Chainsaw Man

The story is set in a world where Devils are born from human fears. Devils are usually dangerous and malevolent, their power proportional to the fear they incite. However, humans can form contracts with them to use their power, and there are individuals specializing in hunting and employing them, called Devil Hunters. Devils originate from Hell, and exist in a cycle between Earth and Hell: they migrate to Earth when killed in Hell, and vice-versa. Dwelling in Hell are extremely powerful Devils called Primal Fears, which have never been killed. Transit between planes appears to be overseen by the Hell Devil.

A Devil may, in certain conditions, inhabit the body of a dead human, gaining some of their memories and personality; such a creature is called a Fiend. Devils who naturally have a humanoid form are said to be benevolent to humans.

The events of the story take place in 1997, in an alternate timeline where the Soviet Union still exists, and many events such as the Holocaust appear to have not occurred.

Part 1

Denji is a young man 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 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 and reviving him as a human-devil Hybrid, under the condition that Denji have a "normal life". Denji massacres the yakuza, and is approached by a team of governmental Devil Hunters, the Public Safety Division, led by Makima, who persuades him to join their ranks. Agreeing, Denji is partnered with Power, the Blood Fiend, and Aki Hayakawa, a self-destructive Devil Hunter. Makima promises Denji any favor, provided he kill the Gun Devil, perpetrator of the greatest massacre in human history.

Denji's group encounters another hybrid, the Katana Man, a vengeful yakuza seemingly allied with the Gun Devil, who kills a great portion of the Division. Denji and Power are trained by Kishibe, a master Devil-hunter who distrusts Makima; Aki makes a deal with the Future Devil, who foresees a "horrible death" for him. The Division launches a counter-attack against the Katana Man, capturing him.

Some time later, Denji begins a romance with a woman named Reze, who is actually the Bomb Woman, a Hybrid spy for the Soviet Union, sent to capture him. Though returning his affection, she attacks the city, with the Division barely saving Denji. After recovering, Denji fights her, and accepts a proposal to leave Japan together; before they can reunite, Makima secretly captures her. Denji's fight with the Bomb Woman reveals his existence to the world.

The Division learns that four assassin groups are targeting Denji: Chinese hunter Quanxi; a mysterious enemy of Makima called "Santa Claus"; three American brothers; and a Russian woman teaching a pupil, Tolka. Denji is outfitted with a security detail. Though the brothers are repelled, and Quanxi initially stalls, Santa Claus uses their Doll Devil powers for a large horde attack. After a follow-up by Quanxi, Tolka's master reveals herself as the true "Santa Claus", and has all parties transported to Hell, where they are attacked by the Darkness Devil. Santa Claus makes a contract with the Darkness Devil that empowers her.

Makima retrieves the group from Hell. Quanxi, revealed as a Hybrid, helps Denji defeat Santa Claus; Makima dispatches her afterwards. After Denji recovers, Makima reveals that the Gun Devil is actually a geopolitical asset, with many factions controlling pieces of it. As Aki begs Makima for Denji's safety, the president of the United States orders the Gun Devil to attack Japan and kill Makima. Revealed to be the Control Devil, Makima confronts the Gun Devil and wins. Aki dies in the attack, and the Gun Devil takes his body as a Fiend. Denji is attacked by the Gun Fiend, and, helped by civilians, kills it; Aki's death devastates him. While seemingly consoling him, Makima kills Power, revealing herself responsible for Denji's losses, having plotted to void his contract with Pochita by crushing his dreams of a normal life.

Kishibe attacks her, supported by the Hell Devil, and she calls for "Chainsaw Man" to save her. Controlling Denji's body, Pochita assumes his true form and dispatches it. Makima explains her goals: to use Pochita's power to eliminate concepts from reality by eating their respective Devils to create a world without suffering; to this end, she was empowered by the government with immortality. Fighting the Chainsaw Man using the brainwashed Hybrids, which include Katana Man, Reze, and Quanxi, she wins, as Denji's heroic deeds have weakened Pochita. Power reforms from a remnant of her blood, escapes with Chainsaw Man, and, mortally wounded, restores Denji's will to live, having him promise to find her when she is reborn in Hell.

Invigorated by public support for him, Denji confronts Makima and defeats her; to bypass her immortality, he eats her body. Kishibe later reveals that Makima was annihilated, but the Control Devil resurfaced in the form of a little girl, now named Nayuta. He asks Denji to care for and look after her, and Pochita reaffirms this mission in Denji's dreams. Later, Denji enrolls in high school and continues fighting devils under the public eye.

