u/Betterfly83

Ok Please don't take me for a madman and read the whole post. I know well that Utena is considered a somewhat mysterious series but fundamentally linked to gender affirmation and LGBT themes, however recently I had the possibility to attend a beautiful seminar in which the esoteric symbolisms present in the world of movies, TV series and also anime were explored in depth.

In this seminar, which was held by university-level professors and published essayists, among the anime that were cited the main one was precisely Utena.

I will try to summarize what they said: I wrote down several notes during the conference

First of all the rose is a very ancient esoteric symbol and the idea that the Rose is an ideal to be reached is present in so many spiritual paths. the black rose story arc then represents counter-initiation, meaning those who corrupt the true spiritual message. The rose in fact represents full spiritual knowledge while the black rose represents its corruption.

The student council represents an initiatic group in contact with a spiritual master: the fact that they meet on a tower that overlooks the entire school symbolizes the fact that they have the possibility to draw closer to heaven/paradise/the divine. The phrase they say when they take the elevator that brings them to this elevated place is also important : they talk about a chick that must break its shell otherwise it will die, While instead if it manages to break the shell it will have the power to revolutionize the world.

In many esoteric paths, such as the Kabbalah or Gnosticism, the shell represents the ignorance intrinsic to the material world: the initiate is the one who has the possibility to break this shell and revolutionize the world in the sense of seeing it for what it truly is, without the veil of ignorance. Stepping out of the world in the sense of living beyond the limits of the world.

It is not a coincidence that the place of the duels is a great staircase that points upwards : it is another symbol of the possibility of spiritual elevation.

Above the Duel Arena there is then an inverted castle: it represents the passage between worlds. There where the world of mortals ends, at the highest point that a mortal can reach, one can see mirrored the beginning of the spiritual/superior/divine world.

It is not a coincidence then that the one who leads the student council calls himself "the edge of the world" : the idea that true wisdom can only be obtained by overcoming the borders/limitations of this world in fact is very widespread. In the Kabbalah it is said that this world is the lowest of the ten Sephiroth and that ,to receive total wisdom and reunite with the divine, one must from this lowest point ascend to the highest point, going precisely beyond the boundaries of the world. In Gnosticism one speaks specifically of the world as a prison and also of a true spiritual reality that can be found only beyond the end of the world.

Also the existence of two entities that govern the game, one through which one can have wisdom and the other through which one can have power but remaining in ignorance, brings back the struggle between entities with opposite goals that was already present in religions like Zoroastrianism or in ancient Cathar spirituality.

Then all the symbolism linked to fairy tales, to the prince and to the duels would deserve a post of its own because it links to the golden age, to mental archetypes, etcetera

Then they showed dozens and dozens of images of the series in which it was clear how certain decorations and places were inspired by the iconography of the tarot.

I don't know if this post will interest anyone but honestly after the conference I did a rewatch of Utena and I can assure you that with this key of interpretation literally everything clicks and the ending becomes clearer.

First I'd like to give you the list of features the series I'm looking for must have: you'll notice they're few but they're very specific and all of them must be present.

Then I'll tell you about anime I've already seen that represent exactly what I'm looking for.

The characteristics are:

1. There must be a mystery that serves as the main thread throughout the entire plot. There can also be secondary secrets and mysteries, but there must be a main mystery that acts as the throughline for the whole story, and its resolution must be absolutely central to the plot.

2. The supernatural can be present or not, but the mystery has to be a serious mystery, potentially unsettling or troubling. In short, it shouldn't be a series about the kawaii club solving school squabbles.

3. The resolution of the mystery must involve something big. The destiny of the world doesn't strictly have to be at stake every time but the stakes must be high. In short, it can't be a simple "find the murderer so justice is done".

4. Have a mystery mood: there can potentially be some action scenes but the resolution of the mystery can't rely solely on them. In short, absolutely no battle shonen where you save the world by punching the villain in the face.

Examples of anime I've already seen that represent what I'm looking for:

Higurashi

Steins;Gate

Heavenly Delusion

Terror in Resonance

The Promised Neverland (first season)

Shadow House

Another

Gosick

Shinsekai Yori / From the New World

Special mention for "Summer Time Rendering", because it actually has all the elements i'm looking for but it's a bit too action-heavy, especially in the second part.

Thanks so much for all the advice you'll want to give me !

First I'd like to give you the list of features the series I'm looking for must have: you'll notice they're few but they're very specific and all of them must be present.

