Aah, you were at my side all along.
My true mentor… my guiding moonlight…
Even though many people have already talked about this, I think there's something resting beneath the surface of the Moon.
Will Fujimoto decide to lean even further into cosmic horror, revealing some kind of living entity hidden there? Or will Yoru actually turn the entire Moon into a weapon?
And right now, I really hope the fight with Yoru doesn't end like this:
I really didn’t want to write about that idiotic argument going on around Chainsaw Man (why did I even download Twitter again), but the whole situation just pissed me off.
As you know, the main argument basically boils down to: “But the outfit is exactly the same! There’s no way that’s a coincidence!”
If only you knew how exhausting it is to hear things like that when you know at least a little about clothing and your memory isn’t like that of a goldfish.
Yes, a sleeveless shirt with something resembling a tie, dark shorts, and high socks - apparently that’s some kind of wild exotic combo now, guys.
(The photo shows Red Velvet performing in 2017.)
And then there was the whole thing with the nickname “Roze.” So that must be it - Fujimoto just changed one letter! There’s absolutely no other way anyone could ever come up with a name like that.
Right, of course - because it’s not like Tokyo Ghoul ever existed, a series that definitely didn’t have a character named Rize.
Or, according to their theory, both mangaka somehow got inspired by the same random video… independently…
Sometimes I just hate people.
And you know what’s funniest? In a couple of weeks everyone will probably just forget about this, and it’ll be obvious it was nothing more than another pointless fandom explosion over nothing.
So why the hell did I even get involved in this stupidity in the first place?
Even though I’ve been following every new chapter of Part 2, after watching the Reze Arc, I just can’t stop thinking about them.
Fujimoto... why? Why would you do this to us?
I watched Reze Arc last weekend, but it’s only now that I’ve finally started to recover from it.
I’ve reread the manga multiple times, and yet the movie still hit me that hard.
Am I really the only one who noticed how perfectly Rammstein’s “Klavier” fits Chainsaw Man?
I know the original meaning of the song is completely different, told from another perspective, but the lyrics still feel like they’re describing scenes straight out of the manga.
And that built-in ambiguity in the song just makes it even better - it honestly feels like it was written for csm:
[Verse 1]
They tell me "Unlock this door"
Curiosity becomes a scream, what could be behind it?
Behind this door stands a piano
The keys are dusty, the strings are out of tune
Behind this door, she sits at the piano
But she doesn't play anymore, oh, that was so long ago
[Verse 2]
She said to me, "I'll always stay with you"
But it only seemed that she played for me alone
I poured her blood into the fire of my rage
I locked the door, they asked for her
[Verse 3]
The door is open, oh, how they scream
I hear mother pleading, father is beating me
They take her from the piano and no one believes me here
That I am deathly ill from sorrow and the stench
[Chorus]
There, at the piano
I listened to her
And when her performance began
I held my breath
There, at the piano
She listened to me
And when my performance began
She held her breath
The Astonishing Success of Chainsaw Man
Watching the reactions to the movie’s release, I can’t help but remember all the doubts I once had about adapting this story.
And now, I honestly have no words to describe how happy I am that the Chainsaw Man movie finally came out, and that people actually loved it, even though its story could easily turn away an average viewer.
Back when I was reading Part 1 of the manga, I was convinced we’d never get an anime adaptation. And even if it did happen, I expected something like the 2016 Berserk, because Chainsaw Man is such a difficult and risky story to adapt.
It seemed impossible that a studio would invest a big budget into something this strange and brutal. And even if they did everything perfectly, there was no guarantee that audiences would actually watch it.
Then the first season was announced. I could barely wait for it to come out, and not long after, I learned that the manga wasn’t finished and was continuing with Part 2. I fell in love with this insane story all over again.
Still, there was one big problem: the sales numbers weren’t that great.
If I’m not mistaken, only about 1,700 Blu-ray copies of Chainsaw Man were sold in the first week - which, compared to other titles, isn’t exactly impressive.
Sure, it was just the first season, an introduction to the story, so it makes sense it didn't become a hit right away. And yes, for many it was their first exposure to the series, while the manga itself wasn’t as well-known as other shonen titles.
But back then, I thought the real issue was different: viewers were simply put off by the violence and tone. They dismissed it too quickly, assuming it was just another edgy, gory series - nothing more.
But then the Reze Arc was announced, the film came out, and… people actually loved it!
The reviews are great, more and more people are discovering Chainsaw Man and going to the theaters, and most importantly for the industry, it performed very well financially, reportedly nearing $120 million at the box office.
Yes, I know what kind of studio MAPPA is, and all the issues surrounding it. But even with that in mind, I think what happened with Chainsaw Man is nothing short of a miracle.
I was almost certain that, after the first season, the studio would just abandon it - like so many anime from the 2000s: a brilliant first season with great animation and worldbuilding… and then nothing. Either no continuation at all, or one so poorly made that you wish it never existed.
There are countless examples - Berserk, Claymore, and many others.
