“I think that my manner toward my friends and acquaintances usually represents me correctly. Truth to one’s self will not always allow absolute uniformity in one’s outward action. I think a further exchange of explanations will not be profitable.”

This is AMAZING. I want to have someone to snub just so I can use that. Failing that, I'll go on Reddit's r/relationships, I know it will be useful to some people there.

OMG that second gif is amazing ! First there is no smile, then it's all smile, and I am completely hypnotized trying to figure out the transition. It's perfection.

They're cherubs though, aren't they ? As in, one specific kind of angel. I'll admit I'm not sure why cherubs are supposed to be babies with wings, and whether that's accurate to whatever source material they go back to, but it's not "angels" in general. For example depictions of archangels or specific ones like Michael etc are different.

I wonder how much of this episode led to the Doppelganger episode of Buffy, where we're first led to believe this happened to Xander (he got divided into a super-competent Evil Twin and we follow the hapless Good Twin) but then it turns out it wasn't a Good/Evil split at all, but a positive qualities/negative qualities one, with the Xander we were led to believe was "good" being actually the sum of all Xander's insecurities and ineffectualness.

This episode destroyed me, because THIS IS A FUCKING REWATCH. I've seen all the episodes of this show. Granted, my memory from the Black Rose arc on is pretty spotty because I generally find it hard to remember things I don't understand, but still. I DID NOT SEE THIS COMING. I don't know how that's possible. How could I not get that Mamiya wasn't Mamiya, what with Mamiya looking like Anthy and Akio but pointedly not looking like his sister. How did I not remember this twist ? WOW. And then when Anthy and Utena come upon the ruins of Nemuro Hall we wonder - was this all a dream ? When did the events in last episode's flashback occur, really ? It shouldn't have been that long ago given Tokiko is still around but it comes across as ancient history. It really confirms my impression that a lot of Ohtori Academy is ethereal and not completely moored to the "normal" passage of time and external events.

Also a comment on the preview for next episode, and a question on spoiler policy :
GUR FRK PNE VF PBZVAT ! V erzrzore GUNG. Pna lbh urne gung fbhaq ? Unf lbhe fbhy abg gehyl tvira hc ? PBZR GB GUR RAQ BS GUR JBEYQ JVGU ZR !

Fb naljnl, pna V pnyy vg gur frk pne ? Univat jngpurq gur arkg rcvfbqr vg ybbxf gb zr yvxr gur fuvegyrffarff naq "srry gur guebo bs gur ratvar" vf fhttrfgvir rabhtu sebz qnl bar. V'z abg fher V jbhyq unir pnyyrq vg gur frk pne vzzrqvngryl onpx jura V svefg jngpurq, ohg gung jnf orpnhfr V jnf lbhat naq anvir naq gubhtug V unq n qvegl zvaq (juvpu jura jr'er gnyxvat nobhg "Hgran" vf cerggl ynhtunoyr).

So this episode was fun until something happened that compelled me to start taking notes:

THE BEEPING POINTY FINGERS.

What is this episode. Like, we already knew you were ridiculously symbolism-heavy but I don't know how to describe a show that's so allegorical but also so literal as to point out the allegory with beeping pointy fingers. Oh wait I do know : condescending. "Hey, dum-dums, we know this bit is in the background but it's significant so pay attention to it". This episode is making fun of us.

That said there seems to be a "time is passing faster than you'd think" vibe here. The tea that's too strong, the multiplying cats. The butterfly case could also be a reference but it doesn't show up again in time-passed form, so it may just be a reminder of the Creepy Elevator Butterfly Case, which symbolizes regression and "going deeper" with the inverse-development metaphor, but could also point to time ?

Hey turns out Mikage's role is not what it seemed and WAIT THE BEEPING AGAIN. In a crowd of Ohtori young men, clearly the 100. Where's the pointy finger ? Where's the pointy finger ? Oh there it is, it's pointing at this gu- *scene change before the guy's head shows up*

OH NOW YOU DON'T EVEN PRETEND YOU'RE NOT TROLLING US, FUCK YOU SHOW !!!!

This is the most amazing thing I've ever seen.

