InuYasha The Movie 3: Swords of an Honorable Ruler

**InuYasha The Movie 3:  Swords of an Honorable Ruler** is the third anime movie based on the InuYasha anime and

   manga series written by Rumiko Takahashi.  The movie was written by Katsuyuki Sumisawa, directed by Toshiya Shinohara, musically composed by Kaoru Wada, and produced by Michihiko Suwa, Masuo Ueda, and Mikihiro Iwata and Studio Sunrise.  It was preceeded by InuYasha The Movie 2:  The Castle Beyond the Looking Glass and was later followed by InuYasha:  Fire on the Mystic Island.  The movie was originally released in Japan on December 20, 2003.

## Plot

In the event of Inuyasha's birth, the suitor Takemaru kills Lady Izayoi, just before Inuyasha's father arrives. Still injured from his battle with Ryūkotsusei, he resurrects Izayoi with the Tenseiga, telling her to escape with their son, whom he names Inuyasha, and gives her the Cloth of the Fire Rat to protect them from the burning and collapsing palace, where Inuyasha's father died facing Takemaru with his third sword.

In the present era, Kagome's grandfather comes by with a sword which he calls a "national treasure"; as Grandpa is about to put it in the storehouse for "safe keeping", Kagome's younger brother goes over to the sword and it speaks or more accurately, the spirit of the sheath, Saya. With his seven hundred-year spell on the sword So'unga failing, Saya seeks out Inuyasha, hoping he has the willpower to control the sword. Unfortunately, he was mistaken, as it tried to possess Inuyasha, but he tried his best to resist being controlled and finally brings the sword back to the past, but in the process unleashes the deadly Dragon Twister on an evacuated village, a technique far more powerful than either the Tessaiga's Backlash Wave or the Tokijin's Dragon Strike. Sesshomaru is alerted to the return of So'unga and follows the scent to find that InuYasha is possessed by the sword. The two of them duel and at a crucial moment, Kagome, having returned with Saya, forces the So'unga to release Inuyasha from its grasp. As Inuyasha and Sesshomaru depart their respective companies to seek out So'unga, Myoga, Totosai and Saya explain to everyone that in the aftermath of Inuyasha's father's death two hundred years ago, they carried out his last command for his three swords. While the Tessaiga and Tenseiga were taken care of, Saya claimed that there were no instructions for how to dispose of So'unga. Unable to give it to either Inuyasha or Sesshomaru, Saya decides to keep So'unga asleep for at least seven hundred years and had it thrown into the Bone Eater's Well, where it ended up in the possession of Kagome's family.

Meanwhile, So'unga finds a new demon host, recovers Sesshomaru's lost left arm from the netherworld, and revives Takemaru, playing on his hatred for the Dog General and his sons. Takemaru slaughters an entire castle and resurrects the living dead to wear down his enemies' strength. During the battle, the demon kidnaps Kagome and Rin. Both of the brothers take off to save the girls, whom So'unga urges Takemaru to kill to enrage their foes. However, Inuyasha manages to overcome Takemaru, crediting his desire to protect Kagome as his strength. Takemaru then realizes that Inuyasha's mother wanted him to live and that he loved her. His flesh then erodes to nothing but bones. After Sesshomaru uses the Tenseiga to prevent demonic imps from resurrecting Takemaru, So'unga creates itself a new body and opens a gateway to the netherworld, threatening to end all life on Earth. While Saya protects the humans from being overcome by the dead souls from the netherworld, Inuyasha and Sesshomaru do battle with So'unga, both determined to defeat the sword on their own. Individually, So'unga was stronger than either the Tenseiga or Tessaiga. However, Inuyasha and Sesshomaru finally combine their attacks to overwhelm So'unga's Dragon Twister, causing the sword and Sesshomaru's left arm to fall into the pit of hell. The two brothers then sees their father who thanks them and say goodbye.

After the credits while laying on a hill, Kagome tells Inuyasha that she realize Sesshomaru likes humans, and Inuyasha replies that he did not care at all. Kagome remembers the enchanted beads and tells InuYasha to sit up, close his eyes and ask him that she had a nice surprise for him. Kagome then places it around his neck again. Inuyasha tries to get it off, but Kagome says "Sit, boy", causing him along with it to fall on the ground.

## Why It Rocks

1. Excellent animation, much better than the show due to it being a movie and not a series.
2. Good voice acting in both sub and dub.
3. Great art style and character designs.
4. Superb music and soundtrack.

## Bad Qualities

1. Like many anime movies, this film includes filler content and doesn't constitute canonical material.