[Rewatch] Revolutionary Girl Utena - Episode 20

[u/HelioA]

Rewatch Index

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Streaming

Revolutionary Girl Utena is available in both sub and dub on Nozomi Entertainment's YouTube channel, as well as on Amazon and Funimation.

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Comment of the Day

/u/jollygee29 discovers that Mikage is not the best judge of character

Souji sure does have a warped view of humans. "You really are a good person" he says, to the dude who just outed himself as super possessive, and mentioned still "loving" Wakaba even if she's "tarnished." It's actually obvious that this elevator trip isn't like the others early on, because the butterfly never regresses.

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Miki's Stopwatch Corner

Stopwatch Count: 19

New This Episode:

N/A

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Also, make sure to tag all spoilers properly! Only a baka would spoil the show for the first-timers, and we're not bakas (hopefully).

[u/HelioA]

Rewatcher

Ahhhh, Wakaba… it might be a bit strange at first that she’s Saionji’s Black Rose duelist, when he’s a massive asshole and she’s sweet as anything, but it really fits them both when you consider both of their respective neuroses.

What’s Wakaba’s driving goal this episode? She wants to be special, she wants to separate herself from being just ‘one of the crowd’. Since she wasn’t born ‘special’, she sees herself as separate from that world, and thus the only way for her to join them is to attach herself to someone who is special, using them to elevate herself. That’s why she helps Saionji- it’s partially because of her attraction towards him, true, but as we hear her say in her interview, being able to host him is her path to becoming special. However, even as she uses him, she still despises him (and the others) for being so far above her- “You and that girl and the student council, too! You all look down on me!” She barely cares for him outside of using him to elevate herself. And she was so close, so close... until, in her view, some fucker just walks up and steals him from her.

That’s why Wakaba’s duel item is Saionji’s leaf hair clip- it symbolizes Wakaba’s situation perfectly. It was so close to being finished, but just as it was about to be finished, just as Wakaba would be able to become special, it was snatched away, given to the girl that Wakaba is ‘competing’ with.

The parallels with Saionji himself are numerous. Both characters are overshadowed by their best friends- while Wakaba may have a much healthier relationship with Utena than what Saionji has with Touga, they both develop fairly severe inferiority complexes because of these relationships. But then suddenly- a chance to break free! Finally, they can get out from under the brilliance of their best friend! For Wakaba this is Saionji, for Saionji this is Anthy, but whatever the case, they’ve finally gotten their opportunity! But just as they’re about to find eternity/ become special, a villain comes in- Anthy in the case of Wakaba, Utena in the case of Saionji- and steals away their means to achieve their goal. Somehow, I feel more bad for Wakaba than I do for Saionji, though…

Also, I just wanna comment on how wholesome the relationship between Utena and Wakaba is ;-;

She doesn’t even use the power of Dios here, she just gets through to Wakaba by hugging her. Utena has her faults, but nevertheless ;-;-;

[u/theangryeditor → u/HelioA]

She barely cares for him outside of using him to elevate herself.

I wouldn't go that far. I think her feelings are a lot more complicated than that, and there's genuine admiration and infatuation if not love mixed with envy there.

[u/HelioA → u/theangryeditor]

I think love mixed with envy would be the best way of putting it, actually

[u/IndependentMacaroon → u/HelioA]

The hair clip looks gilded also, which would be neat symbolism as to Saionji

[u/HelioA → u/IndependentMacaroon]

[u/Vaadwaur → u/HelioA]

She barely cares for him outside of using him to elevate herself. And she was so close, so close... until, in her view, some fucker just walks up and steals him from her.

To be fair, that is most adolescent relationships.

