Spotlight Character: Anthy Himemiya (Revolutionary Girl Utena) MAL Character Information Page: Anthy "The Rose Bride" Himemiya MAL Favorites: 93 For the next week I would like to have everyone familiar with this character discuss what they think makes it an exceptional character. What attributes make it stand out in the ocean of interesting characters that exist in the realms of anime and manga. Unlike the other two subjects I will not force this conversation to fall into any set structure. Characters that are nominated typically get here because they are adept at breaking the existing character moulds and defying definition. Because of this freedom I encourage everyone to do their very best to stay on topic and keep any and all debate civil. Have fun and I look forward to seeing what everyone has to say about this character. RESULTS OF THE YOU DECIDE POLL Anthy Himemiya was NOT inducted into the club Character list: 10 Yes - 40.0% 15 No - 60.0% 38 Don't know this character - 55.0% of the total number polled 6 Abstained - 8.6% of the total number polled |
santetjanJul 14, 2011 6:49 AM
| You do not beg the sun for mercy. |
| Here's a funny little detail: when I first started Utena, I hated Anthy. She was such a terrible character. She was a doormat to absurd levels, had no personality, was completely subservient to whoever she was engaged to, and just presented as ridiculously, annoyingly perfect. But as this continued, it got to levels of such absurdity that it became increasingly obvious that something was just plain not right here. I was very impressed by Utena gradually showing that Anthy's ridiculously passive personality wasn't just a cartoony character trait, and was in fact the result of an insanely screwed up individual instead. In particular, how, as the series progresses... This, along with the ending, makes me find Anthy firmly worthy of induction. |
LindleJul 1, 2011 9:59 AM
| She isn't manipulating him, they both have no choice. btw I aslo vote yes. |
Dozer said: I agree to this, and yet I don't. In some ways she's manipulating him, in others he's using her, but neither is truly in absolute control.She isn't manipulating him, they both have no choice. btw I aslo vote yes. |
| I'm yet to be convinced, so everyone should develop those ideas. |
 Waratte Oemashou Sore ha Chiisana Inori |
| Anthy, is based on/ symbolizes the characters of average girls in fairy tales and just like all those characters she never develops. She might have interesting characteristics for some people but she's just there doing nothing waiting to be rescued (just like Snow white, Cinderella, sleeping beauty and etc.). But this time instead of prince charming with the white horse, princess charming comes along with a bike! I've always disliked the passive attitude this type of characters have in general. Whether they're being used or abused or loved or hated they just remain the same going with the flow as if they are dolls. Anthy is not original (apart from her bisexual tendencies which even feels like a "go with the flow" fling for her at times) and she doesn't develop much. She's particularly a mere tool in the movie. Definite No from me. |
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kokuro said: Anthy, is based on/ symbolizes the characters of average girls in fairy tales and just like all those characters she never develops. She might have interesting characteristics for some people but she's just there doing nothing waiting to be rescued (just like Snow white, Cinderella, sleeping beauty and etc.). But this time instead of prince charming with the white horse, princess charming comes along with a bike! I've always disliked the passive attitude this type of characters have in general. Whether they're being used or abused or loved or hated they just remain the same going with the flow as if they are dolls. Anthy is not original (apart from her bisexual tendencies which even feels like a "go with the flow" fling for her at times) and she doesn't develop much. She's particularly a mere tool in the movie. Definite No from me. The reason she doesn't develop over the series is that her characterisation is based around her being stuck in her current state. The ending was her, through Utena, escaping from the confines she was in, breaking free from the relationship she was in with Akio, and moving on to a new life, trying to find Utena. I also hate the kind of passive characters that Anthy resembles, which is why the twist that she is characterised around makes her so refreshing. She's one of the most excellent deconstructions of a character archetype I've seen, especially given that she manages to avoid simply falling into the archetype nonetheless like many other characters intended to deconstruct an archetype. EDIT: Wait. You dropped Utena at episode 15. That explains a lot. Uhh... I think it's extremely presumptuous of you to say a character never develops when you've not even watched a full half of the series they're in, let alone the full picture. |
Lind_L_Tailor said: kokuro said: Anthy, is based on/ symbolizes the characters of average girls in fairy tales and just like all those characters she never develops. She might have interesting characteristics for some people but she's just there doing nothing waiting to be rescued (just like Snow white, Cinderella, sleeping beauty and etc.). But this time instead of prince charming with the white horse, princess charming comes along with a bike! I've always disliked the passive attitude this type of characters have in general. Whether they're being used or abused or loved or hated they just remain the same going with the flow as if they are dolls. Anthy is not original (apart from her bisexual tendencies which even feels like a "go with the flow" fling for her at times) and she doesn't develop much. She's particularly a mere tool in the movie. Definite No from me. The reason she doesn't develop over the series is that her characterisation is based around her being stuck in her current state. The ending was her, through Utena, escaping from the confines she was in, breaking free from the relationship she was in with Akio, and moving on to a new life, trying to find Utena. I also hate the kind of passive characters that Anthy resembles, which is why the twist that she is characterised around makes her so refreshing. She's one of the most excellent deconstructions of a character archetype I've seen, especially given that she manages to avoid simply falling into the archetype nonetheless like many other characters intended to deconstruct an archetype. EDIT: Wait. You dropped Utena at episode 15. That explains a lot. Uhh... I think it's extremely presumptuous of you to say a character never develops when you've not even watched a full half of the series they're in, let alone the full picture. She does not escape from her world on her own, she's rescued by, lead by and dragged out of her state by yet another person. My statement of going with the flow and others fighting over her stays true all the way. My review is based on the movie and the series (as much as I've watched of it) so yes in my opinion she's not developing even considering the ending of the series which I've watched. Cause it's something happening to her during the story (like having an accident or an event happening) it does not come from within her, it's just a flow she's put in. All the points you mention about her, are the story related not the character related points in my opinion. Yes the story tries to make her the symbolic fairy tale girl who escapes the usual and cliche ending all of her likes face in such stories but that push again is performed by another character not her. I've stated this before as a general note but once one is eligible to vote based on the rules, they are free to express their thoughts on any entry based on their judgment of the required amount they've watched/read. If for example, 13/4 episodes is enough to vote yes/no, I don't see why that person should be asked to keep quiet about their opinion on the entry. This is my personal view, if you disagree it's all good and dandy but doesn't change the fact that even if most people won't post their ideas, there are many yes/no votes eligible by partial viewing of a series. |