Red lipstick... Leading to Mamiya. Oh wait something is happening, maybe things will make sense (spoiler: no they won't. I don't even remember what this line refers to).

OH FUCK MIKAGE HAS PINK HAIR. I'd noticed the parallel to Utena earlier in this episode actually, but only now put it together with Mamiya's parallel to Anthy. THEY'RE THE GENDER-BENT UTENA AND ANTHY. What does Mikage being a "computer" mean, is that a "rebel from society's expectations" parallel to Utena being a "prince", or am I overfitting ?

"I like it when you give me an injection, Nee-san"

First reaction: you're weird, nobody likes shots
Second reaction: IS THIS SEXUAL this show is breaking my brain.

Dried flowers, because his sister doesn't like to see flowers die. Yep, these references to Eternity are coalescing. Into something creepy. As it should be.

BEEPING FINGER -> The leaf case ! Is it me or does it not have eggs on it ? Did it have eggs on it in the Creepy Elevator or were those pins ?

More weird things. Is Mikage's hair in the present a few shades less pink and more gray than it was in the past ? (not suggesting it as a sign of aging, but possibly as a lack of purity to contrast with Utena's ?)

Moral of the story: Mikage, Mamiya and Akio seem to have stayed young as if some aspect of time didn't pass for some people in this school.
Other things I understood: nothing.

But then, that comes across as even worse - replacing a gift that shows his personal attention with one that recasts their relationship as a business transaction. Not that Saionji meant it that way; he's just too self-centered to think about it. I oscillate between blaming him, because he is self-centered and Wakaba's feelings haven't been hard to guess and he does owe her consideration if nothing else, and letting him off the hook because it's not like he's responsible for Wakaba's emotions; she offered her help out of friendship and he has a right to accept it on that basis. It's not like he didn't give her a million openings to declare her love if she wanted to. Basically if it weren't for Saionji being Saionji and Wakaba getting destroyed I'd see this whole thing as a wacky miscommunication subplot where both and neither side are to blame.

Yeah, I commented two episodes ago on how it looked like the duels seemed to be helping their zombified victims in some way, in that the scenes we saw them in afterwards seemed to show them happier and less prey to whatever issue ailed them.

The ending of this episode smashes that trend :-/ Why did you have to do this to Wakaba ? WHY ?
(of course seeing it as a trend does kinda depend on interpreting Shiori as having improved after her duel, which I did but apparently some others don't)

We do get a new view of Saionji though ! I found his interactions with Wakaba adorable and he verged on likeable in this episode, until Mikage stepped in. And even then, as horrible as his actions were he didn't show any malice, not like we saw in the first episode; he's just really self-centered, that's all. Even then that self-centeredness wasn't that egregious. His behavior towards Wakaba was thoughtless but in a very ordinary way that wouldn't bother us that much if it wasn't Saionji, and if it hadn't had the consequences it did.

I did get a laugh at him calling her "Wakaba-kun". I think I've heard it used in anime in romantic contexts... maybe ? But my immediate reaction was "Friendzoned in one syllable! What an elegant language".

I'd make noises about how between this episode and the one where we saw Saionji's past there might be a redemptive arc in the works, but seeing him back in a powerful position at the end of this episode makes me doubtful.

Actually I've just realized Pterry makes the link explicit in his "Why Gandalf never married" speech, linked to higher up.

So I had forgotten for Kozue ! As you say, it totally falls into the pattern.

I started rewatching after Mark did so this is the first episode where I'm more-or-less synchronous with Mark's post, and I made this comment before reading the comments on last week's post; I see that my take on Shiori having become more open and less repressed isn't universally agreed on. Fair enough, it's ambiguous.

Spoiler for two episodes or so from now ("Wakaba's Flourishing") :
Jvgu guvf pbzzrag V'z nagvpvcngvat n ovg gur rcvfbqr V unir tbggra gb, jurer Jnxnon frrzf gb oernx gur cnggrea. Be abg, vs Fuvbev jnfa'g na rknzcyr urefrys... va juvpu pnfr vg jbhyq nygreangr orgjrra vzcebirzrag naq ynpx bs vzcebirzrag, juvpu vf vgfrys n cnggrea ? uzz.