Nothing bad ever happens at Ohtori Academy.

This episode marks the beginning of the Black Rose arc, which delves into the role of the “Rose Bride” by exploring the lives of those who seek to replace Anthy. If you’re wondering why anyone would want to take her place…well, we’ll get into that later.

Anyhow, we begin with two new characters, Souji Mikage and Mamiya Chida.

Mikage: Even deep underground, where the sun cannot reach, this rose still blooms nicely.

Mamiya: It’s because my black rose absorbs darkness itself. You know, Senpai, I’ve heard that Touga Kiryuu, the student council president, has been absent all this time. That’s why the campus has been so quiet lately-

Mikage: And that’s good. A proper school should be a place of peaceful study.

Black roses tend to have negative connotations (such as “hatred”), but in this case, it’s clearly meant to signify “death”.

Then, we see Utena and Anthy getting home from separate outings, and naturally, Utena’s curious about where Anthy’s been, since she so rarely goes out anywhere.

Utena: Come to think of it, I don’t usually see Himemiya around on Saturday nights…hey, Chu-Chu, do you know anything about that?

Chu-Chu seems uncomfortable with that question…

Anthy: Oh! Utena-sama.

Utena: Welcome back! Where were you?

Anthy: At school.

Utena: Oh. By the way, you seem to disappear at night on the weekends. Is something up?

Anthy: Yes. There’s someone I have to visit once a week.

Utena: Who’s that?

Anthy: My brother.

Utena: You have a brother?!

And naturally, Utena subsequently goes to meet Anthy’s brother…

But they walk in on him making out with his fiancée. While it could have a perfectly innocent explanation (he might not have known exactly when they were coming over), you know how I was saying there was some grooming in this show?

And yes, Anthy’s brother is Akio Ohtori (evidently he was adopted by the school chairman) – the main villain I mentioned in the last post.

Utena: Excuse me! I’m Utena Tenjou! Sorry about this…

Akio: No, no. It’s my pleasure to meet you. This is the first time I’ve gotten to meet one of my sister’s friends, so I’m very happy.

Utena: I never realized Himemiya’s brother was the school’s chairman-

Akio: Oh, not at all! I’m just the acting chairman.

For the record, I don’t think we ever meet the real chairman, so Akio is functionally in charge of the school.

Kanae: Father is very fond of Akio-san, and we plan to be married as soon as I graduate from high school.

Utena: Well then, congratulations.

Akio: I keep telling her it’s too soon to be talking about that, but…

Note that this means Kanae is a HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT dating an older man (she’s 18, but it’s unclear how long this has been going on). And it only gets worse from here…

Utena: I didn’t know they’d fixed the chairman’s house up like this.

Akio: The truth is that I have a certain fondness for star-gazing.

Utena: You like stars, huh?

Kanae: It’s almost an obsession. Some people say he got himself adopted into my family just to get at these facilities! He slept here again last night, too.

Akio: I love the stars. When I peer through the telescope at those familiar lights they seem to reveal their true faces, known only to me.

Kanae: Just occasionally think about me, too, all right?

Akio: If I find a comet, I’ll name it after you.

Kanae: Honestly! The boy’s hopeless.

Also note how Kanae downplays the age gap…and how he frequently sleeps in this room.

Akio: I haven’t been here long, but I do know one thing…The students here are all free, and all have a love of learning, and most of all, they never fight. Correct?

Utena: It’d be nice if it were always that way…

Kanae: Nothing bad ever happens at Ohtori Academy.

Anthy: Well, Kanae-san, I’ll see you later.

Kanae: Please, won’t you start calling me “Sister,” now? It won’t be long until I really am your sister, okay?

Anthy: Sure.

and this is one of those asian niceties where “yes” doesn’t mean they’ll actually do it

Then we return to Mikage and some of his business dealings…

Mikage: There’s no need for any rewards. Besides, I’m sure I’ll ask a favor from you in return some day. Until then, Professors.

Professor A: If there’s anything we can do for you, we’d be happy to help! The great charismatic high-school sponsor of the Mikage seminar! What presence he has! He sends shivers down my spine!

