Chainsaw Man
Japanese manga series by Tatsuki Fujimoto From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Chainsaw Man (Japanese: チェンソーマン, Hepburn: Chensō Man) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Tatsuki Fujimoto. Its first arc was serialized in Shueisha's shōnen manga magazine Weekly Shōnen Jump from December 2018 to December 2020; its second arc began serialization in Shueisha's Shōnen Jump+ app and website in July 2022. Its chapters have been collected in 20 tankōbon volumes as of April 2025.
| Chainsaw Man | |
| |
| チェンソーマン (Chensō Man) | |
|---|---|
| Genre | |
| Manga | |
| Written by | Tatsuki Fujimoto |
| Published by | Shueisha |
| English publisher | |
| Imprint | Jump Comics |
| Magazine |
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| English magazine | |
| Demographic | Shōnen |
| Original run | December 3, 2018 – present |
| Volumes | 20 |
| Anime television series | |
| |
| Anime film | |
Chainsaw Man follows the story of Denji, an impoverished teenager who makes a contract that fuses his body with that of Pochita, the dog-like Chainsaw Devil, granting him the ability to transform parts of his body into chainsaws. Denji eventually joins the Public Safety Devil Hunters, a government agency focused on fighting against Devils whenever they become a threat to Japan. The second arc of the story focuses on Asa Mitaka, a high school student who enters into a contract with Yoru, the War Devil, who forces her to hunt down Chainsaw Man in order to reclaim what he had stolen from her.
In North America, the manga is licensed in English by Viz Media, for both print and digital release, and it is also published by Shueisha on the Manga Plus online platform. An anime television series adaptation produced by MAPPA was broadcast from October to December 2022. An anime film, titled Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc, is set to premiere in September 2025.
By December 2024, the manga had over 30 million copies in circulation, making it one of the best-selling manga series of all time. In 2021, it won the 66th Shogakukan Manga Award in the shōnen category and won the Harvey Awards in the Best Manga category from 2021 to 2023. Chainsaw Man has been overall well received by critics, who have commended its storytelling, characters, dark humor, and have particularly highlighted its violent scenes within the context of the story.
Synopsis
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Setting
The series is set in 1997, in an alternate timeline where the Soviet Union still exists. Devils (悪魔, Akuma) are born from human fears. Devil Hunters (デビルハンター, Debiru Hantā) specialize in hunting them and often make contracts with them in exchange for power. Devils possess the ability to reincarnate; when Devils die on Earth, they reincarnate in Hell, and vice versa. However, when a Devil is eaten by the Chainsaw Devil, the fear associated with it is erased from human memory; the Holocaust, AIDS, and nuclear weapons were collectively forgotten.
Plot
Part 1: Public Safety Arc
Denji is a teenager trapped in poverty, working off his deceased father's debt to the yakuza by working as a Devil Hunter, aided by Pochita, his canine companion and the Chainsaw Devil. Denji is betrayed by the yakuza, who kill him for a contract with the Zombie Devil. Pochita makes a contract with Denji, merging with him as a Devil-human hybrid, under the condition that Denji live out his modest dreams of living a basic life such as having bread with jam, or falling in love with a woman and being intimate with one. By pulling on a cord in his chest, Denji then becomes Chainsaw Man and massacres the yakuza.
In the aftermath, Denji joins a team of governmental Devil Hunters, the Public Safety Division, led by Makima, who assigns him to kill the Gun Devil. After being paired with a more experienced Devil Hunter named Aki Hayakawa, Denji begins training with his partner, Power the Blood Fiend, under the veteran Devil Hunter Kishibe. Together, they fight several enemies who seek Denji's power, including the yakuza, other Devils, and assassins sent by various countries.
Makima is later revealed to be the Control Devil, who is ultimately seeking to control Pochita, as he has the power to erase concepts from existence by consuming their Devils. The Gun Devil—whose body had secretly been divided among several countries as a superweapon—is sent by the United States to kill Makima, but she defeats it, forcing it to enter Aki's body as the Gun Fiend, whom Denji kills in self-defense. Makima later kills Power in front of Denji, rendering him catatonic and forcing Pochita to take over his body.
