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Heavenly Delusion anime is the dark horse hit of the spring 2023 season. What started as a journey to reach a certain location morphed into a psychological puzzle with clues scattered in every frame. The finale left most of us viewers left stunned with more questions than answers.
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Many moments were totally left up to interpretation, leaving fans confounded about the ending. And by the end, all the cryptic dots had connected to reveal the truth about Hiruko's (man-eater) origins that terrorized post-apocalyptic Japan. Thus, here is a fair analysis of Tengoku Daimakyou's anime ending!
Takahara Academy Collapases
What’s Spear Of Heaven?
In episode 12, as Takahara Academy was falling apart, we caught Dr. Sakota murmuring, ‘Is this the Spear of Heaven the Director spoke of?’ This takes us back to episode 11, where Sakota and Kaminaka Shino, the director, had a brief chat.
Shino mentioned wanting to witness heaven blossom with her own eyes, while a portrait hung behind her featured a male and female character dropping a spear through the clouds. This potentially represents a depiction of an apocalyptic event and accurately highlights the reason behind the school’s collapse.
What Was The Director’s End Goal?
The Director frequently mentions "Heaven," seeking to establish a new world order with enhanced humans who can survive in a post-apocalyptic world. From the very start, we've noticed numerous babies at Takahara Academy exhibiting man-eating/Hiruko traits.
It's clear that the academy has been experimenting with superhuman babies, despite the undesirable side effects. The "Spear of Heaven" event provides the perfect opportunity for the Director to take control. The spear descending from heaven is actually a metaphor for a meteorite crashing into Earth, an event predicted by the school's supercomputer, Mina.
However, in episode 12, the director announces that their school is under attack. Evidently, her plan puts the academy at odds with the current government, leading to a military attack on the school. In response, Takahara Academy has prepared artificial combatants equipped with super-beam guns to defend their vision of the future.
Why Were There Two Babies?
The Director had a desire to live long enough to witness Heaven "blossom." Though, her age didn't align with her grand ambitions. As a solution, she asked Sakota to prepare Kona and Tokio's baby as a vessel for her to inhabit. Sakota was against this.
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To still fulfill her condition, Sakota created a clone of the baby, keeping the original one safe. However, an unexpected event caused him to misplace the babies, creating confusion between the real one and the clone. Consequently, the true identity of Tokio's child remains a mystery by the end of the story.
Robin’s Real Motives
One scene that caught us off guard was when Robin suddenly handcuffed Kiruko and threw her onto the bed, then sexually assaulted her. The manga hasn't provided an explanation for this yet, so we're left wondering why it happened. It's clear that Robin was certainly more than someone to Kiruko’s sister. In episode 12, when Kiruko first shouts at him to look her way, Robin sees in her a flashback of her sister.
However, after what he did to Kiruko, it's hard not to see him as a disgusting man. His true colors were further visible when he left behind evidence of evil activities in the Ibaraki facility, including a gruesome surgical experiment of humans with man-eaters. The lingering questions surrounding Robin suggest that we'll learn more about his character in the future.
Post-Credit Scene: Origin Of Man-Eating Monsters
Sakota and Aoshima devised a plan to free the children under the guise of a test. This seems to have worked as in the post-credit scene; we see Mimihime, Taka, Shiro, and Anzu on a boat heading towards a dazzling city filled with skyscrapers. So, what's the significance of this moment? Firstly, the events at Takahara Academy occurred in the past and unfolded simultaneously with Maru and Kiruko's story.
There are no dazzling cities in Maru and Kiruko’s post-apocalyptic world. This is further supported by Juichiro taking Maru to the now-closed school, where signs of the school’s logo (the bird-like pattern) are still visible. Mimihime and Shiro’s future have also been explored in the episode of “Immortal Order,” where it’s revealed that Dr. Usami is actually Shiro.
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Furthermore, Usami also claimed that his lover might turn into a monster and expressed gratitude to Maru for letting her die as a human. All these essentially mean that the children who escaped from Takahara Academy are the man-eaters (Hiruko) that Maru and Kiruko had been confronting on their journey. This also clarifies why Kona's drawings matched the man-eaters that Maru and Kiruko battled.
What’s Next For Maru And Kiruko?
When Kiruko rips up Robin's photo, Maru makes a heartfelt proposal to her. He professes that he's not in love with Kiriko (her sister) or Haruki Takehaya (her former self) but with the "Kiruko" standing right in front of him. This declaration is precisely what Kiruko needed to hear. Throughout the story, she's been grappling with her emotions and clinging to Robin, who makes her feel like she has a place to belong.
Maru's words provide the encouragement and reassurance she's been seeking, allowing her to finally move forward. The story not only offers an exciting and mind-bending narrative but also serves as a reminder that personal growth is often a complex and difficult process. Both Maru and Kiruko have faced numerous challenges and uncovered hidden aspects of themselves along the way. By confronting their pasts and embracing their true selves, they're able to come to terms with their feelings and grow as individuals.
Unresolved Mysteries
- Dr. Sawatari’s whereabouts: Sawatari still has many questions to answer for Kiruko, such as why he transplanted her brain into her sister's body. However, our main curiosity lies in the gunshot sound in Episode 2, right after Kiriko hugs Haruki when he's severely injured by the Man-eater's attack. Robin, who might have had feelings for her, could have been responsible for shooting Kiriko.
- Why did Mikura ask Kiruko to take Maru to Heaven?: This question remains unanswered in the manga as well. It's a puzzling request, considering Heaven shouldn't exist after the world's chaos and the collapse of Takahara Academy.
- What happened to the twin baby? Several hints suggest that Maru is Kona and Tokio's child, as he also possesses Hiruko powers – his signature 'Maru Touch.' And no doubt, both Tokio, and Maru look like carbon copies. Mikura also asked Kiruko to find his lookalike. However, it's still unclear if Maru's the real baby.
- Kona and Tokio’s fate: We know Sakota handed one of the babies to Tokio and Kona, but the future whereabouts of both characters and the other twin hasn't been revealed in the Heavenly Delusion anime ending. This mystery could be presented as a plot twist in the next installments.
- What happened to the Director?: The last update we have on the Director is her being attacked by Tokio's defensive tentacles in Episode 13. The anime concluded without showing whether she successfully transferred her consciousness into a vessel.
