power. This means gaining new power(s) and preserving power(s) he already has. That desire for power manifests itself in the form of his pseudo-political power, sexual power, and magical power. His abstract goals are more elusive, but I think the answer lies in the allusions he makes to Lucifer (I'm not 100% sure here, since I don't have a citation for the quote I'm thinking of on hand) and his connection to Dios. Akio is a complex character, but I think this is a good place to start..
Your other questions touch on a much bigger topic that runs throughout the show: the use of magic, and the distinction between real magic and illusions. It may be up to the viewer to define that distinction themselves. I'm confident that the finale is mostly real magic, for example, and I think the "official" duels and the dueling Arena are illusory. For the rest it's hard to say. Kind of a crappy answer, I know. How the duelists get from the forest to the planetarium, for example, doesn't really have an answer, and I don't think the show cares to answer that question at all. Magic in Utena is vague, but I think it's deliberately vague so that you can come to your own conclusions.
It's also worth noting that the sources of "bonafide" magic in the show are depicted as foreign (or at least, of a distinctly different ethnic background). I think this points to magic being something that belongs to "the other" in so far as it is something alien to modern, polite society. There's definitely more to tease out here, but I'd need to do my homework first.
Similarly, "Where does Utena go?" is a question the show deliberately avoids answering. I think leaving it unanswered just works better. It's remarkably open-ended, and that open-endedness is part of why I love the ending of Utena so much. It's a bold, risky way to end a story.
I feel like I didn't actually answer your questions, and I may have gone off on a weird, rambling tangent, but I hope there's something in that pile of words that is valuable.
There is magic in this world. Akio and Anthy both used to have it, but Akio lost his. His goal with opening the Rose Gate is to get his back, but he can't do that without being stabbed by the Swords of Hate, thus his needing someone else, whether it be Anthy or Utena, to do it for him.
That's why he freaked out so much when Anthy decided to leave him. He wasn't upset over losing her per second, he was upset because without her, he would be unable to fulfill his ultimate goal. Basically, he's nothing without her, and I think that's part of the reason why he was so abusive to her. He needed her to think that only he cared and she was the one who couldn't survive without him.
It helped for me to think of all the characters from a grounded perspective, they possess personalities that exist in the real world. All of the supernatural material of the show can be understood then by the impact that they had on the characters! The climax existed both as magic and as allegorical illusions, but it meant the same thing such a climax would mean in a realistic story. Akio is an individual empowered by social and cultural forces, he basically a master of the shared expectations the people at Ohtori academy hold. He pioneered the way in which people think, especially in regards to gender roles and has set up inequality between the sexes, and given them unrealistic ideals that he once believed he could hold himself to through the power of Himemiyas support. He created the persona Dios as the pinnacle of others ideals for his society, but this wasnt necessarily something he himself believed in. Because he "fell" from being the perfect prince into something else he basically gave up doing good or truly helping others until he could reclaim this ideal, and now uses children in a cyclical plot to return to his ideal. In my opinion he never actually had, and never will have, what he wants in life and because of this he continues his exploitation because taking advantage of others sexually, financially, and in other ways is temporarily rewarding.
@@SamWatchesAnime This is a neat interpretation! I tend to see Akio as a deeply insecure, immature person with a lot of narcissistic personality traits, who needs everything about the world to affirm his view of himself as being the most important, most powerful person in it, and has built himself a world that emphasizes his power and importance and is full of vulnerable young people he can exploit. I'd argue that more than just simply wanting power, Akio wants power to preserve an abusive power structure and status quo that serves him and gives him narcissistic supply. While he did seem to be more noble as Dios, I'd argue he still structured his view of himself around a superficial ideal of princely saviorism and self-importance. Because his real inner self and inherent worth outside of being the prince was never affirmed or nurtured by that system, he was unable to cherish and identify with his true self, and came to identify with the superficial image-focused veneer that would only affirm his worth conditionally, by him satisfying the role of that hyper-important, omnipotent person. He is afraid of a world that shatters his artificial power and importance and his false illusions of who he thinks he is.
