What's So Great About Demon Slayer - A Kinder Kind of Shounen

since it started airing this spring Demon Slayer komatsuna Yaiba has kind of flown under the anime community's collective radar at least as much as a shounen jump adaptation can it's obviously been more popular than most of the shows going and been noted for its stellar production value and stylistic flourishes but it wasn't really hyped up in the same way that the promised Neverland attack on titan and dr. stone have been last week that changed in a big way as fan reactions to the fight at the end of episode 19 which I'm planning to give the full animal a treatment soon pushed the series - Twitter's trending tab and to the top of our anime and with good reason it was a phenomenally executed fight that served as a perfect capstone to an equally phenomenal story arc one of the rare events in anime so good that it didn't just increase my hype for what's to come it also helped me better understand and appreciate what the series was going for leading into it so today before I dig into the gritty spoilery details of that specific fight I'd like to examine what makes the show so damn good in general if you'd like to see for yourself you can of course watch all of demon slayer right now using today's sponsor crunchyroll now let's start with the obvious advantages this series has as a UFO double show demon Slayers CGI backgrounds are of course breathtaking and the traditional animated elements are impeccably composited into them for wide shots the show sometimes uses high-quality CG rigs of its main characters that manage to look just as good as the hand-drawn bits if not better it is one of the most technically impressive digital anime series I've ever seen and it has a distinctive artistic sensibility to back that prowess up like many shown in anime demon slayers action scenes are peppered with flashy effects but not because it's heroes use flashy superpowers the demon slayers are almost regular swordsman not magicians or aliens so impressionistic elemental effects are used to add character to their sword techniques as a sort of visual metaphor tandro sword flows through his foes like water Zenit Zeus strikes fast like lightning as our heroes fight they paint the battlefield with these elements and the effect is really something to behold besides making these more grounded fight scenes look anime beautiful this also allows us as viewers to intuitively understand the differences in their fighting styles without needing lengthy explanations of technique it's a brilliant action conceit that feels decidedly novel in the modern dragonball influence shown in landscape still even with all it has going for it aesthetically and conceptually demon Slayers real strength lies and its characters and its confident thematically driven storytelling and I'm honestly surprised to be saying that because when I first started watching it I kind of got the impression that it was a bit of a meat headed bro show indulging in endless action for actions sake I couldn't have been more wrong this is a thoughtful anime with quite a lot to say on very important topics it just prefers to let its fists do the talking most of the time so to speak as shown in action anime go Demon Slayer is above all else an incredibly efficient series it cuts out almost all of the fat between the meaty fights that it knows shown and fans are here for in this first season at least the story aided by Tanja Rose talking crow drags our heroes from one brutal brawl to the next with at most an episode of downtime between its clashes of blood and steel now that pure fight focus structure could very easily become exhausting and tedious if handled poorly there's a reason that my hero academia takes significant time off for dorm decorating and other less combat driven story arcs and gives its big fights a lot of buildup before letting fists fly but Demon Slayer does an impeccable job of using those conflicts to advance its central themes and character arcs ensuring that each battle really means something and moves the plot forward in substantial ways Tanja Rose very first fight with Tomioka establishes his resourceful self-sacrificing nature and demonstrates the strength of his bond with Ned Zuko their fight with the temple demon on the way to meet Iroko Docky reinforces that bond and shows us that nezzie ko is a force to be reckoned with in her own right the mountain training arc takes Tangier on a long spiritual journey to discover his own inner strength while the survival test that follows shows us how much he's grown and demonstrates the incredible empathy that defines him as a character the fight with the demon clone triplet guys introduces the concept of blood demon magic that will serve to differentiate each villain moving forward as well as some clever alternative uses for tandro sword techniques and shows us how effective he and nezzie co can be as a team the Asakusa arc officially puts our heroes on the big bads radar very early on for this kind of show while subverting our expectations of what kind of monster he is showing how he manipulates his followers and establishing that other good demons do exist outside of his control the drumhouse battle gives us a proper introduction to a pair of wonderful supporting characters in Xanadu who's basically ultra instinct shaggy with a bit of Mineta mixed in