Kishibe organizes a raid to rescue Denji alongside cowardly Public Safety operative Kobeni Higashiyama. With their help and the last of Power's blood, Denji kills Makima. Some time later, Kishibe places the reborn Control Devil—a little girl named Nayuta—in Denji's care. In a dream, Pochita thanks Denji for showing him his dreams, and encourages him to live his life to the fullest. Denji begins attending high school while also fighting Devils as a vigilante.
Part 2: School Arc
Asa Mitaka, an introverted high school student struggling to find her place in society after her mother's death at the hands of the Typhoon Devil, forms a contract with the War Devil, Yoru, to save her life. Yoru inhabits Asa's body under the condition that they kill Chainsaw Man. After defeating the Typhoon Devil, Asa seeks to end the contract, while Yoru aims to use her body to resurrect the Nuclear Weapons Devil. Meanwhile, Denji attends the same school as Asa, balancing his life as Chainsaw Man with raising Nayuta, the Control Devil reincarnated as his adoptive sister. Despite his fame, Denji's attempts to reveal his identity are thwarted by classmate and government operative Hirofumi Yoshida. Yoshida introduces Asa to Denji, who admits to being Chainsaw Man, but Asa dismisses his claim. A mysterious impostor Chainsaw Man emerges, killing Asa's friend, Yuko.
After surviving a trap set by the Famine Devil, Fami, at an aquarium, Yoru attempts to transform Denji into a weapon through Asa but fails. Asa faces rejection from boys she trusts, and the Falling Devil attacks, attempting to cook her. Denji, as Chainsaw Man, and the impostor intervene, saving her. Fami and Nayuta manipulate events in the background, with Fami aiming to alter the Prophecy of Nostradamus and prevent the Death Devil's emergence, while Nayuta focuses on mundane desires like attending school. Following the Falling Devil's attack, Denji, Nayuta, and their dogs are captured by Yoshida's organization. The Chainsaw Man Society for World Peace, led by Haruka Iseumi, emerges, supported by Fami. Yoshida threatens to kill Nayuta if Denji transforms again, escalating tensions between Chainsaw Man's supporters and critics. Denji, conflicted, chooses to quit being Chainsaw Man to protect his normal life.
The Chainsaw Man Society, revealed to be working for Fami, debuts an imposter Chainsaw Man. Fami explains that Yoru's goal to kill Chainsaw Man and Asa's desire to save him can coexist, as there are two Chainsaw Men—Denji (the "red") and Pochita's former form (the "black"). Denji encounters Miri Sugo, a former foe, who fails to recruit him for the Church. The Church's public attack is intercepted by Quanxi and Katana Man. Barem Bridge, a Church operative, reveals members are contracted with the Fire Devil, enabling them to transform into Chainsaw Man-like Devils, aiming to incite war and strengthen Yoru and Chainsaw Man to combat the Death Devil. Quanxi rescues Denji, Nayuta, and student Fumiko Mifune from the Church, delivering them to Public Safety, which identifies cremation as the method to kill Church Devils. Asa and Yoru, confronted by Yoshida, escape as their power grows due to increasing war fears, allowing them to create weapons without physical contact. Denji attempts to return to normal life, but Barem burns down his apartment and kills his pets, prompting Denji to transform and attack Barem and his group. Nayuta seemingly sacrifices herself to save Denji, who is taken by Yoshida and Fumiko.
Public Safety imprisons Denji at the Tokyo Devil Detention Center, using his body for amputations. A week later, Asa, Yoru, and Fami free him. Barem presents what appears to be Nayuta's severed head to Denji, driving him into a rampage. Public Safety exploits this, attempting to restore erased concepts by having Chainsaw Man vomit consumed Devils. They plan to contract with the Aging Devil to erase the concept of aging, but Denji, with Yoshida and Fumiko's help, traps the Aging Devil in its domain, using it as leverage. Yoshida offers Denji a deal: allow Yoru to turn him into a weapon to fight the Death Devil in exchange for killing him, revealing Public Safety's involvement in Nayuta's fate. Disgusted with their recent actions, Asa, Yoru, and Denji cut ties with them where Yoru instead makes a deal with Denji: defeat the Death Devil in exchange for having a sexual relationship with her or she turns him into a weapon on failure, though Asa warns him that Yoru's newfound intentions may lead to a scenario worse than the prophecy.
