This is not a review, but a notice to those interested in the works of Tatsuki Fujimoto, author of Chainsaw Man, Fire Punch, Look Back, and Goodbye, Eri, all of which are required readings/viewings. He produced a bunch one-shot stories from ages 17-26, which have now been animated in very competent, creative ways. I can’t think of any other author who casually gets great adaptations made of random one-shots he made in his youth. Here’s the trailer.

They show Fujimoto’s range from early on. Most of his stories have in common the theme of reaching out for connection in an absurd world that often renders that connection fleeting, insufficient, or meaningless.

There’s also Look Back, a heartbreaking tale about ambition, connection, and regret. Merely mentioning what inspired it would be a spoiler. The movie has been out for a while, but I haven’t seen it yet. Probably because I’ll have to gear myself up to experience that story again.

The Chainsaw Man movie for the Reze arc is already online, and that’s a must see. This is both a fantastic and a terrible time to be a Fujimoto fan: fantastic because plenty of his stuff is getting adapted well. Terrible because the second half of Chainsaw Man, still ongoing, is unnecessary and generally bad.

Now, let’s hope that they also adapt the utter insanity that are Fire Punch and Goodbye, Eri. That last one has a plot point that I remember vividly because it made me burst out laughing with its daring, absurd brilliance.

Inio Asano, Minoru Furuya, Tatsuki Fujimoto… Asano broke down after Punpun, Furuya retired in 2016, and I suspect that Fujimoto may quit after he concludes Chainsaw Man however he decides to do so. I’ll have to check out what Shūzō Oshimi (The Flowers of Evil, Blood on the Tracks, Inside Mari, Happiness) has been doing recently.