Character Profile: Utena Tenjou

To say that this girl fits the title of this series is an understatement. She is as nonconformist as can be. Tall and tomboyish, she could be described as a man in a woman's world. Utena is an orphan, having lost her parents years before. Her only relic of her past is a rose signet ring. She had been given the ring by a mysterious "Rose Prince", who told her to be strong. Utena seeks this Rose Prince to this day.

Many things make Utena stand out. Among them is her preference to look and somewhat act like a boy. The academy claimed it was against the rules for example for her to wear a black uniform, but Utena replies that the rules don't say a girl can't wear a boy's uniform (which is what she's actually wearing). She's also adept at sports (her specialty is basketball). Her refusal to conform makes her the object of many girls' admiration.

Drawn into the mysterious Rose Arena when a friend of hers is insulted, she becomes even more eager to fight when she learns of the mistreatment of Anthy, the Rose Bride, she wins a duel and gains her friendship and (to a good degree of discomfort) her engagement, and since then she's been in a constant fight to protect Anthy and fight in the name of fairness. If there's anything she cannot stand, it's injustice and unfairness. Her most masculine trait is her willingness to fight to protect what she holds dear, little realizing just what kind of a role her past will play on the future. It is her greatest desire become a prince: someone with the strength and will to protect a princess.

The name "Utena Tenjou" translates to "Heaven Above Calyx", the calyx being the outermost part of a flower (on a rose, it's the green fringe under the bloom).