Why Chainsaw Man's Denji, Power, and Aki are Shonen's Greatest Trio (2024)

There are an abundance of lovable characters in Chainsaw Man Part One, but at the core of its story are Denji, the eponymous Chainsaw Man, Power, the Blood Fiend, and Aki Hayakawa, a seasoned Devil Hunter. Denji's character development is primarily propelled by his relationships with his two closest friends, and the relationship between the three lies at the heart of Makima's machinations.

Shōnen trios are extremely common, but there are none as great as Chainsaw Man's Denji, Power, and Aki. Each of them is a brilliant character on their own, their interactions with each other are always hilarious and heartwarming, they parallel each other in a number of important ways, and the tragedies the found-family face are soul-crushing.

All Three Characters Are Individually Brilliant

Denji, Power, and Aki Could Easily Stand On Their Own, But Why Would They Want To?

A trio is only as great as the sum of its parts. The relationship between Denji, Aki, and Power is only as strong as it is because of the strength of each individual character's storyline and development. By making readers love each of them on their own, Tatsuki Fujimoto makes fans care about them as much as they come to care about each other.

Denji, AKA Chainsaw Man, is one of the most unique, endearing, and easily lovable Shōnen protagonists of all time. A teenager who's spent his entire life in extreme poverty, and without any education, Denji understands little about what goes on around him, and has no grand ambitions in life, with him only seeking a basic, comfortable life, and intimacy with a woman. He's crass, abrasive, and beyond naive, and the latter trait leads him to be used and hurt by nearly everyone around him, especially by the women in his life. Denji's innocence, enthusiasm, tragic backstory, and continued harsh struggles make him easy to root for, even when he's a jerk, and his fights as Chainsaw Man are consistently brutal and awesome to see.

Aki Hayakawa is initially introduced appearing to be everything that Denji is not. He's a seasoned Devil Hunter, a well-regarded member of Public Safety Division 4, and always cool and professional. Having lost his family to the Gun Devil when he was a child, Aki dedicates his entire life to avenging them, allowing himself no personal life outside of work, and no outside connections. His single-minded focus on killing the Gun Devil leads him to not only make standard a Devil Hunter contract with the Fox Devil, which enables him to summon the beast for devastating attacks, but also the Curse Devil, who feeds on Aki's lifespan when he uses his powerful sword, with him later contracting with Future Devil, who gives him the ability to see several seconds into the future.

Power, the Blood Fiend, is entertaining from the moment she debuts. Forced under the threat of being killed into working for Public Safety, she is a selfish, amoral narcissist who looks down on all humans. Her mannerisms and thought process are childish, she has no loyalty to anyone but herself, and, in the Bat Devil Arc, she manipulates and attempts to kill Denji. It's only as the series goes on, as the blood manipulator becomes closer with Aki and Denji, that she begins to warm up, and care for the well-being of others besides herself. Even as she grows as a person, Power never stops being the funniest character in the series, with her outrageous non sequiturs always a delight.

Chainsaw Man's Main Trio Complement Each Other Perfectly

From Power's Extremes to Aki's Dedication, Denji is the Perfect Balance

Despite coming from completely different worlds, literally in Power's case, Denji, Aki, and Power have more in common with each other than with any other characters in the story. All three begin the series as broken and lonely individuals, and only become more complete and fulfilled individuals through their connections with one another.

Upon joining Public Safety, Denji is assigned to Aki as a partner and mentee. The two initially despise each other, with Denji being jealous over his perception of Makima's preference towards Aki, and Aki finding Denji to be an obnoxious and unprofessional load he has to carry. The conflict between the two is escalated as they're forced together, and the heat is turned up even more when Makima sends Power to live with them as well. While tensions are raised, Power's presence enables Denji and Aki to find common ground, as they're equally annoyed by her gross living habits and, after seeing each other in action, a mutual respect is formed between the two. Denji even becomes willing to learn from his new friend. Denji and Power's friendship, meanwhile, is cemented after Chainsaw Man saves the Blood Fiend from the Bat Devil, even after Power attempts to sacrifice Denji to him. Power rewards Denji by giving him permission to accomplish his goal of touching breasts, and when Denji touches her that way, the experience is confusing and unfulfilling, as he realizes he only cares about her as a friend.

