Chainsaw Man

I read all of Chainsaw Man in three days and it was a totally awesome experience. When I first started reading, I honestly had no idea what I was in for. The series first piqued my interest on Tumblr when I started seeing different panel illustrations on certain blogs that I follow. I liked the artwork because it gave me a Tokyo Gxhoul-esque vibe, and that was enough for me to start. At first, I thought the story would revolve around Denji, the main character, and his escapades in his involvement with the Japanese mafia. I quickly realized after chapter one that this was not the case, not even a little bit. After being killed by the mafia, Denji forms a contract with his devil dog, Pochita, and revives in the form of the chainsaw devil, known as Chainsaw Man. Denji is soon meant with a plethora of other characters and becomes a Public Safety Devil Hunter. Soon after Denji accepts the PSDH position, chaos ensues.

I’ve experienced my fair share of Japanese media in the form of both anime and manga, so at a certain point, it’s easy to pick on certain cliches and plots. With that being said, I was pleasantly surprised at Chainsaw Man for throwing me through more loops than a circus elephant. I thought for sure that Denji’s equivalent, Power, would certainly be a love interest, but I was completely wrong (and thank God for that). Denji and Power’s relationship is nothing short of being the most quintessential platonic relationship that’s ever existed. Once I realized that a romantic relationship wouldn’t be healthy for either Denji or Power, I decided that they had a brother-sister relationship, but that thought was quickly shattered after instances of bathing together and consensual boob grabbing (oh yeah, did I mention that Denji is a horny 16 year old boy who just wants to eat good food and touch boobs)? Denji and Power are both simply friends, nothing more, nothing less, and I think that’s beautiful.

Normally, anime/manga characters go to school or are trained heavily in their art. Denji on the other hand, never attended school and is extremely naive. Denji is very trusting, even believing words of the enemy twice (Reze), but he can’t help it. Before accepting the Public Safety Devil Hunter position, Denji was an uneducated teenager living in extreme poverty doing favors for the mafia. Denji, at times, is void of emotion and morals; a big no-no for an anime/manga protagonists. Anime/manga main characters are supposed to be caring and sympathetic towards other people, however, once forming a contract with Pochita, Denji encompasses the personality of a devil, except he’s a devil-human hybrid, so he’s not completely gone. Denji still has so much to learn.

There are some illustrations in Chainsaw Man that have truly shook me to my core. One example of this is the Darkness Devil (those who have read know exactly what I’m talking about). The Darkness Devil, according to the Wiki, is described as “a devil that embodies the primal fear of the dark”. When we think of the word “darkness," we might think of the night sky, or sleeping without a nightlight for the first time, or maybe even a furry black kitten. When I think of darkness, I think of the most terrifying mystery known to mankind, space, and it seems like the Darkness Devil thinks so too. We still don’t know much about the Darkness Devil and we still don’t know much about space; we know very little about either. We could only travel so far into space before being imploded by the pressure, and we may never go beyond the moon, thus making space exploration an extremely scary experience that’s at the same time thrilling. The Darkness Devil is the embodiment of total blackness which is illustrated in one of the most horrifying manga panels ever created; a row of astronaut torsos/heads on the left, and the legs on the right. The astronauts on the left are praying for salvation while their entrails spill out and their legs are upside down on their lower trunk with their feet sticking up. The disembodied spacemen lead a path directly to the Darkness Devil. It’s rare when anything depicted in anime/manga messes me up as much as that panel did.

There are plenty of other instances of terrifying illustrations present in Chainsaw Man, including body mutilation, extreme mass genocide (Gun Devil), grooming of a minor, betrayal, and my personal favorite, cannibalism. Even with all the gory pictures and imagery, nothing could be more horrifying than foreshadowed death. Of course I’m talking about Aki Hayakawa. Aki is foreshadowed to die so much, that it’s impossible to deny, so was I still shocked and saddened when it finally happened? Was I secretly hoping for a miracle that would spare him? Actually, yes I was, which was foolish. Few things are scarier than knowing how and when you’re going to die, and unfortunately for Aki, he knew both. I assumed that Aki would die in a way similar to other characters, being shot, beheaded, or cut up. I didn’t expect him to become a fiend with the Gun Devil and be killed by Denji. It’s almost unimaginable to witness the protagonist kill someone who has cared for and protected them, yet here we are with Chainsaw Man.

I love Chainsaw Man because it keeps me on my toes. Everything that I wrote about were examples of things that shocked me; Denji and Power’s platonic relationship, Denji’s depraved mindset, the Darkness Devil, and Aki’s foreshadowed death. This story revolves around a horny teenage boy who was thrown into perilous situations thanks to the Public Safety Devil Hunter commission. Denji isn’t smart or crafty like other more mainstream main characters in anime, in fact he can’t even read. Sometimes I need a break from main characters whose goal it is to become the strongest, or the best, or the most liked. Sometimes I need a character like Denji to make me appreciate what I have. Denji, a character who just wants to eat good food and touch boobs, will forever hold a place in my heart, and I can’t wait to see where Chainsaw Man Part 2 takes him.