As for the scene where Utena confronts Akio: It's all about gaslighting. He gaslights her by telling her she's at fault for HIM abusing and exploiting her because she accepted his advances on her. He gaslights her by making her doubt her sense of self and trying to persuade her into thinking the princess role is a better fit for her, even changing her entire outfit against her will to force her into the role he wants her to fill to supply his ego's needs. The planetarium thing and his claims that everything happened in that planetarium are very far fetched to me and also strike me as him trying to gaslight Utena, make her doubt her own perception of reality. But it does have a grain of truth. I tend to interpret this part of the scene as working very much on a metaphorical/psychological/interpersonal layer rather than a literal layer. It's Akio gaslighting Utena and feeding his ego by trying to attribute yet more power to himself, and I interpret the forest and arena as always having been a real, separate place. The grain of truth is that it is also very true that Akio has the power to construct illusions and alter reality at will (which Anthy arguably is able to do on some level as well), but in more of an abstract, surreal way. His goal there is both to gaslight Utena by making her doubt her perception of reality AND show his power over her and show her that he thinks he holds all the cards. He wants to break her down and convince her that there's no reason for her to fight his agenda, and she that she could never win or truly upset the status quo he's so terrified of losing, so she shouldn't even try.
@@tardigradeColonies I think you're very much on the right track with this- Akio wants power, but more than that he wants to be _the most powerful_. He insists on affirming his own power (magical, sexual, political, or personal) at all opportunities, and to do that he has constructed the system at the school to support this absolute exercisement of power. However, the series goes out of its way to show that the construction is a false one, and that Utena (and others) possess a power that is not only stronger than his but also completely beyond his reach. This echoes back to the main themes of the series- that a destruction of the old self, and the old power structures, is necessary to move beyond it; Akio, then, is the personalization of these old power structures and their inability to change and his choice to remain in and control the world of the school, of childhood, is the reason for his impotence in the face of true revolution.
Although death of the author et al obviously apply to it, I think the show pretty strongly presents itself as anti-patriarchal, anti-authority, and broadly anti-conservative in nature, which would make sense given the time and place it was created in. Given Japanese schools at the time and the problems many students struggled with as a direct result of school environments, it isn't hard to see how all of those positions would place it in direct opposition to the school systems in place, and one could even read the line of "the chick will die without every truly being born" in a much more literal sense given the chilling rates of suicide among schoolchildren.
Wow, this was a stellar analysis and I learned a lot about the themes that seemed sort of convoluted when I watched it. You mentioned the main cast all having some sort of mental health issue which I find very intriguing. A video on that would be quite interesting.
today, I found out something interesting. In the show, utena resides in a certian house. this house does exist in real life and belonged to the nobel price nominee yukio mishima. this guy is one of the most prominent authors of homosexuality depicting works in japan. More importantly is, he unsuccessfully tried to do a revolution but none in the name of progress but in opposite, to restore the king/emperor to his fomer power. he tried to rescue the ideals of knighthood in times of societal change.
These things resonate with certain themes in utena.
On topic of "absolute destiny apocalypse": The most influential philosophical "school" in modern japan teaches that people are afraid of the nothingness which lurks everywhere in the world, but to become a truely free human, people have to confront the danger of everything getting destroyed. And if people are unwilling to confront this danger of destruction, they only cause more destruction and suffering. So, to stop doing harm, people need to be aware of the "absolute destiny apocalypse."
great video. I have to say, I am a journalist, I am currently writing an article about education and due to your video, I added the "egg shell quote" to my text.
Thanks for the kind words and I hope your article comes together, too!
Omg this opened my eyes on a lot of things in the series...like, I had my own understandings and interpretations, but this one answered something for me about the ending of the series concerning "smashing the shell"...man, Utena is an awesome series, that's for sure. Thank you for the video, beautiful analysis!!
I'm glad I came across this commentary. Utena is a great body of work and I'm glad to see it being further discussed even if it's been several years since its release. I think the source material is so rich that there are so many things that can be taken away from it - on my end, I'm fond of the idea that it's basically a retelling of Plato's Allegory of the Cave, and that when Utena finally breaks away from Ohtori Academy, it's because she's woken up in the "real world". I also enjoy the anime from the aspect of archetypes and how it turns those archetypes of "prince/knight on shining armor", "princess bride", and "wicked witch" on their heads.
