#wakaba and tatsuya

[asofterutena]

(Better or worse?)

[original comic by @diaryofadissembler]

[arscorpii]

framed by pink roses

bonus (episode 11)

episodes 1, 2, 3, 6, 8, 9, 11, 12, 14, 19, 27, 31, 36

[chaiikomi]

"i'll accompany you as your lifelong regret"

always with you xd

[fluffyninja91]

girls in the green room:

boys in the green room:

[nami-moittli]

I am. Doing something

Notes:

Lisa and An look so similar, and p5 is a lot like p2 so why not connect them!

Lisa’s dad has an older brother who got married to a Japanese woman, who I want to say kickstarted his descent into being a complete Japanophile, but I haven’t really figured out the ages for that to work yet. I wanna say he was like, early to pre teens when Big Bro Silverman started dating/got married to his wife but idk

Anyway Big Bro Silverman and his wife have a daughter, who then gets married to the Papa Takamaki, explaining the name change (ofc I coulda made Big Bro into Big Sis Silverman and had the same effect but wtvr) and they have An.

But Wonder’s parents are canonically just- SHHH in my head p5 and p5x take place in different timelines, which is why I’m comfortable in saying that in my headcanon, Wonder is Katsumaya’s kid and in the p5x timeline Katsuya’s dead which is why his home life is, vaguely nonexistent from what I’ve heard. In mainline p5 timeline he’s a way happier kid and him and Ren are really close!

But Ren’s parents are probably really bad, we don’t hear from them ONCE- Shut up shutupshutupshutup that’s your opinion, Flowerchild AU 🔛🔝 I love them. Tatsujun adopted Ren at about age, idk 3-4? So Tatsujun’d be about 21ish? Also due to ✨gayness✨ I doubt that Tatsujun are married legally (Idrk Japanese laws very well, let alone their gay ones lol) and Jun’s last name is Kashihara bc. The Punishment is in fact Eternal

Alright I stole the idea of Yuka (persona 1) being Ryuji’s mom right off of @/hypogryffin, so yeah

Again Zenkichi and Saori being siblings is smth I got from hypogryffin, but it’s reasonable to come to this conclusion because they have the same last name. Also, if we say that Zen is 44 in p5s during 2017, and Saori is 18 in 2009, then that means that there’s an about 18 year difference between them, which is very funny to me. Also I think Minako would love to meet little 6ish year old Akane and that’s fun

Also, idk if I want to go the Futago sibs route or add in Baofu being Futaba’s bio dad, which would both be interesting. I do like the idea of Ken and Akechi being half siblings tho, so I put that in (also I accidentally misspelled Shido’s first name lol)

So. Yeah. Fun

[originalwinnercheesecake]

what if the Revolutionary Girl Utena characters were pokemon trainers

I went back to the Utena tab, as one does, to brush up on my philosophy... Suddenly the question pops into my head "With Anthy's love of roses which flower pokemon would be her favorite? I bet it would be x." Then i started to think "If Anthy had "X" then maybe Utena could have "Y". "Nanami should have "C" because of that one comedy filler episode" You know the one. "Also wouldn't it be fun to create a sinister pokemon team for Akio." I literally went to sleep rolling these thoughts and potential teams around in my mind, and have spent all day working on getting the teams right.

Before I post my teams here were my rules

1.) Six pokemon for the rose crest duelists, one-three for the black rose duelists. Ruka got two

2.) All the rose bride duelists had to have at least one flower/plant/florial pokemon. This was not required of the black rose duelists or Ruka.

3.) Normally I do not let characters have legendary pokemon on their teams. But because some of these characters are Gods or embodiment's of legendary themes/tropes I put fitting legendary on the teams for four specific characters

4.) To challenge myself I did not use any of the eeveelutions, or regional type variations (Alolan, Galar, Hisuin). These are usally heavily represented on my previous lists and I wanted this one to be more unique

In honor of pride month here is the RGU cast as pokemon trainers

Anthy Himemyia

a team that is half cute and girly , and half very very frightening

White Flower Florgus: This one is representative of Anthy's love of flowers, whoch she incorperated into her role in the duels, as the Rose Bride. A flowery fairy pokemon that devotes itself to its gardens. The red one is to sweet to be Anthy's pokemon. Plus given that both the roses in her coffin and the one she puts on Utena are white, I think that white may be her favorite rose color.

Wooloo: Anthy used the Wool from her Wooloo (and some red fabric dye) to make the sweater she knitted and gifted Utena in season 2. I love that because there are no hints that Akio told Anthy to make Utena the sweater. Anthy chose to make a handmade gift for her friend. Utena wore it multiple times later when she and Anthy were hanging out in their room. That was a really sweet gift, and symbolic of how much the two were coming to care about each other, so I wanted to give Anthy a pokemon representative of that

Apom and Rattata: These two both represent Chu-chu, a monkey that was the size of a mouse. They can also represent aspects of Anthy's way of expressing herself during the games. How she was always handy at chores, but had what one would call a quiet and mousy nature. Apom is a shiny pink to match Utena's trademark hair, and the pink outfit Anthy dawns (leaving behind her red goddess/rose bride outfits) to go out into the world and search for Utena.

