In the colorful and emotional world of Chainsaw Man, Kobeni Higashiyama stands out in my eyes as an intriguing character. She is a former public safety devil hunter. Kobeni is a young woman with short brown hair and bangs. She always wears a black suit and ties her hair in a ponytail.
Kobeni is known as a cowardly and fearful character, but that’s not all that there is to her. Don’t be mistaken, she has a few courageous moments that add glow to her personality. Her brown eyes which are often wide with fear are a door to her free and cool-headed demeanor in a world where humans and devils coexist with each other.
Her work in the Public Safety Devil Hunters puts her in the front seat of confrontations with devils. This job is quite in contrast with her fragile personality. But despite her being a scaredy-cat, she has a lot of strength inside her that comes out at times of crisis.
Kobeni‘s story arc is filled with moments of weakness and so much vulnerability with a dash of bravery. We watch as Kobeni grows into a person who’s more collected and doesn’t sulk or tremble in fear every time something happens. It’s a brilliant show of resilience.
What devil does Kobeni have?
To be honest, it’s a mystery. Among the Public Safety Devil Hunters, contracts with devils happen often, with each of them bringing new powers and different curses. However, Kobeni doesn’t talk about her devil. This secrecy leads to fans theorizing by themselves. Let’s hear some:
- The Black Cat Devil: OK, Listen to this. She always gets into bad situations but comes out ok, which could be because of her nine-lives nature. She is extremely unlucky but has fast reflexes, and also a sudden aggression that comes out of nowhere. These are all traits of a cat. A black cat to be exact.
- The Four Horsemen Theory: One theory explores the possibility of her signing a contract with one of the four Horsemen devils. The group consists of the control devil, the hunger devil, the death devil, and the war devil. Many fans believe that Kobeni‘s crazy survival skills and her escaping deadly situations easily point to the theory that she made a contract with the death devil. Some say her love for food and even her job at a diner hints that she made a deal with the hunger devil. (I don’t know about her but the hunger devil is so my devil for life.).
- Anxiety or stress Devil
- Fear devil or misfortune Devil
Kobeni’s Abilities and Traits
At first glance, she might appear the stereotypical scared character who’s always hiding In the corner, but Kobeni is talented. She is held back by her fears, yes but she also shines in moments of crisis in her own way. Let’s go through some of her abilities.
- speed: Kobeni‘s agility and speed are almost superhuman-like. This is a trait that makes her survive the fast punches of skilled devils. She is able to dodge almost any attack faster than the attacker.
- Strength: She handles knives like a spoon. Kobeni is able to cut a full-grown man’s legs with little to no difficulty at all. Now isn’t that impressive?
Kobeni‘s difference from other anime characters
When I compare Kobeni to other anime characters, there’s a certain characteristic that amazes me. She is the most relatable one. Other characters almost always embody a sense of bravery that’s hard to have in real life. were all humans after all. Kobeni is the opposite, she has so many contrasts within her personality. She’s scared almost all the time and at the same time knows how to get herself out of trouble.
Kobeni’s fear is a strong element of her character throughout the series. Despite other anime characters that might overcome this fear theirs and grow into a brave soul, Kobeni constantly lives with this fear. It’s almost as if it’s a part of her she can never erase. I’ve come to understand that she has two different personalities, coming up in different situations. One is her usual scared demeanor and One is the brave fighter that we get to see very little. This duality in her character adds a sense of charisma.
What have I learned?
Like I said before, after watching Chainsaw Man I’ve found Kobeni‘s character to be among the most relatable ones. She gets scared in fearful situations like a normal human would do. She breaks character when she faces hardships and is the one who always cries in a group, but she can be brave when bravery is needed. Now isn’t that how we all are?
As Chainsaw Man continues I’m so excited to see how Kobeni‘s journey will go, and also I’m curious to know which devil contract she is assigned to. If they do even tell us. I’m sure of the fact that Kobeni Higashiyama remains a character that’s full of surprises and unexpected actions either way.
