Fumetsu no Anata e

So this is going to be a controversial review given the countless number of reviews giving the series a rating of 10.

Something didn't click for me. What's not clicking, you ask? Good question. I wish I knew.

Maybe it's the way that stories are disjointed. Maybe it's the way the story expects us to care about characters that we only knew for 2 episodes. Maybe it's the way that the world is hardly explained. Maybe it's the fact that Fushi is painfully slow for the creation of a 'god'(?). Maybe it's the fact that every time the narrator speaks, all I can imagine is ... the beautiful face of Nanami Kento.

Also, what's with everyone's half-assed reaction to meeting an immortal shapeshifter?

I really wish I liked the season more because the premise is intriguing. Maybe I will as the season goes on so this review may change - keep your eyes out.

But you know what? I'm excited for the journey and I hope I change my mind, believe you me.

1st Edit - I'd hoped to have changed my review sooner but nothing changed between how I felt about the anime until now, at episode 11. This was one of the most engaging episodes of anime I've ever seen and I hope that continues.

To Your Eternity is not a great anime, nor is it necessarily a bad one. It’s stuck at an awkward in between, with interesting themes and a refreshing story being weighed down by clumsy and often boring writing. The blend of adventure and drama sets it apart from other anime like it, and as disappointing as some moments in the series can be you can understand why many people will find them emotional.

There are three main arcs throughout the 20 episodes, four if you count the first episode. Each one offers a new cast with new experiences for our immortal main character, Fushi. On their ... own the arcs aren’t bad, however after watching them back-to-back you will simply stop caring. The fact that the cast is always changing means you won’t be with any long enough to care about what happens, and the ones you do find yourself caring about are quickly forgotten as a new cast and setting is shoved in your face. Any sense of emotion or excitement offered by the first episode loses its touch almost instantly. You already know that something bad is going to happen everywhere Fushi goes, and it becomes a matter of when the bad thing happens rather than what will happen. Now this predictability on its own isn’t a bad thing. If it is backed up by interesting and planned out characters, it won’t matter how unoriginal the actual scenarios are. The thing is though, every single character throughout the show is flat, bland, and honestly just plain boring to watch. It’s like the writer imagined one specific sad scenario in their head and ran away with it, forgetting the very basics of what makes a story interesting and engaging. It takes multiple episodes to get to an overall underwhelming outcome, and this repeats itself for three whole arcs. I’ll repeat myself here, at some point in the series you will simply stop caring.

One thing I can give it credit for is how the growth of Fushi is shown. It honestly feels like with each new episode and event Fushi grows in some way, and these additions to his character will impact how he acts and speaks onwards. It never feels like he hits a wall with character development, and it is much more interesting watching Fushi grow than a typical melodrama character. There is obvious planning and care behind his character, and you can see it greatly pay off in the long run.

Now onto what I would consider the worst part of the whole series, the “antagonist,” though I would probably describe as more of a mindless opposing force. It is introduced as a mysterious entity that interrupts Fushi’s adventures and forces him to grow stronger. Great right? Now there is something to move the plot along provide areas for character growth. Except that that’s all there is to it. Every time this mysterious opposing force appeared I wanted to groan. There is obviously something more to it, this is made obvious early into the series. Don’t expect find out what though, the show is too busy dabbling with other ideas to expand on it at all during the 20 episodes. Thankfully, there is a human antagonist with a bit more personality and depth. They’re still messily written but for what it’s worth the episodes that they appeared in were some of the most engaging for me. If it wasn’t for their awkward placement in and out of certain arcs, they probably would’ve been the highlight of the series.

I tend not to worry about art or sound too much, but I think Brains Base did a solid job with both and I have no major issues. That said, there are no real times where either of these will stand out and leave a lasting impression. The visuals and audio are just consistently good throughout all 20 episodes.

Overall, I think To Your Eternity does a good job at experimenting with and expressing its themes and ideas, especially surrounding mortality and what it means to be human. If it wasn’t for the repetitive and disconnected plot as well as the poor character writing this series could have easily been around an 8/10. I would recommend at least giving the anime a try, though be prepared for the plot to become predictable and repetitive straight from the very first episode.

Pretentious. This anime is the very definition of that word. Its attempts at presenting something deep and meaningful unfortunately falls flat due to how poorly the author handled the premise, which is a pity considering how this series could’ve actually been something that’s really impactful.

In this anime, an immortal being known as It is casted down to Earth, and as an immortal being, it has the ability to take on and change forms of various living creatures. Later on, it takes on a form of an injured wolf who is eventually helped by a young, nameless boy. After spending some time with the nameless boy, ... he died and It took on its form and began to explore the world It was in, and along the way, learn about how other people lived and how those people impacted It and the vice versa. Initially the story itself had an amazing start but as the series progressed, the amazing start it originally had began to fade away, and the way the story was executed is to blame. Almost all the arcs in this series were very underwhelming. Not only that, all the events that happened in the story felt so contrived, and for a series that’s supposedly depicting how each character’s interactions with other people affect one another, none of the characters interactions with each other had a long lasting impact on the viewers whatsoever. Its attempts at giving the viewers thought provoking questions feels extremely forced, as if the creator is desperately trying to make the viewers get something of value out of each arc in the story to the point where it’s taken priority over the actual story and hence making the overall story just feel extremely lackluster. Although I appreciate the pacing of this series, there’s no balance between the actual story and the themes the creator is attempting to convey, one aspect always overpowers the other. Not only does this series tries too hard to make itself feel meaningful, it also tries too hard on the emotional appeal factor as almost every moment in here is essentially trying to tell the viewers to emphasize with the characters because they’re in some sort of difficult situation that’s supposed to get some sort of melancholic reaction from the viewers.

