Few anime have shaped the medium as boldly as Revolutionary Girl Utena.
Directed by Kunihiko Ikuhara and released in 1997, this series is a landmark of symbolic storytelling—a surreal, emotional, and empowering tale that challenges everything we think we know about fairy tales, gender, and destiny.

When I first watched it, I expected a magical high-school drama.
What I found was a metaphorical labyrinth about growing up, breaking illusions, and reclaiming your own narrative.

⚔️ Utena Tenjou: The Girl Who Wants to Be a Prince

Utena Tenjou is no ordinary heroine.
Inspired by a prince who once saved her, she vows to become a prince herself—strong, noble, and unafraid to protect others.

Her journey leads her to Ohtori Academy, a mysterious place where students fight surreal duels for possession of the “Rose Bride,” Anthy Himemiya—a girl whose destiny is bound to whoever wins.

What begins as chivalry becomes a deep exploration of identity, trauma, and the roles society imposes on us.

🌹 The Rose Bride and the Weight of Secrets

Anthy Himemiya is one of the most intriguing characters in anime.
Quiet, gentle, and enigmatic, she represents both fragility and hidden strength.

Her relationship with Utena forms the emotional core of the series: a bond that is tender, painful, and transformative.
Through Anthy, the show questions who holds power—and who pays the price for it.

🎭 Symbolism, Surreal Duels, and Ikuhara’s Signature Style

Every duel in Utena is symbolic.
Every repeated phrase, every staircase, every rose, every shadow-play sequence has a meaning.

The series blends:

theater-like staging
abstract imagery
mythological references
societal critique
surreal transitions

…into a narrative that feels like a dream you can’t forget.

The soundtrack is iconic: grand choral pieces, philosophical lyrics, and emotional melodies that elevate the story to operatic heights.

💫 A Timeless Masterpiece of Transformation

Revolutionary Girl Utena isn’t just a story—it’s a revolution.
It redefines what it means to be a hero, a princess, or a prince.
It challenges cycles of abuse, the meaning of freedom, and the courage it takes to change your fate.

If you love anime that combine emotional depth, bold symbolism, and unforgettable characters, Utena is essential viewing—one of the most influential works ever created.

¡Hola a todos! Aclaro que soy una yurista empedernida. Lo que más me gusta de éste genero de anime es que tocan la vena sensible, sobre todos los "viejitos". El anime yuri (al menos los de antes), muestran la feminidad a de una manera distinta, nos muestran protagonistas enérgicas que se salen del molde y que como en el caso de Utena, vienen a revolucionar su mundo.

Hello everybody! I clarify that I am an inveterate yurist. What I like most about this genre of anime is that they touch the sensitive vein, above all the "oldies". The anime yuri (at least the ones from before), show femininity in a different way, they show us energetic protagonists who go out of the mold and who, as in the case of Utena, come to revolutionize their world.

SONG_By Sue Zoe.jpg

Para este dibujo, me basé en la película de Shoujo Kakumei Utena, una película que recomiendo ampliamente pero que si no has visto el anime, lo mejor es que lo veas primero para poder comprenderla. Es una joya. Volviendo a la ilustración, quería dibujar mie escena favorita que es donde las protagonistas bailan bajo un cielo estrellado. Primero que nada, delimité el espacio e hice las siluetas de las chicas:

For this drawing, I was based on the film by Shoujo Kakumei Utena, a film that I highly recommend but if you have not seen the anime, it is best that you watch it first to understand it. It is a jewel. Going back to the illustration, I wanted to draw my favorite scene, which is where the protagonists dance under a starry sky. First of all, I delimited the space and made the silhouettes of the girls:

Para realizar el fondo hice en la zona superior una combinación de colores, en éste caso morado y negro y con mucha paciencia hice las estrellas punto a punto. La parte del "suelo", en la película se llena de agua y ésta, acaba reflejando el cielo, así que simplemente copié, pegué e invertí la capa de arriba:

To make the background I made a combination of colors in the upper area, in this case purple and black and with great patience I made the stars point by point. The "ground" part in the film fills with water and it ends up reflecting the sky, so I just copied, pasted and inverted the layer above:

Dibujé las siluetas de Utena y Himemiya sin delineado, ya que quería un dibujo simple que no distrajera. Y como la parte de abajo es el reflejo de nuestras bailarinas, utilicé el mismo boceto de la parte superior.

I drew the silhouettes of Utena and Himemiya without outlining, as I wanted a simple drawing that would not be distracting. And since the bottom is a reflection of our dancers, I used the same sketch as the top.

Para poder trabajar en los reflejos volteé el lienzo y vestí a las chicas con sus elegantes trajes.

In order to work on the reflections I flipped the canvas over and dressed the girls in their fancy outfits.

Para dibujar las rosas oculté las capas de Utena y Himemiya e hice puntos rojos con efectos de sobreexposición en el pincel.

To draw the roses I hid the layers of Utena and Himemiya and made red dots with dodge effects on the brush.

Ya luego hice visible de nuevo las capas que ya tenía y listo.

Then I made the layers I already had visible again and that's it.

SONG_By Sue Zoe.jpg

Muchas gracias por visitar mi post. Espero que les haya parecido interesante. Si aún no se han visto este anime se los recomiendo de todo corazón. Les dejo la escena del baile que ilustré para que se la deleiten:

Thank you very much for visiting my post. I hope you found it interesting. If you have not seen this anime yet, I recommend it to you with all my heart. I leave you the scene of the dance that I illustrated so that you can delight it:

¡Hasta una próxima oportunidad!

Until next time!

Revolutionary Girl Utena

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