Demon Slayer Season 4’s anime-only scenes celebrated as the “highlight” by fans

It’s a well-known fact that fans sometimes hate filler but Demon Slayer Season 4 has convinced some to change their opinion with the new anime-only scenes featuring Sanemi, Obanai, and Muichiro in Episode 4.

Demon Slayer was one of the most highly anticipated upcoming anime in 2024. It soon cemented its spot among the best anime of the year upon premiering. The fourth season adapts the Hashira Training Arc, the preemptive Demon Slayer arc before the final battle against Muzan Kibutsuji begins.

Being a short arc of the Demon Slayer manga with only eight chapters, it makes sense that the anime will need more to cover an entire season. Though Demon Slayer Season 4 is rumored to be the shortest season with only eight episodes, that’s still too long for the source material.

Hence, there are so many anime only scenes in Season 4. The studio has the events of the arc spread across the episodes while filling in the gaps with filler scenes. In the recently released Episode 4, there is an exclusive scene where three Hashira clash against one another.

The scene starts with the Wind Hashira Sanemi and the Serpent Hashira Obanai busy in a practice match. After discovering they are evenly matched, they are joined by the young Mist Hashira Muichiro. This leads to a beautifully animated scene of the three Hashira sparring.

While anime fans usually detest filler scenes, the brilliance of ufotable’s animation and the scene’s positioning in the story have viewers asking for more. They love these anime-only scenes and think these contribute greatly to the Demon Slayer universe. These moments give viewers a deeper understanding of the characters and are a joy to watch.

As one X user puts, “In my opinion, their side story has been the highlight of the season and usually the moments I enjoy the most in the episodes they are in.”

Another joins, “Love both Sanemi and Obanai, so more characterization and scenes of them is a big win for me.”

A third comments, “Love seeing them being bros. And with the sparring scene in the newest episode with Muichiro – just imagine if the three of them fought alongside each other.”

These reactions are proof enough of how greatly received Demon Slayer Season 4 is. And with the Infinity Castle Arc on its way, the series has a bright future ahead.

The anime is currently streaming on Crunchyroll with four episodes released so far. For more on demons and demon slayers, check out Demon Slayer Season 4 episode schedule and why Giyu and Shinobu aren’t included in the Hashira Training. You might also like our explainer on the stages of Hashira Training and our ranking of saddest backstories.