Since Demon Slayer's third season premiere strategy went so well last year, production company UFOtable decided to do it again this year. Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba - To the Hashira Training once again pairs the last season finale with the upcoming season premiere.
Unlike last time, both halves (A Connected Bond: Daybreak and First Light & a currently untitled episode) are both about an hour long. We're not treated to the credits every so often, this time. But anyone who didn't follow the third season won't know what's going on. So, once again, let's give some context.
Our demon slaying hero Tanjiro (Natsuki Hanae), his demon sister Nezuko (Akari Kito) and their fellow demon slaying rookie Genya Shinazugawa (Nobuhiko Okamoto) open the story in pursuit of the miniature demon Hantengu (Toshio Furukawa), who can split himself into multiple entities. The Hashira Mitsuri Kanroji (Kana Hanazawa) is already fighting one of the other entities in a seemingly fruitless battle. Tanjiro tries to cut down Hantengu, but he upsizes into the brutish Urami and nearly kills him. Tanjiro finally cuts down Hantengu with a new sword while Nezuko burns up in the sunlight.
And then she shows up perfectly fine.
To say this is a game-changer, especially for big bad Muzan Kibutsuji (Toshihiko Seki), is an understatement. He decides to use her to overcome his nasty weakness to the sun. Meanwhile, the Hashira are assigned to train the rawhides and themselves for what will surely be the final battle. Tanjiro and his demon-slaying buddies are in for the workout of their lives. But apparently, some of the demon slayers might not survive the upcoming battle.
Sure, the film gives us a recap of the story thus far. That is, everything except for what happened in the previous episode. The first half had a last time recap that this film lacks. So, you'll have a lot of questions early on into the film. Who is this little demon and why are they chasing him? Who's the bad guy that she's fighting? What's the deal with swordsmith Hotaru Haganezuka (Daisuke Namikawa)? The answers for all of them are "watch the show."
The game-changing moment still works. I was well aware that Nezuko would survive the sunrise. It was still emotional seeing her burn up and Tanjiro agonizing whether to save her or a trio of Swordsmith Villagers from a headless Urami. You'll be as glad as Tanjiro when she stands in the sun and speaks her first words since her demonization. That the Swordsmith Villagers are wearing some incredibly goofy masks barely detracts from the emotions here. You don't need a lot of context to feel something here.
Let's give a few character highlights. Tanjiro's demon-slaying buddies, Zenitsu (Hiro Shimono) and Inosuke (Yoshitsugu Matsuoka) are still as fun as ever. Muzan's formal introduction has him murder two of his servants in some shocking displays of violence. Hantengu's final monologue almost makes one sorry for the cowardly villain. Tamayo (Maaya Sakamoto), a sympathetic demon who debuted in the first season, gives us a few good updates since her last appearance. It helps that we're given some context in her recap. It was also nice seeing Tengen Uzui (Katsuyuki Konishi) again after his ordeal in the last film. Gyomei Himejima (Tomokazu Sugita), the main Hashira of the upcoming season, makes quite the impression with his quiet, yet forceful nature.
Once again, the technical standards upheld by the previous seasons & films are alive and well. Everything from the animation, the color palettes and especially the score, are just great. The Demon Slayers' sword techniques, whether it's Obanai Iguro (Kenichi Suzumura) turning his into a snake or Tanjiro setting his on fire, still look and sound great. The battles are still tense and exciting. Other than the Hantengu battle, the film's standout sequence is a Demon Slayer raid against what they assume is Muzan's castle. The illusion dissipating in front of the slayers makes for a stunning reveal. You need to see it for yourself.
Demon Slayer - To the Hashira Training will delight those who can't wait for the fourth season. Both its halves, whether you've already seen the first half or not, have great action scenes and character bits throughout their combined 104-minutes. Everyone else has a lot of catching up to do. The combined project actually feels like a cohesive double feature, rather than a blu-ray on the big screen. That's at least one of my gripes from the last film they addressed here. Still, considering that this is technically the penultimate arc, I wonder what they'll do for the last few once they're animated. I'll be waiting.
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