*Spoilers!* Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle Review

Demon Slayer Infinity Castle by Favorisxp on DeviantArt

Overall Thoughts

I didn't start watching Demon Slayer until after the Entertainment District was already out. It was my 4th anime overall (I'm a late bloomer) and it really showed me what the medium of anime was capable of. I've been endeared to it ever since. I read the manga after the Swordsmith Village Arc and read the Infinity Castle arc again when the movies were announced. 

I had high hopes going into the first Infinity Castle movie, but when I tell you that it blew my mind, I mean sometimes I was sitting slack jawed in amazement at the animation. That was a given. But the story aspects were well-woven together and didn't deviate much from the manga. Though I have read it, I'm not an expert, so I can't say exactly what they changed or didn't, but from what I remember, they kept things in pretty much the same order. I was wondering if they would chop up the fights and make sure we saw all of one fight before even entertaining another of if they'd give a taste of each.

Technically, they did show us all of two fights (the Akaza fight and Kaigaku fight ) while the Douma one remains unfinished and Kokushibo's is just hinted at. We also see that Nakime (the Biwa player) was promoted to Upper Four. Her fight will be surprising to a lot of anime only fans I think or to anyone who didn't think she would get her own fight sequence.

Zenitsu vs Kaigaku

Historically, I've always been kind of a Zenitsu hater because he's such an obnoxious, pervy coward. BUT he locked into this fight against his former senpai and he didn't even need to be asleep. I was so proud of him for showing off his Seventh Form that he created all on his own. I did shed a few tears when he was near death and he saw Gramps, who told him, "Zenitsu, you're my pride and joy." We were all proud.

A lot of people have been complaining that this fight was too short. I agree. They could have lengthened it, but I like it the way it is because it got to the point. We got to see Kaigaku humbled that much faster. Besides, with Zenitsu's limited moveset, I'm not sure how much longer it could have gone without being repetitive. 

Giyu and Tanjiro vs Akaza

The Giyu, Tanjiro, and Akaza fight was the main course. I'll preface this by saying I hate Akaza with a burning passion and I wish I could see him die an excruciating death multiple times over. Rengoku stan btw. He seems to get a pass from a lot of people because he's a good fighter, who was just doing his job as a demon, and because he's hot (all listed are reasons why I like Mahito, by the way). Now, he's garnered a lot more affection from fans who have learned about his backstory. I am not one of those people. In fact, when I read it I rolled my eyes and skimmed over it because I didn't care about sympathizing with him at the time.

That being said, this fight was next level crazy insane amazing. I do respect Akaza a lot more as a fighter, and with his backstory being animated, I at least understand him and feel for him. I don't like him or forgive him. But I get it. Kudos for Ufotable and company for fleshing out that story really well. And it's a good thing, too -- it was like the last 45 minutes of the movie.

Honestly, I really wanted Akaza's death to be more satisfying. Even Tanjiro's initial head decapitation felt anticlimactic. Then, Akaza faked us out twice before self-destructing. At first, I thought this was a cop-out--I didn't want him to kill himself; I wanted Tanjiro to slice his head off (again) and definitively end his existence. I was so mad because I wanted revenge for Rengoku.

But then I remembered what show I was watching. The one where Tanjiro has compassion for demons, even ones he has to kill. The one that's about forgiveness. Life is not always about hate and pain and revenge. Sometimes forgiveness is more important than revenge.

Besides, Akaza self-destructing not a "cop-out", it was him acknowledging he had been beaten. Like, he could have regenerated and followed his goal of being stronger, but he chose to end it there because he's nothing if not at least a fair fighter. I also think him witnessing Tanjiro's technique and prioritizing Giyu's life over his own was really eye-opening for Akaza. Remembering Koyuki and reverting to his true form, at least spiritually, was him letting go of that pursuit of being the strongest. It was time for him to go back home.

That being said, I don't necessarily forgive Akaza for anything he did as a demon, nor do I feel sorry for him for becoming a demon. People like to point out that he had no choice in becoming a demon, but he could have chosen to die. He could have told Muzan no. I mean I don't even really blame him for his choice; I'd probably do the same. But he doesn't get my pity because of a choice he made. 

That being said, I do feel some pity for his human self, Hakuji. He was dealt a shitty hand and dealt with it the only way he knew how -- committing crimes. He stole and fought and got stronger for his sick dad's sake. Then he got stronger as a fighter because he never wanted to let anyone down again. Losing his sensei and Koyuki to poisoning from the jealous neighboring dojo lead to his fully deserved crash out and killing 67 men, which led him to Muzan. I can feel sympathy for him without thinking that everything he did is justified after he became a demon.

Also as a fighter, I do respect his game and his style, but I will never concede that he was complimenting Rengoku when he said he was glad Kyojuro died when he did (because he was already at his strongest).

Douma vs Shinobu

There's a reason I talked about that fight before the Douma vs Shinobu fight. Well, for one, the Akaza fight is competed. But also because the contrast of my harsh judgment of Akaza will pair nicely with my excuses and defense of Douma. 

First, it really seems that Gotouge favors Akaza in general over Douma considering the difference in screen time and backstory. Honestly, Akaza got more development than some main characters. I only hope this is rectified in the next movie for my favorite cult leader. Douma has been shown to be childish, unserious, a little psychotic, and egotistical. He doesn't take Shinobu seriously because of her size and perceived strength and it ends up getting him killed (but we don't know that yet).

Some might find him insufferable and obnoxious because of his arrogance, but I find it funny and endearing. I'm also not the biggest Shinobu fan, but I'll have to reveal more why that is in the next movie (same with Kanao). So in my opinion, she should have died because she IS weaker and could not fight on par with someone like Douma, who is Upper Rank frickin' Two. Especially by HERSELF!

You could argue that Shinobu showed great speed and determination, how she never gave up--and that's true--but I was rooting for Douma to really show off. I wish we could have seen him do more. All he did was wave his fan and make ice flowers. It wasn't disappointing per se. I just wish a ) he took the fight more seriously, and b) that he had more in his arsenal. Maybe we'll see that in the second movie. I don't remember if he changes much in the manga, though.

There's definitely this divide in the amount of respect and love someone like Akaza receives, even as a demon, versus someone like Douma. They've both committed atrocities and aren't sorry for them, in fact, Douma at least thinks he's doing his victims a favor. But I guess Akaza is perceived as a more honest and straightforward demon with his words and fighting style. I personally love the deceptive, chilling, borderline sociopath attitude of someone like Douma. In fact, he is the reason I love Mahito so much. They're very similar archetypes.  

But I do get annoyed to see people acting like Akaza is a saint or that all is forgiven because he had a sad backstory. Every single character on this show has a sad backstory, and I don't think it's fair to justify all the massacres and lives lost just because you sympathize with someone's story. Because on that note, I KNOW Douma and Mahito are villains. I know what they have done is despicable and unjustifiable. However, I like them anyway. I like them because they're so shameless and unrepentant. It's very bold and I can't help but love that.

Conclusion

No one will read this far down, even if they're skimming. Conclusions are made to satisfy algorithms and writers who want to wrap things up. Or if you're a serious blogger or  article writer, you do it for the SEO. I mean it's just good common sense to have a conclusion, right? We were taught to end our essays in school with conclusions. You're basically re-stating all your points. But I'd rather write something silly like this that realistically nobody will read, just so I can keep typing and feeling like I am doing something. And if you ARE reading this, wow, you must be in love with me or just really devoted to my fantastic writing style. 

That's the end of this blogger post! Remember: my opinions are objectively correct and I shan't listen to any discourse of any kind. Only affirmative opinions and praise shall be acknowledged.