As far as I’m concerned, Ufotable has been doing a great job of adapting and adding to what the manga offered. Some well-placed filler helps smooth out the pacing, and of course, the gorgeous animation is a major upgrade from anything the manga had to offer. Still, it’s impossible for a loyal adaptation like this one to completely fix the critical shortcomings of the story. The dialogue is still laughably ham-handed, the pacing is still pretty random, and the funny moments amidst gritty death and gore still feel as absolutely out of place as they felt in the manga. Also, the plot-armor is atrocious in this arc: possibly the worst it is in the entire story. Don’t keep track of how many wounds the kids sustain here; if you do, your suspension of disbelief will crack faster than eggshells.
That said, Yuukaku-hen is conceptually one of my favorite arcs in Demon Slayer. I love the Entertainment District setting and I giggle at the cross-dressing premise. I love the parallels between Tanjiro and Nezuko and the demons who play the villains of this arc, and I also love the parallels between the three main boys and Uzui’s three wives. I even like how painfully hopeless the final battle feels at times, and I think the brother-sister themes of this arc hit very hard. Add to that some gorgeous visuals, great voice-acting, and a pretty solid score (with the exception of the lullaby, which I found extremely underwhelming), and you get Yuukaku-hen: eleven episodes that are very flawed but still brimming with good moments and heart.
No part of Demon Slayer is a critical masterpiece, and Yuukaku-hen is no exception. But if you’re willing to look past the storytelling shortcomings and take the beautiful content in stride, you’re in for a treat.
