Chainsaw Man – Season 1 Episode 4 “Rescue” Recap & Review

Rescue

Episode 4 of Chainsaw Man begins with a brief overview of Power’s backstory involving Meowy and the Bat Devil. After her excursion, she’s shown running down a street. Power questions why she’s wasting her time trying to protect a cat. She wants to save Meowy because she loves how pleasant her blood feels.

In the present, Power wakes up to Denji holding her and Meowy. Denji informs her via hand gestures that he only saved her because he wanted to feel her chest. Power tells Denji he can rub her chest, but before Denji can, one of his arms gets shot off and consumed by the Leech Devil. Denji asks Power if she can move, and she says not even an inch. Denji tries to transform into Chainsaw Man but can’t because he’s running out of blood.

Denji approaches the Leech Devil, who is upset that Denji killed her boyfriend, the Bat Devil. The Leech Devil will let him off the hook if he becomes her new boyfriend, but she doesn’t plan to let Power and Meowy live. Denji refuses and engages in combat with the worm devil. The worm devil mocks Denji. She reveals that she and the Bat Devil shared a dream of wanting to kill and eat all of humanity. Denji says he won’t stop fighting.

They continue fighting. After some blows, the Leech Devil stabs Denji through the chest with her tongue. Before she could consume him, Hayakawa arrived and summoned a demonic fox. He has the fox free Denji from the Leech Devil’s grasp by having it chomp the Leech Devil’s head off. The fox asks Hayakawa if they can consume the Leech Devil and Hayakawa permits it.

Hayakawa confirms the extermination of the Leech Devil while beside three Public Safety operatives. He assigns the rookies the task of safely evacuating everyone from the area. Hayakawa grabs Denji and plans to have him, and Power debriefed. He tells someone to send Meowy to the veterinarian for a checkup. Denji awakens in a hospital bed as Hayakawa tells him Denji that the doctors reattached his arm.

Denji taunts Hayakawa for being friendly with the wolf devil. However, Hayakawa tells him Devil Hunters form contracts with devils to fight against them. Hayakawa reveals in exchange for his blood; the Fox Devil offers him its strength. Hayakawa confirms that they’ve been tracking Denji and Power’s movements through surveillance cameras.

He noticed that the Bat Devil’s house contained Denji’s spilled blood. Hayakawa has suspicions of Denji and Power. However, he recalls his time spent discussing with the people Denji saved from the Bat Devil. Hayakawa tells Denji that if he listens to him, he won’t rat out Power and him to Makima and the higher-ups. Denji accepts Hayakawa’s offer as Hayakawa departs his room to free Power from her handcuffs.

One of Hayakawa’s allies isn’t sure it’s the best decision to trust Power, but Hayakawa insists they give her another chance. Later that day, Hayakawa visits Makima and informs her about what had occurred between Denji, Power, and the Bat Devil. Makima thanked Hayakawa for his report. Makima tells Hayakawa it was odd that Denji and Power went farther from their assigned route.

Hayakawa makes an excuse to cover for them, but Makima says leaving the approved area is against regulations. Hayakawa says that Makima should overlook the scenario because no one died, and they defeated two devils. Before he goes, Makima notices that Hayakawa’s starting to get influenced by Denji’s personality, but he denies it and leaves.

In the morning, Hayakawa and Denji go about their lives. Suddenly, Power breaks Hayakawa’s door and remarks how his home is pitiful. Makima tells Hayakawa that she’s forcing Power to live with him and Denji. Makima feels it would be off for Power to reside in the office. Power promised her that she would be on her best behavior. Unfortunately, that was a lie, as Power caused Hayakawa and Denji some issues.

At night, Power enters the bathroom while Denji cleans it. Power reminds Denji about their raunchy deal. She gives him three squeeze attempts. Although she didn’t plan on allowing Denji to feel her chest, she explained why. The episode concludes with Denji declaring Power as an angel.

The Episode Review

This chapter of Chainsaw Man had a nice blend of thrills and action while offering a slice of humor. Seeing Denji fight off a devil without his abilities was incredible and impressive. The anime also highlights some of Hayakawa’s skills. It’s intriguing how much Hayakawa’s relationship with the Fox Devil mirrors Denji’s companionship with Pochita. It makes you question the origins behind their meet-up.

At the same time, Hayakawa is gradually growing fond of Denji’s company. While he still finds Denji an ignorant child with terrible goals, he admires his slightly heroic spirit. Fans will enjoy seeing how their relationship blossoms further as the series continues. Hayakawa aside, Power developed thanks barely to Denji’s brave act to save her and Meowy.

Besides that, there were some issues with this episode. While the fight between Denji and the Leech Devil looked astonishing, there were small moments where Denji’s movements felt sluggish and jarring. Although the episode tries to explain how Hayakawa tracked Power and Denji, the situation feels unnatural. Mappa should’ve cut some slice-of-life scenes to give us more details about Hayakawa’s relationship with the Fox Devil.

Otherwise, this was a hilarious entry with intense fights and jaw-dropping visuals. While the cliffhanger will leave viewers mixed for apparent reasons, it’ll be fun seeing how the Hayakawa household holds up with Power there. Hopefully, the upcoming episodes will continue delivering more lore and beautiful fights.