The first Mononoke film was focused on the lower rank of concubines in the imperial harem. Thematically, it was about giving up one's individuality to serve a role—and how doing so brought misery to the human soul. However, this was a fate forced only upon the lower ranks of the harem. Rather than conforming, the emperor's favorites are all wildly individualistic in both looks and personality. At first glance, they have a freedom that the previous film's protagonists, Asa and Kame, couldn't hope to obtain. However, as this film shows, even a gilded cage is still a cage.

The Ashes of Rage is the story of two of these top concubines, Fuki and Botan. Fuki is the emperor's current favorite—the woman we see him spend the night with in the previous film. However, this is offset by the fact that her father is the weakest politically, meaning she has the least real power of the women vying to produce an imperial heir. She is well aware of her position—that the emperor's apparent love for her is her only shield against the others—and is quick to come to frustration and anger because of it.

Meanwhile, Botan is the exact opposite. She is the oldest of the top concubines and, while like the others, she is currently being overlooked in the eyes of the emperor, her father is by far the most influential. She has a poise and grace far beyond her years, and rather than being focused on her own success in the harem, she is driven to make sure the harem succeeds in its actual purpose—to produce the next royal heir.

Of course, all this means that the two do not get along. After all, all the top concubines are in a perpetual power struggle where the winner will be whoever is able to bear a child first. Thus, they put each other down and squabble, trying to make each other look bad while maximizing their own time with the emperor.

But the real tragedy here is that these young women are not doing this for love—or even for personal power. Everything they are doing is for their fathers, who have basically sold them off to the imperial harem to use as political pawns. To the fathers of these concubines, the harem is just another political battlefield. After all, whoever is grandfather to the next emperor will have tons of power. And even the chance at getting that position is power of a sort—one that can be bought or sold for further political capital.

These top-level concubines, admired and envied as they are, may have even less freedom than even the concubines at the bottom. And it is from this horrible situation that the mononoke Hinezumi is born.

As a film, The Phantom in the Rain focused mostly on the horror aspect of a mononoke infestation. This film, on the other hand, focuses more on the supernatural mystery aspect. This is mainly because Hinezumi is a different type of mononoke altogether. While Karakasa reacted indiscriminately to the repeated cycle of abuse in the lower harem, Hinezumi's attacks are far more specific—and thus more puzzling in nature. Its “shape” and “truth” are easy enough to figure out, but its “reason” is the true sticking point—something that can only be figured out through empathy.

While this change in storytelling helps differentiate The Ashes of Rage from the previous film, it also has a side effect in the visual presentation. The Phantom in the Rain's most memorable scenes were those that highlighted the eldritch horror of what was happening. With fewer of those events in the current film, it feels like a slight step down, even if it technically isn't. Don't get me wrong; this film is every bit as visually stunning as the first. The colors and visual details are mind-boggling, the direction is fantastic, and the visual storytelling is on another level—especially with little touches like visual representations of smells. The only thing holding it back a bit is that we saw many of the same tricks in the first film, so some of the novelty has worn off.

On the music side of things, the soundtrack is likewise fantastic—especially in the songs that mix a feudal Japanese sound with modern rock. And while there are no mind-shattering earworms like the previous film's “Love Sick,” Aina The End does return with a new song that is certainly worth listening to.

All in all, Mononoke The Movie: The Ashes of Rage delivers another philosophical and emotional look into the lives of feudal Japanese women in the imperial harem. Buoyed by its supernatural twist, mystery, and visuals unlike any other anime out there, it is a fantastic follow-up to The Phantom in the Rain—even if it never quite reaches the lofty heights of that film. After these two films, I couldn't be more excited for the third and final film, which looks to draw the secrets lurking in the background throughout both of these films right out into the open. Here's hoping we only have to wait a year this time as well.