Makima: Does Denji kill Makima in Chainsaw Man? Explained

Does Denji kill Makima in Chainsaw Man? Explained

Modified Aug 11, 2024 08:41 GMT

Chainsaw Man's primary antagonist of the Public Safety Saga, Makima, stands as one of animanga's most terrifying villains ever written. She is literally the embodiment of the phrase "looks can be deceiving". On the surface, Makima appears to be kind, gentle, and friendly, often sporting a warm smile and relaxed even in times of crisis.

But this is nothing but a facade. Behind all this warmth lies the conniving and cruel Control Devil side of Makima. She uses this false side only to progress towards her main goal: to bring Chainsaw Man under her control and use his abilities to establish an ideal world devoid of fear, death, and “bad” movies.

As such, she comes across protagonist Denji and manipulates him through her physical appeal to inch closer to her goal. But as it happens, Denji and Makima ultimately end up in a showdown. Thus, Denji kills Makima and puts an end to her tyranny.

Does Denji kill Makima in Chainsaw Man Part I?

Denji and Makima (Image via Tatsuki Fujimoto, Viz Media)

Chainsaw Man Part I ends with Denji killing Makima and putting an end to this scheming individual. As overpowered as she seemed, even Makima made a mistake when it came to taking her opponent into account, which is what led to her eventual death.

Being hyper-focused on Pochita, she gravely underestimated Denji and what he could do. Eventually, it was a fatal mistake like this that cost her life. During her final moments, she does express a certain disbelief at what Denji pulled off and Denji himself was a bit reluctant to end her, but ultimately decided to do so.

How Denji kills Makima, explained

Denji kills Makima (Image via Tatsuki Fujimoto, Viz Media)

The final showdown between Denji and Makima takes place in final arc of the series' first part, i.e., the Control Devil Arc. It begins after Denji is compelled to kill Aki Hayakawa, who became the Gun Fiend. Distressed, detached and depressed, he seeks out Makima for comfort. But instead, Makima kills Power before his eyes, explains her ultimate goal to him and brings out a fully-powered Chainsaw Man.

The Hero of Hell first faces the Hell Devil (summoned by Kishibe's men), then the Hybrids under Makima's control. The battle ends with Power (given a chance to fully emerge in Blood Devil form by Pochita) hiding Denji's body to fight another day. Kishibe then recovers Denji and the latter battles Makima one last time.

Perplexed and disappointed that his personality has seemingly resurfaced, Makima makes quick work of him and rips out his heart. Believing that she had won, she lets her guard down but is attacked by Denji. He damages her via a chainsaw imbued with Power's blood, stunning her. As Denji reveals, Makima had been fighting Pochita while he patiently waited for the perfect opportunity.

Why Makima was killed and not erased

Nayuta/New Control Devil (Image via Tatsuki Fujimoto, Viz Media)

In the chapter, succeeding the one with Makima's death, i.e., chapter 96, Kishibe introduces Denji to the new, or rather reincarnated, Control Devil, a little girl named Nayuta. The veteran Devil Hunter found the girl in China and thought it best to have Denji raise her rather than hand her over to Public Safety. This confused fans as to how such a thing was possible.

The answer is simple: Denji consumed Makima, not Chainsaw Man. He was in his human form when he attacked her and subsequently consumed her. Importantly, while Denji does possess the Chainsaw Devil's powers, he and Pochita exist separately within his body. So, him consuming Makima did not erase her; rather, he just killed her.

This is why the Control Devil still exists and was reincarnated into the world as Nayuta. Reborn, the devil now lives with Denji in hopes that he can raise her in a loving environment and save her from her own destructive tendencies, potentially preventing a Makima 2.0.