I
love it. In all honesty, it may be a little overhyped, but I still love
it anyways. We shouldn’t let the fact that other people talk about it
too much ruin it for us; an overrated show can still be a good one,
hell, a great one even. Now, for those of you who are really annoyed
with how much attention this show is getting, I’ll remind you that this
story has barely begun to walk. As of now, it may not be worthy of all
the hype, but I have read the entire manga, and I can guarantee you, it
will be. This story really 1-ups itself consistently, and soon enough,
as cool as season 1 was, it will pale in comparison to what’s ahead. So
rest assured, it only gets better from here. So, as to why I enjoy this
show so much, these are the things make it special to me:
ARTWORK AND ANIMATION
Sure,
we all know how beautiful the anime is. AND IT SERIOUSLY IS. The whole
thing is candy for the eyes, and there seems to be a never ending supply
of frames you could pause on and stare at for hours. The serious
dedication to the visual quality makes the quieter, more serious moments
all the more serene, and the action all the more exciting. Now, some
people make the assumption that Demon Slayer is all beauty and no depth,
which could not possibly be more wrong. There’s far more to it than
just looks, which I’ll talk about later on.
FIGHT SEQUENCES
Falling
under a similar category as animation, Demon Slayers fight scenes are
perhaps the most well known and respected attribute of the show. And
again, after reading the manga, I can tell you, holy hot guacamole, we
haven’t seen anything yet. But even just with what we’ve been given
onscreen so far, these showdowns are really something to behold. I don’t
think any anime has made fights the main focus of their plot as
unashamedly as Demon Slayer, or for that matter, pulled it off as well
as it has. It’s no secret that the emotions, character development and
animation always hit their highest during a fight in this show. Nothing
gets me more excited than watching these unique characters with unique
powers square of against each other.
WORLD BUILDING
I
just love Demon Slayers take on early 19th century Japan. Things are
kept interesting with the combination of somewhat ahead-of-time
technology and ancient Japanese culture and society. The world stays
true to what Japan was really like at this time, while also throwing in
some early stage electricity, trains, and first generation automobiles
to create a somewhat steam-punk feel at times. Things get even spicier
when you add magical swordsmen(and women), and night prowling demons
hungry for human flesh. The use of the common “The monsters come out at
night” idea we all had as kids really creates a sense of familiar danger
when the sun starts going down. You definitely wouldn’t want to stay up
late living in this world.
MAIN PLOT AND CHARACTER MOTIVATIONS
This
is where we talk about the depth of the story, not just how it looks on
the outside. A big problem I have with a lot of shonen anime is the
main characters. Even in highly respected titles like Naruto, One piece,
Dragon Ball etc., the motives for the main character, in my opinion,
are as dull as they get. Not to say those stories are bad as a whole,
but the main plots of the center protagonists in many of them just
aren’t very compelling. I really just don’t care if you want to be the
next Hokage, or the new pirate king, or the best Pokémon trainer, or the
greatest anything. Being the best for the sake of it doesn’t mean
anything to the audience(most audiences). However, in Demon Slayer, the
main plot is, down to the bone, about a brother doing everything he can
to save his sister. Finally, a shonen plot line we can get behind! If
your little sister turned into a demon, and you are both constantly
endangering the people around you, wouldn’t you do everything you could
to put her back to normal? Especially for anyone with younger siblings,
this story will definitely touch them deeper than with most.
THE VILLAINS
Again,
when it comes to villains especially, many stories just kinda ‘eh’ them
onto the plot with no particular motives other than wanting power or
just being evil. About as shallow as it gets, right? But the vast
majority of the antagonist cast in Demon slayer is different. Now you
may be thinking, “Oh, great, it’s another one of those Demon Slayer fans
who thinks adding a sad backstory makes a good villain.” Not really.
The backstories do make a good set-up for them though. Giving us the
perspective of the villain in many cases can help us sympathize with
them, or at least understand them. And Demon Slayer does a great job at
that, I say. But the present motives are just as important, and as far
as the main antagonist of season 1, Rui goes, they nailed that too. Rui
was a sick young boy who was turned into a demon by the series’ overall
main villain, Muzan Kibutsuji. After his demonic urges overpowered him,
and he murdered devoured a human, his parents planned to kill him and
cut their own throats and die with him. When their attempt on his life
fails, Rui kills them as well, believing they did not love him. Longing
to find a family he can love and be loved by, he forced lesser demons to
join him in his home, and be his pretend family. Always unsatisfied, he
continued to search for a genuine family bond, and only ever confronts
the hero because he refuses to provide that(Nezuko) to him. That’s a
solid and believable villain if ever there was one, really. Not ALL of
the antagonists in the series are this in-depth, but many are, and then
some, as we will see in the future.
So,
that’s why I am an unashamed Demon Slayer fan. I think it’s a good,
enjoyable show, and has a lot of potential to grow into something even
better in the times ahead. And as I’ve said before, judging by the
quality of the manga, it absolutely will. Oh, and a word of advice to
those of you who have not yet watched the series: Go into it with low
expectations. Unfortunately, people do hype Demon Slayer up to be more
than it is. But that’s not the shows fault; it’s the peoples. If you
watch it thinking it’s gonna be the best anime you’ve ever seen, your
likely gonna be disappointed. Watch it from the more modest perspective,
and you’ll have so much more fun. And if you have watched Demon Slayer,
and disliked it, or think it’s overrated(sure, it is, a little) I
encourage you to watch it through a second time, with lower
expectations, and ignore all the hype. I promise you, you will enjoy it a
lot more.
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