MAPPA's biggest Chainsaw Man mistakes have nothing to do with animation

Modified Nov 02, 2024 02:30 GMT

MAPPA's biggest Chainsaw Man mistakes have nothing to do with animation (Image via MAPPA & Tatsuki Fujimoto\Shueisha)

Chainsaw Man Reze movie was announced in December 2023 and it has yet to receive a major update regarding its release. While its release is in limbo, the fandom has yet again started criticizing the anime for its 3D animation style. However, the true issue of the anime might not be the animation but its pacing that failed to bring out the series' true colors.

The biggest blunder for the production team was to conclude the first season with 12 episodes with the Katana Man arc. While the first season had enough hyped moments, it didn't have moments that made it Chainsaw Man like the Denji-Reze tongue scene and the protagonist's battle against the Gun Devil. The latter scene would have worked perfectly as a finale but nothing of such sort happened.

Disclaimer: This article contains potential spoilers from the Chainsaw Man manga series and has the author's opinion.

Why pacing might be a bigger issue for Chainsaw Man than the animation

Denji and Pochita as seen in the anime (Image via MAPPA)

Chainsaw Man was a one-season anime based on a manga series written and illustrated by Tatsuki Fujimoto. While the manga series is still one of the most famous ones in the fandom, the anime failed to hit the mark because of its "controversial" animation style.

Not only was it outclassed in ratings on most social media platforms, but it was also branded as one of the most unimpressive anime adaptations. However, the main reason why the series fumbled could be something else—the pacing and the selection of arcs for the first season.

Chainsaw Man season 1 adapted the first four arcs, which included Denji's journey from a street boy to becoming part of the Devil Hunter Association. At the end of the sequel, Denji met Katana Devil, and their battle ended with the triumph of the Devil Hunter Association. Moreover, the other arcs of this season were also as amazing but didn't represent the series' essence.

The Gun Devil as seen in the manga (Image via Tatsuki Fujimoto\Shueisha)

The real hype of the series is about its gore and the sinister existence of the Gun Devil. The Reze movie is set to adapt the Bomb Girl arc, which features the most infamous panel of the manga series when Reze bit Denji's tongue off while these two enjoying a romantic time together.

Moreover, a few arcs later, Denji's battle with the Gun Devil also happened during the Gun Devil arc, which could be considered the peak of this manga. So, the first season should have adapted to these arcs (meaning it should have been a two cour, 24-episode, series) and could have opted to make the final arc of the first part, the Control Devil arc, a movie.

Final thoughts

The main poster of the movie Reze (Image via MAPPA)

The anime adaptation of Tatsuki Fujimoto's magnum opus didn't fumble but it couldn't reach the heights it should have given the popularity of the source material before the anime was announced.

Opting for a two-cour season 1 might have changed things and it could have made the animation issue a negligible one. Sadly, there is still no update about the Reze movie and also no telling when the series' sequel will commence in the future.

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Edited by Meenakshi Ajith