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 Top10-29-2006 08:06:41 PM

Ragnarok
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Registered: 10-20-2006
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Akio the politician

Let me preface this by saying I don't know much about politics in general, nor do I follow them. (It makes me depressed to think of them in general, which is likely to flavour this thread.) This is just something random that I thought of while reading the third or fourth Juri/Ruka/Shiori shabang going on. emot-smile

This is an off the wall theory of how the transition from Dios to Akio occurred. Or more a comparative of how such a thing could happen in reality.

We know that Dios was the prince who was always off saving the princesses of the world. Fighting monsters, getting reservations at French restaurants et al. In real life it's about as impossible to happen as a fat man in red delivering presents to every good boy and girl around the world in a single night. But with the power of metaphor we can liken it to someone that, rather than necessarily solved people's problems on an individual basis, instead stood for good and nobility. Someone in a position where he could make a difference in the world as much by example as by action.

Such as a politician, some hot young idealist who sets out to make the world (or at least his local constituency) a better place for everyone that supports him. And of course it's always easier to promise to do something than it is to actually accomplish. As with Utena when the series begins, Dios would step into a world that seems to black and white on the outside only to find a hotbed of personal agendas, shadowy deals and an overarching belief that things cannot be changed short of ruthless action or compromised ideals.

The harder Dios tries to root out the problems plaguing the system, the deeper he becomes entangled in the petty needs of others. His views of right and wrong can't solve problems too complex to be defined as such. The fulfillment of his election promises seem further off than ever and his supporters are demanding action he doesn't know how to take. Perhaps he sees his peers gaining popularity through immoral deals or sees others simply padding their own lifestyles at the expense of the voters.

Election time is coming around again soon. Should he compromise himself to try and make the changes he desires or risk the end of his career by sticking to his guns? Maybe at the expense of his own nobility he can hold onto his position and work his way higher into the system, eventually gaining the power truly required to reshape things how he feels they should be.

Or maybe someone new will enter the race. Someone who shares his goals and with the few alternations he's already made, will be able to set things to rights without tarnishing themselves in the process.


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#2 | Back to Top10-30-2006 12:28:39 AM

satyreyes
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From: New Orleans, Louisiana
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Re: Akio the politician

What a neat analysis of Dios's transition to Akio!  I see what you mean; he does follow an arc sort of similar to what you see in some politicians.  But I think there are a couple points that don't quite match up.

The fairy tale pretty clearly implies that Dios constantly fought monsters and won, saving princesses in the process.  He wasn't just making idealistic promises -- he was following through.  If he were a politician, he'd be one of the most successful ever, striking down corruption and injustice on a daily basis.  But it's never enough, and when he disappears from the scene people come pounding at the doors, demanding with a false sense of entitlement that Dios come back and fund their pork-barrel projects and pass laws to serve their every whim.  He delivered on every campaign promise he made; now people are trying to hold him accountable for promises he didn't make.  And he would've let them, too, if not for Anthy.  I'm not sure the analogy survives past this point, but I do like the image of Utena as his hand-picked successor.

Last edited by satyreyes (10-30-2006 12:32:55 AM)

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#3 | Back to Top10-30-2006 12:33:25 AM

Yasha
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From: Edmonton, AB, Canada
Registered: 10-15-2006
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Re: Akio the politician

This is great, I love it! I can almost see Dios on a soapbox in a town square, like one of those old-timey politicians. Maybe he'll even be wearing the bandbox hat. emot-biggrin

More seriously, I do see what you meant, but I haven't a coherent thought in my head to answer it with. Although the thing that first came to mind was JFK and the years of Camelot; since then, US presidency has gone almost consistently downhill. I guess Anthy could be likened to Lee Harvey Oswald.


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#4 | Back to Top10-30-2006 07:02:12 AM

Giovanna
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From: Edmonton, AB
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Re: Akio the politician

DAMN YOU. emot-mad I thought this thread was going to be some sort of concerted effort to write Akio into the ballot for senator of your state when you vote next week. emot-frown The US Senate needs class and dignity, and Akio would be a breath of fresh air in an otherwise retardedly sexually oppressed, totally in denial cage of monkeys. (Although really I'd rather see him in the oval office. And people complained about Clinton. Ha!)

