#morg commentary

[amplexadversary]

More Utena, ep 12 now.

Holy fuck the "I like you better like this" from multiple fronts is uh. Meant to give the audience the creeps I think, and it's certainly working on me.

That sudden outpouring of positive attention the second a GNC girl concedes even a little bit of feminine presentation is real and it is so fucking manipulative; it pairs well with the shtick Touga likes to pull.

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I know more of the fuckery is hitting the main characters, but Wakaba must be going through it right now as well. Her boyfriend (a girl), has a fight with another girl the two have been hanging out with, there's another guy involved somehow who's a bit of a big deal, and suddenly she's not only presenting "normally" after being hugely resistant to doing so, but she's become almost completely passive?

Like, taking Wakaba as being gay that's probably something of a scare for her, the only woman she knows that's like Utena, the woman she loves changing like that is almost tantamount to saying that kind of woman isn't real.

(Edit: I forgot she had a thing for Saionji. Whoops.)

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Ooh, credit to Wakaba for catching on pretty quickly after Touga got involved in front of her that he's a factor in the problem. Wakaba doesn't know shit but she has fucking eyes, which you can't always say about characters that aren't privy to the main plot of the work they're in.

Also, a little audience-only evidence as to Anthy's actual feelings after Touga cast doubt onto every aspect of her relationship with Utena. Like, we're not going to prove that Touga's wrong to Utena yet, but we'll confirm for the audience that Anthy does give more of a fuck about her situation than she's allowed to express.

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With what I've seen of Utena's character, I'd have thought it more likely for her to change back into her other uniform before the duel, but I think I broadly get why the show feels the need to show her fighting in the girls' uniform.

(I'll note that Pearl from SU is doing a LOT of heavy lifting here because of how much her character arc calls back to Utena; I'm finding it kind of cool that Pearl is kind of both Anthy and Utena in a way, which changes a lot of the dynamic; I'm starting to think that with all the things Rose Quartz was set up as having failed to do or be, for all her prestige, "failing to be fully-character-developed Utena" is on that list; Pearl does do the bulk of the major un-fucking of her own head after Rose's death, after all.)

Jury giving Utena the sword she uses in this battle is also very interesting, but I don't think I have enough information to really dig into the significance of that yet (assuming it's not like, text that's spelled out in a later episode). My working theory is that after re-visiting her own heartbreak she's throwing her support behind another lesbian, but there's still the bulk of the show that I haven't watched yet to potentially say otherwise.

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"ABANDON YOUR BODY AND PROTECT THE SWORD," ??????

Well I sure wonder if that's going to be the beginning of whatever explanation we might get for the ghost prince thing we've been seeing with Utena.

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Fuck, every time I see an allusion to the Galactic Railroad, I look it up, and by the time I see another one, I've forgotten the significance of it. That's actually kind of frustrating.

Speaking of Anthy being allowed to express things, the difference in her expressiveness between when she's with Utena and when she's with either of the other "suitors" is at least a visible improvement for her situation, even if she's still mired in the bizarre rose bride role.

[shipcestuous]

I never see Morgause/Morgana (depending on the Arthurian telling) as a villain. Can’t a woman seduce her brother and have his baby in peace anymore? 🤰🏻

I'm so glad there are so many different versions of the tale of King Arthur, so that we can see so many different versions of Morgan/Morgause/etc. Villain. Not a villain. Something in between. So many options.

Of course the one version that's friendliest to Morgan - Mists of Avalon - takes the responsibility for the incest (and raising Mordred evil away from her). I'm ready for the Morgan-friendly and incest-friendly version.

[byakugoseal]

tag dump: broken & updated tags part ii

[lexosaurus]

Hey, Lexx! Fic authors self rec! When you get this, reply with your favorite five fics that you've written, then pass on to at least five other writers. Let’s spread the self-love 💜

LEXIE THIS IS SO CUTE!

