Maarika wrote:

I think graduating means simply leaving.   Death is not necessary for that, although even in Utena's case she could be considered 'dead' in some sense. As in she will not return to Ohtori because she has left it behind. The other students will probably leave Ohtori when they finish school, in a normal way. For them, Ohtori no longer means a prison/illusion, it has become just a school for them.

About Nanami, I think she did change. And quite a lot actually. Basically, you could see the changes in characters already in episode 37 but in the very end we see how things worked out for them. Hard to say if Nanami's happy or not, but she certainly seems content to me and she also appears much more mature. If she was clinging to Touga like she used to, she would've probably acted in a different way.

Oh, and I like your interpretation about Wakaba. Perhaps she realised that no one is special or that everyone can be special and thus she could be happier.

Yeah, that's where I was confused. I'm not sure if Utena "graduated" or "died" in the eyes of Ohtori. It was more like she vanished and that Akio wiped her from everyone's memories. (but, her influence still seems apparent) Ruka "died", and Akio said Mikage "graduated".. although, Mikage is really confusing for me. Technically, it was like he was frozen in time and his death was delayed, wasn't it?

But then there's Tokiko, who left on her own and later came back to visit Mamiya's grave. I think normal students who graduate Ohtori could come back and re-visit. It also seems that Ohtori is like Never Never land.. no one grows old when they stay there, but they do when they leave.

Yeah, I was pretty certain that Nanami changed a lot.. probably more than some of the other characters, in my opinion. I'm just not sure that scene reflected her change. But she did seem more mature, and she was less clingy to her brother, yet still "close".

Maybe so. I like to think that even if Wakaba didn't remember Utena, she was still influenced by her. But without Utena there, she didn't really have anyone to cling to or look up to, so maybe she turned into her own "prince" or "special person"? I wonder if she still hangs around with Tatsuya.

I found Nanami quietly serving tea sad. I want my bitchy Nanami! (I mean bitchy in a good way)

I always saw the ending as not a revolution of the world, but rather the people in it. No character really got their wish, or the power to make their dreams come true
(no miracles, no eternity, no shining thing...). But they gain strength as people to deal with that. They aren't "happy", they're content. Satisfied.

Saionji doesn't get his wish for eternity, and to finally win over Touga. Instead, he develops a real friendship with him. That is the true eternity. Touga doesn't become all powerful, as he once said he wished to be. But he learns that having a bond with someone is more important that having control over them. Nanami does not surpass everything, and she does not get Touga to herself. She shares him and supports him without smothering him. When they gradulate, I think Saionji and Touga will open a dojo, and Nanami will still be there, serving tea and cleaning floors.

Juri does not gain the power of miracles, and she does not free herself from Shiori or from her feelings. But she learns to cope with that, and to move on day by day. It is miraculous that she is able to overcome the emotions which kept her from being human. Shiori doesn't gain the power of miracles either, and she is unable to excape Juri, but moreover, herself. But she finds solace in working under Juri as a fencer, and slowly develops her own sense of self. I think after they graduate, Shiori will go on to compete in national fencing championships, and Juri will come to every single one, watching from the stands as she cheers on her star pupil.

Miki doesn't get to keep his innocence, and still must give up his purity bit by bit. But he matures. He sees the world in a different light; so what if it isn't beautiful and clear? Who's to say he won't change that? With Mitsuru, his innocence will live on just as any other legacy would; through a child. Kozue doesn't destroy all things in the world to stay with Miki. She doesn't go back to the world they had. In it's stead, she makes a new one. Just as Miki matured, so did she. She is able to let go of her possesiveness, and admire his talent healthily. Mitsuru didn't become and adult, he didn't become the perfect big brother prince figure. But he finds his place in between, where he can grow up without growing up. He begins to mature, but at his own pace. The big thing with this scene was maturity, IMO. I think Miki will go on to conduct and orchestra, with Kozue at the piano. Mitsuru will own the theatre they perform in, as well as serveral art studios, and coffee shops. I'm not sure why it seems like this is what Mitsuru would do, but it does to me. Perhaps Nanami passed on her wealth to him so she could live the normal life with Touga?

Wakaba didn't push special people into another world, nor did she become one herself. She realized the things that make her special are just as good as the things that make others special. She, like Shiori, found her sense of self. She became confident in who she was, and took on her own life rather than clinging to those who had a glamorous life. The girl glomping her is so heart warming to me, because it shows that Wakaba is glomp-worthy.

Keiko didn't kill Nanami, and she didn't win the heart of the man she loved. But what she really needed was respect, for both herself and her friends. This is what she gets. Aiko and Yuuko seem to be more loyal to her, and vice versa. Having Suzuki, Yamada, and Tanaka get shot down shows that Keiko knows she is somebody, and she doesn't have to catch every bone thrown her way (no pun intended). She's better than that, and she knows this now. I think Keiko, Aiko, and Yuuko will go on to form and acting trio, and each year they perform The Tale Of The Rose.

My two cents.

EDIT: Typoseses.

Last edited by dollface (11-27-2008 03:29:50 PM)

I agree, I think the ending was very good.  At first I was a bit disappointed because it wasn't a jump out and slap you with a happy ending.  I had to piece everything together and think about the whole story before I went "Oh!" and felt satisfied.   I've always thought that Anthy found Utena and runs a floral shop.

satyreyes wrote:

When I suggested this thread, I was wondering what the characters would do after graduation -- not just after the series is over!  I'll start with the Student Council.

Oh..

I knew I forgot something.

Pfft. Picky, picky. We can post about all of that after-series stuff here.

