There's two main editions of Devilman: the original edition and the deluxe edition. The original version is what was initially published in 1972-73, and the deluxe version was published in 1987 with some scenes added, some scenes removed, three side stories, and the spin-off manga Shin Devilman. For the purpose of this summary, I will try to include everything from both versions of the story.
Things that occur in both the original edition and the deluxe edition will be written in normal text. Things that only occur in the original and were removed from the deluxe edition will be written in yellow. Things that were added in to the deluxe edition and are not in the original will be written in cyan. This is so I don't have to note every single change.
While the main paragraphs will only be covering what's explicitly in the manga, throughout the text I will be using footnotes[1] to elaborate on certain details and to provide extracanon information -- that is, things that were confirmed outside of the text or in other adaptations.
This paraphrase is separated by volume, and further then by sections. The original volumes weren't divided into chapters, so I placed (and named) a few logical breaks throughout each one, for faster referencing.
I'm referencing multiple language versions (see the Credits at the end). That being said, any direct quotes will be taken from the official English translation of the deluxe edition.
[1] Like this!
High school student Akira Fudou[1] is waiting for his friend Miki Makimura outside of school. He says he was reading in the library, to which Miki remarks on how he should pick up a sport because he has the build for it. Akira says he doesn't think he has the right personality as he is not aggressive, and Miki makes fun of him, recalling how much of a crybaby he was in elementary school. It's revealed that Miki's and Akira's dads are good friends.
The delinquent Dosuroku and two members of his gang show up to hassle them, mocking them for walking home together like a couple. Akira tries to ignore them and suggests Miki do the same. She gets annoyed at him for not fighting back and calls him a crybaby again, then starts to insult the gang. Akira tries to get her to stop, but she won't, and Dosuroku and co. are getting pretty angry. Eventually she mentions her nickname "Miki the Hands"[2] and slaps the two goons, but when she tries to hit Dosuroku, he grabs her and shoves her against the wall while she calls for Akira's help.
Akira tries to defuse the situation, explaining that he's walking home with her because he's staying with her family, but this just leads to some sexual comments about Miki. Miki tells Akira to stop talking to them and fight, but the scene is interrupted by the arrival of Ryou Asuka, who ignores what's happening and tells Akira to come with him. Akira gestures towards Dosuroku, who is still itching for a fight, and tells Ryou that they're kind of in the middle of something, so Ryou pulls out a sawed-off hunting rifle. Dosuroku accuses him of bluffing, but it turns out the gun actually is loaded, and Ryou fires a few shots at their feet until all three delinquents run away. Akira runs off with Ryou, leaving a bewildered Miki behind.
[1] Spellings of character names vary from translation to translation, especially for the demons. In general, I am using the romanization system which accounts for long vowels through the use of "a", "i", and "u", and using the more common variations for demon names.
[2] Translated as "Slapping Miki" in the Classic Collection, but "Miki the Hands" is more widely used by English-speaking fans.
Akira questions Ryou, and Ryou tells him that he believes his life is in danger, but won't elaborate on the threat. He leads Akira to a car, and Akira exclaims that he is under eighteen[1] and therefore too young to drive, but Ryou says he altered his father's license and insists that it will be fine.
Akira comments that Ryou is acting strange and reckless, but Ryou blows him off. Akira mentions that his dad "took [a] job overseas [a month ago], and [his] whole family[2] went with him". Because of this, he moved in with the Makimuras and had to switch schools, and has not seen Ryou since. He says that they are best friends, but Ryou has changed a lot over the past month, and continues rambling until he trails off, realizing that Ryou is not responding. After a moment of silence, Ryou suddenly exclaims that his father is dead, making him the last surviving member of his family. Akira becomes distraught, saying that Dr. Asuka looked fine the last time he saw him, and Ryou reveals that he committed suicide by pouring gasoline on himself and setting himself on fire.
Ryou continues, saying that Dr. Asuka's body "was twice as heavy as when he was alive", weighing almost 300 pounds despite his thin frame. He then says that his father left him a "dreadful inheritance", and says he wants Akira to share it with him. Akira seems frightened and uncertain as they pull up to the Asuka manor.
Outside of the gate, Ryou stops and faces Akira, saying that he is his best friend and the only person he can trust, begging him to understand. Akira says that, despite his fear, he's "with him to hell and back", and the narrative remarks on the irony of those words.
[1] Few of the character's ages are confirmed, but we can assume that since they are in high school and in the same class, Akira and Ryou are between 15 and 17 at the start of the story, and most interpretations place them at 16. Miki is either the same age or one year behind them; her Saga counterpart is one year younger than Yuuki, and in Shin Violence Jack she is described as looking 15 or 16. In Gekiman, Miko is said to be 16, but her classmates are said to be 17, so she is either the same age as Ryou and Akira or one year ahead.
[2] Akira never mentions having siblings or other immediate family besides his parents.
Ryou reminds Akira that his dad was a famous archeologist. Akira says he assumed his life would be boring and comments on a photo of him with "some hot foreign chick", which turns out to be Ryou's mom[1], much to Akira's embarrassment. To change the subject, he asks about the inheritance, and Ryou leads him down a hallway towards his father's lab. Ryou explains that his father was studying Mayan ruins when he fell into a hole and uncovered something strange.
They enter a dark room, but the demon mask is clearly visible. Akira screams and tries to run away, but Ryou points out that it's not real. Akira says it looks like the Devil, and asks if it's an ancient artifact. Ryou confirms this, but says it is much older than humanity, and was created by demons, who ruled the earth before humans arrived. Akira calls him crazy, but Ryou continues that the sculpture is meant to be worn, and will broadcast a series of visuals to the wearer, showing the history of demons.
Akira tries to flee again, calling Ryou crazy, but Ryou pulls the best friend card and Akira reluctantly agrees to stay. Ryou eventually persuades / guilts Akira into putting on the mask. Akira sees the scene unfold in front of him as if he were there: dinosaurs, an erupting volcano, and most importantly, demons. It's a gruesome scene, as the demons exist in constant conflict and bloodshed. "Weakness... meant death [...] a history of violence! Blood calling for blood! Slaughter calling for slaughter!" as Ryou says.
Ryou explains that demons possess the ability to merge with other matter to enhance their own power, and over thousands of years they became "grotesque monsters". He compares this to humanity developing more powerful weapons over time, and says that the era of demons came to an end with the ice age. Akira expresses relief that all the demons died during the ice age, but Ryou corrects him that his father theorized that the demons were still out there, bringing up various creatures from folklore as examples of possible demons throughout history. Akira admits that this makes sense.
Ryou asks if Akira's heard of Dante's Divine Comedy, which he has not, so Ryou summarizes that Dante wrote a guidebook to heaven, hell, and purgatory, and in it he describes the demons being frozen in the lowest level of hell. Among them is their lord, Lucifer, who is said to have bat wings and three heads[2]. Ryou suggests that the demons did not die in the ice, but rather have been hibernating, and have been slowly emerging overtime as the ice melts, inspiring those myths. He continues that most are likely still trapped because there are no fossils to indicate that they died.
Ryou says that in order to prove the existence of demons and conduct further research on them, his father willingly merged with one, but that when the demon began to overtake him, he lit himself on fire. Ryou gets emotional as he describes this, saying that in the end his father only begged for more gasoline, and that Ryou didn't understand what was happening until he read his suicide note. Akira tries to console him, saying that it's okay if he needs time to process it, but Ryou, getting ahold of himself, laughs dryly and explains that time "is exactly what [they] don't have."