Okay I couldn't narrow it down so I'm adding a 6th fic akjnsdfksjnd. So here's my top 6 fics with some commentary because I'm extra af:

1: Everything Was White: After being accidentally revealed to the public and taken away by the government, Danny deals with the aftermath of his time with the GIW.

Yeah, this won't come as a surprise to many. This VERY angsty longfic sorta marked a turning point for me where I started taking writing more seriously, really looking at plot structures, doing research, interacting with other writers. I went into this with "I'll just do a twoshot cuz I suck and I'm not capable of writing much more," and seeing how far I've come in skill and confidence has honestly kept me totally enamored with this fic. I love that I can see my improvement as the fic's gone on. I've gone back and cleaned up the early chapters, and I can still see a distinct difference. Makes me very happy!

2: Morge: It was a beautiful day outside. The birds were singing, the flowers were blooming...a corpse was found in the woods.

This was my first Invisobang fic and also my first (and only? so far?) Outsider POV fic. I loved exploring the perspectives of Amity Park and Phantom from somewhat regular people who don't know much about ghosts. And, of course, writing Danny slowly losing it as the fic went on was a great bonus!

3: Transformation Troubles: A hit from one of Skulker's weapons leaves Danny temporarily unable to transform out of his ghost form. Unfortunately for him, he still has classes to attend.

This fic is just a vibe, honestly. It's a "guilty pleasure" category of DP fics that are few and far between (glitching powers, still has to go to class) but I absolutely inhale any chance I get to read one. College AU, post-reveal MY BELOVED real tea y'all. This basically came from me wanting a niche thing and going, "Fine, I'll write it myself!!"

4: and then he woke up: In his dreams, he woke up in his cell again.

This oneshot is similar to EWW where it's my take on what a realistic GIW recovery might look like. Aka, Danny Has A Bad Time. It's a very sad hurt/comfort fic, but I think it also represents a "level up" in my descriptions and pacing that I've been trying to employ more in recent fics.

5: Black and White Roses: When he died, he didn't get a memorial service. He didn't get the vigil, the flowers, the headstone. In fact, no one even found his body.

Dude idk man I just really love Valerie and Phantom's dynamic. Also, thought it'd be really interesting to write a full ghost AU fic, which it was, because as I was writing it I realized like hey, he'd have a corpse, and corpses are kinda freaky aren't they? Like how would you react if ur ghost friend was like "Hey yeah my corpse is over there." That'd be fucking nuts.

6: Birthmark: “No, it’s…” He trailed off, rubbing a hand over his face. His eyebrows were pinched and he looked almost sick. When he finally spoke, his voice was small. “They’re not tattoos.”

Lichtenberg HC my beloveddddd seriously I love it so much I am SO normal about it. That and Phantom and Valerie becoming friends fics. Literally so fucking normal guys. Just trust me bro.

Yeah 5 and 6 are so similar so I couldn't pick between them hahaha. But this is my current top fave fics!

I'm also REALLY excited to release all the stuff that I've been working on the past year this fall. Not tryna gas myself up here but I've been sitting on so much stuff since last NaNo and I'm just ahhhhh!

[jackwattersdt3gameuiux]

The Clicker Game Brief

What is a clicker game?

A game where the whole point is to constantly click for rewards.

We're using a very simplistic template, and we're going to make it useful, cool looking, and engaging.

The style we're doing is a casual mobile game. Something super easy to use but also visually interesting and exciting. Balancing clarity with style basically.

Example: Cookie Clicker

Idle game with deep lore.

Passive playstyle.

Gets more active later in the game with golden cookies.

Gets more and more visually intense the further you go, with cursors surrounding your cookie in heavenly patterns.

What seems like a simplistic idle game slowly turns into a engaging game with multiple mechanics and skills.

Deep lore is deep and crazy.

Deep social commentary on the nature of capitalism in relation to endless growth and constant need for growth to sustain the economy despite the health and wellbeing of others being constantly undermined.

