So I watched Chainsaw Man: Reze Arc...

[00:02] [laughter] This thing is so stupid. Like what? It's wiggly ass freaking. So, I went to go see Chainsaw Man last night and uh surprise. Oh, god.

[00:14] Surprise, they they gave out these uh headbands [laughter] that was supposed to put a chainsaw in your forehead. And uh well, as to be expected, like it feels like it's not flimsy, but you know, since all

[00:28] of the connector bits are all made of the same cardboard as the rest of it, uh your mileage may vary. For the most part, I don't think I had a problem with the headband itself. Picture this for a moment, will you? These were handed out

[00:41] to everyone. They were hand Well, anyone that wanted them anyway. I don't know if they ran out at any point in time for my particular showing, but imagine putting this on your head and then realizing that this, assuming that it's supposed

[00:55] to work, this uh chainsaw bit is supposed to stick up into the air. people behind you trying to read subtitles at the bottom of the screen.

[01:08] Now, you may understand at least a part of my experience going to see Chainsaw Man last night. [music] So about a month ago, uh I went to a theater and I saw Demon Slayer because Demon Slayer came out and uh it was a grand old time and

[01:22] uh at that point I watched the they had the trailer for uh Chainsaw Man before and I kind of like added it to a little list in the back of my mind being like here's a couple of things I should probably also go and see. Uh because I I

[01:36] manga. I'm about a year behind now on the manga cuz you know I don't like it let it sit for like a year and then I'll catch up and then I will let it sit for another year or something. But I'm far past where Chainsaw Man is in this

[01:51] film for better or for worse. And going to the theater last night was a reasons. One, it was a different theater. Uh and two, the time of day was different, which means the experience is uh very very different. So, when I went

[02:05] to go see Demon Slayer one, it was an 18 plus showing, which basically means it's not going it's not 18 plus in that the content is 18 plus. It's 18 plus in that uh they are reserving those seats for 18 plus people. So, you don't have children

[02:20] that don't know how to behave. That doesn't stop people because there are plenty of 18 plus persons who do not know how to behave in a theater, but that's beside the point. Uh secondly, it was a afternoon showing in the middle of

[02:33] the week. So, the actual amount of people in that theater was maybe 10, including me. It was a fairly empty theater, and I kind of liked it that way because other people bother me. It was kind of a pluses or minus thing.

[02:46] Chainsaw Man, it was middle of the week. It was Thursday, but it was an evening showing, so the theater wasn't packed, but it was probably close to 2/3 full. seating. So according to the reserved seating chart, everyone in the row in

[03:01] all of the seats in the row in front of me were taken and all of the seats in my row were taken. So by comparison, it was a much more crowded theater. [music] that have gone and uh done the theater experience over the last handful of

[03:14] years in so much that I think it's gotten worse. How has it gotten worse? Because people don't know, they either don't know or they don't care about certain parts of theater etiquette. This didn't help with one of them.

[03:27] Thankfully, uh, all of the people that decided that they were going to wear the Chainsaw Man headband for the whole film, and I guess power to you, cuz But thankfully for me, the the people that decided to do that were several

[03:41] rows below me and not directly in my line of sight. I could [music] just see them out of the corner of my eye being like, "Oh my god, I'm very glad I'm not directly behind you." But also, um, there are just certain things at a

[03:54] theater that I hate. So, for example, a group of people came and they sat in a row about two rows ahead of me and the film was supposed to start at a film was supposed to start at a particular time uh on the hour and about

[04:09] a minute until that start time, they all just came in. They all went to their okay, cool. I'm just going to go use the washroom." And as soon as he said that, I kind of like gave him a side eye from my seat

[04:22] several rows up being like, "Okay, well, the movie's about to start in 1 minute. We have reserved seating." So, you didn't come all the way in and up here in order to reserve your seat or anything like that. Maybe you came in so

[04:34] that you could find it when the lights went out. But if that is what you're planning cuz you should be already in your seat by the time the lights go out You're going to go, you're going to go use the washroom. The lights are going

[04:47] start because we didn't get any previews, which I'm actually thankful through just like 30 or 40 minutes of previews and other random stuff that the lights went out and Chainsaw Man started. That's all I wanted. It was