Ryou says that a demon and a human cannot simply merge under normal circumstances, and that he will explain more later. He says that the demons are already awake and planning to take back the earth by destroying humanity. Akira points out that humanity has strong militaries and nuclear weapons, so they have a fighting chance, but Ryou counters that demons' bodies are their weapons, and that they've been studying humanity to find it's weaknesses with the intent to wage war. From the demons' perspective, humans have infested their land.
Ryou goes on to say that humans refuse to believe they even exist, which has enabled them to slip in undetected. He says that "by the time humans admit demons are real," they'll have already won. He brings up his inheritance again, saying that it is the only chance humans have against demons. Akira, mind made up, confirms that he's still in. Ryou seems hesitant but says that they'll do it tomorrow. As they get back in Ryou's car, Akira asks why they're waiting, and Ryou admits that it's because he himself is scared.
[1] This reveals that Ryou is of mixed race; Nagai has confirmed multiple times that he is half Japanese and half (white) American. Additionally, since Ryou says that Dr. Asuka was his last living family, this means that his mother is dead, too.
[2] Although at this point in the story Nagai had not planned for Ryou to be Satan, this functions as a bait-and-switch for later, as this description fits Zenon and not Satan. Additionally, in the Divine Comedy, the ice that traps Lucifer is composed of his own tears and saliva.
As they're driving, a demon shows up and blocks the road, shattering the car's windshield with a sonic screech. Ryou turns around and tries to escape, but more demons descend upon the car. Texsch lands on the roof and tries to get her tentacles into the car. Ryou hands Akira his gun and tells him to shoot at it, but Akira says he doesn't know how. One of Texsch's tentacles gets inside, but Akira is too freaked out to shoot, and it wraps around his neck. Ryou whips out a knife and manages to sever the tentacle, then grabs the gun and shoots her between the eyes.
They make it back to the manor and Ryou crashes his car through the wall. He makes sure Akira is okay, then makes a break for it. Akira, trying to be polite, asks if they should take their shoes off, and Ryou scolds him for his skewed priorities. Ryou leads Akira through his house to the room where the "inheritance" is, with Texsch still in pursuit of them. He says that Akira doesn't have to come, even though staying behind means dying, because death might be a better fate than what awaits them, but Akira, scared of Texsch, says he doesn't want to die and begs Ryou take him to the room.
They run through the house, Texsch close behind them, and turn down a hallway. Ryou makes a poorly timed joke about it being a dead-end, but quickly reveals a hidden door. Once inside, Ryou opens another secret door, saying that it only opens from one side, and once they enter they won't be able to come back out, but with Texsch climbing through the wall again, they have no choice but to jump in.
They walk along a fortified corridor with the inheritance at the end of it. Ryou laments that he wanted to give Akira one more day to enjoy his life. Akira asks why the demons are attacking them, and Ryou says it's because his father uncovered the demons' plot while he was merged.
They arrive at the room, and Akira tells Ryou that he's pieced together what the "inheritance" is, saying that from what Ryou has said, there's only one logical way to stop the demons. Ryou gets emotional again that Akira had figured it out but was still willing to go along with it, and confirms that in order to win the fight against the demons, they must become demons themselves. He elaborates that this would mean throwing away their humanity completely, including all sense of emotion, and continues crying as he apologizes to Akira for "[putting] him into a position where he can't refuse".[1] Akira insists that he's not scared, and would rather become demons together than "watch [Ryou] suffer alone."
Akira asks Ryou why Dr. Asuka had to kill himself, and if they're going to have to do the same. Before answering, Ryou lights up a joint, much to Akira's confusion. As he smokes, he explains that after his father's fusion, there was no clear evidence that anything had changed, because demons possess the ability to shapeshift. Ryou remarks that "his true form was probably grotesque," but he never revealed it to Ryou because "he didn't want [him] to see it."
Ryou then goes on to explain that when a demon fuses with another living thing, it is a merge of consciousnesses as well. He explains that, although his face looked the same, his father began exhibiting irrationally violent behavior, such as ripping apart Ryou's pet canary and decapitating Ryou's dog, John. When Ryou confronted him about this, he was covered in John's blood and saying disturbing things. Two weeks passed, and he tried to kill Ryou in his sleep, but Ryou was able to stop him, and he regained his clarity long enough to lock himself in his room for three days before ultimately comitting suicide, unable to bear the thought of almost killing his son. He wrote in his note that he was unable to fight the demon's bloodlust any longer, and wished to die "while his heart was still human".
Dr. Asuka then theorized that there must be people who would be able to merge with a demon without losing their human souls. He wrote that "they must possess an iron will, strong enough to contain the demon," "retain a pure, unspoiled heart," and have "a powerful sense of right and wrong". Ryou points to Akira and declares that he is the type of person his father was describing. Akira denies this, but Ryou insists, saying that he believes in him, which is enough to convince Akira.
Though Akira is still nervous, and asks what happens if the demon wins. Ryou replies frankly: if either of their possessions fail, they will have to die. Akira says he understands, and draws an analogy between the current situation and Ryou being Enma leading him into hell[2]. They clasp hands and share a moment of intense silence (with some dramatic tears) before Akira enthusiastically calls for Ryou to "open the gates of hell". Ryou flings open the door to reveal the Sabbath inside.
[1] Note that by this point Ryou has, in fact, tried to give Akira several outs, and every time Akira has chosen to go with him.
[2] Enma is the Japanese name of Yama, the Buddist god of hell. In the English translation, this reference is changed to Charon and the River Styx from Greek Mythology, likely so that westerners would be more likely to get the allusion.
The Sabbath is a wild party featuring drugs, sex, and a live band. Akira is understandably confused, and Ryou explains that it's a Black Sabbath, then starts laughing and dancing wildly. He calls for Akira to join him, and Akira responds by grabbing him by the coat collar and demanding to know what's going on. Before Ryou can respond, one of the girls from the party cuts in and drags Akira away to dance with him. She kisses him on the cheek, which flusters him.
Akira, still bewildered, eventually makes his way back to Ryou, who flops down on one of the couches, laughing again. Akira once more demands an explanation, angry at Ryou for seemingly deceiving him, but this time Ryou explains what's happening. He says that parties and rituals like this were used throughout history to attract demons, because they involve humans abandoning their reason. He specifically mentions the witch trials[1] that happened in Europe. He explains that demons don't often merge with humans because they are creatures of instinct, and a human's need for reason is counter to a demon's nature. As such, a demon can only successfully posses a human who has completely let go of their inhibitions and returned to a primal state.
Ryou says that this is why he gathered people who were willing to abandon their reason in search of pleasure, suggesting that he and Akira behave like them in order to be successfully possessed. Akira questions what Ryou said earlier about the cellar being locked up, and Ryou replies that this is to prevent weaker demons from entering, but a stronger demon would be able to teleport in.
Ryou whips out a flask full of laced whiskey and offers it to Akira to get him started, encouraging him to give in to his impulses. Akira hesitates, asking if the other people will get possessed, too. Ryou confirms this, saying that everyone will merge, but they two are the only ones who know about the demons and have the will to fight back. He predicts that because "none of them had a sense of virtue in the first place", the demons will overtake them instantly, and everyone in the room will become an enemy.
