This MW project is sort of the opposite of GeekNight's Utena series: first time viewer vs. long time fans, focus on emotions vs. focus on symbolism and storytelling, updating every day vs. updating once in a blue moon. It's an interesting contrast—although there's no prizes for guessing which one I prefer.

And WOW, these people hate Ruka. When I first came to IRG I was surprised by the negative reaction he got in some circles, but this goes far, far beyond that. I mean...wow.

They really don't let up on any male character, but I'm not gonna go "what about the menz" cause I'm not that kind of guy.

Aelanie wrote:

Ruka deserves every bit of censure he gets. The fact that he's in love with Juri makes him think he's justified in doing the unbelievably assholic things that he does to her and everyone else.

Yes, but did he deserve death for his actions? That's what they think.

Leaving aside the Ruka business for a minute (there are other threads for that), there's one thing that's been stuck in my teeth since episode 9, and I'm finally gonna talk about it.

Remember Shay Guy? He did a "Where I Watch" thread for SKU on RPGnet a year or two ago. He'd been commenting on Mark's blog for shows like Princess Tutu and Madoka Magica, so when Mark started doing Utena he of course contributed as well! He'd start off the discussion by posting Ikuhara's commentary, taken straight from the Nozomi release pamphlets, and then add his own thoughts.

All was well, until episode 9. Shay Guy made a joke about Touga referring to himself as "feminisuto" in the Japanese, noting that the loanword is wildly inappropriate from an English-speaking perspective. Another commentator then piped up, saying that the word's meaning had changed in the Japanese. Shay Guy called it a "dumb" meaning. The commentators then attacked him for using an "ableist slur."

Uh...do they have no self-awareness whatsoever? You can't argue that the meanings of words changes one minute and then complain about someone using a word with an uncomfortable origin the next. Either words have the same meaning forever and ever and Shay Guy was right to begin with, or the meaning of words changes over time and his use of "dumb" as a pejorative was acceptable.

But they can't have it both ways. They can't, because it would mean admitting that they were wrong—and if they do that, if they admit that it's alright to use words like "dumb" and "lame", then the entire basis for their movement collapses. So they have to be hypocrites, they have to stamp out dissent mercilessly, because otherwise they've been wrong the entire time.