Bibliographic Information:
Title: Chainsaw Man
Author: Tatsuki Fujimoto
ISBN: 9781974709939
Publisher: VIZ Media LLC
Copyright Date: October 2020
Genre / Format: Manga / Shounen Manga / Horror / Body Horror / Paranormal / Action / Dark Humor / Print Book
Awards or Honors: “Best Shonen Manga” Shogakukan Manga Award (Valentine, 2021)
Reading Level / Interest Level: Sources such as Novelist do not list a reading or interest level for this item. Novelist does however tag Chainsaw Man as a “teen” series. This is in line with the publisher’s own “Older Teens 16+” rating due to violence and gore.
Author Background: Tatsuki Fujimoto is a Japanese manga artist who began drawing at a young age. Despite there not being a prep school in his hometown, Tatsuki Fujimoto honed his artistic craft by attending painting classes with his grandparents. He went on to publish his first one-shot at the age of 17 and graduated from Tohoku University of Art and Design in 2014 (Shonen Jump, 2020). His first published series was Fire Punch; Chainsaw Man is his second serialized work. Much of Tatsuki Fujimoto’s one-shot material has not been translated to English.
Plot Summary: Denji has raised himself in extreme poverty and loneliness. After his father killed himself, Denji inherited his debt and was forced to make money for the yakuza as a child. Refusing to give up and die like his dad, Denji forms a friendship with a devil-dog named Pochita and both of them begin hunting demons for money. Having been forged by neglect and poverty, Denji grows up to be a young man with nothing but simple dreams and his friendship with his pet Pochita.
Denji often goes to sleep on an empty stomach, drowning out the hunger with dreams of eating food and talking to a girl. He has accepted that food such as spread on toast are a luxury that will always be beyond his reach but it’s these small dreams that keep Denji moving forward. Unfortunately, Denji doesn’t get to fulfill those simple dreams because he is backstabbed and chopped to pieces by the same yakuza he was working for! As Denji begins to fade away, Pochita manages to fuse with him, becoming Denji’s heart and reviving him as a human-demon hybrid with the tools to get revenge! Denji has been resurrected as: Chainsaw Man!
Denji is immediately recruited by a mysterious woman who asks him to be “her pet” in exchange for food. Completely mesmerized by her compassion and promises of coffee and bread with spread, Denji happily agrees to help hunt demons in order to maintain his newfound lifestyle that includes warm meals and the affection of another human being.
Critical Evaluation for Books and Non-Print Items: Chainsaw Man is an energetic, violent, gory, crazy-fun ride. From the very first chapter the story loudly revs up with an introduction to Denji’s grim reality: growing up is rough when you raise yourself in poverty so extreme that dreams are the only thing keeping you alive. Denji kills his way through existence with the help of his pet chainsaw-devil-dog Pochita, literally fighting for his life every day. Existence for this young man is a struggle. His world becomes even more insanely complicated when he is chopped up by yakuza zombies. Pochita fuses with his heart, transforming Denji into a human-devil hybrid with the ability to extend chainsaws out of his face and arms. This is the journey of a young man Denji becoming the full fledged (mature) Chainsaw man.
Chainsaw Man is a story about the relationships a young adult forms as he grows up and reaches for his dreams. It’s also about the changes a young man goes through during adolescence. It’s a view into the mind of a main character who comes from a dark lonely upbringing and is determined to live his life for his own selfish desires. All Denji has ever known is pain, poverty, and betrayal. Despite these barriers, Denji holds onto his hopes and dreams; it’s this resilience that leads Pochita to his sacrifice.
“This is a contract. I’ll give you my heart. In exchange, show me your dreams…” (Pochita’s parting words as he fuses with Denji’s heart, Chainsaw Man vol. 1)
Denji is uneducated, simple minded, and easily swayed by his appetite (for food and girls). So of course Denji falls for the first woman to show him some semblance of affection!
Denji raised himself and while other children his age were in school, he was living in the streets, without anyone to guide him or teach him about trust or healthy relationships. Because of this, Denji is gullible and easily manipulated by powerful women who take advantage of his inexperience and insecurities. As the story continues, Denji will have to learn about his emotions, how to control them, and how to protect himself against a society run by adults who are out to control him like a pet dog on a tight short leash...Growing up is rough!
