How Did Doma Die

His final words are so wonderful. They are not showy or threatening. They are confused. “Why?” or “How?” They depend on translation. The moment of human vulnerability from one so monstrous is powerful. It brings him down from a force of nature to a defeated, human being. That is a small thing but adds so much depth to the whole scene. One is relieved that he is no longer there but then is seized by a shudder at the finality of it all.

Doma's death in Kimetsu no Yaiba was very satisfying to fans as his cold demeanor made him a very intimidate villain. Doma was the Upper Rank Two demon of the Twelve Kizuki. He was terrible because of his huge power but also because he was extremely indifferent to human life and suffering. However, he never had any guilt or happiness in his life as he devoured humans left and right. His death was very satisfying not only because a powerful enemy had been defeated by the main characters but also because Doma was someone who was completely emotionless and thought he was above everyone else.

So, the fight begins with Shinobu Kocho, the Insect Hashira, who for a long time had been seeking the opportunity to avenge her older sister Kanae’s death at the hands of the demon Doma. She had been a student of Kanae’s, learning everything the woman knew in order to become as powerful of a Hashira as possible. Unlike the other Hashira, however, Shinobu does not have much in the way of physical strength, so her fighting style primarily revolves around using her blade to inject her enemies with large quantities of wisteria-based poison. Such poison attacks at the cellular level and can either greatly weaken a demon or even kill it depending on how much is introduced to the creature’s body.

As Shinobu attacked Doma, she realized early on that she was at a severe disadvantage. His techniques were all extremely cold, and he had an immense capacity for regeneration. However, despite the overwhelming odds against her, Shinobu pressed on, knowing that she wouldn’t be able to defeat Doma by herself, but instead hoped to go down fighting while giving Kanao the chance to finish him off. The large amounts of poison that she had embedded in her sword would be slowly released every time her blade pierced the demon’s flesh, and while Doma at first wrote off the poison as nothing more than a minor irritation that his body could easily neutralize, he was completely wrong.

As it was, when Doma absorbed Shinobu’s body, he unknowingly took in a lethal dose of wisteria poison, concentrated to the maximum over the span of a year and more. His normally insurmountable regeneration was no match for such toxic levels. So while Doma was relishing another simple victory, Shinobu’s life was ending to bring about his own demise.

However, Kanao stepped up to take Shinobu’s place. Doma, weakened by the massive dose of wisteria poison coursing through his body, was no match for the young Hashira. Kanao successfully defeated the demon, and upon Doma’s head rolling to the ground, the demon let out a surprised and curious expression. For the first time ever, the normally composed Doma displayed a crack in his icy demeanor. This befuddled creature knew he was going down, and he tried to ask Shinobu what it was that she had done.

In the end, Doma seemed to have experienced something strange in the short time after his demise: Curiosity. He found himself in a strange realm where he encountered the person responsible for his death once again. Doma never had truly experienced emotions in his life, but here in the afterlife he seemed to be moved by the cold, reserved Lady Hashira. In the end he was unable to convey his feelings as they were far too foreign to him. He muttered something remotely resembling love for Shinobu Kocho if he were a human being.

Of course, Doma’s fall is not merely that of a powerful foe in a fight to the death. Here we can glimpse the impact that his demise shall have and what sacrifice truly means. Shinobu had set it all up long before the fight, for her love of her younger sisters and the desire to create the strongest warrior in the world had fueled her every effort. But it was Kanao who got to fulfill her plans in the end, as he brought Doma down with his own cold techniques. For Shinobu to have given her life was to show that, in the end, there is honor in dying to help out others.

Doma underestimated the power of the human heart and that was his downfall. Its inability to endure, to sacrifice for another and to fight for something greater than itself ultimately led to Doma’s demise.

It’s really interesting to look back at the character of Darren postmortem. While at first it seemed like his domineering posturing was a long-developing character beat, actually, it was mostly his insecurity masked by his attempts to prove his superiority. But the way his death is handled actually reveals all of his pretence to be shallow, and it’s really haunting to see him in the final panels of the book, without any glory or triumph. I’ve gone back through the story to reassess all of our interactions with him, and it’s really sad because so many of his cracks were there to see all along. And, there’s been much about his character that suggests he was desperate to maintain a façade of calm control over his world. The death of a villain that makes you rethink his entire character and revisit your recollections of their interactions is pure genius.