#she brushes off the student council stuff as too annoying and complicated to deal with to the point where she at first really does believe

[fellhellion]

I have like. Thoughts brewing on Utena in episode 12 specifically hinging the “taking back” of her old self upon the repossession of Anthy when prior to their relationship she still believed she could fulfil the role of a prince

#on one hand the sheer joy at seeing utena fight against a system that allows her gender expression tenuous passage #on the other knowing THAT such passage within the system relied on anthy’s subjugation #I think it’s. that Utena’s conception of princehood is still very nebulous and self centered in a different way than it is after meeting #anthy. #she forgets about Wakaba in the opening episode despite being obviously pleased and sincere when defending her from Saionji #she brushes off the student council stuff as too annoying and complicated to deal with to the point where she at first really does believe #she can hand anthy back off to a boy who HIT her #princehood was there for when it suited Utena’s self-centred worldview and when she clued in to her friends being actively hurt #but once she becomes emotionally invested in a person who’s suffering at the hands of this system is in the constant reminder OF her title #as your bride #her princehood identity becomes influenced by the self repeating emotional gratification of protecting anthy #and I don’t want to sell Utena’s genuine compassion for anthy short here. it’s a complex mix of naivety #wilful blindness as the series goes on #AND the fact that this arrangement as a prince makes her feel good. the ROLE makes her feel like she has worth and on an even deeper #repressed psychological level this role is what literally drove utena out of a suicidal standstill as a child #she has a VESTED emotional interest in not really examining herself and it’s genuinely sympathetic and compelling #tunes talks utena