Inuyasha Manga: 294 Entei

Another character? Hope this one is interesting enough to stick around this time. Perhaps RT was right to be a little hasty in sending Shnooky on his way, because my attention has indeed wandered elsewhere. I've been absolutely OBSESSED with the Frogwares Sherlock Holmes games now, and been playing Chapter One every free moment I can. It's made me want to read the original ACD stories again, because while I really like Frogwares' interpretation, I miss the canon Holmes. 

So I'm back on my Sherlock Holmes bullshit, and focusing on anything else is hard for me right now. You think RT was ever on some similar "bullshit" that distracted her from the writing on her comic and causes her to slip up by including uninteresting characters that go nowhere in the story?

Sango asks what this is all about, and Miroku promptly answers with an admission that he'd THOUGHT the purpose of Kagura and Shnooky's murder tour was to break all the youkai seals in the area, but says that it seems this was not all they were after. Seriously, Miroku, you're supposed to be "the smart one", and you couldn't draw a better conclusion from what you ALREADY know about Shnooky and his whole deal? Why would that kid JUST go around setting other youkai free when he had a specific objective before? What is this dude even good for at this point?

Kagome wonders if there's something at the border between worlds that they don't know about, when a deep rumble vibrates through the temple, making the already wary Inuyasha and Miroku even warier, if the Dutch angle is any way to judge. The disciples are shook by the sound and are worried about the seal on their very own youkai that they must have failed to remember until that very moment. 

The next panel shows them confirming Inuyasha's question as to whether they're going behind the mountain while they run toward the scene. One of them informs in that their deceased priest sealed the "Youba Entei" there with his spiritual power. Miroku conversationally asks if it's a horse youkai, like they're discussing the weather or something, and this is also confirmed, accompanied by an explanation that one of them gives about the previous owner of the horse before it was sealed away being a man-eating demon or whatever. Cool story, bro. 

When they reach the sheer mountain face, it's cracking and crumbling before their eyes. Inuyasha watches with mouth agape as light escapes from the cracks in front of him.

Calling all horse-girls, this is your time!

There's a spray of something that hits the group sidelong like a driving rain, and Sango holds her mask to her face, warning the others to be careful because it's miasma. Of course, they're already holding their arms up to protect their heads and faces, Inuyasha with a fire-rat robed arm around Kagome to shield her from the blast of poison too. Shit straight up strips the leaves off nearby trees, too, so it's nothing to scoff at. With one last trail of fire disappearing into a dark swirling cloud, the glimpse of the demon horse is gone. Inuyasha comments blandly that the horse dun ran away, but Miroku calls for them to go after the damn thing, no doubt hoping to stop it from committing any atrocities on nearby towns. 

TWO narrow sky transition panels later, we're looking at a few OTHER sheer mountain faces, the few bushes that have managed to grow on rare level ground rustling. 

She clarifies with a flashback to Shnooky splitting in two and another of Kanna telling her to protect her half of the baby like some biblical parable just what it's been three days since. She looks back farther into the cave, where she's deposited the half-infant unceremoniously. No doubt this is an awfully long time to stand vigil over a kid that didn't even have a name. She wonders aloud what she should do with this part, because it's not like it's breathing or anything. As, you know, is typical of dead bodies.

As if in answer, the bundle rolls and shifts a little, and Kagura gives it a critical glare. She goes to kneel next to it, asking it if it's come back to life or something, because the bundle is very noticeably squirming now. A heartbeat-like thump issues from it as well. This is the part of the horror movie where you remove your ass from the situation, Kagura. But no, she just stares down at the bundle, not really looking as amazed as her thought of awe that he's actually alive might suggest. Mostly, she just looks suspicious. 

A crop of light-colored hair grows from the top of the bundle as the heart inside continues to beat.

He's pretty weird, no doubt. 

A whooshing transition panel takes us to Inuyasha and company in typical formation with Kagome riding on Inuyasha's back while Shippou, Sango and Miroku ride on Kirara's. They're hot on the demon-horse's scent, per Miroku's suggestion, and Inuyasha confirms that it's nearby. They head down a hill toward segmented rice paddies and a watchtower beyond, a village that somehow seems to surprise whoever points out its existence, because there's a question mark accompanying that exclamation point. 

