Bad things always come at the worst of times, just like in episode 10 where in the middle of Rean and Gugu escaping capture, Fushi finds himself caught in the roots of something evil.
Spoilers ahead!
“Gugu, run!”
To be young is to be hasty and rash. To be young is to try and search for freedom and happiness and fight for that happiness. And being young often means forgetting the dangers that cannot be easily overcome. Fushi gets a bad wake-up call to that exact message when he finds himself on the wrong end of the stick, or in this case, living vine. Specifically, the being made of plants and evil that exists solely to destroy Fushi. Lovingly named The Nokkers by the powerful divinity that exists to vaguely guide Fushi, the creature has come back with a vengeance. With the element of surprise, Fushi finds himself on another fight for his immortality with the Nokkers. Only this time, he hasn’t made himself ready. It has its consequences.
Meanwhile, Gugu is looking for Fushi, after hearing terrified screams in the forest. And comes across the immortal, bloody and prone on the ground while evil vines want to turn them into carnage and plant food. With only Fushi’s new object summoning ability to defend themselves, the altercation is less a battle and more of a fight for survival as Fushi and Gugu find themselves wholly incapable of stopping the Nokkers. Only luck and inspiration on Gugu’s part, along with a very awkward interaction involving alcoholism and disappointing parents, helps them turn the tide.
“the one who loves Rean the most is me, Gugu.”
The latest episode of To Your Eternity throws the usual slow dialogue and build-up and throws us right into the action. For those complaining and calling To Your Eternity “boring”, this episode is definitely made to create some temporary adrenaline. And with Brain Base’s crisp animation, it definitely serves some entertaining sequences. With a near full episode of action, The Nokkers are given the chance to shine in all their horrifying eldritch plant glory. Watching a visage of March stab Fushi with vines is both mesmerizing in how cool it is and very disturbing since Fushi’s surrogate mother was trying to kill him.
But the main event in the entire episode is when Gugu gets to try out his newest ability. Having liquor in your stomach can create some interesting consequences (and a visual treat too). Of course, having liquor in your stomach also means that you’re perpetually at risk of going drunk at a drop of a hat. Which becomes the source of comedy, watching Gugu stumble drunkenly to Booze Man’s liquor store. And seeing the absolutely horrified faces of everyone inside provides a few light laughs.
In all honesty, there isn’t any heaviness in this latest episode. It’s all action and a bit of drama. It feels more like the precursor to a big battle, showing off all their abilities and setting a base level for them to start working from. Since they have a demonic walking tree-thing after them, they have a lot of work to do, but a lot of life to live to. Whether they know it or not, Fushi and his new family are caught in the web of chaos by the Nokkers. More world-building and set-up, but it doesn’t make the episode any less entertaining. It’s not as thought-inspiring as the previous episodes, at least until the end of the episode. Where we get to see a tidbit of personal realizations from Rean, an echo of Gugu.
“Besides, I don’t care about my own situation.”
This thought here is a very confusing one. Rean shares this acceptance of her situation the same way Gugu accepted his misfortune. It’s a strange twist to the common idea of ‘fight against your fate’ shtick in most stories. Unlike most stories where people talk about going beyond their situation and going for what they want instead, this change in ideology is showing the audience that Rean and Gugu aren’t about to make a fuss anymore. Or maybe not in such a negative way. It could be closer to accepting the uncontrollable aspects in life. To Rean, it’s the consequences of her status as a rich man’s daughter. To Gugu, it’s the acceptance of his life of living differently compared to the rest of the village. It’s not so much as wallowing in despair and more of making the most of their situation. Something that’s been repeating throughout the series in fact. Could it be an overarching message that we must simply accept the chaos of the world and make the smallest moments of happiness count?
In comparison, Fushi has been following the exact opposite ideology. Continuously, Fushi has fought against his destiny to fight against the Nokkers. He’s repeatedly chosen to be with his new family the moment he could understand his situation. His choices have all been for his own. Choosing to make a life, choosing to forge his own path. Even subconsciously, that’s what he’s been doing. Even before he could think for himself, all he has wanted is to grow and explore. Whatever plans the godly being has for him is something he is not interested in. This could either spell disaster in the future, or could create a path that satisfies both desires. Either way, it’s an interesting clash in ideologies. Since Fushi is more powerful than any other human, could he be the only one to successfully fight against his fate?
Whatever ending happens for Fushi, we can be assured that To Your Eternity will provide the peak of entertainment.
In summary:
Stay away from evil plants and trust in the power of alcohol.
New episodes of To Your Eternity coming out every Monday. Watch Episode 11 on 21 of June 2021 at 10:50 PM (JST).
Official English website: To Your Eternity
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Watch this episode on Ani-One Asia: To Your Eternity Ep. 10