Denji (デンジ)

A young man with scruffy blond hair, sharp yellowish-brown eyes with bags underneath, and sharp teeth. As a young boy, he inherits his father's debt from the yakuza upon his father's death. After meeting the Chainsaw Devil Pochita, he becomes a Devil Hunter in an attempt to clear his debt. The yakuza kill him, and Pochita becomes his heart, setting a contract with Denji, who is to live his dreams of a normal life. After this, he can transform into the devil-human hybrid known as Chainsaw Man by pulling the cord on his chest. After meeting Makima, he becomes a Public Safety Devil Hunter, to live in humane conditions. His primary motivation is his attraction to Makima.

Makima (マキマ)

A mysterious woman serving as the head of Public Safety Division 4, who takes Denji as her human pet. Makima is cunning, intelligent and manipulative, controlling Denji by taking advantage of his attraction to her with promises of a relationship, while threatening him with extermination in case of disobedience. For much of the story, her goals are unknown and her good intentions are ambiguous. She is later revealed to be the Control Devil, which embodies the fear of domination, and seeks to use the Chainsaw Man, to whom she is enamored, to create a world without suffering. To this end, she masterminds the misfortunes befalling Denji over the series. After being killed by Denji, she is reborn as a child called Nayuta (ナユタ), and placed in his care, to be raised as a better person.

Aki Hayakawa (早川アキ, Hayakawa Aki)

A Public Safety Devil Hunter working under Makima's squad. He has a contract with the Fox Devil and Curse Devil, allowing him to summon the former's head and use a lethal spike in exchange for his lifespan. He later makes a contract with the Future Devil, allowing him to see a few seconds into the future. Aki is stoic, mature and dependable, but has a soft center when alone. He grows to greatly care about Denji and Power, despite clashing with them. He is killed during a fight between Makima and the Gun Devil, and becomes the Gun Fiend, which Denji is forced to kill.

Power (パワー, Pawā)

The Blood Fiend and a Public Safety Devil Hunter in Makima's squad. Power looks like a young woman with long hair; as a Fiend, she has short red horns protruding from her head. Power loves violence and is childish, greedy, almost entirely self-motivated, and willing to harm others for her own satisfaction. Power loves her cat, Meowy, at one point willing to sacrifice Denji's life to save him. She comes to care deeply for Denji and Aki, her first true friends. She is killed by Makima in front of Denji, to break Denji's spirit. Power revives as the Blood Devil from Denji's blood, but is fatally wounded by Makima again. Before dying, Power makes a contract with Denji - in exchange for her blood, she asks Denji to find the reborn Blood Devil and turn her back into Power so that they may be friends again.

Kishibe (岸辺)

The strongest devil hunter in the organization. Older than most other hunters, he is scarred and cynical. He trains Denji and Power, and was partnered with Quanxi in his youth. He secretly plots against Makima.

Himeno (姫野)

Aki's first partner. She wears an eyepatch and is partnered with the Ghost Devil, allowing her to use its invisible arm from anywhere. She is killed by Sawatari's Snake Devil while fighting Katana Man.

Kobeni Higashiyama (東山 コベニ, Higashiyama Kobeni)

A young woman with an unnamed contract, who started work as a Devil hunter under Makima's experimental squad. Despite her timid and cowardly attitude, she shows amazing speed and reflexes when threatened.

Angel Devil (天使の悪魔, Tenshi no Akuma)

A humanoid Devil embodying the fear of angels. Appearing as an enigmatic androgynous young man, he holds no particular malice against humans but enjoys seeing them suffer. He is partnered with Aki after Himeno's death and is regarded as the second-strongest Public Safety agent, but his laziness holds him back.

Beam (ビーム, Bīmu)

The wildly enthusiastic and unstable Shark Fiend, who can "swim" through solid objects and transform into a more monstrous shark-like form. He is partnered with Denji, whom he worships. He later sacrifices himself to revive Denji during the battle with the Darkness Devil in Hell.

Violence Fiend (暴力の魔人, Bōryoku no Majin)

The friendly and polite Violence Fiend who possesses immense strength and can transform into a more monstrous form when his mask is taken off. He still has most of his human brain and can remember several details about his past life, which is unusual for Fiends.

Quanxi (クァンシ, Kuanshi)

A Chinese devil hunter and one of the assassins sent to take Denji's heart. She is a lesbian in a polyamorous relationship with four female Fiends. She is a hybrid with a Devil related to crossbows. According to Santa Claus, she is the "first devil hunter". She is beheaded by Makima, but later revived by her along with Reze and Katana Man to fight the Chainsaw Man.