Then I'll tell you about anime I've already seen that represent exactly what I'm looking for.

The characteristics are:

1. There must be a mystery that serves as the main thread throughout the entire plot. There can also be secondary secrets and mysteries, but there must be a main mystery that acts as the throughline for the whole story, and its resolution must be absolutely central to the plot.

2. The supernatural can be present or not, but the mystery has to be a serious mystery, potentially unsettling or troubling. In short, it shouldn't be a series about the kawaii club solving school squabbles.

3. The resolution of the mystery must involve something big and by big i mean something like "either we solve it or things get really bad for all of us/Japan/humanity" or something like "If we pull this off things will get really good and it'll be the dawn of a new era in history!". The destiny of the world doesn't strictly have to be at stake every time but the stakes must be high. In short, it can't be a simple "let's find the murderer."

4. It has to be a mystery, so there can potentially be some action scenes but the resolution of the mystery can't rely solely on them. In short, absolutely no battle shonen where you save the world by punching the villain in the face.

Examples of anime I've already seen that represent what I'm looking for:

Higurashi

Steins;Gate

Heavenly Delusion

Terror in Resonance

Another

Shinsekai Yori / From the New World

Special mention for "Summer Time Rendering", because it actually has all the elements I'm looking for but it's a bit too action-heavy, especially in the second part.

Thanks so much for all the advice you'll want to give me !

Da appassionata di anime romantici con una trama avvincente, segreti da svelare e magari anche un tocco esoterico, Fruits Basket mi è stato spesso consigliato.

Piena di aspettative, l'ho iniziato e devo dire che la mia prima impressione è stata eccezionale: la prima scena è realizzata in modo impeccabile, mi riferisco alla scena con l'Imperatore di Giada e gli animali dello zodiaco, con la voce in sottofondo che dice "Ci rivedremo tutti dall'altra parte di quella promessa": che inizio!

Senza svelare troppi dettagli, dirò solo che ho trovato l'idea generale della serie molto originale e divertente.

Anche la protagonista è adorabile: di solito non mi piacciono i personaggi iper-positivi a prescindere da tutto, ma lei è così profonda, coerente e soprattutto semplicemente dolce, che l'ho amata subito.

Purtroppo, per me gli aspetti positivi della serie finiscono qui. Mi sono bloccato nei primi episodi della seconda stagione e ammetto che anche finire la prima non è stata un'impresa da poco.

Il punto è proprio questo: non posso nemmeno definirla una serie! Per ora, e stiamo parlando di molti episodi, è solo una raccolta di biografie e retroscena dei personaggi.

Cerca di capirmi: mi piacciono le storie che si sviluppano lentamente, mi piacciono i personaggi ben caratterizzati, mi piacciono le storie piene di segreti, mi piacciono i personaggi misteriosi e mi piacciono le saghe familiari... Ma Fruit Basket, almeno fino a dove sono arrivato io (ovvero l'inizio della seconda stagione), è semplicemente un insieme di biografie di personaggi intrecciate.

La trama inizia magistralmente nei primissimi episodi e poi si interrompe: da lì in poi sono solo ore interminabili in cui ogni episodio presenta il passato di un nuovo personaggio, con tutti i flashback e l'intera sua storia. E sono storie bellissime, poetiche, commoventi: non ho dubbi. Alcune mi hanno davvero toccato profondamente. Ma ripeto: l'effetto è quello di una serie di biografie! All'inizio della seconda stagione la trama è praticamente ancora al livello del terzo episodio della prima stagione.

Ogni episodio o approfondisce il passato di un personaggio o introduce un nuovo personaggio il cui passato verrà esplorato qualche episodio dopo, e quando tutti i personaggi sono stati trattati, si torna a un personaggio precedente per scoprire altri dettagli sul suo passato. Non c'è una progressione degli eventi: c'è solo "il contesto del giorno".

Fruits Basket, d'altra parte, è solo una sequenza di episodi in flashback che spiegano il passato dei suoi numerosi personaggi: è commovente, poetico ed è fatto molto bene, ma è un documentario.

La cosa più divertente è che di solito quando faccio questo tipo di critiche ricevo risposte tipo "sì, ma se continui fino all'episodio 378 vedrai i colpi di scena" e questo mi fa ridere 🤣

I searched for a long time for an anime that could be compared to a great masterpiece of the past, one of the few anime I've watched all the way through at least three times: i'm talking about "Dear Brother", by the same author as "The Rose of Versailles".

