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Aug 29, 2009 6:56 AM
#1

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Aug 2008
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THIS IS AN ANIME ONLY DISCUSSION POST. DO NOT DISCUSS THE MANGA BEYOND THIS EPISODE.
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That was a fierce episode. I really liked it. I have a much better understanding of Touga now, that's for sure.
Sep 17, 2009 2:47 AM
#2

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Aug 2008
302
Just when I think this show is getting predictable everything turns around, I thought saionji turned a new leaf but i guess not, and Touga? I dont even know anymore

Apr 2, 2010 8:43 AM
#3

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May 2009
688
This has to be one of my favourite episodes. We get to learn a lot more about Saionji's frame of mind, see a shadier side of Touga, and catch more glimpses of the End of the World.

The flashback was done beautifully. It's clear it was on that day that Saionji and Touga's friendship turned into rivalry, mostly on the part of Saionji, with his inability to disprove young Utena's claim that there's nothing eternal, and his certainty that Touga rescued Utena. Suddenly Touga's a bigger person, and they were no longer equal. Their friendship began to unravel like the bandage Touga tied around Saionji's hand the moment Saionji believed this.

Also, in episode 2 (or 3?), didn't Saionji say something along the lines of how the Rose Bride has no will of her own? This is all the more reason, I believe, for his obsession with wanting to show her eternity. Or rather, to show himself that eternity exists. As long as he asks her to stay, she will because she has no will of her own and that's one constant for Saionji. The poor guy's reaction when Touga bravely opened the coffin; no wonder he'd want someone who'd sit still and accept his slap-happy ways with a smile for eternity...

Once more, the shadow girls' play was brilliant in describing Saionji's shattered illusions of eternal friendship and his yearning to cling on to something, in spite of his fantasies being crushed by reality.
Nov 11, 2010 4:28 PM
#4

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Aug 2009
1092
Ouch, what a bitch you are, Touga
頭脳は子供、見た目は大人! ƪ(˘⌣˘)ʃ
Mar 14, 2011 9:20 PM
#5

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Jan 2009
2296
Best episode so far. I am definitely impressed with with the Shadow girls play each and very time I see it.
Apr 10, 2011 1:27 PM
#6

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Mar 2011
122
What the hell just happened ?
"I'm commander Shepard, and Legend of the Galactic Heroes is my favorite anime in the galaxy"
Jun 30, 2011 5:17 PM
#7

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Apr 2009
210
So, the "End of The World" is a lesbian woman. And Touga talks directly to her, and can send letters in her name...
Jul 3, 2011 10:46 PM
#8

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Jun 2009
15302
Brilliant episode....I was fucking blown away.
"Yes, I have been deprived of emotion. But not completely. Whoever did it, botched the job."

- Geralt of Rivia
Jul 28, 2011 10:50 AM
#9

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Jan 2011
620
Touga is the schemer type, the staight forward Saonji will never be a match for him

that girl in the flash back has pink hair...
Sep 11, 2011 12:15 PM
The Shrike

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Nov 2009
11579
Touga is the machiavellan guy while Saonji really is no match for him. And how will Himemiya fit in all of this?
"Perhaps there is a universal, absolute truth. Perhaps it justifies every question. But that's beyond the reach of these small hands." Mamoru Oshii

There is a cult of ignorance (...) nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that “my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge.” Isaac Asimov

Oct 31, 2011 11:36 PM
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Nov 2007
2010
Wow, chessmaster Touga!

This episode really was a considerable step up from previous ones. Just brilliant in every way.
The shadow girl play is as brilliant as always. I feel like they're somehow related to End of the World.
Dec 6, 2011 11:17 AM

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Aug 2010
3861
Definitely the best episode so far. Show is getting interesting now.
Dec 23, 2011 9:46 PM

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Jul 2011
514
Awesome episode and Touga actually looked younger in the flashback this time.
Apr 28, 2012 9:00 AM

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Dec 2009
1641
I'm somewhat confused about what happened on this episode, but damn that was good.
Aug 1, 2012 7:08 AM

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Nov 2011
217
Their relationships are really complicated.


Aug 22, 2012 8:39 PM

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May 2010
8126
LOl who the hell name themselves "The End of the World"?
Even when I was in crowd, I was always alone
Sep 4, 2012 10:26 PM

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Apr 2012
649
I liked the flashback this episode - also, Touga's character is an interesting one. I mean, he's a bastard; but, he's not just any bastard, but a talented and cunning one.
Sep 12, 2012 11:03 PM

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Mar 2012
40
Well, I'm finally starting to understand all the symbolism in this show. Other than that... just wow. This episode was brilliant.
Nov 23, 2012 5:07 PM
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Aug 2007
468
Very good episode... completely different to the laid back ep8.
Feb 5, 2013 1:56 PM

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Oct 2011
2748
That was a great episode.
Feb 8, 2013 12:46 AM

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Aug 2007
1490
This episode make me hunger to put more pieces together about The End of The World and how Utena and Anthy fit into it... Can't wait to see more!

