Tatsuki Fujimoto’s breakout manga Chainsaw Man is an incredibly bloody gorefest that balances its gonzo premise with deeply heartfelt, emotional character arcs. Originally serialized in Shōnen Jump starting in 2018, the series is a violent exposition on human fear, and the deals we make with our own devils. Studio MAPPA is adapting the manga into a serialized anime and all the trailers so far have been absolutely wild, and this newest one is no exception. Warning: The following trailer is very explicit.
The story follows Denji, a teenage boy living with a Chainsaw Devil named Pochita. Devils incarnate in the human world as a manifestation of humans’ fears. Due to the debt his father left behind, Denji is scraping bodies off the pavement to get by. Denji is betrayed and mortally wounded, but as he’s about to die, he makes a deal with Pochita and is saved. He becomes the part-Devil destroyer, “Chainsaw Man.”
Full disclosure, I haven’t read the Chainsaw Man manga. I’m not a big manga fan, or even a comics fan; I enjoy them when I get them but I’m not about to go to the comic shop and start a pull list, you know? What I will say is that I love animated films, and this bad boy looks incredible. It looks just bonkers enough to get me interested as there’s clearly a lot of pathos when it comes to the struggles of these characters as they try to deal with the changes happening both to and around them.
I’m also not about to turn my nose up at the crew leading this project. Ryu Nakayama is directing, and Hiroshi Seko (Mob Psycho 100, Jujutsu Kaisen) is writing the screenplay. The art directors and character designers have also worked on some great pieces, like Vinland Saga, Jujutsu Kaisen, and Black Clover. The music is likely going to be spectacular as well, asKensuke Ushio (A Silent Voice, Devilman Crybaby) is slated to work on the score.
Chainsaw Man will air on Crunchyroll sometime in October.
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