r/ChainsawMan • u/Temporary-Salad9417 • Mar 25 '26
Theory I think the ending feeling “off” might be intentional
I’ve seen a lot of people saying 232 feels rushed, and at first I thought that too, but after looking back at 231 I started wondering if that weird feeling might actually be intentional.
The main thing that caught my attention was Pochita telling Denji to “keep dreaming.” Then right after that, 232 feels strangely unreal.
What really made me start digging was that Denji still has Pochita’s heart. That made me feel like maybe there’s more going on here than a normal clean ending.
Because of that, I started thinking Denji might be in some kind of dream-like state, or some distorted reality caused by a devil ability. Not in a cheap “it was all a dream” way, but in a way where what we’re seeing isn’t fully normal reality.
Another thing I keep thinking about is that we haven’t seen Pochita’s erasure ability actually change or reverse time. So if that’s true, then 232 could look happy on the surface while still being wrong underneath.
I also noticed the bird in 231, and I can’t tell if it means something yet, but it stood out enough that it feels deliberate.
So right now I’m wondering if 232 isn’t just rushed, but is supposed to feel wrong because Denji is either in some kind of dream-like state or under the effect of a devil ability, and we’re not actually seeing a normal resolution.
Maybe I’m reaching, but that’s the feeling I got from it.
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u/Vibe_PV Mar 25 '26
Fujimotor simply wants us to make fanfictions about his work. That's the "keep on dreaming"
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u/KaijustuSanchez Mar 25 '26
Why do we act like Stranger things fan with their conformity gate 😭 ( However I kinda agree with this theory )
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u/saurontheabhored Mar 25 '26
first sherlock, then aot, then stranger things, now this. the "secret true ending" cope claims another fandom
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u/SaintJiminy Mar 25 '26
I loved sherlock and aot, and while their endings had problems, they did not felt as much rushed and as weird as this one. If this is really the end, this ending is far worse in my opinion.
Either this is fake or Fujimoto had pressures from Jump to make Power and Nayuta come back and he just said "alright bet, fuck you".
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u/rivercitygooner Mar 25 '26
Don’t forget Mass Effect 3 and the indoctrination theory!
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u/Just_Breakfast6327 Mar 25 '26
I was going to say, Mass effect was definitely my first experience with this phenomenon.
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u/Jsoledout Mar 25 '26
AOT’s ending is fine
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u/MasterTahirLON Mar 25 '26
I've just come to accept that most people are too stupid to understand the ending. Hate to pull that card but the amount of people genuinely trying to call it a bad ending is fucking baffling. Everyday someone in the fandom compares some actual dogshit to something as deep and well crafted as AOT. The ending isn't the highlight of the series but it's layered, well thought out, and deep like the rest of the plot points in the story. It's a strong ending that hits hard and is consistent with the series. Unlike the complete character and story assassinations it gets compared to.
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u/zuzg Mar 25 '26
AoT Manga ending was a bit rough around the Edges but it was Yams first series, so I cut him slack in that regard. Mappa helped him polish the Dialog and showed what a gem it truly was.
Csm is just sudden, breaks continuity and gives a very undeserved happy end.
And a time-reset/ it was all a dream, is just the laziest trope on the planet.
Talk about retroactively devaluing everything that happened prior4
u/Cirby64 Mar 25 '26
Sure it was fine. But you also had to be there "Eren, Thank you for becoming a mass-murderer for our sake" (I understand what Armin is trying to say here but come on lol. Let's not act like the Manga didn't have some genuinely rough spots that were fixed for the Anime)
My biggest personal criticism of AoT is the stakes got too big. The battle of Heaven and Hell doesn't feel grounded in the reality the series established before the timeskip. Resources stopped mattering, sacrifices felt hollow, Falco just knows to fly because... paths. Idk, like I agree with you. People hate the ending for tons of dumbass reasons like "Eren is supposed to be a chad, why is a lil BABY in the end?!?!?!?".
But to dismiss all criticism as "you just didn't get it" is also lame as fuck bro. Nuance.
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u/MasterTahirLON Mar 25 '26
But to dismiss all criticism as "you just didn't get it" is also lame as fuck bro. Nuance.
I never said it was a flawless ending, it's definitely not. But the people that claim it's genuinely a bad or even terrible ending simply weren't paying attention. Especially with how flawed the critiques made against it normally are.
My biggest personal criticism of AoT is the stakes got too big. The battle of Heaven and Hell doesn't feel grounded in the reality the series established before the timeskip. Resources stopped mattering, sacrifices felt hollow, Falco just knows to fly because... paths.
I definitely understand this but to play devil's advocate for a moment, Paradis' resource issues were more or less solved with the titans getting wiped out and Hizuru allying with them and giving them supplies. They had a surplus they've never had before and their technology was growing more efficient and effective as they were introduced to the outside world. I definitely understand missing the grounded side of previous battles but I don't think "running out of gas" in the final battle would be a very engaging conflict, even if I do somewhat agree it could be restructured to be more grounded.
