The Gun Devil embodies humanity’s fear of guns, a fear that grew as guns became more prevalent. Initially, guns were seen as a favorable means to counter the threat posed by devils.
However, as the use of firearms increased, so did gun-related crimes, leading to a surge in fear surrounding guns.
This fear reached a peak following a large-scale terrorist attack in America involving guns, causing widespread panic.
It was on this day, 13 years before the events of the manga, that the Gun Devil materialized.
When I first started reading Chainsaw Man, I imagined the Gun Devil as the final antagonist—a formidable foe that Denji would have to overcome by the series’ end. However, turns out that it was all a red herring.
Spoiler Alert! If you haven’t caught up with the manga, you might want to turn back now!
As revealed by Makima in Chainsaw Man chapter 73, the Gun Devil had already been defeated before the current events of the manga.
The devil’s remains were divided among various countries: the United States possessed 20%, the Soviets 28%, China 11%, and other countries held a combined 4%.
The remaining 37 percent of the Gun Devil’s body was in the hands of other devils, who either consumed or fused with a part of it.
This brings forth a question…
Who defeated the Gun Devil in the past?
Unfortunately the manga doesn’t provide a clear answer. We are not even given a precise timeline for when the Gun Devil was defeated.
According to Makima, it was the Soviets who chanced upon the devil in a defeated and unconscious state. We don’t know how long ago the devil was defeated.
However, based on other hints dropped by Makima, we can make a calculated guess.
It was the Chainsaw Man:
The most plausible theory is that it was the Chainsaw Devil (or the Chainsaw Man if you may) at its full power, who defeated the Gun Devil the first time around.
In Chainsaw Man chapter 87, Makima tells Chainsaw Man that he once fought against the weapons devil and the four horsemen in the past.
The Chainsaw Devil was apparently overpowered by them and he vanished at the height of the battle.
Though Makima and the others searched for the Chainsaw Man, they couldn’t find him, because he was living in a near death form.
Makima does not explicitly confirm or deny the Gun Devil’s presence in this battle, but there are subtle clues in the manga that suggest its involvement.
The first clue is quite straightforward—the Gun Devil is, after all, a Weapon Devil.
Now, the second detail is more visual in nature.
The second clue is more visual. In the very first chapter, when Pochita (the weakened form of the Chainsaw Devil) first appears, he is bleeding from what appears to be a gunshot wound.
This injury could very well be a result of the battle that Makima mentions, indicating that the Gun Devil was indeed present during this conflict.
Off the top of my head, here’s how things could have played out.
Given the Gun Devil and Chainsaw Devil’s incredible speed, their battle could have spanned multiple countries, including the United States, China, and others.
The Chainsaw Devil might have defeated the Gun Devil somewhere in the Soviet Union, leaving it to die but not before sustaining a gunshot injury.
While the battle with other weapons devils continued, eventually reaching Japan, the Soviets could have discovered the defeated Gun Devil and secured its remains.
This would explain how different nations ended up possessing parts of the Gun Devil’s body. The Chainsaw Man might have chopped it up during the fight, leaving pieces behind.
However, it’s important to note that this is merely speculation based on my understanding of the Chainsaw Man manga. The actual events may differ.
Gun Devil’s second appearance & fight with Makima:
Now let’s get into the Gun Devil’s appearance in the manga. This was the second appearance of the devil in the Chainsaw Man universe.
The Gun Devil appears this time on September 12th, 1997, after making a contract with the United States president to kill Makima, the control devil.
However, this time it isn’t the entirety of the Gun Devil—only the 20% that was under U.S. control appears. Despite being only a fragment, this portion of the Gun Devil is sentient enough to form a contract and launch an attack.
Five seconds after it appeared off the coast in Akita Prefecture, Japan, the Gun Devil fires a bullet at Makima’s head, and kills her. This was her 29th recorded death.
However, she comes back to life again, the devil, all thanks to her contract with the Japanese Prime Minister.
But the important question that begs to be answered is this, did Makima get rid of the Gun Devil for good this time?
Did Makima kill the Gun Devil this time?
No, Makima does not kill the Gun Devil outright; she only defeats it and leaves it in a vulnerable state.
Using contracts with Yutaro Kurose, Michiko Tendo, Akane Sawatari’s Snake Devil, and Aki’s Future Devil, she summons the Punishment Devil.
After activating her abilities, Makima attacks the Gun Devil, severely weakening it but not killing it.
Instead, she reduces it to a state where it has no choice but to possess a dead human to survive, resulting in Aki becoming the Gun Fiend.
If you’re unsure whether Aki is a fiend or a hybrid, chapter 76 clarifies this by listing Aki Hayakawa’s name among the casualties caused by the Gun Devil.
Also, when Makima uses the Future Devil’s powers, it was via the ante-mortem contract that Aki had made with it. Ante-mortem…meaning it was performed before his death!
Basically, the short answer is that Makima did not kill the Gun Devil, or the part of it that made an appearance in Japan. She defeated it and enabled it to take over Aki Hayakawa’s body.
Aki- who was now the Gun Fiend, was eventually killed by Denji. Emotional damage right there. However, this does not mark the end of the Gun Devil. As previously mentioned, only 20% of the Gun Devil was involved in this conflict.
So, what exactly is the status of the other parts?
Well, come Chainsaw Man part 2, we now have some conclusion regarding the Soviets’ Gun Devil.
Turned into a weapon by Yoru:
Chainsaw Man part 2 has a lot going on. But, one of the best parts was that the Gun Devil made an appearance again in the manga.
Unlike its previous appearance, the Gun Devil was not summoned through a contract with a human. Instead, it was summoned and transformed by Yoru, the War Devil, into one of her powerful weapons.
Interestingly, Fujimoto only showed the parts of Gun Devil that was on Soviet Union territory, Mount Elbrus to be exact, to turn into a weapon.
The one that is with China still seems to be unharmed.
The same goes for the parts of the Gun Devil that was consumed by other devils. For all we know, it is still existing out there.
Is the Gun Devil dead and gone?
In the world of Chainsaw Man, a devil’s death is rarely permanent.
Devils continuously cycle between life and death, both in Hell and on Earth. Even if the Gun Devil were “dead,” it would eventually return to Earth if it were killed in Hell.
However, now that Yoru has turned the Gun Devil into a weapon, several questions arise; and two possible outcomes come to mind.
The first is that the Gun Devil might be gone for good, not in the sense of dying and reincarnating in Hell, but rather in that it has been permanently converted into a weapon.
This could explain the extreme guilt Yoru felt when summoning both the Gun and Tank Devils in chapter 176.
Transforming something into a weapon differs from merely killing it; the entity continues to exist but in a non-sentient form, purely as a weapon of destruction in Yoru’s arms.
The second possibility is that the Gun Devil might still have a chance to return. We know parts of it still exist with other countries and devils, and these parts could potentially regain sentience.
For example, Power continued to exist in some form inside Denji by making him drink her blood, even after being killed by Makima.
And by consuming a piece of Pochita, the Blood Devil was able to resurrect completely.
Similarly, if a strong enough contract were made, would the Gun Devil could potentially resurrect in its sentient form, even if Yoru’s weapon were to be destroyed?
In conclusion, the Gun Devil, as we know it, may not be entirely gone. It could still make another appearance, embodying the concept of a “Chekov’s gun” in Fujimoto’s narrative.
What are your thoughts on the Gun Devil and its fate in Chainsaw Man? Do you think it is dead? Will it make an appearance again in the future? Let me know what you think in the comments below!