[05:02] perfect. But then Buddy ends up coming back like 5 or 10 minutes into the movie already. And you know because they were in the the row seating that was like oh center of center and they had to like go past everybody in line and they're just

[05:17] kind of like oh sorry excuse me sorry and because we're watching a Japanese film with English subtitling when you do that you're blocking the bottom of the screen. We can't read the subtitles. So that's bad because you were already

[05:31] washroom until literally the last moment. There were also the people that decided not to show up until 10 or 15 minutes into the film. That was bad. like, I thought you had more dedication than this. And so this is why like when

[05:46] I went to go see Demon Slayer and it was a basically empty theater, I thought I with people. I didn't [music] get pulled out of the movie or trying to get into know, people [music] were still shuffling in and not respecting the

[06:02] this is just a time management thing and I am just a lot more sensitive to that than other people. I like to be early for things. If there's a start time, so if like this movie is supposed to start at 7, I'm probably going to be there

[06:15] about 22. Uh just to make sure that I have gotten to the theater, no problem. problem. So that if I want to go pick up something from the concession stand, I can and there are no issues. And then I'm going to go and sit down and find my

[06:27] seat. I'm going to just double check any emergency messages on my phone before shutting it off. Um, at least the theaters now know to do that very often. Not that anybody listens cuz of course there was at least one or two people

[06:39] that had their phone on what felt like full brightness during the middle of the film. I know people are addicted to their phones, but my god. On the other hand, however, there are some plus points to watching a movie in a theater

[06:54] full of people. Not just a theater full of people, but a theater full of fans, [music] which is kind of the the nice thing about Chainsaw Man, cuz you kind of expect for a sequel movie that has a

[07:06] story that takes place after an already existing core of episodes that, you know, the people that are here have probably watched the core, that knows who Denji is, that knows who Power is, though she disappears fairly quickly. We

[07:19] characters because they're all introduced to all of us. You can tell who does and who does not know who Makima is. It's kind of funny actually. The people who were sitting next to me, I think

[07:32] were a couple. And uh my guess is that the guy knew Chainsaw Man and he has read the manga. The girlfriend seemed to know who people were. So she probably watched season 1 but did not know the manga and their uh their reactions to

[07:46] like, "Oh, you've read the manga. That's that's how you know. That is how you know." especially for Chainsaw Man in specific. But like there are times where funny or amazing things happen and being in a room full of people either laughing

[08:02] in a room full of people either laughing or cheering is great. It's a great experience for those moments. I mean, there's also the awkward experience where we're sitting there in a theater watching anime characters go to like

[08:15] seven theaters [laughter] and watch six very crappy movies and one apparently absolutely amazing movie. Uh cuz that's a thing in the film. Uh Makima and Denji go on a date to a bunch of theaters, which you know that's a

[08:29] little meta. And surprisingly, everyone in the theater was quiet for that part. >> I don't know if everybody realized how self-conscious or I I don't know if self-conscious if they were trying to do things or talking or use their phone or

[08:43] what have you during that moment of the film. But uh that was a little amusing. But then it just becomes the trade-off, see of does all of the negatives uh

[08:55] [laughter] get countered by the wonderful experience of having parts of these like having parts of these movies be like a shared experience with everybody in the room. And sometimes the answer is yes. I think in this

[09:07] particular instance it was very beneficial as I mentioned before how everybody here was a fan. So, you didn't have like you didn't go to a Hollywood movie or or what have you with somebody who didn't know or care and was mostly

[09:20] going with their friends cuz those type of people are much more likely to pull out their phone in the middle of the film and not pay attention at all. Um or happen in theaters before. So, but the fact that like you're going to Chainsaw

[09:34] you can generally expect everybody there to have seen Chainsaw Man, at least the the first season. And that seemed to be the case. I didn't find a problem there. I also mitigate the other problems with uh dealing with people by not sitting in

[09:48] the optimal spot. So if you go to a theater, I think the common wisdom is that the best seats in the theater is center. So, like if there's a big square of seats, you want to be dead set in the middle of it because apparently that's

[10:01] where they normally tune both uh the the camera screen and also the sound system to that point. [music] So, that that's the best place and then the it just kind see that like if you go and look at reserved seating charts for a lot of