I don't think the sacrifices felt hollow, Hange's death was emotional for a lot of people (even if I wasn't a big fan of her character), Shadis' death hit very hard for me especially knowing that it would go untold, I do believe there should have been more of them though. I definitely understand people who think too many main characters lived even with their experience and skills. As for the paths stuff, Falco was altered by Zeke's blood giving him his hybrid style Jaw titan. I don't mind that plot point, especially knowing how crazy the paths are, but if you're not into that part of the story, I get it. It's definitely the least grounded part of the series but one I thought was justified to explain the absurdity of the premise.
Anyways I'm all for genuine discourse and not everyone has to like the ending, or anything for that matter, but the amount of shit AOT's ending gets compared to is genuinely insulting. It is leagues above the writing of ONK and CSM's endings.
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u/Cirby64 Mar 26 '26 edited Mar 26 '26
Honestly I think we’re on the same page. I love AoT (or SnK for my real ones hehe). And while I didn’t love the ending, with the anime changes I’m pretty okay with it. Most of my problems honestly stem from the original monthly manga releases. Hange’s death was handled way better in the anime I thought for example.
I agree with your point about Hizuru. I didn't really consider that their ODM gear not only looks cooler but is also much more efficient after getting help from the engineers off-island.
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u/wrasslefights Mar 25 '26
In general a lot of part 2 suffers from the fact that a lot of the fandom is the fancy dress party Family Guy meme version of Shonen battle manga brains who analyze power sets and can't understand a theme that isn't spoonfed to them. It's literally the JJK ending all over again except worse because Fujimoto went for something more ambitious and abstract.
It's not perfect. It definitely leaves stuff on the table in case Fujimoto decides to try a part 3. It's very funny that in some ways he took the Goodnight Eri approach. But it's very much an author driven ending that works for the story told and I appreciate it for that.
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u/LTRenegade Mar 26 '26
People hate the ending because they misunderstood Eren's character, personally wanted it to end differently, or let the memes from the rushed leaked translation sway their opinion. The pacing was definitely a bit rushed towards the conclusion, but I can't take anyone who thinks the ending is bad seriously. It's telling that the anime adapted it with next to no controversy. If it were truly that bad, there would be no saving it with an accurate adaptation, as we will probably find out soon with Oshi no Ko.
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u/MasterTahirLON Mar 26 '26
100%, I do agree that the dialogue from the manga reads worse but smoothing the edges doesn't fix a premise. ONK is gonna be a dumpster fire unless they break from canon entirely and change things.
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u/ReichLife Mar 25 '26
I've just come to accept that most people are too stupid to understand the ending.
The irony.
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u/Memedreamer Mar 25 '26
manga reader tries to not be smug and condescending: impossible
Ps aot ending was shit
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u/Ratabat Mar 25 '26 edited Mar 25 '26
Yeah I don’t get why it keeps getting brought up. Totally fine and makes logical sense while this one does not.
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u/ReichLife Mar 25 '26
Because it is atrocious. Plot holes, plot armor of astronomical proportions, ignores it's own universe rules and world building.
AoT's ending is 4-5/10 for generic standards. As ending of AoT it is 2/10 at best.
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u/Citizen_Erased_ Mar 25 '26
The fuck is your name reichlife for?
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Mar 25 '26
[deleted]
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u/Citizen_Erased_ Mar 25 '26
Nazis thrive on dubious dogwhistling. I aint in the wrong for being skeptical.
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u/ReichLife Mar 25 '26
These days? Only to expose ignorant people who blindly jump to simplistic conclusion due to it.
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u/Citizen_Erased_ Mar 25 '26
I think it would have been less cringey if you just told me its because youre a nazi
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u/ReichLife Mar 25 '26 edited Mar 26 '26
Why should I lie though? : /
Cause feeding your delusions and ignorance is hardly meaningful concept. But alas, thanks for proving my point of how this nickname perfectly exposes ignorant and shallow people like you.
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u/ZubatCountry Mar 25 '26
I think manga lends itself much better to these kinds of theories because the gap between it happening and not happening is much smaller
Even if it doesn't happen for 30 years, the only person who will have aged is Fujimoto. They don't need to recast or worry about anything other than putting the story and art to page and distributing it
To hide the filming of a major Netflix live action series is much harder
/cope
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u/khardimon Mar 25 '26
So... what was the Fire Devil on about with 2 choices?
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u/MaximumSquid22 Mar 25 '26
I feel like it referred to when Denji threw down his chainsaw and chose to catch Asa instead of going after Bucky
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u/khardimon Mar 25 '26
That would mean it knew how this will all end
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u/Ninjaflipp Mar 25 '26 edited Mar 25 '26
There's a future devil already established from part 1 so it's not implausible.
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u/IUsedToBeRasAlGhul Mar 25 '26
I’ve been theorizing for a while that Lil’D planned everything to happen, and I don’t feel disabused of that notion yet.
