The Daily Stream: Chainsaw Man Is Worth Checking Out, Even If You Don't Watch Anime
The series: "Chainsaw Man"
Where you can stream it: Hulu, Crunchyroll
The pitch: Based on the popular manga series of the same name, "Chainsaw Man" is a totally bonkers action-adventure anime series with horror overtones, lots of laughs, and characters you can't help but fall in love with. The new anime series just finished its first season run, and it's wildly popular in the anime world, so even non-anime watchers might find themselves wondering — "what the heck is a 'Chainsaw Man,' anyway, and why should I care?" /Film has written about the series at length, including weekly recaps, interviews with some of the voice actors, and more, so if you already know and love the show, go check out some of our other coverage! This one's for the folks who hear the words otaku and doujinshi and wonder if those are new sushi restaurants opening nearby, who have either only ever watched anime as a kid or haven't dipped their toe into this magical world of animation at all.
"Chainsaw Man" is the kind of anime that shows why the medium is so incredible, telling a story that would be almost unimaginable in live-action. The series is the first anime I've seen that feels like it has the same punk rock subversive sensibilities as "FLCL," but it's a lot more coherent and easy to follow. While "FLCL" satirized anime tropes very directly, requiring some foreknowledge of them, "Chainsaw Man" is playing it a bit more straight, appearing like a typical Shonen anime while really twisting the tropes at every turn. It's smart stuff that makes "Chainsaw Man" a heart-pounding and heart-wrenching blast for anime fans and total newcomers alike.
Why it's essential viewing
It's important to note that "Chainsaw Man" won't be for everyone. It's pretty weird, contains some mature sexual content and swearing, and is extraordinarily violent. Little kids and sensitive souls need not apply, but anyone who likes horror, sci-fi, and/or action fantasy is almost guaranteed to find something to love. The animation is lovely to look at, the action is fierce, and the characters are all well-written enough that when someone dies, it hurts. Prepare to hurt, and absolutely love it.
"Chainsaw Man" drops us right into its unusual world, where every fear that possibly exists has a corresponding devil. Denji (Kikunosuke Toya/Ryan Colt Levy) is an orphan who lives on the street where he survives mostly by dumpster diving and hunting devils with Pochita, the Chainsaw Devil. Pochita is adorable, like if Pikachu hooked up with a chainsaw, and when Denji faces death at the hands of a devil he was hunting, Pochita gives him his heart. With Pochita's heart inside of him, Denji can become the titular Chainsaw Man, a terrifying chainsaw-faced creature who also sports whirling blades on his arms. After bonding with Pochita, Denji ends up being recruited by Miss Makima (Tomori Kusunoki/Suzie Yeung), who heads up the government organization of devil hunters for the Public Safety Division. Once there, Denji teams up with some other humans who have various devil bonds, along with a fiend, which is what happens when a devil takes over a human body for its own. It's wild stuff that never fully explains itself, but a lot of the fun is trying to figure out what's going on. Trust me, whether you've been watching anime for decades or this is your first, "Chainsaw Man" is going to inspire a "what the f***?"
The brilliance is in the characters
While the world and plot of "Chainsaw Man" are absolutely bonkers, the storytelling and character development are incredible. It's deliciously cinematic while also exploring outside of the lines of live-action cinema with its surrealist moments and gorgeous end-credits sequences, with characters who feel fully realized in a short period of time without being easy stereotypes. Denji is kind of a doofus, but he's nothing like most of his Shonen anime protagonist counterparts. He's also a true antihero, with selfish intentions that are often rather foolish. His best friend, a Blood Fiend named Power (Fairouz Ai Kadota/Sarah Wiedenheft), could easily become a standard manic pixie dream girl, but she's similarly selfish and foolish, stealing the limelight from Denji more than occasionally. As the two of them get to know the other devil hunters with Public Safety, the audience gets to know them as well.
The stakes are remarkably high in "Chainsaw Man," with more major character deaths in the first season than even George R. R. Martin could shake a stick at, and they have major emotional impact despite only knowing the characters for a handful of episodes. Everyone is written compellingly and given just enough backstory and unique characteristics to make them feel like real people despite being, well, cartoons. I didn't expect for an anime series to make me cry, but this one made me sob and then way anxiously for next week's episode. If that's not proof of well-made entertainment, I don't know what is.
An effortless kind of cool that deserves to be seen
Sometimes stories from outside of our cultural comfort zones can be truly eye-opening and introduce us to a whole new world of great stuff to watch, read, and listen to. Just look at the popularity of something like "Squid Game," which earned the love of audiences worldwide and showed Americans a tiny glimpse of the greatness to be found in South Korean television. "Chainsaw Man" is the rare kind of series that can help people step into the world of anime without ever feeling like it's pandering to them or like they're not in on the joke. It's brilliantly written and executed, with lots of big laughs, thrills, and more heart than I ever expected.
If you're looking for something new to watch and want to step outside of standard live-action fare, "Chainsaw Man" is truly worth your time. And hey, with only 12 episodes in the first season, it's not too much of a commitment if it truly turns out that anime isn't your jam. Just don't tell Pochita.