Revolutionary Girl Utena - The Rose Collection Vol. 1

Amazon.com

A logical step for the young fan of anime is this series from the creator of the popular crossover hit Sailor Moon. The story line skews slightly older, not for its violence but for its complexity. The theme is modern mythology, not intergalactic warfare, so it's more interesting and less violent than in Sailor Moon. And less bubble-headed. Our heroine, Utena, is admired by classmates who share Sailor Moon's giddy hysterics, but Utena herself is solid, noble, and strong. Saved by a prince as a child, Utena dresses in the men's uniform of the expansive Ohtori Academy. Her goal is to be prince, and in this introductory disc (seven episodes, nearly three hours of material), she shows signs of becoming one. The scheming student council allows her into the mysterious forest arena, where she wins a sword duel (not played for blood) and wins the devoted loyalty of Anthy, the mysterious Rose Bride. They become a team, discovering the riddles of the arena forest and fending off challengers (while excelling in classes to boot). While some Westerners may read far too much into the sexual politics of the series, it's very old-fashioned at its core: Utena's affections are girded toward a duelist who just may be the prince who saved her years before. Some mild domestic violence and oddly subtitled songs ("Absolute Destroy Apocalyptic," "Paleozoic Era in the Flies") will ruffle some parents, but for ages 9 and up it's engaging entertainment. Utena delivers for girls what Star Wars did for boys: a never-ending series of adventures that one can imagine themselves in, whether daydreaming or playing in the backyard. The DVD comes in both subtitled and dubbed formats. --Doug Thomas

Customer Reviews:

Utena Vol 1.......2007-03-08

The artwork is very good. The problem is that the story reuses video segments over and over again to fill time. The series does not have a strong story line.

WOW!.......2006-05-18

When I first heard of this series I wasn't sure If I would like it or not. But after borrowing a tape my friend recently bought and watching a few episodes on it, I KNEW I had to see the rest of this series. The animation and character design is very beautiful, The sword fights are a sight to see, and the songs are so lovely (even the metal is awsome to hear). All in all, so far I have really liked this. Can not wait to see the rest (I want to see the dark stuff heh heh).

Utena Is Amazing..........2004-12-11

I have all the Utena DVD's; all 39 episdoes and let me just say, this anime is AMAZING!! It is by-far my favorite anime... If you were debating over wheter to get this anime or not, get it. It's fabulous!! BUY IT NOW!!

An Good Start to an Intriguing Series.......2004-12-05

Revolutionary Girl Utena is an anime that's both empowering and intriguing. It takes place in a boarding school where the students hold power over their teachers, the entire female population has a crush on a girl, and the school has a dueling arena with and upside-down floating castle. In the first collection, we're introduced to this world, as well as to Utena, an unlikely shojo heroine. Unlike the ditzy, lazy Sailor Moon, Utena has aspirations to become a heroine, and to save others like she has once been saved. We also meet the "princess" Anthy Himemiya, the Rose Bride, and the student council.

I haven't seen the whole series, but I like Utena for tantalyzing its viewers - for giving hints of a deeper story beneath the "duel-of-the-day" formula. Also, the villains of Utena are three-dimensional. Saionji is an abusive [...], but at times he shows genuine love for Anthy. Miki would be the "nice one" in the group, but one can see that he also duels for his own self-interest.

For breaking the mold and its tantalizing plotlines, I highly recommend Revolutionary Girl Utena.

an add-on to Sailor Moon's popularity.......2004-10-02

The first reason I got this DVD was because of the director. Otherwise, Utena stands on its own and is very different from Sailor Moon. The animation is a little older than Sailor Moon, but it deals with more mature issues than Sailor Moon. Utena fights bloodless duels where the loser has his/her rose knocked off their breastpocket. It's a confusing story that entwines romance, sensationalism, duels, and magic. All I have to say is don't really think too much but pay attention when you are watching this. There are seven episodes on this disc and four duels.

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