And that’s why I'm genuinely happy that at least Part 1 of Chainsaw Man is getting the adaptation it truly deserves.
On Denji's age
I first started thinking about this a long time ago - back when Denji and Asa went on their aquarium date. I remember someone on Tumblr comparing Denji’s height to the rest of the group, and that made me wonder: could it be that Denji is actually growing older, and that hybrids do age - just more slowly than normal humans?
But no, even back in Part 1, he was about the same height (according to online sources, his height is roughly 175-180 cm). Sure, Denji seems a bit older in Part 2, but that’s probably just because of all the hell he’s been through.
We had the example of Quanxi, and later, the story introduced old Lady Whip, who turned out to be eighty years old.
So It seems that hybrids are biologically immortal. If no one kills Denji, he’ll never age and will stay forever trapped in the body of a sixteen-year-old.
Sure, we can’t be 100% certain yet, and Fujimoto might twist this idea later, but for now, nothing suggests otherwise.
I also thought the same might apply to Asa, but since she can’t regrow her limbs like other hybrids, her case is clearly different.
Back when I was reading Part 1 in 2020, I remember wondering if Chainsaw Man might have that classic kind of ending - where the hero loses the powers that made him special but gains a chance to live a normal life with the people he loves.
But Chainsaw Man isn’t that kind of story. Its world isn’t normal to begin with. Most likely, without Pochita, Denji would just die, and there’s nothing that can be done about it.
And if he did lose his powers and became an ordinary human, it would only mean his chances of dying would increase dramatically. Because in the world of Chainsaw Man, no one’s safe, anyone can die at any time.
And there’s no changing that. Devils won’t disappear, they won’t get kinder, and they’ll never stop coming back from Hell.
It’s a grand, insane, and deeply tragic, yet brutally realistic, story about the Chainsaw Man.
And it only makes me wonder even more: how will Denji’s story end?
What strikes me about the second part of Chainsaw Man is how utterly unpredictable the story is. While the first part gave us some sense of direction, the second part is pure chaos, in the best possible way.
The War Devil sharing a body with Asa Mitaka? An intriguing setup, and perhaps each part will introduce a new horseman of the apocalypse. A fake Chainsaw Man? Fascinating. Nayuta? Finally, we get to see her. But wait - isn’t it too early to introduce Yoru’s sister? Then, we get the return of Quanxi and Katana Man. Nayuta and all of Denji’s pets are killed, his apartment destroyed. Evangelion reference in an alley. There’s a fight with the Aging Devil... I thought we’d get a break, but the plot keeps moving forward. Yoru gets a power-up after the u.s. starts bombing the ussr. Fumiko turns out to be the STD Devil. Barem kills Yoshida, and now we’re back in hell. Yoru makes a deal with America, and Asa meets her mother...
Anyone following the plot will tell you that none of these twists were predictable.
There are now several theories circulating about how the second part will end. Some believe Denji will die, which was hinted at by Asa’s illustrations with a chainsaw head. Others speculate this is all a time loop... And these theories might actually be true. Just imagine any crazy idea for how this manga could end, and realize: even the wildest theory might be the one that’s true.
And that's what I LOVE about it. I haven't seen such a bold, interesting, and unconventional plot in about 5 years - probably since the first part of Chainsaw Man. The second part has already surpassed the first in this. Probably only Fujimoto among contemporary mangakas could pull off a story like this.
And yet, it’s not like the second part crosses any lines. The plot remains coherent, the characters are well-developed, and we’re likely to get answers to the remaining questions by the end.
All that can be said is that Tatsuki Fujimoto is truly a genius.
To be honest, I don’t really know how to feel about the live-action adaptation of Claymore. It’s unclear whether it’ll be successful, how much it will differ from the original, and whether it’s even something the manga and anime fans actually want.
The only thing I hope for is that the adaptation will at least be worth watching. Maybe we'll see at least a funny mess. Or a truly decent adaptation that will at least be something worthwhile.
Right now, I don’t even know if it’ll get made or not — the latest news I found was from March, and there’s been nothing since.
Why not just make a new anime season, reboot it, or even remake the first season?
The one thing I can say for sure is that, if this adaptation ends up reviving the Claymore fandom, then, no matter how it turns out, I hope it gets made. New viewers will watch the anime and read the manga. They’ll start drawing fanarts, writing fanfics. If the adaptation is successful, maybe a new anime will come out — who knows?
For me, this situation is more about the feelings Claymore evokes, which are similar to the emotions I have with Trigun. I absolutely love the old Trigun anime and even consider it better than both the manga and the newer anime adaptations. And a new anime based on Trigun has been released. And everyone remembered about Trigun again and about manga and anime from 1998. And if it helps the story stay alive, I just hope it won't be something so bad that it actually leaves negative memories of this amazing story.
So, I hope Claymore will get a new wave of interest, bringing the franchise back into the spotlight.
By the way, I watched the Claymore anime today. It left a lasting impression on me.