Ranked #129

InuYasha: Kanketsu-hen

It's been over five years since the first season ended and finally they have brought back one of my favorite shounen series. This time around we get to see a whole new set of power-ups for both Tessaiga and Tenseiga, watch everyone grow even more stronger then before and finally see Inuyasha finish the way it should have a long time ago.

Story: The story continues where they left off from season one. One major difference is that this time everything focuses heavily around restoring the shikon jewel to what it used to be. Naraku is still up to his old tricks and even more powerful then before. He has new reincarnations and a whole set of new powers that will force everyone to really grind their teeth and finally put him down. Problem is that Naraku cannot be defeated by a weapon alone. The fully restored shikon jewel is now the only option to defeat him. Now it's race between Naraku and everyone to either make the shikon jewel whole again and purify it or have Naruku taint it and win.

Art: When Inuyasha first aired in 2000, the quality of this show was at it's best. It looks good now, but nothing like when it first started. If anything it looks nearly the same way it did when it ended last season. Thats not necessarily a bad thing, because I've gotten used to this new look for Inuyasha.

Character: Way too many new characters this time around and they brought back a good majority from the first. New additions to Inuyasha are Sesshoumaru's mother who helps him unlock some of his powers involving the Tenseiga. Two of Naraku's newest reincarnations. Mouryoumaru who betrays Naraku and joins Hakudoushi to put a end to him. Byakuya who has the power over illusions and who is pretty much a bystander most the story. He rarely fights anyone. Last is Hitomiko and Magatsuhi who play a heavy part in the story near the end.

Sound: I love all the ending themes this time around. They show a total of three new ones through out the anime and on top of that they brought back a good majority of the soundtracks from season one. Seeing how I never heard the season one Japanese voice actors I can't comment on their performance, but I did recognize Inuyasha's voice. It's the same voice actor for Ranma. It made the experience a lot better for me listening to someone I'm familiar with.

Enjoyment: Just being able to finally see the official end to the Inuyasha series was pure enjoyment. Watching everyone one grow and even see a whole new side of Sesshoumaru was good fan-service in a lot ways. My favorite scene's are when Inuyasha goes to Kagome's original world. Seems like everything he does is pure fail, but overall thats what makes it hilarious.

Overall: It was pretty hard to get used to the Japanese dialogue at first. Mainly because years ago I watched the entire first season in English. Still after the first three episodes the voices grew on me. This time around Inuyasha felt rushed? Maybe because everything was playing out exactly like it was supposed to. The first season literally shoved fillers down our throats and honestly I liked the majority of them. Since this series was only twenty-six episodes long, they didn't have much of a choice but to stick to the main storyline. The entire time I was watching Inuyasha I felt excited and yet depressed mainly because everything was a lot to take in. Almost every new episode that came up was either about a new enemy or a new way to power-up. They barely had any continuation battles that lasted more then a single episode. This was rushed and I hated knowing that it was going to end fast. If the first season of Inuyasha wouldn't had ended so abruptly then it would have fell under my favorite category years ago. This time around Inuyasha has surpassed my exceptions in every way possible and I'm finally satisfied with this new ending. To all who might be hesitant to view this it's worth every minute of your time. With that said, I say my goodbye's to Inuyasha. This series is one of few English Dub anime's I could actually tolerate. If dubbed with the same actors from season one I might view this again. read more

This is going to be short. I'v actually never written a review on this site before.



Story/Characters:

That being said. This series is blowing my mind. I was always a bit of an Inuyasha critic. The recycled story lines and sub plots turned me off a lot. I watch this out of pure curiosity and found myself deeply emotionally involved in it. Several episodes nearly made me cry for characters that I had pervious lacked interest in.


The series was definitely a massive improvement from the original seasons, and it is refreshing to fans and non fans alike. It is highly character driven, though there is still a ton of action and a few goofy side stories to keep you fully entertained. The plot progression is much faster than the original series, and in some ways, you see the story/characters develop more in The Final Act then they did in the entirety of the original series.

Art:

The art was also a bit improved and glossed over. There are a few times when you want to sit back and just admire the back round and some of the magic. It looks as though they have incorporated some 3D elements in it.

Music:

Like all of the Inuyasha season, the music does not fail to impress. The opening/endings are catchy and easy on the ears, and the back round score does a lot to compliment the personality of what is going on at the time.


It is *very* worth watching, especially for those who had given up on Inuyasha.



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