The third season of ‘Kimetsu no Yaiba’ has started strong and if some little seeds were already dropped during the previous arc, little by little we are teaspoons of lore and learning more about breathing techniques, the hierarchy of demons and also about the Kamado family.
A few weeks ago we could see in theaters ‘Kimetsu no Yaiba: Heading to the Blacksmiths’ Village’, a film that compiled the end of the second season and the first chapter of the third. So far so good, but the introduction of a character at the end of the film left manga fans a bit confused, because perhaps the anime has started to change some things.
Be careful, from here there are spoilers for season 3 of the anime and especially for the ‘Kimetsu no Yaiba’ manga!
Let’s rewind a little
The importance of lineage is not a new trope in anime, and ‘Kimetsu no Yaiba’ was not going to be less. The series has already introduced us to Tanjiro’s father in flashbacks, and at the time we saw that Tanjuro Kamado I was going to bring a tail.
Not much is known about him yet, but it has become abundantly clear that Muzan is somewhat afraid of the Breath of the Sun that Tanjuro performed. and that now also knows Tanjiro. And on several occasions Muzan has made reference to Hanafuda’s earrings, which he doesn’t seem to like too much either.
The explanation comes a bit in the form of Yoriichi Tsugikuni, a legendary demon hunter from the Edo Period whom we have been able to see through visions and flashbacks, a true prodigy who also created the Breathing Techniques. And yes, he almost managed to defeat the demon king.
Yoriichi’s abilities allowed him to see through Muzan and realize that he possesses seven hearts and five brains that move throughout his body…so hitting a vital point is difficult. Still, Yoriichi managed to inflict near-fatal injuries on him and left him traumatized for life after this encounter.
One of the things that can be blamed on ‘Kimetsu no Yaiba’ is that many characters resemble each other and that Koyoharu Gotoge falls a bit into “same face syndrome” when drawing. so it is even though the Kamados look suspiciously like Yoriichi: no, they’re not family.
Not the red hair, not the Hanafuda earrings, not the mark on the forehead. Although it was one of the theories that anime fans handled the most, in the third season we have already been able to see another flashback that resolves the issue. The connection between Tanjiro and Yoriichi is Sumiyoshian ancestor of the Kamado who was a close friend of the demon hunter.
sumiyoshi (which is even more similar to Tanjiro) learned the mystical dance of Breathing the Sun by watching his friend Yoriichi, who also saved his life on one occasion. And in order to honor his legacy, he began wearing Hanafuda earrings and passing the dance down to his descendants… until we got to Tanjiro Kamado a few centuries later.
what comes now
The Breath of the Sun it is the perfect weapon against Muzan and the Upper Moons, and we have already seen in the anime how devastating it is. Right now Tanjiro is looking for a new weapon in the Blacksmiths Village, but he already has the best one up his sleeve because this breath was specifically created to kill the king of demons.
So even though Tanjiro and Yoriichi aren’t related by blood, they do have a very important bond that has allowed Tanjiro to inherit the Breath of the Sun (and save his neck thanks to it). And it seems that the anime wants to make this connection even clearer with some changes compared to the manga.
The first chapter of season 3 has ended with a slightly confusing vision, because Tanjiro sees Yoriichi next to Tokito. This scene does not occur like this in the manga, but it is very possible that ufotable I have decided to change some elements to introduce the story of the Breathing of the Sun in a more organic way and little by little now that it is time to talk more about Yoriichi and his importance in the story.
Yoriichi’s figure is still a great mystery within the anime, so with this small change it is already being considered that we will be able to see more of his story and opens the door for Ufotable to also alter the narrative a bit with changes of this style to give more impact to certain moments. Or if we listen to some rumors about what is the Yoriichi that Tanjiro sees, it can also mislead readers.
Because since Gotoge’s manga is already closed, it also has that advantage when it comes to adapting and creating a little more hype for fans. And very well what they do.
In Espinof | All the anime series that we can see with Spanish dubbing on Crunchyroll