After some speculation, the latest chapter of Chainsaw Man has confirmed that the manga totally takes place in the 90s.
Over 100 chapters into the popular manga, we finally have a character reference the year Part 2 takes place in- 1999.
Since the anime debuted, fans had taken notice that a lot of Chainsaw Man wouldn’t really make sense in the modern day, with characters constantly attached to landlines, the constant presence of old cars, etc.
Many had attributed it to author Fujimoto’s cinephile nature- simply making his world look like the era his favorite films were made in.
However in Chainsaw Man Part 2 the detail becomes hard to ignore when new protagonist Asa is celebrated for having a cellphone- something that would have only been rare prior to the new millennium, before they became common items.
It says a lot about the success of Chainsaw Man that it would have gone on for as long as it has before people realized it was a period piece set in the 90s.
The manga had acquired a cult following since its debut, and its subsequent anime adaptation propelled it further into the mainstream.
Most recently, the anime has even had a collab with mobile game NIKKE: Goddess of Victory- bringing Makima, Power and Himeno as playable units.