Beneath the stellar animation, Demon Slayer's simplicity and earnest emotions are it's strongest asset.

#~Spoilers ahead, beware.~
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#~"Those who regretted their own actions, I would never trample over them. Because demons were once human too. Just like me, they were human too."~

You know what I love? Earnestness. As a westerner, honest-to-God earnest emotion is something that's been hard to come by in media nowadays. And I understand why, it's taken America especially many years to get over it's morning-after-9/11 hangover. Times are hard and unfair, and it's never been more visible as it is now. So that is why I often find myself seeking things that embrace this sense of earnestness. Genuine emotions, simplicity, and not not having shame over these kinds of things. That is why a show like Demon Slayer has resonated with me.

Kimetsu no Yaiba first debuted in Shonen Jump magazine in February of 2016, written and illustrated by mangaka Koyoharu Gotouge. It was successful in Japan, especially for a manga without an anime. Ufotable was eventually arranged to create an anime, which was released in April of 2019. From there, the IP exploded. KNY (abbreviated for brevity) quickly became one of the best selling manga of all time, and the subsequent film became the highest grossing in Japanese history. In this review, I'd like to examine the first season of the anime. Touch bases on it's animation, characters, and general plot details. I love this anime, and I want to express where a lot of this love comes from. Let's dive in, shall we?

#~Animation~
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Time for the coldest take in the world; Demon Slayer is easily one of the best animated shows of the 2010s. Even the show's biggest detractors compliment the animation, often they label it as the show's saving grace. Despite my disagreements with that assessment, the animation is without a doubt incredible. Ufotable are an experienced studio, and this can be seen clearly throughout the show. Characters are expressive, backgrounds are beautifully drawn (especially at night,) and particularly I think they capture KNY's distinct style very well. It takes the manga's foundations and elevates it and, in my opinion, surpasses it. Demon Slayer is beautifully animated, but it's most impressive aspect is something I haven't mentioned yet.

The fight scenes in KNY are premier sakuga. Not only are they incredibly colorful (excellent choice of using bright colors for the breath techniques the characters use,) but the show's rather simple power system allows these fight scenes to be much more grounded and easy to follow. Very rarely does the choreography become over stimulating or confusing, which is all the more impressive considering this is Ufotable's first shonen style anime they have ever produced. Beyond the excellent animation and choreography, I want to touch back on that idea of simplicity. This is one of the two main pillars of what I believe make this anime so great. When you break it down, Demon Slayer fights consist of characters fighting with swords. Ufotable's decision to harness the special techniques these characters use, make that the flashy and eye catching aspect, while the actual choreography retains that direct and simple characteristics is expertly done. Combine that with just general high effort and quality animation all throughout, and KNY is undeniably phenomenal in terms of visuals. With that said, let's move onto something that's the deal breaker for many viewers--

#~Characters~
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One thing I think Demon Slayer does particularly well is building it's cast, and I'll be covering that later in this review, but by the end of the season we have four main characters. Tanjiro, Nezuko, Zenitsu, and Inosuke. These four don't shy away from certain archetypes typical to the battle shonen genre, but I think their dynamics allow their surface level simplicity to shine. Let's start from the top with the main protagonist and his sister, Tanjiro and Nezuko.
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Tanjiro is pretty standard as shonen protagonists go. Lost his family at the start of the series, is generally a good dude with decent intentions. Because of this, he's rather easy to label as boring. I disagree with that, though. Tanjiro's kindness and empathy are very integral to the show. The plot gives him the most clear cut reason to hate demons. They murdered his family, brutally. They murder other innocents and will continue to do so. Tanjiro shouldn't have any reason to doubt for a second when he kills demons. But he does, in the form of his sister, Nezuko.
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Nezuko survived the attack that left the rest of her and Tanjiro's family dead, but she was infected by demon blood in return. Importantly, however, she did not completely turn into a demon. In fact, in this half-human half-demon state, she lacks the typical behavior of a demon. To simplify, she's a essentially a human, and can become human once more. Nezuko's existence not only provides a thematic back bone for the show through her and Tanjiro's relationship, but adds so much more depth to Tanjiro as a character. Tanjiro is kind and empathetic, and he knows that all the demons he kills were once human. He knows the pains that being a demon bring, as he sees it with his sister, so he often treats the demons he kills with respect. But he does kill them, brutally I might add. And I think it's this exact contrast that makes him interesting. He is kind and sympathetic, but also has staunch morals that he adheres to no matter what. It allows a situation that appears rather black and white to have shades of grey, and also allows the plot to explore the more tragic sides of a demon's backstory.

