Soooo pretty great and eventful chapter but I got a lot of things on my mind.
First things first, Denji wanting Yoru/Asa to be a Power replacement.
Now I understand that Yoru and Power do have simialrities personality wise, and it was even mentioned in earlier chapters but my question is why does Denji still want to do the deed with Yoru if that was the case. Like I'm not against the pairing I think they're great, but Denji never once saw Power as a sexual partner so it just made the parallel odd to me. Also does this mean that this is the conclusion for Power's final words in Part 1, where she wanted Denji to find the Blood Devil? Like the conclusion is that Denji just moves on, well that's sad I'm gonna miss Powee :p
Second, the Lotus Apocalypse
So ok, this one pretty much justifies bug man's existence in the previous chapters. But my thing is, how large is the scope of this actual apocalypse and how much of it will be covered in the actual manga? Like Part 2 has gone on for so long now and it seems to be nearing its end but with the sudden lotus apocalypse, I'm not too sure anymore as it seems to be too big of an event to be covered in a few chapters. Like in fact it feels like a whole new arc with the return of Fumiko and such, which begs the question is this gonna end with Part 2 or is it a setup for a potential Part 3? Like it's no secret that Fujimoto ended his previous manga Fire Punch with an apocalypse so it wouldn't surprise me if he does the same here.
Also if this lotus apocalypse is this major world ending event, does this mean older characters we've known previously in the series get affected? Like will we see Kishibe or Quanxi make a comeback as obviously they too would notice fking bugs eating all human flesh in all parts of the world lmfao. I dunno but hopefully it does end satisfyingly, instead of the fake-out moon landing bs in the previous chapters :p
Pretty sure Denji wanting to touch Power's boobs and being shocked at the stuffed bra is a sign he was interested in Power physically at one point. Power is just such a brat it's hard to take her seriously in that regard once you really know her.
This could be the thing that leads to Denji throwing up Lil' D, as there might be no other way to deal with all the different insect devils that are rising up.
Pretty sure Denji wanting to touch Power's boobs and being shocked at the stuffed bra is a sign he was interested in Power physically at one point. Power is just such a brat it's hard to take her seriously in that regard once you really know her.
Ehhh wrong, quite literally right after that scene he then thinks touching boobs wasn't worth it anymore until he came to Makima where she teaches Denji that doing intimate acts such as those only feels right when it's with someone he's actually attracted to. Also Denji and Power literally shared a bath together nude and he didn't feel anything sexual about it at all.
This could be the thing that leads to Denji throwing up Lil' D, as there might be no other way to deal with all the different insect devils that are rising up.
That would be interesting as it would a complete waste for Lil' D's character to just be eaten up and never mentioned again. Like she feels too much of a major character with her representing death itself so I'm wondering if she would be the main villain in her own arc in Part 2 or even a Part 3.
It feels like your first point doesn't actually contradict mine. At one point he was interested in Power physically and when he got a chance to touch her changed his mind. When he realised that their relationship changed, but it doesn't mean he never felt that way.
He's repeatedly made this mistake because he's young and dumb, "falling" for lots of women and girls, including Makima, until he learns they're not emotionally compatible.
True but that attraction to Power wasn't nearly as specific or intimate when compared with Makima. But nonetheless what I was pointing out that in which confused me is that if Yoru/Asa is being built up as that one relationship Denji has been seeking for, then why are they being likened to Power. Like wouldn't it make more sense if Yoru/Asa was paralleled more with Reze as she was the one most emotionally compatible with Denji?
That's fair, it might have made more sense if he mentioned his seeking of Power/Blood Devil earlier on, made the comparison then and later allowed this new friendship/relationship to develop in its own way.
The idea of this is interesting to me, and could be a good point. Paralleling Power implies a lack of that sexual impulse, but Reze would have been more fitting if going for something more romantic or intimate.
Though hasn't that ship (not in romance terms) sort of sailed in earlier chapters with what she did with Denji? Then there's the whole Asa situation to navigate.