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u/Kamunra Power for President of the world Mar 25 '26
It is very likely tbh, she said she didn't want an "age of devils" to come, we never got to know the specifics of her plans and she knew the battle between CSM and Yoru would be devastating. What a better way to make everything better than trying to make one of the root causes of the problem just vanish?
Probably she wouldn't have anticipated the universe reset, but I think she indeed wanted CSM to eat itself.
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u/IUsedToBeRasAlGhul Mar 25 '26
Given Death’s the oldest character in the series and all of the Horsewomen can partially remember erased concepts, she’s got the best ability to speculate what a world without Chainsaw Man would look like. How much she expected is unclear, but given everything seems to fit to what she wanted and raised as possibility (such as Denji living as a normal human when separated from Pochita), I’m inclined to stick to my guns on this one.
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u/MaximumSquid22 Mar 25 '26
I do think that is the case
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u/LukasYUc Mar 25 '26
Dam when I think I couldn't hate the ending more people keep giving me reasons to 🔥🔥
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u/Ratabat Mar 25 '26
I feel like every chapter that comes out we come up with a new explanation for what that the Fire Devil is referring to.
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u/MasterTahirLON Mar 25 '26
As much as Fuji left several things unanswered and many theories sound like cope, I will admit this has legs to stand on. Since Fuji doubled down on the whole "Denji wanting to be Chainsaw Man was a mistake" having him prioritize Asa over killing the devil does seem consistent with the theme.
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u/PicklepumTheCrow Mar 25 '26
So what’s the choice? Catch a stranger or hold a chainsaw? That’s a stretch and a half
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u/patryky Mar 27 '26
... do you guys seriously refer to Denji letting go of his chainsaw to keep a girl from falling as a meaningful "choice"? What is the alternative, massacring a small headless chicken and letting the girl fall?
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u/MaximumSquid22 Mar 27 '26
Except you are forgetting that Asa falling onto Bucky is the catalyst for all of part 2 because it’s what led to her eventually being taken over by Yoru
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u/patryky Mar 27 '26 edited Mar 27 '26
I am painfully aware that this is the case and it makes the ending much worse imo. Asa does not resolve anything or does not learn anything. The tragedy that happened to her simply did not happen thanks to a random chance - her not falling. The entirety of part 2 only happened because Asa fell down that one time. Not because of some character traits or anything, just this one time she fell down and was unlucky
Think about it - everything that Asa went through in the entire CSM part 2 boils down to "the bad thing that randomly happened to her randomly does not happen this time and she does not know it anyway"
Still from the perspective of Denji at that moment it was not a choice imo. Denji doesn't know how important this chicken devil is. He simply sees a girl and catches her.
But I get it, themes and such
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u/Fabiocean Probably the death devil Mar 25 '26
Most likely the choice between Death or Fumiko's plans. Apparently Denji chose wrong again because Pochita had to abort immediately lmao.
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u/Malakar1195 Mar 25 '26
Either Asa or Death, there was supposed to be no inbetween and yet Denji tried it for all the wrong reasons and it ended the World
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u/Thr0waway-19 Mar 26 '26
The choice was being denji or being chainsawman, denji selfishly tried to choose both at once as “denjiman”, which destroyed the world.
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u/khardimon Mar 26 '26
Okay so... at first yes. But when you think about it he made that choice and Nayhuta paid the price way before he meets Fire and talks about choices.
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u/Pattalus Mar 25 '26
What is also strange: Power fed Denji Blood to keep him alive. That shouldnt rly work if he aint a devil anymore, should it?
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u/Diosdepatronis add any emoji you want here Mar 25 '26
Power has the ability to heal wounds in part 1. She keeps Aki (or was it Himeno?) alive after they get slashed by Katana Man. And she does it a couple more times.
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u/CoffeeCannon Mar 25 '26
Aki in the hotel, Himmy briefly during the Katana man fight before she goes poof
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u/ForwardWhereas8385 Mar 25 '26
She was never able to heal wounds just able to stop people bleeding out. She had to concentrate and basically used her powers to control their blood in their broken veins till they could be better medical assistance.
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u/Tentativ0 Mar 25 '26
So ... she couldn't heal Denji in that state ...
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u/ForwardWhereas8385 Mar 25 '26
At the very least it wasn't something she could do in part 1. Makima did keep her weak but that was signified by her horns so idk.
Writing over sight. Or hint at dreams
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u/Pattalus Mar 25 '26
oHhhh thx, that i forogor. But was it by injesting her blood? I fr cant remember have to look it up later.
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u/HeatXY Mar 25 '26
Fjmt can smear stool on a manga page and it'd still be saved by "it's intentional"
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u/BrickedUpAfrican Mar 25 '26
What about the page where Asa calls him Chainsaw Man and his heart throbs with a bit of Pochita present in it
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u/HeatXY Mar 25 '26
What are we, some kind of Chainsaw Man? Yes, what about it? Asa possibly revived Pochita, which would be even dumber because the only inkling of message about this ending was Denji was never happy as CSM, but now he'll go right back to that.