When they reach the actual village, it's a wreck, to the inu-crew's shock. Kagome notes with horror that everything from people to whole houses have been trampled. Shippou hides behind Inuyasha's ballooned pant-leg as he observes rather large and deep horseshoe prints, though Inuyasha himself seems to regard them more casually. Sango also comments on how big the hoof prints they're seeing are. Miroku invites them anxiously to continue following it, as it can't be far now. They must have JUST missed it.

Cut to Kagura flying on her feather, cursing that little brat that emerged from the half-baby. Apparently, it had pretty much immediately demanded she go and get it some new clothes, and she's annoyed that the kid wakes up bossing her around. Suddenly, she perceives a big flaming SOMETHING in her periphery.

I guess Kagura is not one of the aforementioned horse girls, but I suppose that makes sense. Why would she need to be, with ready transportation at her fingertips?

And we're back with Inuyasha, who has something like a lightning bolt to the nose to indicate a sudden sensory input there. Kagome notices and asks after him over his shoulder and he answers that it's Kagura's scent he's picking up. At the same time, Miroku warns everyone to be careful, because judging by the dark ominous clouds roiling over their path, there's an evil energy closing in. A few light shafts break through the cloud cover and Inuyasha's crew pauses to stare tensely up at the sky, where the clouds have formed a smooth swirling backdrop for an equine figure floating with flaming feet, much like Kirara. The giant monster horse spits fire at the ground, LITERALLY, and Inuyasha has to dodge a massive fire bomb, Kagome shrieking as they avoid the flames narrowly. The group has made it to relative safety (with a few flaming pieces of debris quite close at their feet) when they turn to identify Entei.

It didn't come at you though? That fiery projectile vomit was a ranged attack, bro. 

Inuyasha quickly pulls and utilizes Tessaiga to throw a Kaze no Kizu at the horse, but a bubble barrier surrounds it and bends the attack around it. Hmmm, looks AWFULLY familiar. Miroku has an expression of pure shock that there's a barrier involved here, even though Inuyasha JUST mentioned that Kagura's scent was hanging around - he must not have been listening or something.

Seemingly from the horse at first, we get a chuckle, and a question if that was a flying greeting for it. Inuyasha just gapes stupidly in response, and Kagome asks who the FUCK is riding that horse, because on closer inspection, there is a small, childlike figure riding astride it. The figure laughs again that this monster horse seems to have chosen it to ride it. I can feel the horse girls I summoned earlier getting SUPER jealous that this kid is living their dream.

A pretty good guess. I think the LEAST I'd offer someone is a ride after they broke me out of the clink. 

So, what did I think of this chapter overall? Once again, I feel like there are far too many transitions and a lot more switching between Kagura and Inuyasha's group than necessary - at the very least a couple of these scenes could have been combined into more coherent ones and the chapter would have seemed less fragmented and disjointed. As it stands, like with a lot of RT's quick-switch style, I just have a bit of whiplash.

But otherwise I thought it was interesting how RT decided to use the corpse of her inherently uninteresting Naraku-baby to birth a new, more active one. I make fun of RT and her love of hanging lampshades all over her poorer writing decisions, but I have to congratulate her on doing something actually CREATIVE with this one. Shnooky's death wasn't just brushed off with a few odd comments about how short his existence was, but it was a springboard into the creation of what looks to be a much more challenging villain. At least one that can walk, anyway.

The "th-thump" sound effects in the rebirth scene brings up something that I didn't really think of before, but now it's gnawing away at the back of my brain: is this an indication that Kagura got the left half of the Shnooky? OR, is this the right half that grew its own heart and the left and "hearted" part of Shnooky is getting its own resurrection with Kanna? Because, mild spoiler, we do see our infant friend return eventually, and the heart is probably the most contentious part of him for a while. I don't know if it matters too much, but I am somewhat curious if there's a connection between which half Kagura was told to pick up and what bossy little brat she got.

Finally, Miroku seems to be bugging me a LOT in this one? He's not even at his peak of annoying for me, but every time he got a line I rolled my eyes. I don't know if he's coming across as more irritating because RT didn't bother to instill him with the small amount of imagination it would have taken him to figure that Kagura and Shnooky were doing more than just causing mayhem. It might also be because I'm still sore about his and Sango's very disappointing romantic comedy bullshit recently. One thing is for sure, he hasn't dropped off the shitlist like he usually does, so I'm bristling every time he says a WORD. 

Dude has turned into one of those itchy clothing tags that you can't get rid of. 