The characters in this series were just as dull as the story itself, including the main character. Every characters in this series were almost deliberately created as plot devices, and as a result, the characters don’t feel like actual characters but almost more like plot devices used just for advancing the story. Oftentimes, when something major happens to a certain character, the events that led up to such point is almost always all planned from the beginning in such a straightforward way that the whole emotional attachment to a character aspect of the series is lost as a result. Obviously the viewers aren’t expected to feel emotional attachment for every characters, that’s absurd, but when almost all the characters are just used in the story at a surface level point, there’s no emotions to be felt from it. Sure it’s an apathetic way of viewing the characters but if there’s no efforts put into the characterization, quite frankly there’s no need to care for them in the first place. As a matter of fact, this series’s attempt at trying to make the viewers feel emotionally connected with these one-dimensional characters is kind of emotionally manipulative.

The art is alright. Some of the character design definitely feels out of place but for the most part there isn’t really much to say about it asides from the fact that there’s some really stunning background art that blends in seamlessly with the characters. Definitely the best aspect of this series, can definitely see some of background art being used as wallpapers.

Although there’s nothing remarkable about the sound effects, the music has a nice, ethereal sound to it and it does a good job at capturing the rather dull world of Fumetsu, which is honestly such a pity. Had the writing been on par with the music, there’s no doubt that Fumetsu would’ve been something that’s genuinely impactful.

While Fumetsu had its great qualities such as the art and the music, the story and the characters ultimately falls flat and hence making this story concept feel like a waste. The story itself felt too unbalanced and the characters were all unremarkable. And although this isn’t exactly the best recommendation when it comes to slow paced animes that focuses more on characterization, which, this series didn’t do well on, for what it’s worth, it’s not the worst thing to ever exist.

With a stunning first episode that easily seized my interest, Fumetsu no Anata e was one of my early favorites of the year. Sadly, that sentiment did not last as the episodes kept being released. An anime that for me started as high as an 8/10 slowly but surely dropped all the way down to a 5/10. What happened? Well, that's what this review is for!

Spoilers ahead. If you don't want to read the full review there's a tldr at the bottom with no spoilers.

A story that centers around Fushi's growth from an "it" to a human-adjacent being would undoubtedly be filled ... with many different stories of humanity that would become the foundation for Fushi's character, right? Well that's what it seemed at first, with both the first episode and the subsequent arc dealing with the concept of death. Unfortunately, it never really evolved into something more. Every arc adapted had a constant sense of death, to the point where it was laughably predictable how all of the arcs would end from episode 1. Fumetsu never tries to branch out from the cycle of death and instead chooses to depict the same progression 4 times, a poorly executed formulaic plot that stubbornly refused to change up its approach.

March, the first arc's focus, is your typical little girl who loves playing house. Her relationship with Fushi's is simple but effective, and Parona's character was also a good complement; however, once I reached the end of the first big arc I began to develop a sense of cynicism. Frankly, after Gugu (the show's best character), I didn't care about any of the new characters because the anime had led me to the expectation that the characters would be temporary, and their involvement in Fushi's journey would end just like every other character's save two. Nearly every character in this anime had a sad backstory, a terrible life, or a tragic ending. There is more to the human experience than pain and suffering, but fumetsu doesn't seem to know that, instead opting to keep the audience focused on a seemingly constant stream of melancholy and despair that eventually turns into cheap emotional content. The Gugu arc was its peak, but its resolution left a bad taste in my mouth and left me wondering if this was really the only way this arc could have ended.

By far the worst element of fumetsu's story is the nokkers. Seemingly created to spice up the fantasy aspect of the story, nokkers show up at the most plot convenient points to cause death (starting to get the picture?) and go completely unexplained. There is no how or why for nokkers, and fumetsu doesn't bother trying to explain them either. Instead, the audience is left in the dark for the entire duration of the anime with no hint of development anywhere. There's also a lot of other details that, while aren't major problems on their own, bothered me whenever they happened. Why did seemingly everyone just accept Fushi was an immortal shape-shifter and not freak out in the slightest? Fushi is capable of creating food laced with morning glory, so why isn't he immune to it later? Why does Fushi only inherit the lives of certain characters but not others?

The tiring plot wasn't helped much by its animation. Most action scenes where the wolf or the bear were involved looked rough and downright ugly at times. The action scenes where only humans were involved were generally passable, but the closer to episode 20 the anime got to, the less frequent dynamic action scenes became. Non-action scenes got progressively more static until they dominated the runtime in the ending episodes. What had originally been a plus for this anime gradually turned into a negative, an all too common theme for fumetsu.

