I’M BACK, AND THIS WAS SUPPOSED TO BE POSTED LIKE 2 MONTHS AGO, BUT OH WELLLLL

I’m realizing there’s a better way to write these posts, so this will be the last one that will be super detailed. I started reading the Moro arc for Dragon Ball Super, and began writing a more shortened version of my thoughts that wouldn’t give away too many spoilers like what I’ve been doing now. I’ll still give the spoiler warning just in case, of course! But I think going into as much depth as I have been has been discouraging me from getting these posts done.

So, shorter posts coming soon! Unless you prefer these longer ones, then let me know in the comments! But let’s get into Volume 12…

So, where did we leave off?

the upper ranks

We left off on the moment Upper Rank 3, Akaza, arrived at the Infinity Castle because an upper rank demon was killed. Soon, we’re introduced to several other upper ranks…

okay, wait…the anime is starting elsewhere

See, this is why I’m reading the manga and watching the anime side-by-side. The creative choices made by ufotable apart from the manga are always so interesting. So, instead of starting the Swordsmith Village arc right where we left off in the manga, they’ve shown us the aftermath in the Entertainment District with Goto, a kakushi in the clean up crew of the Demon Slayer corps. He’s the one who finds our nephews and niece (Tanjiro, Inosuke, Zenitsu, and Nezuko) all huddled up once they’ve finally defeated Gyutaro and Ume (Daki).

It then cuts to the scene we’ve seen already with Master Kagaya explaining how the tables have turned for the Demon Slayer Corps favor. He says that whole line about Kibutsuji being the blemish of his family, which again, leaves me side-eyeing…

sooo, this couldn’t have been an email?

NOW we’re back at the Infinity Castle with Akaza. We get a beautiful shot of exactly what an Infinity Castle is…the endless rooms, hallways, walkways, corridors, and all of them going in every direction. All to end up in front of Akaza, who calls this the alternate dimension.

And it really is…I’m telling you, utofable did their thing with the animation of the Infinity Castle, because it’s crisp, clean, pristine. It’s making me even more excited to watch the movie! As we watch Akaza travel through the castle, we see all the different movements and parts the dimension has, including separate houses with ponds or water gardens, I think?

Then the sound of a shamisen (is what I think it is) is played, and Akaza is now part of the meeting that is going to take place with the other upper ranks.

HOW UGLY ARE THEY?! (minus Doma though cause…who IS he?! 😗) Kokushibo is turned around for a reason, and I’m gonna show you WHY IN A SECOND…

Apparently, it’s been 113 years since the Upper Ranks were all summoned. Which is WILD if you think about it…this meeting really couldn’t have been an email because clearly that’s how they’ve been keeping in contact for that long if they haven’t seen each other in person!

I had to remember that there was a meeting at the Infinity Castle before this, but I believe it was the Lower Rank demons who met. It was after I think the spider demon was killed? Sheesh, it’s been a minute. EITHER WAY, this meeting of the upper ranks is CRUCIAL.

The intros to these demons are intense because, well, they’re demons. And it’s clear Akaza has pride issues because he hates when Doma touches him in a comrade sort of way. So much so that he punches Doma’s jaw clean off. I’m like…is there no hierarchy with the Upper Ranks? No respect? Because for him to be Upper 3 and doing that to the person ranked above him…I don’ t knowwww he gotta watch out. There’s a reason he’s 3 and not 2, JUST SAYIN’!

Muzan Kibutsuji arrives at the meeting doing what looks like some sort of chemistry experiment with blood…he’s got the beakers and petri dishes, but we’re not sure what he’s doing. He is relaying the information that Gyutaro is dead though, how he knew he wouldn’t succeed and at how pathetic the Upper Ranks have become, and what must be done. He points out their failures – them being unable to kill the Ubuyashiki family, and to find the blue spider lily. He is UPSET, and the Upper Ranks are speechless…they know any excuses aren’t gonna cut it with Muzan. Gyokko admits he has information, but Muzan isn’t necessarily pleased; he just goes on about how he doesn’t like change, referring to the change in ranks within the Upper Ranks, and the change in favor towards the Demon Slayer Corps. There’s also a lot of slashing and blood that occurs that I’m not speaking of, just know the scene is brutal because Muzan has had enough.

