Yashahime: Princess Half-Demon 39
半妖の夜叉姫 弐の章 15
Hanyou no Yashahime: Sengoku Otogizoushi episode 39

SPOILER Summary/Synopsis:

Inuyasha approaches and detects that Setsuna and Towa are Sesshoumaru’s daughters. Kagome lets them know that she helped deliver them. She then learns that Towa went to “the other world” (the present day). However, Kagome finds Moroha and Inuyasha in a dog showdown. With some physical prompting, Inuyasha takes his daughter into his arms, where she breaks down sobbing.

Outside the Tree of Ages, Rin and Jaken come upon the body of Sesshoumaru. Jaken realizes they need Towa’s Zanseiken to save Sesshoumaru. He doesn’t know where Towa is. However, Sesshoumaru manages to whisper it to his wife. Jaken sets up a barrier to protect Sesshoumaru from being found by Kirinmaru.

Inside the Black Pearl, Towa uses her smart phone to allow Kagome to catch up on the last 14 years she’s missed. Inuyasha learns of what happened to Sesshoumaru and scoffs, leading to punishment from Kagome. Setsuna wants to know how they recognized Moroha. The group head to a lake connected to Jaken’s staff. Jaken shares images with them through the lake.

Kirinmaru finds Takechiyo and demands the Black Pearl. Rin arrives with Jaken and challenges Kirinmaru. Elsewhere, Shippo, who’s disguised as an elder teacher, dismisses his class. He’s informed by a fellow kitsune about Moroha and sets off to find her. His magic takes him to where Kirinmaru is, so Takechiyo has Shippo take him to safety.

Meanwhile, Inuyasha has difficulties dealing with how Sesshoumaru has changed in 14 years. Since Towa had been able to use the broken Tenseiga, Inuyasha wants her to summon it to her so they can escape the Black Pearl. In the lake, they see Sesshoumaru come to his wife’s defense. Kirinmaru explains his actions.

Thoughts/Review:

You know, Yashahime: Princess Half-Demon 39 contained no action. It contained a ton of Inuyasha fanservice. At the same time, it carried some lovely, heart-felt moments. And it even had some traditional Inuyasha humor. And at the same time, all of it felt natural to the flow of the story.

New Season of Inuyasha

Because of how much Inuyasha and Kagome were featured in Yashahime: Princess Half-Demon 39, combined with Shippo’s sudden return, this felt like a new season of Inuyasha. However, that’s not a complaint. As a long suffering Inuyasha fan, I would have hated it if we didn’t have time for Kagome to be caught up with her family in modern times. It was a lovely moment.

Not only that, but we had Inuyasha and Moroha have a much longer moment than Moroha and Kagome did. Initially, it started as two dogs snarling at each other for a territory infraction. But after Kagome forced them together, there were more in line with what you’d expect a father-daughter reunion to be. Further still, the way Inuyasha embraced Moroha was very dog-like. I thought that was a very nice touch.

Then Moroha sleeps on her father’s lap. That was such an awesome touch. It was almost as if Moroha had dropped all her defenses in total trust that should anything bad happen, Inuyasha would protect her. And she was so relaxed, Inuyasha had to carry her to the lake as she slept until the plot needed her to wake up. Just lovely stuff to be sure.

Finally, I got a kick out of Inuyasha having a difficult time accepting the fact that Sesshoumaru has changed. From his perspective, Sesshoumaru betrayed him and Kagome. But, seeing how Setsuna and Towa are, and the fact that Towa was lent Tenseiga, Inuyasha has no choice but accept the truth. Now I look forward to seeing Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru reunited.

Within the Black Pearl

One of the lore elements we learned about being within the Black Pearl and Touga’s grave is that the passage of time is difficult to follow. I don’t know if that was established in Inuyasha or not. That said, Yashahime: Princess Half-Demon 39 provides an explanation for why Kagome and Inuyasha couldn’t get out. Not only that, but we learn why they really haven’t aged. They’ve been separated from time. It also explains why in 14 years, they don’t have seven more kids. 😂

I also liked that Jaken has been feeding Inuyasha and Kagome images of Moroha as she grew up. The little imp youkai sure has a soft heart, but that’s part of the reason we love him so. And of course, once having established this element, the writers then use it to inform the group within the Black Pearl of Sesshoumaru’s condition and the situation outside. Now for an escape.

Sesshoumaru and Rin

I admit, I’m a sucker for a lovely romance story. As such, the writers of Yashahime: Princess Half-Demon 39 just nailed the deep love and devotion Sesshoumaru has for Rin and vice versa. When Rin is finally reunited with her injured husband, he doesn’t get angry with her for disobeying his request. Instead, he lets her know that their daughters are in the Black Pearl.

I’ve long stated that Rin is an amazingly strong character, despite not being a warrior. As such, her bravery in standing up to Kirinmaru and challenging him sent a chill through me. She has no chance, and yeah, she’d probably be throwing her life away. But her life is all she has to defend her beloved husband and daughters. And because of the bond she shares with Sesshoumaru, her actions caused him to summon the last of his strength and face Kirinmaru.

Shippo’s Return

During Inuyasha‘s run, I have to admit that Shippo was one of my least favorite characters. He seemed to mostly be there for some comedy hijinks with Inuyasha. As such, during Yashahime‘s run to date, while I may have briefly wondered why Shippo hadn’t made an appearance, at the same time, I didn’t care. Nevertheless, Yashahime: Princess Half-Demon 39 decides to bring Shippo back with purpose.

I confess, I didn’t hate Shippo at all in the episode. I am disappointed that Shippo’s appearance is still small. While the wise old kitsune was a bridge too far, I thought the bishounen Shippo seemed about right. However, this was a bit of the writers having fun with us. Pshaw on them for that and for making the 9-tailed Kyubi-sensei boring as well in her true form.

Nevertheless, Shippo is needed so we can have a full Inuyasha reunion in the near future. And to that end, Shippo ends up rescuing Takechiyo and spiriting away the Black Pearl.

Final Thoughts and Conclusion

Let me wrap up my review with some final thoughts.

• What does Inuyasha need from his father’s grave?
• I want Towa and Setsuna to refer to Inuyasha as Ojisama, or correct term for uncle to match the period. Ditto for Kagome — Obasama or whatever correct term.
• Kirinmaru spells out exposition in a cliched manner. However, the info was needed and frankly, this episode was too good to let a minor cliche run the fun.
• There are no battles in this episode. And frankly, they aren’t needed.

In the end, Yashahime: Princess Half-Demon 39 was everything I wanted it to be. The writers are clearly fans of the Inuyasha series. And they are honoring Takahashi-sensei by taking what she created to the next level and beyond.