Both Chainsaw Man and Oshi No Ko have excelled in story writing and character design. However, they’ve experienced different outcomes in terms of ratings. While Oshi no Ko quickly became the #1 anime on MAL after its first episode, Chainsaw Man saw its ratings fall behind a slice-of-life anime.
In addition, Chainsaw Man struggled with Blu-ray DVD sales, while Oshi no Ko had a strong start and boasted the most-viewed anime opening of the season.
Despite these differences, an unexpected connection between the two emerges: the Oshi no Ko artist holds a deep admiration for Chainsaw Man. This admiration even extends to making references to the popular manga within Oshi no Ko itself.
Eppy, a Twitter account focused on anime, shared tweets that reveal how Yokoyari Mengo, the illustrator of Oshi no Ko, is an avid fan of Chainsaw Man. This appreciation for Chainsaw Man is even evident in her manga series.
Yokoyari Mengo has aspired to be a manga artist since childhood, going as far as leaving high school to pursue her dream. Alongside Oshi no Ko, her notable projects include Scum’s Wish, Cigarette Anthology, and Kimi wa Midara na Boku no Joou.
Recently, her love for Chainsaw Man has become increasingly apparent, as Mengo-sensei incorporates her admiration for the series in her own work.
Yokoyari Mengo and Chainsaw Man
On 30 August 2020, the official Twitter Account of “Oshi no Ko” posted a tweet:
As per the tweet, the Oshi no Ko illustrator has informed fans that she will be taking a break from Twitter due to the emotional impact of reading recent Chainsaw Man chapters.
This announcement was made alongside a fanart of Power, a Chainsaw Man character, which Mengo-sensei drew herself.
Twitter user Eppy shared this tweet, and in the comments section, they provided additional information:
Not only that, Oshi no Ko regularly includes moments that depict the internet as we know it. Recently, there was a major event in the Oshi no Ko universe, and the illustrator got all of its characters trending.
— eppy (@epppyyy) April 16, 2023
But a new chapter of Chainsaw Man was also trending ! pic.twitter.com/7SRtUPHGG1
According to the comment, during a particular event in the manga series, the main characters of Oshi no Ko started to trend on the internet. And in this trending list was Chainsaw Man, right below the idol group, Ai Hoshino worked for, B-Komachi.
So, it is safe to say that the love of Mengo-sensei for Chainsaw Man is real!
In case you are not aware of Oshi no Ko, it is a drama-supernatural manga series that depicts the dark and unseen part of the Japanese Entertainment Industry.
The series has been a hit among anime fans with a 90-minute premiere episode which made anime fans every emotion possible.
Oshi no Ko anime is based on a manga written by Akasaka Aya (famous for his rom-com manga series, Kaguya-sama: Love is War) and illustrated by Mengo Yokoyari (famous for her dark romance manga series, Scum’s Wish). The writer confirmed that Oshi no Ko is occurring in the same universe as Kaguya-sama: Love is War.
What are your thoughts on this? Do you also think Chainsaw Man is as incredible as Mengo-sensei is making it to be? Let us know your opinion in the comments down below!