Clicker Game UI Design Brief

Concept through to assets - Title screen (name/logo, play button). Make sure the play button is easy to find (make it big). - In game (clicker button/area, make it obvious what you should click without telling the player what to click). - Clicker Button. The game revolves around the button. It requires satisfying sounds/visuals/animations. The progressive element is that the button changes visually for each level (maybe could behave differently as well) (it's heavily encouraged to change the button quite a lot between levels), the goal is to build excitement. There should be a feeling of progression. - Score element. The game finishes when the score hits 2000, can be higher. - 4 level up milestone sequences. These are transitions which clearly show the game progressing between levels. These should show the escalating intensity and should feel like a reward for the player. Same goes for the end screen, this should be the best bit. The next sequences should always be cooler and more interesting than the previous. - Progress bar. There needs to be a horizontal progress bar which shows the distance to beating the level, this is because it incentivizes them to keep going. - There are limitations to the template.

STYLE - Keep it fun and light. It's not dark, people don't die, keep that in mind. But, you can make pretty awesome effects and stuff like that. - Keep it obvious. Consistency in button styling, type faces, etc. It should feel like you're in the same game by the end. - Several moodboards showing you've investigated the theme/genre. - Wireframes (4 screens). Title, gameplay, transition, and end screens. Do multiple iterations for each. - Animation. The clicker button needs a responsive reaction to being clicked. Sequences need to be interesting. Animations in the backgrounds will enhance the game. Also, transitions could be animated as well. - Sound can be obtained from royalty free websites. Make sure sounds aren't annoying, loud, and obnoxious. - Might be your only shot at making a clicker game. - Use lots of time on this project. - UI animation is simplistic. - Make the game as compelling as you can, go for those details, make it interesting and fun. Story, unique style, whatever, use all tools at your disposal. - Level up sequences need to be made of a storyboard, plan out everything. NOTE: - Make sure people know whats going on. It can look as cool as possible, it can be so incredibly awesome, but if it's not understandable then it really doesn't matter. - Bugs are plenty, make sure to constantly get feedback. - Remember Morg's class and how we made backups each time we iterated, or at the start of each day.

Musts: - UI Consistency - Intrigue - Building Progression - Different Shit, Same Toilet - Research and documentation

[hawnks]

yuuta has a series of reminders on his phone for ur period so he can start telling you you’re good and kind and smart BEFORE the sad spiral kicks in

[reborn--maggot]

btw i think you should know that me reading this story looks like the stock image dude laughing through the tears. and the only reason i’m laughing is because of your commentary between chapters.

KJSJKJSD

[vaeltan-louxser]

[captainkirkk]

✩ WEEKLY FIC ROUND-UP ✩

All the fics I’ve read and really enjoyed in the past week-ish. Reminder: This list features any and all ratings and themes.

Untamed

Rotten Work by ShanaStoryteller

Jin Ling hadn’t thought to keep track of Wei Wuxian.

Clearly that had been a mistake.

Star Wars

Darth Vader Goes to Therapy by LadyVader23

After a mission gone very wrong, Vader is forced into court mandated therapy to calm the concerned citizens of the galaxy. His assigned therapist? The only one who would take him: brand new therapist Luke Lars.

SVSSS

Into This Wild Abyss by Lbhs_left_tiddie (HungryPoet)

Shen Qingqiu stood at the edge of the cliff, his back lit up by the fiery light of the Endless Abyss. The blood from the wound on his chest spilled out between his fingers, splattering onto the shattered remains of Xiu Ya laying at his feet. When he looked up, his expression was half-wild with the heat of battle, shoulders heaving with his ragged breaths, and his eyes, which were normally like green jade, glowed blood red-

-The very same red shining from the demon mark etched onto his forehead.

Or: Shen Qingqiu is the protagonist of PIDW

Danny Phantom

Morge by lexosaurus

It was a beautiful day outside. The birds were singing, the flowers were blooming...a corpse was found in the woods.

Or, Amity Park's local cadaver dog trainer was walking her dog in the woods when they discovered a little surprise waiting for them six feet under.

