“I fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but I fear the man who has practiced one kick 10,000 times.” is, I think, an incredibly apt way to describe how I feel about Demon Slayer. The series, which has now reached astronomical levels of success, has never been the deepest, most well written, most thematically coherent or original work of art ever made - what it has been, though, quite consistently, is absolutely amazing at doing exactly what it wants: To be an emotionally resonant and incredibly fun show about a good boy killing bad monsters. However, I think there's still just enough to it that it keeps this very simple concept interesting.
I think the most important aspect to Demon Slayer's success, for me, is the amount of heart put into every aspect of the show - every character, every story beat, every fight is full of so much care and emotion that I'm always interested in what's happening, even if it's incredibly mundane, because the show is just that good at making me care about what's going on: For example, some of my favourite episodes in this season are the final few, which are entirely dedicated to training our main trio of characters; but since I have become so attached to them throughout the show, and especially the action-packed arc that precedes this downtime, I now care about whatever wacky, low-stake hijinks they'll be getting into while recovering from their injuries. I watched Tanjiro as he hopelessly struggled against insurmountable odds to buy just one more moment for his sister's life, and that entire sequence was so moving and exhilarating and emotional that now I happily watch as he has some fun with his new girlfriend and catches up with his friends.
Speaking of the characters, I'd also like to take some time to discuss them, starting with Tanjiro:
He's a good boy. He's the bestest boy, and I love him. And so do you. That's it, pretty much. He's just a really, really good boy, and he's the best.
This simplicity also carries over to pretty much everyone else, and I actually think it works really well - though each character does eventually get some more depth as time goes on, which keeps things from getting stale.
I think a big part of what ultimately makes this simplicity so effective is the stellar voice acting Demon Slayer has: Particularly the main trio have such expressive voices that even when, say, Zenitsu is being insufferably annoying, his voice actor is selling how much of a fucking freak he is so well that it turns right back around to being endearing.
Unfortunately, though, this simplicity doesn't work so well for me when it comes to the Hashira; elite demon slayers with the power to easily eradicate most threats our main trio face throughout the season. While I don't mind that they're so overpowered - especially because they start getting their asses handed to them in later seasons, which is a good contrast to show how high the stakes become - I unfortunately was left somewhat unimpressed by how flat they are as characters. I don't think this is so much of a problem for the Hashira we don't see in action, such as Rengoku and Mitsuri (who is the best one by the way, I can't wait for her debut in Season 3), I definitely felt it to be a problem with Giyuu and Shinobu, the Water and Insect Hashira, who we do see plenty of throughout this first season. Sadly, there just isn't enough to them (yet) that had me particularly excited to see them appear, though their presence is still welcome due to how badass they are.
I also feel a similar distaste for most of the villains of the season, who are all pretty much just one dimensional cardboard cutouts, and I'm glad this problem is alleviated later on to some degree by either making them really hot (Akaza) or giving them some actual character (Gyutaro and Daki). There is one actual character here in the form of Rui, who I was invested in to some extent - though this was mostly due to his dynamic with Tanjiro rather than him as a person.
One benefit Rui does provide the season, though, is the incredible fight in Episode 19, which is a great example of how the emotional poignance of the show is it's core strength, and also a great example of probably the two most famous aspects of the show: The animation, and the music.
Though I don't think I can really comment on the animation and action in any new, original way that hasn't already been done before - it's incredibly well directed, incredibly gorgeous, as is expected of Ufotable, and only gets better in sequels - I do feel quite strongly about the soundtrack in Demon Slayer; I think the show is incredibly good at knowing precisely what kind of song to use at precisely the right moment to evoke the most amount of whatever emotion is being targeted.
However, all of this praise also comes with a little more criticism, too: In particular, I would say that over half of this 26 episode season - specifically, everything before their adventure in Mount Natagumo - can't even be described as particularly engaging, and is entirely carried by how likable the main cast is and the fantastic chemistry between them. After that, though, the show does find it's footing.
Ultimately, I feel that Demon Slayer is, much like a certain cowardly blonde teenager, a master of one thing: Being fun. If you're looking for just a good bit of entertainment, some nice emotional beats and eye-pleasing action, then I don't think there's anything that beats this show. It's the master of it's craft in the best possible way.