Cruelty (Demon Slayer #1) 3.5Stars

 

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Title: Cruelty
Series: Demon Slayer #1
Author: Koyoharu Gotouge
Rating: 3.5 of 5 Stars
Genre: Manga
Pages: 192
Words: 9K

I originally saw Lashaan reviewing this (kind of) and then had someone else recommend the story via the anime. Considering I’m watching Cardcaptor Sakura, it seemed a bit much to add another anime to the mix, so I decided to read the manga instead. But with no real schedule. So don’t expect this to be a regular thing. Or maybe I’ll just binge this and read all 30+ volumes. Hahahahahaa, ahhhh, I’m so funny sometimes.

I’m know I’m getting older, but man, the beginning was totally telegraphed. I read the opening first few conversations and KNEW exactly what was going to happen. Crap, crap, crap. The main character’s whole family except one sister is killed by demons. Crap, crap, crap. Of course, I totally did not see the sister becoming a demon. That at least was original.

“The meek have no power and no options.The strong will crush them in every way.”
vs
“Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the Earth.”
That’s what sprang to my mind when I read the first quote.

At the same time, this isn’t about love eros, but love familia. Tanjiro, the main character, is doing everything for love of his sister, to rescue her from being a monster and to protect others from experiencing what he went through. Man, that kicked me the feelz. I also really liked that the usual “romance” angle wasn’t the main point. Awwwww man, there’s “Be a Man” talk! I think I’m in love.

And now Tanjiro’s passing his test, a literal do or die. I’m impressed. It’s been a year since I read a volume of manga and you know, I think I’m ready for this. Don’t know how long I’ll stay ready, but boy, I’m eating it up now.

It is also a great antidote to that filthy Neuromancer. Love, duty, strength, determination, hope and justice. Everything that Neuromancer wasn’t, this is. Suck it, Gibson!

★★★✬☆

From Wikipedia

Table of Contents & Synopsis

"Cruelty"

"The Stranger"

"To Return by Dawn Without Fail"

"Tanjiro's Journal, Part 1"

"Tanjiro's Journal, Part 2"

"A Mountain of Hands"

"Spirits of the Deceased"

Tanjiro Kamado is a teenage boy with a heightened sense of smell who lived happily with his family until one day he arrives home to find all his family murdered except his younger sister Nezuko Kamado, who has been turned into a demon. Realizing Nezuko was not the killer and retained her humanity to an extent, Tanjiro protects her from a demon slayer named Giyū Tomioka and convinces him to spare Nezuko while vowing to make her human again. An impressed Giyū instructs Tanjiro to meet a man named Sakonji Urokodaki on Mt. Sagiri while warning him to keep his sister out of the sun. Taken under Urokodaki‘s wing, Tanjiro undergoes two years of harsh training before participating in the Final Selection to join the Demon Slayer Corps and passes after defeating a demon who targeted Urokodaki’s previous apprentices.