DC

Breaking News: Local Teen Given Intervention For Normal Behaviour by yellowrooster

Tim ends up in an alternate dimension where he's considered a drug addict.

Clone Wars

A Jedi's Guide to Extemporaneous Repotting by willowcrowned

Ahsoka blinked. “Master Obi-Wan?”

“Yes?”

“Why is Master Qui-Gon growing mildly hallucinogenic plants in your bathtub?”

“The usual reason, I expect.”

“Oh.” Ahsoka’s eyes widened. “Oh.”

Love Each Other With Abandon by Elthadriel

Cody tries to navigate his way through what might be the most awkward crush he could possibly have developed. Fortunately, his brothers are there to provide emotional support

Or, at the very least, provide amused commentary.

[morwap]

𝐓𝐀𝐆𝐒

tags i use for specific things and in my fic and just to help you around my blog :) (i do forget to tag things sometimes so i’m sorry 😭 and we have a 30 tag limit so there might be another post like this with different ones)

morwaps.nsfw. - not safe for work things

morwaps.sfw. - safe for work things

morwaps shit post (don’t really use anymore)

morwaps.headcanons. - character headcanons

morwaps.dark - dark themes

morwaps recs - fic rec tho i don’t use it anymore bc i have a fic rec blog it’s linked on my pinned if you wanna follow

morwaps in the upside down sucking eddie’s dick - stranger things commentary mainly season 4

morgs playing gta 🙁

morgs playing dbd 😾

[amplexadversary]

Utena Movie thoughts

Oh, I recognize this architecture, it's UC Davis's The Death Star, but with a little more acrophobia thrown in for good measure!

And the shadow chorus girls now have aliases and a radio show. Okay.

Also Short hair Utena? Pretty dapper I've got to say, though I'm more used to the long hair design.

Whereas Jury's hair got even longer lol

Oh, we're getting out the "Ultraman references" early, I see. (coming back to this observation, the crosses are in fact relevant later in the film)

And Utena actually knows Touga ahead of time in this one.

See, if I had given in and watched the dub, I'd probably be bitching about repetitive dialogue, but the sub merely feels like it's determined to teach me today's vocabulary word in Japanese (mind, this is a JOKE. The word is dropped so frequently because a whole lot of anime is being compressed into less tha 90min)

Ah, I see this is the version of events after Touga has an encounter with RL Stein's Cuckoo Clock of Doom; if Utena had been childhood friends with Touga in the show's timeline Nanami would have pushed her off a building.

It's a but weird seeing Anthy with her hair down outside of a worrisome emotional scene. I don't like how they straightened her hair either. And no glasses? At least she's less passive in this version?

Yeah, I don't know about the hair thing. In the original, the long-haired Utena and the shorter (appearing) haired Anthy prevented the main pairing from having too much of a butch/femme dichotomy. Anthy feels very off model throughout this entire thing (Utena too, to a lesser extent.)

Well that's certainly an... efficient level of composite-charactering from Shiori's summary. The movie really makes Shiori much more two-faced as well. And Touga less. Not sure how I feel about that.

Okay my joke about Touga being in an RL Stein book was not in good taste given just how much we're doing composite characters here, but I'm not going to remove it. That elevator scene was well done, I have to say.

Speaking of "efficient," the film does not hold on to its cards nearly as hard as the show does (proportionately speaking). I guess the intent would be for people to have already watched the show. (yeah no they were building on the end enough that they wanted to Get There as quickly as possible)

I have nothing to say about the first "scandalous tape" that I haven't already said about Nanami. As for the second... I think they manage to show a lot more while showing a lot less, particularly when you realize that that fizzy tablet is NOT alka-seltzer (I think the reason why the writers made it fizz is again to draw attention - this time to the tablet going in Anthy's drink)

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Okay so we're working with a much more uh, figurative scenario compared to the show. The climax has something to say and it does so basically purely through metaphor.

