Chainsaw Man Vol. 5 Review – Easy Revenge and the Human Heart

Chainsaw Man Vol. 5 continues the fight between Public Safety and the group who killed Himeno. This battle takes about half the volume, and the story starts the next arc right away with a more subdued tone.

In the last volume, Aki met Sawatari, who summoned Himeno’s Ghost Devil. While those two fight, Denji and Power move towards the Samurai Sword, who caused a pretty bloodbath on their last encounter.

Similar to the previous arc’s conclusions, the events here include hilarious twists despite how serious and dreadful the situation is. This kind of messed-up narrative and its dark humor is the definition of Chainsaw Man.

Once the arc ends, the story moves on with Denji and Makima going out on a date. She plans to watch multiple movies with him until late at night. This small mundane story shows Denji’s concerns with his humanity which he often tries to shrug off.

Makima’s plans are indeed unclear, and she’s not someone who should be trusted. However, it’s also undeniable how much of an impact she has on Denji’s life. Her presence and probably calculated acts ground him and help him feel more human.

Considering his history, the fact he wasn’t educated, the lack of common sense, it would be easy for him just to become heartless. This isn’t true at all, and it’s impressive how the manga makes him and other characters relatable while also completely abnormal.

The end of the volume has Denji meeting a new girl and feeling conflicted about betraying Makima. This cute girl seems to like him and acts like she’s having fun with his weirdness. Her existence, like Makima’s occasional actions, provides a comfortable zone for the protagonist.

However, this is but the start of the new arc, as Denji has the opportunity to think of what he’d prefer. Is a peaceful life with this new girl better than his current one? Playing with one of Aesop’s fable, the story makes an allegory with the town mouse and the country mouse, which could be interpreted as Makima and this new girl, respectively.

As usual in the series, body language is used wonderfully to convey emotions. This makes the funny deviations of the characters’ actions extra laughable. It helps make the whole humanity discussion more relatable and in line with the author’s weird concept of human behaviors.

Chainsaw Man Vol. 5 is another excellent entry into this weird shounen manga series. It covers everything that makes the series good and ends with a major cliffhanger. An arc that discusses Denji’s humanity and possibilities leaves me craving for more Chainsaw Man.