There is no question that Demon Slayer has become one of the most successful and popular stories since the manga by Koyoharu Gotouge was first released in 2016. The story owes its success to the focus on the themes that sit at the centre of everything: the importance of life, caring for your family and living your life to the fullest. With Season 3 arriving soon, let’s look at what we can expect to see in the new Demon Slayer episodes.
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Both the Demon Slayer manga and anime follow the story of the Kamado siblings, Tanjiro and Nezuko. Tanjiro goes on a mission to become a Demon Slayer and find a cure for Nezuko, who was turned into a demon.
Demon Slayer fans have been waiting for the highly anticipated third season since the Mugen Train movie was released. Finally, a teaser trailer has dropped, and fans are more excited than ever.
The manga was already concluded in 2020, so the story is already set in stone. Nevertheless, let’s look at the new trailer and everything fans can expect to see from the third season of Demon Slayer.
What Happened in the Demon Slayer Season 3 Teaser Trailer?
This teaser trailer for Demon Slayer Season 3 was less of an actual trailer and more of a very brief recap of the first two seasons. Audiences were panned across an unfurled scroll which showed them various critical moments throughout the series while different characters from the anime spoke over one another. As the camera pans to the very end of the scroll, audiences watch as it gets longer and starts to unfurl, indicating that a lot more of the anime will be coming.
The most critical scenes included in the recap that fans took note of were focused on the Mist and Love Hashiras, Muichiro Tokito and Mitsuri Kanroji. While audiences have only met the characters very briefly, it is clear that they both are going to have significant roles in the upcoming season of Demon Slayer.
At the end of the teaser, there are a couple of shots of a masked individual forging a sword. These are more than likely the repairs being done to Tanjiro’s blade, which broke during his battle against the Upper Rank Six demon siblings.
As we got to the end of the scroll, it began to unfurl further, obviously a sign that there would be more coming to the story, and then we were shown a couple of shots of a sword being repaired by masked characters. This might be Tanjiro’s sword, which broke during the fight against the Upper Rank Six demons Daki and Gyutarou.
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The Plot of the Upcoming Season
Seasons 1 and 2
Season 1 of Demon Slayer was split into six story arcs:
- The Final Selection Arc – This arc focuses on what Tanjiro did following the slaughter of his family and how he eventually receives his blade. We meet Sakonji Urokodaki and his two apprentices, who teach him how to be a Demon Slayer and train him so that he will eventually be able to master the Total Concentration Breathing Water Style. He also encounters the Hand Demon.
- The First Mission Arc – this arc takes place over two episodes and is the shortest in the anime. Tanjiro and his sister Nezuko fight a Swamp Demon and encounter Demon Blood Arts for the first time.
- The Asakusa Arc – Tanjiro has his first encounter with the anime’s main antagonist Muzan Kibutsuji, and it is the first time the Twelve Kizuki are mentioned. He meets with a doctor and her assistant, working together to take out two demons.
- The Drum House Arc – During this Arc, Tanjiro and Nezuko meet Zenitsu Agatsume for the first time, and the three of them help to children find their older brother, who has disappeared into a mansion. Along the way, they also meet Inosuke Hashibira and fight a couple of demons together.
- The Natagumo Mountain Arc – Tanjiro and Nezuko are joined by Zenitsu and Inosuke as they make their way towards Natagumo Mountain. While there, they fight the Spider Demon Family and have their first encounter with one of the Twelve Kizuki.
- The Functional Recovery Training Arc – The Kamado siblings are on trial, and Nezuko proves that she can resist the temptation of eating humans. Afterwards, they are taken to recover in the Butterfly Mansion, where Zenitsu and Inosuke already are. Once everyone has properly recovered, they undergo training and are taught how to master Total Concentration Breathing for over 24 hours.
The second season of Demon Slayer is split into 2 Arcs:
- The Demon Train Arc – This Arc was also a film (Demon Slayer -Kimetsu no Yaiba- The Movie: Mugen Train). It focuses on the gang’s mission to kill the Lower Rank One demon, Enmu (the only one who hasn’t been killed) and find the Flame Hashira Kyojuro Rengoku.
- The Entertainment District Arc – Tanjiro and co meet the Sound Hashira Tengen Uzui and join his search for his three wives. While on the quest, they encounter and eventually defeat the Upper Rank Six demons.
