Latest news with #Chihiro
New York Post
7 days ago
- Entertainment
- New York Post
How much are the cheapest tickets to see Billie Eilish on her 2025 tour?
Vivid Seats is the New York Post's official ticketing partner. We may receive revenue from this partnership for sharing this content and/or when you make a purchase. Featured pricing is subject to change. We're 'Happier Than Ever.' Billie Eilish recently added a whole new slew of North American dates to her ongoing international 'Hit Me Hard and Soft Tour,' which officially launched in September 2024. She'll now tour all over the U.S. this October and November. While out and about, the 'Birds of a Feather' singer is scheduled to headline at Belmont Park's UBS Arena on Saturday, Oct. 25 and Sunday, Oct. 26. Other notable stops on the run include gigs in Orlando (Oct. 14), Philadelphia (Oct. 23) and San Francisco, where she'll close the trek with back-to-back gigs at the Chase Center on Nov. 22 and Nov. 23. At past 'Hit Me Hard and Soft' shows, the 23-year-old icon took 20ish tracks to the stage. According to Set List FM, those include hits from her recently-released album like 'Chihiro,' 'Birds of a Feather' and 'Wildflower' along with stone cold classics 'bad guy,' 'What Was I Made For?' and 'Happier Than Ever' among others. 'Over 22 songs, Eilish took the crowd — and me — on an emotional rollercoaster,' the New York Post's Brooke Matalon shared in a glowing review of one of Eilish's October 2024 MSG concerts. '…the way she was able to seamlessly shift the energy from making you want to dance to making you want to cry was truly impressive.' Want to see the gifted vocalist live? As of now, tickets are available for all upcoming North American 'Hit Me Hard and Soft Tour' dates. At the time of publication, the lowest price we could find on tickets was $169 including fees on Vivid Seats. Other shows have seats going anywhere from $181 to $506 including fees. For more information, our team has everything you need to know and more about Billie Eilish's 2025 'Hit Me Hard and Soft Tour' concert dates below. All prices listed above are subject to fluctuation. Billie Eilish North American tour schedule 2025 A complete calendar including all North American tour dates, venues and links to the cheapest tickets available can be found here: Billie Eilish tour schedule Ticket prices start at Oct. 9 at the Kaseya Center in Miami, FL $205 (including fees) Oct. 11 at the Kaseya Center in Miami, FL $230 (including fees) Oct. 12 at the Kaseya Center in Miami, FL $207 (including fees) Oct. 14 at the Kia Center in Orlando, FL $356 (including fees) Oct. 16 at the Lenovo Center in Raleigh, NC $184 (including fees) Oct. 17 at the Lenovo Center in Raleigh, NC $197 (including fees) Oct. 19 at the Spectrum Center in Charlotte, NC $187 (including fees) Oct. 20 at the Spectrum Center in Charlotte, NC $169 (including fees) Oct. 23 at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, PA $322 (including fees) Oct. 25 at the UBS Arena in Belmont Park, NY $326 (including fees) Oct. 26 at the UBS Arena in Belmont Park, NY $302 (including fees) Nov. 7 at the Smoothie King Center in New Orleans, LA $186 (including fees) Nov. 8 at the Smoothie King Center in New Orleans, LA $181 (including fees) Nov. 10 at the BOK Center in Tulsa, OK $220 (including fees) Nov. 11 at the BOK Center in Tulsa, OK $214 (including fees) Nov. 13 at the Moody Center in Austin, TX $425 (including fees) Nov. 14 at the Moody Center in Austin, TX $506 (including fees) Nov. 18 at the PHX Arena in Phoenix, AZ $220 (including fees) Nov. 19 at the PHX Arena in Phoenix, AZ $197 (including fees) Nov. 22 at the Chase Center in San Francisco, CA $281 (including fees) Nov. 23 at the Chase Center in San Francisco, CA $256 (including fees) (Note: The New York Post confirmed all above prices at the publication time. All prices are in US dollars, subject to fluctuation and, if it isn't noted, will include additional fees at checkout.) Vivid Seats is a verified secondary market ticketing platform, and prices may be higher or lower than face value, depending on demand. They offer a 100% buyer guarantee that states your transaction will be safe and secure and your tickets will be delivered prior to the event. Still curious about Vivid Seats? You can find an article from their team about why the company is legit here. Billie Eilish international tour schedule 2025 Before the second North American leg of Eilish's tour, she'll play huge venues all over Europe. For a closer look, here's where you can find her overseas this summer. Billie Eilish set list According to Set List FM, here's what Eilish played at her first night at MSG on Wednesday, Oct. 16. 