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After the defeat of Upper Moon Six Daki and Gyutaro, Demon Slayer season 3 introduced fans to all five remaining Upper Moon Demons. While the ongoing season focuses on the fight against two of those demons - Hantengu and Gyokko, there are still three demons for the anime to showcase in a season.
However, there seems to be some exception here, as Kokushibo and Doma made their first appearance in Demon Slayer season 3, while Akaza was introduced in the previous season. So, why was Akaza, the third-highest-ranking demon, introduced before any other Upper Moon Demons? Is it because he is the mangaka's favorite character?
Disclaimer: This article contains spoilers from the Demon Slayer manga.
Is Akaza Demon Slayer mangaka's favorite character?
After noticing the subtle details in the Demon Slayer manga, fans are convinced that the mangaka Koyoharu Gotouge has a favorite character in the series. While they have never mentioned the same, several elements in the story have had Reddit user u/prettyokayfornows convinced that Akaza is Gotouge's favorite character in the series.
Firstly, despite Akaza being an Upper Moon Three Demon, he appeared first in the anime. This was before any other Upper Moon Demons ranked below him made their appearances. While this reason isn't convincing enough, the story evidently progresses from the Demon Slayers fighting the lower-ranked demons to the upper-ranked demons, hinting that Akaza was an exception.
However, that's not all, as Akaza is shown to be the only demon in the anime to have some exclusive principles. As noted by Upper Moon Two Demon Doma, Akaza refuses to eat or harm women. He only likes to fight strong opponents and often asks his opponents to switch sides and become demons so that they can prolong their fights. That said, he hates weaklings to the point that he believes that they should be eliminated.
Furthermore, the Reddit user also believes that Akaza had the most well-thought and well-written backstories out of all the characters in the series. The fact that the character had no memories of their past selves yet had set principles based on them was quite touching. Additionally, his character design was also based on his past, as the lines on his body depicted his punishments as a human criminal.
Moreover, as stated in the series, Akaza is Muzan Kibutsuji's favorite demon. The fact that Kokushibo and Doma are stronger than Akaza, and yet Muzan favors him over the other two, has to be some indication of the mangaka's favoritism for the character.
Lastly, Akaza had the most honorable death out of all the demon characters in the series. While Tomioka Giyu and Kamado Tanjiro were nearly too weak to continue fighting, Akaza accepted his defeat and decided to pass away and meet his wife, Koyuki, in the afterlife.
Final thoughts
While these reasons may not be enough to prove that Akaza could be Gotouge's favorite character, favoritism is quite evident. Hence, fans hope that Mangaka soon reveal their favorite character to put an end to this debate. However, they can only expect the mangaka to make such a reveal when the next season releases.