Akira expresses further concern, saying that they can't possibly fight everyone in the room, but Ryou insists that if they lose this fight, then there is no hope for them to win the war, so they have to try. If they prove too weak, then they will die. Akira comments that there isn't much hope, but Ryou says he believes that they can save the world together. He says that if they are successful, they will "see the birth of a new species" with "the power of a devil" and "the soul of a man": a devilman (roll credits). This solidifies Akira's resolve, so he chugs the whisky and tries his best to let go.
[1] This subtly forshadows the mass hysteria that occurs later in the story, and particularly Miki's fate in volume 5, though at this time Nagai had not planned her death.
The party continues. Suddenly Ryou smashes a bottle and uses it to stab a woman in the chest, causing everyone to freeze in shock. Ryou starts laughing wildly again, slashing the bottle at various partygoers while exclaiming that "demons crave blood". He continues stabbing and threatening people while laughing maniacally, until one guy punches him in the face. Akira bursts through the crowd, calling for them to stop fighting because he can't stand violence or bloodshed. Another guy grabs Akira, saying that it was his friend who started it, and punches him. Another guy knees him in the back, sending him into a woman's chest, who smashes her glass into his face.
The people around start laughing wildly, too, until one woman suddenly jerks and starts screaming. Her body begins mutating horrifically as the demon Welvath possesses her. Groans of pain spread throughout the crowd as the demons teleport inside and begin to claim more hosts. Soon Akira and Ryou are surrounded, but neither of them have been possessed yet. Ryou, panicked, says that they haven't let go of enough of their reason.
A demon reaches out to grab Akira, causing him to panic and flee. In that moment, he is consumed by fear and acting completely on impulse, allowing Amon to take possession of him. After the successful fusion, he transforms into Devilman for the first time and promptly rips Welvath's face off. The other demons are confused, but Akira declares himself Devilman and begins tearing through them with ease, much to the fright of the few humans left, Ryou included.
Ryou huddles up against a wall, waiting for death and wondering if Akira was truly successful, because though he was once kind and timid, he now "looks more demonic than the demons", and is delighting in the violence and bloodshed. He notes that the plan seems to be working, because Akira is taking down all the demons, but worries that in attempting to create humanity's savior, he may have accidentally created their greatest enemy. He wonders how long Akira will be able to maintain his humanity, or if he will become a monster.
After all of the demons have been slaughtered, the room is painted with blood, and Akira detransforms. After a moment to catch his breath, he calls out for Ryou. He worries that he may have accidentally killed him without realizing, and begins frantically searching for him. Eventually, he finds him unconscious[1] underneath a demon's corpse, and begs him not to die and "leave [him] all alone in this world gone to hell".
[1] Originally, Ryou was actually intended to be dead here, but Nagai decided to keep him alive so he could use Ryou as an informant-type character in order to drive the story forward.
The next day, Miki comments on Akira's shift in personality, but Akira blows her off and says he "can change if [he] wants to". She laughs it off and says he seems much cooler now. She starts flirting with him and pulls him closer by his open jacket, and says she likes the new him better. Akira stands there gawking at her[1], not sure what to do with this kind of attention.
Soon, they run into Dosuroku and his gang again, and Miki starts taunting them. Dosuroku points out that Ryou isn't here to protect them this time, but says he wants to meet him again so they can fight properly. Miki came prepared for this, and whips out a carpenter's saw from her school bag. Dosuroku and co. laugh at her and start making sexual comments again.
Akira places a hand on Miki's shoulder and says, "I've got this." Miki gets excited that he's taking charge and offers him her saw, which he declines. One of the guys lunges at Akira, and a fight breaks out properly, with Akira beating them effortlessly. It ends with him throwing Dosuroku against a wall.
Miki squees with delight at this change of character and cheers him on. She admits that she was just putting on a tough girl act and was actually really scared. Akira, getting cocky, tells her to carry his bag for him, and she happily agrees.
Meanwhile, a cat has been observing them from a rooftop. It seems normal at first, but quickly reveals itself to be a demon in disguise. It takes note of Akira as "the human boy who possessed Amon the Brave", then extends its wings and flies off into the night.[2]
[1] It's clear from his actions that Amon is influencing his behavior, but it is contrasted with moments like this where his "real" personality comes through. Although Amon never fully overtakes Akira outside of the aptly named Amon manga and Amon OVA, both of which are considered to be "canon AUs".
[2] In the original edition, the scene simply fades to black and transitions into the next one.
Akira dreams that he is trapped in ice, which suddenly begins crumbling all around him, revealing the silhouette of Zenon[1]. He begins screaming, and Miki shakes him awake. Akira explains that he had a nightmare, and Miki comments that it's odd that he gets more scared from a dream than from fighting off the thugs earlier.
Miki suggests that they sleep together, but Akira says that her father would kill him, and points out that he can see through her nightgown. Miki gets embarrassed and smacks him, but as she's leaving suggests that he dreams of something nice instead, like going on a date with her. Akira grins and says he'll dream of missing the date. They both laugh and Miki leaves.
Akira lies back down, contemplating how real the dream felt, and wondering why, as Devilman, he can still feel fear.
The next morning, Akira hops on his motorcycle, telling Miki he's heading out. She calls after him to take her along, but he ignores her. He heads over to the hospital to visit Ryou, who he finds sitting up in bed. Ryou remarks that he's been making a fast recovery, which surprises Akira considering he had seemed seriously injured.
Ryou asks how Akira is feeling post-possession, to which Akira says that everything is different but he feels better than he ever has before. He comments that he's been getting violent urges, but seems excited by them, much to Ryou's concern.
Akira also mentions that he's been getting strange, realistic nightmares, and Ryou suggests that they are Amon's memories, and that the fear he felt was Amon's. Akira concludes that this means the demon he saw is more powerful than Amon, and Ryou asks if this scares him. Akira grins darkly again and says no, he can't wait to fight it. Ryou's concern only grows.
[1] At this point, Zenon is still intended to be Satan.
That night, a young girl is walking home in the dark, trying to think of an excuse for being out so late. She slips in a pool of blood, then hears a strange noise, and becomes frightened. She sneaks around the corner towards the source of the noise, seeing only a silhouette. She approaches and calls out to it weakly, but nearly steps on a severed head and screams, drawing the attention of the demon, which turns to look at her.
The scene cuts to two truck drivers talking about ghost stories, including one of a girl who was killed in a motorcycle accident. The story says that her tangled mess of limbs appears on the road, her severed head saying she'll take the person to hell.
One of the drivers screams, and the one telling the story laughs, thinking he successfully scared him, but the first guy points ahead of them, revealing the severed bust of the girl from earlier. The driver panics and crashes the truck against a building, causing it to erupt in flames. From the sides, another demon laughs as it gnaws on the girl's arm.
In the distant past, Kaim is shown watching Sirene bathe, remarking on her beauty. In the sky above them, Amon clashes with another demon, taking it down easily. Sirene calls him the demons' greatest warrior.
In the present, a voice calls out to Sirene to inform her that Amon has found a human host, but that the human has overtaken him. Sirene bursts out of the ice with the intent to find him.