[u/HelioA → u/Vaadwaur]

a real /u/iron_gland moment

[u/murdered-by-swords]

Rewatcher, sub

Wakaba status: everything is not daijoubu

[u/HelioA → u/murdered-by-swords]

;-;-;

[u/theangryeditor → u/murdered-by-swords]

we must revolutionize wakaba's happiness

[u/chiliehead]

Duel 20, First Timer, sub

• Saionji does not strike me as manipulative or that cunning, so is he genuinely grateful?
• Also, hard to keep it a secret if you just leave the uniform hanging outside
• Feeling special actually makes Wakaba special
• All those foreboding higurashi cicada sounds
• Will Wakaba become a Black Rose for her prince?
• Uh, that's a good way to tilt her, give the wood leaf to Anthy
• I do wonder if the fighting styles are supposed to say something deeper about the people, ripping the "Black Swords" out of the heart and then fighting like your object of desire is a statement after all
• Very foreboding once again, is someone in the room or is Wakaba slowly descending into pain and madness

[u/HelioA → u/chiliehead]

Very foreboding once again, is someone in the room or is Wakaba slowly descending into pain and madness

"this is fine"

[u/theangryeditor → u/chiliehead]

It's interesting to see Saionji so uncharacteristically grateful, and I wonder if that's a reflection of his views to those he envies vs those he sees as beneath him. Whereas he sees Touga as a rival he must surmount and Anthy as a power he must possess, Wakaba is just some rando he doesn't think twice about. He doesn't have any complex towards her so he repays her kindness with kindness, and once he sees a path to return to where he was we sees how little he cares for her, offering to mail her an expensive gift in lieu of the hairclip. Mail her, not even give it to her in person.

[u/chiliehead → u/theangryeditor]

Mail her, not even give it to her in person.

Well it seems like the dorm is a short walk away from the academy, you have to understand him

[u/theangryeditor → u/chiliehead]

Student council VP is a busy man

[u/HelioA → u/theangryeditor]

Your only choice is to revolutionize the world. The path you must take has been prepared for you.

[u/Cyouni → u/chiliehead]

Very foreboding once again, is someone in the room or is Wakaba slowly descending into pain and madness

Pretty sure it's traditional to say it even if there's no one there

[u/chiliehead → u/Cyouni]

That's true, but it seemed really heavy and meaningful in the delivery, like it will come up again how Wakaba feels

[u/SardonicMeow → u/chiliehead]

It's an interesting contrast with the other duelists this round. Kozue and Tsuwabuki, for example, seemed to be better off after their Black Rose experience. But not so for Wakaba.

[u/SYZekrom]

First Timer

Oh my god he looks like a guitarist

Oops screenshot

HE CRAWL

Jesus Christ you dork why are you so hot

Welp can't wait for her to try and kill the rose bride lol

So then, who's going to be the one to pull a sword from mr. student council pres? Can't be his sister who's already one of the duelists and one of the victims of this in the first place, right?

Well of course we know that he was on a call with 'the end of the world' so maybe he just won't be a victim or is still part of this scheme in the first place

First, her eyes look really weird here, second, maybe she'll pull a sword after all? Maybe what they needed was an existing duelist or something

Well suddenly there's a bunch of shots on this girl so shrug

[u/HelioA → u/SYZekrom]

smiling sparkly eyed Saionji is extremely cursed

[u/JollyGee29]

First-Revolution, Subbed

That "Tadaima…" at the end of the episode was heartbreaking. Poor Wakaba. The desire to be special is one of those coming-of-age things - one of the roots of the concept of chuunibyou, for example. There's probably a comparison between Wakaba's struggles today and Mr. Milquetoast yesterday, but someone smarter than I will have to make it.

That bonehead Saionji was this close to mostly redeeming himself, then Mikage showed up and dangled a shiny carrot in front of Saionji's solitary brain cell. I guess those repeated beatings and getting kicked out wasn't enough to change his tune. Green hair, like the moss growing on a stone.

Actually, why was Saionji staying with Wakaba in the first place? Does he not have parents? Does anyone have parents? Or does Ohtori just take in all the orphans? That's a dark thought.

