You see this a lot with good shows: they have awesome pre-ending-episodes, but the ending itself totally sucks.
I am SO GLAD that Revolutionary Girl Utena does NOT belong to this category. I can honestly say that I totally enjoyed the ending of this magnificent anime. The ending would so easily fall in my top-5 of best endings. It was beautiful. Truly beautiful. I’m glad to have seen such an awesome series.
RGU is my all time most favourite anime and it’s nice to see there are still people interested in it. When I saw the ending for the first time I was totally unhappy, because I did not undesrtand that’s it’s actually good. But after some reconsideration and the cute pictures in one of the artbooks where
*SPOILER*
Anthy and Utena finaly meet *sigh
*SPOILER*
I just love it and cool you enjoyed it, too ^^
I’m agree with you, the ending was good, but could be better.
Now, see th movie ^^
I surely will watch it.
Thanks for the comments, both of you. ^_^
Just wondering, but does Utena become a guy? I’ve read the book and watched part of the anime, but it’s just too long for me. How come she didn’t end up with the Touga guy but the girl? Is Utena a les? I’m confused so if you could e-mail me the response, it would be great.
Okay, PSGELS ranked this anime in his top 10 anime and I thought I’ll give it a try. When I first reviewed one episode a year ago, I didn’t like it because it was old and the music was totally different. And I thought the main girls were lesbians…it was something I didn’t want to put it with and watch. But last week since I started with episode 1 and it was okay…okay that I finished it.
Utena is actually a well liked character. She’s not girly, girly and has a straight head on her shoulder. Anthy was a dry character and it was hinted that there were things unusual and wrong about her that made her dry. Later it is reveal that she felt like a person with no heart/soul.
Okay, I finished the series and I have to say that it was a lot better than I expected. Sure, it’s 39 episodes so the characters are well developed. There’s good humor and that doesn’t come from the character’s crazy funny faces or exaggerated personalities. The characters are sometimes clueless or slow and it makes them funny.
One thing that annoying about this series is that each arc is formulic…you know what’s going on. The last arc was the most interesting arc. There’s repeated scenes when Utena is about to duel…they’re so annoying that I skipped through them.
The Kashira(?) girls that does the shadow plays were interesting and fun to watch.
I don’t quite understand the last few episodes. My interpretation of it is that Anthy was in love with her brother Akio as Nanami was in love with her brother Touga. Both girls didn’t like their playboy brothers to be with other girls. Akio’s title of a prince is a metaphor of him as a playboy and being loved by all girls(?). Akio gets hurt one day and Anthy doesn’t allow other people to be near Akio. Because of that, Anthy is hated by all and is labeled a witch. Akio no longer becomes the well-liked prince he once was and becomes ugly and refers himself as End of the World. Since his old self died, he tortures his sister in incest sex (this is weird & unforgiving) and as the Rose Bride. As Rose Bride, Anthy participates willing in whatever is needed of her and plays in Akio’s game of revolutionizing the world.
Anthy blames herself for her brother’s transformation and does nothing. She becomes a person with no heart/soul. In Akio’s game of revolutionizing the world, Anthy is also tortured by being stabbed by swords.
So in the end, both Akio and Anthy don’t die even though Anthy fell and Akio was crushed. Were these events illusions? Utena was stabbed for sure and she transferred schools. Anthy having met Utena felt alive after so many years of being a dead person that she leaves the school to find Utena.
Now, I don’t understand what power there was behind the gates that could revolutionize the world. When Utena opened the gates, Anthy was inside it. So then, by getting Anthy out, was that the revolutionary power to change the world? Or was that the way to save Anthy from her torment? I feel like there are too many metaphors or symbolic meanings and I don’t quite get it.
PSGELS, how did you understand this anime??? Thanks.
Awesome comment, headachebaby. I’ll be referring to your interpretation from now on!
This is one of the best animes I have ever seen in my life and a jewel in literature ^_^
@headachebaby
I know you’re not gona read this lol, but anyways.
There was a Revolution. It was “change”. Utena “revolutioned” Anthy, from what I understood.
Those coffins were pretty much a world where time has stopped because the characters did not want to live due to life’s hardships.
Utena’s revolution is to free her friends; they all moved towards the future except Akio. He’s the only coffin left.