Introduction
Chainsaw Man is a Japanese anime series that has been around since 2018.
It is one of the most popular Japanese anime series and has millions of viewers around the world. If you haven’t seen it yet, you should check it out.
What Makes Chainsaw Man Stand Out?
Many things contribute to making Chainsaw one of the best anime series.
Firstly, you have the classic theme of good against evil. Couple that with excellent graphics and an exciting concept and you are onto a winner.
A lot of effort has gone into character development. This contributes to making Chainsaw Man one of the best manga animes ever made.
Is Chainsaw Man Worth the Hype?
Yes, it is. Even people who are not normally into manga anime like to follow this series. It has something for everyone.
As well as featuring strong male characters, it also features many powerful female characters.
When Does Chainsaw Man Take Place?
This has had many viewers confused.
Chainsaw Man is set back in 1997. However, it is not the 1997 we would remember.
The series takes place in an alternative timeline. The Soviet Union still exists, but many historical events such as AIDS, the Holocaust and nuclear weapons have been erased.
Strong Female Characters In Japanese Manga
Chainsaw Man is not the only Japanese manga series packed with strong female characters. Compared to many other animated series from other countries, Japanese manga has many stronger female characters.
It surprises many as outsiders often think of Japanese culture as chauvinistic. But, if you have visited Japan, you will know that this is not the case. Women play a vital role in Japan.
Perhaps this is why we come across many strong female characters in Chainsaw.
Let’s get to know the top female characters in Chainsaw a bit better.
Top 15 Chainsaw Man Female Characters
1 Makima
This is one heck of a lady. In the series, she is the main antagonist and embodies the Control Devil.
Makima has the ability to manipulate anyone who fears her. She can also take on the ability of any devil that she comes into contact with.
Is Makima immortal? Yes, Makima is immortal which means she can’t die. Her ability to recover from any injury makes her one of the most dangerous and feared characters in the series.
But, that does not mean there is not a soft side to Makima. She appears to be in love with Denji. However, if you take a closer look at the relationship, you have to ask yourself if Makima is genuinely in love with Denji.
Perhaps she just likes his powers instead.
2 Power
Power is a girl with red and yellow eyes.
It has to be said Power is one of the most powerful fiends in Chainsaw Man.
Although it is not clear how she got her power, we learn early on that she has the blood of the Blood Devil.
This gives her the ability to manipulate blood and create weapons from blood. If she has an injury, she drinks blood to heal herself.
In the series, she is one of the main protagonists and Denji’s friend.
3 Reze
Reze is another powerful female character and one of the more unusual ones.
She possesses the power of the Bomb Devil. Her powers allow her to make bombs and explosives out of any part of her body. A useful skill to have in this alternative universe.
Reze is also very accomplished in general combat and espionage. As the series goes on, you realise she was sent to kill Denji. But, instead of killing him, she falls in love with him.
It is kind of a sweet story that runs through the series.
4 Quanxi
Quanxi has some amazing powers given to her by the Katana Devil.
Not only is she a brilliant athlete, but she can also create swords and wield swords from her body.
Originally, she leads a group of assassins working for the Chinese government, but quickly betrays them and joins forces with Makima.
5 Nayuta
This is another devil lady to watch out for. Although she is not as powerful as Makima, she is still very powerful.
Nayuta is the reincarnation of the Chainsaw Man which many call the Chainsaw Devil.
She has the unique ability to erase the existence of any devil using her chainsaw. Nayuta comes across as innocent and sweet, but is anything but.
In the second series of Chainsaw Man, she is the main focus of the plot and you realize she is the daughter of Denji and Makima.
6 Cosmo
Cosmo is one smart lady – she has all of the knowledge of the university.
What is Cosmo’s superpower? I think that Cosmo has one of the more interesting superpowers in Chainsaw Man. She has the ability to send a person’s mind into her own mind. Strange power but very effective.
Her victims are left in a catatonic state. According to Cosmo, they can only think about Halloween until they die.
7 Minami Nakano
The Minami Nakano character first turns up in the Chainsaw Man Buddy Series.