Santa Claus (サンタ クロース, Santa Kurōsu)

One of the assassins sent after Denji. Introduced as an elderly German man, it is revealed later on that Santa Claus is multiple people, the real body being a Russian woman referred to as "master" by her pupil Tolka, who she also turns into a body for her. The master has a contract with the Doll Devil, and has the ability to turn people into dolls under her control, which become part of the Santa Claus hivemind. She enacts a plot to send Denji and several hunters to Hell as sacrifices to the Darkness Devil in exchange for power to kill Makima. She is defeated by an on-fire Denji, and her mind is destroyed by one of Quanxi's lovers, the Cosmos Fiend.

Pochita (ポチタ)

The Chainsaw Devil who merged with Denji, and was originally the Chainsaw Man himself prior to meeting Denji. He has the ability to eat a devil and erase their existence, making him "the Devil that Devils fear most". He first appears in his dog form, actually a weakened state after a fight with mysterious opponents. His true devil form is a large, darker version of Denji’s hybrid form with four arms.

Katana Man/Samurai Sword (サムライソード, Samurai Sōdo)

The grandson of the yakuza boss who had Denji and Pochita killed, and a supposed agent of the Gun Devil. Like Denji, he is a human-devil hybrid with the heart of the Katana Devil, able to transform into his hybrid form by removing his hand. His real name is unknown, and his handler is Akane Sawatari, a former Public Safety hunter.

Reze (レゼ)

A girl with a crush on Denji who works at a cafe. She is later revealed to be a hybrid with the Bomb Devil, able to transform by pulling a grenade pin on her neck, and a Soviet spy sent to kill Denji. On her way to seemingly escape with Denji after their fight, she is captured by the Angel Devil under control of Makima.

Gun Devil (銃の悪魔, Jū no Akuma)

One of the most powerful and feared Devils in the world. Thirteen years before the series' events, the Gun Devil manifested after a terrorist attack, and attacked the world, killing 1.2 million people in under five minutes before vanishing. It was later defeated and scattered into pieces by an unknown entity, and the governments of several countries have gathered these remains to form contracts with it. The president of the United States summons it to kill Makima. Makima defeats it, but it possesses Aki's body, turning into the Gun Fiend. It later dies at the hand of Denji.

Darkness Devil (闇の悪魔, Yami no Akuma)

An unfathomably powerful Devil representing the primal fear of darkness, residing in Hell.

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 Weekly Shōnen Jump magazine from December 3, 2018,[9][10] to December 14, 2020.[11][12] Shueisha collected its chapters into eleven individual tankōbon volumes, released from March 4, 2019,[13] to March 4, 2021.[14]

In North America, Viz Media published the series' first two chapters on their Weekly Shonen Jump digital magazine for its "Jump Start" initiative.[1][15] The series was then published on the Shonen Jump digital platform after the cancellation of Weekly Shonen Jump.[15] Shueisha also simulpublished the series in English on the app and website Manga Plus starting in January 2019.[16] In February 2020, Viz Media announced the digital and print release of the manga.[17] Viz Media posted an official trailer for the manga, featuring a high-octane opera vocals as its soundtrack.[18] The first volume was released on October 6, 2020.[19]

The manga is also licensed in France by Kazé,[20] in Italy, Mexico and Brazil by Panini,[21][22][23] in Spain by Norma Editorial,[24] in Thailand by Siam Inter Comics,[25] in Poland by Waneko,[26] in Germany by Egmont Manga,[27] in Argentina by Editorial Ivrea,[28] in Taiwan by Tong Li Publishing,[29] in South Korea by Haksan Publishing,[30] in Russia by Azbooka-Atticus,[31] and in Vietnam by Tre Publishing House.[32]

On December 14, 2020, following the series' conclusion in Weekly Shōnen Jump, a second part was announced to start on Shueisha's Shōnen Jump+ online magazine.[33] On December 19, 2020, it was announced that the second part, "School arc" (学校編, Gakkō-hen), will feature Denji going to school.[34] The second part will begin serialization in Q3 2022.[35]

On December 14, 2020, it was announced that the manga will receive an anime television series adaptation produced by MAPPA.[55][56] 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.[57][58] The first trailer for the anime series was shown at the "MAPPA Stage 2021 – 10th Anniversary" event, held on June 27, 2021.[59][60] The anime is 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 is serving as action director, Yūsuke Takeda is directing the art. Naomi Nakano is the color key artist and Yohei Miyahara is designing the screens. The music is composed by Kensuke Ushio.[61][62][63] The series is set to premiere in 2022.[64]