Meanwhile, the Death Devil is seemingly revealed to be a nervous high school student, but she is confronted by the impostor Chainsaw Man. The impostor easily overpowers her, but she reveals herself as the Famine Devil meaning that "Fami" was actually Death the whole time. Death arrives and uses her abilities to enslave Fami and the impostor before tasking them to plunge mankind into an "abyss of terror", kickstarting the prophecy.
Production
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Despite the series' violence and dark humor, Tatsuki Fujimoto always wanted to serialize in Weekly Shōnen Jump, but he had the feeling that his work would be "buried" if he had made a "Jump-like manga", so he tried to retain much of his individuality as a creator while making only the structure and characters Jump-like. Fujimoto also said that, despite its success in the magazine, he wanted to write the second part of the series on Shōnen Jump+, because he wanted to do a completely different series from the first part. According to him, there is not much of a difference in working between Weekly Shōnen Jump and Shōnen Jump+, explaining that there were a few depictions that got stopped during the rough draft stage, but he was allowed to do anything he wanted regarding the logic of the story.[5]
Fujimoto said that he took inspiration from various works. During the serialization of Chainsaw Man, Fujimoto said that he was too busy, but he watched as many new things as he could and borrowed various elements from what he saw.[5] On Twitter, he stated that he was a fan of the 2016 film trilogy Kizumonogatari, and that the trilogy's final battle, shown in Part 3: Reiketsu, inspired the final battle of the first part of Chainsaw Man.[6] He also described the series as a "wicked FLCL" and a "pop Abara."[7] Fujimoto had various elements from the series planned from the beginning, while other things were added as it progressed. He did not have specific plans to bring payoff to the meaningful-sounding words and things that felt "off", adding that he left various things vague to make the series' second part easier to do.[5]
Media
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Manga
Chainsaw Man is written and illustrated by Tatsuki Fujimoto. The series' first part, "Public Safety Arc" (公安編, Kōan-hen), ran in Shueisha's shōnen manga anthology Weekly Shōnen Jump from December 3, 2018,[8][9] to December 14, 2020;[10][11] following the series' conclusion in Weekly Shōnen Jump, a second part was announced to start on Shueisha's Shōnen Jump+ online magazine.[12] On December 19, 2020, it was announced that the second part, "School Arc" (学校編, Gakkō-hen), would feature Denji going to school.[13][14] The second part began serialization on July 13, 2022.[15][16] Shueisha has collected its chapters into individual tankōbon volumes. The first volume was released on March 4, 2019.[17] As of April 4, 2025, 20 volumes have been released.[18]
In North America, Viz Media published the series' first two chapters on their Weekly Shonen Jump digital magazine for its "Jump Start" initiative.[1][19] The series was then published on the Shonen Jump digital platform after the cancellation of Weekly Shonen Jump.[19] Shueisha also simulpublished the series in English on the app and website Manga Plus starting in January 2019.[20] In February 2020, Viz Media announced the digital and print release of the manga.[21] Viz Media posted an official trailer for the manga, featuring a high-octane opera vocals as its soundtrack.[22] The first volume was released on October 6, 2020.[23] As of January 7, 2025, 17 volumes have been released.[24]
Anime
On December 14, 2020, it was announced that the manga would receive an anime television series adaptation produced by MAPPA.[25][26] It had a stage presentation at the Jump Festa '21, as part of the Jump Studio series of stage presentations that were held online on December 19–20, 2020.[27][28] The first trailer for the anime series was shown at the "MAPPA Stage 2021 – 10th Anniversary" event, held on June 27, 2021.[29][30] The anime was directed by Ryū Nakayama (director) and Makoto Nakazono (chief episode director), with scripts by Hiroshi Seko, character designs by Kazutaka Sugiyama, and devil designs by Kiyotaka Oshiyama. Tatsuya Yoshihara served as action director and Yūsuke Takeda directed the art. Naomi Nakano was the color key artist and Yohei Miyahara designed the screens.[31][32][33] The series was broadcast on TV Tokyo and other networks from October 12 to December 28, 2022.[34][35][36][a]
