Audience reviews
20 · Sample from the first available page, separate from the total number of ratings.
AgentBishop
You’ve probably heard it before:
“A masterpiece that inspired generations of strong female characters. A philosophical giant in anime that challenged gender norms…”
Whenever I see praise that over-the-top, I get suspicious. Usually, good feminist stories get criticized even by feminists for being too real, too messy. But this? This had the glow of untouchable “progressiveness,” which to me is a red flag.
And sure enough, by episode one, I had my doubts confirmed.
Utena shows up in a boys’ uniform (kind of), dunks on the entire male basketball team, and defeats a trained swordsman with a wooden sword — all while winning ownership of a mysteriously submissive minority girl who barely talks. The girl literally lives to serve whoever beats her master in combat. Symbolism? Sure. But also pr…
Read at the sourceliteraturenerd
Overview:
Yesterday, I completed the final episode of Revolutionary Girl Utena...and it was spectacular! My only regret is that I didn't watch this anime years ago! I managed to watch over 1,050 anime before watching my first episode of Utena!
To explain why I put it off for SO long, I have to dive into some backstory. The year is 2002 and I'm 14 years old. I'm in 8th grade and starting to take anime more seriously. I'm checking out random anime at Blockbuster instead of just watching whatever is on Cartoon Network and the Syfy channel. I see "Revolutionary Girl Utena" and think "Wow! That's a strange title!" I check out the back of the case and realize "Oh it's one of those anime for girls! I don't need to watch this!". A couple years later, I recall some classmates talking about Utena…
Read at the sourceKalikal
Story:
It's made in a way you will get confused all the way through. The plot seems like this huge divine scheme and so, you expect for more and hold your breath at the possibilities. That was the beginning and I felt like I was in for a ride, though the big impact never came. Major stories go unexplained or not explained all the all through. The plot held a potencial of storytelling and it could have been worked on better. Nevertheless, one thing I really enjoyed was the constant interaction with the surroundings. It created an environment where the interactions seemed this much more connected and they all had meaning.
Art and sound:
It's presented a fine combination of sounds and views, they are well put together to emerge you in the scene. Like good, unique soundtracks, every time they…
Read at the sourcebrandotendie
In probably what was some of the longest 48 episodes I've ever had to endure in anime (asides from shonen junk), Utena is absolutely frustrating.
Now, let me just share my experience with this supposed "legendary" show.
I usually avoid analysis vids/posts at all costs, before, during, or even after first-time watches, just because I feel as if even the most abstract and symbolic works should be interpreted on your own.
With Lain, I rewatched it 3 times just to really get a grasp on what it all boiled down to, and even after those, I never really fully grasped the show.
But I STILL never looked at any sort of "theory" or analysis because I felt that my experience with Lain was worth it.
With NGE, hell even EoE, I've never looked at any interpretation other than some lore vids just t…
Read at the sourceIukaSylvie
I know this is an unpopular opinion, but I was disappointed to watch a decadent show, not the great Feminist Fantasy that Writing and Fighting for Love and Justice claims as is. Aside from how repetitive and formulaic the story is, I found myself actually feeling Darkness-Induced Audience Apathy alongside my mother by the end of the show because most of the characters were either unpleasant or miserable without subtlety.
While I did like Juri and Wakaba, it didn't change the fact that I found none of the characters particularly relatable and that the show felt decadent much unlike the following works, all of which deal with The End of the World as We Know It, genocide, and/or the loss of loved ones. In fact, I found Count Bleck from Super Paper Mario, Scar from Fullmetal Alchemist, Anton…
Read at the sourceSanaeK10
Shoujo Kakumei Utena is a difficult beast to review. On one hand, it has one of the more interesting and heart-wretching plots in an anime I've watched ; on another hand, it sure takes its own sweet time reaching the good parts. Let's dive in, shall we?
The major problem I had with this anime is its pacing. The first episode set up this incredible tale of action and drama with a lingering mystery as to Utena's backstory and the identities of her prince, the mysterious End of The World character and the Rose Bride as well as their relationships with one another. However subsequent episodes instead stopped this focus on the main characters and instead introduce and shifted the focus onto the side characters and their arcs, which are also split in between several other filler episodes. While…
Read at the sourceSorrow
Revolutionary Girl Utena is a hidden gem within hidden gems. A rather strange anime indeed but everything about this story just spews out greatness. There's just so much happening all at once, it's almost as if there are 6-7 different stories happening all at the same time, and then as the show progresses, each story intertwines with another. There's no doubt that this anime was highly influenced by Ikeda Riyoko's Rose of Versailles, one of my favorite tragedies ever; both have a strong female lead growing up as a male (focus on gender-roles), take place in a historical (royal) setting, are quite theatrical (Shakespeare-like almost), incorporate inexplicable roses and have a intriguing/illustrious story. Utena tells a coming-of-age story that explores two big questions in particular (in al…
Read at the sourcekekekeKaj
First things first - "Revolutionary Girl Utena" (I'll just call it "Utena" for the sake of brevity from here on) is a weird anime. And I mean *really* weird. The surreal settings, the plethora of symbolisms that constantly assault the viewer, the sexual innuendos... the whole show is so bizarre that it's hard to know where to begin the review.
