Let’s hope the current season will be better.
Spoilers ahead!
Summary:
- Some fans believe the Swordsmith Village Arc is the worst part of Demon Slayer.
- The animation was somewhat worse than before, and the entire arc is just essentially a series of fights.
- It’s still not terrible.
Demon Slayer (Kimetsu no Yaiba) is considered the poster child of modern battle shounen. It has exceptional animation and an easy-to-follow plot, and its wide appeal popularized anime further, making it practically mainstream.
Of course, Demon Slayer is not without its flaws — but it’s still a good watch, especially if you just want to relax and watch something fun with great action. However, in any series that has been going on for a while, there’s a worst arc. And for Demon Slayer, that might be the Swordsmith Village Arc.
It Looks Worse Than Previous Seasons
The Swordsmith Village Arc is the last fully released season of Demon Slayer — right now, the Hashira Training Arc is ongoing. While the arc wasn’t that bad in the manga, many expressed their disappointment with the anime adaptation.
One of the main selling points of Demon Slayer has always been its impressive animation. The Swordsmith Village Arc still looks good, but it also looks worse than the previous seasons. It relies on CGI way too much, and that upset many. However, a lot of the issues with the arc have nothing to do with how it looks.
Other Issues Regarding This Arc
It can be argued that the arc doesn’t translate well into anime. After all, it’s just a series of continuous fights after the first episode. It’s easier to read as a manga, but it doesn’t have much to offer in the anime form.
It should have been shorter than the 11 episodes it was (and two of those were double-length, too). The uninteresting antagonists of the arc certainly don’t help, either.
The last episode also has its fair share of issues. The main one, of course, is Nezuko suddenly being able to speak (and being immune to sunlight).
The entire scene is initially presented as Tanjiro having to choose between saving her or saving multiple other people, but the weight of the choice is negated by Nezuko’s newfound abilities. While they can be explained later, at the time, it was seen as a deus ex machina moment.
An overreliance on flashbacks during the arc also makes it somewhat of a chore to watch. Flashbacks are very common in battle shounen, but here, there were too many of them.
It’s Still Not Bad
Is the arc really that bad? No, not at all. It’s integral to the story, and, in the end, it’s still Demon Slayer, which is a very exciting series. However, there has to be a part of the series that is weaker than others, and in this case, it might be the Swordsmith Village Arc.