This is a static copy of In the Rose Garden, which existed as the center of the western Utena fandom for years. Enjoy. :)

#1 | Back to Top06-14-2011 01:36:00 AM

CausalityStar
Caretaker
From: Idaho
Registered: 09-12-2010
Posts: 215

Who else mistook Miki for a girl?

As the title of the thread suggests, I'm curious as to who else mistook Miki for a girl until they explicitly said he was a boy. I was watching my super special awesome new SKU box set one DVDs and my mom came in and watched the end of the fourth episode and the fifth episode with me. She also mistook Miki for a girl and I'll share the amusing conversation with you guys.

Mom: So what's that blue-haired girl's name again?

Me: Actually, he's a boy. But he's like 13 so his voice actor is a woman.

Mom: Seriously?

Me: Yeah, Miki's voice actress is the same woman who plays Sailor Mercury.

Mom: Oh, I like Sailor Mercury. Well, this anime is pretty weird, but I kind of like it.


So now I must convince my mom to watch the whole series. Of course, that would entail her actually paying attention to the TV instead of falling asleep to the Food Network, but it might work. Hopefully. Plus, it's kinda fun to watch anime with my mom. Especially since she seems to think that Sailor Mercury and Sailor Jupiter are closeted bisexuals or lesbians and would make a good couple together. emot-keke

Back on topic though, who actually figured out Miki was a guy right away. Be honest! Oh, and feel free to discuss the implications that Miki's gender being mistaken have on how gender is portrayed in the show, ect. ect.

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#2 | Back to Top06-14-2011 02:12:23 AM

Randamonian
Rose Bride
From: Australia
Registered: 11-07-2010
Posts: 102

Re: Who else mistook Miki for a girl?

I thought he was a boy right away. Then he talked and doubted for a moment. Then I thought of Kenshin and all was well.

Sometimes I think to myself, he really is a girl, isn't he? A girl so disgusted with her twin she went the other way.

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#3 | Back to Top06-14-2011 04:27:40 AM

chrisb
Eternal Eschatologist
From: Tx,USA
Registered: 01-18-2010
Posts: 956

Re: Who else mistook Miki for a girl?

This reminds me of the Utena fandub by Naji.

Juri: Wait you're a boy? Does that mean I'm straight?

Touga: No he's still a girl. Just not in the vagina way.


http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a358/clow987/Christmas2011SSSigGift.png

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#4 | Back to Top06-14-2011 11:38:36 AM

Malacoda
Sunlit Gardener (Finale)
Registered: 07-26-2009
Posts: 180

Re: Who else mistook Miki for a girl?

I read the manga first then watched the English dub so I never got to have that experience.

(Your mom sounds really cool, CausalityStar. I could never convince my mom to watch anime.)

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#5 | Back to Top06-14-2011 12:49:19 PM

HonorableShadow
Thorn of Death
From: Ohio
Registered: 11-03-2006
Posts: 482

Re: Who else mistook Miki for a girl?

Maybe I was used to anime guys by the time I watched Utena, but I knew Miki was a boy as soon as I saw him.  To me, he looks boyish (by anime standards, anyway. XD) I would have actually been more surprised if he was a girl.


I'll show you a sight you've never seen before.

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#6 | Back to Top06-14-2011 03:22:56 PM

BlackBeforeRed
Acknowledged Smart Person
From: The Nightosphere
Registered: 07-09-2010
Posts: 178

Re: Who else mistook Miki for a girl?

I went through almost all of his introduction episode thinking he was a girl, although I did wonder aloud why he had no boobs emot-rolleyes

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#7 | Back to Top06-15-2011 01:07:00 AM

Katzenklavier
Wondrous Sexual Eggplant.
From: Back of your thoughts.
Registered: 09-13-2008
Posts: 1120

Re: Who else mistook Miki for a girl?

As far as I'm concerned, all Miki has between his legs is a faintly jingling Dior cowbell.


We must go forward, not backward. Upward, not forward. And always twirling, twirling, twirling towards freedom.

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#8 | Back to Top06-15-2011 09:39:58 AM

RhythmFusion
Rose Smilee
Registered: 03-18-2010
Posts: 133

Re: Who else mistook Miki for a girl?

I’ve had enough experience with anime to be able to tell Miki was a boy.school-eng101


"But screw your courage to the sticking place, and we'll not fail." ~ Lady Macbeth; Macbeth - Act One, Scene 7
"Crying is such hypocrisy. How can happiness cause the same reaction as sadness? Does pleasure share the same edge of the blade of life as pain?" - What His Crimson Eyes Believe in: Ch. 2

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#9 | Back to Top06-15-2011 05:01:17 PM

artemis88
Mikage Mistruster
Registered: 05-05-2011
Posts: 66

Re: Who else mistook Miki for a girl?

