Tatsuki Fujimoto’s Chainsaw Man has finally come to an end, with its divisive final chapter and closing moments abruptly undoing the entirety of the manga. Despite the introduction of extra pages in Chainsaw Man Vol. 24, it’s been confirmed that Chainsaw Man will not extend into a third part of the series. Good.
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It was already expected that Chainsaw Man‘s definitive ending was doomed to be controversial before it was published. In Chainsaw Man Chapter 232, Denji realizes that everything was a dream. Pochita never became part of his heart, and Makima never existed to begin with. Arguably, Fujimoto may want Chainsaw Man‘s ending to be open to personal interpretation when examining each lesson in retrospect. Others may never untangle their disappointment with the final chapter, deeming Fujimoto careless when leaning back on such a lackluster conclusion. One thing remains certain: Chainsaw Man Part 3 doesn’t need to happen.
It’s already been determined that Chainsaw Man Part 3 won’t even exist, but the hypothetical want may be in demand by those who weren’t truly satisfied by Chainsaw Man Chapter 232, or aren’t ready to address that the series has really, truly concluded. It might even come as a great relief that Chainsaw Man has chosen a stopping point, refusing to be pushed further than Fujimoto has already decided. Chainsaw Man Part 2 has its own points of weakness, and introducing another dedicated narrative venture into the series may deplete Chainsaw Man‘s strength as a whole.
The Reze Arc: Chainsaw Man at Its Absolute Best
MAPPA’s gorgeously animated and unforgivably heartbreaking adaptation of Chainsaw Man‘s Bomb Girl arc doubled as an insistence that Fujimoto’s manga had already established the peak of its storytelling. Manga readers have already adorned the Bomb Girl arc with great praise, and MAPPA’s tireless efforts to honor one of the most emotional turning points in Chainsaw Man was met with prestigious execution. The Bomb Girl arc has secured its identity as one of the most devastating narrative throughlines in Chainsaw Man, leaving the rest of the series fighting for its own ways to thrive. As Fujimoto attempts to forge the next part of Chainsaw Man, it quickly becomes apparent that the gruesome and bleak manga’s shock value is beginning to wear thin, and most emotional beats struggle to carry the same weight as the Bomb Girl arc. The desire for replication of quality cannot be met in quantity, yet Fujimoto presses on.
The Reze Arc finally allows Chainsaw Man to be mature, examining the human heart from a unique, ultra-violent perspective. There’s the uncomfortable addressing of love, loss, and manipulation that the Bomb Girl arc tackles head-on with little hesitancy. Perhaps there’s still some raucous immaturity from Denji when grappling with his teenage boyish behavior, though both the manga and the animated movie have successfully understood what Chainsaw Man needs to thrive. There’s such a natural balance in mesmerizing fight scenes and genuine anguish that hauntingly lingers long after the arc has shifted into the next.
What makes the Bomb Girl arc such a triumph through both manga storytelling and its cinematic adaptation is the ability to stand alone. With such an effortless flow, Chainsaw Man could have easily taken its final bow after leaving Denji anxiously awaiting Reze’s arrival at the cafe. Fujimoto effortlessly achieves a seamless three-act story that painfully depicts the ache of the human soul and the torture of being alive while being deprived of hope that was once promised. It’s past this point that Chainsaw Man feels agonizing out of pure sadistic desire.
Chainsaw Man Part 3 Would Be Pointless
Perhaps the most self-damning thing a manga or anime can do is attempt to continue without cause. The desire to live on without reason, instead of embracing a self-created legacy and leaving canon undisrupted, is a dangerous feat of greed. Chainsaw Man Part 2 already leaned into aimlessness when limping towards its lukewarm ending. It’s okay to let go when the time is right.
If Fujimoto were to actually deliver a third part of Chainsaw Man, there’s extreme doubt that such a feat would be able to uphold the same quality that the rest of the series has attempted to commit to. Chainsaw Man Part 2 already proved that Chainsaw Man‘s appeal was threatening to wear thin and could result in an even more questionable ending. Why would Chainsaw Man even demand the need for a third part? The finale of the manga is a glaring example of how irredeemable the manga has become when trying to understand itself by its very end. Chainsaw Man is demanding more from itself than it has the capability of delivering, and forcefully extending the series for longevity’s sake is a crucial mistake.
The fabled Chainsaw Man Part 3 is self-defeating already. Denji’s story has come to a close, and the effort to undo the canonical reasoning that the entirety of the series is impossible to cohesively undo. Attempting to salvage such a frustrating-yet-fitting ending would leave Fujimoto scrambling to reconcile the compelling mess he’s created, which one could cleverly deem to be a dark shonen mess-terpiece. Story arcs have opened and closed; deaths cannot be any more brutal. Alas, there would truly be no justification for Chainsaw Man to make a grand return with another entry into the series. Let it rest as it is, if Fujimoto truly wants the ending to be as absurd and unresolved as he says.
Chainsaw Man is streaming on Crunchyroll; the manga can be read on VIZ Media.