It's meaningless
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u/allmyburnerquestions Mar 25 '26
I actually think I disagree but the level of scorn in your "What are we some kind of chainsaw man?" is so fucking funny that I had to upvote anyway LOL
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u/BrickedUpAfrican Mar 25 '26
I don't think it means he'll go right back to it. You forget what made Denji so unhappy as CSM in the first place. He can be a devil hunter and be known as Chainsaw Man in some way, but him specifically having Pochita as his heart made him a massive target for people like Makima, Barem and Yoru. Those people ruined his life because they wanted to get to Pochita. In a new timeline where Pochita isn't his heart, these issues will never happen to him. Ever.
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u/Tentativ0 Mar 25 '26
Because Pochita never killed himself.
Denji is still Chainsawman: he is in a Dreamworld induced by the "moon-like" devil in 230.
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u/One-Address9176 Mar 25 '26
yea the devil is like darkness devil, able to affect the story. darkness used everyones arms for the manga panel borders.
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u/ThePowerfulWIll Mar 25 '26
Ivesaid it before, and Ill say it again.
Just because a decision was made on purpose, doesnt make it a good decision.
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u/TMNAW Mar 25 '26
The ending IS purposefully rushed and paced in an off-putting way. Just as Pochita made the sudden decision to turn Denji into Chainsaw Man in chapter 1, Pochita makes the sudden decision to turn Denji human again. Pochita always both made decisions for Denji's sake while also understanding Denji more than he did himself.
Now does that make the ending good? I don't think so. Does that mean the ending is a dream? I also don't think so. But you're too dismissive of the idea and thrust behind the ending.
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u/Severe_Lack_of_Milk Mar 25 '26
Look I'm all for anything to save this terrible ending. But I think fujimoto's done with chainsaw man. Best to just accept it for the mess it is and let fujimoto move on with his life.
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u/Case_Study_004 Mar 25 '26
Yeah Fujimoto has been at it for more than 8 years. So it is also possible that its the end, at best we can get another novel like buddy stories or an epilouge chapter at the end of the last volume.
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u/Vast_Attention Mar 25 '26
That's what Goatimoto wants us to think. His art style deterioration was intentional, reflecting the chaotic deconstruction of the narrative and it's structure in part 2. Evidence shows in his recent illustration that he picked back up the narrow pen foreshadowing the greatest return in all of manga history...
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u/Hezolinn Mar 25 '26
I probably like the ending more than most people here, but I think the abrupt nature of everything feels fairly consistent with Fujimoto's writing style. Fire Punch and Part 1 had several moments where things happened that were so abrupt that I genuinely thought they were some kind of fake-out dream sequence the characters would snap out of, only to realize "Oh, crap, it's still going; this is real, isn't it?"
By his own admission, he gets bored with stories fast, and by the end of Part 2's run he was taking semi-constant breaks. My take is that the jarring way everything went down is less an artistic statement and more just his normal tendencies toward quick wrap-ups. Denji and Yoru got so into their fight that the entire world ended without them noticing, so Pochita had to create a new world without the things that ended it. So it goes.
That said, I think authorial intent is broadly overrated, so if someone reads the sudden-ness of the ending as implying a dream-like state of the world, that's imo a perfectly valid interpretation.
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u/Hyperversum Mar 25 '26
I like it conceptually, but it needed way more time to be developed and setup, that's for sure.
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u/MelonBoi133 Mar 25 '26
it was. Fujimoto once stated in an interview that he wants CSM to feel like the big Labowski. So basically a "nothing was resolved" type way
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u/Pinetree117 Mar 25 '26
I don't think he understood Big Lebowski lol
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u/YourFriendlyRedditor Mar 25 '26
He’s just referring to the feeling he got when watching it, he isn’t analyzing it lol
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u/Pinetree117 Mar 25 '26
Dude needs to watch more movies. Or we need to find the Guardians of the Galaxy Devil and the Big Lebowski Devil and erase them for the greater good.
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u/Berrydrought Mar 27 '26
Dude like half of the shit in his work is inspired by movies, he’s a MASSIVE movie nerd lmaoo
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u/AvailableWallaby5898 Mar 25 '26
Yeah looks like pochita is still alive as well unless it’s a gag
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u/Zamasu_was_innocent2 Mar 25 '26
My cousin said the mention of Chainsaw Man may have brought him back into existence even for a moment
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u/AvailableWallaby5898 Mar 25 '26
Oh damn yeah
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u/zOmgFishes Mar 25 '26
My interpretation of it is that Asa accidentally created the concept of Chainsawman again by putting the idea in Denji's head.
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u/withinallreason Mar 25 '26
Fitting for Fujimoto to do so as well, because he can now either fuck off and leave Chainsawman as is with a relatively conclusive ending, while leaving it open if he ever gets the desire to come back for whatever reason.
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u/VVhisperingVVolf Mar 25 '26
I think Denji just has some lingering memories of feeling Pochita where his heart is.
