Having fallen behind in my Chainsaw Man reviews, I have decided to review all three at once before Chapter 187 releases tomorrow.
Chapter 184: “Run Denji” is a short chapter, but one that shows his development from the previous chapter.
It begins with Denji running around the lake in the Aging Devil’s dimension, while Asa and Yoru sit down, confused by his actions, and the crazy guy continues to imitate a cicada.
While Denji runs, the Aging Devil appears to try and make a contract with him.
If Denji convinces Pochita to eat the Aging Devil, thus dooming thousands of children, he will be freed.
Denji refuses and the Aging Devil finds it odd how optimistic he is after Nayuta’s death, cruelly concluding that he never loved her.
It is then that Fujimoto shows why Denji’s memories of Aki, Power, Reze, and Nayuta last chapter were so vital.
Denji now knows that no matter how many loved ones he has lost, he can always find a new family, while remembering the old.
Although hopeful, it is pretty morbid when Denji says that he can find a new family repeatedly if they keep dying.
It’s not really a good sales pitch for potential loved ones, you know?
With this, Fujimoto brings back the concept of a perpetual motion machine from the original Eternity Devil Arc.
There, Denji used it to defeat the Eternity Devil, now he is using it to motivate himself to keep moving.
The Aging Devil calls Denji stupid for believing this, and the chapter then ends with Denji calling him stupid back, stating that his escape plan is already in motion.
I would say that “Run Denji” is a solid chapter, which builds upon Denji’s emotional growth.
It also leads well into the next chapter, “Stomach in Another World” where we see the beginning of Denji’s plan unfolding.
Before this though, we get more of the Aging Devil’s blathering.
It once again state that it is impossible to escape the dimension, revealing that all of the humans who came before have turned into trees after thousands of years trapped.
This fascinates the Aging Devil, who wants all humans to live long enough to become trees and “discover unseen concepts,” providing another motivation for it, beyond the murder of thousands of children.
Or, at least, that seems to be what the Aging Devil claims when speaking to the elderly government official, who it is currently using as a chair.
Denji then reveals his master plan: Using a weapon created by Asa to cut out a tree person’s guts and then eat them.
Since Denji’s stomach is in the real world, this allows Pochita to revive himself.
It is kind of funny how in Chapter 104, Denji told Asa Chainsaw Man would only eat people the “one time” (referencing Makima), and now he is doing it again to save both himself and Asa.
In my review of Chapter 183, I also predicted that whatever Denji’s plan was, it would be stupid enough to work.
Well, with Pochita’s revival, this proves accurate.
The chapter concludes with the Aging Devil warning Public Safety that Chainsaw Man is on his way.
Good thing too because if the chapter went on for another page, we would probably see all of the Public Safety Agents crap their pants in terror.
Chapter 186, “Yank, Blorsh, Bdoom” begins with Pochita beginning his lightning-fast advance towards the Aging Devil.
Thinking quick on its feet, the Aging Devil offers a contract to the Public Safety officers, including Fumiko.
If they give it charge over their bodies, it will save them from Chainsaw Man.
All of the officers agree, and the Aging Devil sacrifices their nails to bloodily incapacitate Pochita.
However, due to Denji constantly eating in the other dimension, Pochita is able to revive.
It is at this point that Fumiko tells the Aging Devil not to worry about them, and continue to use their bodies to defeat Chainsaw Man.
Bold of you to assume that the Aging Devil actually gives a damn about you, Fumiko.
As for her, I continue to wonder just what Fujimoto has planned for her character, if anything.
Her stated motivations do make sense with her backstory but, at the same time, I cannot help but believe there is something incredibly sketchy about her.
Maybe it’s just because I’m still mad she refused to help Nayuta, leading to her death.
The Aging Devil takes Fumiko’s liver, causing her to vomit blood, and then takes another officer’s eyes.
And so, another perpetual motion machine is created where, every time Pochita falls, Denji eats in the other dimension, reviving him.
Pochita eventually decides to accelerate the motion, ripping out his own heart and throwing it right at the Aging Devil.
He used this same move to fight Makima back in Part One and it is no less metal here, with the chapter ending on it.
So, next chapter we will finally see the confrontation between Pochita and the Aging Devil.
It will be interesting to see if Pochita can end it quickly or if the Aging Devil will put up more of a fight.
Either way, Pochita is definitely not going to eat the Aging Devil, at least not willingly.
Overall, these three chapters were a lot of fun, delivering on character development for Denji, and perfectly displaying the insanity of his plan.
Fujimoto also brought the old concept of a perpetual motion machine back, this time to reference Denji’s constant loss of loved ones, and to reference the cycle of Denji reviving Pochita.
I look forward to reading the next chapter tomorrow and seeing the outcome of the fight between Chainsaw Man and the Aging Devil.