Manga Review: Rev up your day with Chainsaw Man

by Seth Moses, Reporter|February 25, 2022

Cover art for Chainsaw Man Volume 1. You must read all 9 that have been released.

Chainsaw Man is a roller coaster of emotions. The manga series (Japanese comics) is written by Tatsuki Fujimoto. Serialization started in December 2018 and ended December 2020. Out of 11 volumes, only 9 have been published. The studio, MAPPA CO., is adapting the series into an anime show that will air summer 2022.

To prepare for the show, I recommend that you start reading these great graphic stories.

Chainsaw Man is about a boy named Denji who is living in poverty with his pet dog, Pochita who has a chainsaw sticking out of his head. Stick with me here.

Denji is working to pay off his dead dad’s debt to the Yakuza, the Japanese mafia.

Early in the series, through a bizarre episode with zombies, Denji and his dog fuse and become The Chainsaw Man.  It’s unusual, but believable, and from then on they fight together with the Devil Hunters to put an end to evil.

One of the strengths of Chainsaw Man is the character depth and the development. You will learn to love and hate the characters as the series continues. 

An example would be the character Power. First volume your not sure if you should like her or not but you end up loving her at the end.

Another thing Chainsaw Man excels at are the deeper meanings to the characters and why they do what they do.One example would be the character Reze with her befriending Denji you start to wonder where things are going. It’s all covered up by the stunning art and the awesome tense fights.

Even though it can be gory it still is captivating to look at.

The manga has a very sketched look and feel to it and I think it works really well with the story.  It’s not afraid to show the gore and just how violent fighting really is. The MAPPA goes for a clean polished look for Chainsaw Man as shown in the Trailer. I like the way it looks and it looks very pretty and pleasing to the eyes though I worry that it might lose its flair. I should rest easy though because in 2020 MAPPA adapted the manga Jujutsu Kainsen which also had a sketched art style but the anime did a really good job on not taking away from the grittiness of the manga and managed to make a really well received and praised anime.

This series will captivate you from the first chapter to the last with the rich story, heart gripping fights, well made twists, and characters that you will love and hate.  If you like those kind of series then I highly recommend Chainsaw Man .