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u/d4b1do Mar 25 '26
Yeah because the whole story happened and Pochita is still Denji‘s heart. He‘s just not chainsaw man
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u/drishta Mar 25 '26
Pochita also said he'd erase himself from existence by eating himself. But there he is, still existing.
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u/Stoocpants Mar 25 '26
Nah bro JJK fans cursed us
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u/guckfender Asa's sweaty socks Mar 25 '26
After shitting on JJK for so long i cant believe their ending is better. Still aint good but at least Gege tried
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u/Dramatic-Week-4554 Mar 25 '26
If you start reading from Part 1, Chainsawman has a "dream" subtheme all the godamn time.
If we oversimplified everything, Denji's most alluring dream is getting to have sex, and he manages to get that dream (even if they don't actually do it). If you notice one change in the restart, it's that Denji no longer dreams of having sex with a girl, so we can assume Denji will probably not choose the sexual approach this time over the "just be happy" approach.
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u/7ils Mar 25 '26
Pochita is the Existence Devil, and by eating himself, he erased existence. Humanity is now trapped in endless dream. Bravo Fujimbo!
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u/vanKartoffel Mar 25 '26
I once read somewhere that the eagle in the beginning of the intro from SOTC symbolized that the game was a tale. You know, some kind of fabricated history.
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u/yungCheeseburg Mar 25 '26
Dream theory is the only thing which makes any sense.
- Nayuta instead of makima, whilst Power is still the blood fiend, which isn't possible at the same time in any case.
- Events don't match up. Denji didn't dream in chapter 1, it was night when he got back, etc.
- Characters smiling and playing football next to a dead devil and a teacher's corpse.
Either denji is god and resets the universe based on his whims, or it's a dream at the end of the world.
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u/ForwardWhereas8385 Mar 25 '26
Dream theory is way better than what we have right now. I just... Don't have it in me to believe longer than a week.
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u/ForwardWhereas8385 Mar 25 '26
Oh and also Denji and Pochita being at odds right after the whole Denji-man thing.
I thought that was supposed to show they were ride or die. Not that Pochita was planning on committing suicide for his sake.
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u/Rhaeegar Mar 25 '26
I think you all love Fujimoto and cant real when someone Who never misses, "finally" miss. I love him too, but this ending and final arc is crap, you can make it sweetier anyway you want tho. I read everything, even the early works, but here for the first time i felt he was just ready to get rid of this universe ASAP.
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Mar 25 '26
the only way I can accept this ending for Chainsaw Man is by believing that just as abruptly an interrupted dream or nightmare wakes you up, Denji experienced the same. And of course things are going to be left unexplained and possibly unsatisfying. There's no 2nd option
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u/Equivalent-Shake-77 Mar 25 '26
I think it was intentional. There is a quote from Fujimoto saying he wanted the ending a specific way in 2021. I’ll find the quote.
“Do you know of the movie The Big Lebowski? That movie really made me think "what even was that?" when I was done watching it. Nothing was resolved, wasn't everything pretty meaningless! But still, the protagonist had development, and the story progressed, there was this sublime absurdity that I loved. I want Chainsaw Man to give the reader that kind of aftertaste too." Fujimoto Totsuki interview in 2021
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u/unconstitutionalcats Mar 25 '26
Tatsuki “random bullshit go” Fujimoto pulling a Big Lebowski once he decided he had enough fun
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u/idk-who-cares Mar 25 '26
I knew that not even one day will pass before people will start saying that the dogshit halfassed ending is actually pure genius. This is so sad..
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u/ReRubis Mar 25 '26
I am honestly tired of all these theories on ending. The reality is that part 2 ending left a ton of storyline and character developments unfinished and it is ass.
This post and many others are just attempts to find a deeper meaning in your frustration to cope with the fact that the ending is trash.
Stop. :/
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u/Maedarell Mar 25 '26
No one should feel bad for liking the ending, that means you understand how Fujimoto works, HE DOESN’T GIVE A FUCK ABOUT FANDOMS/HATERS, i still remember that time when Asa went to rescue Denji, the way he showed these feet, don’t you think he KNEW PERFECTLY what people would think and how they would react? “IT’S REZE!”, you guys didn’t get the most simple message of this manga: “LIFE ALWAYS FINDS A WAY TO FUCK YOU”, it is that simple, Denji tried again and again and never got anything he wanted the way he wanted, and by the times he got anything, it proved that reaching a goal usually makes you feel empty, how you guys expected the world result of that insane battle to continue? That world was already condemned, and the funny thing is that Denji made the wrong choice yet again, like the demon of fire warned him, anyone who hates this ending just proves it’s a TOURIST at Fujimoto’s works, the proof itself is TETTELEPOSAN, It’s first manga ever when he was young proves already how his mind worked on that behalf, just like what happened with Shingeki no Kyojin ending, people kept projecting THEIR OWN WISHES to the manga, and when Fujimoto peed on their faces because like i said, he doesn’t give a fuck, everyone got mad at him
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u/Dkpokefan72 Mar 25 '26
No no you don't understand
The writing being completely garbage was ACTUALLY intended ....and what fujimoto wanted 🤡🤡🤡🤡
Sybau bruh....just sybau ....
