Fami’s first friend may have become her worst enemy in Chainsaw Man chapter 195

With the release of Chainsaw Man chapter 195 earlier this week, fans learned of several major developments, the most notable being the introduction of a new character. While notable for many reasons, the biggest factor was her concentric pupils, which exactly match the design of those the Four Horsemen Devils have.

Likewise, fans are asserting that Chainsaw Man chapter 195's new character is a new Four Horsemen Devil. However, they also some major similarities between with another character introduced in chapter 194 as one of Famine Devil Fami’s first human friends. Speculation is now rapidly spreading across the fandom that these new characters could be one and the same, and specifically be the Death Devil and its host.

Famine Devil Fami’s friend may have become the Death Devil by Chainsaw Man chapter 195’s events

The two’s similarities

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Before going into why this new character may be the long-awaited Death Devil, it’s best to first establish why Chainsaw Man chapter 195’s new character may be the same as chapter 194’s. In chapter 194’s final scenes, fans see Famine Devil Fami stolen away from her discussion with Hirofumi Yoshida and Fumiko Mifune by this new human character. This character and the one introduced in chapter 195’s final moments feature several major similarities.

The first and most obvious is that both are high school girls with similar haircuts, albeit some slight differences such as the direction of the part. This alone makes the two suspicious, as it seems unlikely that mangaka Tatsuki Fujimoto would introduce two similar character designs so close to one another. Further supporting this is that one of the two is implied to be one of the Four Horsemen Devils via her concentric pupils.

Both are also introduced in the context of Famine Devil Fami. Chapter 194’s character physically steals Fami away from Yoshida and Mifune, Chainsaw Man chapter 195’s is introduced as a transfer student to her class as they’re working on Fami's festival. More specifically, they’re introduced in the physical setting of Fami’s apparent efforts against the Death Devil.

Famine Devil Fami may be closer to the Death Devil than she thinks given Chainsaw Man chapter 195's introductions (Image via Shueisha)

Both also wear the same school uniform, suggesting they attend the same school if they are different people. However, the implication of one being a Four Horsemen Devil suggests they could be occupying the same body. Their school outfits being the same further suggests this. The only noticeable difference in their outfits is chapter 194’s character having a jacket, but this can be easily explained thematically.

Fami also emphasizes that the festival she’s planning is “to pray for Tokyo’s revival” in chapter 194. In other words, the festival she is helping to plan is intended as a means of salvation for Tokyo. Coincidentally, Chainsaw Man chapter 195’s character had just moved to Tokyo and introduces herself to her classmates by saying she’s there “to save” everyone.

Why the two may be Death Devil and host

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The pair's respective introductions are incredibly similar in timing, context, and physical appearance. While this serves as evidence (albeit speculative evidence) that the two are one and the same, it doesn’t prove them as Death Devil and human host. However, there is additional thematic evidence which suggests this, or at the very least shows why chapter 195’s character specifically is likely the Death Devil.

Chainsaw Man chapter 195's first half sees Asa Mitaka reveal to Denji that War Devil Yoru is planning something which she says is “even worse than humanity’s extinction.” Asa’s words here reference the belief that the Death Devil’s arrival will lead to humanity’s extinction. In other words, she’s saying that she views Yoru and her plans as a greater threat than the Death Devil. Fujimoto is likely telling fans to feel the same way here, speaking through Asa.

Another interpretation could be that, compared to what Yoru has planned for humanity, extinction at the Death Devil’s hands would be humanity's salvation. Lo and behold, chapter 195 ends with this new apparent Four Horsemen Devil character telling several humans that she’s there “to save” them. Fujimoto choosing to end the issue on this scene given the focus which precedes it is extremely telling, and almost certainly intentional.

Chainsaw Man chapter 195's narrative focus serves as significant evidence for the issue's new character being the Death Devil (Image via Shueisha)

Yet despite making such a bold claim, Chainsaw Man chapter 195’s new character is incredibly timid while saying it. This is obviously contradictory to the behavior chapter 194’s character showed in boldly stealing Fami away. However, it's explaiable thanks to the precedent for human hosts and their Devils having different personalities in Asa and Yoru. Even as their emotions have blended, there’s still a clear difference in personality and demeanor.

Further supporting the idea that chapter 195's new character is the Death Devil is the inversion it would create to the other Four Horsemen Devils. All of the other Horsemen and their incarnations have been very dominant and assertive individuals. Fujimoto choosing to have the biggest, baddest, and most feared of them all be extremely timid and reserved would be an excellent subversion of expectations.

Counterpoints

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While this speculative evidence is logical and follows a clear train of thought, there are still some major issues with it. Firstly, if the two are one and the same, Chainsaw Man chapter 195 wouldn’t have seen the girl introduced to her classmates as a transfer student. This would be because the other students would recognize her as her other personality. Likewise, despite this theory being predicated on this recognition, it can also be argued as a major weakness.

One of the simplest explanations could be the introduction of a new theme from Fujimoto, seeing him borrow from his love of Hollywood cinema. Many recent films have toyed with the idea of true death being when one is forgotten, with 2017’s Coco being a notable example.

Fujimoto may be using this not only as Death's guiding theme, but also by centering her abilities around it to explain why the other students don’t recognize the host body. This would further play into the idea that Death is Pochita’s ultimate rival by nature of their possessing extremely similar erasure abilities.

Chainsaw Man chapter 195 teases memory manipulation as a major part of the Death Devil's powers, like Pochita's (Image via MAPPA Studios)

Chapter 194’s character wearing a jacket whereas Chainsaw Man chapter 195’s character did not is also an issue. However, this can easily be explained from multiple angles, the simplest being red herring from Fujimoto. He'd likely wants fans to hone in on this detail and perceptually separate the two characters.

The jacket could also be the Death Devil’s equivalent of the scar War Devil Yoru sports when she takes over Asa Mitaka’s body and disappears when Asa takes over. The jacket being a removable indicator further teases that the two may be one and the same. Whereas the Death Devil is used to the cold chill of life’s end, the host may be physically cold constantly as a result of death permeating and constituting her being.

Chainsaw Man chapter 195's could also be the new Control Devil following Nayuta's death (Image via Shueisha)

Yoru and Asa’s scar may also explain the subtle differences in the two unnamed characters’ different hair parts. The Death Devil’s different part in Chainsaw Man chapter 195 could simply be a physical distinction between her and her host comparable to Yoru’s scar. The fact that scar tissue can be so easily manipulated by such phenomena suggests something like a new hair part is far from unrealistic.

The final argument against this theory is the idea that chapter 195’s character isn’t the Death Devil in a human host, but actually the new Control Devil. This would certainly make sense logistically given how long in-series it has likely been since Control Devil Nayuta’s death. Unfortunately, there’s simply not enough information as of this article’s writing to argue against this point, making it a viable counter likewise.

In summation

Asa's words to Denji in Chainsaw Man chapter 195 tease the issue's new character being the Death Devil, savior of humanity from the War Devil (Image via MAPPA Studios)

Chainsaw Man chapter 195’s character is likely the Death Devil who has since taken over the body of the new female character introduced in chapter 194. Similarities in design combined with the close proximity of their introductions already add credibility to this idea, since Fujimoto very rarely does anything without purpose.

Additional contextual information, such as chapter 195’s focus, further supports the idea that these two characters are one and the same, and that one is the Death Devil. Although there are some arguments which can be made against the theory, there are very few which discredit the foundational evidence the theory is built upon.