Chainsaw Man — The Next Biggest Thing in Anime

I don’t mean to brag, but I called it!

One time, out of sheer boredom, I searched for a manga to read, but the kind that doesn’t yet have an anime adaptation. That didn’t just happen the one time, actually; it happened many, many times. This one specific time, however, I stumbled on this fresh, new manga with the cheesiest name ever. I checked it out, and the first thing that I noticed was this guy holding his pet dog in his arms, and the dog also happened to be a chainsaw. I thought, “a guy with a cute dog that’s also a chainsaw?” I immediately knew this was a hit in the making. But in retrospect, that was probably just a hunch… a creative hunch.

Regardless, I was right, and Chainsaw Man is hogging most of the anime buzz right now. Heck, it was a hit before it even had an anime, which is airing now in Japan. Initially, I planned to write about it after just reviewing the first episode; however, I liked it so much that I ended up waiting to write this after only the third episode because I felt that watching just one episode wouldn’t be enough for something to write about. And now here I am, after watching three excellent episodes, I know how magnificent Chainsaw Man will be.

But there’s more to the success of Chainsaw Man beyond just a cute chainsaw dog and a guy with shark teeth. What is it about exactly? And better yet, what is the show like?

It’s about a guy… who’s also a chainsaw

As usual, I’ll try to avoid spoilers… but I make no promises.

Chainsaw Man tells the story of Denji (no surname), who is ambiguously aged as either a teenager or a young adult. Regardless, Denji is a young man who is broke and deep in his father’s debts that he has to sell one of his testicles to make ends meet, and even then, it isn’t enough. Denji lives in a world where “devils” exist; monstrous beings that embody humanity’s darkest ideas, and the darker the thought, the stronger the beast. Luckily, devil hunters usually deal with those kinds of creatures, but where does Denji fit into all of this? Well… Denji befriended a devil called Pochita, the aforementioned cute dog that’s also a chainsaw. Long story short, Denji and Pochita got killed, and Pochita sacrificed himself to save Denji’s life while also turning him into a really powerful “devil” themed around a chainsaw. He cuts people up and gets the attention of a fancy devil hunter group, where his new life begins and where we start the story.

I immediately noticed the first episode’s minimalist approach, which contrasts the usual shonen formula (anime aimed towards young men), where everything starts with a bang and goes straight into the action. It is quiet and subtle and makes you realize the true beauty of this anime’s narrative because most anime these days tend to give all the information verbally and upfront — and that can quickly fill up the screen with subtitled text. In contrast, in Chainsaw Man, all one has to do is relax and be fascinated with Denji’s devil-cutting skills. The anime is keen on action and storytelling, not compromising on either, and the character design is sure to capture the eye with how grotesque some of these devils are. This show also loves to rain buckets of blood with how violent it is. If anything, it taught me that today’s standards, at least for anime, have far fewer restrictions than anime from 20 years ago because I’ve never seen a shonen this bloody before, as if its primary purpose is to showcase how much blood there can be in a single episode. As for Denji, one of the more interesting aspects about him is that he doesn’t dream big like most protagonists (be number one, be the best, etc.), as all he wants is to have a decent lunch, and that’s all that he needs to motivate him to do his work. Basically, Chainsaw Man is a story about a humble guy, who kicks ass when he needs to, told differently and elegantly, and is a nice change of pace for people looking for something special to watch that is atypical of 99% of all anime shonen anime. Also, the fight scenes are spectacular… and just plain awesome.

So yeah, I’m going to watch Chainsaw Man until the very last episode.

Do you use a chainsaw, man?

I tried too hard with that one.

Anyways, the series is three episodes in, so I wonder if anyone but me has seen at least one episode. The answer is obviously “yes”, except I don’t know anyone in particular who knows of this show. Not that it matters, because if you have seen Chainsaw Man, then be sure to tell me your impressions here.

In Conclusion…

So… I clearly think that Chainsaw Man is incredible, and if you have nothing better to watch and if you like anime, then yes, I recommend watching it.

Other than that, there’s not much else to say. Go watch Chainsaw Man; that’s the only thing remaining to be said. Enjoy.