Mismagius: A ghost type pokemon that is representative of Anthy's witch persona. It's poxides entry says that it is a havic bringer that can cause people great hapiness or misery, and that some will pursue it as if their life depended on it, though owning it can sometimes have less than favorable results. A very Himemyia pokemon

Spectrier: Representative of Anthy's, now long dead, goddess persona. This beauitful, dark, spirit horse shy's away from sight and rely's on its other senses. It is also said that it can seperate a soul from a body with one kick (Similar to what Anthy did to Dios when she gave up being a goddess). Spectrier shares a connection to pokemon owned by both Akio and Utena

Akio Ohtori

Note it was actually a lot of fun making this cutesy/sinister team for Akio.

Morella: This could be Akio's floral pokemon if you view "End of the World" as a rose duelist. I mostly picked it because it is cute and whimsical looking, but is parasitic and will drain a person of their energy when they are asleep.

Driftloom: Another whimsical pokemon. What a fun and safe looking little balloon... that leads small children astray and can cause them to go missing.

Delibird: It is his messenger. Before the final arc he mostly communicated with his students by letters. Delibird delivers them. Bad bird, bad

Palossand: Representative of Ohtori Academy. A palace and a kingdom where everyone lives trapped, with Akio as the prince who is in charage of everyone

Dusktops: A hollow husk ghost that it is unwise to get close enough to look inside of. Am I talking about Dusktops or Akio?

Glastrier: Akio's Princely white horse. A wild and crazy steed (kinda like his car), counter part to his sisters Spectrier, and also connecting to one of Utena's pokemon.

Utena Tenjou

What pokemon are enough of hero's for our protagonist. Are flashy hero pokemon really the ones she needs?

Roserade: Utena's Floral pokemon. I like to think it started out as a little Bedew that was left for Utena after that day all those years ago when she met the prince and vowed to become one herself. Roserade is not really a princely pokemon, but Utena never actually became a prince. I think Roserade is a good representation of the revolutionary character she did become.

Spritzee: Scent seems to be an important senese to Utena. She will comment on food smells and the one thing she remembers clearly about that day is that she could smell Roses. Given her love of fragrance she would probably also love a perfume pokemon

Marowak: Utena and Marowak both lost loving parents when young. Now they have grown tough and made the decision to help each other and carry on.

Growlithe: Representation of Utena's courage and fierce loyalty to those she cares about

Corvisquire: this one represents both the dark uniform and the ingenuity Utena shows. How she descends on the games, has less experience then the other duelist, but she uses tools around her, and eventually the traits she can glimpse from the other duelist themselves, to win.

Calyrex: This is Utena's Legendary pokemon. It is connected to both Anthy and Akio's legendary pokemon, how they both need her, and the choice Utena ultimately has to make on which one she wants to be with.

Touga Kiryuu

Touga' team is meant to be bad/dangerous but not necissarly as wicked or frightening as Akio's team

Vileplume: Touga's floral pokemon. I gave him a finale form in a 3 part evolution, similar to Utena's roserade, but of course not containing the same abilities or as powerful. I also really wanted him to have a flower that was also a poison type, because he himself is pretty poisonous.

Hitmonchan: Touga is shown to know how to box when he took out that kangeroo. So i figured since he would obviously have a fighting type pokemon, let's go with the boxing one

Purugly: He loves cats so he gets a cat pokemon. (Side note do we think he got to keep the kitten Anthy gave him for his birthday, or did it disappear after 24-48 hours, like the "gifts" Anthy sends Nanami). I decided to give him Purugly do them both having nice hair, being fairly rude, and most importantly, loving to sleep in someone else's bed.

Seviper: A snake is pokemon is another one that just fits Touga. Add that Seviper has a red sword like tail, and could maybe help Touga train, makes it Touga's perfect snake.

Yamask: Yamask's lore says it use to be a man who died. It came back as a ghost pokemon and it carries a mask that resembles the face it had as a human. I put it on Touga's team to go with Touga's own lore, and how there is all this discussion on if Touga is actually a boy or a ghost... Even if he is still alive he is kinda still a ghost, carrying a mask of the kid Saionji and Nanami remember.

Mudsdale: Touga has a horse because he wants to imitate Akio. But where as Akio's Galstrier is a beautiful and princely legindary pokemon. Touga only has a dirty mudsdale, a.k.a the one horse pokemon that is entirely based off of a regular, non magical, horse. Mudsdale can never be quite like Galstier. And Touga (thankfully) can never manage to be as manipulative and powerful as Akio.

Nanami Kiryuu

Her magistey the princess of ridiculousness, with her loyal court of fools

Carnavine: Nanami's floral pokemon. I did not want to give Nanami a more "delicate flower" looking pokemon, as Nanami is honestly one of the least delicate girls in the anime. Carnavine, like Nanami, is clingy and snappy so I think it fits her really well.

Vespaqueen: Becasue she is the school's "Queen Bee"

Morgrem: It is a prankster, who will sometimes employ false surrenders and dirty tactics, all of which are to hide its own insecurites and lack of self confidence. Nanami and Morgrem are kindred spirits in this regard. Hopefully she and it could help each other grow to accept themselves

Piplup: It has a tough attitude and a lot of bravado, but in truth it is pretty clumsy and falls down a lot. So piplup is another pokemon who I feel like it and Nanami would get each other.

