We are all in our coffins
Saionji receives new orders from the End of the World to kidnap Anthy and take her to the dueling arena. Touga schemes to convince Utena that he is her "Prince." Saionji's and Touga's past history with Utena is revealed."The Castle Said to Hold Eternity" provides examples of:
- After-Action Patch-Up: In Saionji's flashback, Touga wraps an abrasion on Saionji's hand with a handkerchief after sparring. It symbolically comes undone when Saionji's feelings of rivalry with Touga outweigh his feelings of friendship.
- Ambiguous Situation: There is no resolution about where Touga's machinations end and where the End of the World's begin. Touga manipulated Saionji and Utena and made everyone think End of the World was behind the events in the arena, but it's unlikely that Akio would have ever told Touga about projector. Assuming that is the case, Touga couldn't have pulled it all off by himself. Thus, the End of the World probably was involved in the scheme without telling any of the other participants.
- Bad People Abuse Animals: Saionji is frustrated by the racket caused by Chu-Chu wrestling with a pushy frog, and kicks them both out of the way.
- Cold Touch Surprise: Touga startles Utena out of a reverie about her prince by holding a cold drink to her cheek.
- Deliberate Injury Gambit: Saionji attempts to attack Utena, but Touga intercepts the blow and is injured. Touga lured both of them to the arena, apparently anticipating that Saionji would get violent. By shielding Utena, he looks noble and self-sacrificing, further encouraging her to think of him as her prince. And he's not even hurt that badly.
- Dish Dash: A-ko spins plates on sticks during the shadow play, and the scene ends with the sound of the plates shattering and the shadow play girls exclaiming in surprise.
- Dramatic Shattering: Saionji breaks a pane of glass in the door of the rose garden while reflecting on his rivalry with Touga and his desire to reclaim Anthy.
- Flashback Echo: Touga running his fingers through Utena's hair in the flashback mirrors a similar action action he took with Utena in epsiode 2. The difference in the flashback is that little girl Utena is too lost in grief to care about how inappropriate he's being.
- Foreshadowing: Many of the themes and plot beats of the climax of this episode are revisited in the Grand Finale: Utena rescuing Anthy from a coffin, violence that exceeds the rules of the dueling game, the arena changing in form and appearance—and falling to pieces—even though this apparent doom is just an illusion.
- Forged Message: Saionji receives a letter that appears to be from the End of the World advising him that the castle will descend, but it is actually from Touga, who is setting a trap for him.
- Get A Hold Of Yourself Man: Utena smacks Saionji repeatedly to get him to come to his senses after she finds him face-down in a pool of water by the entrance to the dueling arena. It's probably more than was really necessary, but who can blame her? Saionji's a jerk.
- Groupie Brigade: The episode opens with a kendo match between Touga and Saionji, with groups of girls screaming encouragement to them. One of them calls Touga her "prince," which catches Utena's attention.
- Meaningful Echo:
- "Eternity" - this episode inaugurates this particular arc word; it has a recursive quality in this episode. Saionji mentions it in the present, and Utena is slightly rattled to hear it from him, but the flashback makes it clear that "eternity" is meaningful to him because she talked about it as a little girl. However, neither of them are aware that they met as children at this point.
- "Spirited away" - in the flashback, the grown-ups in suits muse about this as little Utena's possible fate, and it resonates with Saionji. In the present, Utena gets a mysterious phone call warning that Anthy was spirited away, and when she relays this phrase to Saionji, it spurs him into action.
- "True friend" - Touga goads Saionji by bringing up their childhood friendship. The shadow players mention this concept as a comforting illusion, and Touga clearly thinks fellow-feeling is a weakness.Touga: Anyone who truly believes he has friends is a fool.
- Missing Child: In Saionji's flashback, anonymous adults approach him and Touga to inquire if they've seen a missing girl whose parents just died. The boys decide to look for her, and find her in a coffin: little Utena, declaring that she will stay in it forever.
- Mobile Maze: The dueling arena is always an incongruous space, but this is the first time it changes in form of its occupants, with narrow pillars shooting out of the floor to lift Anthy's coffin and Utena out of reach.
- Newhart Phonecall: Touga has a phone conversation with an unknown party and only his part of the conversation is audible, but the audience can put together a few hints: first that Touga forged the letter that Saionji received, and second that Touga is in cahoots with the End of the World.
- Psychological Torment Zone: The arena takes on aspects of this for Saionji, when the castle descends just as his letter promised it would, but it crumbles and appears to crush him...except moments later he is unharmed. Disoriented and enraged, but unharmed.
- Reaction Shot: Utena has an oddly rattled reaction to Saionji's statement that he and Anthy will obtain "something eternal."
- Red Filter of Doom: When Saionji attacks, the background is oversaturated red.