TLDR:

Fumetsu started strong, and I continued to enjoy the series until just after the halfway point at the end of Gugu's arc. To put it bluntly, it lost its shine. The formulaic plot wore me down until my thoughts only became "this is almost done, I can move on soon." Formulaic plots aren't necessarily bad, but in order for a story to be formulaic and successful, it has to be able to adapt and make changes to keep the experience fresh and engaging. To me, fumetsu failed to do that and lost my interest the more times it plugged in the same formula. While I don't regret putting time into this anime, it certainly didn't make me feel like it was worth watching by the end. This show is worth at least trying out, but temper your expectations. If you love feeling sad you're going to have a good time with this show, but if the first episode does not interest you, you will not like it.

[Spoiler-free summary]:

Fumetsu no Anata e possesses a captivating and unique premise, but falls short in certain areas. The anime follows an immortal entity, Fushi, who attempts to learn about what it means to be human through various experiences. It explores themes of love, loss and the complexities of human emotion. However, it's world-building is weak and incomplete. It doesn’t answer questions about Fushi’s existence and the Nokkers’ motivations. The anime lacks a cohesive narrative, resulted from its inconsistency in direction and pacing. Ultimately, while Fumetsu no Anata e offers emotional depth, it may not be for those desiring a more well-rounded story.

[Full review; SPOILER ALERT]:

Fumetsu ... no Anata e, or To Your Eternity, is well-known for being attention-grabbing right from the very first episode. In the opening episode we meet a mystical entity capable of taking on various forms. However, as the series unfolds, it gradually starts to feel like it had ventured one direction only to veer off into an entirely different one. The initial setup creates expectations for a heartfelt journey of growth and discovery, yet many of these threads dissipate as the series progresses.

Let’s start with its strengths. Fumetsu no Anata e excels in its exploration of deep emotional themes. The immortal entity, also known as Fushi, encounters a myriad of other characters over the course of his journey. The tapestry of relationships that Fushi forms in his interactions with others in the story serves to highlight the transient nature of life. We are drawn into the characters’ journeys, and Fushi learns from these experiences. The way Fushi absorbs lessons from those he meets also adds layers to his character. The storytelling excels in its ability to evoke deep emotions, bringing tears to my eyes on more than one occasion. Each character that Fushi encounters offers a glimpse into the complexities of human emotion — joy, despair, love, anger, sacrifice, etc. The anime’s ability to evoke an emotional reaction is undoubtedly its strongest asset.

The animation in Fumetsu no Anata e is nothing ground breaking, but the animation quality of certain action sequences and Fushi’s transformation is decently fluid. However, the sound design is definitely a stand out for me. Each piece of music is thoughtfully tailored to the scenes it accompanies. The use of haunting melodies and delicate orchestration enhance moments of introspection and sorrow. The sound design definitely adds to the show’s ability to evoke an emotional reaction on a more visceral level.

On the flip side, I found the world-building to be a serious letdown. The setting is heavily underdeveloped, with little exploration of the broader context in which the characters exist. Fushi is central to the narrative, but the reasons for his existence remain frustratingly vague. The anime asserts that he exists to fight the Nokkers, but who are they really? What drives their destructive impulses? Why are they able to steal Fushi’s memories, and what’s the point in doing so anyway? The story hints at their menace, yet fails to provide a satisfying explanation for why they seek to annihilate the world or why they haven't already succeeded. Moreover, why must Fushi be made to face these adversaries entirely alone? Additionally, the mechanics behind Fushi’s abilities are also left largely unexplained. The mysterious black figure that Fushi converses with — an entity that only he can see — also further adds to the confusion. The scriptwriting often comes off as slightly lazy as many elements of the anime feel like they were introduced as mere plot devices. They serve little purpose beyond driving the narrative forward and there’s a nagging sense that events are unfolding simply for the sake of it. Characters are introduced with rich backstories and potential, only to be abruptly killed off. I’d held onto hope that perhaps Pioran will be the one exception who stays with Fushi, only to be proven wrong at the very end. While the purpose of this may be to highlight the fleeting nature of life, it also makes it hard to envision Fushi’s growth as genuinely meaningful. Can Fushi’s evolution ever be truly fulfilling when those who have helped him understand what it means to be human are destined to die? Part of life is also about having people who stay by your side, even if not for life, for many, many years. Life is not all just about loss and sorrow. The pattern the anime rinses and repeats raises the question of: Why invest in these characters if they’re not given the chance to evolve alongside Fushi? Are they meant to be individuals with their own journeys, or are they meant to be vehicles that serve a singular purpose — to be a catalyst for Fushi’s growth?

As the series progresses, it becomes evident that the story lacks a clear direction. Fushi defeats the Nokkers, but not really, they ‘escape’ and come back again. Rinse and repeat. What is the ultimate purpose of Fushi’s journey, really? One of the most ironic things in the anime also lies in the fact that Fushi as an immortal being, is constantly confronted with the mortality of humans. It begs the question, can an immortal being truly understand the notion of death and inherently, the fragility of human existence?