Leading up to Demon Slayer Season 3, fans have seen Tanjiro and his friends fight a ridiculous amount of demons, almost die several times, defeat a train, take out a couple of low-ranking members of the Upper Moon Twelve, lose a couple of Harisha’s and finally face off against the Upper Rank Six demons of the Upper Moon Twelve.
Demon Slayer Season 3
The third season of Demon Slayer is expected to focus almost entirely on the Swordsmith Village Arc, given that the official title is Kimetsu no Yaiba: Katanaki no Sato-hen, which translates to Demon Slayer: Swordsmith Village Arc.
The story arc follows directly after the events of the Entertainment District Arc, which is told in chapters 100 – 127 in the manga source material. Fans can expect the upcoming season to run for at least 12 episodes, give or take if they stick directly with the original story told.
With some help from the sound Hashira Tengen Uzai, Tanjiro, his sister and his fellow Demon Slayers, Tanjiro was able to decapitate and kill Gyutari and Daki with minimal casualties. After their victory, which left Tengen down an eye and a hand, the four protagonists began to make their way towards Swordsmith Village. There they hoped to find someone who would be able to repair the damage done to Tanjiro’s sword during the battle against the Upper Rank Six Demons.
After explaining what had happened, the group leaves Tanjiro’s sword with Hataru Hanganezuka, the blade smith who originally forged the weapon that Tanjiro currently wields. Unfortunately for him, while the weapon is still being repaired, the village is attacked by a massive horde of demons and included in their ranks are one or two members of the remaining Twelve Kizuki (the group has dramatically diminished since the main antagonist went on a ruthless murder rampage in Season 1 and took out all the Lower Ranking members).
One of the high-ranking demons that the group encounters can split itself into four and almost instantly regenerate from any attacks against them. Fortunately, Tanjiro and co are not left alone to face the demons and save the village. The Mist Hashira Muichiro Tokita and another member of the Demon Slayer Corps, Genya Shinazugawa, step in before things get too out of hand for the four protagonists. The Love Hashira Mitsuri Kanroji also drops in to offer a helping hand.
It’ll be interesting to see how well the young Demon Slayers handle their next encounter with more powerful members of the Twelve Kizuki in Demon Slayer Season 3.
Character, Cast and Those Responsible for the Anime
Demon Slayer would not be the same without its talented artists and the actors that voice the many beloved characters.
Characters and Cast to Expect In Demon Slayer Season 3
Tanjiro Kamado is the main protagonist of the anime series. He’s a very compassionate and optimistic individual (the epitome of anime protagonists). He is brought to life through the brilliant voice performance by Natsuki Hanae (Japanese) and Zach Aguilar (English), who are both coming back for Demon Slayer Season 3. In addition, his younger demon sister Nezuko has a more childlike personality and is voiced by Akari Kitô (Japanese) and Abby Trott (English).
Yoshitsugu Matsuoka (Japanese) and Bryce Papenbrook (English) will return as the voice of the proud and crass Inosuke Hashibira. In contrast, the cowardice Zenitsu Agatsuma will be voiced by Hiro Shimono (Japanese) and Aleks Le (English). The two of them have grown very close to the Kamado siblings over the course of the manga and anime and have both grown out of their less enjoyable traits.
Muzan Kibutsuji is the ruthless and unempathetic demon king and the show’s main antagonist. He often goes on murder sprees where he takes out innocents or even the very people that work for him when they disappoint him too many times. He will again be voiced by Toshihiko Seki (Japanese) and Greg Chun (English).
Hotaru Haganezuka is a swordsmith who works with the Demon Slayer Corps. He often wears a mask, possesses a lot of anger and shows very little care for anything besides his swords (he usually gets quite angry at the people who break his swords, so the upcoming interaction between him and Tanjiro is going to be very entertaining). He is voiced by Daisuke Namikawa (Japanese) and Robbie Daymond (English).
Kagaya Ubuyashiki is the leader of the Demon Slayer Corps and is often referred to as Oyakata-sama. He is a distant relative of Muzan Kibutsuji and is cursed with a mark that is slowly killing him, making him unable to become a Demon Slayer. However, he shows deep care for every corps member, remembering every single one of them and regularly visiting the graves of deceased members. He is voiced by none other than Toshiyuki Morikawa (Japanese) and Matthew Mercer (English).
