Princess Tutu Meta
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halfamoonAround middle of last year, I wrote about characters I loved for a meme. And the first one I did was a rather long meta about one of my favourite fictional ladies, Rue from Princess Tutu, a character I feel is often underappreciated in fandom. I talk about how unique and beautiful her character arc was to me and I thought I would share it here.
Cut for length and major spoilers!
Rue stands out to me because of her strength, passion and complexity.
The role that is designated to her within the story created by Drosselmeyer is The Vamp. The beauty who uses her 'feminine wiles' to undermine a moral and upright man; a woman who is demonized for having control of her sexuality. She has the role of a raven princess who will use her sexuality to get her own way. However, Rue is really just a confused, insecure and rather selfish teenage girl who desperately wants to be loved. At first she takes advantage of Mytho's puppet-like state and tells him to love her. Rue does this because she doesn't understand what constitutes as a healthy romantic relationship. There's no way she could after all the emotional abuse she received from her 'father.'
Even though Rue goes about it the wrong way, she does love very deeply. And as Drosselmeyer said, that shouldn't even be possible with the amount of raven's blood she's had. And she makes an extremely epic Heroic Sacrifice.
When overwhelming forces are influencing her to be something she isn't, Rue ultimately chose an identity she created for herself. The strength it takes to reject such forces is incredible, and it was always there. Rue had to discover who she was in order to fully use that strong and passionate nature. We see glimpses of that nature during her time as Kraehe. One example of her powerful personality is when she calls on Drosselmeyer to offer him "the best story ever told." The decisiveness and cleverness she demonstrates will serve well in her role as princess.
What I am most fascinated with in Rue's character arc, is that it involves deconstructing one of the most misogynistic tropes in fiction. Her passionate nature and ultimate sense of agency is something that is lauded by the narrative. She is a deeply complex, character and her character arc is truly one of the best in all of fiction.
I love that Rue's friendship with Ahiru helps teach her about genuine affection. Their scenes together are very touching and cute. They have a wonderful friendship. I also adore the fact she's rather ... socially inept. Rue's not as bad as Fakir, (few are) but she automatically goes into "snob" mode" and acts rather blunt in social situations. Rue really doesn't know how to interact with people at all. (That will happen when you've been raised by a demon raven and spend most of your time around a guy who's practically a puppet.) It's incredibly cute and funny when she tries to make Ahiru call her 'Rue-sama'. All the main characters are socially challenged in their own way. However, I find the particular way Rue's social dysfunction manifests itself to be very endearing and poignant. She takes herself far too seriously and keeps others at a distance. But her protective wall of pride is slowly chipped away by both Ahiru, with her earnest and kind nature and Mytho. Her relationship with Mytho changes many times throughout the series, but as they both overcome the negative influences surrounding them, they find love and happiness with each other.
Rue is beautifully written and complex with a extrmely unique character arc. Rue is the sort of character who would not normally get a happy ending. But since Princess Tutu is a deconstructive fairy tale, she gets her happy ending. She gets to be loved for who she is.
Cut for length and major spoilers!
Rue stands out to me because of her strength, passion and complexity.
The role that is designated to her within the story created by Drosselmeyer is The Vamp. The beauty who uses her 'feminine wiles' to undermine a moral and upright man; a woman who is demonized for having control of her sexuality. She has the role of a raven princess who will use her sexuality to get her own way. However, Rue is really just a confused, insecure and rather selfish teenage girl who desperately wants to be loved. At first she takes advantage of Mytho's puppet-like state and tells him to love her. Rue does this because she doesn't understand what constitutes as a healthy romantic relationship. There's no way she could after all the emotional abuse she received from her 'father.'
Even though Rue goes about it the wrong way, she does love very deeply. And as Drosselmeyer said, that shouldn't even be possible with the amount of raven's blood she's had. And she makes an extremely epic Heroic Sacrifice.
When overwhelming forces are influencing her to be something she isn't, Rue ultimately chose an identity she created for herself. The strength it takes to reject such forces is incredible, and it was always there. Rue had to discover who she was in order to fully use that strong and passionate nature. We see glimpses of that nature during her time as Kraehe. One example of her powerful personality is when she calls on Drosselmeyer to offer him "the best story ever told." The decisiveness and cleverness she demonstrates will serve well in her role as princess.
What I am most fascinated with in Rue's character arc, is that it involves deconstructing one of the most misogynistic tropes in fiction. Her passionate nature and ultimate sense of agency is something that is lauded by the narrative. She is a deeply complex, character and her character arc is truly one of the best in all of fiction.
I love that Rue's friendship with Ahiru helps teach her about genuine affection. Their scenes together are very touching and cute. They have a wonderful friendship. I also adore the fact she's rather ... socially inept. Rue's not as bad as Fakir, (few are) but she automatically goes into "snob" mode" and acts rather blunt in social situations. Rue really doesn't know how to interact with people at all. (That will happen when you've been raised by a demon raven and spend most of your time around a guy who's practically a puppet.) It's incredibly cute and funny when she tries to make Ahiru call her 'Rue-sama'. All the main characters are socially challenged in their own way. However, I find the particular way Rue's social dysfunction manifests itself to be very endearing and poignant. She takes herself far too seriously and keeps others at a distance. But her protective wall of pride is slowly chipped away by both Ahiru, with her earnest and kind nature and Mytho. Her relationship with Mytho changes many times throughout the series, but as they both overcome the negative influences surrounding them, they find love and happiness with each other.
Rue is beautifully written and complex with a extrmely unique character arc. Rue is the sort of character who would not normally get a happy ending. But since Princess Tutu is a deconstructive fairy tale, she gets her happy ending. She gets to be loved for who she is.
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Date: 2011-02-02 02:24 am (UTC)This post makes me want to embark in an epic Princess Tutu rewatch. It's been almost a year since I've seen the series! That's just not okay!
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Date: 2011-02-02 05:46 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-02-02 06:34 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-02-04 01:55 pm (UTC)Great defense!