Crunchyroll has licensed the series for streaming outside of Asia, and premiered an English dub on October 25, 2022.[38][39] The series was released on home video in the United Kingdom on December 18, 2023.[40] Medialink licensed the series in Asia-Pacific.[41]
Film
On December 17, 2023, at the Jump Festa '24 event, an anime film entitled Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc (劇場版 チェンソーマン レゼ篇, Gekijō-ban Chensō Man Reze-hen), was announced.[42] The film is set to premiere in Japan on September 19, 2025 and will be distributed by Toho. The staff is returning from the anime series, while Tatsuya Yoshihara will serve as the director.[43][44]
Novel
A novel, titled Chainsaw Man: Buddy Stories (チェンソーマン バディ・ストーリーズ, Chensō Man Badi Sutōrīzu), written by Sakaku Hishikawa, with illustrations by Tatsuki Fujimoto,[45] was published on November 4, 2021.[46][47] It tells three stories focused on a theme of "buddies" about Power and Denji, Kishibe and Quanxi during their partner era, and Himeno and Aki around the time they first met.[48]
Viz Media licensed the novel and released it on July 25, 2023.[49][50]
Stage play
On December 29, 2022, it was announced that the series would receive a stage play adaptation, directed and written by Fumiya Matsuzaki, music composed by Shunsuke Wada and choreographed by Hidali. Titled Chainsaw Man The Stage, it ran in Tokyo from September 16 to October 1 at The Galaxy Theatre, and in Kyoto from October 6–9, 2023, at the Kyoto Theater. The cast includes Naotake Tsuchiya as Denji, Mizuki Umetsu as Aki Hayakawa, Mahiru Coda as Power, Minami Tsukui as Himeno, Haruki Iwata as Kobeni Higashiyama, and Aya Hirano as Makima.[51][52]
Other media
An exhibition, "Chainsaw Man Manga Exhibition", ran at the Space Hachikai gallery area of Tower Records, Shibuya, from June 12 to July 4, 2021.[53]
Good Smile Company launched Nendoroid figures based on characters from the series in October 2021, including Denji, Pochita and Power.[54][55] Denji made a cameo in the superhero manga series My Hero Academia in chapter 259, as part of the hero raid in the Paranormal War Liberation arc.[56]
A browser game commemorating the release of the manga's fifteenth volume was released for free on August 4, 2023.[57] From September 6 to November 4, 2024, Universal Studios Japan hosted the "Chainsaw Man × Hollywood Dream – The Ride (Kick Back)" attraction based on the series, as part of the Halloween Horror Night event. Other attraction was the reverse-facing roller coaster called "Hollywood Dream – The Ride (Backdrop)".[58]
A crossover collaboration with the mobile video game BanG Dream! Girls Band Party!, ran from December 15–25, 2024. The collaboration included five characters from the game in the style of five respective Chainsaw Man characters, two covers of the anime theme songs "Chainsaw Blood" and "Fighting Song", login gifts, and more. The crossover also included a limited-time "Chainsaw Ampl'if'ier" event, which lasted until December 23.[59]
Reception
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Popularity
Chainsaw Man ranked fourth on Takarajimasha's Kono Manga ga Sugoi! list of best manga of 2020 for male readers,[60] and topped the 2021 list.[61][62][63] On Freestyle magazine's The Best Manga 2020 Kono Manga wo Yome! list, the series ranked twelfth,[64] and sixteenth along with Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, on the 2021 list.[65] It ranked second, behind Spy × Family, on "Nationwide Bookstore Employees' Recommended Comics of 2020" by the Honya Club online bookstore.[66] In 2020, Chainsaw Man ranked tenth in the "Most Wanted Anime Adaptation" poll conducted by AnimeJapan.[67] The series ranked 45th on the 2020 "Book of the Year" list by Da Vinci magazine;[68] it ranked 43rd on the 2021 list.[69] On TV Asahi's Manga Sōsenkyo 2021 poll, in which 150,000 people voted for their top 100 manga series, Chainsaw Man ranked 58th.[70] The series placed twelfth on the annual Twitter Japan's Trend Awards in 2021, based on the social network's top trending topics of the year.[71]
Sales