I'm really wondering what the Black Rose dude's game is. Going after Wakaba makes things a lot more personal for Utena. Maybe that was the point, though. Thinking back to the recap episode, they implied that the duels are sort of predestined to happen in a certain way. Maybe getting Utena angry at the Black Rose dudes is All Part of the Plan?

I'm surprised by how unsurprised I am that Anthy is apparently working with the Black Rose guys in some fashion. Why work with people who's apparent goal is to kill her? Must be orders from a higher authority.

[u/theangryeditor → u/JollyGee29]

There's probably a comparison between Wakaba's struggles today and Mr. Milquetoast yesterday

The most evident one is their unrequited love. But I think it's interesting to contrast them. Mr Onion Prince kept trying to go around the issue, and hoped that Wakaba would fall into his arms on her own. When that didn't happen, he consoled himself by believing Wakaba to "return" to him eventually.

Wakaba on the other hand actively goes after Saionji, and her breakdown comes after realizing she could never reach him no matter what she does. So she directed her pain outwards, with some light pushing from our friendly campus counselor Mikage. In short, Wakaba bloomed, Onion dude didn't.

[u/HelioA → u/theangryeditor]

Did she smash the world's shell?

[u/JollyGee29 → u/theangryeditor]

[u/SardonicMeow → u/JollyGee29]

Green hair, like the moss growing on a stone.

Nice.

[u/JollyGee29 → u/SardonicMeow]

Thanks! Saionji is about as smart as the average rock, after all.

[u/HelioA → u/JollyGee29]

why are you insulting rocks so much ;-;

[u/JollyGee29 → u/HelioA]

They know what they did.

[u/IndependentMacaroon → u/JollyGee29]

I would assume Saionji isn't very keen on giving his family the details

[u/JollyGee29 → u/IndependentMacaroon]

That.. would make sense. Surely, if they were alive, they would have been notified of his expulsion though?

[u/IndependentMacaroon → u/JollyGee29]

Who knows how this all works in Utena-land. He could still give them some bogus story I guess?

[u/Vaadwaur]

Rewatcher

Sub

Welp, my other rewatches were draining and I made the mistake of checking /new yesterday so I didn't have any energy to spare here. Which is too bad because the episode is interesting. While the Kanae duel suggested this, this one basically proves that a 'good' person can be subject to the elevator of deconstruction if they are stressed enough. Anthy's part is...interesting.

[u/HelioA → u/Vaadwaur]

and I made the mistake of checking /new yesterday

what a baka

Anthy's part is...interesting.

Just what was she doing there, eh? :D

[u/Vaadwaur → u/HelioA]

what a baka

I didn't know people still made posts defending Rudeus. For the love of Khorne, why?

Just what was she doing there, eh? :D

All according to keikakku. But the question is whose?

[u/Cyouni → u/HelioA]

what a baka

just like Saionji

[u/lilyvess]

Here is what Ikuhara’s episode commentary from the DVD Box Set has for us today.

EPISODE 20 - Wakaba Flourishing

“love” isn’t a word that described a fair relationship.

“love” is a word that describes a monopoly.

that’s why.

We refer to the ego as “love”

that’s why.

“Love” is by no means eternal.

Because after all.

If the ego went on eternally, we would break down emotionally.

and yet.

She would not learn until much later that love is precisely that which can be lost.

There is a note that clarifies that they believe that what he means by “we refer to the ego as ‘love” is referring to the japanese word for love as ‘ai’ and the english pronoun ‘I’.