Miltank and Exeggcute: You all know exactly why Nanami has a cow and eggs. No explanation needed.

Kyouichi Saionji

It was not my intention to give him the fluffiest team. I am laughing at it turning out that way though. Let's hope Saionji can keep himself and his teammates stocked on hair brushes

Cacturn: Saionji's Floral pokemon. He gets Cacturn because they are both green and prickly.

Fennekin: Well it is a hot headed pokemon that will have steam coming out of its fluffy ears when it gets really worked up. That certainly sounds like someone Saionji see's whenever he looks in the mirror. Also once it evolves, and starts carrying around sticks, he could teach it Kendo style staff techniques

Mankey: Saionji also needed a fighting type. I chose Mankey to represent just how Impulsive Saionji is. Both he and Mankey struggle to calm themselves down, and to stop fighting. If Saionji can ever manage to teach Mankey any control, then maybe he won't be completely hopeless himself. If not, it will at least be a funny ride.

Zangoose: Saionji got a Zangoose because Touga has a Seviper. Each of them have a rival pokemon that is always fighting with the other, but also can never help but seek the other out. I would say that is pretty accurate representation of Touga and Saionji's relationship, and how they feel about each other in their adolescences.

Farfetch: I was thinking because it carries the leak then maybe Saionji could teach it Kendo staff techniques now. Fennekin could watch. They would probably all enjoy that.

Shiny Sudowoodo: well it is bad at hiding and hates water, that is similar to Saionji. But really I gave it to Saionji because he likes poetry, and Sudowoodo (particularly its shiny form) are about the closest I could think of to a poetic looking pokemon. Another thing is that Shiny Sudowoodo looks like a tree in the fall, when things change. Change is a concept Saionji struggles with, and he needs to learn to better deal with it if he wants to leave his coffin

Miki Kaoru

I kind of wish his team could have been bluer, but I am happy that 2 are garden creatures and another three look a bit like childhood toys. Nature and nostalgia are strong themes if Miki's

Sunflora: This is Miki's floral pokemon. He gets an actual flower based one. A sunflower caught in the Sunlight garden back when he was a child

Baltoy: So Miki is a time keeper for the student council (supposedly, as no one knows what he is keeping time on with his stop watch) and carries a lot of nostalgia for his past. So I had to give him a "time" pokemon. However he is not a strong enough trainer to command a legendary, like Celibi or Dialga. Baltoy was the only one left, but it honestly works. I like to imagine that it stays next to Miki at student council meetings and every time he presses the button on his oh-so-confusing stopwatch Baltoy will cease its spinning and speak.

Chimeco and chatot: Two music based pokemon to sit with Miki and keep him company at the piano. Chimeco will try to calm him down when he gets stressed. Chatot will repeat things: notes or phrases that it has heard Miki/his teachers say. Miki loves Chatot, but it often makes him more stressed.

Scyther: All of Miki's pokemon so far have been small and cute. But Miki is a tough fighter too. I wanted him to have pokemon he could sword train with, and that would come off as more imposing in battle. No fighting types really fit him so I got more creative. Scyther would make a pretty good fencing partner. He probably caught it in his garden like Sunflora, only he was older by then.

Male Meowstic: This one is representative of his caring yet strained relationship his sister Kozue-she has a female. Miki's male meowstic is both the male, and the more defensive of the pair, just like him.

Juri Arisugawa

before anyone asks Juri does not have a sward pokemon because she does not need one. She already has a sword.

Lurantis: Now this is the perfect floral pokemon for Juri. It is girly without being soft or frilly. It is vivid, tough, and glamours. It is also super sharp and does its best to fool people into seeing it as someone its not. Basically it suits Juri's strengths, while also highlighting some of her vulnerabilities.

Luvdisc: Okay the romantic heart pokemon that is considered a symbol of love might seem like a strange one for Juri,given how she feels about, well, romantic feelings and all that. One I do think Juri is a romantic, but, just like with miracles, she has some trouble believing in romance after what went down with Shori. Secondly lone luvdisc's can become despondent and disheartened... which again is kind of how Juri feels, when thinking about all the things she is scared to believe in. Both Juri and Luvdisc need hugs

Cloyster: This one represents how closed off and self motivated Juri has become

Brozong: It strong steel/psychic typing suits Juri pretty well, and it being a 360 degree shield does show how defensive Juri is now. Most importantly it can summon rain showers. The culmination of Juri's arc was her locket getting broken, her forfeiting her duel as she finally lets herself cry over what she lost, then stepping into a rain shower, to try and began herself again. That was such a powerful scene for Juri, so I gave her a powerful pokemon to represent that time in her life.

Jangmo-o: Here is a little dragon that personality wise is on almost the same wave length as Juri. Both are diligent trainers, humble, yet have the pride of warriors. I could see these two taking each other far.

Mienshao: This is Juri's fighting type pokemon. One that is very graceful and elegant, as well as being a skilled, and sometimes overwhelming, fighter. Like with her Lurantis I could see this one joining her in both a battle and on the runway.

Now on to the black rose duelists. Once again they were smaller characters so I am only giving them 1-3 pokemon.

