Who is Himeno in Chainsaw Man? (2024)

Chainsaw Man has become an ultra-popular yet highly subversive manga/anime series by author Tatsuki Fujimoto, who has a rather distinct approach when it comes to designing and using his characters. Unlike many shonen authors, Tatsuki Fujimoto won't hesitate to twist, subvert, and kill off even his most beloved characters, such as Himeno the devil hunter in Chainsaw Man. Himeno didn't actually last that long — in fact, she didn't even survive Season 1. But there's still plenty to know about who Himeno is and why fans like her.

Himeno appeared fairly eary in the manga and anime versions of Chainsaw Man as one of several devil hunters whom Denji met, and in the context of this brutally twisted anime, Himeno served a few roles. She was a friend, big sister figure, comedian, and a subversion all at once, and in a remarkably tight time frame, too. Before her untimely demise fighting the villains, Himeno showed many sides of herself as a person and devil hunter, and she had an appreciable impact on the people around her, including Aki Hayakawa, another character of note.

Who is Chainsaw Man's Himeno?

What is her Origin Story, Who are her Friends, & What are her Powers?

Unlike some Chainsaw Man characters, who had flashback sequences to show their grim origins, Himeno did not get a flashback depicting her girlhood or origins. So, she is somewhat mysterious as a supporting character, though it's evident that details of Himeno's early life aren't that relevant to her character arc. For the most part, Chainsaw Man fans only need to know and understand Himeno in the present, as a professional devil hunter fighting alongside characters like Denji anad Power.

It's possible that Himeno's experiences in her formative years profoundly shaped her personality and worldview, but evidently, that's meant to be left to viewers' imaginations. That also means Himeno lacks a sob story, a sharp contrast with Denji and Aki. Through character dialogue, Chainsaw Man fans learn that Himeno has gone through not just one, but five different partners as a member of the Public Safety Commission, and that not only builds up Himeno's character but also estasblishes how dangerous this line of work can be.

Of course, "monster hunter" anime like Chainsaw Man and Demon Slayer make it clear that fighting supernatural threats is never easy. But still, having a character like Himeno go through five partners who all got killed helps reinforce how tough this job is, so no fan can blame Himeno for adjusting her mentality to cope with that harsh reality. Himeno has her warm side, but she is also deeply pessimistic about her job and co-workers, and she generally expects her co-workers to die before their time.

She has hardened her heart, but despite that, Himeno still feels and shows genuine kindness toward others. As for her combat powers as a devil hunter, Himeno may lack specialized weapons and is certainly not a fiend like Power, but she does have a noteworthy devil contract to make use of. Himeno has forged a pact with the ghost devil, a fairly powerful devil that demanded Himeno's right eye in exchange for her ability to manifest the ghost devil at will.

The ghost devil is usually invisible and intangible, but can still deal serious damage to Himeno's enemies, or simply restrain them, such as when a ghostly arm restrained Power in that cursed hotel. If necessary, Himeno can sacrifice more of her body or even surrender her entire body to summon more of the ghost devil and thus wield more of its power. That's what Himeno did when fighting the villainous Akane Sawatari and Katana Man, Denji's shonen-style rival and enemy. Aside from that, Himeno also has appreciable skills in unarmed combat.

Himeno has a small handful of meaningful relationships in the story of Chainsaw Man. To begin with, she is good friends with her fellow devil hunter Aki Hayakawa, one of her most recent partners. Himeno even encouraged Aki to take up smoking, something they have in common as friends, and while Himeno fears that Aki will soon die in his job, Himeno hopes he will survive and find happiness in life. Notably, Aki also imitates Himeno's attitude about newly recruited devil hunters, fearing that they are signing up just to get themselves killed.

That was why Aki pummeled Denji after meeting him, roughly encouraging Denji to quit this dangerous job and not get himself killed as a mere teenager. Himeno has a fairly positive relationship with Denji as well, showing him kindness and cooperating with him on various missions, mainly their mission to take out the noxious eternity devil in that hotel. Himeno warmly supports Denji as a friend and co-worker, which helped Denji see her in a more positive light, even if he was mainly fixated on his mysterious boss, Makima.