Tatsuki Fujimoto’s artwork is unique and many of his splattering panels resemble paintings. There is an incredible amount of attention to detail, especially in the gruesome scenes, really bringing out the grotesque nature of the body horror; fans of Junji Ito’s work will have a lot of fun with this art style! The bloodier scenes really seem like messy paint splatters; the linework (or brush strokes) add to the violent gushing motion of blood. The drawing style shows the artist's linework, meaning there isn’t one clean line for shapes and instead you can see multiple lines showing the artist’s multiple attempts at shaping the image. This makes the images seem more dynamic and not stiff and locked in place like a solid line would look. This effect can also add to the feeling of motion across the page, as if the artist drew the lines so quickly and with such energy that you can see an afterimage. This style also adds a nice variety to the type of lines that the reader sees, adding a bit of depth and perspective to the drawings.
Overall, Tatsuki Fujimoto’s Chainsaw Man is a fun, violent, fast-paced, coming of age story that focuses on the violent aspect of the transformations occurring during adolescence. The audience follows the main character Denji as he is thrust into new situations and he must grapple with his emotions when dealing with. Tatsuki Fujimoto’s artwork is incredibly dynamic, with characters popping out of their panels, bursting out at the reader.
Creative Use for a Library Program: Teens can participate in a library activity where they write out (phonetically) what they believe a chainsaw sounds like. They can then create a demon of their own from their worst fears OR they utilize one of the many random phobia generators to create a demon (Random Phobia Generator, 2021). The phonetic spelling can then be displayed next to the artistic creation, showcasing monsters that could exist in Denji’s world. Teens can also write a short little description of how the powers of their respective demons would work. A collection of these monsters can be displayed in the Teen Room, encouraging others to start reading Chainsaw Man. Speed-Round Book Talk or Short Book Trailer
VROOMkkklsklkjkdsljvromwoomwooomwoommvuvuvuvuvuvv*
Denji dreams of tasting good food and kissing his first girl, even though he knows such luxuries are beyond his reach. After his father commits suicide, Denji inherits his father’s overwhelming, impossible-to-pay-back debt, making him a slave to the yakuza. He survives extreme poverty day-by-day by slicing up demons with his pet devil-dog Pochita, who can turn into a chainsaw. In a world where demons manifest themselves from people’s collective fears, there’s always work to be done! When the yakuza betray Denji and leave him for dead, (not really a spoiler, I mean when are the Yakuza good guys?) Pochita saves Denji by sacrificing his own life and fusing with Denji’s heart. Now Denji has the ability to pop out chainsaws from his arms and face! The yakuza however are nothing compared to the demons he is about to face (think fear of eternity, fear of darkness, fear of guns…).
vrvvvrooooooooommdjnjfbdhskbfsbmsmvvrVVVVBNVBnvkljklyl*
*My terrible attempt at a chainsaw sound.
Potential Challenge Issues and Defense Preparation: One of the qualities this series is known for is its dark comedy. Some readers may not appreciate the nature of some of the jokes. The series may also face pushback from parents due to the violence, gore, and sexualization presented in the story. Manga and anime have always faced pushback from concerned parents over stylized violence and sexualization of characters. I would point them to the publisher’s rating and argue that what is inappropriate or lewd for one individual is completely acceptable by another. The series is violent, yes, but the violence plays a role in the story.
Reason for Inclusion: This story of a young man trying to find connections with those around him are relevant themes in youth content. Like many teenagers, Denji is going through some radical changes, both physically (did you see the chainsaws popping out?) and emotionally. The blood and gore are all nice and fun, but at the core, this is a story about making (healthy) connections and forming a family where you can.
The manga is set to get an anime adaptation early 2022 by studio MAPPA (Hodgkins, 2021). This anime studio has been producing a lot of popular content (Attack on Titan, Jujutsu Kaisen) so a good portion of the anime community is looking forward to the release of Chainsaw Man, especially after the amazing trailer dropped! There has been a noticeable increase in demand for this manga title, and there will no doubt be even more interest after the show is released.
Chainsaw Man Official Anime Trailer:
If you enjoyed Chainsaw Man....
