Greeting and salutations, dear reader! 2023 has been a great year for returning animes- with the likes of Demon Slayer season 3, the Final Chapter of Attack on Titan, and Vinland Saga. If that’s not a reason to celebrate, the second season of Jujutsu Kaisen makes its return too as well this July since it left the airways back in 2021. But to get you update with the series, let’s start with a refresher, shall we.
Gege Akutami’s Jujutsu Kaisen follows the adventures of teenager Yuji Itadori, who swallows a rotting finger that once belonged to a powerful Curse (spirit) and thus becomes possessed. The Jujutsu Sorcerers (people who control the flow of Cursed Energy) sentence him to death by way of exorcism. Fortunately, before the sentenced was carried out, Yuji is tasked with finding and consuming the Curse’s remaining fingers.
So, Jujutsu Kaisen does follow the same tropes as most shonen anime/manga you can fiind in Japan, and can feel like a copycat of another popular series like Naruto, Bleach, or more recently to Demon Slayer. Though, I do recommend you to at least a few episodes even if it’s not your type of anime.
But now, it begs the question, why is the series so popular? Well, for starters, the series offers a great mix of action, adventure, some comedy for levity, drama with a bit of mystery- combined all that in a blender to make a great story. With being a shonen anime and all, Jujutsu offers tons of great and memorable fights in it’s first season (and will likely to continue into the 2nd season).
Though, what is an anime without great world building, set to the backdrop of a world where the Cursed Energy lurks around every corner, created from the negative emotions of humans. These energies which in turn give birth to new Curses- spirits that wish to bring harm to humans. One such Curse is the fearsome Ryomon Sukuna, the strongest of their kind. Also, it was Sakuna’s finger that Yuji ingested.
Next, we have the Jujutsu Sorcerers mentioned earlier- those tasked with exorcising Curses that vary from low-level grunts to boss-tier threats. The Sorcerers are apart of an organization of the Jujutsu Tech School where they learn how to manage exorcisms vary degree of difficulty for the protection and safety of human kind from the Curses.
Our main cast of characters include Yuji who takes on the role of the Shonen protagonist problems of saving the world after the events of eating Sakuna’s finger- thus their fates are now linked with Yuji now being the human host for Sakuna. The often are at odds as they fight to take control over the body. The interactions between the two have become memorable moments in the series. Also, to aide Yuji in his adventures, there are his two friends, Megumi Fushiguro and Nobara Kugisaki. This unlikely trio of characters is akin similar to Team 7 from Naruto, even down to their mentor.
Speaking of their mentor, we have Satoru Gojo, a tall man with white hair and wears a blindfold, who’s easygoing and lax attitude has made him such a beloved character. But don’t let his outward appearance and demeanor fool you, for when the time comes, expect him to get serious. Again, the character bears similarities to Kakashi Hatake.
Like any good shonen anime, the heroes are only as good as their villains, and Jujutsu Kaisen has no shortage of that. The bad guys here have these humanoid-looking-forms that resemble normal humans but not quite right, as if something of their humanity is missing, and while some do look like straight up monsters. But none in the series can rival main villain, Ryomon Sakuna with the glee he takes in the thought slaughtering humanity
Last but not least is the fights. The fights in this anime is action-packed to the max, and that solely focuses on the fight. What I mean by this is that the characters waste no time with idle chatter- that’s not to say they don’t talk at all. Some of the most memorable fights have these unexpected matchups with very unlikely outcomes. You certainly have to see the fights for yourselves to believe it as they do manage to strike a good balance of comedy, action, and suspense. Another positive I’ll say is that the fights themselves aren’t too brutal to watch (teetering that PG-13 line) making it easier on parents with younger children.
So, as for season 2, many have wondered if this season’ll be a prequel or a continuation of where last season left off- it’s a bit of both. Jujutsu first season concluded with the Death Painting arc, that adapts chapters 55-64 of the manga. As for the second season, it’ll be adapting Gojo’s past arc which adapts chapters 65-79- and as you’ve might’ve guessed it, it’ll cover some of Gojo’s back story, specifically his mission with Geto escorting a Star Plasma Vessal to Tengen.
It’s not all flashbacks though, season two will also tell the events in the present time too adapting the Shibuya Incident arc from chapters 79-136 (that’s 57 chapters worth of material). With that said, its more than likely that this season will be broken down into 2-parts or cours, so expect about 24-26 episodes.
The next question is, should I watch the Jujutsu Kaisen movie? Well, the movie, Jujutsu Kaise 0 primarily takes place before the events of the anime and is a prequel, but elements of the movie do provide more context to series a whole. If you’re a completionist, the yeah, go watch it. The post credit at the ending of the movie that sets up future events for the series as well. If you’re short on time to re-watch the first season or movie, just watch a recap on Youtube.
As of writing this, the first episode has already aired, and is made available on streaming as well Netflix, Crunchyroll, and Amazon Prime. So, happy watching y’all!
Di sini, saya akan senarai tajuk anime terbaru yang di tayangkan di negara Jepun untuk musim sejuk (WINTER) 2024 yang akan berlangsung dari bulan Januari hingga Mac 2024
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