What to Expect from MAPPA’s Chainsaw Man

With the first official preview released just a few days ago, the hype for Tatsuki Fujimoto's Chainsaw Man is at an all time high. And with what the people at MAPPA have shown so far, the hype is certainly justified.

The manga itself is relatively new having its first chapter released at the end of 2018, making it newer than current popular shows like Demon Slayer, Jujutsu Kaisen, and Tokyo Revengers. Despite its freshness, Chainsaw Man has already established itself as a staple in the weekly Shonen Jump magazine, often outselling other big name manga in the publication. If it's your first time hearing about it, and you like unfiltered action with a more mature take on shonen, you should definitely pick up the manga and keep a close eye on the upcoming anime adaptation.

The story of Chainsaw Man revolves around the protagonist Denji, who's practically a nobody in a bizarre world where humans and devils are at each other's throats. With a huge debt burden on his shoulders, he's forced to go to extreme lengths by hunting devils with his pet devil-dog Pochita in order to live another day.

Not experiencing a proper childhood, all Denji aspires for are the simple things in life, like eating a slice of jam bread, playing video games or having a girlfriend. His lack of self worth makes him a prime subject of being manipulated by those around him, leading him to betrayal.

Through a series of distressing events, he manifests the power of devils, thus becoming the Chainsaw Man, and gets recruited by the mysterious Makima, a public safety devil hunter. She promises him a new life in return for his services as Denji teams up with the calm and stoic Aki, and battle-crazy Power, to hunt down other devils.

However, just when Denji starts to get comfortable with his current-self, everything slowly gets swept away from under his feet. He keeps getting taken advantage of and the cycle of manipulation continues. You can't help but feel bad for Denji, who just wants to live a life with basic needs but ends up losing sense of normality and gets treated like a tool for people's biddings.

The action in Chainsaw Man is truly phenomenal. The art in the manga is gritty and grim, giving a proper portrayal of the dark setting of the environment. Yet, the panels are decluttered, making the characters stand out prominently. Gore is heavily involved, with blood and guts flying everywhere which might be off-putting for some. But this also provides necessary weight to the fight scenes. Moreover, the story is relatively fast-paced with very little exposition. Following Denji's simplistic mindset in such a dynamic world aids in not getting lost in the outlandish lore of Chainsaw Man, and helps in relating with him on a more psychological level.

No specific release date for the anime has been announced during the writing of this article. But it's speculated that it'll air in the Fall 2021 season with over 20 episodes. With MAPPA at the helm, a great adaptation of this already amazing manga can be expected, and a glimpse of their preview trailer would suggest the same. Though in anime format the world may feel less gloomy, they certainly would make up for it with phenomenal animation of the action scenes like they did with their adaptation of Jujutsu Kaisen.

This is a big win for Chainsaw Man fans, and for those going in fresh, it is definitely a great read and will hopefully be a great watch later in the year too.

Mynul Karim is a recent graduate of Brac University.