REVIEW: ‘To Your Eternity’ Season 3 Episode 9 – “Rejected Life”

To Your Eternity Season 3 Episode 9, “Rejected Life,” sees Hirotoshi (Tasuku Hatanaka, Clevatess) confront the Nokker possessing Mimori’s (Rumi Okubo, Dead Mount Death Play) body in an attempt to win it back. But the sadistic creature is uninterested in giving it up. The Nokker claims a plan for peace is in the works, but it seems pain and chaos are its only goals. 

The entirety of To Your Eternity Season 3 Episode 9 focuses on the aforementioned confrontation. As the narrative sees Hirotoshi’s attempt to rescue his sister’s body play out, it dives into the past, as we learn new details about what led to Mimori’s fateful fall and the Nokker’s takeover of her body. 

While the series had already made it clear that Hirotoshi and Mimori’s parents weren’t the most attentive pair, To Your Eternity Season 3 Episode 9 plunges into new depths of neglect as it explores Momori’s history before she arrived in Hirotoshi’s world, and why she may not want to be brought back to life. The painful moments as she is first able to accept her mother’s disinterest and the nature of what shattered her are agonizing to watch. 

Mimoru’s story reaches a devastating conclusion in To Your Eternity Season 3 Episode 9.

The cruel history that plays out, driving the young girl onto the roof of her school that day, is contrasted by the cruel assaults of the Nokker version of her as it gleefully tortures her brother. Seeing the face fade from childhood hope to painful acceptance, then to despair, only to be twisted into the monstrous visage it is now creates a visual effect that isn’t just shocking but feels perverse. 

The one-sided confrontation between Hirotoshi and his sister’s malevolent doppelganger leaves an uncomfortable feeling as it unfolds. The boy, clearly outclassed, is brutalized as he refuses aid. While he claims he fights to show his sister that he will be a hero for her, this heroism feels false. Rather, it feels like a manner of escape from his own, struggling existence now that the only light in his world is out. 

Whatever the motivation, To Your Eternity Season 3 Episode 9‘s “fight” is one of the most agonizing I’ve seen. The bloated pulp that Hirotoshi’s face is reduced to by the end is only surpassed in discomfort by the twisted looks dancing across his assailant’s face. The entire sequence feels like it belongs in a horror series, as its physical and emotional damage seeps through every cell of animation. 

Another Nokker appears, shaking what we previously knew about them.

Hirotoshi’s painful confrontation ends when another Nokker appears. But rather than finishing off the struggling man, it separates his adversary’s head from its shoulders, and proceeds to slay it, though the death seems likely temporary. 

This appearance shifts the way the series presents Fushi’s age-old adversary. For the first time, we see Nokkers who aren’t acting in concert. While we’ve seen Nokkers project a measure of freewill before, like the one that allied itself with Hayase’s family, we’ve never seen outright conflict between two of the species. This introduces a lot of new potential for how the story may play out as Fushi (Reiji Kawashima, The Wrong Way To Use Healing Magic) and his allies continue to search for a way to rid the world of the threat. 

To Your Eternity Season 3 Episode 9 leverages a lot of emotional energy, though with mixed results. While the painful nature of Mimori’s life resonates powerfully, the struggle of her brother and the effort it entails leave a less clear impression. Combining the emotional narrative with excellently executed visuals that deliver both the physical and emotional pain inflicted on the characters, and you have an overall impactful episode. 

To Your Eternity Season 3 Episode 9 is streaming now on Crunchyroll.

Previous Episode | Next Episode