The anime finally comes to an end, and Ufotable put out all the stops to make the ending memorable. It was downright movie quality in the first half, and I think that was just a taste of what we’ll see in the actual sequel movie. Yup, we’re getting a sequel movie! Not exactly what I expected, but I’ll take what I can get. I just hope sequel movies won’t be the norm.
This finale episode had two different tones in each half. The first half dark, brutal, and graphic while the second half was much more sweet and lighthearted. We’ve already seen how evil Muzan can be multiple times, from the random girl he killed to how the temari demon named just from saying his name. But this time we got an even better taste and we even got to see the dynamic between him and his followers. It’s nothing but fear and terror, and I wonder why they even work for him. I know they’re demons but I actually felt bad for them. After Rui’s death, Muzan saw that there was no point in keeping the Lower Kizuki around when they’re so much weaker than the Upper. He thinks of them as worthless and ends up killing them one by one, some begging while one stupidly attempts to run away. The only one left is a demon that takes pleasure in pain and his thanks of being the last one to be killed off for some reason makes Muzan happy, so he spares him and injects him with some of his blood. Muzan gives him the mission to go out and kill Tanjiro, and we see him on top of the train at the end of the episode.
I loved every single thing about this scene. The camera angles were incredible, making the hideout seem so out there. The whole direction of this scene was just insane in every sense, making the slaughter of the demons even more harsh. It was also very interesting to see what Muzan even thinks of his underlings, and how the demons act around him. We all know he’s evil, he’s incredibly despicable. Muzan spoke of the Upper with some respect, so I wonder how he interacts with them. As horrific as it was, this had to be one of my favorite scenes from the show for sure.
As for the second half, it’s much more fun and simple. The boys get their next mission, which is to face the mystery casualties on the Infinite Train. What’s interesting about this mission is that they’re going to accompany Rengoku, and Shinobu even recommended Tanjiro to Master. The rest of the episode, the boys are getting ready but Tanjiro makes sure to say his goodbyes to all that took care of him and thank them because he’s so damn nice. He also runs into not-Bakugo, who is now bigger but he doesn’t even say a word.
Tanjiro meets up with both Aoi and Kanao. His moment with Aoi was shorter, but still incredibly sweet. Aoi admits that she passed Final Selection because of luck, but was too scared to go into battle. However, Tanjiro gives her words of gratitude and it’s nice. It’s cool seeing different aspects of the Demon Corps other than Demon Slayers. Aoi may think herself as a coward, but she’s still amazing in that she’s basically a nurse. She went through her own vigorous training to get to where she is now, so she’s not a coward. The Demon Corps definitely need some nurses and doctors!
Another great moment was Tanjiro and Kanao’s little talk, because Kanao finally spoke to him. She flipped her coin and her result made her speak to him as she explained to him. While this was a nice step for her when she was a child, it became too much of a crutch. It’s sad that even now she still won’t make decisions for herself, but Tanjiro gives her a bit of a push. He wants her to listen to her heart and he made that deal with her through the coin, though he admitted that if it landed on tails he would have kept flipping it. He just wants her to improve and be her own person, and that zoom in was the start of her heart going doki! I thought about Tanjiro and Kanao being a potential ship, and honestly romance is the last thing I expected from this show. However, this scene with Tanjiro and Kanao was so genuine and sweet that I wouldn’t mind if they were to become a thing. As long as their interactions are just as sweet and genuine as this one and not forced like in other shounen, then I’m all for it.
The ending at the train station was hilarious. I forgot that Tanjiro also didn’t know what a train was, and it was funny seeing him and Inosuke think of it as a guardian spirit or beast. I don’t know if the show mentioned this before and I just forgot, but it’s interesting that the Demon Corps aren’t recognized by the government even though they do so much for them, and even die protecting people like them. Sad, and a little frustrating.
The boys hop on the train, even with Nezuko in tow, and that’s where it ends. Of course it’s not the end yet because we have the movie coming up, which I’m super excited for. This was a great finale episode that left on a good spot, though I guess I’m more positive because we already know we’re going to get more of the story later. If we didn’t, I would have been more frustrated, but that’s because I really like this show a lot! With that said…
FINAL IMPRESSION
Yeah, I really like this show a lot. Kimetsu no Yaiba is a shounen with a story that may not be too impressive, but what makes it so special is its execution. A lot of stories have been done, many things aren’t as original as people think anymore because lots of stories have been written by now, but you can still make something special when executed right.