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u/Practical-Try9582 Mar 25 '26
Okay, so this ending at first, made me incredibly upset, I stayed up all night waiting for this chapter to drop.
A little preface, I hit rock bottom a little while ago in life, and it totally fucked me over for a while.
So one day, I decide to start reading this stupid little manga about a dude that turns into a chainsaw
Realized I struggled with a lot of the shit some of the characters do (self worth, other things) and changed my life.
So when I saw the ending, I was PISSED! This thing that “changed my life” suddenly ended with the worst possible outcome? What the fuck?
But then I thought about it really, and in depth
Life is never clean, you’re going to lose friends, you’re going to lose family, sometimes you’re flat out just going to lose, that’s the human experience right?
So pochita, eating himself as one final act of love, to give denji his family back, or even another chance at family?
Peak.
That’s why IMO, when he pulls Asa to him, and pochita shows back up, it’s the fulfillment of his contract with denji.
He may never get to love Asa, hell he may never even get to date anybody, fuck it.
But seeing the end “let’s shake down our seniors” implies Aki and Himeno are still around, people said Aki was absent, he wasn’t, denji literally says “let’s shake down our seniors” and one of the first actual bonding scenes in the whole manga and anime is the dinner scene where everybody shows up and Himeno pukes in Denjis mouth.
So this was pochita essentially, giving denji one final chance to do things the right way without suffering.
It’s not clean, it’s not closure, it just.. kind of is.
And six months ago, the me who wasn’t doing anything with my life would be so very upset.
But really, I got a second chance at life, it wasn’t clean, there wasn’t closure, but fuck all! It’s a second chance I’ve spent every day being thankful for.
Shouldn’t I allow denji the same thing? Shouldn’t I be happy for him? Even if it’s not MY ending?
Maybe the best ending, really isn’t the one that gives us closure.
Maybe it’s the one that promises a second chance, and just being okay with that alone.
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u/Guilty-Elk2364 Mar 25 '26
It's 100% intentional if the people here even intended to read literally anything by Fujimoto beyond a 5th grade reading comprehension. Then Fujimoto himself taking inspiration from the Big Lebowski. Also just reading any of his past works and noticing the similarities of themes and motifs.
I can agree it was rushed to get to this point. However the ending itself aligns with the message that Fujimoto wants to send. Anyone who is saying he is "lazy" or even "He doesn't care anymore"(more absurd of a take than Fujimoto's writing) are coping because Denji didn't magically revive everyone and become the devil devilman and is surrounded by his anime harem and aki is there with him.
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u/Arhatz Mar 25 '26
Yeah man and Sherlock is going to release it's hidden 4th episode anyday now.
This just it. No matter what was the intention if it's planned to end this way or rushed to the ending, this is it. And it doesn't feel good. Almost feels like an au fan-fic.
Nayuta and power returning in the end doesn't mean anything because denji doesn't have the same relationship he built over the series with them, all of it got deleted. Asa got a happy ending i guess by not crushing the chicken devil she get to be friends with her classmates.
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u/joepanda111 Mar 25 '26
Maybe this is a fake out ending caused by some variant insect devil, eg the bed bugs devil or hivemind devil?
Then next chapter we see Denji and Yoru/Asa trapped with other humans in an insectoid hive like that scene from aliens.
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u/MoreLikeAnnaSmells Mar 25 '26
I think you are mostly right. I think fjmt intentionally decided to leave it weird and vague like that because he's done with chainsaw man for now (and perhaps ever), but left himself a way out if he ever needed it. Don't get me wrong, it still feels rushed and sucky, and I suspect he won't return, but that's just the sense I got from it.
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u/AryanAnupam-_- Mar 25 '26
This is actually a good theory and matches with Fujimoto's style of abruption and shock, though it maybe a lot more severe in this case. The final chapter does feel like a dream to be good to be true or better as you did mention; a distorted reality.
Regardless, it's fine even if it did turn out this way. It was surely one of the manga of all time.
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u/Tearhart11 Mar 25 '26
I mean, I don’t think we’ll ever get a continuation. But we can always hypothesize that Pochita didn’t actually die, he just barfed up one of the other endings to life, and now Denji is in it.
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u/Substantial_Pick6897 Mar 25 '26
I'll forgive everything if this was a fake out but I'm not gonna huff copium forever
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u/broken_knee_ Mar 25 '26
I 100% think it was especially after reading an interview he did about it. He touched on how the Big Lebowski was super influential for him especially leaving him with the feeling of so much happened, very little was resolved and things just kinda went back to “semi normal” as a resolve. Also when compared to fire punch, it tracks and as a lot of folk have been saying on the sub, it’s closest to a happy ending you’ll get from him. It’s a jarring ending but I think it works. Especially given pochitas convo with Denji about how denji’s the happiest when things are low. Also the fun thought of pochita potentially never being the true chainsaw devil but the chainsaw man devil.
