The Headscratchers page is for post-viewing discussion, so all spoilers are unmarked per wiki policy.
First Film
- Just what was the "mistake" that Mikazuki was so upset about during his conversation with Uguisumaru? Not making sure the Historical Revisionists were properly disposed of before having his team return to the citadel? Surely not, since the mistake was pretty easy to rectify after he was sent back out. Maybe he was just sad about the Saniwa taking the blame for him?
- What are the Saniwa? They look and sound human, and can apparently age, but the whole process where they run out of magic after years in service and are literally erased from existence and subsequently replaced by a younger Saniwa suggests that they aren't as human as they appear.
- The film relies heavily on the twist that Oda Nobunaga's real death happened at Azuchi Castle instead of Honnouji Temple, and that no one in the cast except Mikazuki knew about this due to it differing from what's written in the history books. However, it begs the question of how every historian managed to get Oda Nobunaga's death wrong, even down to who assassinated him. The film criticizes popular and thus "correct" history, but if only popular history is written down and interpreted as correct in this setting, wouldn't Hideyoshi Toyotomi, Oda Nobunaga's close friend and ally, assassinating him be juicier story than the lesser-known Akechi Mitsuhide committing the crime? And, given Hideyoshi Toyotomi's villainous portrayal in the film, you'd think he'd boast about his victory and ensure that it went down in history.
- All of the cuteness of the Touken Danshi playing with their young Saniwa is lost when you consider what she has been assigned to do. What family gave up their daughter, who looks to be around five years old at the oldest, to lead an army of Sword Warriors? It gets even worse when you remember the fate of the Saniwa before her: being confined to a room all day where all he got to do was sit, delegate missions, summon more Sword Warriors, and use his magic pendant to create a protective barrier around the citadel. And then at the end of his life when his magic began to weaken, he was wiped from existence and replaced with someone younger, all of which will eventually happen to the new Saniwa.
- Speaking of Saniwa's age, how can she be expected to lead the Sword Warriors when she looks to be too young to speak, let alone comprehend what's happening around her ? Will Mikazuki take over that role until she reaches the appropriate age? What's the point of ushering in a Saniwa that's that young if that's the case? Is the Saniwa only needed for their magic and nothing else?
- This also raises the question of how long the Saniwa replacement cycle will continue. Mikazuki and the other Touken Danshi's attachment to the original Saniwa indicates that he had been with them for a while and that no one had come before him. The war between the Sword Warriors and the Historical Revisionists is unlikely to let up anytime soon, so how many replacement Saniwa's are the Sword Warriors going to have to live through?
Second Film
- Why didn't Mikazuki's entire team get sent to retrieve Yamanbagiri Kunihiro, given that they were also on the mission where he went missing? Why would they send Mikazuki alone when he is dealing with both the threat of the Historical Revisionists and an angry demon guy? There's no reason why all of them needed to stay behind to look after things in the future since they weren't the only Touken Danshi in the citadel. And why does Horikawa Kunihiro seem to care so little about his brothers safety?
- Every Touken Danshi summoned to 2012 in this film was already a Touken Danshi of the Saniwa in 2205, or a Touken Danshi from another offscreen citadel, meaning that the temporary Saniwa were intentionally and unintentionally summoning and temporarily claiming Touken Danshi belonging to someone else. Does this imply Saniwa can take Touken Danshi from another Saniwa? Touken Danshi are generally loyal to their masters, but throughout the film, many of them treat their temporary Saniwa with the same loyalty they would the original, not to mention that even a few of them from the browser game switch from being loyal to their previous master as soon as a new Saniwa summons them. In the end, they chose to return to their home citadel… but what would happen if they didn’t because they felt loyalty to their new Saniwa? It makes you wonder if there are fights over Touken Danshi in the future, especially since 2012 makes it seem like every other Average Joe in Tokyo has Saniwa powers, and there must be at least 10 times as many Saniwa in 2205 because that is the year when they are most needed.
- If people with Saniwa power existed in 2012, why weren't there any Touken Danshi running around already? Given that every Touken Danshi summoned at the end of the film is unintentional, you'd think an average Joe would have accidentally summoned a few already and then been stuck with them.
