After 8 long years, the much-celebrated Chainsaw Man manga by Tatsuki Fujimoto has come to an end. This will be discussing the ending of Chainsaw Man. Spoilers, obviously.
// How Did Chainsaw Man End?
It was all a dream
I used to read Shonen Jump Magazine
To cut to the chase, Fujimoto ended this thing very abruptly.
Allow me to paint a word picture (with the assistance of real pictures).
Chapter 230 features Chainsaw Man like normal, although it does feel like we’re approaching a critical mass with the plot and possibly approaching a climax. I won’t recap it all here, but the world is in a very bad state, and there’s death and destruction everywhere. Denji is also finally about to have sex.
Chapter 231 features Denji and Pochita in a new world, supposing they have been eaten by a devil in the conflict. Pochita decides to eat himself, saying that he’s not sure what will happen, but that he’s tired of it all.
Chapter 232 features Denji waking up in a shack. He says he feels like he had a good and a bad dream. He leaves the shack, only to be attacked by devils and nearly killed. Power shows up and gives him some blood, signing him to a contract to be her property until he dies.
The story then continues as Power and Denji hunt devils, working for Nayuta. We also see Asa playing at the park, living a seemingly normal and happy life. The world has been reset. A literal, “it was all a dream,” ending.
We knew that Part 2 of the manga would be ending soon, but most readers assumed it was just that: the end of a part. What we got was the equivalent an Irish goodbye.
// Was the Chainsaw Man Ending Good or Bad?
Chainsaw Man has felt a little bit meandering the past while, at least to me. I still enjoyed it, because I think Fujimoto is an amazing author and can pack some great moments into each chapter. But in terms of the overarching story, especially in hindsight, It’s pretty clear he was not enjoying working on this project any longer.
Opinions seem mixed on whether this is an elaborate fake-out, and there will be a Part 3 in the future. To me, this is a pretty clear, “I’m done with this, at least for now.”
There’s no reason he can’t return to the story in the future, should he choose. But I don’t have my hopes up.
A lot of people hate this ending, which I can understand. Personally, I’m more neutral on it. I think that it’s certainly underwhelming. A blue-balls letdown of a climax. But perhaps this was by design. We’re feeling exactly how Denji feels, who came so close but just missed his ultimate life goal of Having Sex. Perhaps this is giving Fujimoto too much credit.
I think that over time, people might warm up to the ending. Not in that they’ll think it’s good, but that it is fitting.
I still believe Chainsaw Man to be a brilliant piece of work. It’s about the journey not the destination, even if the destination stinks.
That said, perhaps a stinky destination is the most on-brand end for this tale.
If you want some Tatsuki Fujimoto work that doesn’t shit the bed in the end, I highly recommend Fire Punch, which I discussed at length in another piece.
GCReaction
We can debate all day long if this anti-climactic ending is a big-brain move or just the author wanting out, but regardless, it’s not an ending that makes me excited. It gets an ironic smirk out of me, but I don’t think it lives up to the rest of the series. I don’t hate it, but it’ll be a caveat when I recommend the series to people i the future.
