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... EST. ⏎ How was the first episode? ⏎Lynzee Loveridge ⏎ Rating: 4.5 ⏎ I had high expectations for Demon Slayer once I learned the same studio that brought amazing battles to the Fate franchise would be handling it. Those expectations were well met in this opener as humble young charcoal salesman Tanjiro finds himself facing a demonic little sister and an adept swordsman sent to slay her in the snowy mountain foothills he called home. The camera whizzes around trees and circles back as a hatchet is flung through the air before lodging in a tree. Tanjiro's attack failed, but the talent at ufotable had me glued to the screen the entire time. ⏎ The episode plays out in three small arcs as the audience gets to know Tanjiro's sizable family. They're modest people living above a remote village. The older siblings and Tanjiro's lone mother are hardworking, and each family member seems affable. Tanjiro's the kind of kid who thinks of others and how he can help them first. His sister Nezuko helps rear her younger siblings in the hopes of easing the burden on her mother. The episode wants us to get to know each of the Kamado family well before it rips them away from one another. This episode is called “Cruelty” after all. ⏎ It's a masterful move because it's not like orphans are hard to come by in Shonen Jump works. Most of the heroes are abandoned kids with no proper homes to return to from their adventures. Tanjiro's tragedy works efficiently because his family doesn't feel faceless. I have plenty of praise for Demon Slayer, but I feel that the script could still have been tighter. It falls into the trap of excessive exposition narration in the last third when the swordsman Giyu Tomioka begins explaining at length why it's amazing that Nezuko didn't eat Tanjiro. I don't think anyone in the audience was confused about what Nezuko's actions represented at that point, but this is a pretty common pitfall in both shonen works and anime in general. ⏎ Demon Slayer is not to be missed. If the recent premiere is any indication, ufotable already has the first five episodes prepped and, barring interfering legal trouble, should be yet another stellar production from the studio. ⏎ Nick Creamer ⏎ Rating: 4 ⏎ Demon Slayer was...