Reze

Lore & Background

Reze's backstory is defined by trauma and state manipulation. She was one of many children taken by the Soviet Union for human experimentation, a program designed to cultivate super-soldiers loyal to the state. Through harsh military training, she enhanced her innate abilities to become a Weapon Human fused with the Bomb Devil. Her mission brought her to Japan where she first encountered Denji at the café where she worked. Her warm demeanor caused Denji to mistakenly believe she had feelings for him, creating turmoil as he already admired Makima. Reze invited him on a date to a school where she taught him to swim, and later they watched fireworks together. During the festival, she confessed her feelings and proposed running away; Denji agreed ('Okay') before she revealed her true identity. She then kissed him and revealed that she was the Bomb Devil sent to seize his heart.

In Their Own Story

The conflict between Reze's mission and her emotions culminated in a series of battles involving Denji, Beam, and Aki Hayakawa. After being bound by chains and thrown into the sea, Reze regained consciousness and easily subdued Denji when he proposed they run away together again. Before departing, she agreed to meet him at the café. However, as she rushed back for the meeting after a change of heart, she was intercepted in an alley across from the café by Makima and the Angel Devil. Mortally wounded while attempting to pull the pin on her choker, she admitted on the verge of death that she had never been to school either. Following this, Makima tampered with Reze's memories and drafted her into "Special Division 5," a unit of Weapon Humans. After Makima's death, Reze was freed from control, but her subsequent whereabouts remain unknown.

Reader's Guide

Reze is widely regarded as the best antagonist and greatest female character in Chainsaw Man by Comic Book Resources, described as a deadly, beautiful, and mysterious "bad girl." IGN noted she perfectly embodies Denji's first love, while Polygon praised her as a captivating femme fatale. The Fandom Post highlighted that she demonstrated more sophisticated manipulation skills than Makima, despite appearing as a "manic pixie dream girl" who seemed too perfect to be real. Vamsi Krishna of FandomWire emphasized her complexity, noting her mission, training, and feelings contradicted each other until her death. In popularity polls, she ranked fourth with 19,079 votes in the first poll, fifth with 45,741 votes in the second, and took first place with 205,775 votes in the third. Her legacy includes ranking 16th in the "Top 20 Single Words" category of the 2025 Internet Buzzword Awards.

Did You Know?

• Tatsuki Fujimoto stated his favorite character is Reze and explicitly did not want her to become an ally or end up with Denji.
• Reze was inspired by the heroine of the animated film Jin-Roh: The Wolf Brigade.
• Contrary to popular belief, there was no prominent 'Volume 10' poll where Denji ranked first; major polls were held in Volume 8 (won by Makima) and Volume 13 (won by Aki).
• Since the Reze Arc has not yet been adapted into the anime, she received no nominations at the 7th Crunchyroll Anime Awards.
• The special 'Reze Dance' video by Kenshi Yonezu became a viral sensation in Japan.