Inuyasha Manga: 293 Division

Not interested, Chapter. I'm disenchanted with math in fiction ever since I picked up a book at the store expecting math to factor into the plot when it was mentioned on the jacket that the protagonist was a math genius, and it had nothing to do with anything whatsoever. So disappointing. Besides, I don't come to Inuyasha for MATH. I come to Inuyasha because I am incredibly easy to entertain. Always have been, ever since I was a baby and could keep myself occupied for hours with a set of plastic keys. 

In case anyone wanted the simplest explanation as to why my tastes are like this. 

If they're going to lock up youkai like that, maybe the priests should figure out a more permanent solution than a seal that will just dissolve when they kick the bucket.

Anyway, the wreckage of this place has a swirling vortex of sus energy behind it, and Inuyasha notes that he can smell them - or as the translator put it: he can "feel" the scent of nothing but a few small fry youkai. An odd way to phrase that, but okay. Miroku says these youkai are hiding, but almost immediately a rumble issues from the wrecked shrine and three giant serpentine heads with hair down the length of them burst out from it, hissing at Inuyasha, who has drawn Tessaiga.

Well. That's that done, then. Cross it off the list of boring chores for the day.

A narrow sky transition panel leads us into the gang crowded into a wide doorway, Miroku sitting and talking to what looks like your typical headman, given how many of them we've seen before, and a couple of village men loitering behind him. Miroku asks about the similar occurrences to this shrine decimation rumored to be happening elsewhere in the area, and the headman says that everyone is talking about how priests and monks are being murdered everywhere. Miroku begins to ask who in the world could do such a thing, and the headman interrupts him to say that's the weird thing - people say it's the work of a woman and a baby, of all things. Kagome, Inuyasha, and Sango look alert at this, alarmed but not shocked by any means. Kagome in particular is thinking of the baby, and immediately fills in the gaps with Shnooky. Inuyasha also automatically deduces that the woman in this scenario has to be Kagura. That one was a gimme. 

Presumably that very night, we cut to another temple out in the woods. Inside, two disciples are kneeling on the floor worriedly asking another old priest standing with his back to them in the middle of the room whether this place will also be attacked in time. The priest answers that it won't be "in time" at all.

Is Miroku the only one of these guys allowed to have hair or WHAT??

A voice from outside among the trees hums that this priest seems to have a few more abilities going for him than the other ones before him. A bit more of a spiritual sense, so to speak. Then there's a volley of blades tearing through the open doorway, and the disciples yelp in fear, but the priest whips out a loop of beads as he acknowledges the youkai's presence. The beads appear to project a dome barrier around him that disperse the blades. 

A guy with all these extra abilities wouldn't just stand there and get whacked by wind blades, Kagura. Come on girl.

The priest scoffs that this must be the woman and baby he's heard so much about, adding silently that his spidey senses are telling him the baby is WAY worse than the woman. I generally find babies to be worse than damn near everything than most people. Except crying. They're experts at that. Shnooky chuckles, speculating that the priest might just know something about the border between this life and the next, at which the priest is quite alarmed, and his disciples cry out that the infant spoke. 

Kagura waves her fan a little, asking the priest if he'll be able to handle her next attack. She doesn't give him time to respond, just throwing out a "Dance of the Dragon Serpent" as she draws a wide circle with the fan in front of her. This produces a few whirling spirals of wind, the points of which aim straight for the priest. He raises the beads again to put up his personal barrier, but this and his groans of effort last a surprisingly short amount of time.

The spidey senses weren't enough.

As he goes down, the disciples peek out from behind a statue with their mouths agape at the fate that befell their priest. In the shadows just beyond his bleeding body, the sound effects indicate that Kagura steps forward, but dude's not dead yet. He grunts in the effort it takes him to reach up and under the collar of his robe. 

Shnooky informs the priest that he's going to take a teensy peek into his soul while Kagura holds him out and lowers him down onto the priest's gushing chest. It only takes Shnooky a moment to grimace at the revelation that something bad is about to happen to him, but it's also a moment too late; he's blasted right the FUCK off the priest's chest with an oddly vertical-looking slash through his little body, much to Kagura's alarm.

... You're probably not going to get any pay for this botched sitter job, Kagura. 