and the very very good boy a nosegay it also expands on the hierarchical structure of Kiba Tzu G mu Zhaan's demon society and the psychological told that his manipulation and intimidation tactics take on those who fall short of his expectations and are abandoned by him that tol becomes the focal point of the Natu Gumo mountain arc which throws tons Rosanna sue and eNOS K up against a family of spider like demons led by one of Mouzon stop soldiers the 12 demon moons in terms of making the grander narrative function this arc establishes an upper limit to each of our hero's abilities and the huge gap between them and the Elite pillars which shows us just how far town 0 has left to go if he wants to accomplish his quest of collecting the blood of the demon moons and curing nezzie KO while it's doing all of that more mechanical storytelling stuff the arc also explores some heavy themes it becomes clear early on that the members of the spider clan aren't exactly a happy family as the mother tries and fails to use her spiderweb puppets to kill the demon slayers on the mountain a single word from her son about telling father of her failure sends her spiraling into abject terror and went on Jareau catches up with her she's all too happy to embrace death rather than facing her family without spoiling too much the entire spider household is the creation of a mind that does not comprehend love and that is not willing to give it but still desperately wants to be loved because he can't come by it honest the head of the household chooses to take what he wants by any means necessary forging a bond of terror within his fake family whose fear of him is second only to their fear of the outsiders he protects them from that fear keeps them isolated from the outside world and from each other which leaves their tormentor as their only real human connection it's a textbook pattern of abuse and it couldn't stand in stark contrast to the love that tonzura shares with nezzie Coe and the rest of his family as well as the bond of friendship he's beginning to forge with his companions that conflict between fear and love lies at the core of demon slayers narrative creating a consistent through line through all of its fights and story arcs at every turn tandro shows that he's willing to give his all to support and protect the people he cares about and that kindness inspires all of them even the boorish Ennis K and the cowardly perverts and itsu to do the same for him tonzura sword skills and superhuman sense of smell are nothing to sneeze at but time and again it's that love that really saves his neck it's implied to be what helps mezu Coe get a grip on herself when she first transforms into a demon and when Tomioka is about to slay her it's only witnessing how far the siblings will go to protect each other that stays his blade when he's knocked out fighting the hand demon Tanja Rowe has roused back into action by his dead brother's voice and the examples go on and on demon Slayers fights are varied and fascinating pitting relatively realistic sword play against stand like supernatural threats to create a unique and unpredictable dynamic but while no two fights are the same from the start right up to that last battle that set the anime community ablaze that theme of Tanjore being empowered by his bonds with others is an undercurrent in all of them also ever-present is our hero's compassion for everyone around him including the monsters he must fight almost every demon is shown to have some pain buried deep within them glimmers of the people who they were before their humanity was stolen from them and because of his connections to Nezha code town zero is able to see that humanity inside of them and find ways to comfort them in their final moments this gives every fight in the show a sort of beautiful bittersweet aftertaste there's a surprising nuance in how the demons are written here they're painted as sympathetic figures with comprehensible motivations but the series is careful to never let that excuse their actions they've killed people ruined lives and they will keep doing so until they are stopped by any means necessary they are demons and they must be slain but Tanger oh can at least carry out that task with kindness rather than cruelty understanding that the pain they caused doesn't invalidate their own inner pain of course most demon Slayers don't have a net Zuko and thus have no reason to share this sentimental outlook many of the rank-and-file soldiers we meet on not Akuma mountain express an outright mercenary attitude toward their work seeking to climb the ranks and increase their pay by scoring easy kills on weaker demons the guy who stumbles on Tanger OHS argument with the spider kids is downright excited for the opportunity to kill a child he knows nothing about the hunters who chase down the younger spider sister in her flashback have a similar attitude they don't see the human side of the demons or understand their individual suffering to them they're just monsters who need to be put down and that attitude does make a lot of practical sense when you're trying to mitigate the threat posed by demons as a whole but how does somebody with that viewpoint deal with nezzie ko or lady Tommy oh and ushiro and will The Corrs attitude change should Tommy o ever complete her cure if rehabilitation becomes an option is the model of