Goodbye Eri was the first of Tatsuki Fujimoto’s works that I had read and it was a surreal yet touching experience. It had a unique style and knew how to appeal to my emotions. Yet at the same time it was an absurd story with twists that betrayed my expectations as it likely intended. Till now I still don’t know what it was about but I did get a feel as to why people talk about Tatsuki Fujimoto the way they do.

With Chainsaw Man airing this season, I was on the fence about watching it because of the amount of gore contained in it. Hearing the pitch for Fire Punch, I decided to read it instead to get a feel if I should get into it.

Having binged Fire Punch I am once again unsure of what I just read. I’m not really sure there was actually any progression in the story with Agni constantly taking two steps back after each step forward, somehow becoming more deranged at the end than he was after spending 8 years constantly on fire. Perhaps that was really all there is to Fire Punch, a story of people going mad in a dying world.

Fire Punch reminds me heavily of the story of Dark Souls, characters struggling valiantly against the inevitable end of the world, with no happy endings for anyone who you get involved with. With that analogy, I will also say I really enjoyed the world building and story of Fire Punch, just as I love the story of Dark Souls. Theres something epic about humans struggling against an unavoidable fate much larger than than themselves. The strength of will the characters must have to continue on despite impossible odds, and seeing nothing worth saving.

If nothing else Fire Punch is a good story in the sense that it goes against the expected troupes and remains unpredictable yet believable. It makes sense that Agni is not very smart, he can barely think through the pain of being constantly on fire. It was inevitable that Togata would eventually catch Agni’s flames, hanging around him as long as she did, and it makes sense that she wouldn’t have the same strength of will to survive the flames given what we know about her character. She’s already tired of living and knows that there will be no salvation. There being no Ice Witch and the world having an inescapable fate makes the themes of false religion and faiths so much stronger. Living in a doomed world allows for the madness and self-destructive nature of its inhabitants to come out so much stronger. They don’t act rationally because they are all uneducated and unable to look beyond the present, clinging on to whatever faith will get them to tomorrow assuming it even comes.

Fire Punch was a wild ride and at times I wasn’t even sure if what was going on was really going on. Despite the absurdity of the plot however, it was a powerful manga that’s definitely worth a read. And with that I’mma watch Chainsaw Man.