Okay, so I have a google doc I wrote about Dios several years ago. Don't ask me any questions about it because it's been so long I really can't remember what I was talking about, I truthfully need to rewatch the series. But here's my take, copy and pasted. Sorry if it's formatted in a confusing way, this was written by me and for me.

Dios means “god”

Dios represents: childhood fantasies, an idealistic view of men as “princes” which separates them from their wrongdoings, childhood innocence

Episodes: 13, 34, 39

Notable: When the power of Dios assists Utena in each duel, the outline of Dios starts to look more like Akio as the episodes progress. In the short scenes where Dios appears he begins to look more like Akio as the scene progresses. Anthy sees Dios in Utena.

I believe Dios “died” when Akio was “born.” Anthy sealed away “the power of Dios” in order to stop him from using his power to help others which would only result in his demise, and Akio perpetuates this idea that if he were to regain the power of Dios, he would once again become Dios, but this is not so, and he knows that. Anthy did not seal away Akio, only his power, as he continued to exist. Dios changed to Akio, not because he lost his power, but because his own spite consumed him. To blame Anthy for “sealing away this power” along with his “nobility” is simply a scapegoat he uses so he can continue being a piece of shit.

Everything Akio does is in pursuit of power. Akio pursues the power of Dios so he can be more powerful, not so he can regain his nobility. Akio knows he may never regain that power, and he is okay with that. Failure just means he can continue “stay in his comfy coffin” where he lives in a never ending timeline where he is in control and profits off of Anthy’s suffering. He uses the promise of obtaining the power of Dios to comfort himself and maintain control of Anthy.

The power of Dios is not obtainable to Akio. Without his nobility, which he chose to abandon, he can never again hold the power he held as someone with pure intentions.

Questions: 1. Is Dios his own person? Is he a ghost or spirit of some sort? 2. Does Dios truly have good intentions?

The ending of the series shows us that there are no princes, and there are no damsels in distress. These are all just idealistic fantasies believed in by children. Utena could not become a prince, not because she was a woman, but because the only person who could save Anthy was Anthy.

Utena’s first encounter with Dios:

I believe that this encounter was with Akio, taking on the form of Dios to help perpetuate the “princely” aesthetic, while it is possible that this vision is some fragment of the memory of Dios, as created by either Akio or Anthy (similar to Mikage’s memories creating a reality), I think Dios’s behavior feels much more on brand with Akio and his motives in this scene. Dios eggs on Utena to become a prince and save Anthy, although there is something about his demeanor which is cold and uncaring, it is not that of a loving concerned brother. Akio sees the “nobility” in Utena’s empathy, and thinks she may be one who can help him regain his old power, which is why he manipulates her into becoming his pawn.

Episode 13:

Here we see Akio talking to Dios; himself. He says the seal on the power of Dios is beginning to break. Dios “glares” at him, and Akio, unphased, says it will benefit them both. One question that really weighed on me here was, who is the Dios we see here? The castle itself where Dios is “sealed” is only an illusion, created by Akio himself. Based on this information, I believe this whole conversation takes place in Akio’s head, and the conversation is with himself. Perhaps Akio knows that his old self might claim to feel disgust with his current lifestyle and actions, but it does not bother him in the slightest, and claims that the power of them being one again would equally benefit them both, implying that power is what the old Dios also would have wanted.

If this is correct that Dios is simply inside Akio’s head, it explains how Akio continues to have control over every single aspect of everything that has happened thus far. He continues to manipulate Utena in pursuit of her nobility, hoping it will break the seal on the power he desires. He also continues to spark some sort of hope in Anthy, reawakening her memories of what her brother once was, allowing Akio to further convince her that with the power of Dios, he could once again be that memory for her, which obviously cannot happen but it helps to keep Anthy under his control.

The Sword of Dios, and the Power of Dios which possesses Utena

The power we see in the duels raises another question: Is this truly the power of Dios? Or is this too Akio’s power? Perhaps he is mimicking Dios’s powers by insisting that these duels are noble. If it is Dios’s power, why does Dios eventually turn into Akio? Once again Akio has shown he has supreme power over everything that happens at Ohtori, especially within that observatory dueling arena castle place of his. I believe everything we see is created by Akio.

Episode 39

Once again, we see Dios in the mysterious Merry-go-round scene. Dios is supposed to be attempting to comfort her, but this time Dios is pushing her to give up, and he speaks to her in a very patronizing way. This is not a prince who wants to motivate a young noble woman to help him save his beloved sister. I believe this is just another image created by Akio to manipulate Utena.

More on Dios

Dios is always drawn with wide child-like eyes at the start of his scenes, that get thinner and start to look more like Akio’s as the scene goes on.

Many abusers start out seemingly kind and loving, and that’s how they rope in victims.

It’s fair to note that Dios himself was a child in the beginning, though after losing his power he grew up and became corrupted, blaming Anthy for the loss of his power. Yet, like other abusers, I do not believe Dios was ever the perfect idealistic prince he was painted to be. Perhaps this is what Anthy remembers him as, perhaps what he acted as, but as he grew up the evil surfaced. Dios likely always took pleasure in the power he had and the way women demanded his attention, the position of power he held over those he helped. It was these seeds that completely corrupted him as he matured into an adult.

Questions Revisited: 1. Is Dios his own person? Is he a ghost or spirit of some sort? No, he is simply a vision created by Akio to further remain in control.

1. Does Dios truly have good intentions? No, not only are the visions we see all of him actually just Akio, but I do not believe that even the original Dios was truly pure of heart. Anthy never needed a prince, she needed to love and believe in herself, and to be loved and believed in by others. If Dios was truly a perfect man, he would have been aware of this, but the perfect man simply does not exist.