EPISODE 4
Here we’re putting a bit of an end to the dream sequence of the story as Tanjiro’s risky move paid off. In the end, to wake up from the dream he had to commit suicide. Thankfully it didn’t affect his actual body other than waking up, so he’s able to go after Enmu.
I feel bad for those kids. They’re all in such a vulnerable state and weak that they want to always be in a dream state, where they don’t have to deal with the harsh realities of their world. It’s sad, and I think it’s something that everyone can kind of relate to. The world sucks, and for some people it’s even worse and wanting to daydream and be in a world where everything is great is something I’m sure everyone has done before. If you were offered to live in a happy dream world when you’re at rock bottom in life, or have a severe illness like tuberculosis, I wouldn’t see why some people wouldn’t take that opportunity. But of course we all know, and Tanjiro knows, that you have to face your reality. As painful as it is.
Tanjiro just had a lot of good moments in this part. The fact that he was breaking Enmu’s sleep attack over and over by committing suicide each time is insane, but another thing I really appreciated from this episode was when Enmu showed him a nightmare rather than a blissful dream. In most anime, this would take up a large chunk of time where the main character would succumb to the nightmare. They could have made it where Tanjiro was paralyzed in guilt and self-loathing as his family, covered in blood, blamed him for their deaths. It was even worse when Enmu brought in Tanjiro’s father too. So Tanjiro could have easily fallen into despair, but instead his love and trust in his late family is SO strong that it woke him up and he was able to take Enmu down. And I just appreciate that so much. His family ties were so strong that the nightmare didn’t affect him, and we didn’t waste any time with that trope. I just appreciate that love and confidence in his family, and it just makes me so happy.
We learn how Enmu was able to put everyone under his sleeping spell and honestly mixing his blood into the ink of the tickets and all of that was pretty genius. The sleep spell didn’t stay for too long but I’m glad it didn’t since any longer would overstay its welcome. We understand the spell and know there wouldn’t be much if the characters stayed in their dream worlds for too long (especially when half of them were comedic) except for maybe Rengoku. We could learn more about him that way but things are moving into a different direction as Enmu’s real body has been revealed as the entire Mugen train. Now instead of dreams and spiritual cores, we have weird CG animated meat tentacles. Ew.
And with Inosuke’s help!
EPISODE 5
This was your typical Demon Slayer episode. Lots of action and gorgeous animation, other than the ugly meat tentacles. Just when things looked rough for Tanjiro and Inosuke, Zenitsu and Rengoku suddenly wake up from their slumber. With the help of Rengoku being able to handle most of the train cars, with Zenitsu and Nezuko handling a couple themselves, Tanjiro and Inosuke are tasked with finding Enmu’s neck and taking him down.
This was a very straightforward episode. Rengoku was able to show more of his amazing strength and again the animation is amazing with his flames looking so gorgeous. The fight with Enmu was tense as Tanjiro and Inosuke avoided his eyes. It all worked in Inosuke’s favor with his boar head, Enmu not really knowing where Inosuke was looking because of it. And thank goodness for that, because if Inosuke weren’t around Tanjiro would have accidentally killed himself. That was really terrifying. And thankfully in the end with their teamwork, they were able to take down Enmu!
The actions scenes were fun and all, but this episode (and more moments in the next couple) shows how much Inosuke has grown. One thing I was really annoyed with Inosuke in the first season was how obnoxious and selfish he was. He wouldn’t listen to anyone else and he would just go things his own way and make everything a competition, even when the timing was terrible. But as time has gone on, and after Inosuke was very humbled after the spider arc, he’s still his loud sort of selfish self but he’s way more cooperative. He really does care about Tanjiro and the others, and he’s definitely a huge fan of Rengoku as well. He still sees himself as a leader and touts his strength, but he definitely had no issues with teamwork with Tanjiro this time. Actually, their dynamic is hilarious. Tanjiro is like a father humoring his child with how he kept going along with Inosuke’s quips. “You didn’t come to my rescue!” “Right!” “That’s a good plan, I’ll praise you for that.” “Thanks!” It’s just so funny, it was one of the things that kept me laughing when I watched the movie for the first time. Probably because Tanjiro had a lot of younger siblings, he knew how to deal with childish behavior like this. Just let Inosuke have this moment, okay? At least they make a great pair now.
With Enmu down, what will happen next on the Mugen Train? We’ll see!
And the after credit scene was hilarious, though scary. Butt Chin Nezuko will haunt me.
