What do you think of Makima in Chainsaw Man

let’s take a moment of silence for three seconds…

Because Makima is just too iconic.

I don’t often come across female characters like Makima. She’s smart, powerful, mysterious, effortlessly cool, and yeah, gorgeous. (Okay, her looks might be the least of her strengths, but they’re still a vibe.) After watching a ton of anime, Makima stands out because she doesn’t fit the usual tropes. She’s not whiny, not lost in her own head, not cutesy or fake, not tsundere, not emotionless, not a spoiled rich girl, not a domineering older sister, not a sultry glasses-wearing archetype, not a childhood friend, not an “onii-chan” fangirl, not a soft loli, not boy-crazy, and definitely not pandering to the fanservice crowd.

She’s versatile as hell. She can be the friend crying with the MC during a movie. She can be the absolute badass who wipes out enemies with max swagger. She’s the gentle hug when the protagonist’s lost himself. Or the sly, playful bad girl with just a glance. She’s a rock-solid leader for her team, but she’ll hurt anyone for the greater good. She’s a cold-blooded killer who doesn’t flinch at death—hers or anyone else’s. Getting eaten? No big deal. She balances life and death, good and evil, all in one package.

Makima chases her ideals, dreams of equality, but Denji? Oh, he just wants to be her dog. And let’s be real—she’s worth that “Good Girl” praise. Everyone wants to be Makima’s dog, so how dare Denji sneak ahead of the line!

Denji still likes Makima. She’s such a standout character—vivid, unique, and let’s be honest, incredibly charismatic for most of the story from a reader’s perspective. Her main issue? The mistakes she made were way too heavy. But when Denji, the primary victim of her actions, doesn’t even hate her, it’s honestly tough for readers to fully dislike her.
To get this, we need to zero in on a key moment: Kobeni’s line that shifts Denji’s worldview—“Isn’t that just normal?” That line is a game-changer. If you’re familiar with Tatsuki Fujimoto’s broader work, like Goodbye, Eri, this gets easier to unpack. Let me borrow Goodbye, Eri’s lens to explain: Makima leaves Denji with a “movie” (memories) of a happy life. No matter how brutal reality gets, these beautiful illusions linger in Denji’s mind. These moments form the core of Denji’s “human” soul, giving him the strength to face a crushing reality—even one where those illusions are shattered.
This explanation is pretty concise, but it assumes you know Goodbye, Eri. If that’s a bit tough to follow, let me unpack it without the Eri framework: There’s this fan art (not canon, but spot-on) that captures Makima’s biggest impact on Denji. It’s not just about “class mobility” (let’s be real, Denji’s still broke as hell in Part 2). It’s that Makima gave Denji—a kid numbed by lifelong abuse and emotional stunting—a brief moment to breathe. That respite let him, for the first time, build the foundation of his “humanity.” It gave him a chance to confront his childhood trauma and develop the resilience to face an even harsher reality.
From Makima’s perspective, those “good days” were just setup to hurt Denji more effectively. But for Denji, beyond the “oasis in a desert” effect, it was a chance to accumulate a soul—and, weirdly enough, to reconcile with his parents. “Accumulate a soul” is straightforward, but “reconciling with parents”? What does that mean? Eating Makima was reconciliation? In real life, an abused kid doing that would be called unhinged, not reconciled.
Here’s the deal: after Denji’s talk with Kobeni and seeing people support him as Chainsaw Man, whether he realizes it or not, he’s made a choice. To keep living, he decides to remember Makima only as the “good boss/good mom” figure. Notice how his memories of her are all positive? Is that messed up? Yeah, absolutely. It’s not much different from the memory suppression he developed after his dad’s death—a psychological defense mechanism. Denji’s still far from “normal.” His fearlessness, rooted in the numbness Fujimoto saw in documentaries about abused kids, keeps him distant from that.
But if you compare Part 2 Denji to Part 1 Denji, his soul’s “weight” has grown. In that soul, you’ve got the pure, untainted memories of Aki and Power, alongside a carefully curated, idealized version of Makima. That’s what keeps him going.

I just need to gush about Makima for a sec because she’s so captivating. As the Control Devil, her power is off the charts—she kills without a second thought, exudes this chilling ruthlessness, and has Denji wrapped around her finger with this soft, icy detachment. Yet, she’s obsessed with Chainsaw Man, craving an equal relationship and a genuine embrace. That duality is wild.

Then there’s those final chapters. The fight with Chainsaw Man, where she wrecks him and just… sits there on the ground. That moment hit me hard. She felt so lonely, so isolated. It’s like you could feel the weight of her existence. As a female fan, I see Makima fulfilling this “main character” fantasy in a way that’s so different from someone like Reze, who’s destined to be the “unforgettable crush” for a lot of guys. Makima’s not that—she’s complex, commanding, and unapologetic. I’m honestly obsessed with her.

it’s not surprising at all why Denji’s head over heels for Makima. The dude had nothing—so broke he’s selling organs, working shady jobs, and even gets betrayed and killed by his debtor. Then Makima swoops in, gives him a hug, and basically says, “Follow me, I’ve got your back. Work for me, and I’ll make sure you’re fed, housed, and eating that toast with jam you’ve been dreaming about.”

Makima’s got that perfect mix of being badass, powerful, and gorgeous. Tons of 2D characters who are both strong and good-looking get huge fanbases,