Muichiro Tokito

Score One for the Demon Slayers! And the Arts!

Aside Roderick J "Jay" Friz Anime, Anime Reviews , , , , , , , , , , ,

Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba

Ladies, gentlemen, and those who identify as neither, the Demon Slayers scored a significant win! Against all odds, Tokito the Mist Hashira managed to put an end to the terrible artist known as Gyokko. Muzan’s Demon Army has suffered a devastating loss for the second time in a short period. How did this happen, though? Find out now in the new episode of Demon Slayer!

Tokito Channels Inner Spider-Man to Waste Gyokko

What’s one of the reasons why Spider-Man’s so effective as a crime fighter? There’s the powers, the indomitable will, and his genius-level intellect, to be sure. However, another reason he’s so effective is his penchant for quips, jokes, and general mocking of his opponents in a fight. He does this because he knows it angers them; when they get angry, they’re more likely to make a mistake. Tokito uses a subdued version of this strategy in this episode to significant effect.

Having freed himself from Gyokko’s death trap with help from Kotetsu and remembering his past in full, the Mist Hashira goes to town on the Upper Four Demon. Not only does he continuously dodge Gyokko’s attacks, but he proceeds to troll him the entire time. One minute, he won’t say anything to make the Demon mad, and the next, he’ll be insulting him for reeking like fish. The best part is that this tactic works to a tee. Gyokko transforms into this fish-lamia hybrid to get even more robust, but Tokito no-sells it like it’s nothing. By the halfway point, the deranged, Demonic artist has met his end by beheading. Another one of Muzan’s best assets has died in a short amount of time!

Tokito for the Win!

This entire portion of the episode triumphs Tokito’s character growth. We’ve seen his backstory and how he had to claw his way out of Hell to end the threat of the Demons. Now, he’s not only making good on that, but thanks to Tanjiro reaching his wounded heart, he’s able to become the badass he was meant to be. In addition, we get to see the sadistic monster Gyokko die. He’ll have to make his sick, perverted form of art in Hell now.

The most emotional part of the episode came when it was revealed that Kotetsu survived. Just as important, though, is what enabled the boy to survive his injuries: the tsuba, or sword mount, that belonged to the Flame Hashira, Kyojuro Rengoku. That man went out like a legend, and everyone who knew him missed him. Tokito starts crying as he remembers his late comrade. Given his previously emotionless state, this act feels all the more impactful.

It’s Time for Mitsuri Kanroji to Shine

Meanwhile, the fight against Hantengu’s Hatred Demon could be better for Tanjiro, Nezuko, and Genya. Even though they’re giving it their all, the Hatred Demon keeps overwhelming them. Now Tanjiro’s eardrums are shattered, his left foot gets crushed, and he’s a sitting duck. 

It’s moments like this, though, when the cavalry comes in to help save the day. In this case, said cavalry comes from the Love Hashira, Mitsuri Kanroji. Fresh from defending the Swordsmith Village, Kanroji is the extra firepower the Demon Slayers will need to destroy Hantengu once and for all. That woman’s started to grow on me in the short timeframe of this season, so I’m looking forward to seeing her go all out.

We are nearing the end of the Swordsmith Village Arc at this point. While there have been plenty of incredible moments, the anime has yet to live up to the sheer destructive power demonstrated at the end of the Entertainment District Arc. z

Given how there are still a few episodes left, though, we should not have much longer to wait. It should be pointed out that by now, the Demons should consider retreating. They’ve lost this fight; they don’t know it.

I Give “Mist Hashira Muichiro Tokito” a 4/5

Muichiro Unlocks his Tragic Past…and New Powers

Aside Roderick J "Jay" Friz Anime , , , , , , , , ,

Demon Slayer: Kimetsu No Yaiba S3, Ep 8 Review

They say when you’re about to die, your life starts flashing before your eyes. I don’t know if that’s true or not, but it’s always a good plot device in fiction. Besides serving as a means to remind people of key moments in a character’s life, it also helps explain more about how they ended up the way they are now. In this case, we get to see the life of Muichiro Tokito and learn what made him into the Hashira he is now. The obtuse, potentially thoughtless Hashira we’ve come to know.

This Was My Life…and it Sucked!

Even though he managed to free himself from the water pot thanks to Kotetsu, Muichiro’s in no better shape. Those needles Gyokko and the fish Demons hit him with were poison. As a result, he’s still on the verge of passing out right as the low-level grunt Demons swarm around him.

And this is the moment where Muichiro remembers all of his traumatic past. It soon becomes apparent why his mind chose to suppress the memories, though.

When he was younger, he was the son of a kind and compassionate woodcutter, and he took a lot after his father. However, tragedy struck their family when his mother died from an illness brought on by overworking herself. In addition, his father died trying to find herbs that could’ve helped her. He lost both his parents in one day, leaving him an orphan and alone.

Alone, that is, except for this twin brother.

Yuichiro and Muichiro Needed Therapy!

In essence, Yuichiro, in order to cope with the loss of his parents, shut himself off from the world and not caring about anyone else, thinking that it would keep himself and his brother alive. That’s why even though the wife of the head of the Demon Slayer Corps came to recruit them since they were descendants of one of their members, he kept turning her away. However, that proved to be a massive mistake when a Demon came to kill them both. 

 

In what can only be described as a fit of primal rage brought on by the urge to survive, Muichiro somehow managed to kill the Demon. The episode leaves the details a mystery, with not even the future Hashira knowing. What is known, though, is that Yuichiro didn’t survive the attack. In his final moments, the boy prayed to the heavens for forgiveness for his misguided attempts to protect his brother, something Muichiro witnessed. 

No wonder Muichiro developed amnesia! He might have gone insane had this not happened.

 

Awakening a New Power and Wasting Gyokko

As painful as his past was, remembering it did help Muichiro in the long run. As a result of this near-death experience trigger his dormant memories, the Hashira unlocks a new level of power. His face gains markings similar to the ones displayed by Tanjiro in his fights against Demons. Without going into spoiler-territory, it’s safe to say that these marks are the Demon Slayer equivalent to the Super Saiyan. Once he gains them, Muichiro wastes all the fish Demons to save Kotetsu, then turns his attention to the distracted Gyokko.

What follows is the beginning of a fight that, once again, shows off Demon Slayer’s greatest asset: it’s animation. The animation becomes smoother, crisper, and breath-taking to look at. That’s the anime’s way of showing that the stakes are higher than normal, and that we’re going to see things get destroyed, as Gyokko soon learns.

The fight’s between the Mist Hashira and the psychotic artist Gyokko isn’t over yet, but I can already see the writing on the wall: Muichiro’s going to win. 

This was another great episode of Demon Slayer, but I do have one complaint: the meaning of the episode’s title. It’s referring to how the Kanji for ‘Mu’ in Muichiro can have two meanings, according to his late brother: incompetence…and infinite or infinity. However, that loses a little meaning in translation to Western Audiences. Chalk that up to cultural differences, I suppose.

I Give “The ‘Mu’ in Muichiro” a 4/5

Also, this is a quick reminder that the dub for this season of Demon Slayer is now airing on Crunchyroll. If you’ve been waiting to watch it dubbed, then now’s the time to start!