The pacing of the show also fluctuates. Each new character that is introduced has their own arc, which makes the series feels episodic. Some arcs are rushed while others meander. Additionally, the supporting cast’s accepting attitude towards Fushi’s abilities further adds to this disjointedness. In the world of Fumetsu no Anata e, nearly everyone seems to embrace Fushi’s immortality and shapeshifting surprisingly well. Their reactions to Fushi are often glossed over, as if the script is prioritising plot momentum over genuine exploration.

Fumetsu no Anata e tantalises with its unique premise and emotional resonance. It delivers a powerful exploration of what it means to live and to feel. But, while the first episode hooked me, the rest of the series ultimately falls short due to its weak world-building and an inconsistent narrative direction. The lack of clarity surrounding Fushi’s existence and the motivations of the Nokkers had me grappling with gnawing questions throughout the series. The side characters, despite their rich potential, often feel like fleeting plot devices. As a result, what could have been a profound meditation on existence becomes a journey marred by unanswered questions. Overall, Fumetsu no Anata e is an emotionally resonant tale with a lot of untapped potential. It offers moments of beauty and introspection to those who value poignant storytelling. But for those seeking a more well-rounded and cohesive narrative, Fumetsu no Anata e might amount to nothing more than a frustrating experience.

If you’ve ever experienced the death of a loved one, you know the feeling that To Your Eternity seeks to evoke in its audience. Several times I found myself sobbing, and it gave me an outlet to release the pent-up sadness I’ve held from the deaths of people I loved.

To Your Eternity follows an immortal being named Fushi who assumes the form of dead humans and animals he encounters along his journey. He can transform into them at will. A few are a giant bear, a girl who can climb trees, and a wolf. Though he is immortal, he has fears and things to lose. ... He befriends kind people and fears losing his memories of them. There is a forest monster who can steal his forms, along with the memories. While fighting murders, warriors, and monsters, he utilizes his toolbelt of fallen friends. The high concept premise makes for enthralling action. Although the manga was published in a shounen magazine, it has a relatively slow pace, making the action feel monumental rather than inevitable. In one moment, Fushi is a wolf to lunge at his enemy, and in the next he becomes a massive bear to stomp on them. There's a set-piece with dazzling animation in every other episode; explosions, collapsing buildings, blood, and gore. Studio Brain’s Base has a collection of talented animators, artists, and editors who put their best work into this show. Whether it be time or budget constraints, the art quality becomes more simplified as the series progresses. Even at its least impressive, it stands above the studio's prior works like In/Spectre.

Any anime that succeeds at making me cry has a special place in my heart. This show made me cry… A lot. The first and the twelfth episodes hurt the most because I was emotionally invested in the people Fushi met. The story begins with him meeting a boy who has lived alone in a snowstorm for 5 years, waiting for his family to return. If that sounds sad to you, it gets a lot more depressing. Seeing their goals, aspirations, hopes, and dreams become wasted upon their death shook me. For the main cast, death is a meaningful tool used to evoke catharsis. Some may call it emotionally manipulative, but for me, it works due to the stellar execution. Though you will witness plenty of violence, the artists do not linger on blood or suffering upon an emotional death. Once the moment passes, we see whoever died glowing in the afterlife. Realization sets in that they're gone, and it hits you like a ton of bricks. What happens after that is left to our interpretation. I would go so far as to say the framing is sensitive. Accusations of misery porn have no place in these parts. Personally, I recommend against watching the anime’s opening theme because the visuals contain spoilers all the way until the last episode. If you mistakenly watch it like I did, you’ll find the deaths pretty unsurprising.

I need to praise the voice actors and script for this. Especially Fushi’s VA who went from babbling like a baby at the start to slowly learning the language with a slight stutter. That’s what he needed to sell an alien being transforming from a rock to a fully sentient human. In the first two arcs, the characters felt real. Their dialogue was natural, they reacted to the world believably, and their struggles kept me waiting to see what would happen next episode.

Nothing lasts forever, not life nor To Your Eternity's writing quality: Flat characters, intrusive narration, weak storytelling, hammy dialogue, and forced drama plague the underwhelming second half. For the remaining eight episodes, the surfaces were flat as cardboard cutouts. The show's final arc jammed in a dozen new people with any characterization, and it expects us to remember their names. Even the sensitive portrayal of death I praised became watered down. Using sad music, tears, and afterlife imagery should be used to make a tragic death more impactful, not trick us into caring about a character who had barely any dialogue and no development. That's emotionally manipulative. Despite this, the first two arcs prove that big-budget anime productions can adapt poignant anime in a market that prioritizes adapting generic isekai light novels.

Each chapter of Fushi's journey isn't tied together with an overarching plot. What we have instead is a constant threat of danger, the unpredictable monster chasing after his memories. Around halfway through, we get a vague, amorphous antagonist with unclear motives explained in a tiresome exposition dump. I always appreciated Fumetsu no Anata e for not overcomplicating its high concept premise until it did.

Throughout the whole show, there is a narrator. Around the halfway point, he becomes a visible man who interacts with Fushi. Looking like a cultist, he shows up wearing a black hood whenever Fushi needs guidance, or rather when the story feels like it's time for exposition. The story tends to overcomplicate itself through the narrator; he explains the rules of Fushi's supernatural powers and arbitrarily tells us what the true antagonist's motives are. Fushi could've confronted the antagonist, then discovered its motivations. Or, they could've left that information vague, as it had been. Being spoon-fed lore and character motives feel forced. Eternity has plenty of death and mature themes. Spoon feeding the viewers with exposition in an R-rated show is like a mother feeding a teenager baby food.