01.) 'CHIHIRO' 02.) 'LUNCH' 03.) 'NDA' (shortened) 04.) 'Therefore I Am' 05.) 'WILDFLOWER' 06.) 'when the party's over' (live looped vocal layers intro) 07.) 'THE DINER' 08.) 'ilomilo' 09.) 'bad guy' 10.) 'THE GREATEST' 11.) 'Male Fantasy' 12.) 'SKINNY' 13.) 'TV' 14.) 'bury a friend' 15.) 'Oxytocin' 16.) 'Guess' (Charli XCX cover) 17.) 'everything i wanted' 18.) 'lovely / idontwannabeyouanymore / ocean eyes' 19.) 'L'AMOUR DE MA VIE' 20.) 'What Was I Made For?' (with Finneas) 21.) 'Happier Than Ever' 22.) 'BIRDS OF A FEATHER' Billie Eilish new music On May 17, 2024, the 23-year-old singer-songwriter released her third studio album 'Hit Me Hard and Soft.' The record's compact ten tracks run the gamut of achingly personal acoustic music ripped straight from Eilish's diary to undeniably dancey, breathy shoegaze pop. At the risk of sounding cliché, we can't help but gush over the album's excellent three lead singles: the ethereal 'Wildflower,' seductive (if a bit raunchy) 'Lunch' and tropical anthem 'Birds Of A Feather.' Still, each track needs to be pored over to give Eilish the credit she deserves. 'The Greatest' is an angsty singalong that has 'grab your lighter and wave it with thousands of adoring fans' written all over it. 'L'amour De Ma Vie' takes a hard left turn at the 3:35 mark and turns a lush ballad into a tripped-out disco reminiscent of The Voidz. 'The Diner' is discomfiting baroque pop that will make your skin crawl in the best way possible. 'Bittersuite' is a soundscape that tests the limits of Eilish's seemingly endless vocal talents. If you want to give the record a go (and we recommend you do!), you can find the sneakily adventurous 'Hit Me Hard and Soft' here. Huge stars on tour in 2025 Live music is having a bit of a moment. Case in point, here are just five icons on the road you won't want to miss these next few months. • Sabrina Carpenter • Lorde • Olivia Dean • Tate McRae • Gracie Abrams Who else is out and about? Take a gander at our list of all the biggest artists on tour in 2025 to find the show for you. This article was written by Matt Levy, New York Post live events reporter. Levy stays up-to-date on all the latest tour announcements from your favorite musical artists and comedians, as well as Broadway openings, sporting events and more live shows – and finds great ticket prices online. Since he started his tenure at the Post in 2022, Levy has reviewed a Bruce Springsteen concert and interviewed Melissa Villaseñor of SNL fame, to name a few. Please note that deals can expire, and all prices are subject to change
Time of India
22-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Time of India
Kagurabachi: The Viral Meme Sensation Taking the Manga World by Storm
is a new shonen about Chihiro Rokuhira, a young swordsmith's apprentice on a quest for bloody vengeance against a Yakuza family. Its debut chapter (Sept 2023) delivered crisp artwork and over‑the‑top swordplay, earning positive reviews as a strong start to a battle‑shonen story. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now But what really shot Kagurabachi into the spotlight was not just the story itself – it was the internet. Long before most people even read chapter one, fans on social media began joking that Kagurabachi was 'the greatest manga of all time'. This started on platforms like X (formerly Twitter), TikTok and , in a tongue‑in‑cheek trend now known as 'Kagura Bachi Glazing'. typically show Chihiro holding his magical katana (from a color preview released mid‑September), with overlaid text wildly exaggerating the manga's greatness. For example, one early tweet proclaimed 'Kagura Bachi is greater than Boruto,' using