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Saddletank
Miyazaki's Best Friend
Registration Date: 09.28.06
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That's pretty, very fairy-tale-ish.
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"An old man like me stands no chance fighting against a high school girl in her underwear" - Oshino Meme, Nekomonogatari (Kuro)
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 11.27.2013, 02:03 PM |
   
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Orphic Okapi
Baron
Registration Date: 04.08.07
Location: Saskatchewan
Posts: 1335 |
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I was totally going to post that, too, Arren (I also follow the Facebook page). It's one of my favorite pieces of Utena fanart, I think.
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| 11.28.2013, 06:12 AM |
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arren18
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Registration Date: 08.15.06
Location: Edinburgh
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Here's another that I found on ohtori.nu's Tumblr page, which seems to have been focusing a lot on the Black Rose Arc over the last few days.
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| 12.01.2013, 09:45 AM |
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Saddletank
Miyazaki's Best Friend
Registration Date: 09.28.06
Location: On your case
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Oh that's... I was going to say cute but maybe that's the wrong word. It's creepily appealing in a way. Given the highly stylised art of the series its refreshing to see artists gving their own alternative styles on the characters bodies and faces.
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Isakaya High School Roleplaying Info
"An old man like me stands no chance fighting against a high school girl in her underwear" - Oshino Meme, Nekomonogatari (Kuro)
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| 12.01.2013, 10:54 AM |
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arren18
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Location: Edinburgh
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Yeah, I like that the style of fanart varies quite a bit, but usually without straying too far from the original. Usually things like eyes and proportions stay the same, or the art will be even more stylised than in the show. I've seen a lot of good fanart so I should have a look to try and find ones I've seen before.
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| 12.01.2013, 01:11 PM |
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arren18
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I was in town shopping today and in Book-Off (a used books, CDs, etc shop - maybe Orphic knows it?) I saw a boxset of what must be all the soundtrack CDs to have been released. I was obviously filled with desire but unfortunately it was about 9000 yen. 
Which reminds me, if anybody wants to listen to the soundtracks, one YouTube user has a very comprehensive playlist.
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| 12.08.2013, 10:02 AM |
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Orphic Okapi
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I love Book-Off. It's probably tied with Uniqlo for my favorite Japanese chain store (Uniqlo is THE BEST). There's a Book-Off up in Kochi City, where I just happen to be heading tomorrow for the JET midyear conference! I will definitely be on the lookout for Utena CDs.
But yeah, from what I've seen, CDs in Japan are extremely expensive. And I should probably devote most of my shopping time/money to Christmas shopping for my family.
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| 12.08.2013, 10:10 AM |
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arren18
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I was disappointed with Uniqlo actually! I mean they're obviously very cheap and that's great, but I found their selection pretty limited, and thought it's probably better for bigger stuff like jackets, the regular clothes were a bit dull I thought. And CDs certainly are expensive! I've bought a few more for the novelty than anything else, but those were mostly older ones and from Book-Off, so it wasn't so bad.
ANYWAY, I'm not so upset about not getting the CDs since it's all available on YouTube, but it would have been cool.
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| 12.08.2013, 10:50 AM |
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Orphic Okapi
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The appeal of Uniqlo for me lies almost entirely in the fact that it carries clothes that fit me. That might not seem like a big deal, but it is when you're 190 cm tall and weigh 64 kilos and you're used to clothing stores in the US. There is a special chain store in the US which is supposed to cater specifically to tall people, and not even THAT place ever had any clothes that fit me, because when they say tall people, they actually mean fat people. Uniqlo has helped usher my life into a whole new era of wearing clothes that don't look stupid on my body.
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| 12.08.2013, 04:21 PM |
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arren18
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Fanart from the Facebook page again:
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| 12.14.2013, 10:58 PM |
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Mush
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Registration Date: 07.30.07
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Got my hands on the Black Rose Saga  I'm saving it until after exams, though.
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| 12.15.2013, 02:24 PM |
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Orphic Okapi
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Yay, Mush, you don't even know how excited this makes me! You can get ahold of the Apocalypse Arc later, right?
Arren, I started following the Utena Facebook page because of you. I really like how active it is, always posting art and asking questions and stuff. The Utena fandom is so great, probably the only one I've encountered that is obsessive without being insane. Most of the Utena-related essays and theories I've read have been really well-informed and intelligent.
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| 12.15.2013, 06:54 PM |
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arren18
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Mush - Great! I hope you enjoy it. 
Orphic - It is nice that the majority seem to be level-headed, and that they're the most visible ones. I've found some rather obnoxious types as well, and heard a lot about hate for certain characters, but at least you don't see that very often.
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| 12.15.2013, 10:29 PM |
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arren18
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GENERAL SPOILERS
I have a question for others who have watched the show all the way through (and maybe the film too, for comparison if nothing else) - would you consider Utena to belong to the yuri genre?
I've heard people refer to it as such, and on the Wikipedia page for yuri, it lists Utena, and not just as a show that contains some elements. When somebody mentioned that it was considered yuri, I called it an "exaggeration". It was only afterwards that I thought about what I really meant by that.