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| And just like kokuro rightly mentions that one is eligible to vote based on any of the rules, I'll add that I've at one point stated that while many people base their vote only on the best performance of a character amongst the entries it appeared in, one should actually base oneself as far as possible on all distinct portrayals. In the case of any of the Utena characters this is a rather important point, as most, if not all, characters are quite different over the various entries they appear in. That said, kokuro, from your phrasing I do get the distinct impression that much of what you state against Anthy is based on, and I quote: 'I've always disliked the passive attitude this type of characters have in general'. That is, on a dislike on this specific portrayal of a character. It touches upon another point of discussion raised before in the various spotlights: should one vote based on how good a character is solely on general characterisation criteria, or should one take into account whether a specific character fits a specific role to a T, even if said role itself is quite bland? You stating that Anthy fits the role of your average fairytale girl perfectly could, in a way, be a strongly positive factor, as this is exactly what she is meant to be (up to a point, that is). She is bland, slightly disturbing, later on perhaps even despicable, and that's exactly what she's meant to be. If I wanted to get tongues wagging, I could even contest her passivity and say that she is (wait for it!) passive-aggressive - especially in the film. Personally, I'm actually unsure as to what to vote. Quite apart from any development and whatever one wishes to read into her various actions, especially later on in the anime series (most of which does not make much sense to me), I want to raise the point that she is used as an enigma. True, people duel over her, but why? She acts like she has no will at all, but her strong attachment to the duel winners itself would suggest otherwise - and why? She is simply almost always _present_ and by this fact alone seems to influence the happenings. It makes her a very interesting tool, yet one that remains overall unpredictable enough to simply put her away with a 'coat rack' designation. I think that, in the end, the vote on Anthy bogs down to how one looks at plot devices. Is one that takes human form and - up to a point - human characteristics in itself interesting and original enough to warrant a 'Yes' vote in the 'character' department? Or should we look at how much the character appears to be human and reacts like a human would to her surroundings only? |
| You do not beg the sun for mercy. |
| @santetjan: I think the sentence you've quoted from my post shouldn't be singled out. What I said there (I'd repeat myself to make sure my point is clear and is not misunderstood) is that: Anthy, is based on/ symbolizes the characters of average girls in fairy tales and just like all those characters she never develops... she's just there doing nothing waiting to be rescued (just like Snow white, Cinderella, sleeping beauty and etc.)... I've always disliked the passive attitude this type of characters have in general. Whether they're being used or abused or loved or hated they just remain the same going with the flow as if they are dolls. Should I need to explain what I mean by the above (and also note that I mentioned that while her characteristics might be likable for some she lacks development from my point of view) I'd say that the very passive attitude of such characters have always kept them as shallow characters almost to the level of a doll. My dislike for them is not based on the characteristics but due to the fact that they don't develop however at the same time it's their characteristic that keeps them from developing for the most. So it's almost like a loop. A plot tool that the rest of the cast of the story, for mostly unknown logical reasons, do whatever they can to destroy or rescue them and meanwhile these types of characters do absolutely nothing and won't even change (develop). (on a different note I've always been interested in how this type of characters have transformed into the average shoujo girls as I can see many of the patented characteristics of the fairy tale girls reflected in shoujo characters) In my opinion for a character to be induction worthy they need to have depth, develop during the story, have more than one side (not being one dimensional) and be original and well expressed and in best cases I'd like them to be able to stand alone as a person apart from the story (i.e I'd like to be able to define them without bringing in the events that happen to them) but that's very rare. Anthy above all lacks proper depth specially considering where she originates from. One dimensional and obviously (since she's supposed to symbolize certain stereotypes) not original (but that's not the main issue in her case). For me these are all reasons to vote No for her or any character like her. |
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kokuro said: Anthy, is based on/ symbolizes the characters of average girls in fairy tales and just like all those characters she never develops. She might have interesting characteristics for some people but she's just there doing nothing waiting to be rescued (just like Snow white, Cinderella, sleeping beauty and etc.). But this time instead of prince charming with the white horse, princess charming comes along with a bike! I've always disliked the passive attitude this type of characters have in general. Whether they're being used or abused or loved or hated they just remain the same going with the flow as if they are dolls. Anthy is not original (apart from her bisexual tendencies which even feels like a "go with the flow" fling for her at times) and she doesn't develop much. She's particularly a mere tool in the movie. Definite No from me. pretty much sums up how I feel about Anthy, and I've finished the series (twice). To me Anthy doesn't really stand alone as her own character and is sort of just there as a plot device. Like Lind said, she does seem like the true bad guy in the series sometimes, but in the end I just can't help but think of Anthy just as some sort of trophy in the show. Everyone duels for her and wants to win her, but I don't really see why. She really does seem like an easily replaceable character since to me she is just there to move the plot forward and not really contribute much. |
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