In the seventh episode of Revolutionary Girl Utena, Juri struggles with a painful memory after Utena unknowingly reminds her of it. Intrigued? Then it’s time for Mark to watch Utena.
LIKE???? THIS IS REALLY HAPPENING WHAT THE HELL.
- I suppose it’s telling in and of itself that any confirmation of canon queer characters makes me this excited, but I rarely get them, and LOOK WHAT THIS SHOW IS ALREADY DOING.
- So, I think my confusion about Utena’s friendliness with the Student Council is answered in part by “Unfulfilled Juri.” Utena largely views the duels that she participates in as some weird tradition, one she doesn’t necessarily understands and which she actively criticizes. She finds the whole concept so bogus that she doesn’t even believe the claims that the Student Council makes are real. And yet we know that they’re not lying! Whomever wins a duel wins “control” of Anthy. So how long until Utena realizes that these duels are the real deal?
- This episode also has me questioning the origins of the Student Council. Like “The Sunlight Garden” arc, “Unfulfilled Juri” takes us back into the past of one of the duelists, and it’s FULL OF SADNESS. I think it was clever of the show to do this with Juri and Miki first because it changes our perception of these characters in a way that makes them hard to categorize. Are they antagonistic, or are they victims apart of some other system that we don’t understand?
- I think I’m leaning more towards antagonism, at least in the case of Miss Juri. We’re shown two striking images of her in this episode that cast doubt on her inherent goodness. First, we see how she can order the teachers around, which is definitely frightening. It made me curious to know if the teachers at Ohtori Academy are aware of what the Student Council actually does. But then we’ve also got an instance of Juri smacking Anthy after Anthy offers her a rose. So was Juri’s warning one to keep Anthy away from her or from Utena?
- I’m not terribly sure about that, but through flashbacks, I understood why Juri had such a visceral reaction to Anthy’s gift. (Which also doesn’t excuse her from hitting Anthy, by the way.) I admit I was initially worried that Juri’s flashback fell solely into the trope of vindictive, manipulative bisexual women, which is unfortunately common in fiction. I think there’s still an aspect of that present in the story, but it’s also a lot more complicated than that.
- This episode is more about the contradiction between Juri’s past and Utena’s present attitude. After a friend of Juri’s got in between her and the man she adored, Juri’s sense of optimism was destroyed. This is represented through the motif of the miraculous, so in Juri’s case, she refuses to believe that miracles were possible. Juri’s idea of a miracle was most likely rooted in the woman she was ACTUALLY in love with, who was the same person who ruined her friendship with that guy.
- I mean… canon bisexual women??? THIS IS REALLY HAPPENING, ISN’T IT????
- PLEASE DON’T LET THIS BE A TRICK, I SO BADLY WANT THIS.
- On top of this, there’s the ongoing mystery of the Student Council and the End of the World, and THOSE RINGS! HOW? HOW DID JURI GET HERS? HOW DID ANY OF THE COUNCIL GET THEM? I suspect they weren’t visited by a prince like Utena was, since they’re all so shocked (and kind of mortified) that Utena has one. But that’s the impetus for the duel that ends this episode. Juri is furious that Utena’s ring signifies her belief in a miracle. Because Juri was so heartbroken, she can’t conceive of or fathom a world where princes empower nobility and kindness in others.
- It really is a distinct and violent rejection of Utena’s idealism. That’s why it’s so significant to see them fight because their fight has this emotional subtext to it. Juri is fighting for the denial of miracles.
- Except that the prince apparently shows up? Look, I DON’T UNDERSTAND THAT. Who is that guy who looks like he’s superimposed on top of Utena? Is that the “Dios” person? Why does he keep helping Utena win battles? Is that the prince from her past?
- So how is Juri going to deal with the seemingly miraculous way in which Utena won the duel? Even after disarming her, Juri still lost.
- Y’all, this show is so bizarre, I’M TOTALLY INTO IT.
- THE LOCKET THE LOCKET THE LOCKET. OH MY GOD.
The video for “Unfulfilled Juri” can be downloaded here for $0.99.
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