Whether Utena and the other duelists are LITERALLY within Ohtori Academy is a topic for another time, though. I'm glad to have come across your introspective video, and the idea that cracking the shell basically means deconstructing our previous notions of the external world to "grow up" is equally fascinating. (And, from another standpoint - is it really worth it? Staying in our little perfect world isn't ideal, but is it really WORTH shattering all these preconceived notions to enter the adult world? Is the adult world worth it?)
Thanks for this video! Glad to hear your thoughts and to be reminded of this masterpiece.
sorry if I did already mention this. the stairs utena needs to climb up to the dueling arena and the pillar pairs are similar to the masonic alegory of king solomos temple. (broadly speaking symbolising siritual maturation/adolescence.) and in masonry, its also about rescueing someone trapped in a coffin who is in the end identical to yourself. The masonic journey starts in a coffin (just like utenas.) But utena quite shockingly subverts the masonic alegory. Your masonic journey reaches its goal with step 33. Episode 33 in Utena is infamous because "something" happens there. (interestingly, in german, "Jungfrau" means both "young girl" and "virgin".)
It's amazing how this work has trascended the pass of time, it not ages, I gess as you say it it's because the pass from adolece to adulthood it's a universal topic, and in utena it's so well executed
I don't know much about this anime but this is low budget?! It's beautiful!
i am thoroughly impressed by the analysis,
would love to see more in depth video essays on topics of utena
Thank you for this breakdown! I love Utena and I love hearing people analyze it!
Thank you so much for this video! I had really bad feeling about this show being a mediocre piece (especially because of it's formularic episodes in the beginning) but surrealistic details and Utena's backstory kept me interested. You and smart people on MAL helped me to understand the beauty of this series.
damn, Im from Peru and Im 30, it's my favorite show ever, man! each time i watch it i feel there is much more than meets the eye
Hey, I just wanted to stop and appreciate the time and energy it took you to make this. I really love this brand of intellectualism, especially toward a medium not often understood. Thanks so much :D!!
this really helps, i enjoyed utena as an adult, but i was missing the tools needed to properly dissect and analyse the material.
Your analysis is brilliant. I would love to see your explanation of the movie
I wouldn't go that far, but thanks for the compliment! I don't have any plans to cover the movie right now, but it's something I'd like to do at some point in the future.
What about exploring the allegory of the upside down castle ? (sorry, I have slightly obsessed with Utena's symbolics for the past 10 yers lol)
No worries! Here's my quick reading on the meaning of the castle itself, keep in mind this is pretty shallow interpretation:
I think the upside down castle is interesting as a symbol for a few reasons. The fact that it's upside down demonstrates that it's an inversion of the noble goals it represents. That much isn't too crazy. However, it's placed in such a way that the duelists are "above" it. In a way, they're fighting to raise themselves up to a goal that is beneath them (fighting for noble causes, but towards an ignoble end that masquerades as a noble one). I think that's pretty neat.
Sam Watches Anime = thanks ! .... Would you like to make an explanation of the end ? Couldn't find any on TH-cam and I am sure that I missed lots of it .... Thanks and sorry for being annoying ;)
I'm sure I spoiled myself to no end watching it, but really enjoyed this video. Really enjoyable breakdown on themes and ideas that Utena may hold.
Loved the use of Demian as a source as well - curious, had you read it previously? I never would have recognized such a connection, but my back-list of completed books is pretty pathetic uwu.
Anyway, thought this was great! Excited to see more from you.
I first read Demian back in college, but I didn't actually notice the connection with Utena until it was brought up by GeekNights in their analysis (the playlist linked in the description). It's really obvious in retrospect!
It's a very short book, so if you're interested in coming-of-age fiction it's a good read for a lazy Sunday afternoon.
Just a quick question as I can't seem to really ask anywhere else that'd get your attention: What happened to your Kara no Kyoukai video? Would you happen to have an alternative link for it somewhere?
Low budget? But its so well animated...
