Who Is Makima?

Makima is a central character in Tatsuki Fujimoto's Chainsaw Man, a manga published in Shonen Jump that rapidly became one of the most talked-about series of the 2020s. She is introduced as a high-ranking Public Safety Devil Hunter who recruits the protagonist, Denji, and becomes one of the story's most complex and chilling presences.

Warning: This article discusses major plot points from the first arc of Chainsaw Man.

First Impressions vs. Reality

Makima is introduced as calm, composed, and outwardly kind — a mentor figure who gives Denji purpose and a reason to fight. She offers him a place to live, clear goals, and what appears to be genuine care. For Denji, who has lived in extreme poverty and isolation, she represents everything he's ever wanted: someone to belong to.

This is precisely where Fujimoto's design genius comes in. Makima is constructed to exploit the reader's sympathies in exactly the same way she exploits Denji's. Her warmth reads as genuine because Denji sees it as genuine. The audience is meant to be deceived alongside him.

The Control Devil

Makima is eventually revealed to be the Control Devil — a being that embodies the fear of control itself. This revelation recontextualizes everything about her character: her management of devil hunters, her manipulation of Denji, her interest in the Chainsaw Man's power, and her broader vision for humanity.

Her ability — to dominate and control any being that perceives itself as beneath her — is a physical manifestation of her psychological approach. She never needed to force anyone; she simply cultivated the conditions in which they would choose submission willingly.

Symbolism and Thematic Weight

Makima operates on multiple symbolic levels within Chainsaw Man's themes:

  • Institutions and systems of power: Her role in a government organization is not incidental. She represents how systems can manufacture consent and loyalty while pursuing ends that harm those within them.
  • The idealized authority figure: Denji's attachment to Makima mirrors how people attach to idealized versions of those in power — teachers, leaders, employers — seeing care where there is only utility.
  • The male gaze turned critical: Fujimoto uses the visual language of the "cool, composed woman in power" archetype deliberately, then deconstructs it. Makima's appeal is shown to be a tool, not a trait.

Why She's Remembered

Great antagonists work because they expose something true. Makima exposes how easily genuine emotional need can be weaponized — and how people will rationalize harm done by those they've chosen to trust. Her defeat doesn't come through power, but through being loved rather than idealized — a resolution that is thematically coherent and surprisingly moving.

She remains one of the most discussed characters in contemporary manga not because she is the most powerful villain, but because she is one of the most honest ones about the nature of control.

Makima in the Anime Adaptation

MAPPA's 2022 adaptation brought Makima to life through Tomori Kusunoki's voice performance, which balanced warmth and unease with remarkable precision. Her screen presence in the anime introduced many international fans to the character and reignited discussion of the manga's themes at a global level.

Whether you encountered Makima through the manga or the anime, she is a character worth studying — not just as entertainment, but as a genuinely sophisticated piece of character writing.