Mar 29, 2013 1:30 PM
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Jan 2012
1067
Awesome but confusing episode!
Jul 13, 2013 10:47 PM

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Jan 2013
1565
Best episode yet! Was thinking about dropping the anime, but after seeing this ep. I have to give it more of a chance
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Nov 18, 2014 8:22 AM
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Nov 2013
176
Everyone is talking about how good the episode is, but I have no idea what just happened. And it's not in that good WTF sense also. As in, I literally have no idea at all what story was being told in this episode.
Dec 31, 2014 9:19 AM

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Sep 2013
16130
Touga winning the hearts of the ladies, what a playboy dayum
Jan 7, 2015 2:30 PM

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Jul 2014
32
It was quite an interesting episode like most have said... poor anthy though. ;;
Mar 13, 2015 6:59 PM

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Apr 2014
1107
not completely sure if I got that, but an interesting episode. Touga seems like he remembers Utena from that flashback but she doesn't
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Mar 30, 2015 8:10 PM

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Oct 2013
2896
damm a lot of weird shit this episode
show is getting pretty intense
[/quote]
Jul 15, 2015 5:40 PM

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Jul 2013
91
Got pretty weird and plot intensive suddenly. Maybe it'll pick up.
Nov 23, 2015 12:26 AM
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Jul 2014
602
Another duel and some more talk about revolution...
Feb 13, 2016 8:13 PM

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Aug 2014
5048
Touga, you conniving son of a bitch...
Feb 22, 2016 1:35 AM

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Apr 2013
345
"Your prince was someone like me."

Well, isn't that fucking ominous.
Jul 30, 2016 9:51 PM

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Sep 2012
4014
Anthy couldn't go an episode without getting slapped.
Aug 26, 2016 6:33 AM

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Jul 2011
100
I hope things become clearer because it's somewhat confusing :-/
Oct 2, 2016 12:55 PM

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Jun 2016
568
Holy shit, so much plot progression at once! Took long enough. I hope the show keeps this pace up.

Does the Prince really exist, I wonder..
Feb 26, 2017 11:49 AM

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Jun 2007
1042
why does Anthy always get hit? i just hate it
so far this all is pure nonsense. but i'll watch more and. well.who knows
see you, space cowperson . . .
Apr 24, 2017 7:10 AM
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Nov 2015
1056
Schemer.
And to think he has one day to plan for all that, complete with props like coffin, rose, rising columns, ....
May 30, 2017 11:14 PM

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Nov 2011
9206
I don't understand why so many can't seem to follow this. The story has seemed pretty straightforward to me ever since the second episode.

This was an excellent character episode. It's interesting that both Touga and Saionji met Utena right after her parents died. Aside from the more obvious development it revealed between Touga and Saionji, it also makes be think Touga may legitimately believe he is the "prince" Utena met in her childhood if he remembers meeting her.

The mystery behind the castle is getting teased at more also. I wonder if Touga set all of that up. He's apparently talking to End of the World directly, so he may be more involved in what's going on than the other duelists.

Best episode so far.
Aug 9, 2017 9:18 AM

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Apr 2015
6728
Despite all the teasing, I don't think Touga is Utena's prince.

Oh shit, Saionji got expelled. R.I.P.
"No, son, you may not have your body pillow at the dinner table!"
Aug 10, 2017 7:42 PM
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Aug 2014
1693
There goes all ambiguity about Touga I guess.

So Sajoinji completely lost it in the end because he couldn't save Anthy? Not sure how that slash could possibly result in a shallow wound.
Sep 7, 2017 5:46 AM

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Jun 2013
1245
Touga has been giving me the creeps from the start, and it's kind of hard to celebrate that he's exactly as bad as he seemed. But now Saionji makes more sense to me, so that's cool.

Lorezhno said:
Not sure how that slash could possibly result in a shallow wound.

Plot armor, or possibly a training sword

TripleSRank said:
I don't understand why so many can't seem to follow this.

With so many bizarre things happening at the same time, and with all these over-the-top conflicts, it's hard to stay invested in any of it. The difficulty lies less in knowing what's happening at the moment, and more in recognizing why those things matter. So far, Tenjou has been the character I could cling to in all this, but this episode abandoned her perspective, so I got disconnected a bit as well.
LeeTailorSep 7, 2017 6:16 AM
Oct 25, 2017 4:02 AM

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Jun 2017
180
I wonder whether this is the last we'll be seeing of Saionji. On the one hand it would seem lazy and somewhat disappointing to build up the intrigue of a character just as they leave the show, but on the other hand I don't know where they could take his character further from here. The guy's pretty fucking nuts.

