Demon Slayer Dominated China's Massive Anime Fanbase in 2019

The saga of Demon Slayer's anime debut continues to hit major milestones. The anime was one of the top search engine hits of 2019, and has been seen a meteoric rise to popularity in social media buzz, with Demon Slayer fan artwork, memes, and cosplay blowing up all over the place. Well, Demon Slayer's rise is truly happening on a global scale, as word has come in that the anime has even been dominating over in China. According to the latest reports, Chinese streaming sit Bilibili is reporting that Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba "decimiated" the anime chats in mainland China throughout 2019.

As Crunchyroll reports, Demon Slayer's success was recorded from Bilibili's own internal data from both watch numbers and reviews. The streaming service actually sections things into different categories of rankings, which include "Most Popular Anime," "Most Viewed Anime," "Highest Reviewed", and "Most Reviewed". Within those finer measurements, Demon Slayer scored high on every front.

The anime topped both the "Most Popular" and "Most Reviewed" categories, besting My Hero Academia, Sword Art Online Alicization, Rising of the Shield Hero, and KAGUYA-SAMA: LOVE IS WAR. Demon Slayer also topped the "Most Viewed" category, while coming in no. 4 out of 5 in the "Highest Reviewed" category.

It's now undeniable that Demon Slayer is one of the biggest new anime properties currently out. It's been no secret why the series is such a hit: Demon Slayer has taken what was already a rich world and mythos, and put some of the most gorgeous anime production design and style behind it. Studio Ufotable has understandably received massive praise for the anime's quality, and a highly-anticipated first Demon Slayer movie (based on the "Demon Train" arc) look like it will surpass even the anime's top-notch visuals and action.

Here's what Demon Slayer anime producer Yuma Takahashi recently had to say about the series' unprecedented success:

"[Demon Slayer] has become one of the representative works of 2019, I think. The film will release next year, so we're doing our best to ensure that it's something everyone will enjoy. I hope that you'll continue to support us in the future."

Even the anime's theme song, "Gurenge" by LiSA has blown up, earning the distinction of being the most downloaded anime track of 2019. Every single piece of this series is breakout hit!

Originally created by Koyoharu Gotoge, Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba first debuted in Shueisha's Weekly Shonen Jump in February 2016. VIZ Media fully licensed the series for an English language release.