However, Himeno has a somewhat negative relationship with Kobeni, willing to roughly restrain Kobeni if the latter goes out of control. Meanwhile, Himeno has an intense dislike for Makima, and perhaps not just because of Makima's creepy, condescending outward persona. It's possible that Himeno sensed the truth about Makima the control devil, and that subtly served as a premonition for Makima's true nature later in Chainsaw Man. In more than one way, Himeno was a warning to Denji about the dangers of his job, danger that came from devils and his boss Makima alike.

How Does Himeno Subvert the Big Sister Role in Chainsaw Man?

Himeno May Have Big Sister Characteristics But She Totally Flips The Script

It didn't take long for manga and anime fans to realize that Chainsaw Man is a highly subversive story in darkly funny ways, but it's not all just for the sake of comedy or being provocative. In some ways, the twisted heroes of Chainsaw Man are refreshing and honest about traditional anime archetypes, and that includes Himeno. She is a mentor and protector figure for Denji, albeit briefly, fulfilling a similar role as anime characters like Kyojuro Rengoku and Satoru Gojo,while also being a big sister for Denji thanks to her warm, caring ways.

Just the way Kyojuro was like a cool big brother for Tanjiro with their relatively small age gap, Himeno was like a big sister for Denji rather than a boss or mother figure, which means a lot for an only child like Denji. However, as a true Chainsaw Man character, Himeno also perverts the big sister archetype, sometimes in funny ways and sometimes in deep ways. On a surface level, Himeno shatters the image of a clean, dignified big sister by vomiting into Denji's mouth, and she is also a smoker.

These are behaviors not often seen from any shonen anime character, let alone a young woman or big sister figure. Himeno also tried to seduce Denji later that evening in her apartment, only for Denji to decline, and that's not a scene anime fans are used to seeing with a big sister figure. But it's not just surface-level subversion that makes Himeno an interesting big sister for Denji. Gross humor aside, Himeno reminds anime fans that even beloved big brothers and sisters are still flawed and sometimes vulnerable or foolish people who make mistakes.

In fact, Himeno's character design suggests that it's naïve for an anime like Demon Slayer to write characters like Kyojuro Rengoku as a flawless, ideal hero who can do no wrong, despite losing to Akaza the demonic villain. Kyojuro's design suited Demon Slayer's needs, to be sure, but in the meta landscape of anime, perhaps this realm of fiction needs more balanced and humanized big brothers/sisters who aren't so perfect after all. This important subversion doesn't always call for stomach-turning humor or PG-13 seduction scenes, but the point is the same, and Himeno makes that point well during her brief time in Chainsaw Man.

How Does Himeno Provide a Balanced Perspective on Devil Hunting?

While Himeno's character may rewrite the rules on big sister figures in shonen anime, she is far more balanced as a devil hunter, and she doesn't have many surprises in store for Chainsaw Man fans in that regard. Overall, Himeno is the middle ground between her more extreme co-workers, with Hirokazu Arai being almost too clean and straight-laced as a devil hunter, and Power the horned fiend being a brutal subversion of shonen heroines and monster hunters.

Himeno may say that it's necessary to "have a few screws loose" to succeed in this dangerous line of work, but no matter her words, Himeno is evidently the wisest, most reliable, and most balanced devil hunter, vomit and seduction aside. Thus, Himeno helps stabilize Chainsaw Man's cast of wacky devil hunters by being kinder and more reliable than Power, but also being tougher and less naïve than Hirokazu.

All this proves that while this rough career has given her some mental scars and made "a few screws loose," Himeno never let her job break her, nor did she lose herself to the darkness or become a brutal subversion of shonen heroines. All that makes her a balanced, nuanced, and compelling Chainsaw Man hero who doesn't rely on a single outlandish gimmick to be memorable and fun to watch.

Chainsaw Man

TV-MA

Anime

Action

Adventure

Following a betrayal, a young man left for dead is reborn as a powerful devil-human hybrid after merging with his pet devil and is soon enlisted into an organization dedicated to hunting devils. When his father died, Denji was stuck with a huge debt and no way to pay it back.

Release Date

October 11, 2022

Cast

Kikunosuke Toya , Ryan Colt Levy , Tomori Kusunoki , Suzie Yeung

Main Genre

Anime

Seasons

1

Studio

MAPPA

Creator

Tatsuki Fujimoto

Main Characters

Denji, Makima, Pochita, Power, Himeno, Kishibe

Number of Episodes

12

Network

Crunchyroll

Streaming Service(s)

Crunchyroll , Hulu