the '>' symbol as if Kagurabachi literally outranked other big titles. As the KnowYourMeme site explains, these jokes 'overhyp[e] the manga as one of the greatest of all time, worthy of being included in 'The Big Three' (One Piece, Naruto and Bleach)'. Another meme depicts heroes from One Piece , Jujutsu Kaisen (JJK), Berserk and Hunter x Hunter 'bowing' to Kagurabachi, joking 'Yes, Kagura Bachi' as if welcoming a new king. By mid‑September, the trend was exploding. Hundreds of TikTok videos with #KaguraBachi racked up views: one user got ~289,000 views in two days for a comedic Kagurabachi clip. TikTokers joked about 'peak writing lessons' or a supposed anime by studio Ufotable (jokes since debunked). Even Reddit caught on: meme posts like 'Kagurabachi > [Your Favorite Series]' hit the front pages of anime and humor subreddits (r/Okbuddybaka and r/Kagurabachi) with thousands of upvotes. And the wave reached outside fan circles: the Singapore government's environmental agency cheekily used a Kagurabachi sword‑fight panel on Facebook to urge citizens to 'join the fight' against waste, noting 'Our battle against waste will be hard‑fought…' (with a hidden #Kagurabachi tag). These jokes often follow a simple formula: start with '>' (meaning 'better than') and compare Kagurabachi to big hits. For example: 'Kagurabachi > One Piece? Sakuraba— (okay, maybe not Dragon Ball Super)' became a popular meme format. Fans also made mock covers of Kagurabachi video games or anime adaptations, complete with fake screenshots and episode titles. In short, Kagurabachi became less just a manga and more a communal running gag – a 'shared fiction' meme so elaborate it drew comparisons to last year's Goncharov phenomenon. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now What did this meme storm actually do for Kagurabachi as a manga? Quite a lot. The buzz drove curious readers to try it out. Kagurabachi's first chapter quickly shot up the charts: on Shueisha's Manga Plus app it outread even One Piece and Spy x Family , landing in the top 10 within days. In fact, AnimeCorner reports Kagurabachi 'became one of the most‑read manga' on Manga Plus right after release. Reviewers agreed the content wasn't a complete joke – it earned praise for its flashy action. One review called chapter one 'the best I've read in any new generation of manga since Sakamoto Days ,' noting its brutal fight scenes and dark humor. So far, the actual story has lived up reasonably well: Gizmodo calls it a 'strong start' with 'crisp artwork' and promise. But Gizmodo also cautions we've seen only a few pages, so the long‑term quality remains to be proven. In other words, the memes set sky‑high (and silly) expectations, but Kagurabachi isn't literally the best manga ever – it's just a solid new title riding a tidal wave of internet hype. Even so, the frenzy has made this Kagurabachi manga widely known. By early 2024 it hit over 2.2 million copies in print, putting it on track with big names (for comparison Jujutsu Kaisen had similar numbers early on). In summary: Kagurabachi's rise is a case study in modern fandom. A perfectly competent new series became mainstream not only by its own merits but thanks to memes. Platforms like Twitter/X, TikTok, and Reddit turned the release into a running gag – fans joked 'Kagurabachi is already better than One Piece and JJK,' made dozens of parody posts, and even convinced themselves it had an anime or games ready. The memes dragged new readers in, turning Kagurabachi into one of the most viral manga of 2023. In a world where internet humor spreads instantly, this sword‑and‑sorcery tale shows that even a remorseless revenge saga can become a playful viral sensation – all because fans decided to glaze it into greatness. Key Kagurabachi Meme Tropes: Credits: Reddit 'Kagura Bachi > Boruto/One Piece' – Posts comparing Kagurabachi favorably to established hits, often using a '>' sign. Posts comparing Kagurabachi favorably to established hits, often using a '>' sign. 