Review of Chainsaw Man

If there's one show that can be summed up in two words that reached a level of unpredecented hype, it would be Chainsaw Man. Even before its anime announcement, fans were eager to see how the franchise would translate into anime form. It's a series that showcases the magnificent talent of a creator and their devotion to entertain us. And to my delight, Chainsaw Man lives up to its absolute hype. Tatsuki Fujimoto somewhat earned a reptuation even before the debut of Chainsaw Man. Their previous work 'Fire Punch' earned a cult following and when his new manga debuted, fans had high expectations. What fans maynot have expected is how Chainsaw Man reached to an international level of success as a franchise. With over 20 million copies sold and a Shogakukan Manga Award, you'd best bet that Chainsaw Man isn't your normal dark supernatural action thriller. With that being said, you should expect to see the author's style of dark humor and recurring gags at work. Chainsaw Man isn't just an anime that tries to be edgy and or be violent for the sake of violence.

Going into Chainsaw Man, I was familiar with Tatsuki's work so I was not entirely caught unprepared for his new work. What did catch me somewhat off guard is the higher detailed level of violence. Even for an supernatural action series, some of the violence may throw people off. The series is no stranger to body horror, gruesome scenes, and fights that pushes the boundary of violence. Some may even call it as a work of art, as the scenes showcase of how powerful supernatural entities can be. What was the author's message? You'll soon fight out as the violence appears to be crafted to match with the series' context and themes. Let me just say that Chainsaw Man's violence is one of the few series I believe is done right. The anime explores its violent context through by showing the weakness of humanity. Yes, some people will call it repulsive and over the line. Others will celebrate it as a testament of how violence can be satisfyingly entertaining to watch when it's done right. This is one of those times.

Enough about all the talk about violence though. We should take a deeper look at the premise, storytelling, and characters of Chainsaw Man. From what the promotional material has shown us, it's a show that takes place in a world where entities known as Devils exist. Born from the emotions and fears of humans, these Devils are the personifications of humanity's vulnerabilities. It's as if the show made it look like the humans are their own worst enemies. Because in reality, fear is developed by one's inner emotions triggered by an effect. Chainsaw Man's Devils represents the consequences of those effects. My first impression based on this premise didn't feel too ectastic at first as there are familiar shows similar to this, most noticably Jujutsu Kaisen. Chainsaw Man obviously amps up the violence and made this much more darker.

From the first episode, we meet Denji. He is part of a group of Devil Hunters, individuals who are contracted to hunt down and kill other Devils. And honestly, Denji's first impressions are not exactly what I call impressive. He's branded with a childish-like personality with poor social skills and high libido. He lusts after the head of Public Safety Division 4 Makima and has no quirms about feeling other female characters' breasts when given the chance. Don't believe me? Just ask Power, another Devil Hunter who offered Denji the chance of a life time. Nontheless. this season only scratches the surface of Denji's character and as a consequence, most of his character details relies in the manga, at least for now. Getting there would take more animated episodes but Denji may give mixed impressions for audience. Thankfully, we also have Power, the childish yet highly entertaining Devil/Devil Hunterwho speaks whatever is on her mind. Power represents a balance of Devil and humanity as she displays traits from both species. One, she is childish and demanding with awkward social skills. However, she also displays a strong degree of lust for killing and battle, a trait similar to most Devils seen in the show. Compared to other characters, Power is perhaps most entertaining to watch for her personality and character chemistry with others. Still, we can't forget other colorful cast of Chainsaw Man with characters like Makina. Introduced with an aura of mysterious vibe, she displays leadership skills with a sense of authority and control. Watching her character this season doesn't do full justice to the anime but will spark an immense amount of curiousity about her ambitions in the show. This similarly applies to characters such as Aki who gets their spotlight but only on the surface for now. However, the one character that stands out above all others is Pochita, the Chainsaw Devil. He is the reason that Denji became a Devil Hunter. We don't actually see Pochita much this season but he remains one of the most important characters in the series.

You may ask yourself what draws the audience to Chainsaw Man? Is it truly because of the gratifying violence and gore? Is it for the creative story? Or perhaps its colorful cast of characters? It's a bit of complicated question because this show is not aimed towards everyone. Parents of young children would definitely raise some eyebrows after they've seen the first episode. This is more geared towards yound adults and more specifically, fans who'd appreciate a supernatural action thriller with a touch of mystery and dark humor. Still, Chainsaw Man promoted itself exceptionally well with its artwork, previews, and hype. It's no surprise that even if you're not an anime fan, you may have heard of this title on social media with our ever expanding social media age.

As one of the biggest shows to air this year, Madhouse and its staff had their hands on and carefully planned this out from day one. Their creative direction made it clear that they wanted the anime adaptation to be the best that it can be. Thankfully, our eyeballs are treated with glorious uncensored violence and gory scenes that stays faithful to the material. Can I just say that every episode felt like it wanted to surpass the previous? While this isn't always the case, the animation quality definitely lives up to its expectations. With 12 different ED theme songs and eyecatchy opening sequence of references, it feels like the anime itself is an art piece.

Chainsaw Man doesn't take rocket science level of logic to understand but it can take some time to adapt to watching yourself especially for new viewers. This is just the first part because the manga dives so much more into the character narrative and storytelling. Let me just say that from what we've seen thus far, this is just the tip of the iceberg. For all of its hype, there's no doubt Chainsaw Man will be talked for generations to come.