Damn you beat me to this! This is exactly how I interpreted the series. It took me rewatching it as an adult to really understand what I was watching. A thing I would like to add is: I noticed when the kids are next to adults, they look child like, but when they are next to their peers, they almost look 30.
That's a good observation, and thanks for watching!
This is the only thing I've seen that makes the show make a lick of sense
Awesome review!, especially when you pointed out that it's not about the homosexuality, but more on the strength of the girls. Even Sailor Moon has this theme of maturity, like in Sailor Neptune and Sailor Uranus relationship.
Thanks it really helped me alot to understand this cryptic but beautiful anime.
Rampant applause! I am so happy to see other people enjoying this series :)
Awesome video! I am a big fan of Utena and was very interested in hearing what you felt upon watching this particular anime. This video made me subscribe to you. Keep up your work!
great video. utena was amazing
I loved this video . The idea of a series of meaningless rituals is tied into the stock footage and phrases they repeat being an allegory for teaching kids how to grow up
thank you so much for explaining this show (well, from your perspective)! I honestly didn't understand quite a few things you said, though I now do understand the majority of it.
WOW I love this video!!!! Revolutionary Girl Utena astounds me. The entirety of the series itself is a piece of art. I loved your analysis :D
This helped cleared up alot of questions for me. Thanks! I hope you decide to do a video on Yurikuma arashi cause that one is good too. Thanks so much!
Very well thought out and expertly presented. Allows me to appreciate Utena even more. Kudos for such introspective input. :)
This video got me to read Demian a few years ago.
Some of the architecture seems to have freemasonic influences: In your video, you show the 2 Curtain rolls next to that window. And there is the duel arena, which is entered via a way built with pairs of smaller columns, leading to stairs (and in the final shot, you see only one pair) and a large column. Both are similar to the pillars jachin and boas. Because of this, the stairs might symbolize spiritual growth.
Jachin and Boas also represent masculine and feminine virtues which lead to "the godess" (anthy?)
I definitely enjoyed your video and it definitely clears up a little what the show is trying to say. To be honest some of it was definitely lost on me when I was a teen when I was first watching the show so thanks on clearing some of it up.
Geeknights never did finish their utena series and im so sad. Its really good!!
I'm here bcz of the rc cola ad and some writer suggested watching the anime
Great video, Utena is one of my favorite anime as well as its movie, tranks for sharing your thoughts, greetings from Colombia.
this is the first time I’ve watched a commentary bit video (on anime) and have thought it to be not only interesting but also really insightful!
You actually brought up a lot of notions I never deeply considered myself, but could all too well relate to.
What a revelation~
Also, same! Love it, is one of my fave’s. and absolutely up in my top 5 list!!
(+ U +)/
Very interesting! I am looking forward to more well-informed videos and hope to see your channel grow.
Everytime i rewatch SKU , i find something new
This is an excellent reading of an excellent show. Thank you!
I think this video finally gave me the words to flesh out why I ultimatley came away dissastisfied and underwhelmed from this show. I fundamentally disagree with its thesis on the destructive nature of maturity.
The adult world is vastly different than that of the adolescent, I dont dispute that. But abandoning things like ones inner child and some sense of childish wonder creates a world that is far worse than one in which people retain aspects of their youth.
That view of adolescence that Utena pushes is one that i find way too cynical, and frankly not very helpful. Utena would say that refusing to move beyond things creates people like Akio, and that is certainly possible, but is it not also possible that one can become "too adult"? Maybe im spoiled by other stories about adolescents on the verge of growing up, like Peter Pan and others, but holding onto these aspects of youth is what makes the adult world surviveable, not leaving them behind.
"A little nonsense now and then is relished by the wisest men"
Very high quality video, I look forward to more content like this :)
I hope you are able to watch the follow up film!! I’d love to hear your take!!
Bruh ur content and its quality is so good
Excellent video!
I'm really excited about this video. Excellent content and analysis.
If you want to write down paper about, pretty sure I would read that.
You are really right about the part of sexuality of Utena, it is not importanto for the messege that the show wants to say.
Thank you very much!!!
Sorry for the late response, but thanks!
that's a really interesting analysis and everything is really well connected in this video
I love this man, thank you so much for making this video❤