okay, fine, Chainsaw Man is pretty awesome

It can’t be understated how insane the hype for Chainsaw Man was. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a new anime get the same level of excitement going into it that this one did! Even before we saw the first trailer, fans of the series were bouncing up and down like kids on Christmas!

Chainsaw Man is a series that I’ve been aware of for some time. But despite countless months of seeing excited (and horny; mostly horny) fans raving about it, I never read the manga. It wasn’t even that I was waiting for the anime; I just never got around to it.

And now I have to admit that they were right. This series is pretty fuckin’ awesome.

Inhereting his father’s debt to the mob, Denji and his pet devil-chainsaw-dog thing Pochita hunt devils to help make cash. When the mob turns against Denji, Pochita merges with him, turning Denji into a bizarre devil-human hybrid. Not long after, he’s recruited by Makima to work for Special Division 4 of the Devil Hunters. After living in poverty his whole life, Denji is determined to live the good life. And bonus: if he kills the Gun Devil, the most powerful and dangerous devil around, he gets to bang his boss!

This series is an absolute rollercoaster in the best possible way. One minute you’re enjoying some cute character interactions, the next you’re witnessing some truly mend-bending horror, the next you’re cringing because a girl just barfed into Denji’s mouth. It’s a perfect blend of action, comedy, and horror, and it was a delight to watch from start to end!

Denji is one of the most fun shounen protagonists we’ve seen in a long time. He’s not some pillar of moral virtue, like Demon Slayer’s Tanjiro or Jujutsu Kaisen’s Itadori. The kid is a disgusting degenerate whose primary goal is to have sex with beautiful women, eat good food, and generally do whatever the hell he wants. He’s shameless, bone-dead stupid, and as savage as a wild animal.

And I love him. So damn much.

The rest of the cast is just as compelling and likable. Power is disgusting and she put a dumb smile on my face every time she showed up. Aki is a wonderful take on the Sasuke archetype. Makima is so terrifying that I wrote an entire article about it. The whole cast is wonderful, even if certain members haven’t had the time they need to really develop yet.

Kobeni is just female Zenitsu. Keep that in mind the next time you look up spicy fanart, ya horny bastards.

Now, the actual story itself isn’t anything new. It’s pretty much what you’d expect from a shounen. However, the themes it tackles are far more mature and interesting than one would expect from this genre. This isn’t ‘beat the bad guy with the power of friendship.’ Chainsaw Man explores deeper themes of self-identity, loss, trauma, and a search for purpose. It can get pretty dark in its exploration of some of those ideas, as well. It’s incredibly fascinating and I can’t wait to see how the series develops it moving forward.

Also, this is a smaller thing, but I absolutely love the power system in this show. Devils are truly weird and bizarre, growing more powerful the more people are afraid of them. Meanwhile, Devil Hunters make contracts with devils for power, giving up bits of themselves to be able to fight. This leads to some really creative, creepy, or just fun action and horror set pieces.

Side note: the Future Devil is my guy. I don’t even want to make a contract or anything, I just wanna shoot the shit with him.

Now, let’s talk presentation. Once again, MAPPA steps into the spotlight of the season, promising a visual powerhouse by whipping their poor, overworked animators to the bone once again. Needless to say, the poor crew needs a break.

Especially after making a show that looks this fucking good!

It truly cannot be understated how good Chainsaw Man looks. The team behind it absolutely went above and beyond, creating one of the most cinematic, visually engaging, and grotesque shounen anime of the last few years! Fuck, dude, they straight up did completely unique EDs for every single episode and they’re all amazing!

Some try to argue that the show looks bad because it uses CGI. Usually, that’s the depth of their argument; there is CG, therefor it is bad. But in fact, the opposite is true. It’s because of this CG that the show looks so good! The models all look great and they’re blended together with the 2D brilliantly!

When the action kicks up, this show looks downright insane. Even the smallest battles are a bloody festival of sakuga! It’s jaw-dropping!

My one complaint is the music. Don’t get me wrong, it ain’t bad. The OP is a banger and every single ED is fantastic. But the actual score of the show really doesn’t do much. I can’t remember a single track.

Granted, that’s mostly because there’s just not a lot of music in this show. Instead, it focuses more on ambient sounds in the environment. That, I love; it makes the show feel believable and immersive in a way few shounen anime can manage.

Overall, Chainsaw Man is absolutely insane! It’s gross, it’s bizarre, it’s horrifying and hilarious, and I loved every second of it! I was gripped right from the start of the first episode all the way up to the end!

And now I’ll have to read the manga. Spoilers have been getting harder and harder to avoid these days.

Lewd spoilers are still spoilers, fan artists. Keep it in your pants.