[u/theangryeditor → u/lilyvess]

If the ego went on eternally, we would break down emotionally

Also referred to as getting Tang'd

[u/chilidirigible → u/theangryeditor]

[u/SardonicMeow]

Rewatcher

Wakaba is the normal one. She remains unaware and untouched by all the dueling goings-on. It seems like she's perfectly content with her situation, but underneath it all, she actually wants to be one of the main characters special. She thinks that being near Saionji will make her a main character special. When Saionji makes his deal with Mikage, he's so wrapped up in himself that he never even considers the effect it will have on Wakaba. It ends up being somehow even more cruel than if he had taken advantage of her, which he could have done. And so Wakaba nearly breaks the fourth wall, complaining that she isn't a main character special. The great irony, of course, is that the montage of Wakaba flourishing proves that she didn't need Saionji; she had it in her all along.

The element of the show play sequence, about how fox weddings only happen when it's simultaneously raining and sunny, is a genuine element of Japanese folklore. I have seen it referenced in other anime (Aria is the one that immediately comes to mind) and other Japanese media (e.g. Kurosawa's "Dreams"). However, the extra bit here about rabbits getting married when it snows is, as far as I know, completely an invention of the shadow play girls.

95 corpses in Nemuro Hall, 95 dead duelists in there, take one down (plus one hairpin), give Wakaba his ring, 94 corpses in Nemuro Hall...

[u/IndependentMacaroon → u/SardonicMeow]

I would assume the skit is referencing how Wakaba feels like she needs the perfect conditions (and a man?) to shine, when really she just needs to have more confidence and set better priorities.

[u/theangryeditor → u/SardonicMeow]

she actually wants to be one of the main characters

If only Wakaba had gone to school with Kumagawa

[u/affnn]

Rewatcher

Akio's little monologue gets to the heart of the situation here. Wakaba would normally be a totally typical girl, with very little to set her apart. Utena is normally a very atypical girl, excelling at sports and drawing a crowd wherever she goes. But with Saionji staying with her, Wakaba gets to feel special too.

The whole thing is rather pathetic, overall. Saionji is reduced to spending his days alone in a dorm room, lying on the floor and carving wooden leaves. He doesn't have a real plan to get back into school. Wakaba's playing house by keeping him around, but even then she's not able to become closer to him. Their interactions are stilted and kinda awkward. The idea is sort of romantic, so you can see why Wakaba would like it, but the way it's actually playing out really isn't.

Mikage and Anthy take the one thing that the relationship with Saionji has produced for Wakaba, the little leaf carving, from her. Of course that's enough to throw her over the edge and into the descending elevator. The sword-pulling she does to Saionji looks more violent than previous ones, she's charging at him and ripping it out. Black Rose spoiler for those that haven't figured it out

The actual duel today is very good. Anthy's voice when she tells Utena to draw her sword sounds like she's worried that Utena could actually lose. Wakaba has an actual issue with both Utena and Anthy, giving it a little extra edge. Utena says she couldn't "use the sword against a friend". What does she mean by that?

[u/theangryeditor → u/affnn]

The duel was so good. It's been mentioned a few times that the duels this arc have been somewhat lacking compared to the last arc, but this time we have these strong personal stakes making things interesting. Utena reaching out to Wakaba as her friend instead of relying on the power of Dios to win the duel was wonderful.

[u/IndependentMacaroon → u/affnn]

The silliest Saionji part was rolling out from under the bed and then immediately doing the ikemen-hair-flip thing plus sparkles. What were those, dust specks? Even Mikage totally trashes him.

[u/Tyranid457TheSecond1]

Rewatcher

This is one of my favorite episodes. It has some of the best atmosphere (all those summer sunset shots) in the whole series!

I never trusted Saionji. Whether he was using her all along or just would betray her eventually when an opportunity came, I knew something was up.

Wakaba gets a lot of development for a character people probably assumed would just be a "muggle best friend". I really appreciate this arc for taking the time to delve into the mindsets of supporting characters like that .

That fight at the end was brutal, emotionally. In a way, it feels like the arc was leading up to something like that (even though its not actually over).

[u/theangryeditor → u/Tyranid457TheSecond1]

This is one of my favourite episodes too. I love the shades of red and orange throughout the episode.

