Chainsaw Man Episode 4 Review: Action and Slice of Life In The Fourth Episode Of Chainsaw Man
Cast: Kikunosuke Toya, Shiori Izawa, Tomori Kusunoki
Director: Hiroshi Seko
Streaming Platform: Crunchyroll
Filmyhype.com Ratings: 4/5 (four stars) [yasr_overall_rating size=”large”]
Well, Chainsaw Man Episode 4 finally arrived on the streaming platform here you can read out review of episode 4. Looking at the recent MAPPA rehearsals, from the acclaimed Jujutsu Kaisen. From the controversial final season of Attack on Titan, passing through the intriguing Dorohedoro parenthesis and the more dated production of Yuri!!! on Ice, the eclecticism and versatility of the most popular Japanese animation studio in recent years are clear. The aforementioned souls are overwhelming proof of Studio MAPPA’s ability to stage with a certain qualitative continuity both the most frenetic clashes of the battle shonen, and the more harmonious and human movements of the elegant spokon .on ice skating, without neglecting consistent experimentation on the side of computer graphics (in addition to the use in The Attack of the Giants, in the anime on Netflix based on the work of Q Hayashida the use of CGI is massive and preponderant ). And now, a month after its debut, we can say the same about Chainsaw Man.
Chainsaw Man Episode 4 Review: The Story Plot
The fourth episode of Chainsaw Man, anime that started at grade and so far always able to surprise for its extraordinary technical level, reaches very high peaks in the animation and constitutes, in fact, a sum of the aspects listed above. The dichotomous structure of the episode is, in fact, an ideal testing ground for Studio MAPPA, which juggling between the breathtaking clash of the first part and the pure slice of life of the second half demonstrates unparalleled adequacy on both fronts. But let’s stop for a moment to briefly rattle off the main events of this fourth release. After eliminating the Bat Devil and freeing Power and his cat Nyako from the monster’s belly, Denji must immediately deal with another enemy who has come following the killing of his beloved. He is the Leech Devil and says he is ready to take out the defenceless veterans of the attack (Power is still in shock and debilitated by what happened).
Denji is forced to face the huge devil with a partial transformation (only part of the chainsaw protrudes from his forehead due to the copious loss of blood in the previous fight) but manages to stand up to him until the decisive arrival of Aki, who shows off his power by easily annihilating the enemy thanks to the Devil Fox. The devil hunter then reveals to Denji that it is a convention in that all fighting members of the organization make a pact with one devil to oppose others. After a brief confrontation with Makima that confirms Hayakawa’s attraction (or awe) towards the enigmatic woman, the episode focuses on Aki and Denji’s everyday life., whose apparent tranquillity is upset by the arrival in the house of the reckless Power, sent by Makima so that Aki can keep her under control.
As mentioned, the episode lives of two different moods: the frenzy of the clash that sees Denji giving all of himself to counter the Leech Devil is contrasted by a second part dedicated to a relaxing focus on the character of Aki Hayakawa, for a slice of life which in the paper counterpart is almost completely absent. Precisely the intention to focus with conviction on the representation of the daily experiences of Denji, and above all of Aki, is explanatory of a precise desire to give the animated transposition of Chainsaw Man its personality, a property that without disregarding the atmosphere and the work by Tatsuki Fujimoto – and being careful to replicate its fracassona and crazy soul without forgetting the splatter element – allows himself to make his own choices in formal and narrative terms and to modify the succession of events in a certain significant way (always preserving the essence of the manga).
The result is a greater characterization of the protagonists, an appreciable deepening of the secondary characters (useful to make the work less Denji-centric) and a certificate of the goodness of the drawings and animations of Studio MAPPA. In short, the fourth episode makes evident a certain authorship in the staging, intended as an amplification of a stylistic figure and a mood only hinted at in the original product, confirming that we are faced with an adaptation far from the anonymous and impersonal replica. In short, MAPPA demonstrates that Chainsaw Man is not just gutting and gushing blood and that it can also stand on a slice of life foundations more closely linked to the daily and domestic interactions of the protagonists and to an almost intimist attitude that covers the soul with a palpable contemplative atmosphere.
Chainsaw Man Episode 4 Review and analysis
A choice that probably would not enjoy the same results without the support of a visual sector that here is overcome once again. Even before referring to the splendid technical realization of the combat on duty, we must consider the mastery expressed by the animators in the aforementioned sequences. Seeing Aki doing the most mundane tasks (making coffee, thinking about dinner, doing the laundry, arranging her hair and reading the newspaper on the balcony) becomes a joy for the eyes of the fluidity of the animations and the attention to detail, almost hypnotizes too. thanks to an inspired direction even in the most insignificant moments.
Ryu Nakayama is skilled both in directing the clash and in representing the moments of quiet with a noteworthy expressive cue, passing from the convulsive movements and first-person shots of the first part to the particular shooting points chosen for some sequences of the second half. (With top and bottom angles and with fictitious subjective subjects) and outlining a cinematic vision that has few precedents. Talking about the fight seems even superfluous, but MAPPA stages what is perhaps the most successful fight up to this point (and it was not at all easy), giving up the CGI, which now seems definitively linked to the transformation of Denji into a chainsaw man, and giving life to a visual spectacle that will satisfy lovers of gore and splatter (the fight is consumed in a pink sea of entrails) and will leave its mark on the panorama of Japanese animation of the last period (despite the brevity of the fight).
A generally impressive visual rendering that almost makes us forget the usefulness of the episode which we can discuss, given the almost total absence of events that are responsible for carrying on the plot, with a narrative so far more concentrated on following the developments regarding the futile desires of the protagonist whom to turn in a clear and decisive direction of greater proportions. The introduction of new characters, including Himeno and the other recruits, is then limited to a fleeting appearance, awaiting their actual exploration and more urgent events that can systematically involve the members of the Organization.
Chainsaw Man Episode 4 Review: The Last Words
Chainsaw Man Episode 4 reaffirms Studio MAPPA’s desire to give life to an anime with a strong personality with the courage to make formal and narrative choices that originate from the paper counterpart but are amplified to make the most of the different stylistic code of the transposition, also aiming decisively at a slice of life side that works great with the clean line of the drawings and the inspired direction of Ryu Nakayama. The initial clash, then, raises the bar again and presents itself as the best achieved so far.
