Episode 10 of Demon Slayer:The Swordsmith Village arc sees Love Hashira Mitsuri Kanroji's backstory revealed, although the result is quite lackluster.
After diving into one Hashira's beautiful and tragic past, Demon Slayer takes another shot at revealing the backstory of Love Hashira Mitsuri Kanroji, and the result is almost offensively disappointing. While Demon Slayer's male Hashira have had life-altering encounters with demons which spurred them to become the warriors they are today, Mitsuri is left with a past that reduces her character to little more than a woman seeking the love of a man.
Mitsuri has been a good friend to Tanjiro and Nezuko, and her performance in battle has been impressive, so no doubt fans were eager to learn what her background was like. However, rather than being driven to slay demons because of some tragedy that befell her, or simply a desire to protect those who can't protect themselves, Mitsuri is said to be an "unlovable" woman due to her physical strength and unusual hair. The only real negative incident in her past is the rejection of an arranged marriage proposal by her potential husband over these traits of hers, which sent the Love Hashira into a spiral of questioning everything about herself.
Mitsuri's Disappointing Past is Rooted in Sexism
In the flashback to her past, Mitsuri is said to have unusually dense muscle tissue, which makes her far stronger than she should be for her size. It also gives her a tremendous appetite, something which the men around her seem to find as a turn-off. At no point does Mitsuri have an encounter with a demon, and it seems she was simply scouted by the Ubuyashiki family. Kagaya, the head of the family, complimented her strength, causing her to tear up and apparently join the Demon Slayer Corps. Her goal in the organization is to find a man stronger than her, as that's "obviously" the only way she could ever be loved.
Needless to say, this particular backstory is fraught with sexist assumptions, only some of which stem from the era in which the story is set. She even says, "women are supposed to get married and be someone's wife," an idea which may have been common at the time but which is certainly frowned upon today. Unlike most Hashira, Mitsuri doesn't seem to have a personal reason for fighting demons at all, which instantly makes her a weaker character. Mitsuri's hair color is also given the most ridiculous origin: her hair and eyes changed color after eating 170 sakura rice cakes a day for months on end.
In these flashbacks, Mitsuri comes across as a very shallow character who worries exclusively about not living up to feminine stereotypes, which is all done in a way that's incredibly unrealistic. Compared to the recently revealed origin stories of Muichiro Tokito and Genya Shinazugawa, both of whom suffered loss at the hands of a demon, Mitsuri's reasons for being a slayer are paper-thin. It's a real shame, as Mitsuri's character has been a fun and interesting one that stands out among the group. There are a million other possible backstories she could've had, but Mitsuri's past has turned out to be one of the biggest missteps in Demon Slayer, bringing down what was otherwise a very cool episode.
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