Running from February 2016 until March 2020, the shonen manga Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba by Koyoharu Gotouge was adapted into an animated series by Studio ufotable in April 2019 and is set to release its latest story arc soon. Ahead of the Spring 2024 release, this arc, known within the manga as the Hashira Training Arc, is being shown to select audiences around the globe as a cinematic event with the first few episodes of Hashira being combined with the final episodes of the Swordsmith Village arc. This isn’t a standalone experience like the 2021 Mugen Train theatrical release, which was a total arc from start to finish. This release, subtitled To the Hashira Training, is more like the 2023 To the Swordsmith Village theatrical release, which serves as more of a tease for what’s to come put up on the big screen. To that end, Demon Slayer returns to the theaters as it kicks off the “Road to Victory.”
Tanjiro Kamado (voiced by Natsuki Hanae/Zach Aguilar) in DEMON SLAYER: KIMESTU NO YAIBA. Photo courtesy of Crunchyroll.
During the final battle of the Entertainment District Arc, Tanjiro Kamado (voiced by Natsuki Hanae/Zach Aguilar) damaged his sword and must travel to the hidden swordsmith village in order to have it repaired. What should be a respite from fighting as Demon Slayer Corp leader Kagaya Ubuyashiki (voiced by Toshiyuki Morikawa/Matthew Mercer) strives to keep the swordsmiths from harm in order for them to craft the Nichirin weapons the members need in order to defeat demons, is quickly turned into a bloodbath as the place is attacked by two upper-rank demons, Hantengu (voiced by Toshio Furukawa and Koichi Yamadera/Christopher Corey Smith and Ben Balmaceda) and Gyokko (voiced by Kohsuke Toriumi/Brent Mukai). It’s by a mixture of teamwork and a miracle that Tanjiro and a small band of Hashira Slayers defeat them both and save the day. But it’s the miracle that has everyone on edge for what it means for the future fight against demon leader Muzan Kibutsuji (voiced by Toshihiko Seki/Greg Chun).
Though mentioned in the intro of this review, allow me to restate that To the Hashira Training is not really designed for non-Demon Slayer fans. Whereas anyone could really jump into Mugen Train without any prior knowledge and figure out anything not explicitly stated through context clues and typical anime tropes, To the Hashira Training is a composite of prior-released episodes and roughly 50 minutes of new material coming this spring. This is going to make understanding the stakes exceptionally hard for anyone not yet through season three of the anime or those who haven’t read the manga. So make sure that you’re at least familiar with the characters and the lore before you head to the theater.
Nezuko (voiced by Akari Kitō/Abby Trott) in DEMON SLAYER: KIMESTU NO YAIBA. Photo courtesy of Crunchyroll.
Having said that, To the Hashira Training does smartly open with a quick recap of the inciting incident of the series and a few of the major arcs in the series up to this point. This enables viewers less familiar with the series to get an introduction to a few characters and understand a few relationships that will be significant in the film. Especially as a teaser for the fourth season, this works to help those who may have started the series when it first aired in April 2019, but may not have taken the time to revisit the early episodes where Nezuko (voiced by Akari Kitō/Abby Trott), Tanjiro’s demon-infected sister, is nearly killed by the Hashira, the upper level members of the Demon Slayer Corps, or the Entertainment District Arc and, therefore, don’t remember how Nezuko played a significant role in that victory or the degree to which Sound Hashira Tengen Uzui (voiced by Katsuyuki Konishi/Ray Chase) was injured in that fight. It doesn’t cover all the necessary information to really grasp what’s going on when the Swordsmith Village arc episode “A Connected Bond: Daybreak and First Light (繋いだ絆 彼は誰時 朝ぼらけ)” kicks off, Tanjiro, Nezuko, and several other members of the Demon Slayer Corps in the final throws of battle. Even with the recaps, there’s so much going on that it may be hard to track who is who, what is what, and why certain things matter. But if you’ve been tracking the show since the beginning (or, at least since the beginning of the Swordsmith Village Arc), the stakes are easy to follow, which may be all you need as the second half of the To the Hashira Training cinematic event is really just about those: the stakes and how everything in the series is about to shift.
The bigger issue with To the Hashira Training is the major shift in energy from the first part to the second. The first is this major action sequence, filled with drama and excitement as these beaten and bloodied warriors try to defeat the last remaining Upper Level demon who splits himself into several very powerful forms while protecting his central weakpoint (his actual neck). Whether it’s the first or just the most recent time you’ve seen it, the way that ufotable executes Koyoharu’s narrative is emotionally powerful — the angle of shots, the staging of the action, the weight of decision — making each choice from performance to presentation requiring a precision to pull off. Shown in its original form, the denouement for “A Connected Bond” is filled with plenty of comedy, conversational and physical, to create a nice comedown from everything we’ve just seen while setting up danger on the horizon. That works just fine as a season finale, but as the first half of a cinematic event, it doesn’t work as well because what follows starts with an action sequence that enables audiences to see Wind Hashira Sanemi Shinazugawa (voiced by Tomokazu Seki/Kaiji Tang) and Serpent Hashira Obanai Iguro (voiced by Kenichi Suzumura/Erik Scott Kimerer) at work before shifting to a giant exposition dump that refreshes the audience on what just occurred in the first half of the film, what’s expected to happen next, and how to begin preparing for it. This works when kicking off a new season of a show (My Hero Academia, for instance, does this with their first episodes in Seasons 2-5), burning an episode to ensure that everyone starts off in the same place. But when you’ve literally just watched the end of the prior season, the reliance on exposition in the last 50 minutes to carry the story forward is far less engaging, even if curiosity is at an all-time high.
Center: Tanjiro Kamado (voiced by Natsuki Hanae/Zach Aguilar) in DEMON SLAYER: KIMESTU NO YAIBA. Photo courtesy of Crunchyroll.
Ultimately, To the Hashira Training is exactly what it’s advertised to be: an opportunity to see the cinematic action of Demon Slayer in an actual cinema, while getting to see the start of Season 4 before it lands on Crunchyroll. It’s an advertisement, a teaser, and a brilliant piece of marketing as fans of the series get the chance to shift their home viewing experience to a setting that makes the grand battles feel grander. It also creates an opportunity for those who enjoy anime in theaters but have never checked out Demon Slayer to give it a shot and then determine if they want to pursue the show further. However, unlike Mugen Train with its contained story from start to finish or even Jujutsu Kaisen 0 (2021), a prequel story to a different manga/anime, To the Hashira Training is best enjoyed by people with a connection to the series. Sure, it’s exciting and interesting, comprised of bold action and interesting characters, but I can’t imagine anyone going in blind to this and walking out thinking fellow Demon Slayer Corps member Zenitsu (voiced by Hiro Shimono/Aleks Le) is anything more than an annoyance and Inosuke (voiced by Yoshitsugu Matsuoka/Bryce Papenbrook) an insane person (both of which are true regardless) and wanting to explore further.
However, if you’re the sort who cannot wait until this April (the rumored release month), get thyself to Hashira Training. You likely won’t regret the opportunity.
In select U.S. theaters February 23rd, 2024.
For more information, head to the official Demon Slayer world tour 2024 webpage.
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Categories: In Theaters, Reviews
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