Demon Slayer Cliffhanger Sets Up Season 3's Big Meeting

By Kofi Outlaw

Demon Slayer Season 2 is over – but before the anime ended its Entertainment District Arc, it gave fans a taste of a big meeting that's about to take place in Season 3. As we saw in the penultimate episode of season 2, Tanjiro, Nezuko, his friends Inosuke and Zenitsu, and Sound Hashira Tengen managed to cut the heads of Upper Rank Six Demon Gyutaro and his sister, Daki. That victory comes at some heavy cost, though – including a future that looks like it's only going to be more deadly for the Demon Slayers! 

(Obviously Major SPOILERS About Demon Slayer's Season 2 Finale Follow!) 

The final episode of Demon Slayer Season 2, "No Matter How Many Lives" gives time and dramatic flair to the now-obligatory backstory of the demons that are conquered and killed by our Demon Slayer heroes. However, once the tears have been shed, and the demons have been dusted, things must move forward. As we learn, the Upper Rank Demons aren't taking the first loss of one of their own in a century, lightly. 

We get the importance of the Tanjiro and co.'s milestone victory by revisiting Upper Rank Three, Akaza, who killed the Flame Hashira, Rengoku, in the finale of the Mugen Train Arc. Akaza finds himself suddenly transported into a different realm, which looks like the Japanese version of an M.C. Escher picture. Akaza realizes that he has been summoned to the Infinity Castle by demon lord Muzan Kibutsuji, and that such a summoning only signifies one thing: an Upper Rank has been slain. It's made clear that Akaza is just the first in what will be a meeting of the Upper Ranks, hosted by their master. 

It's not hard to imagine Demon Slayer Season 3 giving fans a thrilling start by picking up right where this villain teaser at the end of Season 2 left things: a meeting of the Upper Rank Demons. At this point in the storyline, with Tanjiro having defeated an Upper Rank (albeit with a lot of luck and even more help), they really are the only remaining villains in the series that can serve as suitable antagonists for our main heroes. Time to drag the Upper Ranks fully out of the shadows and let fans know what kind of big bads there are, and what powers they have.

It would be the perfect way for Demon Slayer Season 3 to quickly and effectively hook viewers with multiple reasons to stay invested in the anime. And, knowing the ebb-and-flow nature of Shonen storytelling, that early thrill and motivation may be a necessary thing... 

Demon Slayer Seasons 1 & 2 are now streaming on Funimation and Hulu. 

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