Revolutionary Girl Utena (story arcs)

This article is a brief résumé of the main events of the "Revolutionary Girl Utena" anime series, divided by its four main sagas.

=Student Council Saga=

The Student Council Saga begins with Utena Tenjou challenging Kyouichi Saionji to a duel. He thought the love letter Utena's friend Wakaba wrote to him was stupid, and made it public. Utena angrily confronts Saionji about his betrayal, and he offers her a sword duel. Each Duelist was given a rose crest ring by The End of the World. Utena also has a rose crest, but hers came from a prince she met when she was very young. By accepting the duel and defeating Saionji, Utena becomes engaged to Anthy Himemiya, the Rose Bride.

Anthy and Utena move in to a dormitory together. Saionji comes to the dorms, and physically abuses Anthy for "betraying" him. He demands a rematch against Utena, claiming that he was careless the first time. Utena thinks the duels are stupid, and declares to Anthy that she will deliberately lose. However, Utena is unable to stand the thought of Anthy being abused by Saionji. Motivated by the chance to protect Anthy, Utena wins the duel.

As Utena fights the Student Council members one by one, her relationship with Anthy strengthens. After Saionji, she duels against Miki, Juri and Nanami, defeating all of them. Before fighting Utena, Touga tries to use his charm and persuasion skills to make her start to doubt herself, thus being able to defeat her. After Utena regains her confidence, she wins a rematch against him, regaining her title as the rose champion.

=Black Rose Saga=

After defeating all of the Student Council members, another obstacle appears before Utena with the opening of the Mikage Seminar. Presided over by Souji Mikage, it is seemingly a place for student counseling. But once people reveal their problems and inner turmoil to Mikage, he uses his powers to put them under his control, turning them into Black Rose duelists, and sending them to fight duels against Utena in the Arena. His objective is to kill Anthy and install a boy, Mamiya, as the Rose Bride instead. His efforts are in vain, as not one of them can defeat Utena.

Mikage's victims included Kanae Ohtori, Kozue Kaoru, Shiori Takatsuki, Mitsuru Tsuwabuki, Wakaba Shinohara, and Keiko Sonoda.

After being forced to fight even her best friend to protect Anthy, an enraged Utena challenges Mikage in order to end his schemes once and for all. After she defeats him, Akio tells him his role in his plot was already fulfilled, and disposes of him. In the process, it is implied that Mamiya was somehow a disguised Anthy, helping Akio to manipulate Mikage.

=Akio Ohtori Saga=

After being expelled from the Academy for injuring Touga, Saionji is given permission to return to Ohtori, and he challenges Utena for another rematch. During the fight, Utena discovers that an even stronger sword than the sword of Dios can be pulled by Anthy from her body, and she uses it to defeat him once and for all. After that, Akio appears before Touga and takes him into his car to an unknown place he calls the End of the World. After that the duo starts to take each one of the remaining Student Council members to that place. After going with them, each one chooses a "bride" to take a sword from their hearts in order to fight Utena. It is implied that the victor of the duel will be determined by how strong a bond exists between the duelist and the bride: if it can overcome the bond between Utena and Anthy. It's also important to note that in this arc (as in the other two), the first challenger does not follow the rule of where he or she gets the sword from (Utena fights Saionji with a practice sword, Kanae fights Utena with a random sword, Saionji fights Utena with a random Katana) Miki brings Kozue. Ruka Tsuchiya, who returned recently to the academy, brings Shiori, Jury brings Ruka, and Nanami brings Touga. But even with their newfound strength, they lose their duels against her.

=End of World Saga=

Akio warns Touga that his next match with Utena will decide the true champion. But before that, he and Saionji discover more about Utena's origin, and little by little, the secrets involving Anthy, Akio and the duels start to unveil. He discovers his true feelings for Utena, and in order to protect her, he brings Saionji as his "bride" to fight her one last time, afraid of what could happen to her if she would become the final victor. After losing the duel, he tries to warn her about Akio and Anthy's true intentions.

Despite Touga's warnings, Utena decides to go with Anthy once more to the duel stage in order to meet the prince from her past, only to discover that all was an illusion created by Akio to steal her heart's sword. After finding that, Utena decides to fight Akio himself. She tries to protect Anthy from him, only to be stabbed in the back by her (quite literally). Thus Akio takes her sword in order to use it to open the doors that could lead to his so-called "World Revolution", but the sword gets broken and Akio gives up. But when Utena see how much Anthy is suffering from her past deeds, she decides to open it up with her bare hands, despite Akio's warnings. After that, the whole place crumbles and Utena is pummeled by the swords of hatred which previously ensnared Anthy. After these events occur, it is revealed that Utena has disappeared from the Academy. A few days later, Akio decides to start the rose duels again, writing letters to new duelists, but Anthy informs him that she is leaving the Academy. Apparently the links that bound her to the Academy and her brother were finally severed thanks to Utena. The series ends with Anthy walking away in search of her.

In the manga finale, Akio reveals he is the other side of God, and that he was causing all the duels in order to finally kill God. All the duelists join in a travel through the Castle, but one by one they became trapped in coffins, until only Utena and Anthy remain, arriving just in time to notice God dead. It appears that God himself was the "prince" who gave the rose to Utena long ago. Enraged not only by finding her prince dead, but for the suffering of Anthy, Utena fights against Akio one more time, even if he claims she never will be able to win and even if Anthy herself says that everything is lost. Even hurt, Utena doesn't surrender and protests that she will ever protect Anthy, even if there is no longer a God. With this, Anthy recovers hope and helps Utena.

Utena then reveals who she is: Utena means calyx, the part of a flower that protects the blossom. She tells Akio that in the beginning he separated from God and that is the reason he's so confused, but that now it's time to become one again. With it she kisses him and they both disappear.

Next day Touga discovers everybody is fine, but nobody remembers Utena, until he finds Anthy now dressing as Utena used to, and playing tennis. Anthy still remembers Utena and tells him that the revolution of world didn't happen so history could start again.