I was just piecing myself together from the mess Madoka Magica left me in when I stumbled across this show. I was looking for something that would satisfy the Madoka craving that was going rampant in my head, but nothing seemed to fit. I wasn't into magical girl shows before that, and everything I found was either a bland attempt to copy it or something that came out before it shook the genre. And so I came across Utena. Although the stories are nothing alike, I soon came to realize why people who watched one recommended the other. Just like Madoka, Utena reexamines the story tropes it tackles, throwing them upside down and making you think about them long after you've finished the show.
And now for the actual review:
Utena starts of as one of those classic high school anime with a supernatural element to it (I'm gonna assume you already read the plot synopsis). It'll have you fooled for quite some time, until it decides to shed its covers and show you just how deep the rabbit hole goes. The show makes use of the day to day life of high schoolers and exciting duels that might decide the fate of the world to mask its real intensions. And what that is, is a deep and complex view on reaching adulthood with an accent on forbidden love and personal identity. It's one hell of a commentary on the way modern society treats sexuality if I've ever seen one.
The show starts of with a familiar fairytale beginning: a prince arriving to rescue a princess. That trope will soon get dumped on its head just like the rest Utena likes to introduce and then drive stakes through. This isn't a show for the lighthearted or those looking for some casual fun. It starts all tender and timid, but will soon overflow you with the sheer amount of detail pouring out of its every seam. A different song is played for each new duel, the layout of the arena changes to encompass the mood and themes present, the characters' desires reflect in their every action and all of that is in sync with the ever higher stakes. Good luck keeping track of all the audio and visual cues thrown at you. They are plentiful and densely fitted into the show to better hint all the nuances hidden in seemingly ordinary scenes.
As you can imagine, the characters take the same turns the plot does. They might look like your typical high school ensemble, but just you wait till they start turning tables on everything you thought you knew about them. Utena herself is a breath of fresh air among the usual lineup of main leads (that nowadays tend to bore the living Jesus out of me). Not only does she have an actual personality, she is also a great anchor for the crazy that makes up the rest of the cast. Utena applies a good amount of common sense to every situation which makes her an excellent character for the audience to relate to. The rest of the cast offers an equal amount of depth. The show will give you a chance to guess how they'll develop, but will more often than not tuck away one of their traits to surprise you with later. For example, Anthy continued to baffle me episode on episode throughout, Touga was the center of all my animosity but managed to gain my sympathy towards the end and Nanami turned from a pain the in ass to a freaking icon.
Speaking of the technical aspects, god damn does this show still look good. The character and environment design is something I wish modern anime would look up to. The effort put into making everyone and everything look distinct is more than apparent. You won't be mistaking Anthy or Utena for other anime protagonists anytime soon. For lack of a better description, the soundtrack is a total bombshell. Each track fits each scene like a glove, both complementing it and slowly making its way to the back of your head. Special praise should be given to the OP and EDs. Other than containing great songs, they are also full of sly suggestions as to what it is you're watching.
There's more than enough in this show to make it a certified 10. Sadly, there are things holding it back, the episode count and pacing being the most prominent. The show is divided into 3 roughly 13 episode arcs. The second arc does very little to progress the story and mostly rehashes what's been said in the first one and what's going to be said in the paramount last one. There's also an abundant amount of filler episodes. For a show that is under 50 episodes long, the existence of these fillers is beyond me. I understand and fully support the need for a couple of slower paced and not so plot important episodes in-between all the action. However, in Utena, the only thing they achieve is to deflate the tension and ruin the pace. It makes the show more of a watered down latte than a caffeine shot that's meant to knock you of your seat. It would have done significantly better with a smaller episode count and thus a more condensed plot, introducing important story elements earlier on and getting rid of the repeated (and questionably artistic) story arcs.
The other equally important remark is the convoluted nature of the main plot. I understand that Utena is one big metaphor for growing up in a society that makes you conform to its rules and disregards your wishes and feelings. There's enough hidden little things in here for a dozen more rewatches. I love shows that encourage and reward their viewers for figuring out its many meanings, but don't think the same route should be taken when it comes to the main plot. The show would have been a lot more approachable if it took time from its fillers to better explain the core message behind it.
As there is an actual shorter version of Utena in the form of the movie retelling, you might be wondering if it solves some of the problems I listed above. The answer to that would be NO. The movie is the filthy spawn of some fanfic infested mind and should be avoided like the plague which it is. It ruins every single thing that was good about the show and can be best summed up as: an absolute destiny apocalypse. While I’m at it, do yourself a favor and stay away from the dub, unless you wanna make your ears bleed.
Now that that’s out of my system, the final verdict would be something like this:
What's most impressive about Utena is the maturity with which it handles its many themes, most of which are still taboo today, let alone twenty years ago when the show came out. Such a thorough and true to life stand on the failures of society when it comes to sexuality and gender roles is a rare find among all media, not just anime. The through the roof production quality and astounding attention to detail only add to it. Even though it will occasionally make you hit your head against a wall, Utena is a sure classic, a show that surpasses its age and will always have a place with new viewers thanks to its timeless ideas and bold ways of approaching them.
