Chainsaw Man: Viral Video Debunks the Anime’s “Poor” Performance

Chainsaw Man was considered one of the biggest new anime adaptations that arrived in 2022, with only series Lycoris Recoil and Spy x Family coming close to earning the title, but there has been a movement in Japan to debate whether the television series focusing on Denji’s exploits truly was a success. With some anime fans believing that MAPPA’s production wasn’t able to live up to the source material from the Shonen’s manga, a new viral video has arrived to debate if the anime adaptation was truly a success at the end of the day.

While not the end all, be all for rating an anime’s success, the outlet known as Oricon will routinely track the sales of physical copies of an anime series, with Chainsaw Man’s Blu-Rays seemingly not living up to the hype that was surrounding the series. With fans and outlets coming to notice that the bloody series’ physical sales in Japan plummeted for its second week earlier this year, with its first hitting around 1700 copies sold and its second shrinking to only 325, many believed that this was a foreboding sign that not all was well in the world of the Chainsaw Devil. However, with the Youtube series, “Anime Mythbusters”, the video producers attempt to fight back against this narrative.

Chainsaw Flop?

Youtube Channel The Canpia Effect broke down how Oricon’s measurements might not give anime fans the full scope of a Blu-Ray/DVDs overall sales, while also taking note that physical sales of an anime series might not be the full picture of an anime’s success, especially in this landscape where streaming is king:

In North America, Chainsaw Man’s first season can be streamed on Crunchyroll and Hulu, with anime fans also able to purchase a digital copy of the season to add to their collection. At the end of the day, an anime series has multiple avenues for turning a profit, not simply from physical copies of the series itself, but merchandising, views, and word of mouth also help in boosting a series. 

MAPPA has yet to confirm whether a second season of Chainsaw Man is on the way, though when/if it does, we’re sure the debate regarding the series’ popularity level will be put to bed.

Do you think Chainsaw Man’s anime was able to live up to its source material? Feel free to let us know in the comments or hit me up directly on Twitter @EVComedy to talk all things comics, anime, and the world of the Chainsaw Devil.