Chainsaw Man Chapter 137: Chu Chu Lovely Muni Muni Mura Mura
Oh what, you thought we were going to be thought provoking and actually dive into Denji's struggle as a character through a normal lens? Ha-ha, you fool! You fell victim to one of the classic blunders, the most famous of which is “Never get involved in a land war in Asia,” but only slightly less well known is this: "Never expect Fujimoto to be normal".
The whole chapter is expectation subversion, which perfectly captures both Fujimoto's sense of humor, and his absolute desire for b-list and camp. I mean, just look at how we open, Denji giving a surprisingly long winded (for him) monologue about maturing past the point of taking whatever kind of affection he can.... before it's revealed that it's all in his head and he's sucking on a dead devil.
In all honesty though, this is rather unironically an important moment for Denji. Why? Because he knows better. He himself understands the situation that he's in, that he should be better than what he's doing, that he shouldn't be caving to the whims and mockery of a girl offering an empty promise. But he can't stop himself. He's so far below rock bottom in this moment that it doesn't matter if it's a lie, it doesn't matter if she's hazing him. What matters is that she's giving him attention, and a chance to delude himself from his current station in life.
Anyways, the pair go to a karaoke place and the girl gets going on a song, leading to probably one of Fujimoto's best action sequences in all of part 2 now.
And no, it's not the action itself that makes this an incredible moment, it's quite literally everything else. Denji fell for the trap, he took it hook, line, and sinker and is now stuck fighting off a small army of men with baseball bats while the girl sings an absolute rager in the background. The entire setup is just incredible, the sheer thrill that both viewers and Denji alike feel from the moment is impeccable, and it ends the chapter on just the right note.
I mean, look at this, the pile of bodies littering the hallway, the three panel shot of Denji's face, the matchup to end the chapter. Absolutely masterclass Fujimoto work on display.
I'd really like to take a closer look at Denji's reaction (and all the guys with bats too). These three panels give sort of a double meaning to Denji's character, in my opinion. The first, is self-deprecating humor at the fact that he ever thought he might stand a fraction of a snowball's chance in hell for the trap to not be a trap. And the second, well the second is Denji finding that Chainsaw Man spark again. Pure unadulterated violence, the feeling of superiority, of a challenge or uphill fight laid against him. Denji's in his element now, and that's dangerous for our girl here.
Anyways, the guys with bats. Very funny idea considering the girl "gets around", so seeing a lineup of guys appear with bats while Denji and this girl are on a "date" is a pretty good type of humor.
Overall, for how insane this chapter is, it's exactly what Denji needed. He needed to be beat down, he needed to feel that desperation, he needed to remember who he is. That even if he goes to school now, even if he has a little sister and a house and food and all sorts of stuff, that the part of him that became Chainsaw Man is still a part of Denji. That they're two sides of the same coin. That he's still strong and capable and dangerous, and that he can keep chasing all the dreams he could ever want.
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“Yeah I know your house was burnt down and your dogs were killed and your adopted sibling is missing but yeah I’m drugging you. you’re going to get medically tortured now and it’s your fault and not the chainsaw man church or my fault for forcing you into this position.” I genuinely hope Asa Rips his dick off and he gets eaten alive
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