Do you need to watch Demon Slayer: To The Swordsmith Village movie before season 3?

Ufotable’s Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba released a movie called To the Swordsmith Village in March, which fans hoped would bridge seasons 2 and 3 of the TV show. However, many were disappointed with the feature-length production, especially the casual followers who were not caught up with all the latest updates.

Season 3 of Demon Slayer will be out on April 9. The season is likely to cover chapters 100-127 of the manga, adapting the Swordsmith Village Arc.

So, do you need to watch the movie before the release of season 3? Let’s find out.

Is Demon Slayer: To The Swordsmith Village movie worth it?

With the franchise’s previous movie — Mugen Train — being the commercial and creative success it was, fans were rightfully expecting more of the same from the new movie. Did it meet expectations?

Around two-thirds of To the Swordsmith Village was a recap of what’s happened so far in the anime. First, we Get a brief retelling of how Tanjiro and Nezuko became members of the Demon Slayer Corps, how they befriend Zenitsu and Inosuke and end up fighting Upper Moon demons. There are snippets from the Mugen Train Arc, and the audience is put through the heartwrenching pain of watching Rengoku die, again.

Next, we catch up with Episodes 11 and 12 of the Entertainment District Arc, where Tanjiro, Zenitsu, Inosuke, Lord Tengen, and his three wives together bring down the Upper Moon demons Daki and Gyutaro. Regular followers of the anime are likely to have already seen this part. Only the last hour of the movie is new. Here, we see Tanjiro and Nezuko travel to the Swordsmith Village to get a new weapon.

This section will appear in the season 3 premiere, which makes the whole movie a really pointless watch for some. Many fans have complained on social media that the studio only put out this movie to make a buck.

However, in my personal opinion, if you are a die-hard fan of the anime, the movie is worth watching in the theater. Even though we have already seen part of the movie on TV, watching the crystal-clear, vibrant Ufotable animation on a big screen with fellow fans cheering and hooting is an absolutely spectacular experience. Moreover, we finally see the faces and learn the names of all the six Upper Moon demons.

What is new in Demon Slayer: To the Swordsmith Village movie?

The sequence set in Muzan Kibutsuji’s Infinity Castle is possibly the most interesting part of the movie. We have already seen Tanjiro and Co. defeat a number of Lower-Ranked Moons, like Kyogai, Rui and Enmu. We have also met Upper Moon Three, Azaku, in the Mugen Train Arc; and Upper Moon Five, the twins Daki and Gyutaro, in the Entertainment District Arc.

In the new movie, we are introduced to the other Upper Moons: Gyokko, Hantengu, Doma and Kokushibo. Being the Upper Moon One and possibly the most powerful demon other than Muzan himself, the face reveal of Kokushibo was much-anticipated. Doma, Upper Moon Two, turned out to be the mysterious demon who we saw turn Daki and Gyutaro when they were almost dying.

In this segment, we also learn that Muzan is looking for a flower called Blue Spider Lily, the same one we saw foreshadowed in the outro of season 1. It is possible that this flower is connected to Muzan’s lifelong goal of attaining a permanently immortal body. He will also need the body of a demon who can withstand the sun, which is likely to be Nezuko.

The moment that got the loudest cheers in the theater was the face reveal of Yoriichi Tsugikuni. We have seen his silhouette before doing the Sun Breathing dance from Tanjiro’s point of view. This time, we get to see his full face. He dons the same Hanafuda earrings that Tanjiro wears and bears the same mark on his forehead, hinting that the Kamado family has a long-running connection with him.

Manga readers know Yoriichi Tsugikuni to be the greatest demon slayer to ever live. Without giving away too much, we can say that Yoriichi, or rather his legacy, is going to play a major role in the upcoming arcs of the show.

Season 3 of the anime is set in the Swordsmith Village, which is home to an ancient weapon. The story will feature Tanjiro and Nezuko, obviously, alongside the Mist Hashira Muichiro Tokito and the Love Hashira Mitsuri Kanoji. Upper Moon 2, Doma, is expected to appear this season as per an official sketch of the villain that has been released.

To conclude, if you don’t want to spend time and money watching episodes you can stream from your home, feel free to skip the movie. However, if you want to enjoy the audio-visual extravaganza of Demon Slayer on a big screen, you should definitely catch the movie if it is still running in theaters near you.

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