Demon Slayer’s mangaka Koyoharu Gotouge didn’t have much faith in Tanjiro due to him being extremely normal. Tanjiro Kamado is inarguably one of the most beloved shonen protagonists of all time.
His unparalleled bravery, kindness, level-headedness, hardworking nature, and optimism in the face of even the most dire situations have endeared him to millions of fans. Moreover, unlike other shonen protagonists, he also has no urge to play it cool, or make a name for himself to the detriment of the people around him.
As a result, fans tend to find him easy to relate to as well which only increases their appreciation for him more. However, mangaka Koyoharu Gotouge once feared that this would be the very thing that would make him unpopular in the fandom.
Demon Slayer mangaka Koyoharu Gotouge wasn’t convinced of Tanjiro’s success due to him being normal
Demon Slayer is one of the most popular mangas of recent times, and the protagonist Tanjiro Kamado is a huge reason behind that. He is honest, hardworking, optimistic, and an extremely loyal friend. At the same time, he is also level-headed and has the perfect mixture of idealism and realism built into him.
This helps him keep his morals high while aptly dealing with the numerous adversities he faces as a Demon Slayer. However, creator Koyoharu Gotouge once feared that this would be a weakness and lead to his downfall.
As per Screen Rant, in an interview published on the MANGA Plus website titled The Making of a Jump Manga! Vol. 5, editor Katayama noted that the mangaka was conflicted about Tanjiro’s character. The reason behind that seems to be the fact that they thought the Demon Slayer protagonist happens to be “too normal”.
I can’t decide if he’s interesting.
However, the editor assured them that the character was interesting enough as it is. Moreover, what the creator worried to be normalcy, would be the very thing that would make people appreciate him more. Safe to say, that is exactly what transpired.
Tanjiro’s normalcy set him apart from other shonen protagonists and was the key to his success
Although mangaka Koyoharu Gotouge worried that Demon Slayer’s protagonist Tanjiro Kamado wasn’t interesting, they couldn’t be further from the truth. Honestly speaking, how many people can watch their entire family getting slaughtered with their little sister turning into a demon and still keep their heads on straight.
Not only that, instead of drawing the most plausible conclusion from the situation that his sister was the one to massacre their entire family in that state, it must have been some other intruder that imposed such a fate upon them.
That too, without knowing heads or tails about demons. Moreover, even in that state, he came up with a strategy to stop a seasoned fighter, the Water Hashira Tomioka Gyu, from killing his sister without any previous knowledge of fighting.
Even stupid good luck takes people so far, and the first episode of Demon Slayer proved that luck wasn’t necessarily on his side. He became a Hashira level fighter through sheer hard work, and braving any difficulties life and his profession threw at him without ever losing his way.
What makes him stand apart is that after facing the same situations day in and day out, even most of the Hashiras, the elite fighters of the Demon Slayer Corps, have become jaded and distrustful. Something they made well known with their behavior towards him and Nezuko.
However, Tanjiro won them over too, with his straightforwardness, honesty, and kind and helpful nature. As such, fans loving such a character was never a matter of question at all. Now, the show is speeding towards a spectacular end with the Infinity Castle Arc set to release later this year.
Demon Slayer is streaming on Crunchyroll.
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