Kimetsu No Yaiba

Now the Real Training Begins, Tanjiro!

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Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba S4 Ep 5 Review

Citizens of the internet, I have been a fool. Since Tanjiro has done so well with Hashira boot camp until now, I thought he could handle the rest of it. Little did I know that he only handled the easiest parts of the whole thing. From here on out, he’s going through the meat grinder of three Hashiras.

I loved watching this, but I still feel bad for the poor guy.

Mitsuri Proves Ballet Isn’t Girly.

When I was a little boy growing up, I never understood the concept of guys doing ballet. I dont think I thought less of guys who did, but I just didn’t understand why they would do it, or wear the outfit required. Now that I’m an adult, I see that ballet is a physically intense dance that requires great physical strength, flexibilty, and stamina.

Why mention all of this? Because Mitsuri’s training is all about ballet. And increasing flexibility. It’s painful!

Obanai Iguro Needs to Chill!

Thats nothing compared to his next teacher, Obanai Iguro, though. He hates Tanjiro right from the start, mainly because hes in love with Mitsuri and is livid at how friendly she is with him. Though, he’s not any better with any of the other trainees. The man ties them posts for annoying him, then makes Tanjiro fight him while trying to avoid hitting them.

The point is pretty obvious: Obanai wants to make sure the Slayers do not hesitate to strike, or the demons will kill her. That being said, seeing him treat the trainees like punching bags is demoralizing. However, it does lead to yet another interesting duel between Tanjiro and a Hashira.

The duels in Demon Slayer are some of my favorite parts of the anime, and for good reason. That animation is so incredible!

In the end, Tanjiro passes, but Obanai still hates him. However, the last Hashira is worse than all the others: its Sanemi! AKA, the Hashira who stabbed Nezuko and tried to tempt her with his blood! And he still hates Tanjiro.

Sanemi is Too Harsh on Everyone!

Now working with Zenitsu and Genya, Tanjiro spends the whole time-fighting Sanemi in brawl after the brawl. That alone is brutal, but its for the sake of training. However tbings take a tjrn for the worse when Tanjiro learns something: Sanemi is Genya’s older brother, and he makes it clear he doesn’t want Genya in the Corps.

As the older brother to Nezuko and his late siblings, Tanjiro can’t understand why Sanemi can be so cruel to Genya. When things escalate to an outright fight, Tanjiro starts defending Genya. Even if he can’t use breathing styles, his eating demons meant that they won in the swordsmith village.

No dice. Not only does Sanemi not lighten up, but Tanjiro gets banned from training with him.

If I had to guess, though, I think Sanemi has a good reason for being mean to his brother. He knows how being a Demon Slayer means a very short life, even with their skills. Since Genya can’t use breathing techniques, the likelihood of him surviving is even lower. The only issue I have is that he should come out and say it.

Tanjiro is In for Even Worse!

Either way, Tanjiro and Zenitsu head to their next Hashira camp with Gyomei. And it looks like its going to be even harder than all of them!

I dont know how much longer the Hashira Training Arc will be, but I’m really hoping that the season doesn’t end in the middle of the coming final battle. That would be so lame! In addition, I’m enjoying getting to see these light-hearted moments!

I Give “I Even Ate Demons” a 4.5/5

The Sad, Sad Story of Genya.

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Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba S3 Ep 6 Review

So, after the end of the last episode of Demon Slayer, I took the initiative and looked up what the deal was with Genya. I remembered reading how he has this power to absorb a Demon’s strength by eating them, but that’s all I could remember about him. After consulting the Demon Slayer Wikia and an anime channel on YouTuber, though, I found there’s more to Genya than meets the eye. Even though he’s a hot-headed and abrasive guy in the vein of Bakugo, he’s got a very tragic past. As in, it could give what happened to Sasuke a run for his money. 

No wonder he wants to be a Demon Slayer so badly.

So Close to Victory, but Not Quite.

Last week, it looked like Tanjiro and Genya managed to end the split Demons of Hatengu of the Upper Four. All of their heads were separated from their bodies and everything. However, despite this…the Demons don’t die. Their injuries only slow them down, but they’re ready to make Demon Slayer heads roll once they heal.

