Chainsaw Man - Season One Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		3.0
Overall		3.5

Chainsaw Man - Season One Blu-ray Movie Review

Chainsaw Man Season 1 Vol 1 packs a mighty punch with the first episodes of season one. The action-thriller horror anime comes from creator Tatsuki Fujimoto. Featuring animation production by MAPPA (Attack on Titan The Final Season, Jujutsu Kaisen), Chainsaw Man is one of the most popular of modern anime and the series features the voices of Kikunosuke Toya, Tomori Kusunoki, Shōgo Sakata, and Fairouz Ai.  

Denji (Kikunosuke Toya) is a down-on-his-luck young man who is struggling to survive in a world overrun with devils. Denji struggles to even get by and makes a bad deal with some unscrupulous people in order to survive at a high cost. Denji ends up having to sell multiple body parts in order to get by and still he isn’t doing well enough. Denji’s best friend is his beloved devil dog companion Pochita.  

After an unexpected run in with gangsters, Denji is killed but is transformed when his dog Pochita helps to fuse directly with him in order to save him – to save what he can of his soul. Now Denji is known as the Chainsaw Man. The Chainsaw Man embarks on a quest to find the mysterious Makima (Tomori Kusunoki), who is involved with a bureau of Devil Hunters.

Denji is a compelling lead protagonist. The character certainly seems to be a perfect fit for the leading role. The character has a hard life and a hard time dealing with the difficulties of his survival – from efforts to selling off body parts to trying to keep himself afloat by any means necessary while also working on battling demons to raise funds. The character also has a soft spot and the “boy and his demon dog” element is surprisingly heartwarming and will play to the emotions of anyone who has ever loved a dog.

The character designs by Kazutaka Sugiyama (Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation, Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc) impress in spades, too. The character designs work well for the wide cast of characters. The designs are especially effective for Denji, his demon dog Pochita, and the main characters supporting the leads. The designs efforts make a big difference in impacting the series aesthetic.

The score composed by kensuke ushio (The Colors Within, A Silent Voice) is one of the highlights of the anime. The music is epic and has a wide sense of scale and scope. There is a lot to appreciate about it. The music swells with exciting rhythm and wonderment. The music plays a vital role in the storytelling. There is certainly a lot to appreciate about the music by ushio and it elevates the action elements and brings forward the storytelling. The score is a great backdrop to the action scenes.

The animation is beautiful and robust. One of the finest qualities of the production is certainly the high quality art done by the animation team. The animation is ushered in by art director Yūsuke Takeda (Dimension W, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex). The animators brought their A-game to the production and delivered stunning animation in spades. The aesthetic is wonderful and there is a ton to appreciate about the style. The results go a long way to expanding the horizon for the series and the team of artists involved managed something special with the dark and gritty aesthetic while still retaining a sense of charm and heart to the animation.

The cinematography by Teppei Ito (Jujutsu Kaisen, Wistoria: Wand and Sword) is well-done and adds to the series aesthetic qualities, too. Ito is a talented cinematographer and someone with a keen sense of style. The cinematography helps the series look its absolute best. The visuals aid the storytelling. An impressive effort by Ito.

Written by Hiroshi Seko (Attack on Titan, Jujutsu Kaisen), Chainsaw Man Season 1 Vol 1 is a good introduction to the series. Seko did a good job with the script writing and made the series cast a compelling part of the narrative. The lead characters are compelling and audiences will find themselves surprisingly moved by the story. The storytelling elevates the material and adds subtle nuances that may otherwise have been missing.

Directed by Ryū Nakayama (Jujutsu Kaisen, The Rising of The Shield Hero), Chainsaw Man Season 1 Vol 1 is well-done overall. Nakayama brought a lot of action-packed energy to the table. The series flows with excellent action set pieces. The action is gritty and violent and sometimes may even seem too over-the-top for some audiences. Even so, Chainsaw Man Season 1 Vol 1 effectively creates a highly stylized and compelling world. Fans of action anime will be intrigued by the efforts by Nakayama.

Chainsaw Man - Season One Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Released on Blu-ray by VIZ Media, Chainsaw Man Season 1 Vol 1 is presented in 1080p MPEG-4 AVC encoded high-definition in the original television broadcast aspect ratio of 1.78:1 widescreen. The presentation is crisp and colorful on the release. The animation is robust and pleasing. There is an impressive quality to the animation reproduction throughout and fans will appreciate the vibrant aesthetic and attention to detail. The action scenes are well encoded and provide crisp imagery that provides these sequences at their best.

One of the hallmarks of physical media is the excellent encoding. Blu-ray provides a superb video presentation. Streaming video services tend to provide lower video bit-rates compared to their physical media counterparts. For home theater enthusiasts who want to get the best possible video quality, the physical option provides some picture quality gains that are well worthwhile.

Chainsaw Man - Season One Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Chainsaw Man Season 1 Vol 1 includes a selection of lossless audio options: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround sound and Japanese DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 (with English subtitles). The high-resolution lossless audio provides a more immersive audio experience. The lossless encoding is crisp throughout. The presentation provides robust clarity and detail. The score is well reproduced on the release.  The soundstage is immersive and the 5.1 surround sound will expand on the soundstage to offer a more immersive sound presentation. The 2.0 Japanese audio impresses as well and sounds robust, clear, and dynamic. Fans will not be disappointed by the lossless encoding. The sound direction by Kisuke Koizumi (Campfire Cooking in Another World with My Absurd Skill, Orb: On the Movements of the Earth) is well reproduced as well.

One of the coolest things about Blu-ray disc is the lossless audio. Streaming video services only provide lossy (non-lossless) audio encoding. For home theater enthusiasts and audiophiles alike, the Blu-ray presentation format provides superb detail and clarity. There is so much to appreciate about the presentation. The detail and depth is superb.

Chainsaw Man - Season One Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

The limited edition includes a deluxe chipboard art-box. The artbox is far cooler than expected and includes a high print quality lenticular effect that covers the entire case. The lenticular images are presented across the front, back, and even spine of the package design. The lenticular is quite immersive and cool looking. The design makes this particular set stand out as something special in regards to the set packaging. The limited-edition version also includes a vol. 1 bonus material booklet inside of the chipboard art box.

On disc supplements include:

Disc 2:

Artwork Galleries –

Character Artwork includes 20 click-through slides.

Copyrighted Artwork includes 11 click-through slides.

Publicity Artwork includes 8 click-through slides.

Episodic Storyboard Artwork includes 68 click-through slides.

Unfortunately, the on-disc supplements are somewhat sparse. The bonus features on disc could use some more robust offerings such as an in depth making of documentary or featurette, behind the scenes videos, cast/crew interviews, roundtable discussions, comic con panels, and much more. In the era of streaming, sometimes a nicer supplemental package makes the difference between a one time stream or a physical media purchase so it would be nice if more considerations were made for fans – offering more robust bonus features and an even more definitive package for fans.

Chainsaw Man - Season One Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Chainsaw Man Season 1 Vol 1 is a fantastic starting point for fans of high-octane anime. The series is thrilling with extreme action sequences and intense drama. For audiences looking for a genre anime success, Chainsaw Man Season 1 Vol 1 is worth looking into. The Blu-ray release provides excellent high-definition video, crisp lossless audio, and a selection of bonus features. The limited-edition version also includes deluxe chipboard packaging with a cool lenticular effect across the entire package and a nice limited-edition booklet, too. Recommended.