CHAINSAW MAN
The first episode of CHAINSAW MAN (trailer here) finally dropped this week. The hype for this anime series has been unreal, following the massive success of the hit manga by the same name and the first trailer hitting almost 6M views. And episode one went hard, starting with the original opening song KICKBACK by Kenshi Yonezu. The opening is a huge tribute to the artist (and film lover) who created the original manga the show is based on, Tatsuki Fujimoto. It pieces together a ton of movie references from the likes of PULP FICTION, THE BIG LEBOWSKI, NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN, and many more. And behind all of those scenes is a mountain of foreshadowing that fans of the original manga have to be thoroughly enjoying.
Studio MAPPA has done a tremendous job of adapting the series, and many of the shots are exact copies of panels from the manga. With such strong source material, it’s beyond gratifying to fans like me to know that they are staying true to the original form. MAPPA did a great job with the animation, which is no surprise to fans of JUJUTSU KAISEN and ATTACK ON TITAN, and the series features killer performances from Kikunosuke Toya as Denji and Fairouz Ai Kadota as Makima. The pacing felt like it covered the material quickly, but without feeling too rushed, and saved plenty of room for some great action moments. I cannot wait to see what else is in store for this season. I have a feeling this will become one of the biggest anime perhaps of all time, so if you are into a slightly edgy show with plenty of action, horror elements, and heart-ripping story moments that will leave you mildly depressed, jump on in!
—Jackson Ingraham, Executive Assistant