Professor B: The Mikage Seminar, also known as the Circle of the Black Rose. Those rumors that even higher-level career bureaucrats are members may be true. Well, we owe him now, so even college professors like us can’t pry into his business. Souji Mikage, the genius high-school student…

So that’s why no adults have been able to look into him: Clearly, he makes sure all of them owe him something.

Then he talks to Mickey, whom he evidently invited into his prestigious seminar, but Mickey politely declined.

And Utena and Anthy just happen to be passing by on their way home.

Anthy: Utena-sama, thank you so much.

Utena: Huh? For what?

Anthy: For not telling my brother about my secret. […] I don’t want to be the cause of any concern to him by being the Rose Bride and involved in the duels.

Utena: I understand. We shouldn’t tell your brother about our secrets. Kanae-san seems like a nice girl and I’d hate to get her mixed up in this. Let’s go home.

On the one hand, Anthy has a right to guard her own secrets…but it’s still a bit concerning that this particular secret, which Utena suspects affects Anthy’s livelihood, shouldn’t be told to the adults in their life.

Anyhow, they run into Mickey.

Utena: We went to visit Himemiya’s big brother.

Mickey: Oh, I see. You were with the chairman.

Utena: What are you up to, Mickey?

Mickey: Well, there’s something I wanted to check on in the reference room.

Utena: Wow. You like to study even on your days off, huh? I didn’t even know this place existed!

Mickey: You don’t know about Nemuro Memorial Hall? This building has a history! […] Apparently, a long time ago, 100 boys were buried alive in here!

and this is the second episode from mamoru hosoda

Notably, “nemuro” means “sleep”, seemingly indicating this place as the final resting place for those boys…

Anyhow, these two are plotting in that same hall.

Mikage: You know, Mamiya, I believe you deserve to be the Rose Bride.

Mamiya: Surely you mean Rose Groom. I’m a boy.

Mikage: Bride suits you much more. I will make you the true Rose Bride. Then we will gain the power of Dios and make his eternal secrets ours.

Mamiya: If you say so, Senpai.

Mikage: Don’t worry. Even End of the World recognizes our potential. But, for this to work, we must defeat Utena Tenjou, take Anthy Himemiya, and then kill her.

Mamiya: Yes. For that, we need strong Duelists.

So they’re under the impression that if Mamiya replaces the Rose Bride, they’ll have access to the power of Dios…which seems to contradict what we heard last episode, but that’s their intent, at any rate.

Then Kanae shows up for an interview, and it seems like this was what Mikage wanted from Mickey…

Note the butterfly in the glass on the wall…

Kanae: Next spring, as soon as I graduate, I plan on getting married. It will be to the man my father, the chairman, has selected for me. He’s…he’s very kind. Childlike in some ways, and yet really so much more mature than I am. He watches over me very warmly. I want to do something…anything for him. I feel that way from the bottom of my heart. Except…except…

Mikage: Deeper…go deeper…

Kanae: Except…except, he has a younger sister. And no matter what I do, she still doesn’t like me! 

It changed from a chrysalis into this, and by the end it’s just an egg on a leaf – representing regression to a more primal state.

Kanae: Something happened once. I offered her one of my favorite scarves to wear. She simply said “Thank you” and then wiped her glasses with it! I was so shocked, and I told her it wasn’t for wiping glasses with! Then, without a word, she just turned to me and smiled! And when I saw her eyes, I shivered. Because they were cold, alien! Father…I think he fell ill because that awful girl’s been visiting us regularly. I just…I just don’t have the confidence to face her terrible smile anymore! I’ve tried so hard to make her like me! But it’s no use! No matter what I try…no matter what I do…IT’S NO USE!!!

While this could be read as Anthy simply being neurodivergent (and there might be a case to be made for that), it also implies that Kanae can see that her demure smile is just a mask.

Mikage: I understand. Your only choice is to revolutionize the world. The path you must take has already been prepared for you.

Kanae: What is this place?

Mikage: Hallowed ground. A holy place where one-hundred Duelists now sleep. This room leads to the End of the World.