The "world" here resents Anthy for getting out from under Akio's thumb, blames her for his (accidental lmao) death, because why should she get to leave? (I appreciate Shiori's dialogue here in trying to be the person who "deserves" to get out. She frames it as a competition she must win, a race, a zero sum game where only the fastest to leave gets out. When that is uh. not the case but very much how some people treat it IRL, so that's pretty clear.)

And Utena's role. She fails in the show. She does not rescue Anthy, Anthy has to leave on her own.

In the film. Uh. Utena very much goes with her. But she does so in a way where she's not able to directly help; Anthy has to drive.

Honestly I'm sure there's more to say here but I'm kind of reeling from the spectacle of Getting Changed By The Big Machine, set to a juiced up version of the Absolute Destiny Apocalypse theme song.

Look, you're not going to get an "A" essay on the first watch of a movie with that scene from someone who

Um

is really into the vehicle/body horror thing that a certain other anime has going for it.

Look does anyone honestly expect someone who gives the *non judgemental but knowing look* to the Nanami Cow Episode to not have their own deviantart-tier kinks?

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I think I see what's ultimately going on with the movie. It's asking the audience to do a LOT more heavy lifting dissecting the metaphor of what's going on, adds another layer of fantasy on top of the fantasy, and gets much farther away from the literal in order to play up how fraught Anthy's Power Word: Leave would be.

And in exchange for that we get a less bittersweet, but still open ending, and an actual Utena/Anthy kiss.

[shipcestuous]

The Road to Avalon is a retelling of the King Arthur story, with Arthur and Morgana as the main romantic pairing. Instead of them being half siblings, she's his half aunt in this one.

I'm confused how I didn't already know about this amazing book. I must read this.

The Road to Avalon

Thank you so much for the info!

[sandersstudies]

I know people have said it before, but sometimes the media we consume isn’t perfect, and that’s still okay. I mean this in the sense that it’s okay to read purple prose, enjoy bad acting, and such, but also that none of our media is ideologically and morally 100% pure and perfect, and what’s more important than what we watch is that we watch it with a perceptive and critical eye. 

Thinking about this because I’m watching Star Trek TOS yet again, and the show gets a lot of praise for things like it’s inclusivity for the era, including multiple main character of color and the first interracial kiss on television. It inspired a lot of early “fandom” and “shipping” culture way before those were even words for those things. It’s full to the brim with social commentary against war, violence, sexism, and racism, and as a bonus it has characters we care about and fun premises. I think all of this is true, and TOS has remained one of my comfort shows for years - I recommend it to lot of people.

But can I promote the show as a “good and pure and perfect” thing that I watch, unlike all the other evilbad stuff out there? Absolutely not. Even if you throw out the fact that it’s sometimes cheesy and dorky-type content, the show premiered in the 60s and includes negative or misleading depictions and terms surrounding Asian and Native American people (check episode 3.3 and cringe forever with me at the brownface). People have criticized plenty of times that even though the show includes many female characters, including a female Lieutenant and, in the pilot episode, a female first officer, most of them are relegated to traditionally feminine roles like nurses (and people have compared Lt. Uhura’s role as head communications officer to a secretary). The show’s obviously developed with the heterosexual norms of the 60s, with almost every alien race on the show still depicted with a male-female dichotomy where men marry women (the exceptions that break the norms, like the morgs and eymorgs, are often “normalized” by the end of the episode. TNG and further adaptations improved on this somewhat, including genderless or gender-different societies.)

Anyway, don’t feel like you have to drop a book or a show or anything you like at the first sign of imperfection. Noticing these things and identifying them as bad is a sign your critical thinking is in proper working order. No single piece of media you interact with is going to be perfect (and if you think it is, you’re probably blinding yourself), and that’s okay.

As Spock once said, “Logic is the beginning of wisdom, not the end,” so if you’re using your logic, your wisdom, and your compassion, you’re doing okay.

[the-shadows-angel-archived]

😍

Commentary Meme

😍: I love the chemistry your muse has with other muses!

