Welcome! Since it’s Pride Month, I decided to write about a noteworthy LGBT+ character in anime. It took me until now, the very end of the month, to finally pull this article together. Better late than never, I suppose.
Utena Tenjo is the protagonist of the 90s cult classic anime, Revolutionary Girl Utena. She is widely known in certain circles as a bisexual anime icon. In addition, Utena is an interesting instance of a gender-nonconforming character. Today, we’ll learn a bit about this character’s background and why she is such a great example of a queer anime girl.
Utena’s Background
When Utena was a young child, both of her parents died in some kind of accident. We don’t know who cared for the orphan girl after that. She would never have recovered emotionally if not for a certain experience around that same time. An ethereal, princely figure appeared before her, gave her a ring, and encouraged her to stay brave and strong. This spiritual experience inspired Utena to become a “Prince” – a bold hero who could save girls in need.
At the start of the anime, Utena is a fourteen-year-old girl who attends Ohtori Academy. She has an assertive, confident personality and is widely admired by female students. Most of the male students respect her too, since she’s good at sports. The story begins in earnest when Utena sees one of the male students abusing a girl. The only way to defend the girl is to beat the abuser in a duel with real swords. Utena quickly finds herself part of the Rose Bride system, where duelists compete for the hand of the Bride – Anthy Himemiya.
Utena’s Bisexuality
First, let’s take a look at the anime series. Utena’s story is centered around her unusual relationship with Anthy Himemiya, another female student. For much of the series, Utena is “engaged” to Anthy according to the magical tradition of the Rose Bride. She only reluctantly accepts this role as a way to protect Anthy from the other duelists, who typically abuse her.
At different key points in the anime, there is definitely a romantic component to their relationship. A great example is when she “rescues” Anthy at the birthday banquet and shares a romantic dance with her in front of everyone. However, most of the time, Utena describes Anthy as her best friend. Her perspective changes at the end of the series, when she realizes Anthy is the most important person in her life – the one she truly loves.
Utena is also very comfortable with the idea that many female students admire her in the same way they might admire a male student. She seems to like the attention, and sometimes flirts with her (female) friend Wakaba. The evidence is clear that Utena is romantically “into” women, even she isn’t always aware of it.
Throughout the series, Utena also shows interest in romantic and sexual relationships with men. There is sometimes sexual tension between Touga and Utena, for example, and he tries to play this up to manipulate her. For another example, Akio seduces Utena in the last arc of the series, taking her virginity despite her status as a minor. In both cases, the sexual relationships were not good for Utena, but it’s hard to deny that she feels some level of attraction toward men.
That information was all from the anime series, but there is also the movie to consider, Revolutionary Girl Utena: The Adolescence of Utena. Though some say the film is an unconnected, alternate retelling, most fans believe the stories are connected. The movie is Anthy’s quest to find and romance Utena now that she is free of Akio. The setting is slightly different, but the anime strongly hinted that the world of Ohtori Academy is cyclical and repeating in nature. This is simply the next cycle of the same story – a cycle in which Anthy is free.
One of the key differences between the anime and the movie is the presence of more overt romantic and sexual elements between Utena and Anthy. They are very clearly attracted to each other, though Utena feels awkward about it at first. In this version, Anthy’s free spirit encourages Utena to be more comfortable with her bisexuality. At the end of the film, the two girls share a cinematic kiss as they escape Ohtori Academy for good.
Utena also has a moment with Touga in the movie. He is essentially a ghost, and Utena sends off his spirit to rest with a kiss. In some worlds, she might have ended up in a romance with Touga. I’m glad the movie didn’t end with one of those worlds, personally. If it did, Utena and Anthy would probably never leave the cyclical prison of Akio’s domain. Anyway, the point is that Utena is clearly bisexual.
Utena’s Gender Nonconforming Presentation
Although she is not a transgender character, Utena is sometimes considered genderqueer – or at the very least, she refuses to conform to stereotypical gender roles. Few characters in anime are as direct about this as Utena. From day one at Ohtori Academy, she started wearing a variation of the boy’s school uniform. She preferred the princely way it looked. Utena’s whole deal is that she wants to be a prince who encourages and defends others. It simply doesn’t matter that she is a girl – Utena still strives to be a dashing prince.
Interestingly, in the movie, Utena presents herself in a distinctly masculine way. Her costume is another variation of the boy’s uniform with longer pants, and her hair is cut short. She even uses a traditionally masculine way of saying, “I” in Japanese, which is boku. Other characters condescendingly remark that Utena is trying to be a boy, but she never claims this. In fact, she is simply expressing herself in the way she wants without trying to change genders. She simply took extra steps in this version to appear more princely.
Now we know Utena is both bisexual and gender-nonconforming. In my opinion, Utena is one of anime’s greatest examples of a queer girl. I hope I can follow Utena’s example in my own life, expressing myself in the way I want regardless of fears of rejection. It’s hard to be openly queer, even in first world countries like the USA. Utena reminds us that, when we are ready to do so, we can challenge the heteronormative systems and be our true selves. Happy Pride.
~Thank you for for reading~
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