Meanwhile at the Makimura residence, Miki recounts how Akira fought off the thugs from earlier. Miki's kid brother Tare seems impressed, and Akira tries to act modest. Kozo, Miki's father, encourages Akira, saying that "it's good to fight when you're young" and "get it out of your system."[1]
Sirene flies overhead, landing on the Makimuras' roof. She resolves to kill Akira, calling up a storm and requesting the aid of two lower demons, Agwel and Ghelmer, who appear in a flash of lightning. Ghelmer uses the rain to sneak into the Makimura house.
Miki comments on the sudden change in weather, then gets scared by a crash of thunder. Tare makes fun of her, so she hits him and he starts crying. Miki accuses him of being oversensitive. Akira says he's going to bed, and Miki asks if he's going to bathe first. He says if he bathes every day he'll "swell up", and Miki protests that she "bathe[s] every day and [she's] not swollen", to which Akira says that she is swollen and gestures at her breasts (whahey). Miki gets irritated and Akira leaves the room laughing. Tare grabs Miki's chest it confirm that she's "swollen" and she smacks him again, this time with the intention of making him cry.
As Akira walks down the hallway, he fails to notice Agwel creeping along the wall, but remarks that he feels like something is watching him.
[1] Everyone but Ryou seems to be encouraging Akira's behavior.
Miki enters the bathroom and begins stripping down to bathe. As she looks away from the mirror, her reflection turns into Ghelmer, who begins to creep out into the bathroom.
In the other room, Akira is too restless to sleep, feeling something off in the air. He says that he feels fired up and ready for a fight.
Miki checks herself out in the bathroom, remarking on how cute she looks and that Akira won't ever get the privilege of seeing her like this, then gets excited / embarrassed at the thought of him seeing her naked. She still does not notice Ghelmer looming behind her.
Up on the roof, Sirene doubts whether or not she will be able to take on Devilman, since Amon was one of the strongest demons, and now has a human's "will and intellect" in addition to his "raw power". She reassures herself that she has slain countless demons in the past, and resolves to destroy him.
Miki enters the area with the bath, closing the sliding door right before Ghelmer can get to her. While she rinses herself off, Ghelmer infects the water inside the tub, enticing her to get inside so that he can take control of her. Akira is still on edge, noting that something about the rain feels wrong.
Miki steps into the tub, but instantly feels uneasy. She glances around but does not see anything. Akira is becoming more and more restless, feeling the demonic urge to fight course through him, but still not sure why. Sirene waits on the roof. Miki is still unsuspecting of Ghelmer in the bath with her.
As if by hidden signal (which he refers to as "the gong of war"), Akira bursts out of his room. Sirene curses the house again. Akira runs down the hallway until he finds Tare, who is scared shitless and points back down the hallway to where Kozo and Akiko are fusing into the wall and ceiling, unconscious. Tare grabs Akira's leg and Akira picks him up, his heart beating like a drum. He knocks on Miki's bedroom door, calling for her, just as Ghelmer reveals himself in the bathwater.
Elsewhere, Ryou bolts upright in the hospital bed, sensing something wrong with Akira. He quickly retrieves his gun, gets dressed, and heads out.
Akira hears Miki's scream and rushes towards the bathroom, but the door won't open, and he gets caught in Agwel's trap and begins sinking into the floor. Agwel rises up and introduces himself as "Hell's envoy", then tries to grab Akira. Akira grabs hold of his tendrils and uses his eyebrow antennae to gouge out Agwel's eyes. Agwel retreats, and Akira breaks down the bathroom door.
Inside, he sees Miki trapped in the water vortex of Ghelmer's body, drowning. Somehow, Akira recognizes him,[1] and Ghelmer says that he's pleased to get another opportunity to fight Amon. Akira shoots some energy out of his antennae, and is able to grab Miki from Ghelmer. He runs down the hallway, carrying her limp body, until he is tripped by Agwel.
Miki, now under Ghelmer's mind control from drinking his water, grabs Akira's antennae before he can attack Agwe againl, but Akira easily smacks her away and uses his antennae to tear Agwel's head off. Agwel laughs and says he'll be waiting for Devilman in hell as his face dissolves into the ceiling. Akira grabs Miki again, narrowly avoiding Ghelmer as he runs upstairs.
Akira places Miki on the ground, and she coughs out the part of Ghelmer she had swallowed, which zips out under the door to join with the rest of him. Ghelmer then bursts down the door. Thinking quickly, Akira gets the sheet off of Miki's bed and throws it over Ghelmer, lighting it on fire with his demon powers.
Akira laughs, noting how boiling off the water strips Ghelmer of his power, then easily begins to beat the shit out of him. He punches through his abdomen, causing Ghelmer's blood to spray everywhere as Akira laughs wickedly, looking increasingly demonic.
Ghelmer withers away on the floor, while Akira comes to his senses and makes sure that Miki is okay. He "wonder[s] if she saw [him]... looking so terrifying", and then realizes that his arm is covered up to the shoulder in Ghelmer's thick blood. He flicks it off best he can, and remarks that he won.
[1] He likely recognizes Ghelmer and the other demons from Amon's memories, but it is never directly addressed.
Suddenly, Sirene's talons crash through the ceiling and grab Akira. She mocks him for thinking that he had won. Sirene uses her electricity to disrupt Akira's transformation back to his "true form,"[1] so he remains stuck in her grasp, alarmed. Akira demands that if she is not going to give him a fight, then she needs to kill him outright; his demonic side cannot stand the shame of defeat. Sirene refuses, saying he is not worthy of a noble death because he is a worthless human and not a true demon warrior. She says that she is taking him to Zenon to be tortured by being torn into pieces but retain his consciousness, to lie in shame and agony for a hundred years.
Meanwhile, Ryou uses his car and cuts off a guy on a motorcycle, punching him and stealing his ride so that he can travel up the mountain faster. He says to himself that he just needs to give Akira and opportunity to fight back, also somehow knowing Sirene's name.[2]
Ryou ascends to the top of the mountain and draws his rifle, much to Akira's surprise. He fires a few shots, nailing Sirene in the leg and torso and causing her to drop Akira. She launches her arm at Ryou, which digs into his back and throws him down the mountain. Akira extends his wings to stop himself from falling, and, now being free from Sirene's grip, begins transforming into Devilman.
He charges at Sirene, insulted by what she had said about humanity. Sirene, now pissed off, says that she'll just kill him herself. The clash in the air, then Devilman attacks her from above, and she crashes down into the trees. Devilman lands in the forest and begins looking for her. Suddenly, she begins hurling tree branches at him using her wind powers. Devilman grabs one of the branches and launches it back at her, revealing her position. He charges her again and clocks her in the face. Sirene takes several hits before trying to swipe back, but she is clearly outmatched, and Devilman eventually tackles her.
She calls back the arm that she'd thrown at Ryou, which spins like a saw blade through the air, slicing through the trees. Devilman lands a few more hits on her before her arm flies through and severs his own arm. He says now they're evenly matched because they're "both short an arm", but Sirene's arm spins through again, this time slicing Devilman through the stomach.
Devilman notices that she is using her antennae to control her claw, so he shoots out his own to grab onto hers, causing the arm to ricochet wildly through the trees. She tries to have it his the back of his head, but misses, and her stomach is impaled by her own claws. Devilman declares the fight over, but Sirene keeps fighting despite vomiting blood. Devilman grabs hold of one of her wings and rips it off of her head, laughing.
[1] Akira is beginning to think of his demonic side as his true self, indicating that, as Ryou feared, he is beginning to lose his humanity. His dialogue in this scene also reflects this change in attitude.