[10:14] where it's going to fill up and then it'll go backwards. Um the alternative it'll go backwards. Um the alternative to that is uh what I do, which is I want the top row. I mean, ideally, I would like top middle, but I will take

[10:27] anywhere in the top row. And my reasoning for that is very simple. Uh, I may be like, "Oh, well, I've not had much experience with people kicking my chair." The thing is is that you only need to experience people kicking your

[10:41] chair once to realize how much of a terrible idea it is and how much you never want it to happen again. Because getting your chair getting kicked while pulls you out of the movie, but then kind of sour the next five or 10 minutes

[10:54] while you're grumbling over the person who kicked your chair on purpose or by accident. And I can understand that it can be by accident. So, for example, I did accidentally kick the chair in front of me during this showing. Now, on the

[11:09] five minutes of the showing and the people who were supposed to occupy that chair hadn't arrived yet. But in readjusting my legs, I accidentally because since nobody was sitting in [music] it, it did a little wobbly

[11:23] thing. And I'm like, "Oh, well now I know that I need to be super careful in this seat cuz I don't have a lot of room and can easily kick the chair in front of me." Even more so when they finally did arrive and they and it's a recliner

[11:35] chair sort of. So they leaned all the way back and I had even less foot room than before. [music] But because I'm trying to be a conscientious watcher of films, I took my time and I made sure that I was able to find positions for my

[11:49] legs to be in that did not hit the chair in front of me. But I don't like getting getting my chair kicked, I always sit in the top row. Always, always, always. The only times I don't sit in the top row is uh either a I'm too late [laughter] and

[12:03] uh either a I'm too late [laughter] and I can't or there are if I know the I've been to [music] where uh it does not matter because the the chairs are spaced out so such that it is very difficult to kick the chair

[12:17] in front of you. [music] But going to a new theater like I was doing today cuz you know trying to go watch an anime movie. You never know what you're going to get here in Canada. uh as far as what theaters will get what. So, I've never

[12:31] theaters that I've been to before for anime movies are either too far away and I can't justify the drive or uh or just don't have it. So, like the theater I have Chainsaw Man. I looked. So, all of that to say, um, I still probably would

[12:47] prefer [laughter] not dealing with people. Uh, because while while there are moments of greatness and [music] parts of the film are emboldened by being in a room full of people, uh, the variables of other

[13:00] people being inconsiderate, I think, is probably how I want to say it, or just not caring. I don't think they're being malicious about it. I just think that they judge their own time differently so that they

[13:14] they decide, "Oh, well, my time is extremely valuable, so I'm only going to show up like when the movie starts only for, you know, life to happen." And they end up being 5 or 10 minutes late and [music] what have you. And they don't

[13:27] doesn't matter to them and it doesn't impact them and they just don't care. Fine. as far as the movie itself. So, I have read the manga going into this, but it wasn't recently. So, uh when I say that I'm about a year behind on Chainsaw

[13:42] Man, that's because about a year or so ago, a little bit more now at this point cuz you know, time uh it's hard to keep track of things. I was in a call hey, they were talking about Fallout season 2." And I'm like, "Was when was

[13:54] Fallout season 1?" "Oh, it was only like at the start of last year." That feels actually a lot more recent than that, but okay, fine. So, I I am like o probably over a year behind of Chainsaw now. And the last time I caught up on

[14:07] Chainsaw was when I caught up on all of Chainsaw pretty much. So, my memories of this arc are um very kind of foggy in that I remember some of the set pieces. liked Reese as a character. I think she

[14:22] was great. I didn't actually have a very high opinion of Beam going into the film because I don't think I liked him. I don't think I I I warmed up to him by reading the manga. That changed. I love Beam. Beam's our boy now. Beam is great.

