Demon Slayer vol 3 by Koyoharu Gotouge

Tanjiro and Nezuko help the demon doctors fight off two attacking demons, and we see more of the skills Tanjiro has learned in his training.  Later, the two are off to their next assignment, but Tanjiro interrupts a desperate demon slayer trying to get a girl to marry him.  This slayer, Zenitsu, is deathly afraid of demons and fighting, and asks Tanjiro to protect him on his mission.  The two come across a house of demons where a few humans have been abducted.  Outside are two siblings, and their brother is inside the house. Tanjiro and Zenitsu enter to try to save everyone.  They get separated, and Zenitsu, despite his whining, reveals that he has extreme strength and speed, but only while he is sleeping.  Tanjiro battles against the master of the house, who has drums on his body that shift the room and lob devastating attacks.

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Something that became very apparent in this volume is that the magic/special abilities in this world hasn’t really been fully explained. Tanjiro has control over water, but it doesn’t seem to project from him - it’s all about breathing and can help control and give strength to his swing of his demon slayer katana. This volume has Tanjiro using quite a few of his different “forms” in the battle with the major demon inside the house. At that point, he has broken ribs, so his breathing is especially important. The way Tanjiro talks to himself during battles is one of the things that endears him to readers, and this volume is full of inner monologue. Zenitsu is a “love-him-or-hate-him” kind of character. At first, I thought he was extremely annoying, but the ending of this volume turned that all around, and he’s actually a pretty interesting character. This volume ends in the middle of the action - not quite a cliffhanger, but kind of in the middle of a conversation, so definitely have volume four ready to go.

Gotouge’s illustrations are much rougher than other manga, so it does take some getting used to. Action sequences are a little confusing, and there are a lot of them, so readers might find they just have to go with the flow and figure out what’s happening through context clues.

VIZ rates this for Teen, which is appropriate. Some of the demons are pretty frighteningly drawn, and there is violence and blood.

Sara’s Rating: 8/10
Suitability Level: Grades 7-12

Reviews of previous volumes in the series: vol 1, vol 2

Publisher: VIZ Media
Publication Date: November 6, 2018
ISBN: 9781974700547 (Paperback)

​Tags: Rating: 8/10, Suitability: Middle School, Suitability: High School, Manga, Demons, Action Adventure, VIZ Media