Chainsaw Man – Season 1 Episode 5 “Gun Devil” Recap & Review

Gun Devil

Episode 5 of Chainsaw Man begins with Denji copping a feel of Power’s chest, and Power congratulates him for his achievement. Power promises to aid Denji with his duties and leaves the room.

The following day, Denji and Power go about their daily activities. Denji’s still dumbfounded by what happened. As he’s stamping paperwork, Makima asks him what’s been bothering him. Denji confirms that he doesn’t know what to do after accomplishing his short-lived dream and worries he’ll be left with the same result if he completes another.

After a sensual exchange, Makima asks Denji to perform a task for her. She asks him if he can defeat the Gun Devil and shares intel about its past and how difficult it was for previous devil hunters. She tells Denji that if he can neutralize this devil, she’ll make any of his wishes come true. Denji’s dumbfounded as Makima shares more information about the Gun Devil.

Makima says people tried profiting off weapons as a counter-measure against devils, but this increased the crime and conflict in the area. The day an attack on America happened, and this is when the Gun Devil appeared. At the same time, we follow two brothers having a snowball fight outside. The brothers stop playing after the younger one starts feeling numbness in his hand.

The older brother tells him to head inside to grab a glove. Suddenly, a severe snowstorm blows the house to smithereens. Makima continues narrating her tale. 1.2 million people got killed in under five minutes. Since that day, the Gun Devil hasn’t appeared. The severity of Gun Control and news censorship increased as a result.

Denji promises he’ll wipe out the Gun Devil to Makima. Makima informs him they’ll need to track its whereabouts first and shows Denji some bullet pieces dropped from it. She explains that consuming these bullets will make any devil more powerful. She picks one up and tells him that once they reach a certain size they’ll get attracted to the original body.

They can track the Gun Devil’s location if they make the piece bigger. Meanwhile, Hayakawa and one of his comrades have defeated a sea devil and learn that it consumed one of the Gun Devil’s bullets. Hayakawa tells him it doesn’t matter how it ate the bullet, as it’s more important that they keep murdering them until none remain. We receive a brief confirmation that Hayakawa was the older brother in the snowball fight flashback.

Later that day, Denji, Power, Hayakawa, and his friends, travel to a hotel where a new devil has been causing mischief. It had murdered several civilian devil hunters. Makima believes it could’ve eaten one of the Gun Devil’s bullets, so she sent them all there to investigate. Hayakawa hands Denji and Power some gum to calm them down.

One of Hayakawa’s men asks if it’s okay to trust these two. Hayakawa says they should focus on the mission, and if they try to run or switch sides, they can exterminate them. Denji, Power, and Hayakawa get into a skirmish, and one of the agents decides to calm everyone down by offering a deal. Whoever can murder the devil in the hotel will win a kiss on the cheek from her.

Denji ponders it over. He recalls his moment with Makima and tells the girl that he has his sights set on someone else for a first kiss. He promises he won’t be smoothing anyone until the Gun Devil’s dead. The girl walks up to him and whispers she will add more action to the kiss if he wins. Denji wanders willy-nilly in the hotel.

This makes the male Public Safety agent infuriated. The male Public Safety agent shoves Denji into a corner because he’s patrolling the area carelessly. Himeno is the name of the eye-patched girl who struck a wager with Denji. Power joins the banter while the brown-haired agent tries to calm them down. Meanwhile, Hayakawa asks Himeno about her thoughts on the rookies.

We learn that the male Public Safety agent’s name is Arai. Himeno says he’s not super talented, but he’s highly motivated. Next, we discover that the brown-haired agent is named Kobeni. Himeno says Kobeni has athletic ability but can be too timid. Himeno asks Hayakawa if he thinks they’ll last. Hayakawa gives a vague response. Himeno tells him he better not die.

In a flashback, we see Himeno standing in front of her previous partner’s grave. A mysterious man arrives, introducing her new partner, a young Hayakawa. Himeno tells Hayakawa he’ll be her sixth partner since the others died for being useless. In the present, the group arrives at a door, and Himeno feels the devil’s presence behind that door.

The devil walks out from a different door. It has a human head and walks via a human hand and foot. It attacks Kobeni, but Himeno stops it with her telekinetic powers. Power slices it and brags. Himeno confirms she’s the one who slayed it because she formed a contract with the Ghost Devil. She says she sacrificed her right eye in exchange for being about to use the ghost’s right hand. It’s an invisible and strong hand.

As they’re walking upstairs, Power boasts how it’s unwise for Himeno to reveal her abilities to everyone. Himeno says she has many tricks up her sleeve. Power asks Himeno what she would do if she tried killing Kobeni, leading to Himeno grabbing Power by her neck with the ghost hand. The gang laughs at Power, who doesn’t take Himeno’s act kindly.

They continue searching for the real devil as the human head creature, wasn’t it? As they reach the next floor, Arai notices the same puddle of blood from the previous floor. He thinks there is something amiss with this place and rushes down another flight of stairs. According to him, the gang is trapped in a repetitive cycle.

The episode concludes with everyone looking confuzzled.

The Episode Review

Episode 5 of Chainsaw Man gives fans more things to ponder concerning this anime’s world, threats, and characters. It properly introduced three new characters and shared more context on pre-existing ones. This episode sheds light on the possible major enemy of the series regarding the Gun Devil and leaves the door open for speculation.

This chapter fleshes out Hayakawa’s character wonderfully too. Some will adore knowing that he trained to become as formidable as he is in the present day. It’s interesting to know that the Gun Devil played a role in Hayakawa’s hatred toward devils too. It adds more of a personal edge to Hayakawa’s quest to slay it, which many may find more appealing than Denji wanting to defeat it for intercourse purposes.

Denji’s character feels like a mixed bag. His goals don’t carry as much weight as other characters. Although it’s hilarious that his quest is fuelled by sexual desires, the first episode implied that Denji is more than a typical delinquent. Although Denji’s showed some adamant traits, I’m fearful of what he’ll become by the season’s end.

Overall, this episode was an intriguing follow-up to last week’s chapter. It didn’t have a lot of action, but it gave us more world-building, which is always appreciated. While Denji’s goals evoke mixed reception, he harbors enough fun traits that keep him from feeling bland. Hopefully, the next episode can deliver an epic pay-off with this hotel devil as its powers evoke a great sense of danger.