[2] It's not explained how Ryou knows the names of demons, either. An outside look can say it's because he's Satan, but as mentioned, this wasn't planned yet. Although, at this point in the story he is implied to have some kind of supernatural ability that he himself does not understand, so it leads into the reveal nicely.
Sirene calls out to Zenon for help, who sends down Kaim and a few lesser demons in a flash of lightning. Kaim calls out for Sirene to merge with him, but she refuses, saying she is close to death, and that if her consciousness takes over the fusion, then both of them will die. She continues that if Kaim's consciousness is dominant, then they can survive,[1] but "the odds are fifty-fifty". Kaim clarifies that he does "not intend to survive", and only wishes to grant Sirene his power so that she may defeat Devilman.
Kaim remarks that "even bathed in blood, [Sirene] is beautiful", and proceeds to tear off his own head with his tail. Sirene cries out for him again, but quickly runs to merge with his dying body. Sirene, now fused with Kaim's body, charges into the forest where Devilman is slicing through the lesser demons, looking for his real opponent. They do not pose a challenge to him. Sirene charges through the trees and impales Devilman on one of her tusks, then continues running, leaving Devilman to fall to the ground, severely wounded.
Sirene turns around, and Devilman, now transforming back to Akira, thinks that she is coming to finish him off for good, but is confused when she does not seem to be moving. Slowly, he fades out of consciousness.
[1] This gives us a little more insight to how demon fusion works. Combined with what Ryou says in volume one, we know that when a demon fuses with something, their forms become inseparable. In the case of a demon merging with another being that has a consciousness, like a human or another demon, their minds will merge as well, resulting in a mesh of their personalities but with only one dominant consciousness. Kaim likely kills himself to skew the odds completely in Sirene's favour, since she would no longer have to fight him for control over the body, nor be influenced by Kaim's will. Demons can fuse with nonliving matter as well, so Kaim being dead would still enable Sirene to fuse.
(The dormant consciousness is sometimes preserved well enough to overtake the body, such as Dr. Asuka managing to kill himself before losing to the demon again, but it is hard to say how likely this is to happen.)
Through this and everything in the story up until this point, we can infer that Akira is entirely a demon now, physically speaking, but able to take a (mostly) human form. Depending on how you look at it, he is either a human with a demon's body, or a demon with a human's soul.
The sun rises the next morning and Ryou wakes up on the ground, unsteady.
Akira opens his eyes to see Ryou peering down at him, and wonders if he's alive. Ryou gives him some water, and Akira questions why Ryou is here. Ryou says that he was sleeping in the hospital when he suddenly sensed that Akira needed his help, and knew where to go. He jokes that maybe he is developing psychic abilities.
Akira tries to sit up but is still in pain, and Ryou tells him not to push himself, commenting that he's wounded bad enough that "if [he was] human, [he]'d be dead for sure". Akira realizes his arm is reattached, and Ryou explains that he found it and decided to see if Akira's body would repair itself. He also says that he's the one who dressed their wounds with bandages he got at the pharmacy.
Akira asks where Sirene went, and Ryou points to her corpse, her face frozen in confidence, thinking that she had won in the end. Akira thinks to himself that although she was fearsome, he can't help but think she is beautiful.[1]
[1] This thought is perhaps from Amon's influence, as he and Sirene are implied to be former lovers. Though, parallels have also been drawn between Miki and Sirene, so depending on how you read Akira's feelings for Miki, it could be a combination.
One of Akira's classmates is commenting on the steady rise in population, and the estimate that there will be 7 billion people by the year 2000[1]. He wonders how humans will be able to sustain themselves, and remarks how, historically, wars have kept populations lower, but wonders about the future of warfare with nuclear power. He remarks that if a nuclear war were to break out, humanity would destroy itself and almost all life.[2]
He continues to say that humans are the only species to war amongst ourselves, but other animals have natural predators, and postulates that humans must have their own. Akira questions what he means, and the guy pulls out a newspaper detailing all of the recent mysterious deaths, saying that it can't possibly be the work of an animal or a human, and must be something else entirely. He says that this "new species" is hunting humans, but laughs about it possibly solving the population problem.
Akira contemplates what his classmate said, realizing that he is inadvertently talking about the demons. He wonders if humans stand a chance in the war, or if it is truly nature, and if so, is it worth it to fight against it?
Later, he meets up with Ryou at a cafe and brings up this concern. Ryou says that demons are likely human's natural predators. He goes on to say that humans are unusual amongst other animals for their hunger for not just survival, but for power. He says he believes that humans have a primal fear lurking in their subconscious, often manifesting as a fear of the dark, because they know deep down that there is something out there which poses a threat to their existence.
Akira questions why humans today would be afraid of the same things as ancient humans, and Ryou suggests that if genetics are passed down through generations, why not memories as well? Ryou continues that many developments of human civilization might have been motivated by fear of the demons, such as banding together in groups, but when the ice age took out the demons, humans were able to "spread unchecked across the globe." Akira comments that because of that, many other animals have gone extinct.
Akira asks for clarification that the demons returning would counter the problems caused by humans, but says that he will "not sit back and watch" humanity be destroyed. Ryou agrees with this sentiment, and says that they've got to fight to survive. He suggests that humans "aren't helpless cavemen anymore," and might even be able to beat the demons.
Akira says that when he got back to the Makimura's house, the demons were gone and the house was restored to normal, and that they didn't remember anything. Miki thought is was a bad dream. Ryou says that the demons will do what they can to cover their existence, since ignorance of their awareness is their main advantage. Ryou says that the demons are still carrying out their plans, possessing people quietly, and asserts that because of this he and Akira must work together and become demon hunters.
[1] It didn't happen until 2011, but the estimate wasn't that far off.
[2] This was a common sentiment during the Cold War era and beyond.
Elsewhere, two men are seen eating at a restaurant. One of them, Maegawa, is vaguely describing a delicious "food" to the other, which is quickly revealed to be humans, as he describes the joy of seeing their fear right before he tears them apart. Both men are sweating and salivating at the thought. They are, unsurprisingly, revealed to be demons.
Maegawa continues talking, saying how the humans are everywhere, but they have to eat them in secret under orders from their boss. The other demon asks who he are first, and Maegawa replies that he ate one of the higher-ups at his human job, but made the mistake of leaving behind leftovers that ended up being discovered. The other demons got mad at him for nearly blowing his cover, so he advises the other demon to not leave anything behind if he decides to eat anyone. They laugh and part ways.
As Maegawa is walking home, he fails to notice someone following him.
Elsewhere, Ryou has managed to gather some intel on a list of "suspicious persons": anyone who has shown a sudden change in behavior, particularly any unusual violent tendencies. Ryou seems pleased with the results and tells the man he's working with to keep it up, then selects one of the names off the list to hunt down.
Armed with a blade attached to an umbrella, Ryou follows Maegawa down a dark road, giddy at the thought of exposing him. Eventually, Ryou corners him, and starts aggressively questioning his unusual behaviors. He interrogates him about the whereabouts of his wife and family, and when Maegawa answers, Ryou calls him out for lying based on the evidence he's gathered.
