The Ending Of Green Snake Explained
Thanks to Netflix, we've experienced a tremendous abundance of movies and series rooted in popular Chinese stories. The streaming service has shown its love for Wu Cheng'en's "Journey To The West," as we got to see a couple of adaptations on the tale through "The Monkey King" and "The New Legends Of Monkey." Netflix even went into the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" territory by bringing us a movie based on the "Dynasty Warriors" video game series. The streaming service continued this trend with its latest animated import, "White Snake 2: The Tribulation of the Green Snake," also known as "Green Snake."
"Green Snake" is a sequel to the 2019 film, "White Snake," and both are loosely based on the Chinese folktale, "Legend of the White Snake," in which a white snake demon falls in love with a human. While the first film felt more in line with the folktale, the sequel instead stars the green snake demon Verta. "Green Snake" kicks off with sisters Blanca and Verta confronting the monk Fahai in an intense battle. Verta is separated from her sister Blanca and transported to Asuraville.
Verta's adventure in "Green Snake" is an epic adventure full of martial arts action, mystical abilities, and a deep look at the cycle of rebirth. With that said, its ending manages to tie up a significant plot thread while also potentially unraveling another. Here's the ending of "Green Snake" explained.
A bond between sisters connects through reincarnation
While "Green Snake" focuses on the concepts of reincarnation and breaking cycles, the animated adventure film at its core is really about a transcendent sibling bond. Verta's central motivation is to find her sister Blanca, which the ending implies that she ultimately does. In the final scene, as Verta tearfully reflects on what happened to Blanca, she hears a voice calling her name and beams a smile as it appears that the person who called out for her is her sister. But while the ending showcases a heartfelt reunion between the sisters, it also tells us that Blanca indeed was with Verta as the Masked Man all along while she was trapped in Asuraville.
As Verta pieces together the fragments of her sister's hairpin with the Masked Man's bone flute at the end, it connects, confirming that the mysterious person who helped her in Asuraville is truly a reincarnation of Blanca. But really, "Green Snake" leads us with plenty of breadcrumbs before the conclusion. For instance, at one point, the Masked Man gets to choose his final face from the Ox-head Leader, but, perhaps subconsciously, takes on a face that looks like Blanca. During Verta's repeated 20-year battle with Fahai, the Masked Man is always still at Verta's side, always helping her back on her feet and keeping watch as she rests. Blanca is always connected to her sister Verta no matter when or where the two end up.
A fox-demon readies for revenge
"Green Snake" could have ended with the sisterly reunion. But partway as the credits roll, we get a particular scene involving Baoqing Fox. The fox demon and her minions appear on a bridge and acquire a special box from some type of river monster. The box has a single foxtail, and Baoqing Fox talks of finally getting revenge. Just who is on that revenge list isn't revealed, but if we can take anything away from this scene, it's that another sequel may be on the horizon, and Baoqing Fox will play a massive role in it. In the previous film, "White Snake," a similar scene occurs with Baoqing Fox as she gives the same river monster a box.
Given the success of "White Snake" and "Green Snake," it certainly would make sense for Light Chaser Animation Studios to set up hype for another film in the series. According to China Daily, "White Snake" is the most successful commercial hit from any of its folklore-related works. And "Green Snake" is also a hit, making approximately $30.86 million during its initial opening in China (via 1905 Movie Network). It seems we haven't seen the last of the snake demon sisters or this particular fox demon now focused on vengeance.