Fushi has the mind of an infant at the beginning. Seeing him learn how to be human as the months pass by is compelling. I assumed the whole story would consist of him learning to become human, but that development happens relatively quickly. For the rest of the story, we have a protagonist with a mundane personality. He goes from an intriguing mystery to a heroic traveler. His motives are clear—save whoever his person of interest is at any given time. Due to the spoilers in the opening theme, you sort of know things won't always go as planned. Shortly put: once he gained a personality, I didn't like him. How compelling is a guy whose reason for living is to save people in danger when he's at no risk of dying? Well, "no risk" isn't entirely true. The amorphous antagonist introduced early on threatens to steal Fushi's deceased friends, along with his memories of them. Fearing that Fushi would lose a character I liked kept my interest in the underwhelming final episodes.

To Your Eternity has a truly poignant message at its core; even after we die, the people we leave behind will remember us. Ironically, it is a forgettable show in the end.

When I watched the first episode of Fumetsu no Atata e I was worried that the series would never reach those emotinoal heights again. I'm afraid to say I was right.

As I write this review I'm at the end of the Gugu arc, the only arc so far to have ANY effect on me since episode 1. Basically every arc is a new sobstory that's only sad conceptually. Let me explain, when you see that a child has died in the news you feel sad, but nowhere near as sad as if it was a child you knew. In the same way, sad things happening ... in any form of media causes a base level of sadness. But for an anime to make you cry, you need to know and love the character that the sad things are happening to.

That said, the arc with March was pathetic. I never felt any sympathy for her other than that base level, and in fact she often got on my nerves.

And what was established right after that, the Nokkers, are laughable! "We have to save the world" because that's what we want about an immortal being's journey. Remember in Kino's Journey when Kino saved the world? No? Me neither. On top of that, the Nokker fights are just... the worst kind of anime fight. When none of the good guys' attacks work until the plot decides that they do. There is no strategy, no planning, no clever thinking, nothing. Just stumbling into victory.

Another thing I'll mention is that the story is kinda nonsensical in places. The Review Tips and Guidelines to the side says to try not to write any spoilers so I won't directly mention them. But things like Yanome's method of control over Ninannah and how the characters treat what boozeman did are just stupid.

The visuals are okay, the soundtrack is okay. The visuals never awed me and the character designs are just odd in places, if a bit creative. As for the soundtrack, there's nothing there that makes me emotional just by listening to it and as I write this I can't even remember a single song other than the OP and ED, which are honestly decent at best. I'm giving both a 6 anyway because the lack of enjoyment from the episodes may be the reason why I didn't really care about them.

I guess I'll talk about the characters now, Fushi gets developed pretty slowly and that's probably for the best, but with the latest developments I don't see him becoming anything special. Just the standard nice, optimistic and brave (easy to be brave when you're immortal) hero. March is, as I said, just a snotty kid who exists because bad things happening that involve children are sad. And Gugu's story is such a forced sobstory that I can't even really feel bad about it. Again with no spoilers, tree trunks would make a LOT of noise tumbling down.

As for my enjoyment I'll just say that it's been weeks and I can't bring up the enthusiasm to watch the 3 episodes I'm behind on, even after an arc that made me feel a modicum of emotion. I'd heard so much about the manga and I can't express my disappointment in this mess of a story.

Who knows, maybe it gets WAY better as it goes on, but the existence of Nokkers makes me doubt that. Also, the anime is rated very highly already, (69th best anime according to score as I write this) which I wholeheartedly disagree with. I think with it rated this highly (even higher than the manga), it's pretty safe to say that the quality remains at about the same level, or even worsens.

I wish I could rate the first 10 and last 10 episodes as completely separate entities. The first 10 episodes, especially episode 1 and the Gugu arc completely blew me out of the water with how good they are. Excellent story and characters backed up by good visuals create a mesmerizing experience.

However, the 2nd half of the series completely fell flat on it's face to the point that it ruined good characters from the first half, as well as introducing an entire new cast of side characters that I could not force myself to care about. On top of that it feels rushed, with many ... fight scenes ending in a single moment with none of the flair that the first half had. So much of the second half is devoted to lazy character development for the side characters through flashbacks that aggressively ruin whatever pacing the show would've otherwise had.

Final Rating
Episodes 1-10 9/10
Episodes 11-20 2/10

I start by saying that we are four episodes away from the end of this season or anime itself.

But it ends up slowing down enough, bringing some narrative errors and forced things just to work, the author is getting lost and episode 16 shows exactly that, impossibilities occurred and they tried to explore a past event to continue, even so the past event and the fact of the present do not correlate, it only existed to give a reason that girl put Fushi and old woman in an unpleasant situation.

arc girl's past, my god what narrative atrocity took place there, certainly this character's decisions culminating ... with her father's made me lose all interest in this arc that needed a character introduced forced and appearing out of nowhere on a random island looking for the main character , episode 16 for me was the worst of the entire season.

