REVIEW: ‘To Your Eternity,’ Season 2 Episode 12 – “Secret behind the Veil”

Despite some internal strife within the team, Fushi and company are now hard at work preparing Renril for the Nokkers’ impending attack. But with the city’s leader still reluctant to trust them fully, their progress is slowed. But there is hope from one of Fushi’s new companions that the obstacle may be overcome in To Your Eternity Season 2 Episode 12.

Much of this week’s episode revolves around the recently introduced character Messer Robin Bastar. Introduced as being fairly lazy and focused on playing games, this week’s story brings numerous new elements to the character, including connections to both Bon and the Princess of Renril. The exploration of this character is intriguing, as it helps smooth out the initial rough first impression that the character gave upon their introduction. I always love it when a story flips a character’s personality, allowing the viewer to believe something only to reveal they are something different. That this story is able to blend this character exploration with the main narrative helps keep the story moving forward and lets the moments have an added relevancy to the tale.

I also appreciated how the visuals delivered Messer’s backstory. De-aging characters can be a tricky thing. Trying to balance making them look younger, as opposed to simply smaller, is a trick I’ve seen more than when series fail at. To Your Eternity Season 2 Episode 12 does an excellent job of delivering young Messer. The rounded face and chubby cheeks often synonymous with youth are combined with the character’s wild hair to make someone who looks similar, yet different, in all the right ways.

The other core element of To Your Eternity Season 2 Episode 12 I need to talk about is Fushi. This season has seen the character steadily transforming into someone new. While it has been hard seeing this transformation, as it has made Fushi become harder and more difficult to like, this episode does a great job of subtly explaining why. With so much at stake and the weight of everything resting squarely on his shoulders, it is understandable that Fushi would begin to harden under the strain he is being put under. This saddens me to see, as I wish Fushi had more chances to smile, but allowing him to endure all these struggles unchanged would undercut the severity of the situation and the true impact on him. I love well-crafted character development, even when it takes a character in a direction I wish wasn’t necessary.

When all is said and done, To Your Eternity Season 2 Episode 12 does a great job of using the show’s downtime while the group prepares for the Nokkers’ attack to flesh out the backstory and grow its cast. This episode was easily one of the highlights of this season to date and I hope it can continue to build on its growing momentum as it proceeds deeper into the season.

To Your Eternity Season 2 Episode 12 is streaming on Crunchyroll.