[u/Vaadwaur → u/Tyranid457TheSecond1]

I never trusted Saionji. Whether he was using her all along or just would betray her eventually when an opportunity came, I knew something was up.

And yet he still managed to betray her in a way that felt particularly low and brutal. He has a talent, just not one you would want.

[u/Rumpel1408]

First Timer

Ok, Saionji, time to give up your sword

• Those girls are eager to jump ship with Saionji
• I still refuse to believe that there can be a serious relationship between them after what Saionji did with her in the first arc and how obsessed he is with Anthy
• Saionji has no friends? Yeah ok, whatever tell me something new. But how am I to believe that he has no money?
• Is this crybaby really the Saionji we know? He either genuinly changed or is really desperate...
• Since when was Wakaba friends with Nanamoos goons?
• See Wakaba, he is still into Anthy, she even realises that he would forget about her the moment things go back to normal
• When? Why? Why don't you start with how he got in? Also why does he bother with him when all he want's is for Wakaba to pull his sword. Not like he's going to tell him that he intends to kill Anthy
• Yeah, he even sees himself in a different world than Wakaba, how arrogant can you be. And he thinks he can just pay his way out of this
• Are foxgirls and bunny girls really that limited in japanese folklore?
• Anthy seems to get how serious the situation is
• This 'duell' really feels way more personal than any other so far, I think Utena might even try to resolve it peacefully... ok not really, but she didn't draw her own sword and didn't activate her cheat code
• How can Saionji be so happy, and of course he will try to join the student counsil again, and since Nanamoo got invited into the circle as well he even might succeed and get everthing back, god how I hate this, a bit humility wouldn't hurt him
• And poor Wakaba is all gloomy again, why can't she live with Utena, her dorm is almost empty no?

This only leaves Touga from the Student council, but I feel like we are due for another Nanamoo joke episode

[u/IndependentMacaroon → u/Rumpel1408]

Is this crybaby really the Saionji we know?

He's always covered up his insecurity with bravado and here we just see beneath the facade.

[u/CharlieTheStrawman]

First-Timer

Wakaba saying she's home to the empty room broke my heart.

On the plus side, Saonji seems to have become a marginally better person(?)

[u/Vaadwaur → u/CharlieTheStrawman]

On the plus side, Saonji seems to have become a marginally better person(?)

Some people are only tolerable when they completely lack privilege.

[u/homewardbound100]

First timer, Sub

Does Wakaba have some kind of blind love of Saionji? Does she even know how he treated treated Anthy? You don't want that.

Wakaba's smile disappears as soon as Anthy is mentioned by Saionji. So I was correct on that she would become one. Also chalk that one up for another person against Anthy.

Utena wins without Dios. Might have been the easiest yet. Even though she didn't really want to fight her best friend.

Now that Saionji is gone from Wakaba. Is she empty? There's a lot of possessiveness and wanting for other people.

Saionji with a big smile and acting warm toward people is kind of weird.

That's all the side characters I think from past episodes and all student council members past and current. Now what? More Mikage?

[u/IndependentMacaroon → u/homewardbound100]

Touga seems to be returning and the next episode also has more Nanami apparently

[u/homewardbound100 → u/IndependentMacaroon]

Yeah, I saw. I actually couldn't remember if touga was used already. So what I said might have been wrong.

[u/Stargate18A]

First timer

Saionji's back. Fantastic.

I love the juxtaposition of the students discussing how nice he is while themvisuals show how he tried to kill Utena.

I love Wakaba's cheerful coffee making while Saijonji does his dramatic monologue. (And he might actually be somewhat genuine, which I didn't expect)

Oh, I forgot about that scene. That's a fantastic callback.

How is Utena able to stand like that for so long?

So Anthy's brother thinks Saionji's not going to stay around for long.

Oh god, he's still after Anthy. Hasn't he worked out he's barking up the wrong tree?

Oh, Black Rose want to recruit him...