There are other aspects I love about Tanjiro as well. He's often the mediator of the group, as Zenitsu and Inosuke can often argue, but he can also be a bit hotheaded at points when his patience runs out. Tajiro is a very direct person, straight-forward might be the better term. He sticks to his guns and his morals, a good example of this is him headbutting one of the Hashira (highest ranking demon slayers) after he hurt Nezuko. His empathy and kindness, as well as his strict morals and directness leads to a rock solid protagonist who holds a lot more depth on a closer look. This can also be said about the next character.
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Let me be clear, I hated Zenitsu when he was first introduced. Obviously, he's comedic relief, and despite a shaky introduction, I feel a lot of his jokes do land. As easy as he is to dislike, I feel his dynamic with Tanjiro and Insouke are just as easy to laugh at. With that said however, Zenitsu was so infuriating at first. His cowardice and inclination to tears were so over the top that sometimes it fails at being funny and just becomes flat out annoying. Combine that with him being so desperate for love, being so pathetic that it even makes the empathetic Tanjiro cringe, and you have a recipe for a character you dread to see. But after we see him perform his lightning breathing technique after passing out from fear, my curiosity is peaked. What's this dude's deal? Moments like Zenitsu defending Tanjiro's box that houses a sleeping Nezuko despite Inosuke beating him to a bloody pulp are early indicators that he isn't as pathetic as one may think, but the true reveal happens later.

In a flash back, we see Zenitsu's training. He's his typical, annoying self, but this time we have his inner-monologue. He is aware of these apsects of his personality, and he hates himself for it. He talks about how easily everyone dismisses him, how they'll simply write him off as pathetic and give up on him, and how that's made him question why he even continues to try and better himself. Not only is this flash-back relatable to anybody who's ever struggled with loving themselves, it's also a remarkable work of script writing. It felt as if Zenitsu was taking the words right out of my mouth when he described himself, and the fact that I had pretty much given up on him by that point in the story... It was almost meta-textual in a way. It felt as if Zenitsu was aware of my feelings towards him, and to see him harbor so much self hatred over it struck me right in the heart.

At the end of this flashback, we learn another thing: Zenitsu has learned only one breathing technique. He's distraught over this, but his master comforts him. It's okay to cry, it's alright to even run away, but one should never give up on themselves. If Zenitsu can only do one technique, he shouldn't see that as a failure. You must master a single thing, and that's exactly what Zenitsu does.
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To see his arc flourish and resonate with me on such a personal level was such a treat. It's the exact kind of borderline cheesy sentiment I love from anime, and I think this is a perfect example of how to execute it well. Zenitsu was a surprising character, and I think the show did a great job at revealing his depth as well as making him more tolerable as the story progressed. There is, however, one more member of the main trio of protagonists.

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I don't know if I can properly express how much I love Inosuke. He's your typical hot-headed brute you've seen before, but as with the other characters, he has a lot more going on under the surface. He acts as secondary comedic relief alongside Zenitsu, and I think their dynamic together is where the show's humor really shines the most. Inosuke is a hermit who has grown up in the woods all of his life, and fell ass-backwards into being a demon slayer after me mugged a low level one and had enough gumption to go out and kill demons anyways. He loves fighting, almost as much as he loves winning. So when he meets someone like Tanjiro, who's headbutts him so hard out of frustration that he fractures Insosuke's skull, he becomes a bit--well, broken, pun not intended. We later see him headbutting things through out the episode, almost dumb founded that someone he deemed as bellow him so easily knocked him out. But later, when confronting Tanjiro about it, Tanjiro compliments Inosuke. And this is when his entire character is flipped on it's head.