When she first appears, she is a Devil Hunter and becomes involved in the love triangle between Quanxi and Kishibe. Eventually, she resigned as a Public Devil Safety Hunter.
Minami has amazing sword skills, but most of the time after resigning, she only walks around with her sword on her hip.
Her big round eyes make her look super cute and innocent. As you can imagine, she is anything but.
If there are more series, we will likely see Minami Nakano in more prominent roles.
8 Pingtsi
If you ask fans of Chainsaw Man, they will tell you that Pingtsi is one of their favorite characters. It makes you wonder why. Let’s take a closer look and find out more.
In Chainsaw Man, Pingtsi is a Fiend. But, she has no contract and her powers are slightly weaker than other female Chainsaw characters.
That does not mean she does not have any powers. Here is one power you find interesting. Actually, it is a power I would not mind having myself.
Pingsti’s ability is all in her ponytail. She can turn her ponytail into a monocle or magnifying glass.
Her principal enemy is Kishibe and his band of contracted devils. She seems to have the ability to see into the future and know what is going to happen to certain devils.
In many ways, you can say Pingsti’s character is shrouded in mystery.
9 Sawatari Akane
Sawatari Akane is unusually a blond anime girl. She is from Japan and is a former civilian Devil Hunter. She goes onto ally herself with the Gun Devil and with Katana Man. Sawatari also has a contract with the Snake Devil.
In the series, you often see her wearing shorts and a hoodie. With her blonde hair, many followers mistake her for an American or European. But as we pointed out, she is Japanese.
The Snake Devil controls Sawatari and summons special abilities. Some of her abilities are a bit gruesome.
For instance, she can use her abilities to devour the Ghost Devil only leaving his head.
She also appears to have the ability to restore when the command Spit it out is used. Unfortunately, this causes her nose to bleed which probably means she makes a personal sacrifice when this command is used.
Sawatari can also summon the tail of the Snake Devil and use it in different ways. An example of this can be seen when she uses her powers against Koveni Higashiyama.
For some reason, she can’t use her abilities when her hands are tied.
10 Asa Mitaka
Asa Mitaka turns up in the Academy Saga.
Asa is a high school student when she becomes the host of the War Devil Yoru. Although she becomes a host for the War Devil, she still clings onto her human personality.
Out of all of the female characters in Chainsaw Man, she is perhaps the most unsociable one. She is a friend of Denji at Fourth East High School and develops a crush on him.
It is only after meeting Fami, she becomes a Devil Hunter and a member of the Chainsaw Man Church.
Her War Devil host gives her the ability to create weapons from almost anything around her. Be aware this includes other human beings and living things.
From what we know of Asa so far, she can only create minor weapons such as swords and hand grenades. But, we have to say that there are hints that in the future, sweet and rather innocent-looking Asa Mitaka, can perhaps create more substantial weapons.
11 Fami
Despite her big innocent eyes, Fami is possessed by the Famine Devil. As you may have guessed, the Famine Devil can evoke the fear of starvation and even famine.
Fami is a member of the Four Horseman but manages to pose as a student at the Fourth East High School. Like many other students at the high school, she is a member of the Devil Hunter Club.
In the Academy Saga, she is one of the main antagonists and principal antagonist of the Falling Devil.
Fami’s abilities are varied. They include enhancing healing which can lead to the person receiving the healing gaining strength and size. She uses this ability to heal Yuko after she is injured by a weapon created by Asa Mitaka.
One of her less pleasant abilities is enslavement. She can use this ability to do her bidding and even turn into smaller effigies of themselves.
Teleportation is another one of Fami’s abilities. All she has to do to use this ability is to snap her fingers. A useful ability to have.
12 Kobeni Higashiyama
Well-dressed Kobeni Higashiyama is not one of the bravest characters in The Chainsaw Man, but she certainly deserves a mention.
She is a former Public Safety Devil Hunter who joins Makima’s Special Squad as a new recruit. After the battle against Darkness Devil in Hell, she is forced to resign.