I'd heard a lot about "Utena" beforehand. Some say it's the shoujo version of "Neon Genesis Evangelion"; others say that Oscar from "Rose of Versailles" is Utena's spiritual grandmother; and many people consider it to be one of the greatest masterpieces in anime. Having seen it, I can conclude that there is merit in all of those statements. Well, perhaps apart from that last one. For me, "Utena" is too flawed to be deserving of that honour. However,…
Read at the sourcethisiodfkln
Is it possible to stay noble forever? From birth onward, reality batters at purity: those who wish to fly are pinned down by gravity; those who wish for harmony are lied to in a world filled with hateful war; and those who wish for love are perhaps given it, only to be broken by death or betrayal.
Sometimes the pain is so great, that the victim begins to fear never-ending misery inflicted by a disappointing world - one all to lacking in miracles. This fear becomes a barrier between the victim and the world. The mere thought of intimate connections triggers very strong anxiety, resulting in either total seclusion or a public, yet detached and empty existence.
Utena tries to be chivalrous. With that one notable exception, there is not a character in Revolutionary Girl Utena who has remai…
Read at the sourceLindle
Revolutionary Girl Utena is routinely described as Neon Genesis Evangelion for girls, and not without good reason. However, I believe this may well be a series even greater than the benchmark Evangelion sets.
At the very start of the series, we are given a vague explanation of some of the events that lead to Utena becoming who she is today. When her parents died when she was only a child, she fell into a serious depression. In the midst of this, a strange, prince-like man approached her, presenting her with a rose-crested ring, and telling her the ring will lead her back to him one day. So far, so generic shoujo. But normally, the female protagonist would simply be wooed by the mysterious man, and desperately need him. Utena is a little... different. She didn't want the prince... she want…
Read at the sourceLadyReina
Spoiler upon spoiler; reviews aren’t supposed to have spoilers? Guess this will have to be the last spoiled one, then.…
With so much to love, where to begin?
The shadow play girls, A-ko and B-ko, lend a child’s simplicity to every episode, strangely deepening it as only children can; or maybe they really are aliens? Nanami with her cowbell, Nanami with her egg, Nanami crushed repeatedly by elephants: she’s a foil, rich with absurdity. Wakaba and Utena are true friends, and the student council members actually develop into individuals rather than remain as personality quirks; as individuals, they share in moments of intimacy with Utena that are natural and unforced: whether it’s Juri offering Utena a sword, Utena grieving over Wakaba, Utena with Touga the night before their final duel, o…
Read at the sourceDarkchao45
Let me give you a fair warning when watching this anime, it is a complete mind juggler. There is an abundance of homosexual insinuation and incest. You may think you have the plot down by watching the first 2-3 episodes, but trust me when I say there is way more to the story.
Lets begin with the characters. Each character has their own time to shine. Some characters have their story retold throughout the show with some minor details added in every once in a while. There is a strong sense of hardship with each characters story. Place close attention to each character for it is very important to somewhat understand the rest of the show. The main character Utena is very easy to read, its Anthy that makes you wonder the most throughout the series.
As you may have read from other reviews, t…
Read at the sourceohtori_akio
Before you read this review, I would ask of you to please not judge it solely on the high rating. I have put a lot of work into this and I do address things like repeated footage and why I still give it this rating. Besides, what anime of this format does not have reused footage?