By August 2020, the manga had over 3 million copies in circulation;[72][7] it had over 4.2 million copies in circulation by October 2020;[73] over 5 million copies in circulation by December 2020;[74][61] over 6.4 million copies in circulation by January 2021;[75] over 9.3 million copies in circulation by March 2021;[76] over 11 million copies in circulation by June 2021;[77][78] over 12 million copies in circulation by December 2021;[79] over 13 million copies in circulation by June 2022;[80] over 15 million copies in circulation by August 2022;[81] over 16 million copies in circulation by September 2022;[82] over 18 million copies in circulation by October 2022;[83][84] over 20 million copies in circulation by November 2022;[85] over 23 million copies in circulation by January 2023;[86] over 24 million copies in circulation by May 2023;[87] over 26 million copies in circulation by August 2023;[88] over 27 million copies in circulation by May 2024;[89] over 28 million copies in circulation by August 2024;[90] over 29 million copies in circulation by November 2024;[91] and over 30 million copies in circulation by December 2024.[92]
Chainsaw Man was the fifth best-selling manga series in the first half of 2021 (period between November 2020 and May 2021), with over 4 million copies sold.[93] In 2021, it was the seventh best-selling manga with over 5 million copies sold.[94] It was the second best-selling manga series in the first half of 2023 (period between November 2022 and May 2023), with over 4.4 million copies sold,[95] while volumes 12–14 were among the best-selling manga volumes from the same period.[96] Volumes 13 and 14 were among the best-selling manga volumes of 2023.[97] Volume 14 was Shueisha's sixth highest first print run manga volume of 2023–2024 (period from April 2023 to March 2024), with 800,000 copies printed;[98] volume 17 had an initial print run of 500,000 copies, making it the publisher's eighth highest first print run manga volume of 2024–2025 (period from April 2024 to March 2025).[99]
In North America, the volumes of Chainsaw Man were ranked on Circana (formerly NPD) BookScan's monthly top 20 adult graphic novels list since October 2020.[100] They were also ranked on The New York Times' Graphic Books and Manga bestseller monthly list since April 2021.[101] According to ICv2, Chainsaw Man was the tenth best-selling manga franchise for Q4 2021 (September–December) in the United States, and it was also the third "most efficient manga franchise" for retailer bookshelves, based on the website's calculations of which manga franchises had the highest sales per volume.[102] According to NPD BookScan, the first three volumes of Chainsaw Man were ranked among the top 20 highest-selling manga volumes in 2021;[103] it was the best-selling manga series in 2022, with eight volumes featured on the top 20 highest-selling manga volumes;[104] four volumes were among the top 20 highest-selling manga volumes in 2023.[105] The first volume sold 18,000 copies in the United States in 2020, and the eight volumes collectively sold 623,000 copies in 2021.[106]
Critical reception
Chainsaw Man has been overall well received by critics. James Beckett of Anime News Network ranked the first volume as a B+. Beckett commented, "[Chainsaw Man is] goofy, kinky, dark, and bizarre, which is already the kind of tonal mishmash I'm generally down for in my art," praising as well its compelling world-building and character development, adding that the volume "earns plenty of goodwill by committing to its surprisingly earnest and charming brand of ferocious bloodletting."[107] Nicholas Dupree from the same website commented, "[i]t's a bizarre, unpredictable, and undeniably unique thrill ride, and love it or hate it, there's nothing else quite like it."[108] Hannah Collins of Comic Book Resources gave the series a positive review, stating, "Chainsaw Man bears all the hallmarks of a standard supernatural action series, but its quieter moments are where its dark heart beats fastest."[109] Polygon's Julia Lee gave the series a positive review, commenting, "Chainsaw Man is considered one of Shonen Jump's best new series, and for good reason. The graphic rip-and-tear fights, paired with a unique and funny story about devils makes for one great manga."[110] Sheena McNeil of Sequential Tart gave the first volume a 9/10. McNeil stated, "I did not think I was going to enjoy this manga. I'm glad I was wrong!" She noted that the series has similar elements from Army of Darkness, Devilman, Dorohedoro and inspiration from various devil-hunting series, recommending it to fans of those works.[111]
