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Tatsuki Fujimoto is, at this point, a household name, at least among those who enjoy anime and manga. The author ofCHAINSAW MAN, one of the biggest shōnen manga titles of the 2020s, has enjoyed much success with his works from before his magnum opus, withLook Backgetting an anime short film that was very quickly critically acclaimed for its incredible storytelling. Another old work by Fujimoto,Goodbye, Eri, read like the kind of title that would definitely get an anime adaptation, but those dreams were soon quelled by Look Back director Kiyotaka Oshiyama, who stated that he has “no plans of adaptingGoodbye, Eri”.
Even so, Fujimoto’s worksclearly have an “X-Factor”that makes them incredible potential anime projects. The author’s dark fantasy,Fire Punch, is no different. Here’s whyFire Punchabsolutely needs an anime adaptation, pronto.
What Is Fire Punch About?
A Dystopian Manga Like No Other
Fire Punchis an incredibly dark dystopian manga set in a world wheresome people develop special abilities, and are hence named the “Blessed”. Agni and his sister, Luna, are a pair of Blessed who have the gift of regeneration, able to heal from many serious injuries, but they live in a world frozen over by the abilities of a powerful Blessed referred to as the Ice Witch. As a result of her powers, the world has entered an unending ice age, and the world has regressed to medieval values, with law and justice being mere dreams of a far-gone age. To help their village survive, and stretch the very little non-perishable food items they have, the siblings have arranged to feed their fellow villagers the flesh of Agni, whose regenerative abilities enable him to grow back a severed arm in seconds.
One day, an army from a neighbouring land arrives in the village to commandeer their supplies, and discovers “human flesh” in every home, leading them to the conclusion that they’ve come across a village of godless cannibals. Without learning more about the situation, Doma, a Blessed with the ability to produce flames that do not stop burning until their fuel has run out, ordersthe extermination of the whole village, including Agni and his sister. However, given the strength of his regenerative ability, Agni’s body simply burns ad infinitum, subjecting him to a fate worse than death. After nearly a decade, he learns to control his regeneration, enabling him to move around despite the unbearable pain, fuelled by one thing: revenge.
Your burning body is in so much pain that you’ve lost your mind.
Why Fire Punch Deserves To Be Animated
A World Darker Than That of CHAINSAW MAN
One of the first things that strikes the reader when they engage with Tatsuki Fujimoto’sFire Punchis how vastly different the art is from that ofCHAINSAW MAN, the author’s magnum opus (at least for now). It has a far more detailed approach, which lends itself greatly to the darkness of the narrative, which features a cold (literally) and unforgiving Hel-scape in the form of an endless winter that has frozen the world over, and frozen even the hearts of men. There are still elements of the sardony seen inCHAINSAW MAN, an aspect characteristic of Fujimoto’s approach to writing and characterization, and even though the villains are cartoonishly evil, there’s a lifelessness in the eyes of most of the characters that really sells the difficulties of navigating such a dystopia. The presentation ofan ever-suffering protagonist, cursed by his Blessing, and cursed by his horrible memories of watching everyone he cared for die in front of him makes for a journey that’s easy to root for, but also one that, unlikeCHAINSAW MAN, the reader realizes can only end in tragedy. There’s no hope that Agni’s life gets better, as just like Denji, his body bears the horrific memories of those who wronged him. There’s a bit of clumsiness regarding the characterization of evil, with the bad guys being horrendouslyevilwith no space for the kind of sympathetic villain we’ve come to expect from anime and manga, especially in recent times.
The presentation of Agni as a selfless saviour willing to endure pain to protect and to feed his people is an interesting parallel to the impact of Chainsaw Man as an entity, as even Agni begins to be considered some kind of deity or entity worthy of worship as his existence defies all logic, and could potentially upend the naturalities of theFire Punchuniverse. There’s an intensity toFire Punchthat shows Fujimoto’s ability to create compelling conflicts and engage withthe darkness of humankindin interesting ways that would be incredible to see adapted into an anime by a studio with the kind of budget and passion that can emphasize the manga’s core themes and the author’s bygone art style. That being said; however, the series quickly reflects the visual style and love for cinema that Fujimoto incorporated intoCHAINSAW MAN, but there’s something a little more measured about the mangaka’s drawings inFire Punch; something that almost feels rawer. The approach to the insanity inherent to the situation, and how the characters say some of the craziest things devoid of elements we take for granted, like kindness, concern for another human, moral values… all of which have simply frozen over, adds another layer to the character relations.
If your sister were alive, you would quit seeking revenge, right? Is that what you want? Is that all your anger amounts to?
Fujimoto’s Ridiculous Sense of Humour
It’s Always About Movies With This Guy
After everything you’ve read to this point, what’s probably the craziest thing aboutFire Punchis the development of the plot after the introduction of Togata, a cinephile of note whose big dream is to shoot a blockbuster film. With a tiny handheld camera, and the assistance of a little girl she saved from a terrible fate in the city of Behemdorg, Togata, a Blessed with rapid regeneration abilities, takes great interest in Agni’s path to vengeance. She decides that he’s the hero of the movie she’s trying to shoot, and uses various forms of manipulation that we see in some of Fujimoto’s other female characters in later works to get him to essentiallybe an actor in the movie about his life. There’s just something so hilariously broken about Togata that makes her inclusion so important to the series, an insensitivity to her actions and beliefs that feels endemic toFire Punch, yet Fujimoto’s own opinion in some areas is made all the more blatant because of it.
To ensure Agni’s enthusiastic participation in this film, Togata uses his soft spot for Judah, a Behemdorgi military dog who happens to look and sound just like his dead sister, Luna. To add to his confusion and pain, Judah is also a Blessed with regenerative abilities, but in her supposed 130-year-long life, she has never met Agni nor had a brother. Togata threatens to kill Judah if Agni refuses to act his role, creatinga strangely comical relationshipbetween him and the cinephile, one which causes the flaming punisher to, for the first time since becoming an eternal flame, appear genuinely flustered, lost and even a little uncertain. It’s Togata who came up with the title “Fire Punch” after coming up with several terrible iterations. Not only is she director of “Fire Punch”, but she teaches Agni how to fight more effectively, and, for some reason, English, starting with anatomical terms and vulgarities, as any learner of a new language should.Fire Punchas comedy is something that doesn’t cross the mind of any healthy person, but Fujimoto’s ability to make a series like this have genuinely lighthearted moments without watering down its darker elements, all while producing a cogent, character-driven narrative isa gift that people deserve to experience in more ways than one.
