In this episode, Denji learns a hard lesson about trust
Chainsaw Man’s third episode, “Meowy’s Whereabouts,” is one of those episodes that really exemplifies the anime hero’s turmoil, and here, it’s basically how Denji’s hormones are in fact his greatest enemy. I mean, the whole Chainsaw thing is just a pile of metaphors about adolescence and coming-of-age. After deciding in the last episode that his new “ultimate dream” is simply “boobs,” Denji made a pact with his blood demon partner, Power, to save her beloved cat Meowy, who was kidnapped by another demon, in exchange for Power allowing him to touch her chest. The thought of Power’s nether regions is what scrambles Denji’s common sense, with him signing her out (she is not allowed out on her own unescorted) shortly after she basically tried to throw him under the bus and blame him for a very public and dangerous demon killing she was responsible for. (In this world, causing human collateral damage is punishable by death) Even after this, Denji falls right into Power’s trap as she attempts to trade partner’s life for her beloved cat.
At this point, no one other than Makima knows Denji’s power, which has both Power and Aki lamenting over how lame he is, but little do they know. Also, one of those people will no doubt be eating those words before the end of this episode.
The most we get narrative-wise is Makima meeting with an ominous group of elderly men, who ask her how her new “pets” are doing in your typical conspiracy organization subplot, à la Gendo and Seele. But this is a relatively bureaucracy-free episode that has Denji thinking with the wrong head, forcing him to unleash Chainsaw Man to save his skin yet again. This episode sees Denji and Power really exploring the dynamic between the unlikely partners. While Power looks like a stereotypical teenage girl, she is in fact an ageless blood demon possessing the body of a young girl who is paired with a human at their most human—the peak of teen angst before we are taught to hide our emotions.
The banter between the two has Power morosely curious about her partner’s humanity and his attachment to his pet, but she lets her emotions get the best of her when Meowy’s life is on the line, putting her squarely in her partner’s shoes. We also get to spend some time with a feral Power before Public Safety that adds a interesting layer to the fiend, showing a much more wild and carefree demon and offering some intriguing character development.
Animation wise, it’s a Chainsaw Man episode proper, so whenever the action hits, the animation goes up to 11 and looks gorgeously rendered. We are also blessed with new closing credits that really do a great job visually interpreting a song by Maximum the Hormone, probably best known for their Deathnote Banger “What’s up People.” I will say that the action here is a little bit harder to follow than in episode one and I don’t know if that’s a stylistic choice.
Chainsaw Man is released on Crunchyroll every Tuesday.
