Find out the truth behind the unprecedented hit "Kimetsu no Yaiba"
1,Introduction
First of all, let's talk about myself. I've been a fan of animations since I was a sophomore in high school, around 2017, and I've encountered some great works so far. As an individual, I'm interested in a wide range of genres, from light novels such as otherworldly, romance, and school, to battles and sports such as Jump and Magazine. Also I think I've seen more than 100 anime titles so far in 2021 that I can clearly talk about what I think of them.
Among them, "Kimetsu no Yaiba" started to become a hot topic around me at the beginning of 2020, and I watched this work for the first time at that time.
After watching the anime, I felt that the story was very interesting, but to be honest, there were no particularly innovative ideas or elements in the work, and I had a hard time understanding why it had become such an explosive hit to the extent that had people so excited.
So I wondered if there was some kind of trick, or even a law, behind the huge success of "Kimetsu no Yaiba".
In this way, I found out something important in my research on this topic.
And to conclude, although I mentioned above that there are no outstanding elements, I came to the conclusion that "Kimetsu no Yaiba" actually has its greatest appeal in its "simplicity". In other words, "Kimetsu no Yaiba" is a combination of various manga and anime templates, and is truly a royal road to success.
Nevertheless, it can be said that the explosive success of "Kimetsu no Yaiba" is a miraculous product of the interaction between social and artistic factors.
For this reason, I would like to discuss the social factor first, and then the work factor "simplicity".
2, The Social Background of "Kimetsu no Yaiba" Big Hit
To begin with, it can be said that "Kimetsu no Yaiba" was a popular work that became a huge success even before the anime started in April 2019. The theme song "Gurenge" was even sung at the "Kohaku Uta Gassen" that year. In this way, the anime has maintained a certain level of popularity.
The most important social factor is probably the social restraint caused by the expansion of covid-19. Covid-19 has caused individuals to spend more time at home, and "pay-per-view" services such as "Netflex", "hulu" and "Amazon prime" are becoming more and more popular. In this way, people who don't usually have a chance to watch anime at home will automatically have more opportunities to come into contact with animation. In this way, the anime "Kimetsu no Yaiba" became popular even after its broadcast ended, and it became the first target for beginners to watch it because of its popularity.
The simplicity and ease of understanding of "Kimetsu no Yaiba" captured the needs of such viewers, and the boom spread explosively through social networking services, and combined with social conditions, trends, and the needs of modern people who do not watch manga or anime, it became a tremendous hit.
Also, the fact that the first season of the animation ended in a lingering manner may have captured the curiosity of the viewers to see what would happen next, and the movie and the manga became explosive hits.
As for the manga, bookstores did not foresee such an explosive hit at the time, and the manga is sold out one after another. It is said that this information about the book selling out became a big topic on social networking sites, which further motivated people to buy the manga and led to the current books becoming the biggest hit in history.
If you would like to know the specific trajectory of the "Kimetsu no Yaiba" hit, the following website has a very clear summary.
3. What is simplicity in "Kimetsu no Yaiba"?
The most important thing I want to assert is that the greatest appeal of "Kimetsu no Yaiba" is its simplicity :straightforwardness.
However, the word "simplicity" may be unfamiliar to you; I'm not used to using it myself.
So, I'd like to explain "Kimetsu no Yaiba" from the perspective of "simplicity", item by item.
(1) Worldview and setting
The story of "Kimetsu no Yaiba" is said to be set in the Taisho era, which is close to the popular works "Golden Kamuyi" and "Rurouni Kenshin". At first glance, it seems to be a complicated era with a mixture of Western and Japanese elements, but in a way, it is similar to the modern Japanese blend of Japanese and Western elements, and that is why it is easy to accept and understand.
In addition, the existence of "demons" can be said to be the key to "Kimetsu no Yaiba". Demon and goblin are unique to Japan, and have been regarded as abominations from ancient to modern times. As proof of this, "Gegege no Kitaro," "Yo-kai Ningen Bem," "Yo-kai Watch," and other works based on the theme of goblin have been huge hits that have created an entire era. Also, there are surprisingly few works in which demons appear, but it's the same with "Yakusoku no Neverland" and "Enen no Shoubotai".
And I must mention that the world view is similar to "JoJo no Kimyo na Boken". First of all, the last boss in "Kimetsu no Yaiba", Kibutsuji Muzan, is very similar to DIO in "JoJo no Kimyo na Boken Part III". They are both vampires of human origin, and are the root of all the disasters in the story. Despite their overwhelming abilities, they are always on the lookout for their enemies and basically hide themselves from the world. The ultimate goal of both stories is to defeat the last boss.