The entire purpose of that scene with Power was him learning that he WAS NOT interested. Denji was (and still is, but in a different way) just a horny degenerate that understood nothing and wanted to touch boobs for the sake of touching boobs. The WHOLE plotline with Power is one where Denji learns that there are more types of relationships out there with women than just sexual (or romantic) ones. She was the catalyst for that, and it was explicitly stated during a later chapter that Denji did not find his interactions with Power 'hot' at all following the shower scene.
You've missed the entire purpose of that character in this series. There is nothing sexual or romantic between Denji and Power, because the reason she existed in the series was specifically to prove to Denji that that was possible for him.
Exactly, thank you. With that scene in mind it just further confuses me why Yoru was even likened with Power in the first place. Also the whole "staying friends" line just adds more confusion to me as why not just seal the deal. Like wasn't the point of the series was for Denji to find something real and genuine? I don't think having a friend with benefits would be a satisfying conclusion for that core theme lmfao.
So unless Fujimoto has something up his sleeves where it turns out Denji doesn't actually find happiness with wanting to do the deed with Yoru similar to the Power scene, then I have no idea how he's gonna conclude Denji's character and Part 2 overall lol.
It's a bit hard to mask my frustration with part 2. It feels like Denji's character completely regressed and lost all of his development from part 1.
Part 2 is largely completely disconnected from part 1, and feels like it could pass as an ENTIRELY different manga if Denji was not here. In fact, I think it would be a better story if Denji wasn't here and it focused more on actually fleshing out a Yoru and Asa plot.
We have spent 1/5 of the ENTIRE series (not just part 2) on this one fight which has gone nowhere. Nothing of value has happened. We went to hell for a single page, we went to the moon for 2 pages, we spent a chapter drawing a chainsaw motorcycle just for fun. Like it's not even a pacing issue, at this point. 1/3 of part 2 has been a single fight that has done nothing of value for any characters (though there was a great moment between Yoru and Asa a chapter two ago which is now counterbalanced by the fact that Yoru just consented to sex on behalf of Asa which is horrible).
I genuinely think this series would be so solid for me if it ended with part 1. But I feel so challenged on how to properly judge or rate it anymore because part 2 has been so disconnected that it ought as well not even be the same manga and instead just be a spinoff.
Part 2 has been a direct spit in the face to Part 1, and it feels like it's actively ruining characters like Denji that were actually developed in a meaningful way throughout the earlier half of the manga. I don't understand why part 2 is even being written. Is it being milked? Was Fujimoto told by editors that he needed to do another half? It feels so lost to me, and like it actively diminishes my experience with this series as a whole because it's undoing the things that I felt actually gave it value when my partner first convinced me to give it a proper shot.
It feels like Denji's character completely regressed and lost all of his development from part 1.
Yehh and what sucks is that there were some chapters that did give Denji some interesting development like the mindscape scene. Where Denji finally appeared as his actual age so he can help Asa, symbolizing how he is finally willing to heal from his trauma. But now those chapters feel so thrown to the wayside in favor of the Yoru fight and Lotus Apocalypse.
In fact, I think it would be a better story if Denji wasn't here and it focused more on actually fleshing out a Yoru and Asa plot.
True like it's baffling how little we have seen of Asa ever since the fight with Yoru began. Hell even as far back from the Church Arc, Asa's presence has slowly faded in the background. Real shame as I personally think she's one of Fujimoto's most interesting characters.
I don't understand why part 2 is even being written. Is it being milked? Was Fujimoto told by editors that he needed to do another half? It feels so lost to me, and like it actively diminishes my experience with this series as a whole because it's undoing the things that I felt actually gave it value when my partner first convinced me to give it a proper shot.
Well to be fair as based on the interviews I've read about Fujimoto. It doesn't really feel like a cash grab as it seems as though he always wanted Denji's character arc to reach a specific endpoint. Like he stated before that to him a hero is someone who lacks something in their lives, and a hero's journey ends with the hero finding a sense of normalcy and looking at the earlier chapters of Part 2 it seems to be what it was going for initially. Like Denji even stated that the only reason he remains being Chainsaw Man for the general public is that he wants to stop being lonely. And I thought him building a genuine connection with characters like Nayuta or Asa would have been the conclusion for that character arc, but you know here we are :p