To Your Eternity “Those Who Follow” Review
To Your Eternity “Those Who Follow” is the fifth episode of the To Your Eternity anime. Following on from the prison break in episode 4 March, Parona, Fushi and Pioran make their way out of the jails through the sewers. It’s not long before their wagon is followed by Hayase and her crew though. Thus the chase begins!
Plot
Speeding through the mountains in a horse drawn carriage Parona goes out of her way to ensure March’s safety. And the safety of the fake Shaman, Pioran. Hayase quickly catches up, though, and is hell bent on getting her hands on Fushi. Fighting off the Yanome soldiers. March is desperate to save her friend. Seeing an arrow be fired straight for Parona whilst Parona is distracted, she jumps in the way of it and it pierces her side. Through sheer fury Fushi jumps out of the wagon and transforms into Oniguma-sama.
Parona lays March down as she lay dying and the episode shows a flashback of how they met. Once March is already dead though, she goes into the afterlife, just as the boy did but she doesn’t quite understand until it’s obvious what’s happened. With Parona about to use a blade to kill herself with as she can’t live with the pain, March’s soul screams for her to stop. Finally she pleads to Fushi. Who in some way seems to be able to sense her and she forces his hand to stop Perona.
Fushi transforms into Oniguma-Sama again and carries Perona home. Safe.
Review
Oh boy this episode got me. I knew what to expect with March’s death. But her talk with Perona and Perona’s breakdown over her death combined with even Fushi losing his cool. Made the whole thing that much more painful. The ending of Fushi giving eternal life to March by transforming into her was cute but bittersweet as she’ll live but never become a mother as she wanted to.
Not ashamed to say that I cried. It took a while but I’d finally warmed to March and now she’s gone. Her visions of her grown up in the afterlife with the dolls Perona made for her as her children made me weep. I had to pause for a second.
This is without a doubt the best directed and most emotional episode yet. Not only because of March’s death but because of the themes of broken dreams, living even though you’ve nothing to live for and questioning if there’s a point to that. I loved it. Every part of it. And I can’t wait to see what happens next with Fushi and Perona even though they’ve gone their separate ways.