This is a regular occurrence in Demon Slayer. Right when the Demon Slayers look like they’ve got things in the bag, the Demons pull an ace out of their sleeves. Tanjiro realizes that the main Demon, Hatengu, isn’t dead in this case. Instead of fully splitting into four Demons, Hatengu broke them off his body while he ran and hid. As a result, Hatengu’s body is the size of a mouse and beyond durable. The sword breaks when Genya tries to hit him with his shotgun and sword! How does that make any sense?

Now, Genya’s lost his sword, and one of the emotion Demons is about to run his skull through with their staff. That makes it the perfect time for a flashback! 

The Sad Story of Sanemi and Genya Shinazugawa

I don’t know if it was already explained, but the flashback reveals Genya’s the younger brother of the Wind Hashira, Sanemi Shinazugawa. AKA the man who stabbed Nezuko in her box before trying (and failing) to goad her into attacking him. The fact that they’re brothers make so much sense, but what happened to them explains why Sanemi was so biased against Nezuko.

Sanemi and Genya’s childhood was fairly horrible. Their father was an abusive deadbeat who died via stabbing on the streets. Their tiny Mother had to care for them and their five brothers and sisters. Since they were the oldest of the two, they had to look out for their Mom and siblings. 

Then, one cruel night while their Mom was out, a monster broke into their home and killed all but Genya and Sanemi. Sanemi forced the monster outside while Genya ran to find a doctor, unable to accept his siblings were dead. Then, as the sun rose, he saw something that made his blood run cold. His brother, Sanemi, stood over their Mother’s bloodied, dead body. Sanemi killed their own Mom! It wasn’t until later that Genya realized that their Mom had been turned into a Demon and killed her own family, forcing Sanemi to kill her in self-defense. Thus, Genya feels like the worst brother ever.

Genya Needs to Open up His Heart to Become a Hashira

I cannot lie: what happened to Genya and Sanemi is messed up. It might be up there with what happened in Sasuke and Itachi’s backstories; it’s that bad! Like Sasuke, Genya blamed his brother for what happened, only to realize that his brother had no choice. It was that or let himself die and, more importantly, let his brother die. In other words, Genya feels like the worst brother ever and thinks Sanemi hates him for it. That’s why he wants to become a Hashira despite being unable to use Breathing techniques. He has to rely on his ability to eat the flesh of Demons and gain their strength. However, determination alone does make someone great. Naruto proves it, Luffy proves it, and Tanjiro proves it. Genya must learn to open his heart again if he wants to succeed.

Genya’s intentions are good, but due to the absolute hell he went through as a kid, he’s closed himself off and become abrasive to everyone. His powers, while cool, can only take him so far. Now compare that to Tanjiro. Despite losing almost his entire family and his sister becoming a Demon, he remains cheerful and friendly. That equates to him making powerful friends and thus overcoming great obstacles, a hallmark of the Shonen genre.

Now, Tanjiro’s kindness even gets through to Genya. Despite wanting to secure the win against an Upper Four, he realizes he can’t do it, but Tanjiro can. So, he lets himself get skewered while allowing Tanjiro find and end Hatengu. It’s the start of good character development.

Once again, Demon Slayer slays with another awesome episode. It might be my preference, but I’ve always been fond of expository flashbacks, so this episode got points. Meanwhile, we still have depraved Demon artist Gyokko holding one Hashira hostage and another defending the Swordsmith Village. If we’re lucky, this arc will end with a fight as cool as the one that leveled the Entertainment District!

I Give “Aren’t You Going to Become a Hashira?” a 4/5

Gyokko is A MENACE to the Arts!

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Demon Slayer: Kimetsu No Yaiba S3, Ep 5 Review

One of the big draws to Demon Slayer is how creative the Demons themselves can be. They can range from the ones that can pass for Human to the ones that look like hideous abominations, but they all look interesting. However, I don’t think I’ve seen a Demon as strange or unnerving as that of Gyokko of the Upper Four. Not only does he have mouths where his eyes would be, but Gyokko looks like centipede with stunted limbs! The most disturbing thing about him, though, is his sick, depraved ideas about “art.” If I hadn’t already seen many sick things in fiction, the art of Gyokko might make me puke. 

