English Dub Review: Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Swordsmith Village Arc: “A Sword from Over 300 Years Ago”

Overview: Tanjiro (Zach Aguilar) tries to warm up to Genya (Zeno Robinson) as Muichiro (Griffin Burns) gets to know him and a new threat enters the village

Our Take: Kotetsu and Tanjiro’s new sword discovery is hilariously deflated in how rusted it’s become from years without care. Hotaru makes a welcome return in his socially awkward appreciation and love for Tanjiro, getting jacked out of his mind to forge a quality sword. It will be interesting how the vintage sword differs from Tanjiro’s previous one and what benefits it offers him. 

Tanjiro’s inherently open and kindhearted nature bounces off of sour puss Genya well, making for a naturally light-hearted chemistry. Nezuko also continues to be endlessly adorable. Unfortunately though, that is pretty much all that she is there for. It makes her feel underutilized, comparatively to reconciling her humanity after becoming a demon in previous arcs. 

Muichiro’s has some sweet moments in how much he learns from interactions and observations of Tanjiro’s good heart. The episode kicks off the action, giving a shot in the arm to the pacing. The demons Gyoko and Hantengu establish how powerful they are in their savagery, especially for the latter. Hantengu’s demon splitting turns up the threat level in the numbers and variety of powers, especially with all of them being sentient. With a large-scale battle beginning to unfold, the Upper Ranks continue to present cool new challenges for Tanjiro.