Chainsaw Man Vol. 20

The newest English volume of Tatsuki Fujimoto’s Chainsaw Man has arrived, and I couldn’t be more excited about it. There are a lot of options to choose from when it comes to modern shonen, and for me, despite how much I love Jujutsu Kaisen, Dandadan, and Gachiakuta, there’s a special place in my heart for Chainsaw Man. Out of all of the modern shonen series out there, this has always been my personal favourite, especially since the anime adaptation dropped back in 2022. Now, with the newest release of Chainsaw Man Vol. 20, I get to dive back into this chaotic world once again.

It’s time for our review of Chainsaw Man Vol. 20. As always, we will be discussing spoilers in this review, so be sure to read the volume for yourself before you scroll any further! For those who need a little guidance on the exact content to read, Chainsaw Man Vol. 20 covers chapter 176 (Two Children), to Chapter 186 (Yank, Blorsh, Bdroom). With that being said, we’ve got another crazy edition of Chainsaw Man to get through, so let’s waste no more time. Let’s dive right into the review!

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Chainsaw Man Vol. 20 Review

Image by VIZ Media

This is my first time ever reviewing the Chainsaw Man manga for Nerdy Nook, so I feel like it’s important to get some initial thoughts out of the way. I adore Chainsaw Man Part 1, a run of volumes that is easily one of my favourite stretches of manga of all time. When it comes to Chainsaw Man Part 2, I certainly understand why not everyone is on board with it, but I still really like it. While the cast lags behind some of the iconic characters from Part 1, like Makima, Power, and Aki, Chainsaw Man Part 2 retains the same chaotic energy of Fujimoto’s initial story, and still keeps me on the edge of my seat constantly. I’m hoping I’ll learn to love characters like Yoshida, Mifune, and even Asa herself, a little more down the line, but as of right now, I still enjoy reading about their adventures, especially with Denji himself still around.

The last volume of Chainsaw Man focused on the death of Nayuta, and how Denji’s anger and grief overwhelmed him to the point of Pochita taking over once again. This time around, in Chainsaw Man Vol. 20, we finally get to focus on the long-awaited showdown between Chainsaw Man and Yoru, a battle that has been teased ever since the first volume of Chainsaw Man Part 2, and the driving force behind Asa and Yoru’s entire relationship. I really enjoyed the first few chapters of Chainsaw Man Vol. 20 that focused on this fight, especially considering how much I gel with Fujimoto’s art style. It’s no secret that the quality of Chainsaw Man‘s artwork has declined a little since earlier volumes, but everything is still pretty stunning, and most importantly of all, is completely legible, a quality that’s of paramount importance in an action manga.

Despite the slight decline in the quality of Chainsaw Man‘s artwork, Fujimoto remains dedicated to inserting iconic imagery into each of this story’s volumes. It’s remarkable how often Chainsaw Man will take my breath away with a full page-spread that looks unlike anything I’ve ever seen before. The reveal of the devil inside of the Statue of Liberty was absolutely phenomenal, and is easily one of my favourite visuals in recent Chainsaw Man volumes. The battle between Chainsaw Man and Yoru really reminded me that when it comes to big fights, the scale of Chainsaw Man is insane. I was reminded of the ‘Gun Devil Arc’ in all of the best ways when this happened – just overwhelmed by the massive, worldwide scale of this manga’s fights.

Image by VIZ Media

Amidst all of the drama though, Chainsaw Man Vol. 20 also had some really fun, and heartfelt comedic moments. Denji himself is often a source of humour in Chainsaw Man, but it was great to see his personality leak through during Pochita’s rampage in this volume. The moment where Chainsaw Man scares the kid away from the blood drive, and then begins begging for blood donations himself was hilarious, and I love how the scene was also used to develop Chainsaw Man’s character, outside of just being used for laughs. The Aging Devil contract is one of the more terrifying concepts in Chainsaw Man, with the Devil demanding the sacrifice of 10,000 children, in order to let itself be consumed by Chainsaw Man. Seeing Chainsaw Man refuse to give in to this deal, instead weakly waving around the blood drive sign, was a truly moving moment, despite how humorous it was initially. First Santa Claus, now the Aging Devil – Fujimoto really knows how to chill his reader with these Devil contracts.

As much as I adore the first stretch of Chainsaw Man Vol. 20, I do have to admit that it loses steam a little once we head to the Aging Devil’s World. I think this section was just fine, but nothing particularly special, especially considering we’ve seen this sort of thing done many times before in Chainsaw Man. The Eternity Devil, the Darkness Devil, the Falling Devil – all of these foes have trapped our protagonists in some sort of inescapable environment somehow, so this didn’t move me all that much, especially considering the Aging Devil’s World was a lot less visually stimulating than any of the previous environments. In fact, I think the plainness of this world was a missed opportunity on Fujimoto’s part – remember how cool Hell was, with all of the doors? I would’ve loved something on that level, or even close to it. With that in mind, I did love how this world allowed Denji to reflect on his adventure thus far, especially everything he’s lost. It was great seeing our old friends again, even if it was only the backs of their heads.

With that in mind, can we talk about Power? I feel like the plotline involving reviving Power in some way has been completely forgotten about in Part 2, and I’m hoping that’s not a sign of things to come. I had assumed Power’s return would be one of Denji’s main motivators in Part 2, but it seems to have completely slipped his mind. Luckily, Chainsaw Man Vol. 20 doesn’t give me too much time to dwell on this weakness, because once we begin our escape plan from the Aging Devil’s World, the volume really kicks back into gear. Chainsaw Man’s approach to the Aging Devil was an amazing read. I really felt the urgency of the moment, and having the Aging Devil sacrifice the body parts of those Public Safety workers was such a great sequence, as visually horrifying as it was.

Image by VIZ Media

Unfortunately, Chainsaw Man Vol. 20 ends on a nasty cliffhanger, as we close this volume on Chainsaw Man finally reaching the Aging Devil, but with the Aging Devil finally being able to remove Pochita’s heart from his body. Chainsaw Man Part 2 has jumped around a lot from villain to villain, but I’ve really enjoyed the Aging Devil, and its whole arc. Behind the Falling Devil, I think it’s one of my favourite antagonists of Part 2 thus far. I have a feeling we’ll be saying goodbye to it in the next volume, but as of the end of Chainsaw Man Vol. 20, it remains a terrifying antagonist, one that really pushed all of our characters to their absolute limits.

So, that’s the end of Chainsaw Man Vol. 20! Ultimately, I think that this was a really strong volume. Yes, the middle section suffered a little from a slightly uninspired story, and some lacking visuals, at least by Fujimoto’s standards. However, the beginning, with the fight between Yoru and Chainsaw Man, and the ending, with Pochita’s arrival at the Aging Devil’s doorstep, were both absolutely phenomenal, and really captured the scale and chaos of any great Chainsaw Man volume. I’m still loving Part 2, and I hope more people will start to enjoy it as these volumes continue to release. It’s not the same as Part 1, and it never will be, but what we have is pretty damn good.

But what did you think? Did you share my opinions on Chainsaw Man Vol. 20? Are you excited for the anime to return next year with the ‘International Assassins Arc’? Be sure to let us know in the comments, and until next time (June 2, 2026), thanks for reading!

See also: Every Jujutsu Kaisen Opening, Ranked

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