Among shonen anime series,Demon Slayerhas earned a glowing reputation as one of the best by far. With an action-packed and compelling plot, vibrant characters, and deep emotion, the series continues to capture viewers' attention and hearts years after it was first released. However, theDemon Slayeranime is a little different from its Shonen Jump predecessors,in that its anime is far more popular than the source manga.
One ofDemon Slayer’srecent arcs,the Swordsmith Village arc, boasted over 22 million viewers, and the series has received countless awards from Crunchyroll, Anime Trending, and the Shanghai International TV Festival, among many others. The anime series always ranks highly in popularity polls and has an avid, very active fanbase.
Demon Slayer’smanga is well-loved too, and the anime would not exist without it. 150 million copies have been sold throughout the world, proving fans' adoration of the manga as well. However,Demon Slayer’spopularity noticeably skyrocketed with the release of the anime in early 2019, introducing new fans to the story.
Demon Slayer’sAnime Is a Pop Culture Phenomenon, Ushering in a New Era of Anime
Its Anime Is More Popular Than Its Manga, Setting a New Precedent for These Kinds of Stories
Previous Shonen Jump greats, likeNarutoandBleach,for example, were best known for their manga. Fans would eagerly await the new chapter of the series that would be published inthe Weekly Shonen Jump anthology. Although the anime series based on these manga were indeed popular, usually fans' first introduction to these series was through the pages of Weekly Shonen Jump. However,Demon Slayer’sanime release marked a shift in the way people prefer to first consume these stories, with fans eagerly anticipating weekly episodes of the series available for streaming rather than new manga chapters.
Demon Slayer Infinity Castle Movie Trilogy Story, Characters, & Latest News
Demon Slayer will be finishing with a trilogy of movies depicting the Infinity Castle arc. Here’s everything we currently know about the new movies.
Demon Slayer’smanga is popular, but many fans stumbled across the franchise through its anime first. The animated version undoubtedly has a far wider reach. The franchise appeals to many different generations and even enthralls those who do not typically watch anime or consume manga with its universally appealing story and phenomenal dubbed version. Many people’s first introduction to the world ofDemon Slayerwas through the anime, andit has made its mark in pop culture, to the point that it is difficult to venture into any store in America and not come across merchandise plastered with graphics featuring the characters.
Demon SlayerHas Taken the Anime Industry by Storm, Sparking Significant Change
Many Studios Were Inspired to Switch To Seasonal Rather Than Weekly Release Schedules
Studio Pierrot is the anime studiofamous for producingNarutoandBleach,two of the most popular series of all time. The studio hastaken note ofDemon Slayer’sincredible and unprecedented success. The CEO, Michiyuki Honma,stated in an interviewthatDemon Slayer"was a major turning point for the anime industry" and caused them to “change the way we create things.” He explained that they would be shifting from series that release an episode each week and don’t take long breaks in between to releasing shorter seasons with a set amount of episodes, likeDemon Slayerdoes.
Many other anime series have original “filler” arcs of content that is not included at all in the manga, butDemon Slayer’sanime only contains manga content. Studio Pierrot and some other anime studios are adopting this model too,switching from weekly anime releases to a seasonal release schedule. Other anime series are following this same schedule and eliminating filler content, likeJujutsu Kaisen,another popular recent shonen,for example. Just asDemon Slayer’ssuccess with this model inspired Studio Pierrot, it has motivated other studios to rethink the way they create anime and come up with new, novel ideas.
Studios Are Changing How They Produce Not Just Anime Series, but Anime Films
Many New Anime Films Focus On a Continuation of Canon Content, Rather Than a Standalone Story
Chainsaw Man’supcoming film isentitledChainsaw Man - The Movie: Reze Arc,indicating that it will cover chapters 40-52, the Bomb Girl arc of the manga. A lot of previous anime films stand on their own as separate, but loosely related, stories from the original source material, butChainsaw Manis taking a different approach by adapting a canon arc into a film. Perhaps the series was inspired by the wayDemon Slayerhandles its movie adaptations, since rather than write all-new stories,theDemon Slayerfilms are a continuation of manga eventsrather than self-contained completely new stories.
Demon Slayer Infinity Castle Movie Trilogy Officially Confirmed to Bring an End to the Epic Franchise
Demon Slayer will be coming to theatres courtesy of Crunchyroll in a three-part movie.
In countless ways,Demon Slayerhas changed the landscape for anime series and films, motivating studios tofocus on shorter arcs where quality is highly prioritized over quantity.Some series do still release on an ongoing schedule every week, but far more have traded in that old practice for the seasonal release model and dialed back the amount of filler episodes. There is no one formula that can guarantee an anime will be successful, and there are many routes to excellence, but other studios and creators can learn a lot fromDemon Slayer’smonumental success, unique release schedule, and focus on top-notch content.
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba
Cast
Set in Japan’s Taisho Period, Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba follows Tanjiro, a young boy whose family is killed by demons. With his sister Nezuko transformed into a demon, Tanjiro embarks on a quest to become a demon slayer, seeking vengeance and a cure for his sister’s condition.