CausalityStar wrote:

Me: Yeah, Miki's voice actress is the same woman who plays Sailor Mercury.

wow! I knew his voice was familiar, but I didn't look it up.. emot-rofl

Plus, it's kinda fun to watch anime with my mom. Especially since she seems to think that Sailor Mercury and Sailor Jupiter are closeted bisexuals or lesbians and would make a good couple together. emot-keke

your mom is awesome, and I always thought the same thing, Mercury & Jupiter belong together emot-dance emot-redface

I thought Miki was a girl at first too, but I caught on pretty quickly I think (from what I remember) 


I love Naji's fandub too emot-rofl

Last edited by artemis88 (06-15-2011 05:07:09 PM)

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#10 | Back to Top06-16-2011 01:34:46 PM

VictorVVV
Miki Molester
From: France
Registered: 06-04-2011
Posts: 31

Re: Who else mistook Miki for a girl?

Yeah, Miki's voice actress is the same woman who plays Sailor Mercury.

In the English or the Japanese dub ?
I've never watched the English dub and never thought he was a girl.

Last edited by VictorVVV (06-18-2011 03:08:26 AM)

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#11 | Back to Top06-17-2011 11:55:34 PM

Dognog
Friend, Perhaps
From: TN
Registered: 06-06-2011
Posts: 333

Re: Who else mistook Miki for a girl?

I did think he was a girl when I was little... I think my sister corrected me or something.


"DOGNOG: He's got a fiancee, hoes, and freaks with his sister. He is the original PIMP."

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#12 | Back to Top06-18-2011 12:32:26 AM

Absolute Apocalypse
Saionji Slapper
Registered: 08-24-2010
Posts: 25

Re: Who else mistook Miki for a girl?

When I saw the movie for the first time, definitely.

In the series he looks more manly (for anime standards school-eng101). If anything, he's like tswabuki... a little bit androgynous because he's too young.


"Challenging the sword of dios with a simple bamboo practice sword?" etc-saiowank

Always do things the saionji way.

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#13 | Back to Top06-18-2011 06:58:09 AM

Gainel
Rose Bride
Registered: 07-08-2010
Posts: 116

Re: Who else mistook Miki for a girl?

He could very easily be mistaken for a girl at first (or second) glance, you're right... but when I was watching, I noticed pretty quickly the same thing BlackBeforeRed did, that none of the girls have flat chests. Not even Nanami, and I think she's actually younger than Miki. So I set him in as one of the guys.

Last edited by Gainel (06-18-2011 07:00:58 AM)


Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit, but wisdom is knowing not to put it on a fruit salad.

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#14 | Back to Top06-19-2011 04:05:41 AM

Tamago
God of Comedy
From: Minami Goushuu
Registered: 10-17-2006
Posts: 14280
Website

Re: Who else mistook Miki for a girl?

My experience with traps and bishies from all the anime/manga I have consumed has allowed me to figure out that Miki is a boy.

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#15 | Back to Top06-20-2011 09:42:09 PM

satyreyes
no, definitely no cons
From: New Orleans, Louisiana
Registered: 10-16-2006
Posts: 10328
Website

Re: Who else mistook Miki for a girl?

I thought he was a girl.  emot-keke  In my defense, Utena was the third anime I ever saw.  The first two were Boogiepop Phantom and Excel Saga, which are situated at opposite ends of some kind of spectrum, but neither of them did much to prepare me for feminine-looking bishounen.  (Il Palazzo is too tall.)  Nor did I know yet that Ohtori evidently uses female cup size as an admission criterion.  I think the subtitles eventually tipped me off that Miki was a boy before the narrative did.  emot-smile

Katzenklavier wrote:

As far as I'm concerned, all Miki has between his legs is a faintly jingling Dior cowbell.

QFT, and I commission you to draw the manga of it.

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#16 | Back to Top06-21-2011 11:02:37 AM

KaleMarsh
High Tripper
From: Washington, DC
Registered: 06-13-2011
Posts: 245

Re: Who else mistook Miki for a girl?

satyreyes wrote:

Utena was the third anime I ever saw.  The first two were Boogiepop Phantom and Excel Saga

The obvious question is--did you enjoy Excel Saga if it was only your second anime?

It probably didn't occur to me to gender Miki early enough to ask the question.

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#17 | Back to Top06-21-2011 01:57:45 PM

satyreyes
no, definitely no cons
From: New Orleans, Louisiana
Registered: 10-16-2006
Posts: 10328
Website

Re: Who else mistook Miki for a girl?

KaleMarsh wrote:

The obvious question is--did you enjoy Excel Saga if it was only your second anime?

It probably didn't occur to me to gender Miki early enough to ask the question.

That's a great answer.  I can only wish to be so enlightened!  emot-wink  As for Excel Saga, I actually enjoyed it more then than I do now.  I'm not sure why.

