"He didn’t say that about Chainsaw Man" - Fans misunderstand Fujimoto's reaction to the Look Back adaptation

Modified Jul 16, 2024 05:43 GMT

"He didn’t say that about Chainsaw Man" - Fans misunderstand Fujimoto's reaction to the Look Back adaptation

The final weeks of June 2024 saw Chainsaw Man mangaka Tatsuki Fujimoto’s Look Back oneshot manga turned anime film adaptation premiere in Japanese theaters. The film was initially met with incredibly high praise from critics and theatergoers alike, being hailed as one of the best anime adaptations of 2024 thus far in either film or television format.

However, a recent quote from Fujimoto regarding the success of the Look Back anime film has left Chainsaw Man fans, of all people, extremely scorned. Those commenting on the matter seem to be upset that Fujimoto never levied the same praise at MAPPA’s television anime, or rather that MAPPA didn’t do a good enough job to deserve it. Yet that may not be the case, as these fans are leaving out a very important part of Fujimoto’s quote praising the adaptation.

Fans ignoring a key word in Fujimoto’s Look Back quote highlighting his feelings on Chainsaw Man anime

Expand Tweet

Admittedly, part of Chainsaw Man fans’ confusion regarding the Fujimoto quote comes from larger pages reposting it in chunks rather than fully doing so. Fujimoto’s full quote reads as “I cried because I thought that I would never be able to have my work made with such sincerity again in my life.” However, most pages reposting the quote are cutting off the last four words, making it sound as if Look Back is Fujimoto’s first time feeling this when that’s not the case.

This is made evident by the use of “again,” with Fujimoto’s flagship Shonen Jump+ manga series being the only other one of his works to be turned into an anime adaptation. In other words, the full quote clearly emphasizes that Fujimoto also had the same reaction to MAPPA’s television anime adaptation as he did to Studio Durian’s film adaptation.

This is further supported by Fujimoto’s activity on X/Twitter during the time of the Chainsaw Man anime’s airing. He was constantly tweeting out his support and love for the anime, as well as his thanks to the staff at MAPPA Studios for their production. While fans are correct that Fujimoto had never before said the same exact words about MAPPA’s television anime, his support at the time of airing combined with the full quote above make it clear he does feel similarly.

Likewise, his praising Look Back doesn’t inherently create commentary on his feelings for the production in and of itself. The full quote further supports this idea, clearly seeing him relating the feeling he felt during the film to what he felt during the television anime series. At the same time, any praise he may offer towards MAPPA’s production in the near- or far-future is not inherently a shot at Durian’s.

Fan reactions

Expand Tweet

As mentioned above, many fans are asserting both that Fujimoto didn’t say anything like his words on Look Back during the airing of MAPPA’s television anime, and wasn’t moved by the production at all:

“he never said this when talking about chainsaw man season 1.. he knows it didnt move him,” posted one netizen.

“The fact that he’s never once said anything similar about the dry and washed out adaptation that is the Chainsaw Man anime,” rightfully claimed another.

Indeed, it’s accurate to say that those words on Look Back had never prior been said regarding the television anime series specifically. However, Fujimoto clearly highlights that he does feel similarly in the above full quote, made evident by his use of the term “again.” Other fans are readily pointing this out, and his activity during the anime’s airing:

“his twitter page was full of him spamming every week after watching the eps,” countered one user.

"Bro, those are facts, some people are so looking for some argument that csm is poorly adaptation, lol.," confidently claimed another.

While it’s clear that this topic is very divisive for the general Fujimoto fandom, what is clear is that some sentiments surrounding it are being fueled by cherry-picking and misinformation. In full context, it’s clear that Fujimoto feels the same about both MAPPA’s adaptation and Durian’s, even if this is the first time he’s used these specific words of praise for either.