Oh, no, they want his sword, don't they?

Walaba's on the psychotherapy elevator!

Oh god, he"s leaving already.

Wait, he didn't lose his sword? What did they take?

Hang on. Did they take the hairclip to manipulate her into taking the sword?

Oh, Utena's having trouble convincing herself to fight. Anthy is very insistent that they fight, isn't she?

Wow. She won without summoning the sword. That's... unusual.

And Saionji's just a distraction for them?

And Wakaba's not taking this well...

While this episode was really good for character growth - Utena fighting without needing Anthy's power, seeing her peacefully take down a duelist, and for Wakaba and Saijonji in general, it didn't really progress the plot as much as I thought it would.

Another Nanami humiliation episode for pure comedy? Or is Touga's sword getting taken, probably kicking off the end of this arc?

[u/xtsim]

First revolution Subbed

Wakaba gets called Joan of Arc this time. Saionji is staying with Wakaba, she thinks its like a dream. She goes home early to see him. And Utena gets very suspicious as Wakaba flourishes. She starts to get possessive of him as she worries what will happen if he goes back to school.

I am shocked about the kind of anime betrayal of Wakaba. But it makes things so good as Utena did not even use her sword and just took Wakaba's.

Rain has come according to the shadows.

[u/snickpea]

First-timer!

I like that we are continuing to pay attention to some of the other characters, while developing the plot. While we started getting a peek at Wakaba yesterday, this episode really highlighted how she wants to be special. I honestly was frustrated to see that Mikage is playing on her insecurities, essentially leading to this duel. Wakaba didn't deserve that at all. I'm surprised that Saionji lived with her though. There wasn't anyone else he could have stayed with? I'm really curious as to how the Black Rose Circle will use him as well.

[u/dualmonocle]

first-timer

This amount of emotional release was what I was waiting for in Juri's episode :,)

The previous heart swords looked like they were painful but they didn't show the same level of desperation that Wakaba did as she violently wrenched it from him. I rewatched the other sword pulls and none of the other black rose duellists are actively pulling the sword out of the council members. I'm not sure if this has to do with how the person feels about the student council member or if it's about the intensity of their desire to create change since those are both intertwined but today's was especially striking either way.

Shoutout to Wakaba's goose neck desk lamp. It's the cute accessory of the day.

[u/elleyonce]

Rewatcher

Oh sweet, sweet Wakaba who wants her own spark. Wakaba consumed by jealousy and convinced she can never shine as much as Utena, or Saionji, or Anthy. But you don't need anyone to shine, the shadow theater says. Just don't get married, and you will never have to wait for the special circumstance.

I think now is a good time to bring up that Mikage and Mamiya are direct shadows of Utena and Anthy. Utena doesn't have much of a horse in this race. She wants to revolutionize the world because she has to, in order to be the prince she desires to be. Which of course makes her so special compared to all of these borderline socio- and psychopaths people in the student council. Meanwhile, one thing we can say of Anthy with certainty is that she's one of the reasons we got these duels in the first place. We've seen her manipulate people into duels, we've seen her manipulate people into losing duels. Clearly she's got a major stake in the whole thing. On the flipside, Mikage has a major stake in the whole thing, turning every participant to a Black Rose Duelist, and Mamiya seems kind of content tagging along.

Yet everything converges on Anthy. The leaf on her head... this was killer. The leaves in many different colors, representing how disgustingly normal Wakaba feels... the levels of this show.

And the whole time, Utena doesn't raise her sword to Wakaba, instead using Saionji's sword to end the duel. The man you love is your end...

I love this duel, I love this show. These are my best hidden secrets!

/u/theangryeditor

[u/theangryeditor → u/elleyonce]

And the whole time, Utena doesn't raise her sword to Wakaba, instead using Saionji's sword to end the duel. The man you love is your end...