'Big Three, redefined' – Jokes placing Kagurabachi alongside One Piece, Naruto, Bleach as the new elite of manga. Jokes placing Kagurabachi alongside One Piece, Naruto, Bleach as the new elite of manga. Bow to Kagurabachi – Imagery of heroes from One Piece, JJK, Berserk, etc. bowing or stepping aside in awe of Chihiro. Imagery of heroes from One Piece, JJK, Berserk, etc. bowing or stepping aside in awe of Chihiro. Faux adaptations – Fake anime posters, video game covers or news snippets (often joking Ufotable or other studios are involved) created to seem real. These memes may have started as a joke, but they proved powerful. Thanks to them, Kagurabachi isn't just a new title in Jump anymore – it's a phenomenon . The memes made fans ask 'What's the fuss?' and many discovered a surprisingly solid manga under the internet's playful madness. As 2023's example of a truly viral manga, Kagurabachi shows how social media culture can launch even a dark revenge series into pop-culture chatter overnight.
New York Post
20-05-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Post
Billie Eilish extends tour, adds two Long Island shows. Get tickets
Vivid Seats is the New York Post's official ticketing partner. We may receive revenue from this partnership for sharing this content and/or when you make a purchase. Featured pricing is subject to change. Billie Eilish is back for another round. The 'Chihiro' hitmaker just announced she's extended her 'Hit Me Hard and Soft Tour,' which began in September 2024. This time around, the nine-time Grammy winner is slated to make a pair of Long Island stops. She'll be at Belmont Park's UBS Arena on Saturday, Oct. 25 and Sunday, Oct. 26. 'heard you wanted more shows,' the 23-year-old shared on Instagram. 'HIT ME HARD AND SOFT: THE TOUR. PART 2!!!!!!!!!' On the first leg of the international trek, Eilish regularly performed 20+ tracks at all shows. Based on our findings at Set List FM, she took cuts from 2024's 'Hit Me Hard and Soft' like 'Chihiro,' 'Birds of a Feather' and 'Wildflower' as well as fan favorites like 'bad guy,' 'What Was I Made For?' and 'Happier Than Ever.' '[She] is the perfect combination of grunge and softness and it was mesmerizing to see an artist that can project such a range of emotions — hitting us hard and soft — and command an arena-sized crowd the way she did,' the New York Post's Brooke Matalon wrote in a rave review of Eilish's Oct. 16, 2024 MSG gig. 'If I could, I would go back and relive the concert a million times over but for now, I will live vicariously through the excessive amount of videos I took on my phone,' she continued. If you'd like to see Eilish live in 2025, tickets are available as of today. Fans Avocados can purchase tickets for all upcoming Billie Eilish shows on sites like Vivid Seats; the official on-sale for the newly-announced leg of the 'Hit Me Hard and Soft Tour' is Friday, May 22. Vivid Seats is a secondary market ticketing platform, and prices may be higher or lower than face value, depending on demand. They have a 100% buyer guarantee that states your transaction will be safe and secure and will be delivered before the event. Billie Eilish North American tour schedule 2025 A complete calendar including all North American tour dates, venues and links to buy tickets can be found below. Billie Eilish international tour schedule 2025 Before the second North American leg of Eilish's tour, she'll play huge venues all over Europe. For a closer look, here's where you can find her overseas this summer. Billie Eilish set list According to Set List FM, here's what Eilish played at her first night at MSG on Wednesday, Oct. 16. 01.) 'CHIHIRO' 02.) 'LUNCH' 03.) 'NDA' (shortened) 04.) 'Therefore I Am' 05.) 'WILDFLOWER' 06.) 'when the party's over' (live looped vocal layers intro) 07.) 'THE DINER' 08.) 'ilomilo' 09.) 'bad guy' 10.) 'THE GREATEST' 11.) 'Male Fantasy' 12.) 'SKINNY' 13.) 'TV' 14.) 'bury a friend' 15.) 'Oxytocin' 16.) 'Guess' (Charli XCX cover) 17.) 'everything i wanted' 18.) 'lovely / idontwannabeyouanymore / ocean eyes' 19.) 'L'AMOUR DE MA VIE' 20.) 'What Was I Made For?' (with Finneas) 21.) 'Happier Than Ever' 22.) 