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Few anime franchises are bigger right now thanDemon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba. The series became a massive hit in 2019 after the breakout success of the anime, and with the manga selling over 220 million books worldwide and theInfinity Castlemovie a box office smash, it hasn’t slowed down in the slightest.
Demon Slayer’s massive success and popularitycan’t be understated, and it’s to the point that people say it’s replacedBleachin the “Big 3” ofshonenanime. It’s easy to see why people would want that to happen, but the idea ofDemon Slayerjoining the Big 3 is inherently flawed, and thinking otherwise is nothing but a disservice to its legacy.
Why Demon Slayer Fans Want It To Replace Bleach In The “Big 3”
Has Demon Slayer Truly Surpassed Bleach?
What first needs to be discussed is why people want to forceDemon Slayerintothe Big 3 of anime, to begin with.Demon Slayeris one of the most popular anime franchises in the world right now and is only going to get bigger with time, so it makes sense to think that’s enough to earn it a spot in the Big 3.
What also helps is howDemon Slayermore than earns its massive popularity. With a story filled with plenty of heart that’s relatively short and an anime adaptation with some of the most gorgeous visuals in modern anime,Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba’s presentation in both the anime and the manga perfectly justifies its massive success, and that’s impossible to argue with.
Everything, of course, goes back to how modern fans perceive the Big 3’s biggest punching bag:Bleach.Bleachwas always the least popular of the Big 3 for some notably controversial writing choices in its later arcs, and whileBleach: Thousand-Year Blood Warhas done a lot to make it relevant again, it still tends to fall short ofOne PieceandNaruto.
That common perception ofBleachis the main reason why people even think the Big 3 can be changed;Bleachbeing seen as the weakest of the Big 3 means that, to many,Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba’s ever-growing success has allowed it to replaceBleachin the Big 3, and asDemon Slayercontinues to grow, that sentiment will only grow with it.
Demon Slayer Can’t Be In The “Big 3” Because It’s Not All About Popularity
What Anime Fans Get Wrong About The “Big 3”
It’s easy to understand why people wantDemon Slayerin the Big 3, but the entire idea is flawed from conception.One Piece,Naruto, andBleachweren’t labeled the Big 3 just because they were popular; they became the Big 3 because they were the definitiveshonenstories of the 2000s and were the ones keeping the culture alive from the moment they first premiered.
Demon Slayerhas gained similar cultural significance, and that’s great to see, but that’s entirely irrelevant to the Big 3, asDemon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaibacan’t replaceBleachin the Big 3 when the group isn’t about modern anime, and that’s never going to change, no matter how bigDemon Slayergets.
Anime Fans Wanting Demon Slayer In The “Big 3” Is Nothing But A Disrespect To Bleach’s Legacy
Why Anime Anime Fans Need To Show Bleach Respect
Above all else, the biggest reason why the idea ofDemon Slayerentering the Big 3 doesn’t work is because of what it says aboutBleach. As previously mentioned,Bleachis the least popular of the shows that make up the Big 3, so whenever the idea of a new Big 3 comes up,Bleachis always the first show people decide to get rid of.
All of that is nothing but a disrespect toBleach, of course. Not only are many ofBleach’s criticisms incredibly overblown, but even with them, it was still one of the biggest anime of the 2000s, and it’s still incredibly popular 20 years after the fact, no matter what some people might say.
It’s easy to see why that’s the case, of course. For all ofBleach’s faults, it’s still a series that does a great job of selling itself as a cool action anime with a fun cast, and the incredible quality ofBleach: Thousand-Year Blood Warsells that idea better than ever by being the best representation ofwhat makesBleachso great.
For all ofBleach’s faults, it’s still a series that does a great job of selling itself as a cool action anime with a fun cast.
Bleachhas far more going for it than people give it credit for, so whenever people talk aboutDemon Slayeror something else replacing it in the Big 3, the discussion is nothing but a disingenuous means of downplaying both its quality and how fundamental it was to anime culture in the 2000s, and that’s nothing but a disservice toBleachand its legacy.
Why Demon Slayer Doesn’t Need To Be In The “Big 3” To Be A Legend
Demon Slayer Is Doing Just Fine As It Is
The idea ofDemon Slayerjoining the Big 3 is flawed from conception, especially for what it says aboutDemon Slayer. Everyone knows about the prestige and legacy attached to the Big 3, so when people attempt to force the idea ofDemon Slayerbeing in the Big 3, it comes across as them saying that’s the only way for it to be a legendary anime.
When people try to force the idea ofDemon Slayerbeing in the Big 3, it comes across as them saying that’s the only way for it to be a legendary anime.
Demon Slayerdoesn’t need that, though, as with its incredible writing and visual presentation, the series has quickly become one of thebest shows in modern animewith all the popularity needed to go along with it.Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaibais a rare modern anime with the cultural impact to mirror the Big 3, and there’s little reason to object to that.
Anime fans have often twisted the idea of the Big 3 to refer to popular anime in general, but it’s always been more about a specific time in anime history. That needs to be respected, and through that, it needs to be understood thatDemon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaibais doing more than fine without being forced to be part of it.