As roommates, friends, and co-workers, Denji, Power, and Aki do everything together, be it fighting, eating, or watching TV. This is the first time in Denji and Power's lives that they've had anything like this, and the first time since losing his family as a child that Aki has had anything of the sort, with him and his mentor, Himeno, having had a very different kind of relationship. All three individuals have largely lived their lives independently, exclusively focused on their own goals, but they've all had someone they love, with Aki having had Himeno, prior to her death, Denji having had Pochita, the Chainsaw Devil, who now lives inside him as his heart, and Power has her cat, Meowy, who made her realize she was even capable of loving someone besides herself. The three have lived completely different, and yet remarkably similar lives, and they all provide each other with what they're missing: a family. Aki takes on the role of a mature and irritated big brother, Denji a middle child who can step up when he needs to despite being typically immature, and Power is the juvenile and silly little sister who leans on the others.

Denji, Power, and Aki Become Like a Family, Only to be Torn Apart

In a World Like Chainsaw Man's, Bonds Easily Get Destroyed, and it's Tragic

By the end of Chainsaw Man's International Assassins Arc, Denji, Aki, and Power have become closer than ever. Together, they've overcome Katana Man and Santa Claus, and survived an encounter with the Darkness Devil. Having lived together for months, and literally been to Hell and back, the trio prioritize each other during their respective times of need. Denji and Aki take care of Power as she suffers from nightmares following their battle with the Darkness Devil, Denji and Power accompany Aki on his annual trip to his family's grave, with the two's constant bickering and foolishness making this the first time in his life that the experience isn't miserable, and making him realize he wants to leave Public Safety with them, his love for them stronger than his desire for revenge and, after a mutually traumatic experience, Power shows up with a cake for Denji on his birthday.

Unfortunately for Denji, and for fans, making him come to love his friends as a mature big brother and a bratty younger sister was all part of Makima's plan. With the reveal of Makima's true identity as the Control Devil, one of the Four Horsem*n, comes the revelation that she's orchestrated the events of the entire series, with the express purpose of giving Denji something he'd never had, a family he loves, just so she can rip it away from him.

Makima leads Aki to becoming a Fiend of the Gun Devil, and puts Denji in a situation where he's forced to kill him, emotionally shattering Denji, before killing Power herself, right in front of him. All of this is done in an effort to break Denji's contract with Pochita, the real Chainsaw Man, by tearing away his dreams. With readers having come to love Aki and Power as much as Denji, and having been manipulated by the story's writing, they are given a better understanding of what he's feeling than what's normally possible. The trio's time together doesn't fully end here, however, as it's Power's temporary revival, and her and Denji's love for each other, that enables Chainsaw Man to get his revenge and kill Makima.

Neither Aki nor Power have appeared in Chainsaw Man Part Two, outside of Denji's traumatic flashbacks to their deaths, and it seems that while Denji may eventually fulfill his promise to Power to find the new Blood Devil, their roles in the story are done. While the series has moved on from them, this doesn't change the impact they, and their relationship with Denji, had on making Chainsaw Man the iconic series that it is.

Chainsaw Man

Following a betrayal, a young man left for dead is reborn as a powerful devil-human hybrid after merging with his pet devil and is soon enlisted into an organization dedicated to hunting devils.

Author

Tatsuki Fujimoto

Artist

Tatsuki Fujimoto

Release Date

December 3, 2018

Genre

Action , Comedy , Horror , Fantasy

Chapters

127

Volumes

14

Adaptation

Chainsaw Man

Publisher

Shueisha, Viz Media