Chainsaw Man, Vol. 1

Denji was a small-time devil hunter just trying to survive in a harsh world. After being killed on a job, Denji is revived by his pet devil-dog Pochita and becomes something new and dangerous—Chainsaw Man!

Denji’s a poor young man who’ll do anything for money, even hunting down devils with his pet devil-dog Pochita. He’s a simple man with simple dreams, drowning under a mountain of debt. But his sad life gets turned upside down one day when he’s betrayed by someone he trusts. Now with the power of a devil inside him, Denji’s become a whole new man—Chainsaw Man!- Goodreads

I picked up this manga for two reasons. 1: It is being hyped as the next big thing 2: the cover looks fantastic 

I am glad I picked this up because it is a good start to the series. Normally, I will read a few volumes before writing a review but I was gifted this copy from Viz Media via Netgalley. So my review is based off this first volume. 

I find the right word to describe this but it was sad-ish. Denji has it bad right now, so I felt for him was empathy. He didn't deserve the life he was living nor did he deserve what happened to him. However, just as fast as you feel this sadness for him, you feel something else as his life shifts. 

The pace of the novel is like a roller coaster but a very good one. You hit highs in the plots and then lows to prep you for another high. I really enjoyed reading this. 

But the breakout star was the art work. If you don't like gore, do not read this but you get a lot of it. Also the monsters are pretty grotesque.  I like horror in my manga so the details of each monster worked out well for me. The art work moves seamlessly with the words of the book, so when one part ends another begins. Its like a roller coaster. 

Overall, volume one made me want to read the next volumes. 

3.5 Pickles

When you think of a manga named “Chainsaw Man” what comes to mind? Is it literally a man made of chainsaws just mowing down people left and right? If you thought that you wouldn’t be wrong, but you wouldn’t be exactly right either. “Chainsaw Man” Vol.1 by Tatsuki Fujimoto published by Viz Media tells a story that you wouldn’t really expect, with great action scenes as well as lighthearted moments too.

Within the world of “Chainsaw Man” everyday normal people live with devils who hunt eachother down. These devils can come in different forms. So for example a devil could turn people into frogs that devil would be the Devil Frog. Seems silly but you never know that very well may be a thing in this world. In this story we follow a man named Denji and Pochita, his devil dog who has a chainsaw for a body. We quickly find out that Denji is in debt beyond belief, so much to where he’s selling off his body parts in order to pay off his debt.. In a sad turn of events Denji is murdered, but Pochita gives him his heart so he can live. Then boom! Chainsaw man is born, and this is where the plot really kicks off.

We’re introduced to how the world works almost immediately after Denji dies. As well as what may be happening behind the scenes,also who else hunts the devils. As well as some other devil classes. But what really makes the story stand out is the blend of humor, action, and wholesomeness. As said before Denji is a very poor man, hes a fish out of water. Because of this a lot of humor comes into play. Watching him being exposed to something as simple as balanced breakfast and think this is what the 1% of the world eats is heartwarming. The only other friend he had was Pochita so it’s clear he doesn’t really know how to socialize with other people, just dreaming of the day where he could ask a pretty girl out on a date and spoil her.

But since he has never talked to a girl, he’s almost like a horned up teenager fighting his urges not to creep people out. A lot of the humor is very childish but it still lands everytime. We see him get into all sorts of situations because he was perhaps thinking with another head. Because of that it causes some funny moments with people he comes across.

But when the action scenes hit, they hit hard. It’s humorous to see the story go from quirky antics to bloody fights in a few short pagesYou’d expect nothing less from a manga called “Chainsaw Man” and oh boy does it deliver. Whenever we see him go in full chainsaw mode it’s almost a work of art. It makes you wonder how much more gruesome can they get? Especially since other characters are just as dangerous as Denji, making the fight scenes more interesting each time.

“Chainsaw Man” Vol.1 really came out of the doors swinging. With a name like that, how can you not read it? The manga is self-aware of itself too because they acknowledge how ridiculous his powers are and that’s what makes it so much more enjoyable. They don’t overdo it with the fighting and sprinkle in some great moments in it to keep the story rolling smoothly. Of course, it ends in your typical manga style with a cliffhanger leaving you wanting more.

"Chainsaw Man is a promising series with an equal balance of gore and comedic relief that has much potential to become the next big manga series as well as an anime series for the English-speaking market." -Andrew Nicholas