I also thought that Juri seemed to lack a passion for fencing. During here whole three years (or more?) of pining over Shiori, she seemed stagnant and unchanging.

But I could see her doing a lot of things. She models and bowls as part-time hobbies in addition to being the fencing captain, but I wonder if that's all just to be distracted. I can see Juri sticking with the fencing team for a while just to help Shiori train, though. Maybe Shiori will become the new fencing captain, and Juri will move on to discover her own inner ambitions? I like that idea. I can see Juri trying out a number of things before finding what's right for her. And Shiori as the new fencing team captain would be interesting; she needs to discover herself, too.

Last edited by SleepDebtFairy (04-17-2007 10:26:43 PM)

satyreyes wrote:

Juri -- I wonder whether Juri has ever paused, or will ever pause, to consider whether she actually likes fencing or is just doing it out of inertia.  If she didn't improve in the years for which Ruka was away, I don't think the spark is there.  I see her as... maybe an art critic?

Honestly, I don't think Juri enjoy fencing nearly as much as one might think she would. I think she used to like it, but after the go 'round with Shiori and Taylor, she's lost the passion. It has simply become routine, like science was [somewhat, IMO] to Nemuro. He didn't want to do it, he had to do it. Familiarity is a safe haven from how chaotic life really is. Bury yourself in what you are good at, and you will always be able to fall back on it. This is why I predict Shiori as the compeditor, and not Juri. She'll continue fencing until she graduates, if only for the good of the team, and maybe a little bit for Shiori. But after graduation...I just don't see her as pursuing it.

KissingT.Kiryuu wrote:

Mamiya- flippin burgers

Quoted for totally random nonsense of the year. I you. But i think he's with willy wonka, making the jesus crisp pop tart...

I agree.  When I first found out about the ending (script and synopsis reading), I was devestated.  I thought it was the most horrible ending I could imagine.  That Utena tried so hard and never became a Prince. 

I was a lot younger then and as enamored of fairy tales as Utena herself.  But then one day I realized that Utena really won in a way even she didn't realize.

I always figured everyone will slowly grow up and leave Ohtori.  Touga will stop being quite such a heartless playboy and learn to have real friendships (even if he isn't a "relationship" sort of guy).  Miki will learn to stop trying to ressurect his idealized childhood.  Nanami already learned that her self-worth doesn't have to come from her brother--but she will learn to calm down a little.  And so forth, generally agreeing with what has already been said.

What the characters actually do as far as careers go is speculation I've never indulged in.  It was interesting to read the of ideas.  Some of those images really make sense--Saionji in a dojo, Touga as a politician or businessman...  Never considered that before.

Last edited by rhyaniwyn (04-18-2007 03:59:18 PM)

An EMT?

Here are my own calls-

Utena and Anthy: Reunite, get married, and move to Tokyo.

Utena: After a brief pro wrestling career, joins a local all-female theatre.

Anthy: Runs a flower shop located beneath the apartment she and Utena live in.

Miki: Becomes a world famous concert pianist.

Kozue: Lives the rest her days in relative comfort as a politician's mistress.

Juri: After breaking free of Shiori, becomes an olympic fencer and later a movie action star.

Shiori: Goes nuts after being dumped, tried to attack Juri at her medal ceremony, and gets sent to an asylum for the criminally insane.

Akio: The odds finally catch up to him and he dies in a spectacular car crash involving the Akiomobile, the three singing idiots, Chuchu, the Shadow Players, a jar of peanut butter, and a rogue elephant.

Touga: Following Akio's death, circumstances lead to him becoming the new headmaster. That lasts about a week, then he runs off to become a rock star.

Saionji: With little to no warning, Touga makes him come along.

Nanami: Tried to fill in for Touga, which resulted in a nervous breakdown. Is now a simple elementary level teacher. Also currently dating Miki.

Wakaba: Lives happily ever after with Tatsuya. Or whatever the Onion Prince's name was.

Chuchu: His work done, he goes back to whench he came, to claim his rightful place as king of the monkeymice. But that is a story for another time.

Here are my 'off the wall' calls for what happens to the SKU cast well after episode 39.

Utena finds herself reincarnated as a boy in the past with no clear memories, grows up and develops a reputation for being a living computer, meets a woman who has a sickly younger brother and using some poptarts, causes the death of 100 students which drives him to such dispair that he suffers another amnesic  attack and wakes up inside a coffin believing her parents are dead....

Anthy travels around for a while and gets herself a pink '86 and gets a job delivering tofu until on one of her runs' she defeats the current Mt. Akina downhill champ and from then on, she becomes a legendary rally driver.

Miki and Juri get married and have twin boys who kept to themselves until, some blonde french boy convinces them to join his club where they entertain female guests with their twincest act.

Nanami ends up working for a zoo as a vet.

Shiori after getting over the fact that Juri married Miki, she discovered she had great magical potential and studied sorcery and some place called Hogworts.

Kozue and Tsuwabuki join forces where Kozue seduced rich influencial men and Tsuwabuki would using his spying abilities to collect information and photos on these men to use as blackmail.

Yasha wrote:

Touga, well... he's got potential as a businessman and a lawyer both

Darling, we've covered this. Touga becomes a hideously wealthy businessman whose growing boredom with his solitary life of luxury leads him to steal priceless paintings from museums for fun. Akio leaves Ohtori Academy to head a major law firm staffed partly by his own infernal offspring. He gets chicks to blow him in restaurants and still lives at the top of an ominous tower. Saionji also takes up law, but runs a far smaller operation in a quiet town, where he finds all the excessive exercise in the world can't make him stop thinking about tying his secretary to the table and smacking her ass red.