For those who don't know Dear Brother, i can sum it up like this: there's an elite school and there are a lot of secrets buried for years. The plot deals with friendship, love, obsessions, betrayals, there's a pretty dark academia atmosphere even if doesn't permeate every scene (one of the protagonists plays basketball and is a sunny girl who gets around by taxi while her friend is a tormented creature who plays with daggers in a completely dark house full of mirrors).

In general the tone of the plot is quite serious/dramatic, however there are also light and funny moments but absolutely not brainrot/kawaii/etc.

The thing that particularly frustrates me is that every time i ask for an anime similar to this they always suggest things like "Maria-sama ga Miteru" (which only has the aristocratic school in common, since it's a pure slice of life where practically nothing happens and there are no mysteries to solve except for "the episode's surprise") or "Classroom of the Elite" (here too the aristocratic school is in common but I wonder where are the mysteries to uncover that serve as the main thread of the plot, I wonder where the huge dramas and family secrets buried for generations are... all things that are central in Dear Brother).

The only anime that really reminded me of the atmospheres and themes I'm looking for is "Revolutionary Girl Utena", a series that is however more strictly tied to esoteric symbolism.

So, to sum up: in the anime I'm looking for there's an elite school and there's a secret(s) that someone is hiding and that must be revealed, so intrigues and dramas and various messes follow that run alongside the protagonists' personal and school lives.

It's important that i'm looking for "one big secret to uncover that acts as the main thread of the plot"; so no silly mystery like "who will senpai end up with?" and no -secret of the day- like "today we'll try to figure out who broke the third-floor window, tomorrow we'll try to figure out who's pretending to be the ghost in the gym at night".

Thanks for all the help you want to give me

I'm looking for an anime that has the following characteristics: the entire story should revolve around a single long adventure on the road, actually the journey of the protagonists' lives

When i make this request, i'm usually misunderstood and people suggest anime where the characters goes to location A to solve the first mission, then goes to location B to solve the second mission, and so on. That's not what I'm looking for: i'm not looking for a group of secret agents who go and dismantle terrorist bases in a different country every month.

I'm looking for a great story where there's a single long journey, eventually with stops and pauses but which is part of a single gigantic adventurous journey.

Examples : Frieren, Heavenly Delusion, A Wind called Amnesia, Children Who Chase Lost Voices, Girls last Tour, One Piece (but i really hate fillers)

One very important thing so I’m not misunderstood: it’s not that important for the protagonist or protagonists to end up on the other side of the world, what matters is that I get to enjoy their journey. Meaning, if the protagonist spends 80% of the story in their city but then in the last episode gets teleported to the other side of the universe, obviously that doesn’t count for what I’m asking.

I mean, the point isn’t that at some point in the story the protagonist or protagonists go on a trip: my point is that the entire focus of the plot has to revolve around one long journey. Like, once I made this request and someone suggested I watch Naruto because “at some point they go on a really long journey” 🤣

To sum up: I'm looking for an anime that starts with the characters in a certain place of their world and takes them through a single incredibly long journey, all the way to the other side of their world ( or universe/creation).

I started watching this anime with huge expectations: first of all, consider that I'm a huge fan of Darling in the Franxx: Eureka Seven is always recommended as a similar anime.

When I saw an image with the famous line "good night, sleep tight, young lovers" I really thought I would feel the same emotions that Zero Two and Hiro made me feel.

Also, I was assured that Eureka Seven had themes that were very interesting to me, like for example the idea of the dawn of a new world, etc.

A friend of mine even told me that this anime changed his life and that since then he names "Nirvash" (the protagonist's robot) every RPG character he makes.

After so much initial enthusiasm, I unfortunately have to admit that for now I've put this series on pause after about fifteen episodes.

I admit that there are good characters and that almost all of them have interesting personalities and nice backgrounds, but honestly that's not enough for me because there are several things that make me a bit doubtful.

First of all the pacing is really slow : Darling in the Franxx manages to flesh out the characters and setting without ever losing momentum, in those 24 wonderful episodes literally everything happens! Eureka Seven instead gets bogged down in lots of useless filler that slows down an already not-so-fast narrative.

