Kimetsu no Yaiba: Katanakaji no Sato-hen – 07

「極悪人」 (Gokuakunin)
“Awful Villain”

The latest Kimetsu no Yaiba‘s Swordsmith arc gives Hantengu yet another form to give Tanjiro and Genya a hard time. But things are looking very tense on Gyokko’s end as Tokito and Hotaru have to muster the resolve to endure the upper moon’s lethal attacks.

DRAGGIN BALLZ

Again, this episode’s biggest draws are definitely the set pieces for each of the fights. The reveal of Zohakuten, the form of Hantengu with a misplaced hero complex, gave us the opportunity to see more highflying maneuvers from Tanjiro. While the fish demons were a bit dubious-looking in CG, the wooden dragons were absolutely sick, and it made for a cool moment where Tanjiro had to pull off some Shadow of the Colossus moves to survive the onslaught of dragons.

Similarly, it was hype to see Hotaru Haganezuka unmasked as not even Gyokko’s attacks would stop him from crafting the ultimate sword. I’m really looking forward to seeing how they pull off his big moments knowing how awesome he looks without the goofy mask. Sometimes it can be a bit of shame that they often try to make the swordsmiths comedic relief for their masks and temper since Hotaru looks like he’d be an intimidating badass if they didn’t constantly have him be funny for the audience.

However, it was a major episode for Tokito, given that he was able to channel his way out of Gyokko’s water bubble with a little extra air and the realization that he sees his father in Tanjiro. With the reassurance that he knows Tanjiro would give him, he connects the dots back to his father, leaving him a lot more keen on remembering Tanjiro’s encouragement as a way to reconnect with his father and regain inspiration. Again, it’s not an episode I feel like I’d need to talk too much about since it’s mostly just updating us on fights, but I am a huge fan of seeing everything unfold now that I’m reminded of the grand scale that the manga gives to its fights.

Preview: