In a good or a bad sense, 1997 was an anime year.
For example, you remember the following symbolic things.

1. Two works of Cinema-type "Neon Genesis Evangelion" were released. (Director Hideaki Anno was regarded as a great master. Life-size Rei Ayanami figures were released.)
2. The Princess Mononoke produced by Director Hayao Miyazaki made a new Japan record in cinema entertainment box office.
3. Ms Megumi Hayashibara, a popular voice actress, appeared on some TV talk shows. WIRED Japanese edition in February 1998 dealed with Junko Iwao, a popular voice actress.
4. A fourteen-year-old boy in Kobe introduced himself as Seito Sakakibara and killed two children. Phrases from cartoons were quoted by his strange statement.
5. TV-anime type UTENA was released. Many Doujinshi cartoons dealed with it.
6. 700 children who watched TV-anime type Pocket Monsters on 12/16/97 lost consciousness because of the light going on and off.

I point out here the other things you know happened.

1. The circulation of the Weekly Shounen Jump decreased and got less than that of the Weekly Shounen Magazine.
2. Many fans complained about the end of broadcasting TV-anime type "You're Under Arrest" to TBS (Tokyo).
3. A notebook of lectures by Ota-king Toshio Okada at University of Tokyo was published.
4. TV-Tokyo began midnight anime program. There Hyper Police, etc. were broadcast.
5. Shinsen-gumi Company got more and more popular. At last cinema-type Rurouni Kenshin which deals with the end of Tokugawa Shogunate was released.
6. Ms Harumi Ikoma who played the role of Nakoruru in Samurai Shodown played the role of Ms Fuka Matsui in TV-anime type Kodomo No Omocha. Director of Kodomo No Omocha, Mr. Akitarou Daichi, was regarded as a great master.
7. Sega Enterprises have been already a subsidiary company of CSK. Planning of combination of Sega and Bandai assisted by CSK was broken. Thereafter Ascii got a subsidiary company of CSK.

The Utena ended. Here I would like to review it.
The Utena is an animation which had been broadcast by TV-Tokyo since April 1997. The final story of it was broadcast on 12/24/97. In 1997, a lot of Doujinshi circles published parody cartoon books on Utena. Most of the books dealed with the picture where Anthy f_cked Utena. Those books were very expensive (1,000 yen-).
As you know, Anime-Director Kunihiko Ikuhara formed an anime team "B-Papas" to produce this anime. He thought he had not had a masterpiece. He made Ms Chiho Saito, a famous cartoonist, join with "B-Papas" and draw cartoon-type Utena. Director Ikuhara formerly made an anime cinema "Sailor Moon R." The work was tear-jerking and he is already known for the cinema. There's no hurry. However he hurried. He has his hair dyed brown and did a costume-play as Akio Ohtori. In a TV commercial film for Utena LDs, he appeared and said, "Absolute destiny and Revelation." He also appeared on a trading card on Utena.
By the way, he said, "The story has been already broken. But please expect the final program."
Thereafter the final story which had already been broadcast was very ordinary.
It was regarded as a rather good entertainment. Therefore Utena will get less popular soon or later.

Anime Story:

Ms Utena Tenjou (CV = Ms Tomoko Kawakami) is the heroine of the anime. She who entered the Ohtori Academy is in the second grade of a junior high school. She is an all-round player and a manly woman of great physical strength. She is always in schoolboy black.
In her childhood, her parents were dead. Then she wanted to be dead and entered a coffin. However Mr. Akio Ohtori (CV = Mr. Jurouta Kosugi) appeared. He introduced himself as "Deios," a prince, and helped her. He also gave her a ring called "Rose Carved Seal." Thereafter she wanted to be a prince.
When she entered Ohtori Academy, Akio has been the acting president. He introduced himself as "the End of the World." He gave the School Council Elite those seals and made them be duelists and duel with each other. The winner of the game must engage himself with Ms Anthy Himemiya (CV = Ms Yuriko Fuchizaki) called "Rose Bride." On the other hand, Anthy has sexual relations with Akio. The final champion must give the End of the World his magical sword and the End of the World would break "the Seal of the Roses" with the sword. However Akio did not want the destruction because to break it means to destroy Akio's planetarium at the President's Room as a field of honor.
By the way, Utena did not know the duel game was held at the President's Room and did not know the true character of "the End of the World" was Akio. Therefore she won the game in order to set Anthy free and won the final championship of the duel game. She unsealed the Seal at last. Therefore she was injured seriously and entered a hospital. Akio expelled Utena from Ohtori Academy.
But Anthy was moved by Utena's action. She separated Akio and went to Utena.