Kanae Ohtori

Apples for the princess, fairy tales dictate she should have refused

Applin: So they are sometimes viewed as romantic gifts between people in a committed relationship. Akio gave this Applin to Kanae, who joyfully accepted it as a "symbol of their love". But another way to look at it was Akio telling Kanae his plans. Applin is a worm that burrows into the center of an apple and then feeds on the fruit to stay protected, plump, and strong. Akio is the worm. Kanae's family's academy is the apple. Kanae's Applin is most definitely not evolving into a Appletun.

Kozue Kaoru

I imagine Kozue and her girls are out to either get their party up or throw some shade down. No in between

Female Meowstic: the sibling pokemon to Miki's male one. Like Kozue this meowstic is the aggressive female counter part to its more defensive brother.

Bellossom: Kozue is not a rose crest duelist, but she still has a flower pokemon? Okay I am not saying Kozue should have joined the student council with Miki, or competed for the rose bride, or anything like that. Bellossom is also a party pokemon. It is always dancing and chatting away with others. Kozue takes Bellossom with her when she goes out to look for new boyfriends. It is also there for her after hook-ups, when she is all alone again. Bellossom might be Miki's favorite of Kozue's pokemon. Kozue likes Miki's chatoc, because she can teach it to say phrases that annoy her brother/ scare away anyone that might hurt him.

Taillow: This is Kozue's newest pokemon. She is shown to like birds. She found this one injured, became protective of it, and took it in. She told everyone she caught it because the injuries proved it was tough in a scrap, and it is tough in a scrap, but that was still a lie on Kozue's part.

Shori Takatsuki:

So cute on the surface, beneath that... well sometimes it is a little less pretty and a lot more messy

Psyduck: Because Shori follows people she likes/wants around like a duck, and she is driven to headaches by her own refusal to accept feelings. Both her own feelings and other peoples as well. It will be a long and stressful ride, but caring for Pysduck could possibly help Shori break this negative cycle of denial she has locked herself in.

Corsola: The tips of it spikes can be painlessly broken off and then made into pretty jewelry, that are prized as treasures. Shori deeply wants to be someones treasure, so I imagine she wears corsola jewelry a lot to try and boost her low self esteem. This also goes with Juri's luvdisc, as luvdiscs are a pokemon that love corsolas.

Phanpy: This is Shori's last pokemon, and probably her oldest. She is not able to/has no desire to evolve it. Phanpy's look like innocent little dolls, are very playful, and has a tendency to hurt those it feels affection for...Just like Shori.

Mitsuru Tsuwabuki

Gorwing up is really so tough

Impidimp: One evolution behind Nanami's Morgrim. Like their trainers the pair get along and are good friends, but often tend to prank the other. It is a bit of a ongoing challenge to see which is the most sly and devious

Bagon: Like Mitsuru with adulthood, Bagon dreams of the day it will be a full grown Salamence, and waits for all the things it will be able to do then. Mitsuru and Bagon want to grow, evolve, and achieve their dreams together.

Love Sweet Carmel Swirl Alcreamie: I gave Mitsuru an Alicreamie because he shown to be able to cook/bake, and likes to do it for Nanami. I really was hoping that their was a chocolate version of Alicreamie, because of the symbolism of the partially eaten chocolate bar his friend leaves behind in his black rose episode. But I was out of luck. I decided to give him a Carmel Swirl Alcreamie because its cream has a bitter taste. Right now Mitsuru is at a stage where he feels very bitter about still being a little kid. I figure his Alcreamie can help him learn to mix that bitterness with other feelings/flavors to create good results. Love Sweet because Mitsuru is a romantic of course.

Tatsuya Kazami

I hope that he got back out of ohtori again quick, and that this time he and Wakaba stayed in touch....maybe as friends, maybe as more. In the end that is up tot he two of them, not to Mikage, Utena, or Akio.

Oddish: Oddish is a pokemon that kinda looks like a onion, at least that is what Tatsuya thought when he met Oddish. It reminded him of Wakaba and how she used to call him "The Onion Prince" , so he caught it and made it his partner.

Slowpoke: Slowpoke is called the patient pokemon, and Tatsuya's best and only quality is that he is willing to patiently support the girl he loves, while waiting for the day she maybe decides to give them a chance to be something more.

Wakaba Shinohara

You take care of everyone you meet. But who will take care of you?

Swablu: A very friendly and fearless, normal/flying type, bird that goes around with its head is the clouds and cotton covering its ears. That is definitely similar to our girl Wakaba. But it will also grow into a very strong dragon/flying type, Altaria; just like how Wakaba shows she will grow into a very strong young women one day. For now Wakuba and Swablu have got each other, and are committed to helping the other grow.

Chancy: A caring and nutruing pokemon. This one helps Wakaba take immaculate care of everyone in her life. It also tries its best to take care of her and reminder her that she is still important to it during her darker moments. Like when Saionji leaves her. Or Utena starts spending most of her time with Anthy/Akio and has less and less for Wakaba.