Mikage: This is a Rose Crest ring…you see? This one has turned black. When a crest bearer dies, the color changes in this way. Although I find the black one to be even lovelier…

Mamiya: You can’t escape. You have been chosen by my black rose. This is your new heart. Your new life! I give this rose that blooms at the End of the World to you!

Mikage: For you, the Black Rose Crest.

Then we’re introduced to the new format for the Shadow Play, taking place beside the lockers, where Utena now receives notifications for her duel (in the form of note cards).

Girl A: At last! At last! At last! At last, what I feared has come!

“Father”: Isn’t it early for her?

“Mother”: Well, she is very grown-up!

“Dentist”: Okay, say “Ahh!” Well, what shall we do about this wisdom tooth?

Girl A: Ooh…! What should I do?

Utena: Pull it out?

Now, Utena’s commenting on the play, typically giving a straightforward read on the situation presented, and generally missing the subtext. This play combined with the emphasis on death throughout the episode clearly invites comparison between puberty and death…but we’ll get into that later.

Then she heads on to the dueling arena, and we’re greeted with the same “Apocalypse” theme, but including a new, distinctly masculine voice in the mix…

And this is what greets them in the arena. Now, I mentioned before that white lilies are associated with death, but a bouquet of white lilies on a desk has a specific meaning in Japan: They’re either placed on the desk of a student who died, or more sinisterly, it can be a form of bullying to place it on the desk of a student who’s still alive, basically telling them to just die.

And then there are the ominous outlines…

Utena: What the…?

And finally, they see Kanae.

Kanae: Upon the Black Rose, I swear, I shall win this duel, and kill the Rose Bride!

Utena: Kanae-san? But why…?

Anthy: Kanae-san isn’t the same as we remember her.

Kanae: This is the real me. The other me I buried within myself. So long as this black rose exists, I won’t play at being that phony “me”!

Utena: That black rose is doing it…?

Kanae: Now, Utena Tenjou, draw your sword! Do it, or else I’ll take the Rose Bride!

At first, Utena’s loath to hurt her, mainly because she just doesn’t understand why Kanae’s fighting.

Utena: Kanae-san, what you said before, about swearing on the black rose to win the duel…

Kanae: To kill the Rose Bride!

Utena: Okay, I get you. Then I’ll show no mercy!

And once Utena puts her mind to it, it doesn’t take long for her to win.

And then the duel theme starts up.

Since the forms cloaked in doubt are coming, speak profoundly.
Though it's false, like the brilliant moon, I wish to keep my treasure close.
A wonder beyond man's knowledge.
People of the world, so small, feel fear.
That form is the field of battle.

This seems to just be foreboding of the battles to come for Utena.

And once Kanae loses the duel, she falls onto one of the outlines and simply sleeps.

Then Mikage burns the body he took Kanae’s ring from.

Mikage: So that Duelist was Utena Tenjou, eh? I see. No wonder End of the World places such hope in her. Creating makeshift Duelists by freezing their hearts won’t be enough to defeat her.

But back with Utena, she explains the aftermath of the duel.

Utena: Oh, today’s when you visit your brother, huh? See you later. Oh, uh, Himemiya? Is Kanae-san okay after what happened?

Anthy: Yes, she’s just fine now.

Utena: That’s a relief. But she still doesn’t remember anything about it?

Anthy: Right. Nothing that led up to the duel.

Utena: I see…So, I guess we can’t ask her the reason for it, huh? Anyway, I’m really sorry for hurting someone who’s going to be your sister.

Anthy: You shouldn’t trouble yourself over that. It wasn’t your fault, Utena-sama.

Utena: Thanks. Sorry for holding you up. Say hi to your brother for me.

Utena: Huh? Chu-Chu, you’re still here? Aren’t you going with her?

Because Chu-Chu never seems to go with her when she visits her brother…seeming to indicate that her heart might be with Utena.

And ominous music plays when we see her with Akio…

Akio: Come here, Anthy. It’s been a week. Did you miss me?

Anthy: Yes, Big Brother.

and then they turn off the lights (ostensibly to turn on the planetarium)

and this is exactly what it looks like. yeah

until next time…