Shôjo kakumei Utena

Some folks may find this show "bizaar", but I found this a deeply moving, thought-provoking, and at times absurdly hilarious show worthy of a watch by anyone who desires something a little bit more cerebral and twisted.

Set in a school covered in a rose motif, Utena is the tomboy protagonist, beloved by all, who finds herself suddenly enmeshed in the secretive dealings of the student council, and finds herself suddenly "engaged", to a girl, no less! And there's an upside-down floating castle, swords that pop out of chests--Freud would have a field day with this show--and surfing elephants. And explosive curry! So, um, suspend your disbelief for this show, because it truly is worth it.

The characterization of this show is what really sells it. You have kids playing at adulthood, and if you see Utena as a coming of age show, you can see between the lines of how all the characters are not trying to achieve a "revolution of the world" in that they're gonna start a civil war, but that they are actually just trying to reach adulthood, pressing beyond the threshold to the other side, which all but the heroine are unable to do.

Sound cerebral? It is. And it's very enjoyable, tugging at your heartstrings and then making you unexpectedly laugh at something that, when you think about it or try to explain to someone else, makes no sense. The music is overall wonderful, especially the background music--The Sunlit Garden is perhaps one of the best instrumental pieces I have ever heard on a Tv show, and is worth a DL any day--and the voice acting is done well, even on the English dub, which I generally think are foul, cursed things, but Software Sculptors, the American distributor, did an okay job.

This is a worthy series. Watch it! It's coming out on DVD! Rewatch it! You'll find something new every time, and it'll still be enjoyable even on third and fourth watches.

Oh, and though the box might say it's rated PG or PG-13, and that it's from the director of Sailor Moon, don't think that this is for kids. Though the first 13 episodes are all right, beyond that the show gets a little too hard to understand--though when you're a kid all that stuff makes sense--and also has some undertones that some of the more conservative might not like their children getting hints of(i.E. homosexuality and incest). In my opinion, if they're old enough to even understand what's going on--because these undertones are indeed only subtly hinted at--then they're old enough to deal with it.

I think people get too caught up in attempting to understand something foreign to realize that many elements in Revolutionary Girl Utena are not meant to be taken literally and at times, seriously. Yes, it is strange, but, the strangeness is purposefully achieved as a method of storytelling. If one can look past or even appreciate the strangeness, one can find a worthwhile story that's both entertaining and insightful.

The main character, Utena Tenjou, is a student at a boarding school. She meets Anthy Himemiya, a shy girl who is the Rose Bride, the key figure in a mysterious plot by the Student Counsel to "revolutionise the world". The main storyline revolves around Utena and her journey, through different trials and obstacles, to uncover this mystery. To support the main story, there are many subplots and filled with colourful supporting characters, who add drama, humour, and complexity.

The Student Counsel members often recite a poem with portions borrowed from Herman Hesse's Demian. Like the Demian, Utena is about the antagonist's personal journey uncovering truth within their world and within themselves, through the transitional periods of youth. Unlike in Demian, the hero's journey in Utena is highly metaphorical. Despite seeming childish and simple at first, this series is actually incredibly dark with themes that are both adult in nature and adult in meaning. It uses many traditional archetypes – like the charming prince, the wicked witch, the naive hero – but changes these elements' relationship with each other and within the story as the vehicle to drive these progressive elements. Some of the ideas touched upon are the meaning of gender, gender roles, the meaning of self, etc.

Revolutionary Girl Utena is one of my favourite television series. Both the plot and the characters are highly developed. I actually greatly enjoy the surrealism, with over the top drama that both pokes fun of itself and other series within the shoujo (manga and anime for women and girls) genre. The fantastic story components along with highly stylized visuals full of symbolism paint an almost dream-like setting. It's a post-modern fairytale that's indefinitely unforgettable. You'll either love it or hate it, there's no in between.

This show has my heart honestly. It's a deep, dark and intrinsically layered show that really requires your full attention. From the gothic influenced soundtrack to the bright colour palate and the uniquely hand-drawn style, this show is just sonic and visual candy. The plot is painfully ambiguous in my opinion but still intriguing nonetheless. And of course there are the feminist and queer themes that has bestowed upon this show its iconic legacy. To think that such revolutionary (all pun intended) ideals and themes and subject matters were depicted in this show nearly 2 decades ago and has served as the inspiration to many other queer and feminist story is truly a testament to this show's legacy. I am quite honestly dying to know what happened after the end but I'm glad it was not a tragic one. The bond between Utena and Anthy was truly something that warmed my heart, the sanctity of their bond seemed to transcend just friendship and even romance. It was, in essence, just two girls who wanted to save each other no matter what. Though I was sad we never got to see them kiss, i think their attraction to one another was blatantly obvious in the subtext.

One of my few only complaint really is just the repetitive nature of the sword fights. Though it does add a great deal of spice and action into the story, I feel most of the drama is nullified knowing that Utena will always prevail in the end. And the sequence of her climbing up the endlessly spiralling staircase, whilst it is a great visual delight at first, does get old quite fast. I felt the black rose saga was quite pointless and characters got introduced at times only to not appear or serve any relevance to the plot later on.

Overall, Utena is an amazing show; far ahead of its time, that blends mind numbingly surrealist imagery with complex layered characters, an amazing artstyle and a killer soundtrack

to put it in the most simple terms i can, Shoujo Kakumei Utena is among the best anime to ever come along. Whilst I'll admit many people could never understand it, let alone like it, any fan of anime in general has to give this series a chance. From the overall surrealism to the bits of sexual innuendo, this series delivers an intriguing world of roses, swords, roses, stopwatches, roses, princes, and did i mention roses? Images of death and hope fill the series. The characters are a wide range of personalities, all linked to these duels(and thus the End(s) of the World) in some way or another. The imagery is ongoing, and sometimes even takes me a second, third, even fourth watching to get it all(well, to get most of it, some of the series I believe is meant to never FULLY be understood.), and I dont usually need to see anything more than twice to catch it all. While not for everyone, fans of deeper, even more provocative series' will find Shoujo Kakumei Utena a very entertaining anime series.

This is one of the best anime series out there. the only thing is, it may not be for everybody. PLEASE dont make the mistake of blowing this one off as a kiddie saturday morning cartoon-type-thing at first glance. This is most certainly NOT one for the little children!!^__^ The plot is full of symbolism, the story line is complex and can often touch onto twisted or morbid subjects, and the characters are deep. Dont be surprised if you need to take a couple of psychology courses to understand this series! Anyway, This is a GREAT series, personally, one of the top animes out there, in my opinion!!WAAAAAI!!!! MIKI KAORU RULES!!!!