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Omg Couple Goals! Makima and Denji’s Relationship Explained

Makima biting Denji's finger in 'Chainsaw Man'

Wouldn’t you just love a partner who would do anything for you?

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And I mean … anything.

I don’t mean buy you roses and call you on your birthday. I mean KILL DEMONS FOR YOU. I mean BARK LIKE A DOG FOR YOU. I mean BE AT YOUR BECK AND CALL NOON AND NIGHT JUST HOPING FOR A SHRED OF YOUR AFFECTION.

If you are this person, you need help. Help feeling assured that your narcissistic and possessive feelings are totally normal. They’re so run-of-the-mill normal that somebody even made a cute slice of life anime called Chainsaw Man about this exact thing. And by “slice of life” I mean a lot of lives get sliced. In half. And at the center of it all is a totally “couple goals”-worthy pair that is destined for Instagram “For You” pages everywhere! I’m talking of course Denji and Makima’s relationship! So cute! But are they really a couple? Or is it more of a boss/employee relationship? Or is it some kind of morally repugnant—I mean, sexy—combination of both? Read on and find out, you little monster you!

First off, how Makima and Denji meet?

In a totally typical meet-cute fashion! Covered in blood! Before meeting Makima, Denji was basically an indentured servant to the yakuza. We’ve all been there! After the death of his deadbeat father, all of his daddy’s yakuza debts passed on to Denji. That’s how student loans work too, right?

Denji, like many new college grads, has to work a series of crummy jobs in order to make ends meet. But while most college grads opt for Starbucks, industrious little Denji decided that he could make some quick cash selling his body parts! He sold his eye, his kidney, and even his testicle! When it still wasn’t enough, he decided that he would give demon hunting a try!

Times were good for a while (His nice employers even paid him to eat lit cigarettes! So generous!), but eventually, the yakuza were possessed by the Zombie Devil. The Zombie Devil wanted to kill Denji in retaliation for Denji’s devil-killings, and was almost successful! Denji was dismembered and thrown in a dumpster (typical!) and then resurrected by his demon-dog pal Pochita, who became Denji’s heart! Literally! Denji crawls out of the dumpster and massacres the yakuza and the Zombie Devil by pulling the rip chord on his chest and becoming the fearsome Chainsaw Man!

After the carnage is over, Makima and her squad of Public Safety Devil Hunters arrive at the scene. Makima finds Denji there, exhausted from his battle. She introduces herself, and quickly gives him an ultimatum. Denji can either work for Makima as a Public Saftey Devil Hunter, or she can kill him on the spot! You go girl! That’s called “setting boundaries.” Denji accepts Makima’s proposal, as he’s already a little bit smitten with her! Then, she buys the starving kid some ramen and suddenly he’s wrapped around her finger!

Adorbs! So what do they do together now?

Well, they aren’t “officially dating,” but Denji is basically “in training” to be Makima’s bf! She’s given him food, a place to sleep, and a new set of clothes, and all he has to do is follow her every command! And if he doesn’t prove himself useful, she’ll kill him! Love those boundaries! Denji is happy to serve Makima in every way that he can, and risks life and limb on the daily in order to earn more of her affection. Emotional and physical.

When Denji is disappointed after making to second base with one of his teammates, Makima even gives him a little crash course in love making. She holds his hand, bites his finger, and even lets him touch her chest! Love that they’re taking it slow! After Denji nearly dies of horniness, Makima gives him another ultimatum. If he kills the cataclysmically powerful Gun Devil, she will give him anything he desires. And she means anything. Denji is a teenage boy, so there’s only one thing in the world that he wants, and Makima is prepared to give that to him if he succeeds.

Sex. I mean sex, ya’ll.

So are they Facebook official yet?

Well, not exactly, but only because Makima doesn’t really seem to be into “labeling their relationship.” Get it, girl! Reject arbitrary societal dating standards! They’re not bf and gf officially. The only thing that Makima officially is to Denji is his boss. They are both on the books at a government agency, after all! Unofficially, they’re not exactly a couple in the “traditional sense.” It’s more like an “owner/pet” relationship. And that’s totally normal. I mean, it isn’t. Dating your pet isn’t “normal” at all, but Makima is working to normalize their relationship. After all, it’s 2022. We should be able to date whoever we want in any way we want to. Right?

Where Is Denji and Makima’s Relationship Going?

Well, I don’t wanna give any spoilers away, but Denji and Makima’s relationship is set to really blossom into something more in the future! I mean, how could it not? With all of the Gun Devil’s body parts lying around inside of demons, there’s bound to be a confrontation with the big guy in the future. And Denji having the powers of a main character, I’m sure it’s totally gonna go his way. I bet he’s practicing for the special night he and Makima are bound to have now!

I just hope Denji keeps his shirt on when they finally do the deed. If the rip cord on his chest accidentally gets pulled, things are gonna get really messy. But you know, these two might be into that sort of thing. After all, Denji fell for Makima when he was covered in blood once before! And she’s really into his Chainsaw Man alter-ego. Maybe it’ll be like a sweet little anniversary of the first time that they ever met! We’ll never see it animated, or else this anime would turn into a different genre entirely, but that’s okay! We’re all fans of Chainsaw Man here! That means we’re no strangers to using our screwed up imaginations.

(featured image: MAPPA)

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Author
Jack Doyle
Jack Doyle (they/them) is actually nine choirs of biblically accurate angels in crammed into one pair of $10 overalls. They have been writing articles for nerds on the internet for less than a year now. They really like anime. Like... REALLY like it. Like you know those annoying little kids that will only eat hotdogs and chicken fingers? They're like that... but with anime. It's starting to get sad.

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