[14:35] to reread the manga. A part of me thought about rereading the manga going I'm just going to experience the film cuz I think I would enjoy the film more. [music] Um, not remembering all of the the details and not doing the constant

[14:49] was the better way to go." And I agree. I feel like like I agree with myself. I how it was going to end. I knew what was going I knew all of the the major events

[15:01] that were going to happen. I didn't remember the the smaller details. Uh and that's fine and I feel like that was a much more enjoyable experience. The one thing that I was a little worried about going in is because I saw the memes. I

[15:14] saw the memes of uh the animation for the film, which I'm assuming is taken from the trailer, especially all the ones. Uh, the one that I saw was like a picture of power from the film and then a picture of power from season 1 and

[15:26] they put RTX on and off on them [laughter] to kind of signify that there was a downgrade for the film. And that's kind of the thing. It's like if you compare them side by side, I believe you have merit in that

[15:40] argument. However, there's also a level of cherry-picking. And when you go see this movie, you're not watching it side by side with season 1. You're not going by side with season 1. You're not going to notice. Was the animations of season

[15:54] 1 better than this film? Probably. I mean, I will say that season 1, the season 1's biggest animation problem that I have, this movie fixed. I never that I have, this movie fixed. I never liked the 3D CG use for actual Chainsaw

[16:09] Man, like not Denji, but in Chainsaw mode. Um, all of the the CG used for season 1. I've always hated that. So the fact that uh it's combination of done differently and done better in the film I was very happy for. Super happy for.

[16:23] So it kind of balances out because most of the other things yeah if you get if you do the sideby-side comparison it is worse in the film but when I consider the fact that I absolutely hated all the the CG use in season 1 uh and they got a

[16:36] it's fine. The cinematography is a lot different. Um, I now have a much clearer view of what Denji's shoes look like. For some reason, we had a lot of shots of his feet in the early half of the film, [laughter]

[16:51] but not just in Denji's shoes. You can tell that there was a difference in how a lot of things within the the story were portrayed. And, you know, that's And [music] that is a bag of worms I don't know if I

[17:05] want to necessarily open. So my understanding of it and this this is like very brief. I'm not considering myself an expert and there's a certain into because it goes into the realm of drama that I don't care about but it's

[17:18] it sort of matters to a point because you know the directors have changed and that means the entire kind of presentation of the work is going to be slightly different. Um, so the guy that directed season one of Chainsaw Man uh

[17:31] did his directing in a particular style that was very reminiscent of uh that was very reminiscent of uh Hollywood films such that um it it was the mangaka originally had and the

[17:44] mangaka themselves is like a very big uh film buff. So like you watch uh the like references galore to Hollywood films. That's that's the thing. It's all there. Um, I mean, even the fact in this film they go to a movie theater and

[17:59] watch both good and bad films, it's like, no, the the mangaka for Chainsaw like the original director was capitalizing on that and using that um to great effect, I thought. But I also know that Japanese fans specifically uh

[18:14] really hated that. They did not like that at all. I think a lot of them wanted a more traditional shownen adaptation out of the first season of Chainsaw Man, which is not what we got. Um, which personally is one of the

[18:26] reasons why I like it. Uh, I didn't want Chainsaw Man to just be another Demon Slayer, to just be another Bleach, to be another, uh, Naruto, One Piece, My Hero Academia. I didn't want it to be like any of that. Yes, yes, it's a shownen,

[18:39] but just because it's a shownen doesn't mean that it should be directed the same way. And [music] they got a lot of flack for that. Um, which eventually led to them I don't I don't know if firing is the right word. uh they've left MAPA and

[18:52] animation studio now and they're not involved with Chainsaw Man anymore. And I'm sure that a lot of the especially his criticizers will point at um their actions, their petitions, their anger uh to have resulted in him not working on

[19:07] Chainsaw Man anymore. And they're probably not wrong. I'm just really sad about that cuz I really did enjoy the direction of Chainsaw Man. [music] Um, and then it's kind of really hard now to say then how much different this film

[19:20] was for that. Mostly because it is a film. So the direction of a film and the direction of a TV show are generally quite different. [music] So I can't really directly I don't think it's fair rather to directly compare them because

[19:34] you're asking me to then compare somebody who directed a a 12 13 episode anime series and then a guy who directed a movie. They're very different. They different. And honestly, a part of me is just really sad that we don't got the

[19:48] just really sad that we don't got the director who very heavily was trying to uh take influence from Hollywood films doing the Chainsaw Man film cuz I'm very I'm curious as to what that would have changed. Uh how different this film

[20:04] would have been if it was still directed by the same guy. There is a difference there. But while you're in the theater, while you're in the seat, while you're notice any of that. And I feel like that's kind of the goal. Could it have

[20:19] whatifs. Like, could it have been better? Yes. It could also have been worse. We don't know. That's kind of the thing. Like, you think about that animation meme [laughter] about the RTX on and off, but you don't really notice

[20:31] in the theater. They're not going to pull up uh a shot of season 1 to remind you, hey, this is what it looked like in season 1. This is what it looks like going to do that. It is weird though that we're even having this discussion.

