I hope you don't mind but I have some thoughts about the Mahoro-Nanami parallel.
Another thing they have in common is how they have "Princess" roles in their respective series. Mahoro is the princess/love interest that Arajin wants to obtain and she resembles one in the ED. And in the world of Utena, girls who were princesses were defined as feminine, desirable but helpless girls who needed to rely on others (especially men) to get anything done. Kind of like how Mahoro relied on Arajin and Matakara to save her brother from the gang war and barely tried to stop the fighting herself. Nanami also started out in this role & heavily relied on others to do anything (like using her brother's name to be part of the Student Council) but became more independent as the series progressed while the archetype was deconstructed.
So maybe the same can happen to Mahoro? You're thoughts?
OOOOOOH THAT'S SO INTERESTING. Nanami anon, what do you think of this???
I love this context, especially because, yes I do feel like Mahoro feels restricted by her role but she's also very comfortable using it to (try to) get what she wants. It's like she's super aware of how other people see her, but that's clearly not the full depth of who she really is. And the parts of her that she doesn't show as often clash so heavily with the "princess" image she puts out.
Like I don't think she wants to have to rely on everyone else (definitely not Arajin), but she knows these people won't listen to her or respect her (her brother doesn't) even though she clearly believes herself to be above them, and even derides them (standing up to Shindo...???? i still can't remember this loser's name).
This also has me thinking about her social isolation. Like, at this point all the guys in the school would know not to approach her bc of her brother beating up guys who go out with her. She really doesn't interact with anyone, but they're aware of her. We don't see her hanging out with other girls. But again, she doesn't seem to fit the archetype she would need to at this school. I dunno, just how she navigates the world is very interesting to me.
Also, I can't not think about the line in Disney's Aladdin (which i watched on REPEAT when I was younger) when Aladdin & the Sultan are talking about Jasmine and she overhears and puts them in their place saying "I am not a prize to be won." Very Disney girlboss, and Mahoro would not say that because of how she uses that objectification to her advantage, but it makes me think of it!
Do I think she could move out of this role down the line? Maybe! It will be really interesting to see where they take her character. I mean she did abandon her mask to stand up to Shindo, but it felt more like a version of her that's been operating this whole time, there was just no reason or benefit to wear the mask. I think so much of how she operates is because other people put her in a box, objectify her like Arajin without getting to know her, or ignore her like her brother, and she has to work from within those confines. It would be nice to see how she operates if those restrictions on her are lifted and she has more freedom to be who she wants to be. Also, if she has friends 🥺
ty so much for the ask!