Of course this is not meant to last because there is a demon who rivals Naraku’s power and whose plan can be achieved now that he is dead. So it’s like an after story scenario where trying to fix things only manages to make them worse. Also, the villain is based on a fairy tale and a poem, and her motives seem quite strange for most of the movie, so everything feels far more mysterious and elaborate. Unlike the first movie the plot is not that predictable and it is surely not about huge explosions either. The conflict is far more esoteric and despite not feeling as threatening or powerful as the villains of the first movie, it definitely manages to build up far better tension and excitement. After all, saving the flow of time sounds more cool that just saving the world once more. Plus, I liked how it took everybody’s effort to weaken the villain instead of just being about the hero and his kill-all sword as usual. Combined all that with far better production values than the tv series and you got yourself a very interesting filler mission.
Although I enjoyed the whole “what happens next” flavour, the movie is otherwise not exactly trying to offer something we haven’t seen already. It would fit nicely as a final mission a little bit before the canon finale but for the time it takes place it just tells us what we already see in the main series. Also, once you see past the mysterious goals of the villain you realize that half the movie is just a dull build up.
The movie will better be appreciated by those who prefer mystery or comedy than action, as there isn’t that much of the later. Plus, it is much closer to a metaphysical journey than shounen action. Nothing amazing in overall but at least it is different than the usual stuff you get in the main series.