Now…about Upper Rank 1…Kokushibo…

Listen, I was already suspicious because of what he looked like from behind, but nothing could have prepared me for what they revealed…

I was like…

…for several reasons. ONE, He looks like Tanjiro. So…is he related to Tanjiro? IS THIS TANJIRO’S DAD?!? Look at the hair, the flame scars on his forehead and jaw/neck area. PLEASE DON’T TELL ME…

TWO, the eyes. THE AMOUNT OF EYES HE HAS. HE LOOKS LIKE A SPIDER. SICK. I have so many questions, but none of them are answered in this manga volume, or in these episodes. I just gain more questions as we move along!

I will say, Upper Rank 1 said what I was thinking: he tells Akaza that he disrupts the hierarchy of the Upper Ranks by his attitude (Doma points out it’s because he became a demon after Akaza, but still got promoted to Upper Rank 2 before him), and that if he wishes to move up, he needs to battle either Doma or himself. Akaza says he’s going to kill Kokushibo if it’s the last thing he does, but Kokushibo is unfazed. Basically…the Upper Ranks is a mess. No wonder they can’t get it together for real.

is that? is he? who’s who?

We get another flashback! And this is why I’m left with more questions than answers. We clearly see Kokushibo when he was human…but what is he wearing? The Hanafuda earrings that Tanjiro wears. The ones that were passed down from his father. And then we see someone who looks just like Tanjiro…but it isn’t Tanjiro. So, it’s his dad? Yes? So Kokushibo can’t be Tanjiro’s dad, but he was someone who saved Tanjiro’s parents, probably from demons?

WHAT IS GOING ON HERE?!

All we know is that Tanjiro sees this as he’s finally coming out of his coma from the Entertainment District battle. It’s been two months. SHEESH, that boy got some GOOD SLEEP.

no new sword for you.

We get a good-hearted scene of everyone being excited that Tanjiro is awake, plus updates on our two nephews – Zenitsu healed quick, and is already back on a mission, and Inosuke was stuck to the ceiling, watching everyone talk about how he was on the brink of death 😂

***Inosuke’s name for Tanjiro right now is “Tanpachiro” 😂😂😂

Inosuke goes back to missions like Zenitsu, and Tanjiro does his rehabilitation after he’s completely healed one week after he’s woken up. He then asks if a new sword to replace the one he chipped was delivered while he was asleep…and the girls admit that no sword was sent, but tons of letters from Haganezuka arrived…all of them saying that he will not be sending another new sword to Tanjiro.The man is unforgiving!

So instead, Tanjiro sets out to the Swordsmith Village to talk to Haganezuka in person about getting a new sword. He has to be blindfolded, deafened, and have nose plugs while he’s being carried to the village though, because no one knows exactly where it is. The routes and the kakushi change often so the village is kept safe from enemies and demons. Smart moves, if you ask me!

We see Mitsuri Kanroji, another Hashira, in the hot spring (like, girl, put some clothes on!) as she realizes someone new has entered the village. Then it cuts to Tanjiro in front of the chief of the Swordsmith Village, Tecchin Tecchikawahara (THESE NAMES THOUGH), who is the smallest, but still very important. And it seems that everyone in this village who’s a swordsmith wears one of those silly masks, just in different variations!

Tecchikawahara informs Tanjiro that Haganezuka has disappeared, but that they’re searching for him. So, that means Tanjiro is gonna have to wait on that sword. In the meantime, the chief offers the hot springs to Tanjiro so he can continue healing from his injuries from the last fight. They show this in the anime, but not in the manga… but our nephew is so precious, because he continues to show gratitude to everyone along his journey, and I’m just like DANG if only we could all be as grateful as he is!

Kanroji finally reveals herself to Tanjiro (NOT LIKE THAT), but she cries to him about how some man ignored her after she tried talking to him. Tanjiro is too concerned at first about her boobs spilling out of her robe (girl is PACKING, and she ain’t concerned in the slightest!). Tanjiro calms her down with news of dinner being ready soon. With that, she leaves him 😂 and heads to take a bath himself, only to find the person Mitsuri was talking about – Genya Shinazugawa, the man who was taking the demon slayer exam near the beginning of the manga, and had terrible manners. He’s literally…pulling his teeth out and throwing them in the hot spring. EEE-YUCK!