'BIRDS OF A FEATHER' Billie Eilish new music On May 17, 2024, the 23-year-old singer-songwriter released her third studio album 'Hit Me Hard and Soft.' The record's compact ten tracks run the gamut of achingly personal acoustic music ripped straight from Eilish's diary to undeniably dancey, breathy shoegaze pop. At the risk of sounding cliché, we can't help but gush over the album's excellent three lead singles: the ethereal 'Wildflower,' seductive (if a bit raunchy) 'Lunch' and tropical anthem 'Birds Of A Feather.' Still, each track needs to be pored over to give Eilish the credit she deserves. 'The Greatest' is an angsty singalong that has 'grab your lighter and wave it with thousands of adoring fans' written all over it. 'L'amour De Ma Vie' takes a hard left turn at the 3:35 mark and turns a lush ballad into a tripped-out disco reminiscent of The Voidz. 'The Diner' is discomfiting baroque pop that will make your skin crawl in the best way possible. 'Bittersuite' is a soundscape that tests the limits of Eilish's seemingly endless vocal talents. Clearly, we're fans. If you want to give the record a go (and we recommend you do!), you can find the sneakily adventurous 'Hit Me Hard and Soft' here. Huge stars on tour in 2025 Live music is having a bit of a moment. Case in point, here are just five icons on the road you won't want to miss these next few months. • Sabrina Carpenter • Lorde • Olivia Dean • Tate McRae • Gracie Abrams Who else is out and about? Take a gander at our list of all the biggest artists on tour in 2025 to find the show for you. This article was written by Matt Levy, New York Post live events reporter. Levy stays up-to-date on all the latest tour announcements from your favorite musical artists and comedians, as well as Broadway openings, sporting events and more live shows – and finds great ticket prices online. Since he started his tenure at the Post in 2022, Levy has reviewed a Bruce Springsteen concert and interviewed Melissa Villaseñor of SNL fame, to name a few. Please note that deals can expire, and all prices are subject to change
Forbes
19-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Forbes
Billie Eilish Returns Multiple Smashes To The Charts In A Big Week For The Singer
Billie Eilish lands multiple entries on Billboard's alternative charts this frame, led by the ... More returning "What Was I Made For?" and "Chihiro." QUEBEC CITY, QUEBEC - SEPTEMBER 29: (EXCLUSIVE COVERAGE) Billie Eilish performs onstage during Billie Eilish HIT ME HARD AND SOFT: THE TOUR Kick Off at Videotron Centre on September 29, 2024 in Quebec City, Quebec. (Photo byfor Live Nation) Billie Eilish already ranks among the most successful musicians of all time on Billboard's alternative charts, despite the fact that she's only 23. While these rankings have only been around for a relatively short period of time — at least compared to other tallies — with just a handful of albums, the singer-songwriter has produced an impressive number of hit singles, including several that have maintained historic stays on both sales and streaming lists. As is often the case with Eilish, she appears on several of the rosters dedicated to alternative music in the United States once again. This frame, she manages to bring some of her most successful tunes back to different-but-related rankings as people keep buying and streaming her most popular works. Eilish returns to both the Alternative Digital Song Sales and Alternative Streaming Songs charts this week. She occupies multiple spaces on each ranking as some tracks rise, while others make their way back to the tallies, which focus on specific forms of consumption, but in each case, only alternative tunes. She claims a pair of spaces on the Alternative Digital Song Sales chart, doubling her count as one cut reappears. She raises her total to three current smashes on the Alternative Streaming Songs ranking as a different title bounces back onto the busy tally. Eilish's highest-rising returning favorite comes on the Alternative Digital Song Sales roster. "What Was I Made For?" — her Oscar-winning ballad from the movie Barbie — reenters at No. 8. It has previously led the charge, and if it can manage just one more frame on this list, it will mark a full year on the chart. "Chihiro," a track from Eilish's most recent album Hit Me Hard and Soft, bounces back onto the Alternative Streaming Songs ranking this frame, but only just barely. The cut, which previously stalled in the runner-up spot, lands in last place – at No. 25 – this week. "Birds of a Feather," easily the biggest hit from Hit Me Hard and Soft, is still a huge win on both alternative tallies. It returns to the second-place spot on the Alternative Streaming Songs chart and climbs to No. 4 on the Alternative Digital Song Sales list. "Wildflower," the most recent single promoted from the full-length, grows once more. It ascends from No. 9 to No. 6 on the streaming-only alternative ranking this time around.