This anime is one of the best I have seen and, is arguably the best Shojo anime ever made - although it breaks away from that fold very fast. The show slowly moves into a darker territory that many shows do not dare approach. The biggest surprise is how subtlely and tastefully it explores things like incest, lesbianism, obsession and adoration. This show explores all these spectacularly well, in fact you could still go on decoding imagery and sounds after viewing the series 30 times because it is so rich in metap…
Read at the sourceForion
Well, if I try to write a detailed review of my favourite anime series, I'm likely to end up with something more like a doctoral thesis. :) So, here's just a brief list of what may be found inside this anime:
• A surreal and philosophical piece of art, where each frame is tightly packed by symbols, where you may find new details and ideas with every rewatch;
• A very complex and thoroughly thought-out plot, with its unique rhythm formed by numerous through and recurring storylines, where every two lines either parallel or intersect;
• An ultimate deconstruction of the shoujo/romance genre, crushing/subverting/reducing to absurd each and every popular cliche;
• A picture of how twisted might classic fairy-tales have become if they really happened in our daily life;
• A great story of most…
Read at the sourceKotori
I had high hopes for this Anime at the beginning because of the high global score, but I was quickly disappointed.
Story: There is very little story. There is an event which you are told about in the first episode and remains through the whole 39 episodes, but after the show ends it's still unclear. There are other mysteries which never develop at all and are never explained.
Art: Art was very poor, specially the characters are poorly drawn with girls who sometimes look like guys.
Sound: The music was actually pretty good. It has several songs which switch every few episodes.
Character: Character development was really bad. They barely changed at all through the entire series, besides some sudden and totally unbelievable complete change for no clear reason, just to be the same again th…
Read at the sourceTrenchKamen
Admittedly, I'm biased when it comes to reviewing this anime. I started watching it at a very impressionable age, and the impact it had on me at that particular time in my life is astronomical. I also have a huge soft spot for anything surreal, gender-bending, absurd, existential, or psychological.
That being said, Utena fulfills all of those criteria beautifully. And it is enjoyable on multiple levels. I enjoy it as much now, at age 20, as I did at age 12. My understanding of the characters, the symbolism, and the message inherent in each episode has changed dramatically. At a young age I saw everything as Utena did; I viewed the series from her standpoint, agreed with her fully, and essentially played the role of the fool. In the final episodes when she does not understand what Akio wa…
Read at the sourceDolorDecorus
Revolutionary Girl Utena is a strange and beautiful show. It's a wonder that I have not seen it when it first came out, a wonder that I barely gave it another glance that time when I first heard of it. However maybe it was a blessing: I understand it now more so than I would when I was younger. And with so much symbolism and such complicated characters with an equally complicated mythos and purpose.
Story: The fairy tale is torn apart. The idea of the princess being the helpless damsel, the witch being a cruel, jealous being, and the prince being charming and courageous is destroyed piece by piece within Utena. Even the unusual fairytale of the Princess so impressed by a Prince that naturally she wants to become a Prince as well is dismantled. As a shoujo anime, it is the characters that…
Read at the sourceVenneh
Warning: Epically long review ahead, mainly because I love this series so much.
Title: Revolutionary Girl Utena
Manga, Anime: Revolutionary Girl Utena was originally a manga with story by Be-Papas and art by Chiho Saito that ran in Shogakugan's Ciao magazine from 1996 to 1997. It has been licensed Stateside by Viz Media, and the final volume, which covers the movie, was released on December 3rd, 2007.
Revolutionary Girl Utena has two anime incarnations. One is the original TV show, which is made of 39 total episodes, and was produced by JC Staff (famous for their work on Honey and Clover and Potemayo), and directed by Kunihiko Ikuhara (famous for becoming the director Sailor Moon after the second half of the R season up until the SuperS season). It ran on Japanese TV from April 2nd, 199…
Read at the sourceTwickers
---The review contains spoilers---
It's been about five years now since I first saw this anime and still it's my definite favorite. I wasn't that interested at first, because it sounded rather pathetic with a bunch of people having secret meetings to duel each other over some girl. But I gave it a chance and watched the first four episodes, which ended with the first of a two part episode. Not really nice and the question "what happens next" haunted me quite some time and I was relieved when I got the DVD with episode five. I was satisfied afterwards and just didn't have enough time for the rest of it. But a few months later a friend of mine bought DVDs 1-7 (8 wasn't out yet) and so we sat there, three people, a weekend with nothing to do and we watched. 35 episodes in a row and there wa…
Read at the sourceelricbro15
This series continues to flirt with the #1 spot among my favorites, and Utena stands high above any other female character in anime that I have seen. Her character is so strong and holds to her ideals of nobility so much that it's hard not to like her.
Some of the terminology took a little getting used to, as it takes normal ideas of gender roles and throws them out the window. Utena, for example, wants to become a prince. No, she doesn't want to become a man - she wants to be strong and noble and rescue princesses. Why can't a girl do this, too? Yes, Anthy is considered the Rose Bride, and she becomes "engaged" to the people that are the current champion. Does this mean they're going to get married? Not sure. Once the words are out of the way, though, you're good to go.
The plot starts…
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