Anna Neatrour of Manga Report gave a positive review to the first volume, calling its monster fighting, "buckets of gore", and humor "plenty amusing," and calling Denji an "incredibly damaged but potentially powerful hero."[112] Reviewing the first volume, Danica Davidson of Otaku USA called the series "a little creepy" and "downright bizarre," adding however, that it is "a bloody, action-packed shōnen with some heart showing through the weirdness, and it's been very successful in Japan."[113] Following her "read-a-thoning" of the series, Katherine Dacey of The Manga Critic commented that she finished it with a "grudging respect for Fujimoto's excessive, ridiculous creation, which entertained and repelled me in equal measure. Your mileage will vary."[114] Ian Wolf of Anime UK News gave the first volume a 6/10. Wolf wrote that the main feature of the series is the action sequences, but criticized the lack of depth in writing, concluding, "Chainsaw Man has some things going for it and hopefully may well build up from a promising start."[115]
Fujimoto's art style has also been commended. Collins praised Fujimoto's penmanship, stating that the "thickly-sketched lines on individual characters and still moments convey the rough edges of [its] world."[109] Dupree lauded the series' art style, stating, "as the Devil enemies of the story grow more powerful, his imagination for bizarre, abstract, and genuinely unsettling visual storytelling reaches heights I've never seen in a Jump series before."[108] Beckett called the character designs and general linework "a bit generic at first glance," but that when "the carnage comes flooding in," the series "has a clarity of style and consistency of vision that can be wondrous to behold."[107] McNeil said that the character designs, other than Pochita and Chainsaw Man, are "not memorable," but that the art "really shines for the creepy Devils, the action, and especially the gore."[111] Regarding the devils' designs, Dacey wrote that some are "uninspired" and that the most memorable ones are "clearly designed to elicit an appreciative 'ewww'".[114] Wolf stated that the art of the series "feels better than its writing," adding that visually, the action and fighting make the manga appealing.[115]
Themes
Various reviewers have commented on the use of violence and gory scenes within the context of the story. Dupree wrote that the "irreverent tone and deliciously gory violence" are elements that make the series "really stand out from the get-go."[108] Collins wrote that the gory scenes, instead of being gratuitous, make the story feel "refreshingly unfiltered."[109] McNeil commented that the series is "wonderfully absurd. It's funny, gorey [sic], and violent, but also has an interesting bit of humanity at its core."[111] Davinson called it "casually gruesome and violent," but that it fits with its theme.[113] Lee wrote, "Chainsaw Man is gory. Extremely gory," adding that these scenes make the series different from other shōnen series, calling them "pretty gross," but "fitting for a dark manga about slashing devils down with a chainsaw."[110] Dacey called the series a "blood-and-testosterone-soaked battle manga," commenting that its main appeal is the "outrageous displays of gore and violence," adding as well that Fujimoto "does his utmost to push the boundaries of good taste."[114] Beckett wrote that the "delightfully ridiculous and bloody" premise runs with it in "all sorts of fascinating directions," adding however, that its reveling in crude humor and violence could be off-putting to some readers.[107]
Regarding the characters, Adi Tantimedh of Bleeding Cool called them "sad, broken people who live outside the norms of society and haven't learned basic social skills," adding as well that the series' subtext is about "people getting abused, degraded, dehumanized, objectified, literally becoming objects." He concluded, "Society is to blame for degrading people into tools and objects; these mangas [sic] seem to be saying, though they never outright blame Capitalism or the alienating repressiveness of Japanese society. The result is one of the more unique manga out there."[116] Collins commented that the series has a premise "loosely" comparable to Jujutsu Kaisen, adding, however, that Denji might fit the mold of a shōnen protagonist on paper, but that the mold is "only there to be broken," comparing his "life on the fringes of society" to a "Dickensian parable about the plight of the working class."