***AT LEAST WATCH THE FIRST EPISODE***

When I watched the first episode of “Fumetsu no Anata e”, I was speechless. It was perfect and I loved everything about it. It was a 10/10 for me and was so perfect that I don't know if any other first episode ever has hooked me so fast. The story and storytelling was perfect, the animation was perfect and it was like a short animated movie that could exist on its own.

But as much as it hurts me to say it, the show just got worse from that point on. And i’m talking about everything, the story, the animation ... and the characters. I did find myself enjoying bits and pieces here and there, but the problems are too in your face to just ignore them. As much as the first episode was well structured and tried to tell a story, the rest of the show felt sluggish and very slow to me.

I couldn't care less about the villain, and it felt like it was there just to move the character to the next story bit. And for some reason the animation gets worse as the show goes on. If I gave the first episode a 10/10 then the rest of the show overall gets a 7/10 from me.

Overall this show really did make an impact on me with that first episode and that's all I can recommend to watch for the rest of you guys. It’s worth it, go watch it.

This anime is a must watch for people who enjoy deep, complex fantasy stories with very well developed characters. It is an interesting anime because of the way one gets emotionally attached to the many characters and their intricate backstories. The anime seems longer than it actually is and it keeps anyone interested, even those who at first doubt it.

Still, this anime might not be the favourite to people who feel like complex stories are… well… too hard to understand. The overwhelming number of characters might also make this anime less likeable, especially to people who hate not remembering the details of every main ... character in the story.

A few words describing this anime are diversity, complexity and emotional. Another one would be mystery, because another thing that makes this anime loveable is the way many things are kept in the dark, until the right moment where it is brought back up, making us even more excited for every other episode.

I hope this anime has peaked your interest!

I think this show would have been really good if it kept to the question "can something non-human that takes the form of a human become human...? What does it mean to be human? Is our humanity granted to us by right of birth or by other humans?" Because wow what an interesting concept, especially when tied in with Gugu's arc. But it uses the same tear-jerking thing of "Fushi makes friend, friend wants something, Fushi like an idiot doesn't save friend from impending death, friend dies, now cry." 3 times in 12 episodes. There's also the "Creator" who can't defeat his own creations and ... needs the orb to do that for him. It could have been a very serious, beautiful anime, but it begins to fail around the 10th or so episode. Maybe the manga is better.

Story

I heard To your eternity had a unique story. It was definitely not unique in the slightest sense of the word. We follow the experiences of Fushi as it learns about emotions, friendship, and what it ultimately means to be a human. There are several arcs throughout the story. After the end of the first one, you notice the general formula and get an idea of each character's fate. The arcs are not equal in their excitement factor. I found the Gugu one to be the best one by a large margin. Pacing could be a problem as well as some episodes had little of ... note happening on screen.

Art

Nothing bad to say here. Fluid art and animation.


Sound

Opening song is great. Not much else of note really.

Character

I do not find the main character to be very interesting and i think that is the point of the series. It is supposed to be an audience surrogate trying to make sense of the world around it. The supporting cast throughout the series is hit or miss. I liked Gugu as a character the most. Plenty of expendable one note characters in this series.

Enjoyment

I heard how sad and moving this series was. I did not feel very emotional throughout most of the series. The tradegies that befall some characters are not suprising after the first arc and the shoe does not usually do not spend enough time with supporting cast to develop any sort of attacehment to them. If I can summarize my experience with the show, it would be mild dissapointment.

Overall

The series follows a formula that is more apparent after the first arc. Characters are not overally memorable, so found myself very indifferent throughout the series. The production values are solid, but I would not find myself recommending this series

I’ll say it. I liked To Your Eternity. I really did. For a show I only heard about once and didn’t really know much about, it was refreshing to see a title like this. After watching endless titles about school, slice of life, and half-assed harem school shows I can say that. There aren’t many shows that even come close to To Your Eternity in terms of the themes that are explored and the overall impact the show leaves you with after finishing the first season.

Why does To Your Eternity stand out? What makes it so special? Well, for starters, it’s simply amazing because ... it doesn’t need to explain the inns-and-outs of the world that we’re in. We’re simply presented with Fushi and that’s the end of it. Where he comes from leaves one to ponder but that’s not really what the show is about. You see, other shows sometimes have a bad habit, almost like a bad alcohol addiction that your uncle has, to tell you things you don’t really need to hear or want to hear for that part. In any case, a lot of shows tend to over explain certain things, unnecessary things about a certain system in that world. In most cases, you’ve seen a shitload of similar shows so you don’t even need to hear that explanation. In most cases, those systems conveniently change over time to give advantage to main characters. To Your Eternity clearly defines its bounds and limits and never even once decides to defy them. Even if the situation gets unreasonably harsh for the characters, no matter how tough it gets, the characters only use what they are given. That isn’t to say that the show doesn’t have any asspulls or rushed decisions that characters make, or even entire arcs that feel as rushed as me driving drunk at 3 am to the nearest liquor store to get a refill.

Anyways, the story makes sense. We are presented with a character who was put on earth to gather information about things. We know that that character is immortal and can shapeshift into humans and/or objects as long as he follows certain rules that he learns. The characters goal, what we know of at least, is to save the world from mystical creatures that threaten that very world. For the main character to succeed, he has to take help of other people and learn from them, learn how to take help but also learn to give help to those in need.