If we focus only on the similarities, the "Hamon" in Jojo, based on the power of the sun, are very close to the elements of the "Sun Nichirin-tou" and "Breath" in "Kimetsu no Yaiba".
(2) Combat
Basically, there are only two ways to defeat demons: "cutting off their heads with the Sun Ring Sword" or "exposing them to sunlight". In other words, demons only have one weakness: they are weak against sunlight. Because of the limited number of ways to defeat them, the strategy is clear and easy to understand.
(3) Conflict structure and hierarchy
The confrontation structure in "Kimetsu no Yaiba" is basically quite simple, with only the "demons" versus "demon squad. In other words, there are basically no other interested parties between the two. Also, both sides have their own bosses, and each side is organized to some extent: a little bit of a third party to this dichotomy can add a lot of variation to the story, which is a good thing all around.
On the demon side, there is a clear hierarchy of demons called "Juni- kitsuki" with the last boss, Kibutsuji Muzan, at the top of the list, and the smaller the number, the higher the rank and ability.
On the other hand, the top nine swordfighter in the "Kisatsu-tai" have the title called "Hashira", and it is difficult to fight against the top six demons on equal terms except for the main character group. Although there is no pecking order based on ability, each "hashira" has different characteristics and strengths, and their contribution varies depending on the opponent they confront.
In addition, in the story, the demons are basically in a dominant position in the battle, and in terms of power relations, the demon killing squad and the "Jogen no Tsuki" are more powerful than the demons when fought alone.
In other words, at the end of the game, the pattern of the battle will be Jogen no Tsuki vs. one or more "hashira" + "hashira" or one of the main characters.
(4) Characters
As you can see from the "Why did "Blade of Extinction" become so popular", it is said that the biggest attraction of "Kimetsu no Yaiba" is its "characters".
This diversity and richness of character is the rationale for its extreme simplicity. The richness of individuality is the character that has been created by previous works, and Blade of Extinction is the perfect template for combining such characters.
For example, there is a character named Tomioka Giyu, a water "hashira". He plays an important role in leading the protagonist in critical situations, but he is also a "clumsy and taciturn swordsman," an element that embodies the image of the samurai we portray.
A character named Rengoku Kyojirou, the "hashira" of Fire. He is an important character in "Kimetsu no Yaiba", where the human side of the double-edged sword called "Hashira" dies for the first time and clearly shows the power relationship with "Jogen no Tsuki". In the movie, his characterization of the "end of life" was highly acclaimed.
And then there is the protagonist of "Kimetsu no Yaiba", Kamado Tanjirou. This character's personality and self-talk are more impressive than his abilities and swordsmanship. On the inside, his bond with Priestess, his brotherly love, his fraternal love for his friends, and his neighborly love for demons tickle the subconscious mind that Japanese people tend to unconsciously avoid. The character's self-talk and steady growth in the midst of his conflict with himself is a typical aspect of a manga protagonist.
What further emphasis the diversity of these characters is the existence of the past. The method of inserting a "past chapter" in the work to draw sympathy from readers and viewers is a template, but the fact that it uses the past more than "One Piece," which is synonymous with "past chapter," including both friend and foe, can be said to be a slightly unique point.
4,What can be seen from "Kimetsu no Yaiba" big hit
I have discussed the background of "Kimetsu no Yaiba" and its appeal, and what I have found is that modern Japanese people love "templates" and "Royal road" more than anything else. Although there was a time when society became more complex and the trend was to deviate from the main road, today, at least in the world of manga and anime, there is a tendency to return to the "template" and "royal road". In other words, while we modern people understand complex things, we tend to want things that are simple and easy to understand to some extent.
5,Conclusion
To avoid any misunderstanding, I would like to make sure that "Kimetsu no Yaiba" is without a doubt a very wonderful work. Imitating elements from other works is a common practice, and combining various royal roads is an admirable technique. While it has its weaknesses, such as the leaps in setting and grotesqueness, it has covered them beautifully by sticking to this sort of simple and clear style.
It has become clear that the background to the huge success of "Kimetsu no Yaiba" is deeply related to the very special social factors of the covid-19 expansion and the individuality of the work that adapted to the situation.
The work "Kimetsu no Yaiba" itself has been completed, but a second anime season or a sequel movie will surely be aired within the next three years.
I look forward to the future of "Kimetsu no Yaiba".
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