#~Inosuke loves validation, and can harbor deep admiration for people.~
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Seeing this buff brute borderline blush whenever he receives a compliment, and quietly fangirl over a strong warrior warms my little heart. Combine this with his high energy, naivety from being a hermit, and how he handles winning and losing, he quickly became a favorite character of mine. And overall, I think all of these main characters represent what I think Demon Slayer does so well; effective use of simplicity. Simplicity isn't bad, I've seen it more as a tool for writers that allows them to focus on other aspects of a story. In KNY's case, I believe that's dynamics. I love watching how these characters interact with each other, I think it's when most of them truly shine. On the surface, these characters are simple. They adhere to archetypes, but I think they're different in minor ways that allows them to stand out. I think the plot itself also allows these characters to burn bright, which leads me to my next point--

#~Plot, and why the Spider Arc kicks ass.~
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To be up front, I think one of my favorite aspects of Demon Slayer's narrative in a more technical sense is it's pacing. It's very gradual, hell, Zenitsu and Inosuke aren't introduced until halfway through season one. But I think it uses this time to let it's characters, especially Tanjiro, breathe and grow.

The first major arc of the show is Tanjiro's training, and I think it's great as a starter. It introduces us to the world of demon slaying, as well as demonstrating how it's power system of sword or "breathing" techniques works. Each of these adhere to a specific element, and there's several variations in techniques for an individual element. This allows the power system to be very simple and incredibly flexible, which keeps fights from growing stale. This arc also has a nice cast of supporting characters, from Tanjiro's master to the ghosts of his past disciples. The arc climaxing with Tanjiro finally slicing the boulder in two is not only cathartic but even a bit emotional.

We then move onto the initiate exam, where Tanjiro faces his first serious demon threat. We learn that this demon had been captured by Tanjiro's master in the past, and has been devouring all of his pupils in revenge. This is when we see the cruelty of the demons, particularly the other exam taker's deaths always made me feel sad. But as Tanjiro kills this demon, after learning it's past, how decades of pain had built up, he holds it's hand as it dies. This is the first time we see Tanjiro's kindness paid to a demon, and I personally found it very touching. Mileage, of course, always varies when it comes to those things.

After that, now being an official Demon Slayer, Tanjiro slays a demon or two before he meets with a friendly demon doctor who begins work on a cure for Nezuko's condition. This is where Tanjiro faces some of the over-arching villain, Muzan Kibutsuji's, goons. Kibutsuji was actually the demon that killed Tanjiro's family and infected Nezuko, and they even meet part way through the first half of the season. Muzan is pretty mysterious, but incredibly intimidating. He cursed one of the goons that attacked Tanjiro, a curse that if she utters his name, she perishes. We see this occur, when several arms burst from her body and crush her head. It is incredibly graphic, the brutality demonstrating why Muzan should be feared and why Tanjiro can feel pity towards these demons. Even one's who past he knew nothing off...No one deserves to die like that.

From there, we're introduced to Zenitsu and Insouke alongside a demon named Kyogai, a powerful demon and member of Muzan's inner circle called the Twelve Kitzuki. Tanjiro battles him in a mansion that constantly spins due to the demon's power. Once slain, it's detailed that all Kitzuki are more powerful due to consuming Muzan's blood. And with that, the season is half way finished. It covers a lot of ground, but it never feels too rushed or slow. The next arc, titled the Spider Arc, is the best of the season.
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Where the spider arc succeeds is three things; having an excellent villain, high stakes, and great pay off. Rui, a member of the 12 Kitzuki, is an excellent villain. He's cruel, sadistic, and unfeeling. His other "family" members do a good job of humanizing demons, and the concept of Rui's idea to emulate a family is both tragic but also hard to watch, particularly the violence his pseudo mother faces. Beyond that, the spider demons in this arc do a great job at absolutely kicking our heroes' asses. The trio lose in this arc. Zenitsu is poisoned and almost becomes a spider, slowly losing his limbs over the course of hours. Inosuke nearly has his head crushed and shatters both of his swords. Nezuko is tied up and burned by Rui, and Tanjiro gets his shit rocked while also breaking his sword as well. Demon Slayer does a great job at making it's characters feel squishy. Human's aren't invincible. They will get injured and, willpower be damned, they need to heal from it. This is established earlier in the seaon, and the Spider Arc uses this context to create some genuine intense moments. I was so immersed that I kind of forgot there were two other seasons after this one, and I thought for a second that some of these characters were going to die. And some do, the Demon Slayer recruits who get brutalized in this arc are done in a way that's pretty terrifying. Tied up like a puppet and forced to kill your comrades, slowly and painfully turned into spiders...It's harrowing.

