Welcome back to Anime Rants. Shura Kirigakure is one of the few female characters in Blue Exorcist. Due to her insane character design, many have dismissed her as a fan-service character with no interesting personality or history. I agreed for a while, but I always hoped there would one day be a better exploration of Shura’s character. Blue Exorcist: Beyond the Snow Saga is finally fulfilling that wish. This arc will be largely focused on Shura and her history.
Notes on Episode 3: Hometown
Episode Rating: 7/10
This episode told us about Shura and her ancestor’s pact with the demonic snake god, Hachirotaro. Centuries ago, a ninja from the Iga clan tried to escape and start her own school of Shinobi. Her name was Tatsuko Kirigakure. However, the Iga clan wounded her badly on her way out. As she was dying, Tatsuko met Hachirotaro (Hachiro for short) in the snowy woods. It was there that she made a deal with a devil.
According to the pact, Tatsuko would receive the power of Fang, a magical sword made from one of Hachiro’s teeth. In exchange, she agreed to serve Hachiro forever and leave a child in his care. When Tatsuko turned thirty, she died. The child she left behind looked exactly like her – as if she were a genetic clone instead of a daughter. The child grew up to the same fate as Tachiko, bearing a child for the demon god and then dying at thirty. This pact continued for centuries. Shura is the latest descendent of Tatsuko.
When summoned by Hachiro, Shura immediately came to his side. She discovered the Illuminati is probably after Hachiro for his regenerative abilities that make him essentially immortal. Though Shura offered to serve as his bodyguard, Hachiro was interested in something else. Since Shura is twenty-seven, he wants her to hurry and bear a child. But that’s the one thing Shura won’t do. She later tells Yukio and Rin that she is resigned to dying at thirty and ending the pact childless.
Rin and Yukio were dispatched to Aomori, Shura’s hometown, to look for her after she went missing for days. They were sent by Mephisto, who feared that she was in trouble. Yukio and Run soon found Shura wounded in the snow after a brief fight with Hachiro. They took her inside and cared for her. She also regenerated very quickly thanks to the power of Fang. Then Shura told her story to the boys.
Before Rin and Yukio found Shura, they stayed in a hot springs inn overnight. There was a hilarious plot point wherein the innkeeper lady thought Rin and Yukio were gay lovers. She was supportive, by the way. Good on the old queen for being progressive, but also, she must be pretty senile to not notice the boys were fraternal twins. Anyway, it was really funny, especially since Rin didn’t pick up on it at all.
Another point in this episode was Shura’s grief over losing Shirou (Father Fuijimoto). She clearly loved him very much. Hachiro asked Shura if the death of “that man” was the reason why she stopped caring about anything. Shura didn’t reply directly, but her face and her flashbacks of Shirou suggested that the answer was yes. Shura has been depressed ever since Shirou died. Poor girl.
In general, the music and directing were excellent in this episode. However, there were a few weird moments, like the forced ending scene where Rin and Yukio dramatically notice that Shura has vanished from her futon. That scene felt all wrong with the extremely stiff animation and melodramatic rise in the music. Anyway, it was still a good episode overall. That’s about it for today.
~Thanks for reading~
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