Another problem is the setting: you can tell it's deep and fascinating, but you immediately find yourself immersed in dynamics of political rivalries and environmental problems without knowing absolutely anything about this world! I mean, from the first episode it's clear that there's a hostile relationship between the armed forces and Eureka's crew, but you don't understand much else... Eureka's crew is presented basically as a group of surfers, then as wanted criminals, then as popular heroes who can even be in magazines, then they shoot at the army, Then though the government seems to sympathize with them... I admit that at some points I found myself staring at the screen thinking "Will someone please explain to me what's going on?"

Another problem then is the jargon: they constantly talk about things that aren't explained, using terms related to natural objects or forms of energy or technologies that we know absolutely nothing about and that aren't explained.

In short, I have to admit that between slow pacing, useless filler, social dynamics I don't understand, incomprehensible terms and other things, I admit that I hope someone can make me want to watch this series again

I decided to start playing Heaven Burns Red simply because I stumbled upon some songs from the soundtrack on YouTube and I thought they were absolutely amazing. Also, the game's story has been compared to some anime I loved, and that was more than enough for me.

But please understand that I'm completely new to gacha games: like, absolute zero. I usually play RPGs like Dragon Age or strategy games like Warcraft 3.

Turn-based combat is more or less familiar to me, but what I'm totally unfamiliar with is the whole system of daily rewards, Memories, and character farming.

I haven't really figured out how the various rewards differ from each other, which ones are the most important, or how each of them works: To be totally honest, I haven't even gotten fully comfortable with Memories and how to use them yet.

It's not clear to me what benefits character leveling progression provides, or when/how new skills get unlocked.

Another thing I don't get is whether you need to max out all the characters, or if it's possible/advisable to just focus on a few of them.

Keep in mind that I mainly play for the story, so I'm not interested in doing every side quest or unlocking every achievement: I just want to have fun and enjoy the story all the way through, obviously enjoying the combat part too.

It's also not clear to me if the game continues after you've finished the entire story. If it does, I think I'd only keep playing if it added more to the story or the setting.

Thanks for any help you can give me and please no spoilers 🙏

As a horror genre enthusiast, I’ve always complained that there are actually very few anime that can truly be defined as horror: if we remove the battle shonen where people punch monsters in the face, the rom-coms with vampires with tits larger than their faces, the thrillers that just look like horror, the comedies with monsters, there really isn’t much left.

The two anime I’m about to suggest are certainly not the only real horror anime ever produced, but they are the only ones that, in my opinion, deserve a 10/10 rating: Higurashi and Another

Both share an idea that I absolutely love: there is a mystery that serves as a common thread for the entire plot and is a presence (explicit or implicit) in every episode. Both of these anime are puzzles where well-hidden clues and investigations merge with a supernatural atmosphere that is always present but never too explicit or cumbersome.

In Higurashi, we witness a fairly slow start that quickly degenerates into an abyss of madness and violence; then (just when you’re wondering how on earth the plot can move forward after the carnage that occurred), everything suddenly seems to reset for no reason. Of course, there actually *is* a reason and I was really pleased to see how every single question eventually finds an answer, resolving all the question marks previously scattered and making all the pieces fit... all of them, even apparently impossible things like a character dying in one episode and then showing up alive in the next. It’s a show that, between spin-offs and sequels of inconsistent quality, might have pushed things a bit too far, but the first two seasons—which are the series' canon plot—absolutely deserve a 10/10.

Another, on the other hand, is for me the quintessential ghost story anime: in the first few episodes you remain fascinated by the dark atmosphere oozing from every side, worthy of a 19th-century English ghost story (even though it’s obviously set in modern-day Japan). After a while you start thinking "Okay, the atmosphere is beautiful, but the plot seems cliché and predictable"—but then, after just a few episodes, comes the plot twist that made me jump out of my chair.

It’s as if the author wanted to tell me "The story you thought you were following is not actually like it seemed" ... and all the certainties you thought you had are replaced by a completely different situation. The plot didn't lie: it simply made sure the viewer drew the wrong conclusions, and only at that point are you let in on the true mystery to be solved: spectacular! Without wanting to give spoilers, I’ll tell you that I found the idea that the "villain" doesn't know they are one to be absolutely genius: it could literally be anyone, and there is absolutely no way to make them remember being the villain nor to prevent them from doing harm anyway... at least apparently. Currently, I consider it the most beautiful ghost story I’ve ever seen in an anime.

If you like the horror genre, understood as a supernatural mystery to be solved while moving through a dark setting, I recommend these two anime without a shadow of a doubt.