While it does make ‘sense’ or at least things seem so on the surface, there are rather many “unexpected” twists and turns that the story takes. You get used to how the show is structured. There are several arcs, each arc has a prologue and an epilogue. A prologue establishes and shows the new and relevant characters for that particular arc and the epilogue usually ends with Fushi being able to transform into one of those characters. Formulaic? Yeah. I personally liked that Fushi grew as a character and learned how to deal with loss of someone near and dear. The problem I would say lies not within the structure but rather within the contents of each arc. It becomes emotionally manipulative and always tries to artificially inflate its stakes even when it’s not needed. One such example is when Tonari & the Crew decide to return back to the island. It made no sense whatsoever for them to return. The way they returned was very rushed. And what happened afterwards was to be expected. It was a last second decision in the show, but I think that the decision made in the show is reflective of how the production, at least for that arc. I’d go as far as to say that Tonari’s arc was a last second decision because it has the single-most stupid resolution in the whole show.
To give you an example of how stupid Tonari’s arc was, we should compare it to Gugu’s arc, and by doing so we will see what clearly sets them apart. While Gugu’s arc may be seen as a cliché, the resolution of that arc is a lesson learned by Fushi. Fushi learns something valuable – do not lose your guard, ever. To elaborate this further, Fushi grows accustom to the human world and how people live. He becomes human in other words. He learns how to talk, but talking isn’t the only thing that makes us human. So he learns a lot more and finds other people who can understand him and help him. While spending his time with people that he holds near and dear, he develops almost a brother-like relationship with Gugu. The more time he spends with the people and Gugu, the less he is on his guard – awaiting the mythical creature that could erase his very existence. And in result, he loses Gugu because he wasn’t prepared for the encounter with the mythical creature. He wasn’t on his guard. He lost his guard. He lost Gugu. Valuable lesson learned.

Tonari’s arc on the other hand is about Fushi spending more time with people, the only difference being is that the people are now boring and are trying to use Fushi for their own personal gain. The only thing Fushi ever learns from Tonari & the Crew is perhaps how to “fight” and “real friendship”, I’d argue that the only real friendship, at least in the context of this show, was perhaps with Gugu and not with anyone else. Anyways, Tonari’s arc is stupid because of the decisions they make and especially the last second return to the island. Perhaps, they wanted to help but it would be better if it wasn’t pulled out of the director’s ass on a whim like that. Maybe it would have helped had they shown the characters at least discuss this matter before leaving the ship and returning. Anyways, what I wanted to say is that everything that Fushi “learned” from Tonari & the Crew he had already learned from Gugu. And yeah, I get it, they wanted to show the main villainess and also reveal that Parona died but I feel that it could have been done so much better. Half the tension is lost because you can’t focus while Tonari and retard gang are on-screen. And even when they aren’t, you are baffled by how stupid this whole prisoner’s island thing is. And when the reveal of Parona happens you couldn’t care less because it’s just too much. And to make matters worse, they make it like a double reveal in the same episode. We get to see the villainess and we get to see Parona. I’d like to apologize for this rant-styled review but I am incredibly drunk and it’s already 3 AM and here I am writing about this.

Well, anyways. I would go as far as to say that you could pretty much remove the whole Tonari arc and cut it to episode 19-20 directly and the show would instantly become better. I’d say that it would be the definitive DenseMC Cut Edition. The reason I say this is because Tonari’s arc is very tedious, slow and boring to watch. It is also the longest out of the bunch, and combined with the incredibly stupid introduction to the arc and even dumber characters and its snail pace, you get an absolute disaster. It felt like they ran out of money and had to make do with whatever they had left and ended up with this.

But to be completely honest with you, Tonari’s arc isn’t really what caused the Titanic to sink, there were evident problems with the show from very early on. The show thinks it’s clever and the first time it happens, you are a little bit shocked and taken aback but it is something that happens throughout the show. If you ever decide to watch the opening to this show, know that you have spoiled the whole show for yourself. In case you still don’t get the hint, I am talking about the phenomenon of “Sudden Death” in this show. Yes, I just made that term up and yes characters die left and right. Whenever the show feels it’s convenient or if the show ever gets slightly so boring – someone just dies. While sure, it may seem logically coherent in each story that those characters die and it also happens to be the only way Fushi is able to progress and become a better information gatherer, it’s an incredibly boring concept that loses its novelty after seeing it once or twice. What doesn’t help this fact is that some of the characters we only get to know for 2 something episodes before they “tragically” die. And somehow, we are supposed to be emotionally invested and attached to them without even knowing their names?

In case anyone wonders why there are so many references to alcohol and if it seems like a cry for help, it is. I need help. It is a problem. I have a drinking problem and I am afraid To Your Eternity is the cause of that – I should have never installed the brewery system in my stomach, it didn’t work out as intended. It seemed like a great idea and maybe I could even start spitting fireballs and do cool magic tricks, but alas, I am just a drunk now.

And that’s it, that’s the review. If you for some strange reason decide to read this and cannot make sense of this review – this is exactly how the show feels towards the end, especially after Tonari’s arc. Have a good one and drink less fellas!