Shiny Skeledirge: Like Wakaba this pokemon is caring yet meddlesome. I could see them getting up to a lot of trouble that they had no business being in, but also helping a lot of people too. It likes to help wakaba with her chorus homework, and sing for Wakaba when she is feeling down. Hopefully it's powerful enough to at least intimidate the boys Wakaba does not have the sense to know are bad news. I also gave it to her because wiki says it is modeled after a tennis athlete (Tennis is implied to be Wakaba's favorite sport), and that the bird on its snout functions as a separate entity. So it was a sneaky way to actually give Wakaba four pokemon. Why is it a shiny, because Wakaba deserves a rare shiny pokemon. She was a rare bright spot in that hell school after all.

Keiko Sondo

I got the idea to give her all bug pokemon because her episode is called Vermon.

Meadow Pattern (a.k.a Pink) Vivillon: I picked Vivillon because it is very girly and frilly, and Keiko comes off as a being a really girly girl. I picked the meadow pattern because it seemed the most romantic, and at heart this girl is another huge romantic.

Male Combee: This one is her relationship to Nanami. Nanami had a female Combee that evolved into a Vespadqueen. But male Combee like Keiko's cannot evolve. No matter how hard either Combee or Keiko work and train they are not royalty, but mere parts of the hive. Combee shares Keiko's resentment that random chances of birth seemingly made Nanami and Vespaqueen more special than them. It is just not fair.

Grubbin: Yeah here is a not so pretty, underground, grubby buggy. But there is so much more to Grubbin than appears. They are attracted to sparks of electricity and will burrow to and stay by it, until he day they can evolve and generate their own. Also when worked into a enough of a rage they are capable of causing birds that try to prey on them fly away in fear. So I am giving her Grubbin to show that of all three conies, Nanami was not able to break Keiko as totally as she did the other two, and their were moments in the show where Keiko was able to stand up to/take on Nanami.

Souji Mikage

Yes I am calling Mikage the fourth most powerful character character in RGU. He was definitely a victor in some previous round of the duels, and for whatever reason Akio and Anthy kept their hold on him for 30 years... to use him to test future victors that won the first round to easy? I mean it is stated he used to have 100 back rose crests and flowers, but by Utena's time he only had 6 left... Off topic

Hypno: it helps him mess with the kids who come into his elevator for therapy; using its hypnotic power to pull their most jealous and anxious thoughts form their minds and mouths.

Bisharp: This one represents how professor Nemuro saw himself before meeting Mamiya and Tokiko, and what he, as Souji Mikage, became after their loss. This is a dark and steel type robot, that commands subordinates to fight underneath it, while it pushes towards its own goals.

Celibi: He slips backwards and forwards through time, while always remaing the exact same age. So I gave him Celibi because it can take itself and invited companions through time. Once he learns that there was really no way then or in the future to have saved Mamiya, can Celibi please take him back in time to tell the real Mamiya "Good bye"?

Ruka Tsuchiya

And here is the guy who in the two episodes he was in before dying, he seemingly made himself more hated than Saionji and Touga combinded, almost as hated as Akio.

Haunter: Because haunting was a thing he liked to do before dying, and from what I have heard, possibly afterwards too. It is also possible Haunter stayed with Ruka even after his death. Admirable loyalty on his pokemons part

Hawkamo: A dragon one evolution higher than Juri's Jaogmo-o, because Ruka was always one step ahead of Juri. After he dies I imagine Hawkamo stalks around the fencing dojo, trying to pick a new trainer. It would be interesting to guess who it would pick.

[transmascutena]

love it when utena tries to play matchmaker. me when i'm definitely straight and care about romance soooo much just look at how i'm helping all my friends with it while very much not pursuing it myself

(^ aromantic lesbian buddies)

[lilfishiefigureskates]

Four Continents Championships Preview

Men - My Predicted Top 6 (in no particular order)

Daiwei Dai (China) - I think he’s going to be a dark horse not gonna lie. His 4T seems pretty solid and he did decent at Cup of China and just got 4th at the Asian Winter Games. I feel like he has a lot of positive momentum going for him.

Kao Miura (Japan) - I really thought he was going to withdraw but I feel like if he was going to withdraw he wouldn’t done it by now so I’m hoping that the fact that he hasn’t withdrawn means that his injury is better. If he’s skating while still injured I’m gonna be so upset. I cannot take a 3rd disaster skate in a row. If he does not do well here you may not hear from me for a long time because I will lose my mind. I remember how happy I was when Kao won this event with the iconic Beauty and the Beast program and I hope I will be that happy once again but I am scared.

Tatsuya Tsuboi (Japan) - He actually must do well because I really don’t love the idea of him bombing before Worlds. I’m really glad that he got assigned here so he can get some more international practice in, and hopefully it will go well so he can go into Worlds with some good momentum. If he bombs we panic.

Mikhail Shaidorov (Kazakhstan) - I’m very excited to see him. It’s cray cray that he’s turned into such a fav this season. If he does what he’s been doing all season I see no reason why he won’t be on the podium.

Junhwan Cha (South Korea) - This is his event to lose. He’s been on a podium streak since Korean Nationals and I’m not ready to see it end. He’s been killing it this second half of the season and I just want the good vibes to continue.

Camden Pulkinen (USA) - If he betrays me I will not forgive him. He was beautiful at US Nationals but consistency is not his speciality. If he does well here I really think he could get the Worlds spot over Jason.

