Chainsaw Man Season 1
Episode 9 Recap And Review
Episode 9 of Chainsaw Man picks up where we finish off Himeno with a strange woman and a gentleman with a sword (Katana Man) wounding Hayakawa.
Suddenly, Denji wakes up as Chainsaw Man and fights Katana Man. Apparently, the woman and the Katana Man are looking for Denji’s heart. Power also fled the scene. Suddenly, more yakuza arrive to help Katana Adam.
Grabbing the hilt on his head, Katana Man takes his sword from his chair and returns to normal, asking his other companion to prepare a machine for him. He points out that Demon Hunters are like humans and cannot win against weapons. But when the people who shot him decide to escape, Makima wakes up out of nowhere and ends their lives.
Two public security officers named Kurose and Tendo are waiting in the subway and are amazed that Makima is still alive. Makima informs them of what happened and tells them that the blood in her is not hers. As we see dead crooks on the ground, he asks them to take care of their bodies. After this dilemma, Makima informs Kurose and Tendo that he feels the enemy is after Denji.
He asks Kurose to borrow 30 convicts serving life sentences or worse from the Ministry of Justice. As for Tendo, Makima asks him to find the nearest temple at the highest altitude and protect it. He asks both of them for clean clothes. They arrive at the temple and Makima reveals new clothes. Tendo informs Makima that the convicts are on their way.
The prisoners arrive at the temple, which parallels the scene where Katana Man and his allies take Denji to their car. One of the men confuses the others as Katana Man informs them that he will be out of action. Suddenly, the man bursts like a bubble in front of his companions, stunning Katana Man and woman. The woman contacts the other teams and asks them to report Makima’s body.
One of the men says that the Command required to kill Makima is not responding. This man also explodes and dies. Meanwhile, while convicts Tendo and Kurose are blindfolded, Makima performs yoga-like poses. Kurose questions why they are blindfolded as Tendo explains to them that they are not allowed to see or know about Makima’s devil contracts. Makima asks the convict to say Shuzo Mishima, and he complies.
One of Katana Man’s henchmen begins to fold and explode as Makima makes hand movements. The person who says Shuzo’s name falls. Makima goes to another inmate and asks them to call him Takashi Inoue. The same fate befalls one of Katana Adam’s companions. Makima repeats the process with more convicts and henchmen killed. After he’s done, Makima orders Tendo and Kurose to remove their curtains.
Makima says that there is nothing else he can do, so he has to go back to Tokyo. Katana Man tells the woman they should go, but freezes when he sees Kobe. We get a flashback to Kobeni’s encounter with the yakuza old woman. Kobeni apparently survived the exchange when she asked the woman and Katana Man if they were allied with the shooters. The woman summons the Snake Devil to attack Kobeni, but he dodges her attack.
Kobeni cuts Katana Man’s hand and grabs Denji. As the Woman and Katana Man flee the scene, Kobeni continues to shoot at their car. Kobeni apologizes to Denji for trying to kill him the other day. Kobe remembers what happened to the old yakuza woman and has a mental breakdown. Kobeni plans to tell Himeno that she’s quitting because she can’t handle the job.
Makima, Tendo, and Kurose meet another comrade, Madoka, who has survived an exchange with the yakuza. Madoka informs Makima that special units 1, 2, 3, and 4 are under attack. All but the non-humans are dead. Makima assumes that the Weapon Devil played a role in their attack after the criminals used the weapon. Madoka states that Divisions 1, 2, and 3 will merge into 4, and the division will be under Makima’s command.
Madoka gives Makima her resignation letter because she feels that the Special Unit feels like bad news. Before Makima leaves, Madoka asks him how long he’s been waiting for this event. Makima says she couldn’t share this information with him and thanks him for his services. The episode ends with Tendo and Kurose telling Makima that they won’t be joining his special unit.
Episode Review
This was a mind-blowing and action-centric episode of Chainsaw Man. It had some star battles and a fun plot twist. It also leaves room for speculation about Makima and Kobeni’s hidden abilities. While I expected Makima to survive her shootout with the yakuza, I didn’t expect Kobeni to play a significant role in this chapter.
While it’s shocking to see Kobeni perform flawlessly against the weakened Katana Man and his female companion, he still retains some of his cowardly and mentally unstable traits. Katana Man’s comments about Kobe’s ape-like fighting style make me question whether Kobe made a pact with the monkey devil. It’s something worth thinking about moving forward.
On the other hand, I was impressed by Makima’s hidden skill. Seeing Katana Man’s men and prisoners fall one by one sent chills down my spine. Unlike Kobeni, we don’t get any commentary from the other characters about his powers. His ability is pretty complicated because we don’t know the basics of it, other than Makima needing to say his target’s name while performing hand gestures.
If anything, it shows fans just how terrifying and mysterious Makima is as a Devil Hunter. Overall, this was a thrilling installment of Chainsaw Man. It offers phenomenal action and shocking revelations. It adds more mysteries to the world and characters of Chainsaw Man. Let’s hope it can continue this momentum going forward.