Review of Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Entertainment District Arc
In 2019, Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba took the world by storm when its anime was released. In 2020, it happened again with the release of Demon Slayer -Kimetsu no Yaiba- The Movie: Mugen Train, which quickly became the best selling anime movie of all time, surpassing even the untouchable Spirited Away. To some, it seemed unlikely to happen again, but, regardless of the odds, in 2021, Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Entertainment District Arc came to the small screens, and, once again, become a sensation. As with any large successful franchise, this quickly brought rise to questions of if Demon Slayer truly deserved suchsuccess, or if it was simply by some chance of fate that made it the hit it became. A question that I believe has one simple answer; it does.
To begin, the Entertainment District Arc of Demon Slayer is easily one of the greatest in the series. Filled with tons of character, mystery, and fights to be had, it’s the series at its best, exhibiting peak performance without fail. What begins as an ordinary mission quickly becomes something else entirely, and the evolution and turns the narrative takes in this arc are about as good as they get.
Our main characters remain just as fun, lovable and full of personality as ever, and the characters newly introduced and given focus show their stuff as well. With the distinctive art style of Demon Slayer, every design is wonderful and fantastic-looking, making every character feel quite memorable in their appearance. As always, the show strikes a good balance of the over-the-top insane comedic moments and the more low-key and sweet, giving us a well balanced experience.
And, regarding the art, the animation remains just as crisp and fantastic as always, giving us action-packed, smooth, kinetic battling animations to absolutely lose one’s mind over. The Breathing Styles wielded by our protagonists remain as beautiful a sight to behold as ever, and ufotable certainly held nothing back this season in terms of the off-the-walls lighting and effects tying it all together. It’s a jaw-dropping experience that still feels as if it shouldn’t even exist.
Coming off of ufotable’s success, this season of Demon Slayer again brings a wonderful soundtrack in both its boppin opening and ending, as well as the music that fills each episode, both ambient and high-octane. The notable Classical Japanese motif returns in full force and, combined with the use of some musical leitmotifs at key pieces, makes this season’s OST a fantastic one as well.
And mostly overall I think I would simply say that it’s a fantastically fun time, filled with laughs, action, and epicness aplenty. Getting each new episode each week was a wonderful experience as the story crept onwards in ways I didn’t expect. It truly made for a really good time I felt, and that’s not to be undersold.
-
While I don’t find them major deal breakers, it isn’t to say that this season of Demon Slayer is perfect either. For one, at least compared to the first season, the world evolution here is comparatively little, adding only a bit more to the existing features and not widening the scope much. This point isn’t entirely bad, as that wider scale world growth clearly isn’t the intent for this arc, but it remains a factor nonetheless if one is interested in that part of shows.
An issue of more notable extent though is that of the season’s pacing. While the later sections of the season have a consistent and fast pace, the early sections of the arc notably drag somewhat. That’s not to say the content in those episodes are unimportant, but simply that they feel notably slower and hold less momentum than the later parts.
As briefly mentioned before, I believe this season is (currently for the animated content at least) Demon Slayer at its absolutely best. The season makes the most of season 1 and the movie’s set up to allow its compelling plot to flow seamlessly forward while continuing the growth of our characters from those stories. As such, I hardly think it’s an exaggeration to say that this culmination of what Demon Slayer has done so far holds quality equal to what that title might bring one to expect.
In conclusion, the second season of Demon Slayer proves an even greater continuation of the franchise, carrying with it all the greatness therein pertained. With a great and interesting plot, fantastic characters new and old, gorgeous and smooth animation, and a wonderful soundtrack, it all forms a great fun time, even if it suffers from some limited pacing issues and doesn’t do much to expand the world. I’d certainly consider it Demon Slayer at its best and absolutely worth the hype.
Grade - A