Women - My Predicted Top 6 (in no particular order)

Mone Chiba (Japan) - I wish nothing but the best for my daughter. I love her so much and I believe she will soar. I actually need her to get on top of the podium because if she gets another 2nd place I will go feral.

Wakaba Higuchi (Japan) - I really need her on the podium as well. I better not see a popped 3S in the free :) I feel like this women’s competition is going to be a blood bath so if she makes a tiny mistake like popping the 3S I think that’ll be enough to keep her off the podium.

Rino Matsuike (Japan) - Need to see two clean program again just like JNats, because I don’t think she’ll be able to make a comeback in the free if she struggles in the short like she’s been doing all season. No matter what happens I’m excited to see her perform.

Chaeyeon Kim (South Korea) - My main girl just won Asian Winter Games and is gonna ride the wave of victory through this competition. I can’t decide who I want to win more - Mone or Chaeyeon. Mone keeps getting 2nd but I really want Chaeyeon to win at home. I just hope both of my daughters do their best.

Sarah Everhardt (USA) - The pressure is on her here because Isabeau is doing the Olympics test event this week as well. Idk what we’ll see from Isabeau, but if she doesn’t do well and Sarah does well here, we might be seeing Sarah at Worlds. She has a fire within her and she is hungry. I can sense it.

Alysa Liu (USA) - Still not over her short program from US Nationals. Once again I’m really happy that she’s getting some more international practice before Worlds.

I’m actually so excited for this competition!!!!!I’m a little worried about the men because the men will always men but I think the women’s competition is stacked and has excellent blood bath potential. With that being saidI hope we see a good fight from everyone. I have so many favorites at this competition that I wish there was room on the podium for everyone. I really feel like Four Continents snuck up on me but I am ready. Happy watching everyone!!!

[moon-soo-ah]

ISU World Championships 2025 World Championships Boston, MA / USA

25.03.2025-30.03.2025

Mar. 26:

Women’s SP 12:05

Pairs’ SP 18:45

Mar. 27:

Men’s SP 11:05

Pairs’ FS 18:15

Mar. 28:

Rhythm Dance 11:15

Women’s FS 18:00

Mar. 29:

Free Dance 13:30

Men’s FS 18:00

Mar. 30:

Gala 14:00

Livestream:

主播花花

Skating ISU

[bestutenacharactertournament]

Hi everyone and welcome to the tournament for the best Revolutionary Girl Utena character!!

Notice: characters are anime only.

edit: I didn't think there would be discourse over it, but this is both a better written and you prefer them tournament. You can vote for these characters for whatever reasons you like. I made this because I was curious on who the fandom liked more. So with that in mind, please keep interactions respectful!!

first matches are:

Utena Tenjou VS Juri Arisugawa Anthy Himemiya VS Touga Kiryuu Akio Ohtori VS Tatsuya Kazami Aiko Wakiya VS Wakaba Shinohara Chu-Chu VS Mitsuru Tsuwabuki Kanae Ohtori VS Souji Mikage Keiko Sonoda VS Yuko Ohse Kozue Kaoru VS Shiori Takatsuki Kyouichi Saonji VS Mamiya Chida Mari Hozumi VS Miki Kaoru Nanami Kiryuu VS The three dudes who say "Ooooo" all the time Ruka Tsuchiya VS Tokiko Chida The Shadow girls/drama club VS Prince Dios

Second matches are:

Utena Tenjou VS Miki Kaoru Anthy Himemiya VS Chu-Chu Tatsuya Kazami VS Shiori Takatsuki Wakaba Shinohara VS Souji Mikage Keiko Sonoda VS Nanami Kiryuu Kyouichi Saionji VS Tokiko Chida The Shadows Girls/Drama Club VS Juri Arisugawa

Third matches are:

Utena Tenjou VS Wakaba Shinohara Anthy Himemiya VS Nanami Kiryuu Shiori Takatsuki VS Juri Arisugawa Kyouichi Saonji VS The Shadow Girls/Drama club

this is my first tournament thingy so I hope it goes well 😅

Have fun!

[kankuroplease]

Tenko's children are siblings of moles ✨️thank you Sumi and Sumi's father Izuku🤭

Izuku’s moles got practically everyone. Even some of the ones that think they don’t have them 🤣

[haru-dipthong]

A translator can only translate what they see in the work themselves. Where a word may have multiple meanings in the original, if the translator notices only one, that one meaning will be all the audience of the translation receives. Where a word may have a certain important nuance, if the translator does not notice this, that nuance will be lost to the audience.

Readers of a translation see the work through the translator’s eyes. A work generally can have many interpretations, and only when the translator’s eyes are perfectly open to all the original intents, intentional ambiguities, and throughlines does the audience have the same opportunity to interpret the work in all the ways the original could be interpreted.

An example of this from my own experience was during the translation and editing process of Revolutionary Girl Utena, episode 19 (Song of the Fallen Kingdom). There’s a scene where two different interpretations are possible — when Tatsuya (he/him) and Wakaba are talking about Wakaba’s “prince”. The surface level interpretation is meant to be that Tatsuya is the prince, and Wakaba is being coy by talking about him to him in the third person. But at the end it’s revealed that she was talking about someone else, and rushes off to meet them. My read of this was that it was meant to be interpreted as some other boy (which it is, in the end), and I translated the whole scene with male pronouns used to refer to the “prince”.