Kobeni has a few interesting special abilities but is often too timid to display them. Despite her timidness, she manages to single-handedly defeat Karana Man in his human form and even force more powerful Akane Swatari to retreat.
Her slight physique means she displays amazing agility managing to avoid an attack from Snake Devil by running across his body.
13 Fumiko Mifune
Funiko Mifune is another pupil at Fourth East High School. But, studying is not her only mission at the school. She is also the bodyguard of Denji and works tirelessly to protect him from any threats.
She first appeared as a supporting character in the Academy Saga but has since taken on more prominent roles.
Her secret weapon is a baseball bat. Put a baseball bat in her hands and you quickly appreciate Fumiko Mifune is a serious opponent in any fight.
Not only is Funiko good with a baseball bat. Her firearms profiency is second to none. Her secret superpower is perhaps her better-than-average reflexes.
14 Michiko Tendo
Michiko Tendoappears in the first season. She is a Public Safety Devil Hunter based in Kyoto.
You rely on Michiko as always being very smartly dressed but her hair often looks a mess.
She has excellent personal protection skills. Michiko joined up as a Public Safety Hunter after an encounter with the Gun Devil. Although the Gun Devil managed to have a major impact on her life, Michiko has gone on to thrive.
She often backs up other characters in major plots. It is clear that this tall woman from Kyoto has many skills appreciated by the rest of the team.
15 Princi
Princi is one of the more unusual characters in the Chainsaw Man manga series.
In the series, she represents the fear of spiders and is a Devil Hunter with Tokyo Special Division 4.
You can say Princi is a very unique Devil Hunter. As well as possessing standard devil abilities, she can walk on walls and ceilings. She can even use her spider limbs to pierce enemies to death or seriously injure them.
Just like a spider, Princi can hide underground and attack before quickly slipping back down again.
Princi also have the ability to summon. If you watch the series, you will notice that she can unzip a zipper on her body and summon Makima. When you watch the series, it is not clear if it is only Makima she can summon. Perhaps we will find out more if future series become available.
Standard Devil Abilties
Most of the characters in the Chainsaw Man have their unique powers and abilities. When you watch the series, you will alos notice that most have what can only be described as general abilities. In other words, many of the Devil Hunters have abilities they share with others. It must come in handy.
What Are Standard Devil Abilties?
Fear
Standard Devil Abilties include things like fear empowerment. This is perhaps one of the abilities the Devils rely most heavily on.
Clearly humans are afraid of the devils. The downside is that being afraid of the Devils does not do the human favours. Devils feed on the fear of humans and often turn it to their advantage.
If you feel fear around a Devil or show them fear, Devils go onto become stronger. If you can avoid this, it reduces the chances of the Devils growing stronger.
Blood Consumption
Once injured, the fastest way for Devils to heal themselves is by consuming blood.
This can be the blood of anybody including humans. When the Devils cosnume blood, they quickly heal and regenerate.
Also, it is worth mentioning the flesh of the Devil can be fed to other creatures. When this is done, they grow stronger and become more fierce.
Corpse Procession
Yes, you guessed it – Devils can posses both corpses and bodies.
If this happens, a person or Fiend’s ego is almost always harmed or damaged. There has only been one instance when an ego stayed intact.
This was when the War Devil took over Asa Mitaka’s body while preserving her personality.
Reincarnation
Reincarnation is a concept that often comes up in Chainsaw Man.
When a Devil dies on Earth, he or she is reincarnated in Hell. Should a Devil die in Hell, he is reincarnated on Earth.
This means the lifecycles of the Devils go on and on. Perhaps that is not the sort of repeated life pattern you want to be stuck in.
Other interesting abilities include Contract Creation and Flesh Power Boost.
Final Thoughts
Chainsaw Man is one of the top mangas. If you have not had the opportunity to watch it yet, you should do so.
It is a manga series which appeals to all ages and has become a cultural phenomena right across the world. Hopefully, in the future, the team behind Chainsaw bring us more interesting female and male characters and daring plots with unexpected twists and turns.