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This Demon Slayer review contains spoilers.
“Shut up or I’ll kill you.”
The most popular anime series can face problems when complacency sets in – especially if there’s an assumption that audiences will stick around for the rest of the ride since they’ve already invested enough time into this adventure. An anime, whether it’s produced 10 episodes or 110 episodes, needs to constantly strive for innovation and disruption, otherwise it’s destined to fail. Demon Slayer’s Hashira Training Arc season has proven to be an extended exercise in trust and patience as Tanjiro spends each episode with a new Hashira and grows a little more confident. Slash, rinse, repeat.
“I Even Ate Demons…” doesn’t break free of this pattern, but it still finds ways to free itself from monotony and give audiences a taste of the Demon Slayer that they love most before they’re about to starve to death. “I Even Ate Demons…” is the best episode of Demon Slayer’s Hashira Training Arc season and it teases a strong final run of episodes that will have the audience excited for what’s to come, rather than ready to abandon ship.
“I Even Ate Demons…” begins with the distressing feeling that it’s going to be a particularly filler-centric installment that further slows down the season’s momentum. Mitsuri Kanroji has proven herself to be calculated and capable on many occasions, yet she remains a Hashira who is often reduced to a playful joke. This is certainly the energy that’s present when the episode begins. Tanjiro is bombarded with the joy of pancakes, while Demon Slayer indulges in leotard-based visual gags as Tanjiro masters the importance of flexibility. There’s a lot of fun to be had with Kanroji’s intense stretching exercises and Tanjiro’s painful admission that “flexibility training is hell.”
This is all entertaining, but it doesn’t seem particularly important or instill much confidence that these lessons will actually aid Tanjiro in any future battles. Thankfully, Kanroji’s lessons only take up a few minutes, rather than the entire episode (which would have been a structural disaster), at which point Tanjiro transitions over to training under Obanai Iguro. The stark juxtaposition from pancakes and leotards to serpents and death threats is incredibly effective and reinforces the Hashiras’ versatility.
All it takes for “I Even Ate Demons…” to completely shift gears and adopt a more intense tone is a single threat from Iguro. It’s a successful structure to this episode that helps make its point and hit harder than if it were to begin with Iguro’s training. It immediately stands out through its ability to marginally break free of the season’s established formula and cover multiple Hashira training sessions. However, “I Even Ate Demons…” also delivers a major win because it puts a new character — Obanai Iguro – in the spotlight. Demon Slayer’s Hashira Training Arc season has been a fun and nostalgic experience as Tanjiro catches up with old friends, but it’s ultimately more engaging for Tanjiro to study under someone new, let alone a character who is as compelling as Iguro.
Obanai Iguro has been one of Demon Slayer’s most intriguing characters from the minute that he appeared. It can be difficult for a series to properly meet the high expectations that accompany such unique individuals. “I Even Ate Demons…” doesn’t disappoint and everything that Iguro does connects. His account of the “crimes” that have been committed by the trainees that he’s restrained is easily the season’s best lines of dialogue. Every word that Iguro utters is amplified and made infinitely more badass by the hissing snake that’s perched on him; like some twisted take on a pirate’s parrot. Iguro also presents Tanjiro with the most creative training exercise of the season that beautifully establishes the Serpent Hashira’s character, while it simultaneously promotes a worthwhile lesson where there are genuine stakes. It makes Kanroji’s Stretching 101 class laughable in comparison.
Iguro’s training is mentally overwhelming for Tanjiro, but it also facilitates some incredible visuals. The camera fluidly soars through the crowded room as it mirrors Iguro’s serpentine actions. There’s also such care that’s applied to the trainees’ terrified expressions that fill the background of the scenes. This aesthetic is very effective. However, Tanjiro’s mind gradually transforms his arena with Iguro into a stylized forest that’s just as visually dynamic. It’s all in service of some fantastic action sequences. This material is so successful that it might have been a smarter decision for Demon Slayer’s Hashira Training Arc to begin with Iguro so that its audience is properly engaged from the start, rather than building to this climax half-way through the season.
“I Even Ate Demons…” would still be the season’s best episode if it concluded with Tanjiro’s completion of Iguro’s training. However, the episode also boldly features Wind Hashira, Sanemi Shinazugawa, who somehow makes Iguro feel calm in comparison. The three-Hashira approach gives this episode an electric pace, yet still doesn’t feel rushed. This singular episode manages to accomplish more than the rest of the entire season. It even brings Zenitsu back into the fold and remembers that Demon Slayer has other main characters besides Tanjiro.
The installment works so well and is proof that a season that’s focused exclusively on training can still be fun and engaging. This should have been the pace and style for each of this season’s installments, rather than it being the exception to the rule. Shinazugawa’s training is the most visceral of the lot, all of which is enhanced by the heightened comical reactions of Zenitsu and the rest of Tanjiro’s audience. “I Even Ate Demons…” is action-packed and emotionally taxing, but it’s also the season’s funniest installment. This is a challenging balance, yet Demon Slayer makes it feel natural.
The show hops around and covers a lot of ground here. The one common throughline through each of these training exercises is Tanjiro’s empathy, which has also been a beacon of positivity in the season’s earlier episodes. Tanjiro — even when he’s more bruise than boy — bravely defends Genya and narrowly saves his life from Sanemi’s irate attack. Genya’s backstory would benefit from deeper development. It still helps feed into Tanjiro’s compulsion to inspire other trainees to not give up, just like in previous exercises. It wouldn’t be a surprise if Tanjiro’s optimism and determination become the secret ingredients that turn the entire Demon Slayer Corps. into an unstoppable force that’s strong enough to defeat Muzan Kibutsuji.
This is exactly the sort of episode that Demon Slayer’s Hashira Training Arc season needed to turn itself around. It’s still a relatively safe episode, albeit one that’s rich in personality, diverse characters, and powerful storytelling. “I Even Ate Demons…” still holds off on bringing Demons and true threats into the mix. However, this episode concludes on a reinvigorating note that sets Demon Slayer up for a true return to form as Tanjiro, Zenitsu, and even Inosuke prepare for Stone Hashira Gyomei Himejima’s hard knocks training.
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