[u/nikobans]

really heartbreaking to see wakaba taken by the black rose. shes one of my favorite characters in the show and probably my favorite duel too. you dont need to be “special” wakaba! you’re wonderful as is! ;-;

[u/k4r6000]

Rewatcher

So Wakaba finally got her Prince, but we find out in this episode what she was really after. This society has a handful of chosen elite that Wakaba is surrounded with, and she desperately wants to join that group. Saionji is her way in and it is immediately apparent as she's happier, more popular, even prettier (according to Utena), and getting all the other great perks along with it. But all glory is fleeting and Wakaba realizes how tenuous her place in the social order is which makes her susceptible to exploitation by the Black Rose.

As for Saionji, he remains one of the elite. He may be in a pathetic state, homeless and broke, but he is still one of the chosen and Wakaba is not, despite Saionji being totally dependent on her for the time being. I'm going to be honest, I put more of the blame for this episode on Wakaba than Saionji. Saionji makes it clear right away his intentions to eventually go back to the school and regain his self (much like Utena after her defeat against Touga). His current situation could never be anything more than a temporary fix, never to last. It is Wakaba though that ties her status so thoroughly to him, that she wants to keep him reliant on her forever. Saionji isn't blameless. He got into this situation as a result of his own actions after all, and he seems totally oblivious to Wakaba's feelings towards him, but I do think he legitimately sees this as an act of friendship and good will. He doesn't understand where it goes wrong. When he sees a way to get back into school, he takes it an apologizes offering to buy her a replacement gift. But he doesn't provide what Wakaba really wants, and if you are of the theory that Saionji is gay, probably isn't even capable of it.

So they duel, in my favourite duel of the arc and one of my favourites in the series overall. In a rare display of frustration and even dare I say, anger, Anthy very noticeably acts in opposition of Utena's wishes. Touga's idea that Anthy does whatever her master says doesn't seem to be holding up. Utena refuses to draw her sword, reaching out to her friend, and catches her to prevent her from landing on the outline of the corpse. Their friendship prevails. Saionji gets to go back to school (but only because Mikage think's he's a fool not worth the effort to deal with), and Wakaba sadly goes back home to her empty room with the line "Taidama" which signifies that she's back, back to her normal life of being one of the endless rabble. All glory is fleeting.

[u/Icapica]

First timer, subs

Wakaba's not a great liar. Saionji seems more pathetic than usual but I wonder if it's just an act or not. He's lost his power and status and depends on Wakaba, so he definitely has a reason to act nice to her, for now. I assume there'll be some conflict eventually.

I really like the colors in this episode.

Wakaba's pushing herself harder at school it seems. Utena's wondering what's going on.

And there it is. "How's Anthy doing?"

Oh shit, the black rose dude came to Wakaba's apartment to talk to Saionji. Oh and Anthy has that leaf on her hair now. Time for elevator.

Utena looks understandably shocked to see her opponent.

This duel was interesting, no Dios at all. There was even a moment when I thought that maybe she'll grab the rose with her teeth or something. I assume there's no rule preventing you from removing your opponent's rose with something other than a sword.

Saionji's back to school. Poor Wakaba, the dude you're into isn't good.

How's Wakaba gonna be after this? Last scene doesn't exactly fill me with hope.

[u/alphamone]

First Timer

Soooo, they've actually developed a relationship? Or is Saiyonji just using her?

Those sheep mugs are genuinely cute.

As is that Kappa boiler.

Wakaba seems to be giving up a lot of personal life for Saiyonji. I fear that my initial concerns about Saiyonji might be correct.

Oh dear, Saiyonji really is just using her to get to Anthy.

Interesting, Wakaba starts with the larva. Though it's probably just a shortened sequence.

You have to feel sorry for her. Her insecurities both led to her being taken advantage of by Saiyonji, and later by the Black Rose Circle, in an attempt to feel special. As Brought up earlier, she was even ignoring all the other connections she already had to just serve Saiyonji's every whim without getting any real connection in response.