Unpopular opinion based on the other reviews but I'd say this is a meh to average anime, at least at my current stopping point. Very unique premise in the beginning but super slow. I hope that it picks up a little bit as based on the story, it has a ton of potential. The first 5 episodes, imho, could be condensed into 2 or 3. My main issue with this anime, like a few other reviewers stated, is that the main character has zero motivation, at least up to episode 5 which I just finished. Granted I suppose this is the ... purpose as he is learning our world and is basically fresh clay to be molded. But because of his omnipotent powers and zero personality it forces you to go along with the story with no promises that it will get any better and thus I really have no attachment to nor can I relate to the character and the longer it draws out the more so I really don't care. The action jumps around to different locales as they travel and some of the more memorable supporting characters are discarded so that this being can learn more. If anything this anime taught me how important it is to build great characters and what that means for my tastes.

Decently written but overly manipulative drama. I bought it until I realized the characters in the story were just props to manipulate emotions. If life is a joke then every character's reason for existence is merely so they can be set-up for the audience to witness the punchline of their life.

I was into it for a little while and then realized it was just going for what I consider cheap sentimentality. I feel the show could have achieved the same emotional effect without being so extreme and obvious, or maybe not, maybe I am just a sad sappy sucker. I enjoy some drama, but not ... when it seems painstakingly manufactured to be as shocking and sad as possible and like its the writer's only move is to button mash the 'sad/pain' button.

There are shows that do that hyper-emotional moment very effectively at a major turning point in the story, but doing it over and over again and for it to be the overarching motif of the story just doesn't play for me.

Pain, just pain man.

Its one of those animes that make you rethink about life. Being immortal isn't so fun. You have to witness the struggles of other people that die.
Idk what to say, I'm just speechless.
In this anime, you can't even love a character. As soon as you like them, they die. It is stinging good. It hurts you but you cant get enough of it. You continue to watch it even though it hurts. I dont know if I can even watch the 2nd season. Can we just not have emotional deaths?

I dropped this 2 times because I could not understand the 1st ... ep. But after watching a youtube video, it peaked my interest once again. I dont regret watching it.

Its good, I have to agree it. This can be considered one of those "S tier animes". But it hurts. It would definitely not be on top of the anime list to recommend watching but I would not stop others from watching it. If you are trying to watch it, grab your tissue and be ready. Because its pain, just pain.
I apologize for a bad review, Im not good at it. I just wanted to share my opinion.

I've never seen an anime overated like this.

What's good about this? It's only the Opening song, and animation.

The story is less interesting especially for the main character.
For those of you who don't like the main character with slow development and filled with stupidity, I really don't recommend watching this.

Maybe this review seems harsh to Fumetsu fans, But this is how it is

The storyline that is considered too forced to make the audience feel the feelings of the main character is horrible.
... Too many predictable deaths may be one of the reasons why this anime is less interesting.

But this is just my opinion, maybe for those of you who like this kind of plot (the main character is slow in everything, slow to grow strong even though he is immortal lol) will find this interesting.
Well not for me.

How can I say is "The useless immortal power"

To you eternity presents an original concept that I haven't seen presented in this particular manner before.

The main charcter, an immortal being named Fushi, meets a new side character and grows from forming emotional bonds with said character before moving on to meet the next one.

This concept does get repetitive after a while tho. It becomes obvious what is going to happen to every character that is newly intruduced, which makes it hard to get emotionally invested. (It doesn't help that the opening literally spoils everything). There also doesn't seem to be an overarching message or theme past the first few episodes.

Kinda ... spoilers:
I expected some of the characters to pass away from old age, which is something that would be possible because of the unique elements of this anime in particular (cuz the mc is immortal) so it was kinda disappointing that the characters seemingly always immediatly die after meeting Fushi. This seems like a wasted oppertunity to be more original and explore different themes like the finiteness of life in a unique way.

The main enemies feel like a gimmick and get boring after a while.

The animation is decent to mediocre in some episodes.

I feel like this show could have been so much more than it ended up being. It is still decent tho.

This anime has themes of loss, found family, friendship, and death, and overall has the overall question of "What makes the human experience beautiful despite its hardships, misfortunes, and darkness?" It also delves into the impact a single person can make as insignificant as they are to others, they are special in their way. Also, it plays with the question of "why bother making connections when it will only hurt one way or another?" This anime is realistic in many aspects the greediness of humans and the slow loss of hope in a desperate situation.
The first episode is the most emotional for many. ... From then onwards the main character meets many significant people who teach him how to be more human the connections themselves have an impact on him/it. The experiences themselves are what makes life important and people important.
But you see a certain pattern in the story that feels overdone throughout the anime which takes away the emotional aspect of it since the viewer expects it. There is no longer a shock when important things happen. The island prison arc is the best example. In this arc, something horrible happens to the main character and we are expected to feel pity for the perpetrators. Their characters were not fleshed out and the bonding was shallow. There were too many characters and very little time to connect or sympathize. Tropes were used to make up for their lack of depth.
But towards the end, we see that return of the original flow back. The main character has experienced more and learned something from these experiences.