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#18 | Back to Top06-21-2011 08:15:28 PM

spoon-san
Someday Shiner
Registered: 03-18-2009
Posts: 3423

Re: Who else mistook Miki for a girl?

I can see Miki as fitting in the whole male lesbian concept.

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#19 | Back to Top06-22-2011 11:24:25 AM

Calamity
High Tripper
Registered: 06-13-2010
Posts: 244

Re: Who else mistook Miki for a girl?

satyreyes wrote:

I thought he was a girl.  emot-keke  In my defense, Utena was the third anime I ever saw.  The first two were Boogiepop Phantom and Excel Saga, which are situated at opposite ends of some kind of spectrum, but neither of them did much to prepare me for feminine-looking bishounen.  (Il Palazzo is too tall.)  Nor did I know yet that Ohtori evidently uses female cup size as an admission criterion.  I think the subtitles eventually tipped me off that Miki was a boy before the narrative did.  emot-smile

I know I've already rambled about it to you before but considering Boogiepop is one of my all-time favorites I will once again say that it makes me so happy that you were broken into anime by such a wonderful series. etc-love Completely off topic I know but I had to gush a little bit. emot-tongue

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#20 | Back to Top06-22-2011 12:24:04 PM

KaleMarsh
High Tripper
From: Washington, DC
Registered: 06-13-2011
Posts: 245

Re: Who else mistook Miki for a girl?

satreyes wrote:

That's a great answer.  I can only wish to be so enlightened.

Thanks.  Unfortunately, I'm less that way now than I was then emot-rolleyes.

I can see how Excel Saga might have more charm if it isn't obvious that every single aspect of it is meant to poke someone in the eye.  It makes for a much better gateway drug than DBZ (guilty).

spoon-san wrote:

I can see Miki fitting in the whole male lesbian concept.

Nah.  Just a eunuch in denial.

Last edited by KaleMarsh (06-22-2011 12:24:26 PM)

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#21 | Back to Top06-25-2011 03:22:33 PM

Lightice
Azure Paleontologist
From: Finland
Registered: 10-21-2006
Posts: 1255

Re: Who else mistook Miki for a girl?

I mistook Miki for a girl in the first episode he was in. I wasn't spending much attention yet at that point because I thought that the series was just a minor passtime back then, and only got into it several episodes later.


Hei! Aa-Shanta 'Nygh!

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#22 | Back to Top08-02-2011 12:33:16 AM

CausalityStar
Caretaker
From: Idaho
Registered: 09-12-2010
Posts: 215

Re: Who else mistook Miki for a girl?

I forgot to mention in the post thread that I though Miki was a girl too. It was mainly the voice acting I think. And I was a bit disappointed to find out that he was a boy since I heard Utena had yuri and when Miki was jealous of Saionji being engaged to Anthy I was thinking, "Alright, it's the first episode and there's already some implied yuri." But I guess it counts a little bit since as they say in that fandub, "Miki's a girl, but not in a vagina way."

I'll tell Mom that you guys think she's cool for liking anime and Mercury/Jupiter. (She also likes Uranus/Neptune) She's not as hardcore of a fan as me, but she'll watch it with me and she likes Sailor Moon a lot. My Dad usually goes and hangs out in his room and basically avoids it at all costs.

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#23 | Back to Top08-02-2011 09:53:17 AM

Mellow Morte
Saionji Slapper
From: Russia, Kaluga
Registered: 11-03-2009
Posts: 27

Re: Who else mistook Miki for a girl?

One of the first editions of SKU here was pirated as hell. The poorest quality I've ever seen. Everything: the video, the sound, the translation - but getting a better release could be tough (and some people were just lazy), so the viewers had to accept the situation. And of couse, the translators did mistook Miki for a girl. Everyone calls him "ona" ("she" in Russian) and Miki himself uses feminine endings of verbs.

Last edited by Mellow Morte (08-02-2011 09:54:57 AM)

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#24 | Back to Top08-02-2011 05:47:34 PM

Maya-chan
Miki Molester
From: Australia
Registered: 07-30-2011
Posts: 32

Re: Who else mistook Miki for a girl?

Before watching Utena, I already knew who the seiyuu of the characters were and the gender of the characters - I was interested in hearing what Miki's seiyuu sounded like as a boy emot-tongue upon seeing the cast list; after playing female roles for about 10 years. emot-dance

When I first watched the episode 5 of SKU, I had second thoughts of Miki being a girl rather than a boy. My mind was 'Is that really a boy? He looks so feminine upon first glance' emot-keke

Last edited by Maya-chan (08-02-2011 05:48:10 PM)

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#25 | Back to Top08-03-2011 02:37:16 AM

Louchan
Rose Bride
Registered: 11-08-2006
Posts: 100

Re: Who else mistook Miki for a girl?

Nope, never. When I first watched Utena I was already used to seeing super feminine boys in anime, I had already learned to distinguish them. emot-biggrin

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