This episode was definitely a lot less eventful in comparison to the previous one where we essentially just get another Tanjiro trains to get stronger segment. Which is honestly a bit redundant at this point, but it makes sense since he’s always put into situations where he has to be bedridden for several months and has to slowly gain back his strength. And while I do really love Tanjiro as a character, I will say that his development mostly just involves him training to get stronger. Which, depending on what you find interesting in a character, does make Tanjiro a little bit boring in that regard since he never really changes too much over the course of the series personality-wise. However, I do feel like the circumstances and him staying true to himself and his beliefs despite everything are what makes him endearing and want to root for him.
I think the most interesting part of the episode was the re-introduction to Muichiro. We didn’t get too much from him when all of the Hashira’s were introduced but from what we got, he seemed to be a bit of a space cadet but will get forceful if someone annoys him. Which was re-emphasized in this episode with him showing little to no mercy against Kotetsu and Tanjiro when the two got in his way while also not even remembering Tanjiro from the Hashira meeting. He’s also incredibly blunt and what he says comes out a lot more harsh since he doesn’t care to use any tact. Muichiro definitely feels like the type of character we have to slowly get to know to appreciate with how bad his impression was in this episode with him beating up a child and knocking Tanjiro out. Similarly to what happened with Tengen and his bad impression in the first ep of the second season that. Though I feel like he does have a lot of potential to be interesting considering he was stated by Tengen to be a lot more amazing than him with Muichiro supposedly being a genius having become a Hashira only months after picking up a sword. To which, with that in mind, he is most likely a force to be reckoned with. Not only that, but it was just casually dropped that Muichiro is a descendant of the ones who started the Sun Breathing techniques. Which begs the question as to why he doesn’t use Sun Breathing.
Also, I was not ready for Rie Kugimiya crow lol.
I think what rubbed me the wrong way the most was how he basically disregarded the swordsmiths’ actual importance and made light of what they did for the demon slayers. And Tanjiro literally just spoke my thoughts because what Muichiro is saying is true in a sense that swordsmiths can’t fight, but the way he’s saying it makes it sound cruel and as if he’s talking down to them. Though it’s obvious he’s not saying this out of malice or trying to be mean, he’s just incredibly blunt and says what’s on his mind without a filter. To which, can definitely be pretty frustrating at times, especially with how that makes him come across as. And I feel like it says a lot when Tanjiro of all people can’t stand someone. But oh my gosh, the part where Tanjiro essentially lowfives Muichiro in an attempt to just slap his hand away made me laugh way harder than it should have lol. Though I would have to disagree with Muichiro on the fact that the swordsmiths have so much more value than he’s giving them credit for. Without them, the demon slayers can’t fight so they play a very vital role in the whole scheme of things. Which is why the demon slayers are trying to keep the village a secret at all costs.
It’s very curious as to why Haganezuka is hiding away and not wanting to be seen by Tanjiro. If I can garner a guess, he could be searching for material that could make the best sword for Tanjiro. Especially when Mitsuri dropped how there is a secret weapon hidden in the mountains. And with how much pride swordsmiths have for their craft, he probably doesn’t want to get made fun of by the others until he’s perfected the perfect sword for Tanjiro. I can’t tell how much attachment Haganezuka has for Tanjiro, but if I’m remembering correctly, Tanjiro might be the first one (or one in a while) that has put up with him as their swordsmith. And while he goes in a fit of rage whenever Tanjiro damages the swords he makes for him, there could be a sense of gratitude Haganezuka has towards him for trusting in him. Especially since he heard how Tanjiro views the swordsmiths and how much importance they have. Though it’s hard to say how he personally felt about hearing this since we can’t see his expression. In any case, I’m glad that he’s just kind of hiding away and wasn’t kidnapped or hurt.
I knew the guy we saw in the last episode wasn’t the number one demon or the legendary swordsman, but I didn’t expect it to be a freaking puppet. When it showed a shot of it in the background and I saw the amount of arms it had, it gave me all sorts of Sasori and Kankuro from Naruto vibes lol. Apparently the doll was to train swordsmanship while also being modeled after a swordsman over 300 years ago. To which, we can finally (yet again) put aside the theory of the legendary swordsman being Tanjiro’s dad because there’s no way his dad was that old lol. But it’s crazy how the only way the puppet could replicate this mysterious swordsman’s style was to give it six arms. Which says a lot about how crazy the guy’s fighting abilities were. Kotetsu’s ancestors were the ones who built it and due to him being the last one in his family, it’s up to him to be able to preserve the training doll. Which honestly feels like a lot of responsibility was put on his poor kid’s shoulders since if it were to fall a part, he is responsible to put it back together. But since he’s a kid, he hasn’t had the chance to learn how to even make one yet. Not to mention that they claim that the technology was more advanced then than now… which doesn’t quite make sense but I digress.
It was funny watching reactors be in disbelief that Tanjiro didn’t recognize the doll as his dad… which makes it more apparent that is ISN’T. However, we do get to learn that memories are sometimes passed down to descendant to descendant… which… I’m honestly not sure how I feel about that since it feels just a tad TOO far in what has already been established in this world. I can get behind the spirits and such of others being connected to their families or people they feel strongly towards. However, descendants having memories passed down by their ancestors just feels a bit too outlandish for me. Though what they’re talking about COULD be considered a form of reincarnation. Especially since that one ancestor of Tanjiro’s that knew the mysterious swordsman looked near identical to him.
Tanjiro then gets forcefully roped into training against the doll so that Kotetsu can help make him into a better swordsman than Muichiro. Which… I feel like that’s a bit too high of a bar at this point. Especially when Tanjiro is still supposed to be resting. Not to mention the absolutely terrible training regimen Kotetsu makes for him. Like KID, you can’t starve your trainee to make them better. Sure it worked in this instance, but no, just no… I just felt so bad for Tanjiro since he looked absolute malnourished when he was supposed to be taking care of himself. WHY DIDN’T YOU TELL HIM NO?! Though I did laugh at Tanjiro’s expense when he was screaming out for water when it rained.
After passing out and having this really weird and silly dream, while nearly getting his face ripped to pieces, it seems as if Tanjiro has developed a new scent ability. To which I do hope gets explained later on because right now there’s a lot of things being added to this world where I’m like: okay, this is getting to be too much. However, after being able to slice off the puppet’s neck, it was revealed to have been housing a sword. Which could possibly be the mysterious swordsman’s actual sword he used back then and also be the secret weapon Mitsuri was talking about in the previous episode. One thing is for sure, that’s probably going to be Tanjiro’s new sword.
A fairly simple episode, but still showing a bit of intrigue with certain characters, namely Muichiro and Haganezuka. I’m definitely eager to see what else is going to happen next.
Liking Tokito takes patience indeed. To put it into words, he is like a kuudere who looks cold at the beginning but once he opens up he’s incredibly sweet and friendly. But of course, there are still other charms he has 😀