The priest holds up the weapon with which he dispatched Shnooky, a relic much like the butsugu on Hijiri Island, but with three prongs on each end instead of a single point. Then the priest gives out all at once, his arm falling as he dies. The cowardly disciples shiver from behind the statue, fretting over their honored priest, but not daring to go over and see if he can be at all helped by this point. It's probz because badass Kagura is still there, resting her fan on her shoulder as she regards the two halves of baby lying on the floor critically. She is clearly annoyed. 

Narrow sky transition panel with bonus trees! Inuyasha and crew are racing through the forest, Shippou, Sango, and Miroku on Kirara and Kagome on Inuyasha's back. Miroku asks about the blood smell Inuyasha is detecting, and Inuyasha tells him it's fresh. He adds that he also smells incense, so he's betting there's another tragedy at a temple. Not a half-bad deduction there, Sherlock.

They show up at the temple where the two disciples are at last kneeling next to their murdered priest, and recoil at MORE youkai coming in there. Miroku steps forward to declare them totes not suspicious people. Says the most suspicious of all of them. One look at the priest lying dead in a pool of his blood is enough for Sango to suggest that this is Kagura's doing while she comes into the building behind Inuyasha, and he confirms that he can smell her in here too. Or "feel" her smell in here, as the translator has put it again. 

Miroku is interrogating the disciples, asking if they're absolutely sure that the ones who did the priest in were a woman and a baby. As if there's anyone who could be mistaken about something so ludicrous. One of the disciples affirms their story, and spoke to how bravely the priest took on the weird duo. They brag on him for SOMEHOW managing to destroy the youkai's infant companion, because infants are notoriously difficult to kill. Inuyasha and Kagome both seem to perk up at this news.

Genuinely a relief to her, I'm sure.

The disciples insist that they are not mistaken, and the little baby was cut clean in half by their master's spiritual powers. Calm down, bros, I believe you. Of course, that doesn't mean the Inuyasha gang isn't still a little skeptical, as they're about to explain. Sango turns to Miroku, asking what he thinks, and Miroku slowly states that the baby was the monster heart of Naraku birthed in Mt. Hakurei, a part of him that he went out of his way to help escape when Mt. Hakurei was crumbling. Sango picks up what he's putting down, and says that this probz means the baby is vital to Naraku's plans, to which statement Miroku agrees. Kagome is also thinking that it's like this kid died WAY too quickly. 

Well, we ARE almost 300 chapters into this story with nary a sign of the plot ramping up to a climax, so I can see where she's coming from on that one. 

Meanwhile, Kagura is flying on her giant feather, a bundle still in her arms. I suppose leaving the infant corpse behind would have been a tactical disaster - don't want the enemy to reverse-engineer that baby! She notices the Saimyoushou hovering around her, and indicate a path to the ground where it looks like little Kanna is standing with her mirror all stoic-like. Landing in a kneel in front of Kanna, Kagura greets her and asks if Naraku told her to come here. Kanna nods in silent response. 

Kagura flings two separate bundles to the ground, each showing just a peek of half a baby face. Kagura drawls that this is just how it ended up, and asks if the reason Kanna was sent here was to scold her or something. Kanna kneels down to pick up one half of a baby, then starts to walk away. Kagura has picked up the other half again, demanding to know where Kanna is going, indicating the half she's dangling from her fingers to indicate that she's left it behind. Kanna pauses and turns to tell Kagura she should protect the half she's holding.

The little guy would have wanted it this way: retirement in the most violent manner possible. 

So, what did I think of this chapter overall? I'm kind of amused, because this chapter felt like one big ol' lampshade. Between everyone having to be skeptical that a priest managed to kill a BABY, to Kagome admitting that it seemed a little too soon for a major cog in Naraku's new machine to eat it, to Kanna speculating that this could actually all be for the BEST really - it's like a giant signpost declaring that RT was already getting super bored with this kid. I mean, how many times can you reasonably write a baby being placed on a dying man's chest in a shounen comic? Shnooky was NOT a sustainable character, and it's just funny that RT had to actually put him in the story for a couple of chapters before she realized that a LITERAL INFANT wasn't going to rivet readers. 

Also, Kagura's flippancy in how she treated the bisected corpse of Shnooky made me laugh out loud at the end there. She's just flinging it around like she's living in a "dead baby joke" and it brings out the lulz. Kagura saving the content once again with her unique charm, we love to see it.

Yu-Gi-Oh Movie: Dark Side of Dimensions

 It's nearly 3 hours long. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. XD