Asia Times
27-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Asia Times
Japanese anime draws on religious traditions
I have spent years studying and teaching Japanese anime, exploring how its narratives intertwine with cultural, philosophical and religious traditions. One of the most compelling aspects of Japanese anime is its ability to merge thrilling action with deep spiritual and ethical questions. 'Demon Slayer: Mugen Train,' which shattered Japanese box-office records for earnings and ended up as 2020's highest-grossing film in the world, is a prime example of how anime engages with these profound themes. With 'Demon Slayer' continuing its global success, it is an opportune time to examine how it intertwines Buddhist, Shinto and samurai traditions into a narrative of heroism, impermanence and moral struggle. Anime often explores spiritual and philosophical questions by drawing on Japan's religious traditions to examine themes of fate, self-sacrifice and the struggle between desire and duty. Hayao Miyazaki's 'Princess Mononoke,' for example, follows Prince Ashitaka, who is cursed by a demon and must journey to find a cure. His quest leads him into a conflict between the industrialized Irontown, which seeks to expand by clearing forests, and the spirits of the natural world, including the Deer God, a divine being that governs life and death. The film reflects Shinto principles by portraying nature as sacred and inhabited by 'kami,' or spiritual beings. It emphasizes harmony between humans and the environment and the consequences of disrupting this balance. Scholar Melissa Croteau, in her book 'Transcendence and Spirituality in Japanese Cinema,' notes how Miyazaki's films use nature spirits to critique modernity's detachment from the sacredness of the environment. A still from 'Spirited Away' in which 10-year-old Chihiro must learn to navigate an unseen world. Image: CC BY-NC Similarly, his 2001 animated film 'Spirited Away' reflects animist ideas in Japanese culture, where spirits are believed to inhabit natural elements and even everyday objects. Set in a mysterious Japanese bathhouse filled with 'kami,' 10-year-old Chihiro, once shy and afraid of change, learns to navigate this hidden world and transforms along the way. A key moment in the film is the arrival of a polluted river spirit, which appears as a filthy, sludge-covered creature but is revealed to be a once-pristine river god, burdened by human waste. This scene embodies the animist belief that natural entities have their own spirit and must be respected. It also reinforces an environmental message: When nature is polluted or mistreated, it loses its vitality, but with care and reverence it can be restored. 'Neon Genesis Evangelion,' a landmark Japanese anime television series that aired from 1995 to 1996, engages with deep philosophical ideas, particularly existentialist questions of identity and purpose. Set in a postapocalyptic world, the series follows 14-year-old Shinji Ikari, who is recruited to pilot a giant biomechanical weapon called an evangelion to defend humanity against mysterious beings known as Angels. As Shinji and his fellow pilots struggle with their roles, the series explores themes of isolation, self-worth and the challenges of forming close, meaningful relationships. It draws from both Buddhist and Gnostic thought, which emphasize a focus on inner spiritual knowledge and the belief that clinging too tightly to the material world causes suffering. Evangelion portrays suffering as arising from attachment and the inability to form meaningful