 If you liked Shinseiki Evangelion |  ...then you might like Shoujo Kakumei Utena |
When watching revolutionary girl utena, it somehow made me feel like "This is kinda like NGE but for girls" Both have in-depth character analysis implemented somewhere inside the series, and the style of them is similar. Both have metaphors and symbolism, and some parts/things that make you think a bit. However, NGE's Angel fights have been replaced by sword fighting in utena, and there are some other differences aswell, but they have the same feeling when watching, at least near Utena's end.
Massive amounts of symbolism, character analysis, and psychological issues. While Utena is a lot more lighthearted and silly at times, the serious moments rival some of the darker moments of Evangelion and have the same pervasive atmosphere. They're both a thinking man's anime and something that absolutely everybody should watch, unless a symbolical focus makes you uncomfortable. You'll have to read through the lines and see the big picture in both of them.
Both are extremely bizarre series with hidden meanings and psychologically messed-up characters. Fun stuff!
report Recommended by darkadonis
Both are confusing as hell. Both have three-dimensional characters that drive the plot. And if you include End of Evangelion and ignore the last two episodes, both have bitter, confusing endings (one sweeter than another though). A jump I know, but I love these shows for the same reasons: Complicated plot, deep chock full of symbolism, and complicated flawed characters.
report Recommended by DolorDecorus
There are many parallels to be seen between Utena and Evangelion, including internally conflicted main characters, severely damaged familial relationships, and a host of others. Both series revolutionized their respective genres, and are absolutely worth watching.
In many ways, Revolutionary Girl Utena is the Neon Genesis Evangelion of the shoujo genre. They're both surreal take themselves very seriously, they both have very complex casts and Shinji Ikari and Utena Tenjou are both very conflicted and well-written protagonists (Albeit in different ways). At first glance, Revolutionary Girl Utena may just look like a simple shoujo anime, but in reality, there's so much more to it than that. Evangelion fans, I highly recommend you check this one out!
report Recommended by Seth-Z-101
If you want another psychological anime that doesn't adhere to its genre and contains a bunch of symbolism, Revolutionary Girl Utena is the one. Like Eva, it has budget constraints on it, which cause it to be repetitive, but you could skip through things, or just see them as thinking breaks. You'll need a break to think.
It's not very uncommon to hear that "Revolutionary Girl Utena" is the NGE of shoujo. Both rely on symbolism to tell a very complex story about human emotion and the complexity of human life.
report Recommended by EdenBaggins
While having it's own distinct personality, you can say Utena is the shoujo equivalent of Evangelion. Both are Freudian anime that explore how messed up their characters are and attack the conventions of their genre. Both throw symbolism around at any chance and are very open to interpretation, when you're done watching them you're not done with them yet.
You will get many similar feeling when watching these two shows.. Just be ready to be confused when watching.. Angel fights in Evangelion are sword fightings in Utena..
Both are classic 90's anime that deconstruct their respective genres. Both start out fairly light-hearted and grow shockingly dark as the plot thickens, both rely on symbolism, are heavy on the psychology and philosophy, and both are coming of age stories with utterly evil villians (who are scarily realistic) and both have endings that can be intrepreted in many different ways.
Evangelion and Utena are both heavily psychological coming of age 90s anime with tragic and complex characters and tons of symbolism. Many aspects of both series are ambiguous and open to personal interpretation.
report Recommended by teenqueen69
Both seem to start off as simple "Battle of the Week" shows, but they grow into much more. Both series deal with adolescent characters and their struggles, with their somewhat non-linear stories being decorated with abundant symbolism. Where Neon Genesis Evangelion redefined mecha, Shoujo Kakumei Utena redefined shoujo.
report Recommended by PensiveGrit
Dense, cerebral and heavily stylized takes on the theme of human relationships.
report Recommended by LoveLikeBlood
Both stories are very similar. We can find psychological elements, characters are great, there is a little lgbt moments. I can't explain more, why it is similar, I just know it. Utena is like nge, but for girls
They both are part of the anime revolution of the 90s, with more symbolism and adult themes than previous anime
Both Ikuhara and Anno have surrealistic aproach to their own series (also they known each other when series were made, so it's probably fair to say thet they've had influence on each other). A lot of symbolism, psychological analysis, and story that it's not quite what it seams when looking at the genere and premise. Both are great and revolutionary.
Similar concepts(if you understand the first its easy to get the other), both valued as anime with more depht.
Heart ripping stories. 90s anime aesthetic. Villain of the week. Themes of growing up. Possible lgbt characters. Strong female characters. These main characters have to try to stop the world from ending in some way. Utena with her sword fights and Shinji against the angels. These stories both share complex characters and psychological elements. Utena has moments that are more lighthearted but also has moments that are much more darker than evangalion. If you liked evagalion then you would every much enjoy utena.
report Recommended by legsthefrog
Evangelion and Utena both use a plethora of references and opulent symbolism to arrive at fundamental psychological themes by way of genre deconstruction while using genre limitations to their advantage. Both stories culminate in a sort of grand cataclysm that attempts to give insight into the human condition. One could find many parallels plotwise, and given their functions in the plot there is a number of characters who are much alike one another: Anthy-Rei, Akio-Gendo, Mikage-Ritsuko, Nanami-Kaji, Touga-Misato, Utena-Shinji. This is not my novel-sized essay on the many and deep similarities between the two shows, so you'll just have to trust me on it. And
report Recommended by RetroAnimeMike
The directors go all out with metaphors, artistic shots and cuts. The viewer is left to scramble to follow the plot, but rewarded with deep philosophical questions along the way. While the plot is very different, the similarity of the "feel" of the series and their impact on the viewers is what drives this recommendation.
a show that focuses more on metaphorical imagery, intricate themes and important social commentary and LGBT representation more than a cohesive narrative
report Recommended by MagentaDystopia
Everyone's already pointed out how they're both surrealist deconstructions of their respective genres. The key difference for me, more than shonen vs shoujo, is that all the imagery and symbolism of NGE leads to a thematic conclusion of overwhelming nihilism. RGU (at risk of spoilers) is an extremely structuralist show. Whereas everything ultimately means nothing in NGE, everything, and I mean EVERYTHING serves a function in RGU. So if you enjoyed NGE but want a different kind of philosophical show, you gotta see RGU.
Revolutionary Girl Utena and Neon Genesis Evangelion are both well-known anime from the late 90s. Although the art style is very different, the two animes have a great deal in common. -both follow a monster/fight of the week style format for most episodes -psychological themes are common in both, and they are full of surreal imagery & symbolism -there's a secret cabal (NERV/Seele/End of the World) controlling things being the scenes -both have an animal character (Pen Pen the Penguin/ChuChu) for comedic relief -lots of weird & strained brother-sister, father-son relationships in both -no spoilers but both shows take a bizarre turn in by the end If you're a fan of
report Recommended by Inter_anime