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There will always be the sub-section of a fandom who are hard to please, people who believe that the early days of the series are its golden years. That is the case with Chainsaw Man, which launched its surprisingly different Part 2 in July 2022.
Part 2 is very different from Part 1 – Denji’s retired from being a Devil Hunter and is grappling with the existential mundanity of being a “normal” high school student. But then again, in typical Chainsaw Man fashion, things spiral wildly out of control from there. Still, mangaka Tatsuki Fujimoto is undeniably pushing his audience… but then again, that’s what he’s always done.
The naysaying voices also tend to be the loudest on social media, which can make it difficult to tell where the entirety of a fandom actually stands. But for the last month or so, the general vibe has definitely been “We are so back.”
Here’s the thing, though – once we’re able to look back on Part 2, I think it will be abundantly clear we never left.
Related: What Happened To Aya Hirano and Masashi Taniguchi From Chainsaw Man? Explained
The Genius of Chainsaw Man Part 2
Part 2 has definitely had its ups and downs. Denji’s fight against the Falling Devil, beginning in chapter 122, was a definite highlight, mixing a very profound exploration of trauma and PTSD with laugh-out-loud comedy in a way that didn’t diminish the impact of the heavy topics at hand. The entire chapter synced to a Maximum the Hormone song was also brilliant.
But from there, Denji went into freefall, and reading Chainsaw Man became difficult. When reading on a week-to-week basis, it began to feel like the parade of horrors crashing upon Denji was far too much. The chapter where Yoru essentially sexually assaults Denji proved especially divisive – although those angered by the chapter seemed to be those who had already decided they hated Asa and Yoru.
All of that despair leads to a similar consequence as in Part 1: with Denji essentially breaking his contract with Pochita, the full version of Chainsaw Man is unleashed. And since then, public opinion turned on a dime in Chainsaw Man‘s favor.
To be fair, this recent slew of chapters has been incredible. The absurdity of having entire chapters where ears or mouths are missing is incredible. There’s even a multi-chapter critique that further headquarters the Gun Devil in the US, to the extent that while evoking the Gun Devil’s power, Yoru is able to sacrifice the fingers of every member of an organization clearly meant to be the National Rifle Association. And then she effortlessly uses all those sacrificed fingers to – remotely – destroy the Statue of Liberty and create a giant gun in its place.
Now, in Chapter 180, we’re forced to confront the horrors of what could happen when we live in a world without aging – the insanity that comes from immortality in a cage.
It’s good. It’s real good. Part 2 is arguably even more unhinged than Part 1, even more absurd. This is also why only praising its quality in a climactic upswing neglects to look at the bigger picture. Part 1 also has this structure: the ups and downs, with the ups marked by an adrenaline rush basically unparalleled in manga. Of course, that’s what sticks out.
Part 2 has pushed Fujimoto’s art even further. He’s experimenting in bold ways: chapters with no dialogue, chapters set to a song. Denji’s decline was awful to watch, but that, too, was by design.
So, you could say Chainsaw Man is back, but we never left, my friends.