Maegawa asks if he is being blackmailed, to which Ryou accuses him of eating all those people. Maegawa tries to deny it, but Ryou asserts that he is not a human, but a demon. Maegawa shows his fangs and demands to know who Ryou is, and Ryou responds by slashing him across the face with his umbrella, urging him to show his true form. Maegawa again asks who he is, and Ryou stabs him in the ear, declaring himself, ironically, a natural predator against demons, vowing to kill every last one of them. This is enough for Maegawa to reveal his true form, and Ryou laughs that the ugly face suits him better as demon scum.
Clouds cover the moon, and Ryou is breathing heavily as Maegawa completes his transformation. Ryou realizes that this might have been more than he bargained for, and screams as the scene fades out.
Suddenly, Ryou is jerking back to awareness, sweating profusely, and staring at the silhouette in the shape of Maegawa's true form on the ground in front of him.
Outside of the Makimura's house the next day, Ryou explains what happened to Akira, saying that he can't remember what happened between Maegawa transforming and him disappearing.[1] Akira laughs and says Ryou wasn't cautious enough and ended up getting tricked. He says that Ryou should stick to finding the demons and letting Akira do the killing. Akira asks why he didn't call him to take care of it, and Ryou doesn't have a good answer.
Miki pokes her head out of the gate and calls for Akira, who becomes irrationally aggressive, insults her, and tells her to wait until he's done talking. Miki apologizes but seems nervous from the exchange.
Akira turns back to Ryou and tells him again to leave the dangerous stuff for him to take care of, since he's immortal and Ryou's just a human. He also says again how much he loves fighting, and says that a human like Ryou wouldn't understand. Ryou mutters that he understands perfectly.[2]
Akira heads off to school and Miki runs to catch up with him, carrying his bag for him. When they arrive at school[3], Akira thanks Miki for carrying his bag and she suggests that they meet after school, saying she'll be waiting for him. He doesn't really respond.
A group of delinquents (Masa, Tetsu, Jo, and Manjiro) group up around Akira in the hallway, and start hassling him for beating up another member of their "club". Akira grins and confirms this. Dosuroku pops up and comments that Akira "gets scarily happy whenever [fighting] comes up." Akira accepts their challenge, and Dosuroku tries to convince Masa and the others not to fight him, but they don't listen.
The scene cuts to all five thugs lying beat-up on the school roof as Akira walks away unscathed. Masa remarks that Akira doesn't even seem human, and Dosuroku says that he warned them about him. The delinquents agree not to come into school tomorrow due to their injuries, and are interrupted by a strange looking girl, who tells them that she can help them defeat Akira.
Then, her eyes roll back, and one of them is pushed out of its socket by a large spider leg. Dosuroku, Masa, and the others scream. Soon, an entire spider has crawled out of her skull, and several more are emerging from her body.
[1] Ryou's still not Satan yet. Just more unexplained phenomena.
[2] Again we have Ryou expressing concern for Akira's behavior, and now even Miki seems to be noticing that something is off. Perhaps Ryou hadn't called Akira because he had assumed they were more equal in the fight against demons, or perhaps because he is growing more wary of Akira's bloodlust. Akira seems unconcerned about his growing violent tendencies, and unaware of his overconfidence.
[3] This whole arc was moved later in the story in the deluxe edition, but I'm placing it here to follow the flow of the original version.
Miki runs down the hallway, worried about missing her meetup with Akira, and pushes her way past the delinquents, who seem zombie-like. She accidentally knocks off Masa's hat, but does not turn around to notice the giant spider sitting on his head.
She enters a classroom to see Akira by the window. Akira tells her to go home, and she asks if he's mad at her for making him wait. He says no, but he has a feeling that something bad is about to happen. On cue, the mind-controlled thugs enter the classroom. Akira says that she missed her chance, and now is going to have to witness something unpleasant.
Akira turns to face the gang, asking if they're back for more, and recognizes that they've been possessed by a demon. One of the spiders reveals itself underneath Masa's hat, and Akira picks up Miki on his back to get her out of there. Akira realizes that the guys haven't truly merged, they're just being controlled, and sees that he needs to "kill the spiders without killing the people", which will be "a pain in the ass", in his words. He figures that the main demon must be nearby.
Meanwhile, Miki is excited to be carried, and comments on how Akira smells nice and manly.
Suddenly Dosuroku jumps up and lunges for them with a knife, and the other delinquents draw their weapons as well. Akira dodges, and grabs Dosuroku by the head, flipping him towards Jo. Dosuroku's knife lodges itself into Jo's spider, slicing it in half. Another thug whips a bike chain at Akira, which he grabs and flings back, knocking off two more of the spiders.
Masa goes to swing at Akira, but Jo has regained his clarity, and punches the spider off of Masa's head. Finally, Masa smashes the spider on Dosuroku's head, causing him to stagger backwards. The delinquents are confused by what just happened, wondering if it was real, and Akira assures them that it is. Dosuroku tells him about the girl on the roof and Masa suggests that she could still be there, and that they should go check it out. Akira agrees, and tells Miki to get off of his back, much to her disappointment.
Everyone heads up to the roof, but the spider girl's corpse is no longer there. Akira reminds them that they are dealing with a dangerous enemy, and that if he hadn't saved them they would have suffered the same fate as the girl. The thugs say they owe him one, and Akira says he might cash in on that favour, and warns them not to do anything stupid. Akira leads them back into the school, and Miki enthusiastically follows, excited by all the action.
They all head outside of the school, where they run into several members of the school's sports clubs, all being controlled by the spiders. Akira tells them to brace themselves for a fight, but to only kill the spiders, or else they would injure their classmates. Jo and Masa start rambling about how strong their weapons are, and Miki recognizes this as them being scared and trying to hide it by being tough. She then thinks that, unlike them, Akira is actually scary and tough, and laughs.
Akira senses the main demon hiding somewhere amongst the crowd, enticing it to reveal itself so he can kill it. He marches forward, and the controlled students seem to get out of his way rather than attack him, except for one, who he yells at to move before realizing that it is his own face looking back at him with a huge spider on his head; Rasber[1] has created an illusion to bait him, which vanishes after a moment.
Akira looks back to see the delinquents fighting through the crowd. When some of the controlled students go after Miki, she begins whacking at them with her school bags and calling for Akira to help her. She knocks a few of their spiders off, but one of the martial arts students grabs her and flips her over. Akira catches her before she hits the ground and puts her on his back again.
Suddenly, all the spiders jump off of the students' heads and scuttle to form a circle. They raise their abdomens and shoot their webs into the sky, forming Rasber's face above the courtyard.[2] Akira tells the others too run away, but Rasber shoots out his webs and entangles them all, revealing the form of a giant spider with a face on its abdomen. Rasber taunts Devilman to come out of hiding, or else he will dissolve his friends in the web cocoons.
Akira transforms into Devilman, and destroys the spider, only for it to explode in a tangle of webs which trap his body. He realizes that the web is Rasber's real form, and that the spiders are just decoys. Devilman then creates a burst of fire out from his body, burning up Rasber and freeing himself as well as the others, though they are unconcious.
He lifts Miki's body and carries her out of the scene.
[1] In the original version, this demon is said to be General Zann, who appears in full in volume four. In the deluxe edition, he is retconned to be Rasber, a different demon, instead. For clarity's sake, I will refer to him as Rasber and treat him as a separate character.
[2] After this in the original version, the spiders melt into the ground and Zann (Rasber) disappears, Akira wonders if Zann, the general of the demon army, is challenging him.