The Water Hashira Giya Tomioka is seemingly emotionless; however, he is quite sympathetic and cares for the Demon Slayers that train under him, as shown when he shows Nezuko mercy at Tanjiro’s insistence. He is voiced by Takahiro Sakurai (Japanese) and Johnny Yong Bosch (English).
The Love Hashira Mitsuro Kanrohi is a very caring and excitable individual. She became a Demon Slayer so she could find a husband that was stronger than herself, a rather tricky task given just how strong she is, but she is lethal when fighting demons. She is finally returning to audiences screens and will once again be voiced by Kana Hanazawa (Japanese) and Kira Buckland (English)
The young Mist Hashira Muichiro Tokito was once kind and compassionate. Sadly, he became indifferent and aloof after the death of his twin brother, losing his memories after experiencing the traumatic event. However, after meeting and interacting with Tanjiro, he regained some of his memories and started behaving much more maturely. He is also a descendant of Kokushibo, the Upper Rank One demon who was once among the strongest Demon Slayers. His character is voiced by Kengo Kawanishi (Japanese) and Griffin Burns (English).
The late Flower Hashira Kanae Kocho is the older sister of Shinobu Kocho and a flashback character who died prior to the events of Demon Slayer. She was always charming and easygoing and is often seen with a smile when shown in the memories of her sister. Despite her cheerful disposition, she had a strict side when it came to fighting demons, but she had a stern side that came out when fighting demons and did her best to ensure that those around her survived. When she was still alive, she had a vision of humans and demons living peacefully alongside one another, something which Shinbou fought for as well until Kanae died. Then, a need for vengeance over her older sister’s death overtook her. She is voiced by Ai Kayano (Japanese) and Bridget Hoffman (English).
Tsuguko Kanao Tsuyuri is the adoptive younger sister of Shinobu and Kanae Kocho. Unlike her sisters, who were both bright and cheerful, Kanoa is a very quiet and indecisive girl who uses a coin to help her when she makes decisions. She developed an intense hatred for demons and has been shown to take sadistic glee in killing them. She is voiced by Reina Ueda (Japanese) and Brianna Knickerbocker (English).
The Serpent Hashira Obanai Iguro is partially blind and wears a mask to cover the bottom half of his face, as it was cut by his to make him appear more like a snake. His snake, Kaburamaru, is always wrapped around his shoulders. He is a rigorous person who has very high expectations for any Demon Slayers who train under him and cares for very few people. One of those people is Mitsuri. He is voiced by Kenichi Suzumura (Japanese) and Erik Scott Kimerer (English)
Also expected to join the cast of character are the still mostly unseen members of the Twelve Upper Moons / Twelve Kizuki, specifically Doma, who has recently had an official sketch done of his character. He is an especially powerful bloodthirsty demon with rainbow-coloured eyes who holds the position of Upper Rank Two. He was the one who turned Gyutaro and Daki into demons and was also responsible for the death of Inosuke’s mother. He is voiced by Mamoru Miyano (Japanese) and Stephen Fu (English).
Joining him from the higher ranking members of the Upper Moon Twelve are Gyokko, the Upper Rank Five demon who is able to manipulate both his own flesh and that of others, and Hantegu, the Upper Rank Four demon who is able to create four different clones of himself, each with their own strengths and abilities.
People Responsible for Bringing the Anime to Life
Head of Story (and the writer behind the manga) Koyoharu Gotouge will be returning for season 3 of Demon Slayer, and joining him will be the director Haruo Sotozaki and the Character Designer, Akira Matsushima.
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Demon Slayer Season 3 Release Date
While season 3, Demon Slayer: Kitmetsu no Yaiba Swordsmith Village Arc, has been confirmed, a release date has yet to be. Fortunately, it may be pretty easy to guess when the beloved anime show will make its next appearance.
The first season was released in April 2019 and ran until September of the same year. The second season began its first arc in October 2021, a year later, and ran until February 2022. Given that the creation of the show took place during Covid and that there was a film done between season 1 and season 2, Ufotable studios may produce Demon Slayer Season 3 faster than the last two. However, if they decide to stick to the same patterns, fans can expect to see the next season anytime between early to mid-2023 and 2024.
Where Can You Stream the Next Season?
The first and second seasons of Demon Slayer and the film are currently available on Crunchyroll. In certain regions, Netflix users should also be able to stream both the show and the movie.
When it comes out, the third season will more than likely be available on both streaming services when it comes out.
