What Is ‘Chainsaw Man’ About?

Have you been hiding under a rock?

How do you not know what Chainsaw Man is about? Have you straight up not heard of Denji? What about Pochita? Surely you’ve heard of the dog with a chainsaw for a face?

Nothing? Not ringing any bells? I can scarcely believe it, but it looks like we have a Chainsaw Man virgin on our hands. And you know what happens to virgins, don’t you?

They get sacrificed to devils.

Devils?

Yes DEVILS! The devils of HELL! In the world of Chainsaw Man, devils are REAL! And they are out to get you! Devils are beings that are born out of human fears. As such, they take on horrifying forms that embody those fears. The Gun Devil is a being that represents the fear of guns. The Bat Devil represents the fear of bats. The Eternity Devil? The existential fear of “forever.” The Chainsaw Devil?

You guessed it, chainsaws.

The thing about devils is, they can be killed. Sort of. When they are killed, they reincarnate in hell and are free to wreak havoc once more. But there is one devil that can create a loophole to this infernal law of nature. When the Chainsaw Devil kills a devil, they DON’T REINCARNATE and are dead FOREVER. Naturally, this freaks a lot of the devils in hell out. So the devils of hell decide to gang up on the Chainsaw Devil and kill him before he can kill them for good.

It doesn’t go as planned.

Grievously wounded in battle, the Chainsaw Devil flees to the human world in his “weakest form,” a form that looks like an adorable lil’ dog with a chainsaw for a face. Cute, right?

That is pretty cute … but who is Denji, then?

I’m glad you asked! Enter Denji, the teenage son of a man in debt to the yakuza. After his father dies, Denji inherits all of the yakuza debt, and is forced to pay it off. As his dad’s grave, he finds the wounded puppy form of the Chainsaw Devil, and decides to help it by giving it blood to drink. Grateful for his help, the Chainsaw Devil (now named Pochita) agrees to help Denji kill devils to earn money and settle his father’s debt.

It also doesn’t go as planned.

Unbeknownst to Denji, the yakuza have become possessed by the Zombie Devil. Naturally, this devil turns them into shambling horrors of the night. Denji and Pochita do their best to fight them off, but the pair turn out to be no match for the Zombie Devil’s power.

So Where Does Chainsaw Man Come In?

Good question! So after Denji and Pochita are mortally wounded in a battle with the Zombie Devil, the lil’ devil dog offers to become Denji’s heart. I don’t mean romantically. I mean literally. Denji says yes and Pochita enters his body, leaving Denji with a rip chord poking out of his sternum. When Denji pulls the chord, he becomes the fearsome human/devil hybrid known as….

CHAINSAW MAN!!!!!

So Now What?

While Denji/Chainsaw Man was locked in combat with the Zombie Devil, a different devil was watching from the sidelines. Her name is Makima, but she’s also known as the Control Devil, and embodies the fear of control and conquest. As one might guess, she is a manipulative person, and she immediately realizes that Denji could be an asset to her to further her own ends. Makima is employed by the government as the leader of the Public Safety Devil Hunters, a small task force that is responsible for (you guessed it) hunting devils. She offers Denji a role on the team, and sweetens the deal by appealing to his … carnal desires. Denji immediately becomes infatuated with the devil, and wants nothing more than to be her dog on a leash. Makima is pleased, and the two embark on a quest to hunt down and kill all the devils they can get their hands on.

Anything Else?

What more could you possibly want? It’s a show about a man who turns into a chainsaw monster to fight the forces of hell! This idea practically sells itself! But if you really need convincing, the show is just as much a comedy as it is a horror. You will laugh yourself sick, then see things that are so sick you’ll laugh. So do yourself a favor and go watch it right now.

(Feat. image: MAPPA)