That’s what I always hope to gain with people uwu I’m glad other’s love how Morg gets along with people ;w;

[ciathyzareposts]

Missing and Mysteries

I thought I would centralize, in this entry, all of the games that we either can’t find or that I’ve found unplayable or unwinnable in some mysterious way. This should make it easier for readers who stumble across the blog to offer hints. I’ll remove titles (or otherwise flag them) when we find solutions and add titles as I verify their “missing” and “NP” status.

I appreciate any leads, but please do not take it upon yourself to reach out to the original developers unless you somehow know them personally. Chances are, I’ve already tried to contact the most promising leads, and I don’t want the authors (or people with their names) to get repeated contacts. If you feel you have a promising lead I may have overlooked, please verify with me first.

Bugs ‘N Drugs (1977, PLATO). An early game of the DND lineage. The lesson name was BND. It isn’t part of the lessons catalogued on Cyber1.

Castle of Tharoggad (1988, Tandy Color Computer 3). Nothing seems to happen upon reaching top floor and killing monsters. See this entry. 

Dungeon (1975, PLATO). A game of this title exists, and it’s possible to load the title screen, but there doesn’t seem to be any way to start the game. (Note: this is not The Dungeon, or pedit5, which I have already played and reviewed. This one is by John D. Daleske et. al.)

Dungeon (1975, PDP-10). This game by Don Daglow no longer seems to exist. See this Wikipedia article.

Dungeons of Avalon (1991, Amiga). Culminates in seemingly unwinnable final battle. If you cheat your characters to high enough values to win the final battle, nothing happens. See posts here and here.

Empire III: Armageddon (1983, Apple II). No one seems to have turned up a disk image.

GayBlade (1992, DOS). Famous lost RPG with LGBTQ themes. Some of my commenters were pursuing some leads, but that was weeks ago, and nothing seems to have turned up. Reviews, box art, and various commentary prove that the game existed, but no one seems to have a copy. See here for more.

m199h (1975, PLATO). Perhaps the first CRPG ever written, deleted by PLATO admins.

OrbQuest (1981, CP/M). Rare CP/M game derived directly from PLATO Game of Dungeons. No known publicly-available disk images exist. (Note: if you’re going to try to help search for this one, please do not bother the individual with the initials B.L. who posted on his site that he acquired the game about a decade ago. Multiple people have already written him and he clearly either can’t or won’t supply the images; there’s no point in continuing to harass him.)

OrbQuest: The Search for Seven Wards (1986, Macintosh). I’ve been unable to find a place to download this first Mac-only RPG.

Star Crystal: Episode 1 – Mertactor: The Volentine Gambit (1985, Apple II). It seems that this game was never officially released.

TaskMaker (1989, Macintosh). I’ve been unable to find a copy of the original version, just the color remake from 1991.

Twin Morg Valley (Unknown, Commodore 64). See the bottom of this entry. We still don’t know when this was released or what its “deal” is.

source http://reposts.ciathyza.com/missing-and-mysteries/

[amplexadversary]

More Utena, ep 29-39

Damn it, I should have made a quip at some point between 30 and 32 about already knowing Touga was a bastard. Oh well.

(What I actually thought when they were going over the blood types was "oopsie, someone's having a non-parental event")

It is kind of darkly funny that the situation of Nanami finding that she's "not" related to Touga (up until the audience gets more information) makes her feel that their relationship is less valid and not more.

Then again she demonstrates that she doesn't want to have sex with Touga, so her brother complex is more emotional/romantic incest. Still kind of fucked up.

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I do applaud this show for its gradual introduction of the horror while still maintaining the trappings of a Shoujo Romance (the rose frames, parts of the soundtrack, you know). Those elements gradually become extremely chilling the further in you get.

(Not to mention a single rose appearing to spin onscreen during some of the disturbing interactions)

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I see what the game is. One of the student council members would not have encouraged Anthy the be more herself, but they would have had a chance to get her away from her abuser. But if Akio gets Utena under his thumb, and she wins the last duel, both Utena and Anthy are stuck with him.

