Does Chainsaw Man get less pervy?
EDIT: I recognize that this headline was a little inflammatory. Not trying to make any judgements, just trying to figure out what to expect from the rest of the show. After a few more comments I’ve decided not to continue the show.
**** Spoilers for plot and themes in the first 3 to 4 episodes below ****
I started off really enjoying the setup! A guy who has pretty much nothing suddenly has everything he's dreamed of, even if said dreams were to just be treated like a human being. And he's willing to fight to keep it. He's even expressing a desire to form relationships! Say less, sign me up for 100 episodes.
Ok... he's talking about girls a weird amount but fine, it's anime. Maybe they're even setting this up to be a joke about how the genre has a problem with objectifi-NOPE! We're doubling down baby! Almost every time he opens his mouth, it’s to remind us he's in it for the boobs.
Then the only two women so far both play into Denji's horniness to manipulate him. It feels like we're setting up this shitty "hur dur women use their sexyness to manipulate people" theme which can absolutely fuck off. There's also lingering shots on both girl's bodies pretty frequently, often from the perspective of Denji. It even gets used as shorthand for "he's not listening, just ogling".
Is all of this building to something? Are we going anywhere with this? Does Denji ever realize that his female coworkers are full people, capable of more than sex object status? We almost get there during Meowy's rescue, but he goes straight back to gooner shit the moment there's no active threat. Did I just stop too soon?