The more I watch Kimetsu no Yaiba (Demon Slayer), the more I find myself saying that it is well on track to become one of if not the greatest Shonen Anime of all time. Granted I have not finished any of the Big Three (Dragon Ball, Naruto, and One Piece), but I have seen a substantial amount of the first two and know even more about them (I accept it, they're old and at my age, you have to be living under a rock to not know what happens in those two). There are plenty of people who can list the similarities between them and Demon Slayer, (hint, it's what makes a Shonen a Shonen.), but there is something extremely distinct that sets Demon Slayer apart from its predecessors as well as its contemporaries. It is the most emotional (long-running) Shonen anime I have ever seen.
A major part of what makes Demon Slayer so attractive to me and to others I've spoken with is the fact that it uses emotion, and is emotional. Take for example, in the Tanjiro Kamada Unwavering Resolve Arc (Season 1), Tanjiro undergoes his training, a mini-arc symptomatic to Battle Shonen. The goal is simply stated, when you cut the rock in half, you'll be ready for the trial. We all know how this is going to go, he'll try by brute strength and fail before and try again and again until he is on the brink of giving up. Then he'll hear something inspiring about fighting for those he loves and find the "strength within" to accomplish the goal and discover something about himself that his master already knew. It is a formula, and we accept it. But Demon Slayer did something differently, instead of focusing on the goal, it focused on the emotion behind it. Every swing of the blade, every conversation with the other students felt alive to the point that we forgot about the stone until Tanjiro cut it. But instead of celebration being the first thing we felt, it was a bittersweet emotion. Sadness mixed with excitement, and it was not until after that we understood why. And when we did, it was enough to bring us to tears, of joy and heartache.
How often does a training arc bring you to tears? Yet in these 2 or three episodes, I found myself not just in awe but in admiration of how it was done, I wanted to see more. Kimetsu no Yaiba welds emotion into every arc, and every episode, be it joy or rage, pain or excitement, fear and hope. We know that to mix emotion with action is a strong combination because the fights take on a new role, not one of victor and vanquished, but two souls, ideals and hopes in direct conflict with one another. It is stories like these that are people's favourites, (Akatsuki arc in Naruto), but instead of it being only a small part of a few episodes here and there, it is the very heart of the series. Whether he is slaying a demon, protecting innocents, training like a madman or mourning a fallen comrade, Tanjiro carries the emotion of the series in everything he does. With a cast of side characters who fit in around him to make it not just believable but immersive. With the music and animation only further assisting to further that beauty and make us sit in awe of it.
Kimetsu no Yaiba is on its way to being a masterpiece, and as the sun rises on the end of the Mugen Train Arc and we go into another, I can only sit and wait in anticipation that this journey only continues to unfold as pure, genuine and beautiful as it began.
Later Days,
Africanime
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