Why Denji is one of my favourite new-age protagonists.

A thread:

Denji is a character who we see at the start of the story already knee deep in shit, dead father, an insurmountable inherited debt, eating food scraps out of bins, no schooling, selling of his organs trying to survive in his shit situation.

The yakuza guy treats him kindly despite his debt though, this is only a false pretense however as Denji is led astray by the devil controlled yakuza, he's cut into chunks and thrown away like a rotten carcass, its here on the doorstep of hell, where the Chainsaw Man is born.

It is here in his lowest moments that he meets Makima, his saving grace. The 'God' that has come to save him, this small piece of affection saves Denji as he becomes a devil hunter, chasing the affection of Makima like a stray dog, its here that there toxic relationship begins.

Right off the bat we see Denji is brash, naive, rude, harsh, dumb and underdeveloped emotionally, making him an easy target for manipulation, he shows some wit at times but that's about it

Yet despite all this he is extremely loveable and charmingly simplistic, just a kid happy to be able to live properly, eat actual food, sleep in a bed, all things common to most people, yet he's willing to die to keep having it. He's happy living with Power & Aki

However after a while his contentment starts to fade, unsure what to do with his life, the tits he wanted to feel, the PB&J's he was satisfied eating, the satisfaction he gets from them begins fleeting, its in this comfort that he gets to scope in on his own mental health

He starts to question who he really is, his lack of empathy, he fears after all he's been through is he emotionless? It is here in the story we begin to see the depths of Denji's mind, we see the pure torment he had been through and emotional scarring he has.

Desperate for love, to be loved and to love himself he feens for the feeling, after being betrayed countless times and his comrades dying he wants nothing more than a normal life, and he thinks he can find it with Makima as well as Power & Aki

However it all comes tumbling and crashing down with the death of Aki, this is the crushing blow that sends him over the edge mentally, he loses all semblance of happiness and his personality, the grief he feels over killing Aki causing him to vomit in disgust

Here is where Denji's mindset takes a turn for the worst, him and Power pass the days idly drowning the pain in watching movies, countless trash bags around the room, two people who have gave up on living.

In the pits, he clings to Makima to cope with the pain, he wishes for nothing more than to live as a mindless dog under her, atleast that way he won't have to feel anything, the anguish, the sadness and the grief. This backfires completely as Makima kills Power there and then..

The one remaining person he cared for, not only this but the revelation that he killed his own father, a thought locked away long ago. This is the final straw he breaks completely, surrendering himself to Makima, with everything erased, a blank mental state.

However after being cast into hell, he arises as the Chainsaw Man once more, the spirit of the devil takes over in an attempt to kill Makima, it is during this fit of rage that Power is revived by Pochita to save Denji.

After being saved by Power, he still wishes to die, he believes there's nothing to do in life anymore, it is here that Power gives him purpose once more. After coming to his senses, he realises he was used, never made a choice for himself, nothing more than an obedient dog.

He realises he wants something more, he wants to make his own decisions, he wants to do whatever HE wants, not live a normal life, but live his own life, eating steak for breakfast, watch shitty movies, have multiple girlfriends, be the hero of hell, Chainsaw Man...

Denji isn't inherently likeable, no grandiose cause, he isn't an example of good morality, just a real, flawed human slogging through shit and living as best he can.