A little girl, Sachiko is trying to rin the doorbell to the Makimura house, but she is too small to reach. Miki offers to help, then laughs and says that she's Makimura. Sachiko asks if Akira home, and Akira comes to greet her. Miki asks who she is, and Akira says that she was one of his neighbors at his old house. Sachiko asserts herself as Akira's girlfriend and Miki gets jealous of her[1]. Akira is clueless of the interaction as usual.
Akira helps Sachiko get to the train station to send her home, telling her not to travel by herself next time.
The train heads off into a bizarre tunnel, then suddenly stops. The passengers, Sachiko included, become alarmed. The conductor assures them that everything is fine, but then reveals himself to be the demon Jinmen, saying that the train is now inside of a demon's body. The people scramble to escape, but are blocked by a tall woman, who removes her coat to reveal that she is also a demon. The people on the train scream.
Akira and Miki see on the news about the train's strange disappearance, and Akira panics because he realizes that it is the train that Sachiko was on. Suddenly, the phone rings, and Akira answers. Jinmen is on the other line, and taunts Akira about eating Sachiko.[2] Akira becomes filled with rage, and Miki asks if he's okay, but Akira tells her not to look at him, because his demonic side is showing through on his face.
[1] Despite the fact that she's like, six years old, and obviously not any real challenge to her relationship with Akira. Akira is kind of oblivious to Miki's feelings anyways.
[2] In every adaptation following the manga, aside from Cyborg 009 vs Devilman, Jinmen has eaten Akira's mother instead. This is likely because there is more obvious emotional weight to the situation than it just being a child that he knows. In Crybaby, in addition to eating his mother, Jinmen has also fused with Akira father, for double the parental angst.
As a side note, I just want you to take a moment and imagine Jinmen trying to operate a telephone with a rotary dial using his turtle claws. Trying to cram himself into a phone booth. Looking up the Makimura's number in a phone book. Thanks.
Akira heads to a local park, the wind swirling around him dramatically. He looks around, but he appears to be alone. Still enraged, he calls out for Jinmen to show himself. He hears a voice call out his name, and sees Sachiko's face in the darkness. He calls out her name, and she calls back that she is dead. Akira asks how this can be, and she simply repeats that she is dead, and goes into the details of how Jinmen killed and ate her. She is crying, and says how she can't see her friends or her parents anymore, that she just wanted to live a little bit longer.
Soon, other voices begin groaning out of the darkness, begging for help or simply crying out in pain. Their faces appear in a cluster, still surrounded by darkness. Jinmen laughs and asks Akira what he thinks of his shell. Akira is confused, and Jinmen continues laughing as he steps out of the shadows to reveal his shell in full, with all of the faces protruding from its holes.[1] Akira screams, and Jinmen comments on the beauty of their pained sounds, calling it "a symphony of suffering".
Jinmen explains that every time he eats someone, their face appears on his shell, and that "in time [they] will fade [and make] room for new faces". Sachiko cries out for Akira again. Tears roll down Akira's face in quiet anger, and he says that he has never hated demons so much as he does now.
Jinmen just laughs and encourages Akira's rage, saying that his hate only makes him (Jinmen) more powerful. Akira is still pissed off and transforms into Devilman. Jinmen taunts that he will add him to his shell, then wraps his neck around Devilman's body. Devilman grabs at him, but Jinmen grabs him first and tries to burn him. Jinmen says he's disappointed that Devilman doesn't seem to be fighting back, but Devilman says that he was simply trying to feel some of the pain that Sachiko felt before she died. He says he cannot forgive himself that someone innocent was killed just for being associated with him.
Devilman grabs Jinmen by the neck and flings him into the air, then zaps him with lightning from his horns. He fires again, but Jinmen turns and the attack his one of the faces, causing Devilman to recoil. Jinmen continues taunting him for "killing" that person, saying that he is far worse than a demon, because demons are just eating humans as humans eat other animals, but what Devilman is doing is murder. Jinmen says that Devilman's weakness is his human soul, then launches himself towards him in another attack.
Sachiko cries out from Jinmen's shell for Akira to just kill him and not worry about hurting her, because she is already dead. Devilman punches through Jinmen's shell, through Sachiko's face, then closes her eyes as one does a corpse. He rips his fist out, and Jinmen's blood gushes out. Devilman grabs hold of Jinmen's shell and begins to rip it off of his body. Jinmen tells him to stop, trying to gaslight him again by saying that he will be the one who has killed all of these people, but Devilman remains calm and replies that "yes, but [Jinmen] will die, too."
Jinmen screams as Devilman finishes him off, and then Akira detransforms, shedding another tear as he looks down at the victims on Jinmen's shell.
[1] His shell very closely resembles a lotus seedpod, which is somewhat common imagery in horror and sci-fi for its unsettling appearance (I don't recommend googling them if you have trypophobia).
Tare and his friend Susumu are sitting at the park.[1] Tare says that they should go home because it's getting late, and he's scared of the dark. Tare says that Akira is living with him, but he acts scary sometimes, and told him seriously that monsters exist and will try to eat him. He says he thinks he is just trying to scare him, but it worked and Tare ended up peeing himself.
Tare realizes how dark it's gotten and gets scared, wondering if the monsters are really out there. Susumu, who has been quiet up until now, admits that he doesn't want to go home. Tare says he can't stay out because he'll be killed, but Susumu says if he goes home, his mom and her scary dog will attack him again. Tare is reasonably alarmed and tells Susumu to tell his dad, which Susumu says he tried but his dad didn't listen.
Tare asks why his mom is doing this, and Susumu says that he's not the only one this has happened to; other kids have been dying at the hands of their parents, too. He says if he gets home before his dad he'll be killed for sure. Tare suggests he come and stay at his house instead, saying they've "already got one freeloader" (meaning Akira). Susumu says he wouldn't be able to pay him back, but Tare suggests he could do his homework for him and Susumu agrees.
The two head off from the park to Tare's house, singing together and having a good time, until suddenly Susumu's mother shows up with her dog. She tries to get Susumu to come home, and denies Tare's accusations of trying to hurt Susumu. She says that he was making up stories out of boredom. Susumu "admits" to lying, and his mom says that his dad came home early, which is enough to convince Susumu to come with her.
They leave, and Tare realizes that now he's alone in the dark, and runs away while pissing himself.
Susumu enters his house and calls for his dad, but gets no response. His mom gets a wicked grin and asks if he "really thought [his] father would be home this early". She tells him that he told Tare too much, and the dog starts to show its demonic side. Suddenly Susumu's father shows up, and Susumu runs towards him and starts to tell him what happened, but he removes his hat and reveals that he has a wolf's face himself.
Susumu screams, surrounded. The next panel shows his severed head, and the narrative states that "from that year on, demons began to silently slip in and take over human lives."
[1] In the deluxe edition, this scene was moved after the "Natural Predators" section and before the Jinmen fight, serving as a transition between them.
Akira breaks the fourth wall temporarily, warning the reader of the hell to come, then fading into the darkness.
A high school student named Mikiko "Miko" Kawamoto is shown walking down the street when she gets stopped by some of her classmates, a trio of delinquent girls, asking her to shoplift with them again. She refuses, and runs away without an explanation. One of the girls calls her a bitch as she runs off.
Later, Miko is shown taking a bath in her house and crying, lamenting that falling in with that crowd cursed her. She starts praying, begging God to forgive her for sinning and to give her back her body. When she stands up, she reveals that she's been fused with the demon Tollg, which has warped the skin from her thighs to her shoulders.
