Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba (Episode 8) – The Smell of Enchanting Blood
Tanjiro rushes to stop the newly transformed demon from hurting anyone, leaving Muzan to disappear into the crowd. As Tanjiro fights to restrain the demon, he warns Muzan that he will find him.
What did you watch?
After last weeks episode and the jaw-dropping cliffhanger, I’ve been anxiously waiting for episode 8 of Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba. It’s been hard, especially as I had to watch it twice. Well, that was then and this is now, and this episode was everything I had hoped for and more. As always, there will be spoilers beyond this point… you have been warned!
What happened?
Last week, Tanjiro followed a familiar scent and tracked down Muzan Kibutsuji only to discover that he had a human family. Bemused that he didn’t know who Tanjiro was, Muzan turned a passerby into a demon and used the carnage to slip away. Even as Tanjiro struggled to restrain the demon, he called after Muzan warning him that he would find him and he would take his head.
The police arrived and told Tanjiro to let go of the man so that they could deal with it, but Tanjiro refused, telling them to get restraints. Then as the standoff grew more intense a strange scent filled the air, disrupting the dispute and shrouding Tanjiro from their sight. Two demons approached Tanjiro and revealed that they were surprised by his actions and that they too hate Muzan.
What did you think?
I love this series. It seems to be taking all the best bits from a standard shounen series, leaving out the annoying stuff, and throwing in some awesome visuals and twists. The introduction of Tamayo the demon doctor who is seeking to find a cure too is great. It should make Tanjiro’s position in the Demon Slayer Corp that much more complicated, especially as he now has the task of collecting blood from powerful demons to add to his regular job of killing demons.
What was your favourite moment?
That would be when Muzan put his wife and daughter into a car and headed back to follow up with Tanjiro. Firstly, he recognized Tanjiro’s earrings giving them more status than just looking awesome. Any guesses who that person in the flashback was? I’m going with Tanjiro’s grandfather or even great-grandfather.
Anyhow, Muzan turned down a back alley and bumped into a drunk guy who clearly couldn’t read the cues and decided to berate Muzan. A swift punch and a kick from nowhere saw the two men dead in seconds. Then Muzan crouched down in front of the girl and asked her if he looked pale or lifeless. He then forced so much of his demon blood into her that she mutated until her body could no longer handle it and just exploded into a puddle of blood.
As if that wasn’t terrifying enough, Muzan clicked his fingers and two demons shot to his side instantly. He gave them one order – bring him the head of the demon slayer with the awesome earrings (he might not have said awesome!)
What was your least favourite moment?
This week it was simple. My least favourite moment was when it ended and I had no more Demon Slayer to watch! I may have said it, but I love this show. I’m really enjoying how we’re starting to see that there is a spectrum of everything, good demons and evil demons. This makes me wonder whether the head of the Demon Slayer Corp could end up also being evil. It doesn’t serve them to defeat or cure all the demons, without demons to slay there wouldn’t be a Corp. I got a bad feeling about the leader from that brief appearance after the trial.
Who was your favourite character?
Muzan is a great villain and I feel like we’ve yet to see the real depth to him. I wonder how much is just him trying to stay out off the radar. Sure, he brutally murdered a bunch of people in a handful of appearances, but I feel like there’s more to it than that. Also, I am loving the character design on the demons so far. They all look excellent.
Other than that, I thought Saitama’s guest appearance as the ramen chef was awesome!
Who was your least favourite character?
That’ll be Yushiro, the demon accomplice of Tamayo who is clearly in love with her. How dare he say that Nezuko was a blemish? He’s lucky he didn’t feel Tanjiro’s blade. This kid needs to be put in his place, unfortunately, the only one likely to do that is Tamayo and he’d probably like nothing more than to be put across her knee…
Would you like some more?
Absolutely! Muzan’s demons have just attacked Tamayo’s house and are set on killing everyone. Both are powerful demons with some weird and wonderful abilities. The next episode should start with a crazy fight. It’s probably a good job that Tanjiro ate those two bowls of udon as he’s going to need the energy. Seriously, how are they making animated food look so damn tasty?
Other reviews in the series
- Anime
- Season One
- Episode 1 – Cruelty
- Episode 2 – Trainer Sakonji Urokodaki
- Episode 3 – Sabito and Makomo
- Episode 4 – Final Selection
- Episode 5 – My Own Steel
- Episode 6 – Swordsman Accompanying a Demon
- Episode 7 – Muzan Kibutsuji
- Episode 8 – The Smell of Enchanting Blood
- Episode 9 – Temari Demon and Arrow Demon
- Episode 10 – Together Forever
- Episode 11 – Tsuzumi Mansion
- Episode 12 – The Boar Bares Its Fangs, Zenitsu Sleeps
- Episode 13 – Something More Important Than Life
- Episode 14 – The House with the Wisteria Family Crest
- Episode 15 – Mount Natagumo
- Episode 16 – Letting Someone Else Go First
- Episode 17 – You Must Master a Single Thing
- Episode 18 – A Forged Bond
- Episode 19 – Hinokami
- Episode 20 – Pretend Family
- Episode 21 – Against Corps Rules
- Episode 22 – Master of the Mansion
- Episode 23 – Hashira Meeting
- Episode 24 – Rehabilitation Training
- Episode 25 – Tsuguko, Kanao Tsuyuri
- Episode 26 – New Mission
- Movie
- Season Two – Yuukaku-hen
- Episode 1 – Sound Hashira Tengen Uzui
- Episode 2 – Infiltrating the Entertainment District
- Episode 3 – What Are You?
- Episode 4 – Tonight
- Episode 5 – Things Are Gonna Get Real Flashy!
- Episode 6 – Layered Memories
- Episode 7 – Transformation
- Episode 8 – Gathering
- Episode 9 – Defeating an Upper Rank Demon
- Episode 10 – Never Give Up
- Episode 11 – No Matter How Many Lives
- Season Three – Katanakaji no Sato-hen
- Season One
- Analysis
- Bonus Posts
- Manga
- Volume 1 – Cruelty
- Volume 2 – It Was You!
- Volume 3 – Believe in Yourself
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