English Dub Review: Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Swordsmith Village Arc: “A Connected Bond: Daybreak and First Light”

Overview: With the help of Nezuko (Abby Trott), Genya (Zeno Robinson) and his friends, Tanjiro (Zach Aguilar) makes one final push against Hantengu (Christopher Corey Smith) to cut him down once and for all. 

Our Take: While the Swordsmith Village Arc makes overall excellent use of its runtime, overall, it does suffer in places due to not sharing the wealth equally. 

In the beginning, the pacing starts off a bit slow in drawing out Tanjiro’s inevitable beheading of Hantengu. However, the suspense does gradually build in the Upper Rank’s Russian doll biology coming back into play. His increasingly smaller form acts as an annoyingly nail-biting issue for Tanjiro and team. 

Ufotable continues their glorious output of more gorgeous, red flowing flames and insane horsepower behind swift strikes and movements. The supporting cast is also utilized effectively, helping out in small, but impactful ways. Whether it’s Muichiro and Kotestsu delivering a sword or even Zenitsu’s tutelage playing a role in Tanjiro’s victory, no character feels diminished in their importance. 

The episode escalates the drama with the sunrise acting as a ticking time bomb of tension as Nezuko’s life hangs in the balance. Tanjiro’s fateful decision, between saving Nezuko or innocent lives, is emotional and heartfelt, utilizing the classic flashback montage sequence well. 

Of course, Nezuko’s fate does not come to pass thanks to the revelation of her sun repellent skin. Has Nezuko been fitted with sun-blocking plot armor from head to toe? Without question, but I can’t say I’m too mad at the development. While it is safe, the sweet angel’s miraculous survival makes for a positively heartwarming and joyous reunion with Tanjiro. Just as important, Nezuko’s biology puts her smack dab in the middle of Muzan’s crosshairs, setting up an exciting endgame. With that said, this also brings me to my next qualm with the finale. 

Hantengu, but most critically, Muzan’s backstory adds nothing of real importance. They are honestly throwaway tales that are relatively superficial and short-lived, not delving into their madness in any meaningful way. The one saving grace of Muzan’s plight is the situational irony of him murdering the one doctor who could actually save him. Hopefully, Muzan’s descent into darkness can be more complex moving forward. 

So, unfortunately, the villains of the season get the shaft narratively speaking. Nonetheless, the ending throws intense curveballs, like the evolution of Nezuko’s physicality and her relevance/true impact in Muzan’s plans. There’s also no shortage of beautiful frames and powerful emotional chemistry, further building the Kamado siblings’ bond. With the entire cast getting to shine and a grand setup for the story’s climax, Demon Slayer’s third season ends with a bang, despite its hiccups during sendoff.