I did mention pay off earlier, and boy is there payoff. This arc is our first proper introduction to Hashiras, the highest ranking Demon Slayers. We've been teased of these characters since the beginning, and it was awesome to see them swoop in and kick ass. Usually I dislike that kind of narrative plot point, but the degree to which the main characters were losing warranted it. Not only do we see the culmination of Zenitsu's arc, Nezuko's first use of a demon version of breathing techniques, but we also see the grand reveal of Tanjiro's special breathing technique; Hinokami Kagura. This allows him to kill Rui with a broken sword, an excellent climax to one of if not the best fights in the season. After that, we see more of the Demon Slayer corps as our heroes are rescued and reunited. Overall, the Spider Arc feels quintessential to what I think Demon Slayer succeeds at on a narrative level, while also introducing larger aspects of it's world such as the Hashira and more of the Demon Slayer corps.

Following that, we have a short arc where we meet the Hashira and the leader of the Demon Slayers, as well as another short one of Tanjiro and the gang healing and getting back on their feet. Overall, again, pacing is probably the narrative's strongest aspect. It covers so much ground without cutting back or padding itself too much. By the end, I'm really invested in these characters and the world the show has created. It's excellent. But there is one last thing I want to talk about, and it's something I've touched on throughout this exhaustive review--

#~Simplicity and Earnest Emotion~
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Demon Slayer is simple, like I've said a dozen times before this. I wouldn't call it ground breaking, but that's not a bad thing. It's not afraid to pull from these archetypes and tropes of it's genre, in fact, I think it does so very sincerely. The series all together feels incredibly sincere. Whether it's in its themes of family, friendship, or determination. Themes like this are common and even over-trodden, but I think KNY approaches it with such earnest emotion that it helps them truly bloom. To put it bluntly--Demon Slayer knows what it wants to say and has zero shame over it. It doesn't try to dress these themes with some levels of irony or self awareness, it's just completely earnest in it's portrayal. The same can be said for it's characters. Tanjiro cares so deeply about people, and there's no hang ups about it. It doesn't paint him as naive or foolish, it instead highlights why this makes him a good person. It's not afraid to be kind to it's antagonists, Tanjiro isn't afraid to cry over their tragedy.

And this is why I think I love the show so much. I'm a very emotional person, a sensitive one too. I feel like a lot of the media I've taken in over the years can stray away from this kind of earnestness. A lot of this is just from me slowly discovering my own tastes, but I do feel like some artists may feel the need to stay away from these themes of family or friendship. Are they over-done? Yeah, sometimes. "The power of friendship" is a cliche/trope for a reason. But I think KNY had a simple goal in mind, and nailed it. It feels almost like a quintessential shonen in a way, stripping the genre back to it's simplest aspects and excelling at it. It's a snapshot of why people love this genre, why they connect to it's characters, and why it continues to resonate with audiences.

But simplicity is a dual edged sword. Because Demon Slayer is so simple on the surface level, it might fail to hook viewers. And it has, I can completely understand why some may hate KNY outside of general contrarianism. Like I said earlier, it doesn't reinvent the wheel. Someone who's more well versed in it's genre may be completely bored by it's simplicity, because they need the complexity to be invested. But beyond that, I think those who write off Demon Slayer should take a second look. Despite it's surface level simplicity, you'll find a beautifully animated shonen that is so earnest and sincere it'll make even the most cynical heart warm.

Thank you for reading.
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