The Demon Slayers and swordsmiths have their work cut out for them in this fight!

I Now Understand Why Mitsuri Kanroji’s a Waifu

First, though, we need to address the arrival of the Love Hashira, Mitsuri Kanroji, at the Swordsmith Village. With Tanjiro and the other’s tied down fighting the Upper Four, the Swordsmiths can’t do much to stop the fish Demons from killing them all. However, all that changes when Misturi arrives on the battlefield. We get to see her Love Breathing style first-hand, and it is impressive. It’s strange that her sword’s more of a whip, but the results speak for themselves. She wastes the Demons attacking the villagers and saves the village chief while doing so!

Her crazy strength alone is enough to impress most people. What makes Mitsuri a top-tier waifu is her personality. The first thing she does after saving the village chief is to make sure they’re all right, much to his happiness. She’s a precious treasure, and I’m looking forward to seeing what else she can do in this arc.

Gyokko is One Messed Up Demon

While all of this is happening, Muichiro’s heading to the shed with Kotetsu to get the new sword promised to him by the swordsmith Kozo, only to save the latter en route. By the time the three make it to the shed, though, Gyokko’s already beaten them there in his demonic vases. The Demon’s already creepy enough, but once he decides to show the three his “art” before killing them, it’s enough to make people’s stomachs churn. This Demon has been capturing villagers from the Swordsmith Village in his vases, fusing them, and then spitting them back out as these horrifically grotesque statues! If that wasn’t bad enough, then Gyokko explains in great detail the meaning behind everything like an artist explaining his work to critics, and he does it without caring how he made the thing.

The worst part, though? When Gyokko twists a sword embedded in the thing, the “statue” starts screaming in pain. The people that make up his “art” are still alive and in unspeakable agony! If it weren’t for the fact that I’ve seen messed-up stuff like this before, I might have puked then and there. Muichiro needs to put Gyokko down. He’s not only a threat to humanity, but a menace to art! That might be hard, though, since Gyokko can create magic vases, teleport them wherever he wants, and imprison people in water. 

Tanjiro Unlocks that Shonen Super State!

Meanwhile, Tanjiro, Nezuko, and Genya’s fight against the four Demons that make up Hatengu isn’t going well. The Demons prove to be even stronger when fighting together, as seen when they level the building they were fighting in! Tanjiro gets ready to fight them anyway but is surprised when Nezuko grabs his sword and refuses to let go until it’s coated in her blood. At first glance, it looks like she’s trying to stop him, but then the sword catches fire. Nezuko used her Blood Demon Art to set Tanjiro’s blade on fire! 

A flaming sword’s cool enough as it is, but it’s more than just for coolness points. The blade that Tanjiro and Kotestu found in the training doll was also bright red. The same bright red used by the man Tanjiro’s had dreams of, and what his own sword became in the Entertainment District’s final battle. A lot of Shonen stories have the protagonist’s unlocking some kind of super-powered state at one point or another, and this red sword, combined with that mark on Tanjiro, is the Demon Slayer equivalent. As a result, Tanjiro cuts through three of Hantengu’s selves like a hot knife through butter! Once again, Demon Slayer’s animation proves to be one of its biggest draws.

The Fight Could Go Either Way Right Now

As of now, the Demon Slayers and Demons seem to be in a stalemate. At first glance, it looks like the Demons have the upper hand, but that’s what tends to happen in these fights. The Demon Slayers are always fighting an uphill battle. However, between Mitsuri showing up, Muichiro tying down Gyokko, and Tanjiro’s flaming sword, things could turn in their favor. In addition, one of Hantengu’s persona’s has a memory from Muzan of that swordsman from Tanjiro’s dreams using the same power against him. People who read the manga know what that power is, and what it means that Tanjiro’s unlocked it for the second time now. Muzan has reason to be afraid. 

Thus far, the Swordsmith Village Arc’s shaping up to be just as exciting as the Entertainment District was, if not more. I’m looking forward to seeing what happens, but above all, I want to see Gyokko get what’s coming to him! That Demon must die!

I Give “Bright Red Blade” a 4/5