relationships. What sets 'Mugen Train' apart is its focus on the internal conflicts of its characters, symbolized by their battles with demons. These demons represent human suffering and attachment, themes deeply influenced by Buddhist thought. At the heart of the film is Kyojuro Rengoku, a demon slayer who embodies unwavering selflessness and honor. Rengoku's flame-breathing forms. Rengoku's fire-based fighting style is deeply symbolic. In Japanese culture, fire represents both destruction and renewal. The Kurama Fire Festival, held annually on Oct. 22 in Kyoto, is a Shinto ritual where large torches are carried through the streets to ward off evil and purify the land. Similarly, Buddhist goma fire ceremonies involve priests burning wooden sticks in sacred flames to symbolize the eradication of ignorance and desire. Rengoku's own techniques reflect this duality: His flames cleanse the world of evil while signifying his unwavering spirit. Goma fire ritual. Bushido, the samurai code of honor, underpins Rengoku's character. Rooted in Confucian ethics, Zen Buddhism and Shinto beliefs, this code emphasizes loyalty, self-sacrifice and duty to protect others. His mother's teaching – 'The strong must protect the weak' – guides his every action, reflecting the Confucian value of filial piety and the moral obligation to serve society. Bushido's connection to Zen Buddhism, with its focus on discipline and acceptance of impermanence, further shapes Rengoku's unwavering resolve, while its Shinto influences reinforce his role as a guardian upholding a sacred duty. Even approaching death, Rengoku remains steadfast, accepting impermanence, or 'mujō,' a fundamental Buddhist principle that sees beauty in life's transience. His sacrifice teaches that true strength lies in selflessness and moral integrity. Opposing Rengoku is Akaza, a demon who embodies the destructive consequences of clinging to power and immortality. Once human, Akaza became a demon in his obsession with strength, unable to accept the impermanence of life. His refusal to acknowledge death aligns with Buddhist teachings that suffering arises from attachment and desire. Scholars such as Jacqueline Stone have explored how Buddhist texts portray clinging to existence as a fundamental source of suffering, a theme vividly reflected in Akaza's character. Visual elements reinforce Akaza's symbolism. His body is covered in tattoos reminiscent of 'irezumi,' traditional Japanese body art historically associated with crime and hardship. In Edo-period Japan, tattoos were often used to mark criminals, branding them as outcasts from society. Even today, irezumi remains stigmatized in many parts of Japan, with some public bathhouses, gyms and swimming pools barring individuals with visible tattoos due to their historical association with the yakuza. In contemporary anime, tattooed characters frequently symbolize a troubled past or inner turmoil, reinforcing Akaza's role as a figure trapped by his own suffering and destructive path. Akaza's irezumi visually conveys his entrapment in cycles of suffering, reinforcing his contrast with Rengoku's liberating flames. The battle between Rengoku and Akaza is more than a fight between good and evil; it is a clash between two worldviews – selflessness versus egoism, acceptance versus attachment. 'Mugen Train' taps into universal human struggles, making its themes resonate far beyond Japan. The film's exploration of impermanence, moral duty and the pursuit of meaning contributes to anime's broader legacy as a medium that entertains while provoking deep philosophical reflection. As 'Demon Slayer' continues to captivate audiences worldwide, evidenced by social media buzz around its new projects and the ongoing enthusiasm of fans, its success underscores anime's ability to blend action with profound themes. Whether through Rengoku's selfless courage or Akaza's tragic downfall, 'Mugen Train' offers a timeless meditation on what it means to live with purpose and integrity. Ronald S. Green is a professor in and chair of the Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies, Coastal Carolina University. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