[109] Dacey called Denji "a more honest shōnen hero than the typical Jump lead; he thinks and acts like a real teenage boy, right down to his self-absorption and total objectification of women," adding that she could not say she "ever warmed to Denji as a lead character."[114] Lee commented that the series has an "interestingly goofy contrast between the characters and what's going on," adding that Denji's simple mind and "kind-of-horny instincts" can get tiring at times, but it does not make the series bad, and with the introduction of the "extremely interesting side characters," like Power and Makima, the story "takes a turn for the better."[110]
Its way of handling comedy has also been commented. Tantimedh stated that the series has a "unique sense of deadpan comic timing" that "makes the series unique," adding as well that the series distinguishes itself for its slapstick comedy and that a "deadly earnest" tone might have made the series unreadable.[116] Beckett said that when he read the premise, he took the series at face value as a "goofy nonsense comic, a parody of shōnen manga that primarily exists to push out page-after-page of gross-out gags and gory action," also calling it "a mishmash of raunchy teen sex comedies, Hellboy, and The Evil Dead."[107] Dupree stated that the "crass, crude, and purposefully lowbrow" humor is one of its defining characteristics, adding that there are multiple jokes where it feels like half the punchline is that the series, "in all its gleefully nihilistic indulgence," was published in the same magazine as other "bleedingly sincere and family-friendly" titles like One Piece or My Hero Academia.[108] Neatrour said, "[t]here's a level of off-kilter humor in Chainsaw Man that I find endearing," and that it also has "plenty of juvenile humor."[112] Davinson commented that the humor of the series mainly revolves around Denji trying to get a girlfriend.[113] Wolf wrote that "the ridiculousness of the story helps to add comedy to the whole thing," although, he called the humor "rather base at best."[115]
Reviewers have also commented the emotional aspects of the series. Dacey discussed its unexpected moments of "genuine pathos," talking about the interactions between Denji and Pochita, noting as well parallels to Denji's relationship with Makima.[114] Davidson also stated that the emotional part of the story is about the love between Denji and Pochita.[113] Dupree wrote that the series' "bombastic, borderline nihilistic maelstrom of gore and dick jokes" is in part a reaction to the "absurd and illogical world it takes place in," adding that the series has a "proudly beating heart. Perhaps a cynical heart, but one that nonetheless sympathizes with the struggle to find meaning or solace in a cruel and unpredictable world."[108] Reviewing the series' 97th and last chapter published in Weekly Shōnen Jump, Reiichi Narima of Real Sound commented that Denji's growth through loss is a storytelling more related to seinen manga than shōnen manga, adding that he was "deeply moved" by the inclusion of this kind of stories in the magazine, ultimately calling it a masterpiece and concluding, "at the core of bloody violence, there was a boy's sad love story."[117]
Awards and nominations
| Year | Award | Category | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | 5th Next Manga Award | 2nd Place | [118] | |
| 3rd annual Tsutaya Comic Award | Next Break | 9th Place | [119] | |
| 2020 | 13th Manga Taishō | Manga Taishō | 8th Place | [120][121] |
| 2021 | 66th Shogakukan Manga Award | Best Shōnen Manga | Won | [122][123][124] |
| Harvey Award | Best Manga | [125][126] | ||
| 27th Manga Barcelona | Best Shōnen Manga | [127] | ||
| 2022 | Japan Expo Awards | Daruma for Best Drawing | [128] | |
| Daruma for Best Screenplay | ||||
| Daruma for Best Action Manga | ||||
| Eisner Award | Best U.S. Edition of International Material—Asia | Nominated | [129] | |
| Harvey Award | Best Manga | Won | [130][131] | |
| 2023 | Japan Expo Awards | Daruma for Best Manga | [132] | |
| Harvey Award | Best Manga | [133][134] | ||
| 2024 | 51st Angoulême International Comics Festival | Official Selection | Nominated | [135] |
Notes
References
Further reading
External links
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