My argument is that for something to belong to that genre, it should revolve around one or more female-female romantic/erotic relationships, with other aspects of the story being secondary. I wouldn't call it an exaggeration to say that there is romance between Utena and Anthy (especially in the film, where I feel it was pushed too much to the forefront), but it is an exaggeration to suggest that that is the most important aspect.
So what is the most important aspect? Personally, I'd say that it's hard to categorise Utena in general. I've had similar problems with people describing it as a magical girl series, because while it contains certain elements of the genre (transformation sequences, otherworldly powers), they are only a small part of it. I have applied genre descriptors to Utena in the past, but usually very broad ones, like drama. I feel like using too specific a term (like yuri or magical girl - it also irks me when people over-emphasise elements that happen to correspond to their personal views) is inappropriate when it combines so many things, and doesn't really treat any of them as more important than others.
Sorry for the long post out of the blue, but what are your thoughts?
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| 12.20.2013, 03:06 AM |
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Orphic Okapi
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Interesting question! I think I read an interview with Ikuhara where he said he wanted to make a show about a relationship between two girls precisely because the romance would not have to overwhelm all other elements and become the focus of the plot. I gather in most shoujo stories everything revolves around the central boy/girl relationship, and he thought he could avoid that by not giving the main character a boyfriend. So he gave her a pseudo-not-really-girlfriend instead?
Okay, I found the interview where he says that. (Incidentally it's also the interview where he claims that Miki's stopwatch "contains the key to open all the mysteries of the world.") Here are his exact words:
"In reality, if I have a guy in the show, the love relationship gets to have a bigger role than the show. And that would be an interesting element, but I wouldn't want that to make that the scene-stealer of the show. Most other shoujo shows are in that direction. It's about who-and-who are getting together, or who-and-who are breaking up. I thought it would be a loss if that would be the big motif just because a girl was the main character. I think there could be more shows with other motives than that."
I don't know if I totally buy his answer (how hard would it really be to make a show about a boy/girl romance and just...not make it the most important part of the show?), but his response would seem to suggest Revolutionary Girl Utena is not yuri, by your definition, since he claims he didn't want Utena and Anthy's relationship to be the focus.
I guess he threw all that to the wind when he made the movie.
Anyway, I think I would hesitate to classify Utena as yuri, not because I have any bias against the genre itself, but because I think it could give people the wrong idea. The exact nature of Utena and Anthy's relationship is intentionally left open to interpretation, I think, although I've read pretty convincing arguments in favor of their being romantically attracted to each other. The first time I watched the show, I didn't feel like there was enough evidence to call them anything more than friends. The second time I felt like Anthy was definitely attracted to Utena in a romantic way, but Utena was oblivious to her signals, plus convinced she only liked men, until the last few episodes. Probably the third time I watch it, I'll have a totally different take on them as a couple.
I'm not sure how I would classify Utena. I feel like "surreal, fantastical teen drama" is the shortest description I can come up with that's actually useful; if you try to condense it any more than that, you miss out on a crucial aspect of what makes it special.
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Post last edited by Orphic Okapi on 12.20.2013, 04:29 AM.
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| 12.20.2013, 04:27 AM |
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arren18
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I know you say that it would be possible to make a similar show where the focus is a girl/boy pairing and emphasise the other aspects, but I wonder if the comment was more regarding fandom. Because while not everything is about such romances, often if you look at the hype surrounding shoujo series and others that are popular with a similar demographic, you could be forgiven for thinking that really is all it's about.
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| 12.20.2013, 05:36 AM |
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Orphic Okapi
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Hey Mush, I don't mean to be a nag, but when were you planning on starting the Black Rose Saga again?
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| 01.21.2014, 06:58 AM |
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Mush
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Registration Date: 07.30.07
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Sorry! A major deadline doth approach.
I actually already finished the Black Rose Saga but I haven't yet posted about it. Will be looking to get the Apocalypse arc when I have time, though. Don't worry, I haven't forgotten!
Review will have to wait for a while...
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| 01.22.2014, 01:01 AM |
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arren18
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I guess we'll just have to be patient!
I hope you liked the Black Rose Saga. It seems that a lot of people aren't so pleased with it because it doesn't really forward the overall story, but personally I loved the way it revealed the depth to seemingly unimportant characters, and showed how the primary characters unwittingly affect those around them.
Since you say you intend to watch the rest of the series, I take that to mean that you've enjoyed it so far!
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| 01.22.2014, 01:59 AM |
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Orphic Okapi
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Great to hear you're still watching the show. I hope you understand I only bugged you about it because I value your opinions and eagerly await hearing your thoughts. I'm also a fan of the Black Rose Saga, for the darker tone it introduces to the story and for the mind-boggling final two episodes. I think that's pretty much the point I stopped thinking of Utena as a unique show for kids and started thinking of it as a work of art.
Good luck with your deadline!
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| 01.22.2014, 02:18 AM |
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