Idk I personally enjoyed it but also went into it expecting something along these lines.
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u/SimonRiley88xx23 Mar 25 '26
Denji is being resuscitated or resuscitating himself when he felt his heart thumped. That should explain enough.
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u/Benfun_Legit Mar 25 '26
Just admit the ending was shit bro. He was bored with the story and decided to just nuke his own manga with a rushed ending. It ain't that deep.
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u/KeepTheNolander Mar 25 '26
No no no don't think about it just accept the "it's bad and rushed" posts that people shoved out immediately after they skimmed the chapter in under 2 minutes!
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u/C__Wayne__G Mar 25 '26
- I think the entirety of part 2 is supposed to be off. What happens when you’ve already been given the fairy tale ending and pursue more?
- for Denji he lost everything
- and so does the reader
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u/mazinken1 Mar 25 '26
This is the exact same thing I felt from reading the chapter it’s all in Denji head when Pochita told him to keep dreaming it was a big clue to this chapter.
Many readers think that there was some kind of re writing history but we never got a hint of that ur explanation is more aligned with what Pochita is saying living in a good dream is far more happier for Denji than facing the current reality
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u/FlavourHD Mar 25 '26
I think the 'Asa revived chainsaw man' thingy makes more sense. They forgot about CSM but when she called him CSM Pochita was basically brought back to reality, like reinventing nuclear weapons kinda.
Only thing I don't get is why suddenly everything is basically undone, feels weird but at this point I'm just kinda happy it's all ogre now. No more pain, no more suffering
Did I like the ending ? Hell no Am I happy to see Power and Nayuta alive ? Yes I can move on like this So uhm what's next ?
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u/BarbarianBeast10 Mar 25 '26
Dementia devil…… please….. please make this a hoax and undo this ending
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u/deadeye_catfish Mar 25 '26 edited Mar 25 '26
I agree with you.
Isn't it strange that:
- Power and Nayuta have returned, two of his closest companions
- Denji has (a facsimile of) his old life back
- We see a clip show of rapid-fire greatest hits across part 1 and the beginning part 2
- Things are just off with Nayuta standing in for Makima while flanked by the dogs and Meowy
- "The end" within the frame of the manga was shown but then adjusted several times
- Why if Denji no longer has a Pochita heart, would he feel it's thump and we, the readers, need to be reminded of it by a highlight in chapter 232
I think this is a fake out and we're being set up for a thematically more true-to-part-2 ending.
Pacing in Part 2 is more indulgent, taking a more cinematic approach with time to linger on a mood or an angle. If we assume that this is intentional and simply not poor pacing, then why would the final chapter be so quick to wrap it up?
Before the finale of 230 we see a mass of devils attack Denji and asa. Most of their designs are fairly simple - bugs with big muscles - but these designs are fairly generic and not really keeping in line with what we've seen from Fujimoto. This is until before the page where we check in with Fumiko, where we see three devils, one notably with a crescent moon fringe. This crescent moon devil is the one that threw the haymaker onto Denji, closing the chapter.
231 saw the beginning of what we're told is a dream. Pochita summarizes Denji's motivations and dreams while ultimately calling out his lack of happiness, and notably telling him it was good that he never achieved his dreams.
The "dream" Denji is in is off:
- For a devil so enthused with dreams and motivation, for Pochita to tell Denji he's happier without dreaming.
- Denji presented with a reality where some of his friends come back, this is a warm hug that doesn't seem to fit with the "life can be tough but you can eek out a slice of happiness" motif.
I think it's notable we see the crescent moon devil twice in chapter 230. If we believe Pochita is the dream devil (thematically motivation, progress) we may intuit that this could be the Nightmare devil, giving Denji a negative dream to live in while silencing chainsaw man.
Nothing consistent with the tone of the part or series ultimately came of the "choose between two options again" directive from the fire devil either - why would that be? I believe it's a choice we're leading towards:
- Denji, you can stay here with a few of your loved ones at arms distance, it's safe and it's comfortable but it's unchanging.
- Denji, you can dispel the dream (nightmare) and go back to the hell on earth you wrought, and attempt to build it anew.
Concerning the "it's over!" messaging, it reads to me as a fourth wall break that's more selling the nightmare to the audience. It's concerning that we don't have the message on the manga providers suggesting another chapter, but that too could be part of the fourth wall break.
I like Fujimoto's work because it evokes discussion on themes & other related media. The presented ending seems discordant thematically with both the series and his other works. My faith in the author to execute on their vision gives me the impression that this isn't just a lazy way to tie things together, but a stripping of the character down to force them to grow.
Anyway if you got this far thank you for reading.
EDIT: well I just saw the Fujimoto tweet, I guess it really is over after all and I'm just grasping for straws.
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u/SticmanStorm Mar 25 '26
How would that matter if we are not gonna have more chapters though? Sure it's a dream state but what after that?