However, my editor Anya (@dontbe-lasanya) pointed out that Wakaba could just as easily have been referring to her best friend Utena (they/she) as the “prince”, and in order to keep this interpretation possible, we could not use any pronouns to refer to the prince at all. Even gender neutral pronouns would be so conspicuous as to force the Utena interpretation over the “just another boy” interpretation. I had to rephrase a lot of the lines in interesting ways to keep this as a possible reading. The reason Anya was able to point out the fact I had missed this reading was because that was originally how they had read it on their first watch of the show. Our final translation allows you to interpret the scene through either my or Anya’s eyes, depending on which path your brain instinctively follows.

This is one reason why Anya has been instrumental in the translation process. Their skills in reading and interpreting art and their deep understanding of the themes contained in Utena have filled in the gaps where mine are insufficient.

I was inspired to write this post by a quote from the translator’s note of Simone de Beauvoir’s The Second Sex. The book had been translated by H. M. Parshley, a man, in 1954, but received a more complete translation in 2009 by two female translators, Constance Borde and Sheila Malovany-Chevallier.

The first English-language translation did not always recognise the philosophical terminology in The Second Sex. Take the crucial word ‘authentic’ to mean ‘to be in good faith’. As Toril Moi points out, Parshley changed it into ‘real, genuine, and true’.

To me, this reads as Parshley underestimating de Beauvoir as a philosopher, or more likely simply not being familiar with the technical philosophical meaning of ‘authentic’ (Parshley was primarily a zoologist), though I'm sure some misogynistic bias seeped into other parts of his translation as well. No matter the reason, this misinterpretation of that word was the only interpretation that English readers had from 1954 to 2009. The English audience were forced to see the work through the sexist or incompetent eyes of Parshley — even someone exceedingly familiar with philosophical terminology reading this English translation would not be able to make the correct interpretation of that passage (unless they reverse engineered the poor translation).

Much like with The Second Sex, I felt that a new translation was necessary for Utena, and this is why I took on the project. The existing translations are interpretations of the deeply queer work through the eyes of (presumably) cis people. This is why I felt so compelled to translate it the way I see it, the way a trans and nonbinary person sees it, so that everyone can see it the way I do, which is, I believe, the way it was meant to be seen.

[arscorpii]

in episode 1, utena defeated saionji with only a wooden sword, without any help from prince dios (i believe this was the case) as would be observed in later episodes. saionji was using the sword of dios against utena in the duel. i find this to be very impressive on utena's part because saionji was a skilled swordsman. it reminded me of how utena managed to pass through the rose gate without the sword of dios in episode 39, with only bare, bloody hands and a heart overflowing with love for anthy. unlike akio who failed to cut through the gate even with the strongest soul sword, the one pulled out of utena.

to commemorate the 28th year since revolutionary girl utena started airing (02/04/1997), here are some parallels between the first and final episodes of rgu (per chronological order of episode 1):

utena and anthy's hands slipping away from each other's grasp both in the opening and episode 39.

the duelling arena being destroyed as prince dios wakes up in the opening versus the duelling arena being destroyed by the swords of humanity's hatred in episode 39.

prince dios on his white horse, looking over a ledge with bare trees in the background from episode 1 versus akio looking up to anthy being stabbed by millions of swords representing humanity's hatred in midair in episode 39.

prince dios and baby utena with bare trees in the background in episode 1 versus anthy walking away at the ending of episode 39.

prince dios putting on the rose crest ring on baby utena's finger in episode 1 versus prince dios trying to kiss the ring in episode 39, as utena lies helpless on the floor in the rose bride dress.

baby utena watching prince dios riding away on his white horse in episode 1 versus anthy walking down the same path at the ending of episode 39.

baby utena wanting to be a prince in episode 1 versus utena apologising to anthy because she couldn't be a prince as she hangs over the ledge in episode 39.

utena and anthy respectively, emerging into the corridor in episodes 1 and 39.

utena, anthy, and the rose garden in episodes 1 and 39.

part 2 of the post

[sywtwfs]

Team Japan 2025 Competition Assignments

World Championships

Men: Yuma Kagiyama, Shun Sato, Tatsuya Tsuboi (alt: Kao Miura, Kazuki Tomono, Sota Yamamoto)

Women: Kaori Sakamoto, Mone Chiba, Wakaba Higuchi (alt: Rino Matsuike, Rion Sumiyoshi, Hana Yoshida)

Pairs: Miura/Kihara, Nagaoka/Moriguchi, Shimizu/Honda [pending TES mins]

Dance: Yoshida/Morita (alt: Tanaka/Nishiyama)

Four Continents Championships

Men: Tatsuya Tsuboi, Kao Miura, Kazuki Tomono (alt: Shun Sato, Koshiro Shimada)

Women: Wakaba Higuchi, Mone Chiba, Rino Matsuike (alt: Rion Sumiyoshi, Rinka Watanabe, Mako Yamashita)