Anyway, that's definitely a very cool way of looking at it in parallel, I think something like that most certainly factored in Akio's development, if not Dios' original fall. Even after the swords fall on Anthy, it makes no sense to think Dios just woke up like 'hay I'm gonna fuck some people and leave a sticky, shuddering trail of emotional scarring in my wake'. For me, I wonder what he first thought was the morning after. Did Dios immediately decide that people sucked and he wasn't going to save them anymore, or did he try to pick up where he left off first? Option A certainly opens the floodgates for Akio to show up, but really, so does Option B. Just takes a little longer.

I think Dios did try to continue being the prince, but like a politician, learned he could only be effective playing by a very nasty set of rules, and in time, the rules became the norm. And just like a politician, who may start with selfless, noble intent, he ended up in it for his own ends. In Akio's case I wonder how the transition took place insofar as when he decided his interests were more important than anyone else's. Was it in some way an open rebellion against the people who turned on him and Anthy, or was it slower to develop, the result of years of futility in the effort to further more noble ends. And how did he decide he had more worth than anyone else? Considering Anthy's line in the end, 'You're he that chose his path, knowing the whole of the world', I almost suspect his overblown sense of superiority was in no small part originally the work of his sister.


Akio, you have nice turns of phrase, but your points aren't clear and you have no textual support. I can't give this a passing grade.
~ Professor Arisa Konno, Eng 1001 (Freshman Literature and Composition)

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#5 | Back to Top10-30-2006 11:34:26 AM

Ragnarok
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Re: Akio the politician

Giovanna wrote:

DAMN YOU. emot-mad I thought this thread was going to be some sort of concerted effort to write Akio into the ballot for senator of your state when you vote next week. emot-frown

Sorry, Canadian over here! emot-redface

If Akio ever did decide to run for something he'd have my full support.

satyreyes wrote:

The fairy tale pretty clearly implies that Dios constantly fought monsters and won, saving princesses in the process.  He wasn't just making idealistic promises -- he was following through.  If he were a politician, he'd be one of the most successful ever, striking down corruption and injustice on a daily basis.  But it's never enough, and when he disappears from the scene people come pounding at the doors, demanding with a false sense of entitlement that Dios come back and fund their pork-barrel projects and pass laws to serve their every whim.  He delivered on every campaign promise he made; now people are trying to hold him accountable for promises he didn't make.  And he would've let them, too, if not for Anthy.  I'm not sure the analogy survives past this point, but I do like the image of Utena as his hand-picked successor.

Ahaha! You make good points but at the moment all I can do is picture Dios surrounded by a handfull of fat men in suspenders and tophats. "Alright, every Tuesday shall be Ted appreciation day. And on the third of each month, police captain McCoy shall be given a fatted calf." emot-dance

Giovanna wrote:

In Akio's case I wonder how the transition took place insofar as when he decided his interests were more important than anyone else's. Was it in some way an open rebellion against the people who turned on him and Anthy, or was it slower to develop, the result of years of futility in the effort to further more noble ends. And how did he decide he had more worth than anyone else? Considering Anthy's line in the end, 'You're he that chose his path, knowing the whole of the world', I almost suspect his overblown sense of superiority was in no small part originally the work of his sister.

I was considering trying to stick Anthy into my metaphor, but I left her out to keep from rambling any more or getting myself confused. Something like her being involved in a scandel which threatens Dios's integrity unless he keeps his distance from her, or along those sorts of lines.

Akio says he used to consider Anthy as a goddess who sacrificed herself for him. That's got to be a pretty huge ego boost itself. I do think it was a gradual process that caused the transformation, though of course losing Anthy would be the biggest step to turn him away from humanity.


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#6 | Back to Top10-31-2006 07:55:12 AM

Giovanna
Ends of the Fandom
From: Edmonton, AB
Registered: 10-12-2006
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Re: Akio the politician

Ragnarok wrote:

Akio says he used to consider Anthy as a goddess who sacrificed herself for him. That's got to be a pretty huge ego boost itself. I do think it was a gradual process that caused the transformation, though of course losing Anthy would be the biggest step to turn him away from humanity.

The last step, I suspect, involved his deciding she wasn't much of a goddess. Maybe by then he'd been insulted by the power she had over him? Yay emasculation! Perhaps the parallel would be when politicians realize the voters, the people that had been behind them all the way, really didn't mean poopysquat in the upper ranks.


Akio, you have nice turns of phrase, but your points aren't clear and you have no textual support. I can't give this a passing grade.
~ Professor Arisa Konno, Eng 1001 (Freshman Literature and Composition)

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