The next day, Miko is out again, when her classmates show up to hassle her again, down one member who got arrested the past night. Miko tells them it's their own fault, and that she doesn't want to "hang out with losers" like them. One of the girls calls her a bitch again, and Miko tells them to get out of her way. They refuse, calling her a "mama's girl", and Miko becomes more aggressive, insulting them and calling them garbage.
The taller girl pushes Miko against a wall, and Miko's jacket comes open, revealing her mutated chest. Miko becomes more enraged, and involuntarily spits acid onto the two girls from the holes in her chest and stomach, dissolving them in front of her, to the horror of the bystanders.
Meanwhile, in a cafe, an unseeming man is possessed by a demon, but it is unsuccessful and the body dies. A woman falls victim to the same fate moments later. Ryou, who happens to be at the cafe, notes that they're dying because they're merging while the humans still had reason, resulting in an incompatible fusion. But, he thinks, the demons should know how the transformation process works, and wonders why they are deliberately killing themselves.
Three more people die, and Ryou has the sudden realization of what's happening: the demons are finally enacting their plan. The era of peace is over, and the demons are ready to wage war. A car crashes behind him, it's driver another unsuccessful fusion. Ryou, panicking, concludes that the demons are intending to cause as much chaos as possible, inadvertently manipulating the humans into doing what they want.
Ryou flees the scene, and runs into Akira, and says he was just thinking of finding him. Akira asks what's happening, and why people merged with demons are randomly dying. Ryou says that it's not random, it's a form of attack, explaining that they know that these fusions will be unsuccessful, so they're forcibly merging with random humans with the intent to kill them. He says that a normal human body would "reject the demon's control", resulting in death. Some demons will survive and overtake the body, but that's just a bonus. Akira compares it to a kamikaze attack.
Akira asks what the point of it is, taking down onto one human per demon lost, but Ryou says that the point is that they have discovered humanity's weakness. He speculates that there must be more intelligent demons analyzing the humans and organizing the attacks, and that the demon in charge must be incredibly powerful.
Akira is still not following, and Ryou says that he wouldn't understand because he is no longer human.[1] He says that he can no longer understand the "frail mortal heart", and asks if Akira has any idea how he is feeling right now. Akira doesn't respond, and Ryou continues that he is absolutely terrified, uncertain if a demon will merge with him at any moment and kill him. Humanity's weakness, he concludes, is fear.
However in Gekiman, he says that he did not reach this conclusion until the scene where Ryou returns to his house in volume four, but it should be noted that Gekiman was published in 2010, almost 40 years after Devilman was written, and is a dramatized version of the real-life events. So, perhaps at this point he had been considering the plot twist but had not yet settled on it.
Ryou says that the demons are exposing themselves to humans intentionally to spread fear and panic, and that Akira's powers might not be enough to stop it. Akira doubts this, saying he does not believe humanity will give up just because they are scared. He says that humans have courage and intelligence, and "the weapons to fight back", and that the world's militaries will work to protect the humans and destroy the demons. Ryou says that's the best they can hope for.
Suddenly, a TV broadcast interrupts their discussion, announcing that the Soviet Union had been invaded by an unknown species, and the government has fired a missile at Stalingrad to halt the invasion, destroying the whole city in the process. The announcer says that they have labeled these creatures "demons". Akira and Ryou are horrified.
Ryou says that it seems his fears are true, because now innocent people will die in attempts to kill off the demons. "To kill off a few hundred demons," he says, "they won't hesitate to sacrifice millions of innocents," and that the weapons meant for humanity's protection will end up destroying them. He tells Akira that demons are no longer his only enemy, that now "humans are, too". He asks him how he could fight against that, and if he can still save humanity from the demons.
[1] More discussion on exactly how "human" Akira is. According to an interview from 1978 published in Go Nagai's World, it is around this time that Nagai began considering exactly what Ryou's place in the story is, and concluded that he must be Satan, making this conversation a little ironic.
Akira is reading a newspaper, detailing the "demonic invasion" Akira, seeing these, worries that Ryou might be right about the mass hysteria. He comes across an article about Miko, and realizes that with these random humans, they are just as likely to become devilmen as they are demons. Realizing that he is almost certainly not the only devilman anymore, he gets inspired to try and reach out to find other devilmen and build an army of his own to fight against the demons.
The phone rings, and Akira answers, correctly anticipating that it's Ryou. Ryou, calling him from the phone booth, urgently tells him to go outside and look at the sky. He does so, and sees Zenon towering above him. Zenon's presence is so massive that he can be seen all over the northern hemisphere. His voices speak in unison, telepathically broadcasting that he is the demon king, and to declare that the world belongs to the demons. Akira recognizes this as a declaration of war.
Zenon's voices speak in turn, elaborating that demons are "the true rulers of this world", and in five minutes, they will begin their first attack, the first of however many it takes to drive humanity towards extinction. After this, he disappears into a vortex. The people watching from the street react with confusion and alarm.
Akira recognizes that Zenon was the powerful demon he had seen in his dreams, the one that even Amon was afraid of. Akira wonders what sort of horrible war humanity is about to endure, and if he will be able to stop them. He assures the Makimura family that what they just saw was real, and that it wasn't human. He tells them that they have no way to predict what will happen next, so they just have to wait it out, but tells them to hold up in the house in the meantime. Kozo agrees, and Akira suggests that he bring out his old hunting rifle for protection. Then Akira says he has to go find "a friend", and runs off.
Akira rushes through the scattering crowds of people as an announcement over the city instructs people to evacuate and get to safety. The military is rolling into the streets with tanks and soldiers, and the police are mobilizing. Akira notes that the war that is about to happen will be unlike anything humanity has ever faced. He continues running until he gets to Ryou's apartment[1], and bursts through the door.
Ryou immediately warns him not to fight, saying that he shouldn't "waste [him]self on meaningless heroics". Akira seems offended at the notion, but Ryou tells him to sit back and watch, because "the greatest show the world has ever seen is starting."
[1] Evidently, Ryou moved out of the Asuka manor after the Sabbath. Can you blame him?
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Millions of years in the past,[1] angels descend upon the earth, only to find that it is overrun by demons, who proceed to attack and eat the weaker beings. God is pissed and begins attacking the demons. Satan leads the demons into battle, but ultimately they retreat and are imprisoned in ice; it is unclear at this point if this was intentional on their part or the work of God.
In the late 20th century,[2] some researchers[3] are exploring the Himalayas and discover the demons sealed within the ice, but the demons begin to break out, chasing them through the cavern until they see Lord Zenon.
[1] Implied to be in the Mesozoic Era, approximately 66 million years ago.
[2] Though the original manga was written in (and presumably takes place in) 1972, this lists the year as 198X, likely because this addition to the story was written in 1987.
[3] In the light novel and OVA adaptations, the group of researchers is confirmed to include Akira's parents, but this is never addressed in the original manga because it was added in later.
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Go Nagai, of course, deserves all of the credit for creating this story in the first place.
These are the versions of the manga that I referenced when writing this:
And here are some additional sources I pulled from:
I've consumed pretty much all the Devilman content that's available to me, but as I said, I only wanted to focus on the manga for this summary, so I tried to avoid too much adaptation comparison and didn't really include things from the sequels or spin-offs, except for what was included in the deluxe edition.