We find out here that Shinazugawa actually has the same last name as the Wind Hashira (I definitely didn’t catch that the first time), and later as Tanjiro is having dinner with Kanroji, they confirm that they are indeed brothers. Now that I know it, I can see it…they’ve got the same scarred bodies, the same crazed look in their eyes. It definitely checks out! But Genya is clearly not interested in bonding with anyone, so he doesn’t even show up for dinner. So what do the Love Hashira and our sweet nephew and niece do? Try to take some rice balls to him.

WHY WOULD SHE SAY THAT?!?!

On the way there, Tanjiro asks Kanroji why she joined the Demon Slayer Corps. And you know what this woman said?

To find a man to marry.

I mean, 100 points for honesty, but GIRL, you’re fighting DEMONS, and you’re using this as an opportunity to find a suitable bachelor?! HAVE MERCY.

But she clearly understands the risks, because she tells Tanjiro before she leaves the village that, if they don’t live to see each other again, they should give it their all. So, maybe she knows what she’s talking about!

She also starts feeling some type of way toward our nephew, and he’s feeling her back?! Hold onnnn, don’t tell meeee…

Mist Hashira and the Mechanical Doll.

This episode ends with Tanjiro looking for the “secret weapon” Kanroji told him about that is supposed to make him stronger. During his search, he finds a kid yelling at the Mist Hashira, Muichiro Tokito. Behind the kid is another person…someone who looks exactly like Upper Rank 1. Someone that Tanjiro recognizes. And this someone is also wearing Hanfuda earrings.

Tanjiro, of course, can’t help but step in when Tokito slaps the kid. But our nephew is pretty powerless against the Mist Hashira, who isn’t a Hashira for nothing. Still, Tanjiro is able to release the kid from Tokito’s grasp, and check on him. Tokito goes on a monologue about how the kid is being childish for not giving him the key to the man, who is actually a mechanical doll, by the way. He goes on about how the kid could make a new doll if it breaks, and that the swordsmen are more important than the swordsmiths.

Then Tanjiro goes on his monologue about how the swordsmiths are vital, and how everyone is in the same fight, but Tokito can’t stand hearing any of it, and knocks our nephew out. Haganezuka was actually listening in, and almost carried Tanjiro away with the kid, but once Tanjiro stirred, Haganezuka bolted (why is he hiding though?!).

Once awake, Tanjiro finds out the kid ended up giving the key to Tokito, allowing him to get the mechanical doll to move so he could train. The doll’s name? Yoriichi Type Zero. The kid goes on to explain the importance of the doll in his family, and in technology, period. It was modeled after a real swordsman, one who apparently lived over 300 years ago (are we connecting the dots here? Sounds like it could be our Upper Rank 1 demon, but I could be wrong…), and who’s moves could only be replicated if the doll had six arms.

Tokito’s crow starts bragging on her owner, saying that he’s a descendent of those who Sun Breathe, and then Tanjiro makes the connection that he’d seen the man the doll was modeled after in a dream of his. While Tokito’s crow calls him stupid for it, the kid (who’s name is Kotetsu) explains that Tanjiro could have seen an inherited memory that was passed down from his ancestors.

A sudden noise breaks their convo, and they watch as the Mist Hashira breaks the doll’s armor. Kotetsu can’t bear to see it, so he runs away, with Tanjiro following after him.

“Be a MAN!”

We see a segment of Tanjiro and Kotetsu both encouraging each other in their own ways. Tanjiro, in his gentle manner, reminds Kotetsu that he should work hard to become the person he’ll eventually be decades from now since he’s the last person of his line who knows anything about the mechanical doll.. And Kotetsu, although he’s only ten years old, brutally trains and encourages Tanjiro to be better than Tokito after Tokito practically destroys the mechanical doll during training (he also took the doll’s sword, so there’s that).

Training under Kotetsu is extremely harsh. Like, this kid isn’t only insulting Tokito and telling Tanjiro to do the same, but he’s withholding food from him until Tanjiro does what he tells him to do. Talk about INTENSE.

