While the Chainsaw Man anime and manga might seem like a straight-forward Shonen series at first, it doesn’t take long for it to prove a winding and intricate narrative. Allies become enemies, realities are shattered, and Denji is left to figure out how to best rectify the situation with his Chainsaw Devil powers. If you’re new to the series though, you’re likely wondering: Who is the villain in Chainsaw Man, and what is their master plan?
Fortunately, we’ve read through the entire series and know exactly who’s pulling all the strings. Be forewarned though: There are *Massive Spoilers Ahead.*
Chainsaw Man’s Real Villain Explained
While the Gun Devil acts as the central antagonistic force for the majority of the series, it is revealed near the end of the Public Safety Arc that Makima is the real villain in Chainsaw Man.
Little beknown to Denji and most every other member of Public Safety, Makima was actually the Control Devil and was using people’s fear of the Gun Devil to amass followers and grow more powerful. This is why she was capable of convincing or manipulating people, Fiends, and Devils alike into doing her bidding throughout the entire series, and she did so in order to gain enough power to overcome the Gun Devil should it ever be used against her.
This is also the real reason why so many factions try to kill Makima or take Denji from her throughout the series. Being the Devil who is made stronger by the fear of control or conquest, Makima has a steady supply of fear that constantly makes her more powerful. This is only increased by the types and number of Devils she has control over, and having control over Denji – who is host to the Chainsaw Devil, which can consume and erase any devil he defeats – would make her quite literally unstoppable.
As such, the different factions that tried to kill her or Denji were trying to keep her from becoming too powerful to defeat. Unfortunately, they weren’t able to kill her or Denji before Makima’s master plan came to fruition.
Why Does Makima Want to Make Denji Hopeless?
Speaking of which, it’s the master plan that Makima enacts which serves as the central conflict for the end of the Public Safety saga.
Seeking to control the Chainsaw Devil so that she can erase any Devils she sees as adversaries, she needed to confront Denji at his most powerful. She could then attempt to defeat him, and if she did, she would be sure she was stronger than the Chainsaw Devil and would become capable of controlling it.
To unleash this side of him though, she would need to convince Denji to abandon his humanity and allow the Chainsaw Devil to fully manifest. To that end, she repeatedly crushed his spirit by isolating him and forcing him to either watch or take part in the deaths of his closest friends. This ended up working, and near the climax of the series, Denji gives full control to the Chainsaw Devil so that it can fight Makima and the Devils she controls.
Hopefully this cleared up who the villain is in Chainsaw Man. For more on the series, check out any of the related articles down below. We’ve also got a ton of other Chainsaw Man explainer guides, including ones on whether or not Aki Dies, whether or not Power dies and whether or not Denji and Power get together.