And only after that does Utena see what both Anthy and Nanami couldn't bring themselves to say out loud.

And she doesn't react. Because she's mired in it too I'd guess. Because Akio is abusing her as well.

An idea that's kind of reinforced by a date scene where Akio further pushes Utena towards femininity.

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"In the end, all girls are like the Rose Bride." I think Anthy just dropped Utena's thesis statement here.

In that you're expected to wait until someone else makes every move. In that you don't really get a choice, sometimes even if there's multiple people who proposition you, in some circles you're expected to choose the "best," you could even say the "winner" among the competition, regardless of your feelings. In that you're then expected to go along with the decisions the other person makes, giving them the authority, more or less just tagging along.

In that you're expected to be whatever the situation at hand requires, no less and certainly no more, and failing that invites retaliation (I very specifically am thinking about how that must be the attitude Saionji had when hitting Anthy; it's not enough that she was basically completely submissive to him, he's still going to hit her for not measuring up to some expectation of his.)

I almost wonder if the shadow players kind of align with this, in their purpose being to act out roles thematically specific to the situation the main plot is in. The fact that we don't see them bodily until they need to physically interact with one of the characters - it doesn't matter who they actually are, just the role they play, and shadows are less intrusive. And the main characters don't pay them any mind except for Utena, when she eventually starts responding to them.

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Now I'm wondering if the flying saucer actually represents the weird, unhealthy dynamic of the whole End of the World Rose Bride thing intruding on peoples' regular lives.

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I've noticed a few times that there are deliberate sections on this show where the animation just stops for several seconds, and the music keeps going. I actually rewound the first few times to see if youtube was having an issue, and started hovering my cursor over the video whenever I caught it happening again, so I could see the time move forward normally rather than in the janky way it does when you actually get the error where the sound is playing while the picture isn't.

I'm on e37 and now I'm seeing a few of these choices together (the spinning rose, the "frozen" video, repeated animation and sounds) paired up with some strange dialogue and transitions that resemble what a clumsy edit to film might look like, with abrupt changes, repeats of dialogue, and an unnatural rate of flow to the conversation.

I think the animation pauses are meant to both unnerve the viewer and to prime them to notice when it starts happening really blatantly, to convince the audience to interpret it as "something's fishy in-universe" rather than "who fucked up the shot."

The arrows in the back half of the Black Rose arc might serve a similar purpose. They seem to genuinely point to things that the plot is counting on the audience to pick up on; aside from one animation error I couldn't find anything they might have been distracting from. They're actually a legitimate "Notice This."

I almost wonder if the first person POV in the gondola version of the pre-duel sequence being in first person was a bit of slight-of-camera. As of yet I haven't seen any hint of what that POV might have been hiding, but I *did* miss the POV camera trickery in 33 up until the reveal; in addition to being shown out of chronological order, the camera spends a lot of time exactly where Akio or Utena is in the scene to hide their presence.

The gondola sequence feels like a more "easily caught" trick because the "camera" is moving, so when the same trick was pulled with an unmoving POV I was looking for it, but not in that place; the setup is that the audience is more likely to realize what's happening exactly when the right information is given (Akio's hand in this case).

Now I'm wondering if there's still a POV-related reveal coming about the gondola approach now that my guard is down after the other POV trick was resolved. (post e39 note: nope!)

(Look, I like a LOT of works where the authors are squirrelly little tricksters like this, and Utena has already had some weird surrealness going on. I'm paranoid for a reason, damn it!)

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Well, the opening did in fact tell us exactly what was going to happen.

Utena was not able to rescue Anthy, but her efforts gave Anthy the strength of self-determination to leave.

"Even if the two of us are torn apart, I swear I will change the world."

Utena didn't succeed, but she was able to change things for the Rose Bride. And if "Every girl is like the Rose Bride," the two of them actually do change the world; in Anthy gaining the power to leave the situation she's in, metaphorically "every girl" receives that power.

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I know there's a movie. I'll see if I can find that as well before I go into the main tag.