Inuyasha the Movie 2: The Castle Beyond the Looking Glass is the second Inuyasha movie, released in 2002.
The film begins with, amazingly enough, Inuyasha and co. finally killing Naraku, a belief enforced by the disappearance of Miroku's Wind Tunnel. Shortly afterwards, the group splits up, only to be brought back together when the demoness Kaguya steps up to the plate.
Beware unmarked spoilers.
Contains examples of the following tropes:
- Art Shift: The character designs more closely resemble the manga than the anime.
- Attack Reflector: Kaguya can conjure a black orb to absorb any attack and shoot it back out at her enemies.
- Beware the Nice Ones: Despite no longer having his wind tunnel, Miroku is still not one to mess with. Mushin lampshades this when he knows Hatchi will face Miroku's wrath after refusing to help him.
- Body Horror: Naraku, bursting out of Kohaku's back as an ever-expanding, pulsating mass of tumorous bloated flesh and spider legs.
- Brought Down to Normal: Miroku, of all people, when his Wind Tunnel is removed by Naraku. That doesn't stop him from being able to beat up Hatchi when he refuses to help him.
- Call-Back: Naraku's form in this movie is the same he used in his battle against Sesshomaru.
- Chekhov's Gun: During the battle against Naraku, Sango ties Miroku's staff to her Hiraikotsu to deliver a more powerful attack combining the impact of her weapon with the staff's demon-repelling skills. Near the end, Kagome uses half of Miroku's staff as an impromptu arrow to pin the Celestial Robe to Kaguya's mirror.
- Cooldown Hug: Kagome tries to give one to Inuyasha while Kaguya is transforming him into her pure demon slave. When it doesn't work, she kisses him too.
- Curb-Stomp Battle: When Naraku fights Kaguya, he proves no match for her and takes off, leaving Inuyasha and co. to finish her.
- Demoted to Extra: This is the only Inuyasha movie in which Naraku makes any appearance. Even then, his only contribution to the plot is to fake his own death and then get his ass kicked by Kaguya.
- Digital Destruction: Although the video on the Blu-ray version is a step up from the previous DVD release, the audio side of things gets a little screwy. While the English Stereo 2.0 track is the standard version of the dub used on all previous physical and digital releasesnote , the English 5.1 Surround track seems to use an earlier cut of the dub, before it was tweaked and punched up later. There are several alternate (and slightly flatter) dialogue reads, some with completely different wording. The most obvious is when Inuyasha is charging at Naraku during the opening credits:Inuyasha: I'm the one you really wanna fight! (standard version)
Inuyasha: I'm your only real opponent around here! (Blu-ray 5.1 track) - Elemental Powers: Each of the five artifacts needed to unseal Kaguya is bound to one of the Five Classical Chinese Elements, with a respective color: The Dragon's Neck Orb is Metal (Yellow), the Fire Rat Robe is Fire (Red), the Jewelled Branch of Horai is Wood (Green), the Swallow's cowrie is Water (Blue) and the Buddha's Stone Bowl is Earth (Teal).
- Faking the Dead: As it turns out, Naraku faked his demise to draw Kaguya out and absorb her. Let's just say it doesn't work out like he planned.
- The Fellowship Has Ended: After seemingly killing Naraku, Inuyasha's group splits up; Inuyasha, Kagome, and Shippo stick together to track down the remaining Shikon Jewel shards while Sango and Miroku go their own way. It doesn't last long, with Kaguya stepping up to the plate, along with the revelation that Naraku was faking it.
- Giant Spider: Naraku transforms into an humongous spider demon with an ogre's head to fight the group in the beginning. After having his legs chopped and his back pierced, the real form of Naraku bursts forth from the abdomen to fight.
- God Guise: Kagura eventually reveals that "Kaguya" is actually nothing more than a powerful, body-hitchiking demon who devoured the original Kaguya and took over her immortality and powers.
- Gone Swimming, Clothes Stolen: Many years ago, some random person stole Kaguya's Celestial Robe while she was bathing in a spring. Enraged, she started slaughtering a nearby village, demanding the thief show himself, until Miroku's grandfather showed up and stopped her.
- Identical Stranger:
- Naraku's Giant Spider form is, essentially, the same spider monster he used in Sango's introductory arc with a more arachnid body and longer legs.
- The six heads of the beast Kaguya summons to defend the illusion of her castle resemble Ryūkotsusei almost exactly, save for the body color, and the lack of a face in their foreheads.
- Magical Floating Shawl: The movie's villain is a youkai who absorbed Princess Kaguya. Her most powerful item is the hagoromo that originally belonged to the real celestial maiden, and acts as a source of infinite power for her.
- Mind-Control Eyes: Inuyasha is forced to transform into a full demon by Kaguya, complete with the classic "eyes fade to red" effect.
- Mugging the Monster: The bandits threatening Akitoki Hojo make the mistake of harassing Inuyasha, who was just passing by. They're soundly trashed.
- Not Quite Dead: After being seemingly destroyed by Inuyasha's Bakuryuha-empowered Wind Scar, Kaguya returns as an ominous dark cloud and tries to absorb Kagome before being finished off for good by Miroku.
- Our Orcs Are Different: At one point Kohaku is chased by a gang of humanoid pig-like Youkai brandishing variegated weaponry and threatening to eat him, stunningly similar to "orcs" as sometimes depicted in eastern RPG.
- Public Domain Artifact: The film's plot is kicked off by Kagura and Kanna collecting the five mystical artifacts that Princess Kaguya requested from her suitors in The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter. One of them is the pelt of the fire rat from which Inuyasha's robe was made.
- Retcon: A small, relationship-based one, but the ending has Inuyasha and Kagome act greatly embarrased about their kiss and denying it happened, which doesn't really make sense when the manga strongly implies they were aware of each other's feelings at that time and even subtly went for being a couple.
- Rule of Romantic: Kaguya is transforming Inuyasha into a full-fledged, mindless demon, and nothing seems to work to stop him... until Kagome kisses him.
- Sealed Evil in a Can: Princess Kaguya, like Menomaru and Hyoga from the previous film. This time, she instructs Kagura and Kanna to collect the artifacts required to release her, in exchange for granting them their wishes.
- Shout-Out: When Akitoki Hojo is describing the monk who told his village about the celestial robe, the statue shown of the monk is Cherry from Urusei Yatsura
- Status Quo Is God: Despite the two sharing a kiss, the ending has Kagome and Inuyasha bickering once again, essentially returning their relationship to its former Will They or Won't They? status.
- Time Stands Still: The method by which Kaguya causes The Night That Never Ends. Miroku, Sango, Shippo, Kirara, and Kohaku are protected from the effect by bandages from Kagome's time displaced first-aid kit, while Inuyasha is protected by the photo locket Kagome gave him earlier in the film.
- What Happened to the Mouse?: Kagura and Kanna were sucked towards the bottom of a lake after being out-gambitted by the villain. We never learn what happened with them, if they drowned or escaped or what. They're shown later on in the series so we know they escaped.
