Koyoharu Gotouge’s Demon Slayer manga and anime are famous for their optimistic hero, Tanjiro Kamado. He is a kind-hearted young man who believes even demons deserve redemption. However, few know that the current version of Tanjiro is actually a revised character designed to bring a more hopeful perspective to the story.
Katayama, the first editor in charge of Demon Slayer, supported the series from its earliest days. In an interview, he revealed that the original manga draft was too dark and violent to be serialized without significant changes.
Tanjiro was created to balance the dark tone of Demon Slayer
Katayama explained that the story was originally based on Gotouge’s earlier one-shot manga, Kagarigari. However, it had many issues: the tone was too serious, it lacked humor, and the story was overwhelmingly dark. This made it impossible to serialize in its original form.
“I thought it wouldn’t pass unless the main character was changed, so I asked Gotouge-sensei if there was a brighter, more normal character in the world he created,” Katayama shared.
Taking this feedback, Gotouge returned to the drawing board and reworked the concept. In Kagarigari, the original protagonist was an antagonist who became a demon after his family was tragically slaughtered, following a path of revenge and despair.
The new main character was made more sympathetic, shifting his goal from pure revenge to breaking the cycle of tragedy and saving his sister. While violence and heartbreaking deaths remained, Tanjiro’s determination not to be changed by his circumstances became the story’s emotional core and saving grace.
Demon Slayer is a rare example of positive editorial influence
Demon Slayer is likely one of the rare cases where strong editorial intervention did not compromise the author’s vision. Instead, Katayama’s guidance saved the series and made serialization possible.
On one hand, Gotouge was still free to include the story’s dark elements like demons, cold-blooded killers, and grotesque imagery.
On the other hand, Tanjiro’s innocence and kindness made the series more appealing to a wider audience.
Without Katayama’s crucial input, Demon Slayer fans might never have enjoyed the humor found in Zenitsu’s cowardice, Inosuke’s rebellious nature, or the countless charming moments that have won hearts worldwide.