To Your Eternity Episode 20

Pioran and Fushi

So, we knew it was coming — especially if you watched the preview for this episode at the end of last week’s episode. Pioran has died. But before I get to that, I want to take a look at the relationship Pioran and Fushi developed during their travels.

When we first met Pioran, I never would have guessed that she’d become such an important character throughout the season. And she actually far outlived most of the other characters who were given more prominence than she was.

Who’s left that was more important than Pioran? Rean (arguably) and Tonari. Those are the only ones. I’m sorry Sandel, but you’re not as important. And as for Booze Man, I wonder if he’s still alive at this point. We’ll never know now, though.

Anyway, back to Pioran. We really didn’t know all that much about her despite her being around since the second arc of the series. She was a prisoner of Yanome accused of murder, she was married to Booze Man at some point, and just in this episode, we learned she had a grandchild.

Beyond that, Pioran was kind of a mystery. But, that didn’t stop Fushi from bonding with her. She was the one who taught him most of what he knows — how to read, write, speak, and interact with the rest of the world.

While March officially holds the title of Fushi’s mother, Pioran is the one who raised him. I think the first half of this episode did a great job of illustrating just how much Fushi has come to care about Pioran. He really does view her as his family.

Oh, and I guess I’ll just throw the fact that Fushi can transform into Uroy, Oopa, and Mia at the end of this section.

Goodbye, Pioran

Pioran’s death was definitely one of the more impactful deaths of the series. Gugu’s was more emotional to me, but Pioran’s was probably second. The boy from episode 1 didn’t do anything for me, and neither did March, to be honest.

I think part of what made Pioran’s death so emotional was that she wanted to die without Fushi around. This was probably in part because she didn’t want him to witness her death. But it was also partially due to the request she had for the “black thing” that follows Fushi around.

Specifically, Pioran asks that she be reborn as something that will be useful to Fushi. It may sound strange, but I don’t think Fushi would have wanted her to make this request. That’s because I think he would have been against her acknowledging that she was dying at all.

The response Pioran gets is fairly interesting. She’s told that her soul is really only her soul when it’s connected to her body. So even if she’s reborn with the same soul, that doesn’t mean she’s going to be the same person — if she’s reborn as a human at all.

Additionally, she’s told that the “black thing” will come for her before she’s taken to paradise. This is significant because it seems to imply that Pioran being reborn is something that can actually happen. We know the afterlife exists in this world, and Pioran apparently won’t be going there.

For this reason, I think we’ll find that Fushi doesn’t gain the form of Pioran. He can’t transform into someone until after they die. And if Pioran’s soul is reborn in this world, my guess is that it means Fushi can’t transform into her still. And this is probably psychologically damaging to him considering how close he felt to her.

Pioran will Return

Building upon the fact that rebirth is something that exists in this world, I’m betting that Pioran will make a return. And, while I don’t know if this will be the case just yet, I think there’s a convincing argument to be made for her being the “same” Pioran.

So, in the OP of this series, we saw a girl strolling along a beach who was a mystery — at least to me. When Pioran mentioned she had a grandchild, I assumed this was the girl. But it was revealed the girl is actually a younger form of Pioran.

Why is this important? Because Pioran tells Fushi that her wish is to be young again. Then, when Pioran’s soul is collected by the “black thing,” different stages of her life are recorded on a white ball, much like the one Fushi started out as.

To me, all of this points to the fact that the white ball we saw Pioran’s soul go into will become the new Pioran. And if she’s born right after her death, then she’ll be at least 20 years old when she and Fushi reunite — meaning Pioran will have gotten her wish of being young again.

There are some issues with all of this, though. Just because the ball recorded Pioran’s soul doesn’t necessarily mean it recorded her appearance. She may look entirely different. And on top of that, it’s implied she won’t remember who Fushi is.

But, considering how Fushi is connected to the souls of people he interacts with, I think he’ll still recognize her. She may look different, but Fushi should be able to recognize Pioran’s soul within her if they ever cross paths again.

Conclusion

What do you think of the final episode of To Your Eternity (Season 1)? Which death of the series do you think was the most emotional? Will Pioran and Fushi ever be reunited? And, could Pioran end up immortal just like Fushi? Let me know in the comments.

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My review of Season 2 Episode 1 is available now.