((I’m no fan of ‘Panic! At the Disco!’ but I loved this AMV done to “Lying is the Most Fun a Girl Can Have Without Taking Her Clothes Off”))
I finished Revolutionary Girl Utena a long time ago, but still, it always sorts of catches my fancy—particularly due to the elations and frustrations I felt at the hands of the ambiguous characters. I have yet to watch the movie, and I have yet to read the manga, but the show itself will always remain one of my favorites.
Back then, after watching Ep. 16 (one of the humorously bizarre filler episodes) I wrote this little article putting my confusion and delight into a nutshell—
RULES OF REVOLUTION:
Rule 1: Sisters are either in love with their brothers…or have sex with them. (never both) No exceptions.
Rule 2: Think your straight? Think again….and again, and again, and again, and again—
Rule 3: Each fight deserves apocalyptic opera rock in the background. I’ll say it again. Apocalyptic opera rock.
Rule 4: The monkey-rat eats everything. He eats his food, her food, your food, their food…stuff he THINKS is food. If his mouth isn’t chewing something, its cuz he’s dead.
Rule 5: Are you pissed? Slap Anthy. Go on. Do it. It’s what everyone does…everyone. Everyday. Every minute. Every second. (Every episode?)
Rule 6: You cannot attend Ohtori Academy unless your parents are dead, you’re into incest, your gay, or seeking to ‘prove’ or ‘disprove’ some abstract concept like eternity or miracles.
Rule 7: Everyone knows how to fight with a sword.
Rule 8: Choo-Choo =/= Chu-Chu.
Rule 9: The overly dramatic is not dramatic, its comedic. And the overly comedic is not comedic, its dramatic.
Rule 10: Leaves, spinning roses, stopwatches, cats, and bells mean more then they seem to mean.
Runaway kangaroos, dinners made of shaved ice, and little monkey-rats that eat everything. Revolutionary Girl Utena is most certainly one of the oddest animes I’ve watched, but still, I can see why it’s a classic. Angst AND humor? It’s delivered flawlessly together in an entrancing show of stinging backhands, confused identities, and misguided intentions. Flowing beneath the story is a constant current of darkness and doom (yes, darkness and DOOM) that sort of dances around in the back of your mind, despite some of the lighthearted parts of the series. The reason behind the fighting, the ever present threat of apocalypse peeks its head out at you when the characters experience their worst. The damaged bits that sort of flap around inside them become apparent at times in their interactions, as well as their battles. These kids are screwy. Some kids are so screwy it’s a wonder they haven’t been committed.
But to say RGU (my lazy acronym for the show) is depressing would be a lie. What RGU is, is engaging. It’s a drama that, despite its oddities makes you wanna know what the hell is going to happen…and for the most part, hope things go all right.
EDIT: Today’s short post is due in part to the fact that I’m going to be busy most of today and won’t have time to do something more detailed. Sorry folks…I may post more on RGU later, though.
...Prepare to Die. 