Inuyasha the Movie: Swords of an Honorable Ruler
InuYasha the Movie: Swords of an Honorable Ruler | |
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![]() The American DVD cover | |
Directed by | Toshiya Shinohara |
Written by | Rumiko Takahashi (based on the comics by) |
Produced by | Michihiko Suwa |
Starring | Kappei Yamaguchi (Japanese original), Richard Ian Cox (2005 dub) |
Music by | Kaoru Wada |
Distributed by | Sunrise (Japan), Columbia Pictures |
Release date | 2003 |
Running time | 104 min. |
Language | Japanese |
InuYasha the Movie: Swords of an Honorable Ruler ("Eiga Inuyasha: Tenka Hadō no Ken"; 映画犬夜叉 天下覇道の剣; also known as InuYasha the Movie 3: Swords of an Honorable Ruler) is the third of four movies in the InuYasha franchise. It was released in Japan on December 20, 2003, and in the United States on September 6, 2005. It premiered on Adult Swim on August 12,2006.
Plot
Background
The protagonist, InuYasha is a han'yō - half-human, half-demon. His half-brother, Sesshōmaru, is a yōkai, a full demon. Their father died, protecting InuYasha's human mother Izayoi from Setsuna no Takemaru, a suitor who yearned for InuYasha's mother, 200 years before the events of the original series. InuYasha's father left each of his sons a very powerful sword; the Tessaiga to InuYasha; and the Tenseiga, to Sesshōmaru. The inheritance of Tenseiga rather than the more destructive Tessaiga leaves Sesshōmaru bitter and he ponders why his father leaves him with none of the two seemingly more powerful swords.
Synopsis
The film opens with events that happened at InuYasha's birth. The suitor Takemaru kills Izayoi just before InuYasha's father arrives. InuYasha's father arrives and resurrects Izayoi, telling her to escape with their son, whom he names as InuYasha and gives her the red Fire Rat Armor to protect them from the burning palace. Presumably, InuYasha's father died with Takemaru when the entire complex crashed and burned down as the two dueled inside the palace.[1]
In the present era, Kagome's Grandfather comes by with a sword which he calls a 'national treasure'; as Grandfather is about to put it in the storehouse for "safe keeping", Kagome's younger brother goes over to the sword, and it speaks. The sword is Sō'unga, the sword of hell, and it possesses a connection to InuYasha's father. It tried to possess InuYasha, but InuYasha tried his best to resist being controlled and finally brings the sword back to the past, but in the process unleashes the deadly powers the sword holds on an evacuated village.
Sesshomaru is also alerted of the presence of Sō'unga, and he follows the scent to find that InuYasha is in possession of the sword. The two of them duel and at a crucial moment, Kagome saves the day and forces the Sō'unga to release InuYasha from its grasp. It finds a new demon host and recovers Sesshomaru's lost left arm, then revives Takemaru and subsequently possess him, aiming to take revenge on InuYasha and Sesshomaru.
So'unga was the third sword that InuYasha's father possessed. Individually, it was stronger than either the Tenseiga or the Tessaiga. Sesshomaru wields the Tenseiga, and InuYasha wields the Tessaiga, can the two arch nemesis find a way to bring an end to Sō'unga, the Sword of World Conquest?
Cast and credits
- Director: Toshiya Shinohara
- Screenplay: Katsuyuki Sumizawa
- Music: Kaoru Wada
- Character Designs: Hideyuki Motohashi & Yoshihito Hishinuma
- Theme Song: "Four Seasons"
- Lyrics: JUSME, Music: MONK, Arrangement: MONK, Performed by: Namie Amuro
Trivia
- The general that was leading the army that was killed by Takemaru's Dragon Twister was, ironically, the same one that Sesshomaru had by the neck and thrown into a boat.
Notes
- ^ It should be noted here that a conversation between Sesshomaru and his father revealed that their dad was still suffering from wounds incured in a battle with a demon before the start of the movie, and those wounds had not fully healed when InuYasha’s father battled Takemaru, which may have played a part in InuYasha's father's death.
In episode 053, Father's Old Enemy Ryukotsusei, the flea demon Myōga reveals that the wounds inflicted on Inuyashas father while fighting Ryukotsusei are ultimatly what killed him.
See Also
- Inuyasha the Movie: Affections Touching Across Time
- Inuyasha the Movie: The Castle Beyond the Looking Glass
- Inuyasha the Movie: Fire on the Mystic Island
External links
- Inuyasha the Movies VIZ Media's official website for all Inuyasha movies
- Inuyasha the Movie: Swords of an Honorable Ruler ({{{type}}}) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia
- Inuyasha the Movie: Swords of an Honorable Ruler at IMDb
- Inuyasha Movies - Screencaps and Summaries