But it worked, because on the verge of death, Tanjiro learns how to pick up the smell of where the doll will strike him on his body. And as a reward, he gets to eat (it had been seven days since his last meal).

so THERE you are, Haganezuka…

Tanjiro actually gets a hit on the doll after permission from Kotetsu, and not only does Tanjiro’s sword snap, but the doll’s head splits open to reveal an ancient sword…that’s, of course, super rusty. While Kotetsu and Tanjiro debate on whether Tanjiro should take the sword, who better to show up than Haganezuka himself, bulging muscles and all (was he always this buff though?). Haganezuka tries to take the sword, but Kanamori comes in to tickle him, and explain that Haganezuka was gone training in the mountains so he could create better swords for Tanjiro.

So, after Haganezuka wakes up, he gives Tanjiro a substitute sword to use while he goes into the mountains to polish the old sword for him. We then cut to Tanjiro at dinner, explaining all that’s transpired to Genya Shinaguzawa, who could truly care less. They then go back and forth about whether or not they’re actually friends, and Tanjiro inquires about him losing a front tooth because apparently he’s grown it back already (and Tanjiro kept the tooth Genya threw at the hot spring, SICK). Genya has enough of Tanjiro, so he kicks him out.

There’s a short scene in the anime that wasn’t included in the manga of Tanjiro braiding Nezuko’s hair while she’s a smaller transformation of herself that isn’t in the manga. Tanjiro talks to her about Genya and his attitude. He also mentions how he braided her like Kanroji’s, which is SO CUTE!

then there was BLOOD 🩸

A swordsman heading home from the hot springs late in the evening ran into a stray vase on the path. If you remember what the Upper Rank demons look like…you know the swordsman didn’t last long once he tried to pick the vase up.

Gyokko (Upper Rank 5) and Hantengu (Upper Rank 4) have infiltrated the Swordsmith Village. And their goal is to kill every swordsmith so the demon slayers have no swords to slay with.

Another new scene in the anime that wasn’t included in the manga is us seeing Genya looking for a certain swordsmith, but he can’t find him. He then refers to his brother as he talks to himself and takes the sword.

Meanwhile, Tokito wakes Tanjiro up, asking him if he’s seen Kanamori, the swordsmith who was explaining Haganezuka’s business earlier. Apparently, Kanamori is Tokito’s new swordsmith, so Tanjiro said he’d go with Tokito to look for him and Haganezuka. For some strange reason, Tokito is intrigued by Tanjiro’s helpfulness, and by Nezuko (he calls her strange, and can’t recall if he’s seen her before now).

And then enters Hantengu.

He’s crying as he enters the room, and Tanjiro and Tokito get into battle stance despite their shock that they weren’t able to sense the demon until they saw it. Despite their efforts, they aren’t able to hit him, but you know who does get the first hit?

THAT’S RIGHT, OUR GIRL NEZUKOOOO!

She begins to transform into the bigger demon she was during the Entertainment District fight, and she kicks Hantengu across the room. But Tanjiro orders her not to, afraid that she’ll lose control like last time. Then Tokito cuts the demons head off…only for the head to grow a body, and the body to grow a head. So now there are TWO demons they’ve gotta get rid of, SHEESH!

The one demon Tokito is facing has a leaf fan that blows a hole into the building, sending Tokito and Tanjiro flying. The demons unofficially introduce themselves as Karaku (the less serious one, whose eye reads: “Pleasure”) and Sekido (the serious one filled with rage). They both reside in the same body that is Hantengu, if I’m understanding correctly?

Sekido hits his staff to the ground, causing lightning to flash forth and hit Tanjiro. Side note, but Sekido’s staff and the lightning reminded me of Eneru in One Piece. I had to look it up because I thought they were wielding the same staff, but Sekido’s has rings on the top, and Eneru’s is just a long staff BUT he does have the whole circles attached to him. I’m just seeing a very slight similarity in another anime, ANYWAYS…

Tanjiro is about to pass out, when he sees someone on the roof…and it’s GENYA.

And this is where the manga ends, in the middle of an anime episode!

I hope you all enjoyed this super long post (my apologies!). Again, I’m going to try to cut it down, not describe as much UNLESS it’s a difference in the manga and anime episodes, but trust, I’ll still have gifs to share 😂 Let me know what you think!

Mishy 🦋🩵