[20:46] I think I mentioned this during uh the Demon Slayer video, but like the normal expectation is that an anime film is going to look better than the TV series. work, but like just because of how the production pipeline is different and how

[21:00] there is a a higher expectation for something that's going to be at theaters something that's going to be at theaters or road shows. Um so normally normally there is a at least a slightly better upgrade to quality. So the fact that

[21:13] there's such memes about it being a downgrade is hilarious to me. I mean, it is still I would say it is on par with what you would expect from a shownen popping in my head is because I went and saw Demon Slayer recently and I feel

[21:28] like Demon Slay well Demon Slayer had some compositing issues which I talked about before when it came to its CG. But I mean, Demon Slayer was fantastic and it looked fantastic. [music] Um, but it was also a very different very different

[21:40] action and then a whole bunch of backstory in the middle of it that just felt like [music] an anime season. Nothing here felt like an anime season. All of it felt like the film that it was part of. I think that it was paced and

[21:53] presented very well. I'm also very happy that it was the start and end of an arc. these films headtohead, all of my money is going to Chainsaw Man. And I think that was just a much better experience. But also, I have the personal bias of I

[22:06] like having endings in films. I don't like going to a film that doesn't end and will [music] leave you to for like a part two, come back later or something because it's like if I'm spending the time to go out and see this and dealing

[22:18] with the people, then I would like to have a finished story at the end of it. So, obviously, Chainsaw Man is going to win uh from my metrics on on that point because yes, of course it will. It it is a start of an arc and it ends the arc

[22:30] and it it is a nice a nice self-contained thing and I love it for animation in season one was better. Um, but that could also be nostalgic glasses. A part of me now, now that I'm sitting here, like I'm going to try and

[22:43] as I'm sitting here, a part of me wants to go and re-watch parts of season 1 now. I should have done that before going and seeing the film, even if I didn't go and reread the manga. I should have went and re-watched all of season

[22:55] one of Chainsaw Man, but I didn't have time. So, [laughter] I was desperately trying to uh to get other things done so that I could somehow figure out how I'm [music] And then I I went and I saw Chainsaw Man. And as far as like was it

[23:09] worth the experience? I mean, it would the film is worth seeing. Do you have to a theater? Well, that's up to you. I would say to watch this film, I would watching. Uh, I would rather, as I mentioned, watch this film again over

[23:24] [laughter] over Demon Slayer. But then again, Demon other half of Demon Slayer comes out or the other two parts of Demon Slayer. I of films for that arc. Um, which means I'm probably not going to go see part

[23:38] until inevitably either some theater or some fan group is going to be like, to put on a marathon of all three and maybe that experience uh in the theater But going and seeing Chainsaw Man was worth it. Even if it was for the stupid

[23:53] going to do with this. I'm probably going to recycle it. It's not like it's things get more valuable. I very much doubt it. Uh you'd need like a very hardcore fan uh a hardcore uh Chainsaw Man fan to even care about it. But like

[24:07] what do you do with it when you're done with it? Like I had it. I didn't wear it. I didn't even put it together until I got home [laughter] cuz I the entire time the only reason I kept it was for the bit. The only reason I kept it was

[24:19] somewhat useful prop for the start of this video. Don't know if it succeeded, that point, so whatever. And why don't you just talk about the movie itself, you just talk about the movie itself, Tristan?" Well, I don't want to because

[24:32] it's so [ __ ] good. The movie was great, man. It was a good good film. And clicked on this are people who also went to go see it. In which case, don't you want that painting? And you might be like, "They didn't look at a painting."

