Chainsaw Man's very first Primal Fear trying to help Pochita means nothing, and Fujimoto planned it that way

Modified Oct 10, 2024 08:42 GMT

Heading into the release of Chainsaw Man chapter 179, one of the biggest topics of debate within the fandom was the Aging Devil’s offer of assistance to Pochita. While some were sure that the Devil was only motivated by its pending contract with Public Safety, others asserted that there was a deeper meaning to the action.

However, with chapter 179’s release, Chainsaw Man confirmed there was no deeper meaning by nature of the Aging Devil’s actions towards Pochita after his offer was rejected. The Aging Devil then doubles down on this sentiment at the issue’s end, making a thinly-veiled threat toward Pochita and War Devil Yoru.

It likewise seems that Chainsaw Man mangaka Tatsuki Fujimoto specifically planned this to highlight the fact of no deeper meaning behind Aging’s offer of help. Rather, the Primal Fear Devil is simply living and acting according to its passing whims, evidenced by how quickly it seems to abandon its plans for Pochita.

Chainsaw Man shows how little meaning there is behind Primal Fear Devils’ actions in chapter 179

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At the end of Chainsaw Man chapter 179, the issue sees the Aging Devil threaten Yoru and Pochita by saying they need to “grow up.” What suggests this to be a thinly-veiled threat to their lives is the Aging Devil using its powers to turn the Gun Goddess’ bullet to dust as it says this. Given the coinciding display of its powers as this is said, it seems almost certain that it’s preparing to kill both after dubbing them nuisances.

Fujimoto not only certainly planned this shift in the Aging Devil’s attitudes towards Pochita, but also likely meant for it to have no deeper meaning. That is to say, Fujimoto is likely choosing to emphasize that the Primal Fear Devils’ actions are only based on the whims and wants of that moment. For example, Pochita refusing to eat the Aging Devil likely insulted it as a result, leading to the Primal Fear threatening Pochita at the issue’s end.

This seems especially likely to be the case considering the manga has already established that the Devil’s plans with Public Safety are moving forward. This was confirmed in chapter 178’s final panel, which saw a mirror pop up showing several children being escorted by the military. The Aging Devil is also aware of this since the mirror highlighting this development was one born from its own powers and abilities.

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Combined with the fact that Devils face dire consequences for breaking a contract, it doesn’t make sense why the Aging Devil would want to kill Pochita. Aside from the setup being a red herring, the only other logical answer is that the Aging Devil’s actions have no deeper meaning. The Aging Devil is simply acting on a new whim in the wake of its previous one crumbling down, choosing to kill Pochita rather than be eaten by him.

Such an interpretation is further supported by the fact that this could lead to the first example of these contract-breaking consequences in-series. It would be a very Fujimoto-esque approach to elaborating on such a significant plot point that hasn’t been expanded on in great detail thus far. Likewise, the contract falling through could also lead to anything from major repercussions to a bigger role for Fumiko Mifune as the one who seemingly orchestrated it all.

While what Fujimoto intends to do with this apparent sudden twist is still up for debate, it’s extremely likely that the message of the twist itself is clear. The Primal Fear Devils are beings that live according to their whims, and in this way, none of their actions (including helping Pochita) have any deeper meaning.