Revolutionary Girl Utena series recap part 3

This plot just keeps getting more and more confusing... Now I'm starting to watch some of these episodes while high, and I'm also spending more and more time writing commentary as I'm watching it.

Episodes 15-21

These Black Rose people keep doing this similar ritual, where they taint a rose with the thorns of death, and then find somebody who has strong negative feelings towards one of the student council members. That person then confesses their feelings in this strange elevator, and a voice tells them "more, go deeper", and then the elevator drops and they get brainwashed with the Black Rose. They then go up to the student council member and pull a sword out of their chest, just like with the Rose Bride, and doing that gives them that member's powers, which they can then use to duel Utena.

Wakaba (Utena's friend, who was in love with Saionji), starts secretly keeping Saionji in her room. she's really happy, until the Black Rose guys get Saionji to help turn Wakaba into their next duelist. They get Saionji unexpelled, and Saionji leaves Wakaba. She gets the black rose and attacks Utena/Anthy. Utena doesn't want to fight her, but ends up taking Wakaba's sword and using it against her.

One of Nanami's servants, Keiko, is in love with Touga. He's the only reason she stays around Nanami all the time. Keiko takes the only chance she's got to share her umbrella with Touga... Nanami sees this, and she bans Keiko from her circle. Keiko goes into the weird elevator thing...

I understand. Your only option is to revolutionize the world. The path you must take has been prepared for you.

It isn't Nanami that she possesses, but Touga...

I'm really liking these silly silhouette scenes that happen whenever Utena gets a message in her locker. They seem to have nothing at all to do with anything. Utena has even started interacting with the silhouette people, saying something clever at the end of the scene...

Episode 22

Now that this Black Rose group has gone after Touga, Nanami suddenly cares about it and is forcing the student council to investigate.

Utena runs into Mikage Nemuro.. that guy with the pink hair who's always been there to direct the emotional person at the bottom of the elevator..

I've had my eye on you for a while now.

no kidding...

He invites Utena to his seminar. He then tells her the story of Professor Nemuro... He was a professor at this part of the school that is now Nemuro Memorial Hall... Him and his students burned to death in this place...

Later, Utena is exploring the Nemuro hall I think, and it looks like the same place where the Black Rose guys do their brainwashing... and Mikage is in an office as a mysterious guy (Akio I think?) hands him a letter...

We're only partners in business. I have no reason to obey your orders.

Was that a letter from the End of the World? is Akio the End of the World?

Then it flashbacks to Nemuro's time... he's a genius, yet he doesn't know much about this place because it's veiled in secrecy... they say the people next door are researching something about "the power to revolutionize the world" or something about "attaining eternity"...
Nemuro asks a student about those rose seal rings they wear... "They're nothing special, they're just fashionable lately."

Then there's this confusing scene where Nemuro's in a room talking to an inspector, and a flashing hand keeps point at random things like a cat in the window, the tea kettle, a portrait of a butterfly, a student's ass, a red mark on the tea cup... then a big hand points to the rose garden entrance, where the inspector goes to talk to someone for a bit... the person she's talking to is a tan-skinned boy with white hair, who we've also seen being part of the Black Rose group. This boy is overworking himself and she's worried about him... Nemuro comes in and he introduces himself as Chida Tokiko's brother, Mamiya. (Chida Tokiko is that inspector woman, I guess?)

My sister came to Ohtori just to meet you, Nemuro.

A mysterious guy comes to see Nemuro while he's working.. it looks like Akio again..

You just can't solve that equation, can you?

He hands Nemuro a letter...

Outsiders aren't permitted in here!

There are no outsiders here. Aside from you, of course. That is the first step towards the power to revolutionize the world. And then everything will begin from there...

Akio holds up a rose crest...

It symbolizes a contract made with me.

He drops it in the tea cup..

If you desire eternity, put it on your finger. Your only option is to revolutionize the world. The path you must take has been prepared for you.

whoa... things are starting to come together..
I'm starting to think the hand pointer thing is just symbolic of Nemuro being like a "living computer"...

Next part is even more confusing... he sees Akio kissing Tokiko.. then it jumps to the part where the building is burning down, and Tokiko asks Mamiya "Is it true? You did this?" ... "Yes" ... "Why?"

Nemuro:

They had a contract. Ancient creatures died and became the fuels we mine, like oil and coal. Without a sacrifice like that... our energy-based civilization would have been impossible. Such sacrifices are always necessary...

This is the first step towards the task that you have. One day, the path to eternity will be opened from this school.

I'm still not sure what Mikage has to do with all this... or is he actually Nemuro? (yep)

Back in the present... a girl who I think is an older Tokiko, passes by Mikage and looks at him... then a silhouette scene where she talks to the silhouette... then she meets Akio.

I just saw Professor Nemuro over there.

Utena is in the rose garden with Anthy...

Look, you don't have to do what this mysterious guy tells you to do!

Mikage/Nemuro sees them in the rose garden, and is reminded of the similar scene with Tokiko/Mamiya...

Tokiko is only there to visit her brother's grave... she tells Akio

Say, you must know, don't you? That for a plant to bear fruit, its flowers have to die.

This one was especially confusing... the plot just keeps going to weirder and weirder places...