Pairs: Miura/Kihara, Nagaoka/Moriguchi

Dance: Yoshida/Morita, Tanaka/Nishiyama

Junior World Championships

Men: Rio Nakata, Sena Takahashi, Shunsuke Nakamura (alt: Taiga Nishino, Haru Kakiuchi, Daiya Ebihara)

Women: Mao Shimada, Kaoruko Wada, Ami Nakai (alt: Ikura Kushida, Mei Okada, Haruna Murakami)

Pairs: Shimizu/Honda

Dance: Kishimoto/Tamura (alt: Yamashita/Nagata)

Announced earlier in the season:

University Games

Men: Yuma Kagiyama, Shun Sato, Kao Miura (alt: Sota Yamamoto, Tatsuya Tsuboi, Koshiro Shimada)

Women: Mone Chiba, Rion Sumiyoshi, Hana Yoshida (alt: Rinka Watanabe, Rino Matsuike, Saki Miyake)

Asian Winter Games

Men: Yuma Kagiyama, Shun Sato (alt: Sota Yamamoto, Kao Miura, Tatsuya Tsuboi)

Women: Kaori Sakamoto, Hana Yoshida (alt: Mone Chiba, Rion Sumiyoshi, Rino Matsuike)

Pairs: Nagaoka/Moriguchi, Shimizu/Honda

Dance: Yoshida/Morita, Tanaka/Nishiyama

Source

[n2nataliegoodman]

Shiori during the Black Rose arc has always greatly intrigued me because while all the others follow a fairly similar formula, she is the only one that completely diverges.

Kanae, Kozue, Mitsuru, Wakaba, and Keiko are all fairly similar in their motives; they love their respective members of the student council, but their love cannot be reciprocated (Akio’s distorted love being focused only on Anthy, Miki being her brother, Nanami seeing Mitsuru as a child, Saionji being a gay who is misogynistic and only really cares about Touga, and Touga being a misogynist who is probably gay and has Nanami chasing most girls away from her brother). All of their relationships are doomed to an unhappy ending.

Likewise, this is why Tatsuya (the onion prince) is turned away by Mikage. His and Wakaba’s story can have a happy ending if they’re honest with each other. Their story doesn’t have to be a tragedy.

Now, Shiori is different. For all of the brides, they have romantic feelings for their student council member (Kozue is a little bit of a slippery slope with this because she probably wants a normal sibling relationship but doesn’t realise it?) and want love from them that the member is incapable of giving.

For Shiori and Juri, if we take Shiori’s words as fact, their story is the opposite. Juri is the one with the doomed love that Shiori is incapable of reciprocating. Now, we as the audience know this is definitely not the case. Shiori very clearly has feelings for Juri, but she’s so caught up in her inferiority complex and the heteronormativity of the world they live in that she is unable to admit that to herself.

But again, this sets Shiori and Juri’s story apart. They both feel the same. Their story is not doomed be a tragedy from the start like all the others. Don’t get me wrong, they would have to do a lot of work to make their relationship work, but it’s not impossible.

I think this is why their ending during the finale is also so different. For all of the other Black Rose brides (save for Kanae because, you know, she’s presumed dead) they’ve gained space from the people they were so obsessed with. Mitsuru is hanging around Miki rather than sticking to and following the orders of Nanami; Kozue is letting someone else get close to her brother; we don’t see much of Keiko at the end, but presumably she’s no longer chasing after Touga or living under Nanami’s shadow as we see her with Aiko and Yuuko; and Wakaba has moved on to her onion prince.

But because Shiori and Juri’s relationship isn’t doomed to be a tragedy from the start, they seem to have actually gotten closer. While all the others grew apart to have a more healthy relationship, Juri and Shiori have grown closer to have a more healthy relationship.

I’d like to think that means that they’ll have a happy ending together once they work through their issues.

[justnotkrikkit]

I was reading through the JSF announcement of the championship teams and it's quite funny how they have to write a whole essay for senior men and junior women and every other spot is "we just sent the skaters that did good, thanks"

Some points of note:

The third men's world spot was between Kao and Tatsuya, and as Yuma, Kao, and Shun are all eligible to skate in the final two groups, they decided to go with Tatsuya (I think the implication here is that Yuma and Shun are going to "get the job done" with spots, so Kao isn't also required for the team)

For 4CC, both Yuma and Kaori declined to be considered. Kao is chosen because he didn't get worlds, and Tatsuya is being sent as he needs the world standing points. For the women, Mone and Wakaba are both being sent for world standing points. (Rino and Kazuki aren't given any specific reasoning outside of "met the criteria")

For junior worlds, Shunsuke gets the third men's spot due to his international performance as well as domestic senior body of work (Taiga and Haru were also considered for that spot). Ami gets the third women's spot for international performance (Ikura and Mei also considered)

They note later in the Q&A a couple of interesting things - first that Tatsuya was given the worlds spot over Kao due to his performance at Nats and NHK, so showing consistency over the year. They also note that the Olympic pressure is huge and it's good to have championship experience. Although not said directly, I think they're essentially admitting that choosing Mana for Beijing was a mistake as she didn't have enough experience going in, and the implication here (to me) is that they're giving Tatsuya a chance to be in the Olympic conversation next season if he continues to perform.