justice through punishment that the Slayers adhere to still the best method of handling demons or does it become unnecessarily cruel if you'll permit me the audacity to venture a guess as to where this very long story that's barely started is going I've got a feeling that at some point in the series those questions are going to throat and row into conflict with his fellow hunters with how hard the series pushes its themes of compassion love and understanding I have a hard time believing that it's driving to so simple a conclusion as stop all the bad demons by killing them right at the start of the series or Okazaki plants this suggestion in Nez eCos head to pacify her a bit all humans are your family and not long after that through Tomeo the series establishes that demons can be seen as humans within that framework if we assume that that suggestion is the core message that the series ultimately aims to send the way that it handles its fights and characters makes a lot of sense if everyone is your family then you should show them kindness and respect even if they're doing something bad that you need to put a stop to right now the greatest kindness that tandro can show his foes is to kill them painlessly using a technique that a Roku ducky taught him I might add but if he were able to save them all or at least give them a chance to redeem themselves I think he'd do it without question even if the series doesn't go there though I really like what tonzura represents as a hero unlike many gung-ho Shonen boys he uses violence only to the extent that it's necessary to protect himself and others he returns harmless provocation from the likes of a nosegay only with kindly smiles but responds to injustice and threats against his loved ones with righteous valid anger he is legitimately one of the best role models I've seen come out of a shounen jump title since well since Emma in the promised Neverland which wasn't that long ago but they're both welcome outliers in an imprint and a genre that tends to over glorify violence and aggression sure it's fun to watch a shown in battle that makes you shout but Demon Slayer shows that fight scenes can be engaging and interesting without relying on that response and in spite of how simple its premise seems at first blush that makes it feel downright refreshing to watch I don't know what's been leaking into the water at shounen jump over the last few years but they have been hitting home run after home run and while at first glance I thought that this series would only make it to first or second the ball hit a low-flying bird and then bouncing to the bleachers and I have lost control of this metaphor and I don't know enough about baseball to stop it what I'm trying to say is that I underestimated demon slayer but with time it's proven that it deserves to stand next to haikyuu the promise Neverland my hero academia and doctor stone as one of the best shounen jump titles currently running you're probably already watching it but if you're not even if the whole Shonen punch him up deal isn't usually your thing definitely give it a look as I said at the top of this video demon slayer key Matsuno Yaiba is being simulcast on today's sponsor crunchyroll so if you sign up for a 14-day free trial at crunchyroll.com slash basement you can get caught up on the whole series right now and catch the next episode as soon as it airs plus they have hundreds of other anime new and old for you to watch while you're waiting for that to drop but cheap and convenient anime streaming isn't the only thing that crunchyroll offers they also put on an annual convention crunchyroll Expo which will be happening this year from August 30th to September 1st at the San Jose Convention Center I've been to a lot of cons in my time as both a guest and a fan and cr-x has consistently been one of the most fun and best run events that I've had the pleasure of going to especially impressive considering how young it is unfortunately I won't be able to make it down there this year but plenty of awesome people will be there including horror manga legend gingy Ito the creative team behind mob cycle 100 who will be hearing their brand new mob psycho OVA and maiden abyss composer slash all-around great guy Kevin pankin from various anime premieres to an all crunchyroll hem a maid cafe to daily official ukyo events and tournaments crunchyroll Expo offers a metric ton of events and attractions to keep you busy in between meeting all of those awesome folks also Flo is going to be there and putting on a concert and I am so sad that I won't get to see that but at least all of you guys can go and enjoy the con in my stead check out the link in the doobly-doo to see everything that's happening that weekend and get your tickets today I'm Jeff through professional [ __ ] signing out from my mother's basement [Music]

Channel: Mother's Basement

Views: 1,012,448

Keywords: Mother's Basement, Anime, Anime Analysis, what's so great about anime, Demon Slayer, kimetsu no yaiba, demon slayer episode 19, inosuke hashibira, tanjiro, Nezuko, Zenitsu, Rui, Tanjiro vs Rui, Natagumo mountain, Spider Clan, kibutsuji muzan, Shounen Jump, Shounen Anime, ufotable, crunchyroll, demon slayer anime, kimetsu no yaiba explained, Why we love anime, gigguk, nux taku, anime fights

Id: HhGuNpUpIXs

Length: 15min 26sec (926 seconds)

Published: Sat Aug 24 2019