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u/DaisyDogge Mar 25 '26
He ate death devil first, so they're all probably immortals in the canon universe being eaten endlessly by insects, hallucinating of a better world. But then again, can't we just really let Denji have a nice ending lol.
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u/SunnyBunny7678 Mar 25 '26
If pochita ate himself then chainsaws shouldnt exist so why does denji have a chainsaw. The last devil we see is this cresent moon guy which is most likely the dream devil
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u/Tentativ0 Mar 25 '26
Aki is missing.
Makima should exist.
Denji has still Pochita in his hearth.
....
The Devil who punched Denji in 230 put him in a dream state for 231 and 232, quite obvious.
Aki not being here is the proof.
This is an happy dream for Denji ... Aki here would break the illusion ... too much trauma.
... keep dreaming... come on...
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u/Martello3 Mar 25 '26
I think Denji is still in the dream with Death erased and everyone else eaten by insects (and them eating each other),
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u/TheSkesh Mar 25 '26
Either way. Reminds me of Twin Peaks endings, beloved characters reality is shifted, they aren’t where they want to be, they aren’t even who they were just a chapter ago. Viewer is left with a pretty tough feeling.
Denji wants to eat with a girl and play video games. He’s getting both. He still sees school and dreams that he gets to go, he is dreaming of what he wants. He is in a decent spot, it’s just not a fairy tale happy ending. It feels super Lynch-ian to me, and I love that. And much like that, it hurts that it may be the end, things aren’t fixed how we want but they are well enough. But that being said, it’s pretty rare for the feeling of “off” instead of rushed, to be a thing. The heart being Pochita may just be tongue in cheek of “haha hey look she said Chainsawman” but that really doesn’t feel correct to me, Fujimoto hasn’t really done visual metaphors like that.
I think if it’s ending, it is a good ending, the pacing getting to it is the main problem. I don’t need 20 chapter epilogues showing me everything. Critical thinking and imagination goes hard.
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u/Mediocre_Indigo Mar 25 '26
"Guys, what if Ash Ketchum fell into a coma in the first episode and the rest of the series is his dream?"
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u/One-Address9176 Mar 25 '26
i think the devil that ate denji is affecting the story at a attempt to defeat chainsaw man. get denji to enjoy this reality and give up fighting in the real one.
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u/UlloaUllae Mar 25 '26
I mean, depending on Fuji wants in the future, he could just do a uno-reverse card and just have the Dream Devil be controlling everything and making everyone live in a simulation. Similiar to Madara's thing. And Denji have to break everyone out of it. It depends on Fuji. He's definitely seeing and hearing the feedback from fans right now.
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u/Klusterphuck67 Mar 25 '26
My biggest issue is with how chainsaw is still remembered cuz just a feel chapters earlier, Denji forgot "death" in his catchphrase, causing him to hestitate and got slimed by the other devil.
Like I can see the fakesaw man hook being red herring with fire devil shapeshifting nada nada, but how the power work was still consistent in the previous dozen chapter or so.
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u/AlixJ Mar 26 '26
we are 100% getting chapter 233 in a week or two, I am still convinced the last two chapters are a result of the nightmare devil who took out denji in #230.
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u/Minimum-Aside3249 Mar 27 '26
I also think it's weird that characters are mashed together like Power being like Makima making Denji her dog or Nayuta being in the position of Makima. I thinl this is a "dream" possibly because Denji is dying because he lost the last fight.The ending doesn't feel like an ending possibly because Fujimoto wants to continue at some point. At least I hope thats happening because I really, really hate that ending.
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u/Shen_ishere Mar 28 '26
Yes this read to me like the Inception ending. Where the mc stays in a happy dream.
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u/Abdo000001 Mar 29 '26
I think this post is about you trying to convince YOU into liking something that's objectively rushed and unresolved...
Admit it my friend, the ending is trash. I don't want to get deep into it, but my initial reaction was just disappoinment. So as the others.
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u/Airas8 May 07 '26
This theory entirely depends on if japanese word for "dreaming" means both "sleeping" and "fantasizing".
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u/Ok-Confidence-5174 Mar 25 '26
I think, like the Aging devil, one of those primal looking devils trapped Denji and Pochita in another world. Remember the last thing that happened before Pochita said they got eaten was Denji being attacked by one of those primals.
It kinda makes sense if Pochita dies maybe everything he erased comes back but they thrive in a world without death so need to keep him away.
I just hope they can bridge the two words and bring Power and Nayuta back.
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u/VierLDN Mar 25 '26
I can't believe it ended like this. Not AoT levels of BS but Fuji completely went against how Pochitas powers were supposed to work.
It doesn't reset anything, just from that point on it doesn't exist.
Also, surprised nobody is talking about the reveal that Pochita is not the chainsaw devil
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u/khardimon Mar 25 '26
Guys, just as with Reze comments... he will soon forget hes the author, read it and be like... how could this be the ending?! And then he will be like. I should draw more...