[24:46] this film. And I'm like, but [music] you know, there is a moment that's basically a Renaissance painting that looks fantastic fantastic involving chains and the use of chains

[25:00] for the first time. I want that as like a print out. I want that on canvas to put on a wall. [laughter] I don't know where I would display it that would not have like a questions. Family comes by and he's just like,

[25:12] "What's with this guy on a shark? Don't question it. [laughter] It's great, but there are moments like that. Re as a character, I love Reese so much. H the ending kills me. And again, like

[25:27] the reactions from people for the end of the film. [laughter] You can tell who's read the manga and who hasn't. Because if you read the manga, h god, I almost wish that that wasn't a thing. There is a twist later

[25:42] in the manga that everybody who's if you're really deep into Chainsaw Man, by this point. We're too far gone in the manga to not know about the twist. But just in case you haven't seen it, there's a twist that changes literally

[25:55] everything. I mean, even the main cast of Chainsaw Man changes into essentially a part two. Uh I don't know if it's considered a part two or part three by the the manga readers. I've never got enough into the fandom to care. But like

[26:07] the end of this film would have had a very different reaction I think [music] if nobody knew what happened next. I I feel like certain things and there there would be certain interpretations of the ending that would just be like, "Huh, I

[26:21] guess this is what's happening." [music] Uh that just don't exist because anyone who's read the manga goes, "Oh, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. That's not what's happening cuz this character is a dick." more than that. But, you know, I'll save

[26:34] that for uh what I hope to be season two of the anime. I hope this means that season two pretty soon. I don't know if they will. Um I'll be very sad if they don't do it reasonably soon because we're getting to that point in the

[26:49] manga. I can't remember how much is between this arc [music] and essentially the end of part one or the end of the the public service arc. I want I want them I want another adaptation. I want not another another adaptation. I want a

[27:01] continuing season. I want to spend more time in the world of Chainsaw Man. I time in the world of Chainsaw Man. I want to get to the other half of Chainsaw Man [laughter] in an animated medium. I would very much

[27:14] like to see a lot of characters from the latter half of Chainsaw Man animated. [music] Um, and just that world, that section of the world. Like, I've known about and have seen those parts for several years now. I was part of a

[27:28] tabletop game at Anime North like three and a half years ago now. Or was it two and a half years ago? A number of years ago that takes place far after this film and I knew all about it back then. So I want all of that to be adapted. Uh will

[27:45] stupid amount of stuff on their plate and that might limit them heavily. I that's what it really comes down to. Okay. Uh, if you haven't watched Chainsaw Man, you should go and do that. Um, especially because there's still

[27:59] anime films they go through, uh, Chainsaw Man has a reasonably decent, the theater that I went to, they're still showing Chainsaw Man for another week. So, that's [music] cool. Um, and I'm glad that uh, that is a thing now

[28:15] that we're actually getting anime films for reasonable lengths of time. Um, I just wish it wasn't so scattershot as to wish theaters around me had them. And then I want Mappa to make more Chainsaw Man. I want more power. [laughter]

[28:27] I want more power. She had a bit at the at the start. She had lovely stuff at the start and then she showed up at the end which by the way there's an after scene. There's an after credit scene uh with Power that is amazing. And I'm and

[28:40] I laugh and I'm so I laugh at the like quarter of the audience that laughed as soon as the credits rolled cuz I was just like now I normally stay until the normal thing for me. That has always been a normal thing for me. Uh like even

[28:55] after credits, oh, there's always something after the credits, that sort like, look, somebody made these credits and the music's usually pretty good. Um, the hustle and bustle of everybody like jostling to leave and I'll wait. Um, the

[29:10] literally the last one there and I can see like uh one of the the theater staff members patiently waiting for me to leave so that they can begin cleanup. Um, I I'll leave early then if I if if I

[29:25] clear up the theater because there's probably going to be another showing going to hold them up. I'm not that much of a dick, nor do I want to see the end of the credits that badly. Um, but in this case, yeah, no, like a good third

[29:39] credits and so that there was a there was an after credit scene with power in it and power is great and I want more power and uh I'm looking forward to another season of Chainsaw Man in like 2027 or however long we have to wait.

[29:55] But I enjoyed myself. I'm very happy I went, even if it was a pain in the ass to do so. And I had to deal with people. And I got a hat that [music] uh is or the recycling technically. Um once I figure out unless I want to hang it up

[30:10] know what I'm going to do with this. I'll figure it out. Anyway, thanks for watching. Go watch Chainsaw Man. And until next time, ladies, gentlemen, and until next time, ladies, gentlemen, and others, stay frosty.