Demon Slayer fan's bold claim starts debate on "best animated explosion of all time"

Modified Feb 02, 2025 19:30 GMT

Demon Slayer fan claims season 4's explosion was the best animated of all time (Image via Ufotable).

Demon Slayer has been celebrated in recent years for having one of the best animated anime adaptations ever made, with a lot of fans in the medium praising Ufotable Studio for the work they have done. In that regard, there was an X user named @KamsiOwen50392 who described the explosion caused by Kagaya Ubuyashiki in season 4 as "the best animated explosion of all time."

For those unaware, the tail end of the fourth season of the Demon Slayer anime had the leader of the Corps, Kagaya Ubuyashiki, set up an explosion at his home to take the life of the Demon King, Muzan Kibutsuji. It was a major highlight of that short season, although this statement has led to a lot of discussions between several fandoms.

Disclaimer: This article contains spoilers for the series. Any opinion expressed here belongs to the author and the people quoted.

A Demon Slayer fan claims season 4 explosion to be "the best animated explosion of all time"

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The end of this fourth season, as mentioned earlier, had the villain of the series, Muzan Kibutsuji, invading the home of the leader of the Corp, Kagaya Ubuyashiki, with the latter setting up a bomb to weaken him and, hopefully, take him down with a plan. This has resulted in a fan on X claiming that this is the "best animated explosion of all time", sparking a few debates.

While there is no denying that Ufotable did a phenomenal job with the animation of this sequence, as they have done throughout the anime, combining CGI with 2D drawings for a very organic scene, it is also true that the statement made by the fan seems hyperbolic. That is taking into account the full range of animation, not just in anime and manga, making this discussion all the more complex.

Some agreed with the user while others pointed out that 2D animation is a lot more visually appealing when it comes to explosion, although that is definitely in the eye of the beholder. Others have mentioned examples such as the Fate and Dragon Ball franchises as examples of other franchises that have handled the animation of explosions a lot better.

Reactions online

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Regardless of personal takes, there is no discussion when it comes to the phenomenal job Ufotable has done with the Demon Slayer anime adaptation. Many even claim that they are the ones responsible for the series being a worldwide success. Moreover, it could be argued that this project was what took the animation standards in the industry to a whole new level.

Examples such as the Kagaya Ubuyashiki explosion highlight the quality of animation that this studio has provided with this series, oftentimes elevating the source material to a whole new level. And while people might have different opinions on the matter of the best explosions in terms of animation, most agree that this series is top-notch in this department.

"This looks great, but I hope the anime industry doesn't go all CGI animation Anime wouldn't be the same if it wasn't 2D," someone said.

"Needlessly hyperbolic tweet aside, I still can't believe this scene is from an anime. It's not just 3D, it's high-level 3D with jaw-dropping attention to detail. I appreciate any show that tries something different & that's doubly true when the execution is flawless," another person said.

"It's one of if not the best-looking digital effecs in anime for sure, but animation-wise, no. This may be a great-looking explosion, but it's far from the best animated. It's just smoke effects with lots of compositing put ontop of it," someone else said.

Demon Slayer continues to be one of the best-animated anime out there and examples like that prove that point.

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Edited by Tiasha