What I really love about Kimetsu no Yaiba is that it’s not really a revenge story. Yes, it’s true that Tanjiro is going after Muzan, but his goal isn’t revenge for what happened to his family. Tanjiro’s main goal is to turn Nezuko back into human, not avenging his family. If Tanjiro’s going to kill him, that’s because Muzan has directly affected the lives of many people and bringing him down would just benefit everyone. But in reality, Tanjiro is only thinking of his sister.
Tanjiro is just a huge breath of fresh air of a character. The author easily could have made him into either the clumsy and dumb protagonist, or in the case of this story, they could have just made Tanjiro to be this angry person full of hatred and rage with only thoughts of revenge. Nope! He’s a boy that’s been through a lot in his life with a lot on his mind, and yet he still retains his kindness. Not just to other humans, but he even shows kindness to demons in their last moments, which is huge considering that demons took his family from him. And that doesn’t mean that Tanjiro doesn’t have his bouts of rage, but the thing is that he’s able to control it and not let it cloud his judgment. Tanjiro is just incredibly sweet, kind, and mature and I wish we could have more characters like him. He’s a good boy, with a good sister.
Yes, Nezuko is cuteness incarnate. Of course she is. I just hope in the future that she can play a bigger role and be able to bond with Zenitsu and Inosuke as well. I want Nezuko to be able to do more and not just be cool only sometimes, and cute all the time. Though…there’s nothing wrong being cute.
Another very special thing about Kimetsu no Yaiba is the strong bond between Tanjiro and Nezuko. We hardly ever get to see a normal and strong sibling bond in anime unless gross incest is implied, so again this is another breath of fresh air. I’ve already mentioned how much I love this and the whole family theme with the Kamado family, which was done so beautifully. Just go read my review of Episode 19 and you’ll get it.
Tanjiro is probably my favorite character of the show, but the other characters were able to shine too. The Hashira were introduced late so they’re still a mystery and still just walking tropes, but we got some great characterization from Shinobu so I hope we see the same for the rest of them. I do admit that it took me awhile to warm up to both Zenitsu and Inosuke, and I wasn’t a fan of the subsequent episodes when they were introduced. I’d like to see a bit more to Inosuke but I feel like he’s been humbled a bit after what happened on Natagumo, and his fuzzy giddiness when the girls were crying was adorable. I’m still not a big fan of all of Zenitsu’s hollering, but his character has grown on me a lot.
Another huge plus of the show is just the production value. The music was fantastic, but the animation was just on another level. You just know that Ufotable handled the source with so much care and passion, and all that effort they created such a spectacle. There’s so many gorgeous moments from fight scenes, the colors, the eye candy of each Breathing Technique, as well as the horror elements as well. It was just on point, enough said.
Of course I had my problems with the show. Sometimes the pacing was really strange, where some episodes were just way too slow. Sometimes they worked, but other times you could just feel that they took a few pages and just stretched it longer than they should have. The comedy was hit or miss, and a few of the episodes from the middle weren’t all that great and took my enjoyment out of the anime. I already mentioned this, but I wasn’t immediately a fan of both Zenitsu and Inosuke, and in the case of Zenitsu I think it was mostly an anime problem. I wouldn’t mind his shrieking as much in the manga since I’m reading it, but with the anime’s sound and voice acting, it just makes Zenitsu’s spasms to be way more irritating than it needs to be. And that’s what I mean when I say the comedy can be hit or miss, all those moments in the demon house were mostly misses. Sometimes it could be so loud, and sometimes that’s just not funny at all and it’s more annoying. For a bit in the middle of the show it was pretty slow and uneventful, but then the show started picking back up about two episodes into the Natagumo arc. But hey, at least I like Zenitsu a lot more. And Inosuke.
This show is a lot of fun and I mostly enjoyed every second of it. It has its flaws, but the good outweighs the bad more and it was a great experience. Ufotable did a fantastic job and I can’t wait to see the movie. I hope a second season can come out after because I know there’s more material to work with here, and this series became really popular too. So, might as well! 🙂
8.5/10
And more Nezuko!
I read the manga chapter for this specific episode and I’m really excited to see it animated! Just going off the manga tho, I was very surprised that Muzan regarded the lower moons the way he did. I think with the upper moons he never really sees them much, unless he has a very specific job for them to do? Otherwise maybe they just do their own thing. I’m so glad Kanao spoke to Tanjiro even if the coin decided it for her. The train scene was quite funny Inosuke always cracks me up. I’m really excited for the movie and seeing Rengoku-san! He’s a very optimistic individual and I love to see it. This anime has been pretty great so far, I can’t wait for the rest of the manga to be adapted!