Hoooof I’ve been waiting to do this list for weeks
now. Honestly I wanted to post it right
after I saw the movie but it didn’t feel right to do so til I actually reviewed
the thing. But hey, kept ya waiting
huh? And in the time since Demon Slayer’s
latest big screen adventure dropped, the film has skyrocketed past one
milestone after another. It’s already crossed
the $100 Million marker, making it the undisputed Highest Grossing Anime Film
in the US and the 5th Highest Grossing Film Worldwide of 2025 (as of
this writing anyway), beating out major Hollywood blockbusters like Superman
and The Fantastic Four: First Steps. The
movies holding on pretty strong in the Top 10 to and right now it seems like I’m
gushing over it’s financial achievements more than the movie itself…and I am (I’m
a box office nerd too). But the movie
would be doing nearly as well as it is if Demon Slayer wasn’t delivering the
crowd pleasing goods. And now that the
review is up, I can head into Spoiler Alert Territory breaking down my Top 5
Best Moments from Demon Slayer (Kimetsu no Yaiba): The Movie-Infinity Castle
(Part 1) on todays Top 5 Wednesday.
Ok so this has nothing to do with anything in the movie
but let me tell ya: seeing this movie in a packed theater on a Sunday made me
feel so happy to be an Anime fan in this day and age.
This is the crowd you might see for a limited
one night only screening but considering the numbers Infinity Castle pulled its
opening weekend, I can imagine this was happening a lot.
The sheer energy of a crowd of US Demon
Slayer fans made the viewing all the more special, like this was an Avengers:
Endgame level event.
Icing on the
cake?
As I was leaving after the movie,
there was already a line ready to head in for the next screening.
I kinda wanted to cry.
#4-Tanjiro’s Dad: The Mighty Bear Slayer
While backstories interrupting the action was a major
hurdle Infinity Castle had no interest in overcoming, that didn’t mean a couple
of them didn’t have some fun moments.
As
Tanjiro faces off with Akaza, he remembers an incident where his village was
being terrorized by a huge bear and his father took it upon himself to deal
with it.
We get to see Tanjiro’s frail Dad
remind us all he’s still the bad ass Tanjiro would eventually become by
decapitating the beast in what looked like a single stroke of his axe (in truth
it was a dual strike).
It’s one of those
moments that left all in attendance speechless.
#3-Zenitsu Gets Serious
Zenitsu gets a lot of flack and rightfully so.
He’s the whiniest, loudest and most obnoxious
character in all of Demon Slayer.
I
guess since the series is nearing its end, it was finally time to give him not
just a good backstory but also a fight scene that made it hard to tell if he
was actually asleep or not.
His relationship
with Kaigaku is an interesting one given how different their skill sets
are.
But Zenitsu actually has a score to
settle and to cap off one of the best fights in the movie, Zenitsu unleashes a
self taught 7
th Form Thunder Breathing attack that really makes you
rethink his entire character…before remembering what Zenitsu is like 90% of the
time.
Still, he got his time to bring
the thunder properly here.
#2-Akaza’s Backstory
Yeahhhh so this entire sequence stops the movie right in
its tracks at a pivotal moments and goes on way longer than it should.
So why is it #2 on this list?
Because it’s actually good.
Yes I wanted the movie to get back to the big
centerpeice showdown but Demon Slayer does have a penchant for making you care
about the bad guys with heart tugging backstories and Akaza’s might be one of
the hardest to watch.
He went from a boy
who wanted nothing more than to save his Dad to being branded a criminal to getting
a new family to losing said family and slaughtering a Dojo singlehandedly in
revenge.
It runs the gauntlet of emotions
and makes you feel all the more for Akaza’s ultimate fate.
Also, Channing Tatum voices Akaza’s fun
loving master, Keizo, and that just made me chuckle.
He stands out but in the best way and it’s
cool to see A-List Hollywood talent getting in on a dub that’s not a Miyazaki
movie.
#1-Tanjiro and Giyu vs. Akaza
This was it, the fight the entire movie’s promotion
centered itself around and it’s the subtitle of Part 1: Akaza Returns.
For Tanjiro, this is a personal rematch
against the Upper Rank who killed Rengoku back in Mugen Train.
Giyu just happens to be the Hashira along for
the ride.
Whether it’s Giyu vs. Akaza,
Tanjiro vs. Akaza or 2v1, Ufotable lets it all out with this fight.
All three combatants gets ridiculously cool
moments and seeing Tanjiro able to fight on the same level as the Hashira who
recruited him in the first place is cheer worthy in and of itself.
This is easily one of the best fights in all
of Demon Slayer…so just how the hell are they gonna try and top themselves in
Part 2 & Part 3, especially when Muzan gets involved himself?
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