Retrospective of Utena - Part Tois: The Apocalypse, Adolescence & Aftermath of a Revolution
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 29 ส.ค. 2024
- With everything that has been discussed about Utena, not just in this series with it's impact when it comes to the likes of the Magical Girl and Shojo genres but also in the general fandom it's created, while there's been a lot of discussion on what kind of impact it's left, the one thing you can say for certain is that it's managed to leave the door wide open for queer representation in media and then some since it's creation.
In this third and final part of the Retrospective of Utena, we look on said queer representation being flung wide open by this series, cover the final 15 episodes known as the "Apocalypse Saga", the 5 volume manga series, the 1999 movie Adolescence of Utena and it's manga as well as After the Revolution, the remaining pieces of Utena media and finally what Be-Papas did following on from Utena's completion.
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TIMESTAMPS:
1:13 - Intro - Utena is for the Queers
7:07 - Episodes 25 - 29 - The Student Council Returns & Ruka’s Love Triangle
35:21 - Episodes 30 - 33 - Akio Ohtori is a Bastard
48:33 - CW SECTION START
58:13 - CW SECTION END
59:27 - Intermission Une: Complex Character Narratives II: It Gets Worse
1:05:42 - Episodes 34 - 37 - Touga’s Last Stand & Utena’s Journey Pt 2
1:29:28 - Episodes 38 & 39 - End of the World & Anthy’s Journey
1:46:25 - Intermission Deux: Utena the Shoujo - A Look at the Utena Manga
1:57:55 - Adolescence of Utena
2:17:52 - Intermission Tois: Looking Past the Roses - A Deeper Look at The Fan Theories of Utena
2:27:26 - After The Revolution & What Came After Utena
2:44:59 - Outro - This is Why Utena is So Important
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'Calyx' is actually what Utena's name means! A calyx is the leafy covering on a flower bud that hasn't bloomed yet- the calyx protects the flower until the petals are strong enough to bloom on their own.
Anthy's name means 'flower', by the way. :)
Looking at the actions and perspective of Toga makes me hate akio even more and shows how far he has left his persona as dios behind. Not only does akio destroy girls/women but he also destroys boys and men corrupting them and morphing them into similar beings as him. We see how toga looks up to akio and wants to be an adult like him, and we see how akio twists that want to make toga not only worse but to bring him away from what little nobleness is in his heart. Akio is not only a poison for women but also for men as he forces/twists/corrupts them to be their worst selves.
Oh yeah, I feel like Touga's arc near the end is a rejection of Toxic Masculinity in it's worst form (although Touga is still a bit toxic in his own ways but compared to Akio he's basically a saint) and trying to break the cycles given to cismen who look up to men in those positions of power and realize how badly their actions affect those around them.
Patriarchy damages all genders even if it’s based on the wider abuse on one. I think that’s part of the message of the series.
@@ChloeSunfloraVA i feel like comparing anyone to Akio is a saint. he even makes Saorji look decent and that green haired a-hole is one of the worst. imo.
I LOVE how deep Nanamis episodes actually are underneath the silliness. I absolutely love them and I didn’t use to. Masterpieces of symbolism. Love the Dona Dona versions of the song, so many layers!!!!
Yes!! Just finished my first watch of utena and she’s my favorite!!
I think her filler episodes, even if some aren’t the biggest fan of them, really show her fears of disappointing her brother and how touga uses that fear to use her, which is an important character beat for the themes of the show imo
Also anthy passively fighting her is really funny to me lmao.
I watched the movie before I watched the series… and oh my gosh the stab in the back left me more in shock than any other ending in anything ever… as the movie left me with different expectations 😂 now I view the movie as a continuation, agreeing with Noralities
*SPITS HER DRINK*
GEEZ, I JUST SUBSCRIBED LIKE TWO DAYS AGO AND IT'S ALREADY HERE!?
MY TIMING IS EFFING GODLY!!
Picked the best time to subscribe! 🤭
Spoilers for end of the series/kooky fan theory:
I interpreted Nanami as becoming the next rose bride and very much stuck in Ohtori until she is able to remember what happened at the end of the series. I thought it was implied by her losing against Utena that her wish to leave Ohtori wasn’t granted by the prince (who I think is kind of like God in their universe which implies Akio is also a cult leader because he is a second coming of the prince, but I digress). Ohtori is also in some sort of weird time loop where certain characters have to forget what was before and be played in order for the dogma to stay in place (rose bride, end of the world, prince, pawns, etc). And at the end of the series she is shown to be passive towards her brother in I way I thought was similar to the rose bride and which goes against her character growth and characterization throughout the series.
If I were to write a spinoff sequel series I would make it where Nanami’s the rose bride, Saionji’s the prince and Touga has Nanami at the start of the series. Saionji remembers everything about Utena and himself because of that diary that no one cared about. Nanami and Touga don’t remember anything, even their childhood, which is horrible for Saionji because his best friend literally doesn’t remember him. To make things more interesting, some of the characters remember what happened and some don’t so they are either able to use that information to help others revolutionize or spread lies and use it as a bargaining chip or blackmail to gain power and influence. It would be up to Saionji to challenge these beliefs which would lead him to question his own and turn slowly change him from a raging misogynist and repressed gay to a better person who is a little less toxic and is able to accept himself through revolution and un-brainwashing the other characters and teaming up with them to take down end of the world/Akio by breaking apart the “cult” from the inside.
I get where you're coming from, but I feel the whole point about the ending was basically that while the majority of Ohtori has reset, enough has changed in everyone affected by the Rose Bride duels has been able to move forward in their own ways to the point where it can no longer continue as it was, as made bare when Anthy leaves of her own volition and ends the system she was trapped in.
The Rose Bride isn't something easily transferable either, it was Anthy's curse she had been felt forced to bare, Nanami may be a mirror to Anthy but it shouldn't be that she would be manipulated into being the Rose Bride, especially given what she knows about Akio by the end.
That concept you mentioned at the end is WILD as well, Saionji as an Utena stand in feels so wrong yet it could work so well if Akio did have universe manipulating powers to puppet them into place like that once Anthy leaves him
I hate that in the manga Touga is kind of like a Tuxedo Mask 😭(which is funny bc Ikuhara hated Tuxedo Mask), Saito really wanted Utena and him to be endgame that badly
It's certainly a choice, but I can understand why it would be more like that given that the manga iteration of Utena is meant to be playing more into typical shojo archetypes (and was even being published in shojo beat)
So happy to see part three came up! I’m looking forward to the retrospective ❤❤❤❤❤ thank you!
50:31 that Apple makes me think of Penguindrum. Mawaru Penguindrum somehow really helped me get more insight in R G Utena. As a fun Easter egg both Wakaba and Nanami use a Kappa themed water container for tea in Utena and it looks just like the design of the Sarazanmai characters
1:00:09 love this pin board just like The Community meme describing Utena fans for real 😂
Perfect gift for Christmas
Yamagoatchi
You really did comment the same thing from Part 2 huh? 🫤
?
@@ChloeSunfloraVA Yes!
Thank you for making these videos.
I enjoyed them.
Next time I watch through the series I plan on thinking about the pacing issues you mentioned from where some of the Nanami episodes are in the series.
I saw the dub first, so I'm gonna watch the Sub this time around.
I JUST WATCHED THE SECOND VIDEO LAST NIGHT OMF
Did you forget to add the time stamps? I cannot find them.
I am almost certain it's a glitch for youtube as the timestamps ARE in the description!
click on "more" in the description to open them up
56:32 true story
All three of them are actually true things that have either happened to people I know personally or to myself, for what it's worth.
@@ChloeSunfloraVA 💜 sending love