Demon Slayer | [Season One Review]
What You Should Know
Imagine you are a young man in the Taisho period (1912–1926) in Japan. You live in the woods just outside a small village and one night a demon attacks your family.
The Result: Your sister is now a demon and you must stop her from killing and eating humans. Think that’s too easy? Good. You also have to protect her from demon slayers. That is the predicament that our protagonist Tanjiro Kamado is faced with.
Throughout the first season of the popular anime Demon Slayer, Tanjiro’s objective is twofold:
Find a way to turn his sister back into a human.
To become a demon slayer and rid the world of evil demons.
Demon Slayer is an occasionally bloody and violent story. There are only a handful of fights throughout the season, but each fight lasts three episodes. So if you’re a fan of action — this is for you. If you’re not a fan of heads being removed and blood flying through the air — this is not for you.
The animation and score are top tier and the story is simple, but effective and dripping with emotion. Let’s break it down.
Tanjiro
Episode one will give you everything you need to root for Tanjiro. He’s kind, fearless, and has an incredible sense of smell. He does feel a little too flawless at times, but you don’t mind it because each victory leaves you feeling heartbroken. The dramatic cost in this story doesn’t come from character flaws, but from an inspiring level of kindness.
Tanjiro has a level of empathy that rivals Andrew Garfield’s character in Hacksaw Ridge. If only Garfield’s character routinely beheaded demons at night. OK so they’re not exactly alike.
Tanjiro is so kind, it will break you. His heart is one of greatest strengths.
Tanjiro also falls into that category of character that thinks positivity and the power of friendship is the key to overcoming any obstacle; however, within that category, Tanjiro is the most serious.
Deku from My Hero Academia is always crying. Sora from Kingdom hearts is almost always upbeat. Not Tanjiro. Tanjiro takes lives and he knows that’s no small thing. I think his approach and relationship with death makes him stand out.
The interesting part about having a character with little to no flaws is that it leaves the writer with two options.
Option one: Have a static character that does not change throughout the series, which is entirely possible. Option Two: Have that seemingly perfect character go through a negative change arc by developing some flaws and becoming the antagonist of the story.
The Antagonist
You don’t get to see much of the big bad in season one of Demon Slayer. So don’t expect a major confrontation between Tanjiro and the most feared demon in all the land.
I hate to spoil anything, but expectations are important, and I was a little disappointed they didn’t fight. However, there is a major battle near the end of the season that will blow you away and I say that with confidence.
There’s a story arc that takes place in the forest that should satisfy all your boss fight needs.
Supporting Cast
Tanjiro’s sister Nezuko is great; although, she doesn’t really speak. She’s like Silent Bob from Jay and Silent Bob, in the rare moments she speaks, her words have impact.
Zenitsu does one of two things in pretty much any situation. He’ll either be terrified or hit on girls. He has a secret third option, but you’ll watch to find that one out. He can get on you’re nerves at times.
You might be enjoying the animation and music, then Zenitsu starts shouting and it’s a vibe killer. He’s likeable and useful enough to forgive him for it, but man, he can be really annoying.
Insosuke is the beastmode all gas no breaks character in the show. He wants to fight all the stuff. When you have a reasonable protagonist, it’s good to have someone like this as his right-hand man. Inosuke provides a sharp contrast to the constantly terrified Zenitsu.
Rating
The first season of any show, anime or otherwise, is usually not the best season of the franchise. I kept my expectations low and I was blown away.
Demon Slayer gave me an emotional hit that will stay with me for a long time. Whether it was through action or comedy, Tanjiro and his crew entertained me from start to finish.
Demon Slayer has been add to my all-time favorites list and I will be following along when the movie releases in the United States and when season two premieres.
As far as a ranking, this goes in my top-tier for anime. For most of the season it hovered around the A and B tier for me, but then the forest arc happened and what they did with the score and animation has made it one of my all-time favorites. I can’t wait for the movie to come out for streaming in the US!
Have you read it? What did you think? Leave a comment below and follow along for more content.
Until next time… later.