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,[65] was published on November 4, 2021.[66][67] 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.[68]

Good Smile Company launched Nendoroid figures based on characters from the series in October 2021, including Denji, Pochita and Power.[69][70]

An exhibition, "Chainsaw Man Manga Exhibition", ran at the Space Hachikai gallery area of Tower Records, Shibuya, from June 12 to July 4, 2021.[71]

As of August 2020, the manga had over 3 million copies in circulation.[84][7] As of October 2020, the manga had over 4.2 million copies in circulation.[85] As of December 2020, the manga had over 5 million copies in circulation.[86][73] As of January 2021, the manga had over 6.4 million copies in circulation.[87] As of March 2021, the manga had over 9.3 million copies in circulation.[88] As for June 2021, the manga had 11 million copies in circulation.[89][90] As of December 2021, the manga had over 12 million copies in circulation.[91]

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.[92] In 2021, it was the seventh best-selling manga with over 5 million copies sold.[93]

The series has ranked on NPD BookScan's monthly top 20 adult graphic novels list since 2020.[lower-alpha 2] It has also ranked on The New York Times' monthly Graphic Books and Manga bestseller list since 2021.[lower-alpha 3] According to ICv2, Chainsaw Man was the tenth best-selling manga franchise for fall 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.[118] According to NPD BookScan, the first, second and third volumes of Chainsaw Man were the #4, #17 and #18, respectively, highest-selling manga volumes in 2021.[119] The first volume sold 18,000 copies in the United States in 2020, and the eight volumes collectively sold 623,000 copies in 2021.[120]

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."[121] 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."[122] 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."[123] 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."[124] 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 elements from Army of Darkness, Devilman, Dorohedoro and "and a smattering of inspiration from any devil-hunting series you can think of," adding that fans of those works "will probably enjoy this."[125]

Anna Neatrour of Manga Report gave a positive review to the first volume, stating: "[o]verall, I found the monster fighting, buckets of gore, and humor in Chainsaw Man plenty amusing. Denji is an incredibly damaged but potentially powerful hero, so I’m definitely intrigued by seeing him chainsaw his way through further adventures."[126] 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 shonen with some heart showing through the weirdness, and it’s been very successful in Japan."[127] Katherine Dacey of The Manga Critic commented that she made a "read-a-thon" of the series, and stated: "I finished my read-a-thon with a grudging respect for Fujimoto's excessive, ridiculous creation, which entertained and repelled me in equal measure. Your mileage will vary."[128] 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."[129]

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: "[s]ociety 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."[130] Collins said that the series has a premise "loosely" comparable to Jujutsu Kaisen, stating, however, that Chainsaw Man has an "entirely different kind of bite," noting 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."[123] Dacey called Denji "a more honest shonen 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 did not "ever warmed to Denji as a lead character."[128] 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."[124]

Various reviewers have commented 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."[122] Collins wrote that the gory scenes, instead of being gratuitous, make the story feel "refreshingly unfiltered."[123] 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."[125] Davinson called it "casually gruesome and violent," but that it fits with its theme.[127] 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."[124] 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."[128] 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.[121]

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.[130] Beckett said that when he read the premise, he took the series at face value as a "goofy nonsense comic, a parody of shonen 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."[121] 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.[122] 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."[126] Davinson wrote that the series "sprinkles in quite a bit of humor," which according to her, it mainly revolves around Denji trying to get a girlfriend.[127] 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."[129]

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.[128] Davidson also stated that the emotional part of the story is about the love between Denji and Pochita.[127] 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."[122] Reviewing the series' 97th and last chapter in Weekly Shōnen Jump, Reiichi Narima of Real Sound stated that the way of showing Denji's growth through loss is a storytelling more related to seinen manga than shōnen manga, and stated that he was "deeply moved" by the inclusion of this kind of stories in the magazine. Narima ultimately called the series a masterpiece and concluded: "at the core of bloody violence, there was a boy's sad love story."[131]

Fujimoto's art style has also been commented. Collins commended Fujimoto's penmanship, stating that the "thickly-sketched lines on individual characters and still moments convey the rough edges of [its] world."[123] 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."[122] 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."[121] 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."[125] Regarding the devils' designs, Dacey wrote that some are "uninspired" and that the most memorable ones are "clearly designed to elicit an appreciative 'ewww'".[128] Wolf stated that the art of the series "feels better than its writing," adding that visually, the action and fighting make the manga appealing.[129]