Chainsaw Man Chapter 151, “The Return of Chainsaw Man” features, well… the return of Chainsaw Man.
In many of my previous reviews I stated that Tatsuki Fujimoto was saving Denji transforming again for something big.
If the ending of this chapter is anything to go by, then that big moment has arrived.
But I am getting ahead of myself.
“The Return of Chainsaw Man” begins with a hostage situation, as the Weapons take Fumiko captive in another attempt to force Denji into transforming.
Sugo once again spouts off his absurd belief that tormenting Denji into becoming Chainsaw Man will save the world.
Even the Whip Hybrid calls out Sugo’s idiocy in believing this, and she has been presented as not very bright in the past.
She even says this right in front of Sugo and he still, somehow, does not catch on that he is being used.
I still believe Sugo will eventually help Denji but, at this point, it seems like it is going to take a while for him to get there.
Barem, on the other hand, is quick to arise after being shot in the previous chapter.
Nayuta is enraged by the apparent death of her and Denji’s pets so she uses her power to try and make Barem kill himself.
Unfortunately, this has no effect on Barem, as he marches towards Nayuta and grabs her by the throat.
He then speculates that the reason Nayuta could not control him was because his heart still belongs to Makima.
Even though she is dead and reincarnated, Makima is still affecting things, showing just how great of an antagonist she was.
As he holds Nayuta captive, Barem begins his own monologue, expressing his longing for the same world Makima sought to create.
He then blames Denji for the fall of this potential world, scorning him for living in peace.
It is interesting to see Barem show such disdain for Denji, since he has called himself a Chainsaw Man fan multiple times.
Then, in a panel in which Fujimoto draws him to resemble Alexandre Cabanel’s The Fallen Angel painting, Barem declares that “these flames are your punishment.”
In my opinion, Barem has been the most interesting Chainsaw Man antagonist since Makima.
Like her, he is ruthless when he attempts to achieve his goals, for which he holds a strong amount of conviction for, which we see in this chapter.
From what he says, it seems like he is trying to bring about the world Makima wanted by making Denji strong enough to defeat the Death Devil, for which he sided with Fami.
Following Barem’s declaration, Nayuta takes control of a dead Public Safety Officer’s body and uses it to shoot Bare, again, freeing herself.
This finally gives Denji the chance to transform, yet he still hesitates, only to see a vision of Pochita standing in front of his and Nayuta’s burning apartment building.
Pochita waves at him, a child Denji waves back, and Denji pulls his ripcord, transforming into Chainsaw Man for the first time since the Falling Devil arc.
He breaks out into laughter as he does so, with Nayuta questioning him about why, before the chapter ends on an ominous panel of what looks like a burning cross overlaying Denji’s transformation.
As for why Denji was laughing, I think it was relief.
For so long, he has been trying to convince himself that living a normal life was enough for him.
Now, Denji has finally let go of that lie and embraced his desire to be Chainsaw Man fully.
It is fitting then that, as soon as Denji accepts this, he pretty much exposes his identity to the world.
Fujimoto draws a random civilian spying on the situation as Denji transforms, so word is going to spread quickly about his identity.
This will not be good, since it seems most of the world is now afraid of Chainsaw Man because of what the church did.
Although, this fear is going to make Denji absurdly powerful, just like it did Yoru, so I don’t think the Weapons will do very well in the coming fight.
There are also a few other characters in the wind.
We still do not know if Meowy and the other pets were really killed, or where Asa and Yoru are.
I especially hope we see the latter soon because the two of them have taken a bit of a backseat in this arc since they joined the Chainsaw Man Church.
Sure, we got that moment where Yoru regained her power, which was great, but I hope her and Asa go back to being central characters soon.
“The Return of Chainsaw Man” is another great chapter, which leaves us on the cliffhanger of Denji’s transformation.
The wait to see what happens next would already have been enough, but the three week break because of the holidays makes it extra-long.
When the story eventually continues, I am anxious to see where Fujimoto takes it and what the fates of various characters will be.