My favourite detail about Sesshomaru that no one talks about
In the episode 162 ‘Forever with Lord Sesshomaru’ (anime: Inuyasha), there’s this little detail about Sesshomaru’s character that I’ve never seen mentioned in discussions his character development, so I thought I’d add what I think is missing from the conversation. It also happens to be one of my favourite details about his character.
To set the scene, in the episode, the Head Monk assures the rescued Rin that she’d ‘never be able to survive alone’ after she insists that she doesn’t want to be brought back with the other rescued children to the human village. She protests his answer and proudly declares ‘Sure I can! I can survive just fine, I can make it on my own!’
At the Monk’s declaration ‘you’d never be able to survive etc’, we cut to Sesshomaru overhearing nearby in the forest. The screen moves swiftly across his side profile from left to right – the direction that he’d be walking in if he wasn’t still. When I first saw this episode I initially thought that he was somewhere else looking for Rin, it wasn’t until the cut-back to Rin’s answer that I realised he was actually nearby in the woods. Why do I mention this? B/c the choice of moving the pane across his side-profile in the direction that he would be walking in really gave me the impression that Sesshomaru was prepared to walk away. To let Rin live with the humans who’ve rescued her. And he’s only standing still to listen to her answer, to confirm. So strong was this impression upon 1st viewing that I was surprised no-one was talking about it in the comment section of the video.
Anyway, at Rin’s angry snap ‘I can survive just fine etc’, we once again cut to Sesshomaru, except this time we’re closer to his features, and his brows have creased. He’s doubting his initial decision to let her stay with them, now that he’s heard her protest, the scene is shown below:
I think it’s notable that we only see him from the side for this scene as it really gives the impression that he’s prepared to walk away. If you disagree, well, I’d say this: If his initial decision was to take her away form the Monks no matter what, the shot would have been frontal, antically a more combative shot – as it is when he does decide to come get her:
(Note: there’s a soft glow around Sesshomaru [above] that no one else in this episode has (No, it isn’t the quality, it really is a soft-focus exclusively around him). This faded look that’s slightly aglow gives a dream-effect to Sesshomaru. Personally I think it’s how Rin see’s him as the above, in the anime, pans from his feet to his head giving the impression of Rin looking up to see him - her rescuer. So I think this is how she sees him: slightly aglow, slightly unearthly. A very affectionate detail, I think.)
Anyway, back to his earlier hiding in the forest. He waits quietly. But when Rin, with tears in her eyes, cries out into the air: ‘I never want to go back to a village to live with humans! LORD SESSHOMARU! Please, HELP me!” we cut to Sesshomaru, eyes closed in….conflict? Decision making? I do think he hates hearing her cry out, hence the further creased brows. There’s something very strained in his expression in the shot, and our proximity to his features and its brought on exclusively by her cries for help:
Noticeably this time, the above shot moves across his side-profile from right to left, the opposite of earlier, so it mimics the direction of Rin’s cries. Visually, his thoughts are being brought back to Rin. We see, purely through the movement of the frame, that he’s not going to be walking away now that he’s heard RIn say explicitly that she doesn’t want to go back and she wants to be with him. Only then does he come for her. Nothing until that point persuaded him to come out into the open and retrieve her from what are now, post-Rin cries, her captors.
We see him him open his eyes, a decision made, and turn to her:
The fact he’s turning back towards Rin’s direction, furthers my earlier point that he was initially prepared to walk away. His body language & the direction of the shot indicated that.
The fact he didn’t immediately walk away upon discovering she was safely recused by humans that were willing to bring her back with them, for me, proves that Sesshomaru is attached to Rin. And it’s that attachment that rooted him to the spot so he could overhear her answer.
But far more importantly, what his waiting in forest quietly reveals is that he respected her autonomy enough to wait for her reply, he didn’t treat her like property to be retrieved (ahem, Inuyasha). He didn’t assume she wanted to return to him, (ahem Inuyasha). He only came to Rin once she said herself she didn’t want the village life, and pleaded for his intervention to prevent it.
That is my favourite detail about Sesshomaru: That innate respect he has for Rin’s autonomy, he respects her decision-making ability and he listens to what she has to say about her situation way before acting. It shocked me so much that no one else noticed. It came across so strongly to me that first viewing.
Respect, autonomy, and listening. The foundations of any healthy relationship, be it platonic, romantic, or familial. Sesshomaru has it going on.
PS I have lots of thoughts on details of this episode that I think are really interesting concerning Rin and Sesshomaru. Would anyone be interested in a part two? It’d be more about the nature of their attachment to each other in this particular episode. Let me know!
