COUGHS. Didn't meant to leave you hanging. I was thinking too hard. I think a lot of the Utena cast is bizarre

• Touga - Yuri enjoyer who does not acknowledge the existence of lesbians and is surprised by them
• Akio - I don't think he knows what yuri and yaoi is. I don't think those works even fit into frame of view of the world. If he is aware of them, I think he just views them as silly unrealistic fiction
• Saionji - Likely would enjoy yaoi discreetly and would never identify as a fujoshi despite it being obvious to some people
• Juri - Would enjoy yuri and porbably get really into it only to completely stop reading it on principle
• Miki - I think Miki could identify as a Himejoshi. He would enjoy yuri a lot and have unrealistic views of lesbian relationships as a result
• Nanami - Very annoying yaoi fan who would read it discreetly and self insert with her and her brother. Would not identify as fujoshi but people would view her as one
• Wakaba - Himejoshi who still does not view lesbians as real but would self insert still with her and Utena
• Shiori - I think yuri would absolutely enrage her because of her problems, and she'd read it anyways. Toxic yuri enjoyer.
• Mikage - Would find out yaoi exists and his brain would fucking explode (would like it)
• Utena - I think Utena would enjoy yuri especially with the acting troupes. It's hard to think about with her because she is like.. the Yuri.
• Anthy - Anthy would like yuri and identify as himejoshi. I think Anthy is the main character who would know yuri exists and indulge in it in canon, even if its mostly in novel format. I think she would would have an appreciation for all yuri while many other characters may prefer certain story structures

I like Shiori for many reasons. I enjoy seeing teenage girls with BPD in fiction, and I like that the show shows her own behavior doesn't make her happy, but she views it as the ideal way to act in those situations. She is genuinely so miserable..  There are people who call her the most evil character in the show (even compared to Akio??), but she is genuinely just a girl with BPD and deep internalized homophobia living in Ohtori.

Like I think it's hard to understand that Shiori likely can't even comprehend being a lesbian in this world of princesses and princes. It causes her extreme agony, so she keeps taking and taking from the one she loves, but it is never Enough. She truly has a black hole of a heart.

Perhaps you can even say her lesbianism makes her a witch... She can never have a prince so she cannot behave like a "normal" girl, pushing her into the role of a villain in every fantasy story.

I think a lot of the bizarre Nanami episodes are focused on the strangeness of teenage girlhood and her weird sense of autonomy due to being groomed while currently being in Ohtori... They tend to more reflect more on Nanami herself being a girl in that world ahah. She's got so much going on but still has to deal with being a girl with all that other stuff going on..

A lot of those episodes are products of the actions of Anthy Himemiya a lot of the time haha.

The episodes are joked about a lot lol. And for good reason- they are funny and bizarre... I feel like so many aspects of girlhood are bizarre and alien if you aren't actively experiencing them. One of my favorite episodes in the entire show is the Egg episode ahah.