Edit: I just realised, aren't Touga's actions similar to that kid with Nanami a few episodes back?
OldManHandsOct 25, 2017 4:35 AM
Jan 2, 2018 1:27 PM

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Jan 2017
622
Wonder what did the letter said exactly, and why Anthy was lying there unconscious. So, episode by episode they try to beat themselves at who is the worst character of them all xD.

I didn't have any doubts about Touga being fishy,in fact, i'd be surprised if it didn't turn out to be like that.

Don't they realize that the girl they found that day so long ago was Utena? Or only Saionji doesn't realize but Touga does?

What in the world happened to bring the castle down and cause that mess?

Number of slaps: 8 slaps so far :3
SEIZON SENRYAKU: Hungry 100% of the time.
Vzla-IT



Apr 1, 2018 1:11 PM

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Nov 2016
31873
Easily the best episode yet and I loved how it portrayed what's going on in Saionji.

Also, well played Touga,well played..

One Piece episode 914 & 915 & 1027 were a mistake and 957 brought the salvation - FMmatron


Dec 3, 2018 1:29 PM

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May 2010
6694
I knew Touga wasn't prince, he's a cheap playboy at most :x Hope Utena doesn't fall for him now, she'd get her heart broken!
May 8, 2019 5:15 AM

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Aug 2017
3040
That was a powerful episode indeed. Of course, there's a lot of confusion about the events on the arena. Here's what I think:

The castle in the sky is said to contain some 'eternity'. Why does it crush and fall on Saionji? Because, for the second time in his life, his belief in 'eternal' is destroyed, because Anthy is inside the coffin and looks dead (so life is not eternal), just like the pink-haired girl (well it was Utena) from his childhood. What about the first time then? I think that the moment Saionji dropped the bandage Touga had given him, he almost lost hope that there's anything eternal in this world. It's obvious after Touga's reply (he tells Saionji to show the girl something eternal in order to save her, heavily implying that it's impossible). Thus, the whole episode is mostly about Saionji and his relationship with Touga, as well as complete destruction of Saionji's beliefs about eternity and friendship (which is probably the only thing he believed to be eternal).
As for the rest of the scene, Utena plays the role of the prince again, saving Anthy. And Touga saves Utena, because...because what? I believe that he remembers his encounter with Utena in their childhood and legitimately believes that he is indeed the prince she's talking about. It's not random that Touga has been showing the most interest in Utena among all the Council members since the beginning of the series.

Also, I guess Touga was the one who staged everything on the arena...probably

By the way, did anyone notice Juri's hands and voice in the scene with shadow princesses? Was she thrown in just because she fits thematically (doesn't believe in miracles and so on), or is she connected with the princesses in some way?

Also, found Ikuhara's commentary on many episodes and other related Utena stuff:
https://www.gwern.net/docs/anime/1997-utena
I guess it's better to read this after completing the series though.

P.S. Came up with another interpretation. Since Saionji believed that Touga gave something eternal to young Utena, he wanted to give the same thing to Anthy...and failed again because of Touga. Kinda sad.
St0rmbladeMay 8, 2019 5:40 AM
Feb 13, 2020 5:57 AM
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Sep 2015
857
Little Utena was so depressed, I wonder what Touga said to convince her to get out of the coffin.

And now present Utena thinks her prince is Touga... He sure is a manipulator.

The only thing I don't get is how Utena and Anthy survived after that fall 😂😂
Apr 7, 2020 8:18 PM

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Sep 2014
4834
I wonder if that was actually Utena in their flashback. I kinda doubt it, mostly because the prince would be more mature now and it would be too easy.
"This emotion is mine alone.
It is for Madoka alone." - Homura
or how I would descripe Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica.
May 24, 2020 7:49 PM

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Jul 2009
3344
Saionji's obsession with Anthy is just so desperate.

It's obvious he only cares to surpass Touga and nothing more.

The child in the church looks like Utena. There's just no way they wouldn't remember that child. Maybe they had some sort of amnesia? Come on.

Still, I hope we get more scenes of Utena's past.

Touga keeps saying he is a "Feminist" translated as "Chivalrous". The term that was used is indeed closer to Chivalry. It's not something like the crap Feminist that is being used in today's society.

Also, what a cunning bastard Touga is. Setting all that up just to get rid of Saoinji.
Apr 14, 2021 10:48 PM

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Jul 2016
8609
What's with all the pondering about Touga? Can't Utena recall her dear prince has dark skin or what?

Saionji got expelled? THANK GOD!
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