Japanese manga series
Jujutsu Kaisen (呪術廻戦, "Sorcery Fight") is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Gege Akutami.
It has been💴 serialized in Shueisha's shōnen manga magazine Weekly Shōnen Jump since March 2018, with its chapters collected and published in 23💴 tankōbon volumes as of July 2023 .
The story follows high school student Yuji Itadori as he joins a secret organization💴 of Jujutsu Sorcerers to eliminate a powerful Curse named Ryomen Sukuna, of whom Yuji becomes the host.
Jujutsu Kaisen is a💴 sequel to Akutami's Tokyo Metropolitan Curse Technical School, serialized in Shueisha's Jump Giga from April to July 2017, later collected💴 in a tankōbon volume, retroactively titled as Jujutsu Kaisen 0, in December 2018.
Jujutsu Kaisen is licensed for English-language release in💴 North America by Viz Media, which has published the manga in print since December 2019.
Shueisha publishes the series in English💴 on the Manga Plus online platform.
Two novels, written by Ballad Kitaguni, were published in May 2019 and January 2020, respectively.
A💴 24-episode anime television series adaptation produced by MAPPA, aired on MBS from October 2020 to March 2021; a second season💴 premiered in July 2023.
The anime is licensed by Crunchyroll for streaming outside of Asia, which premiered an English dub in💴 November 2020.
The anime's original soundtrack was released in April 2021.
By July 2023, the Jujutsu Kaisen manga had over 80 million💴 copies in circulation, including related novels, digital versions and Jujutsu Kaisen 0, making it one of the best-selling manga series💴 of all time.
Synopsis [ edit ]Setting [ edit ]
In Jujutsu Kaisen, all living beings emanate energy called Cursed Energy (呪力,💴 Juryoku), which arises from negative emotions that naturally flow throughout the body.
Ordinary people cannot control this flow in their bodies.
As💴 a result, they continually lose Cursed Energy, resulting in the birth of Curses (呪い, Noroi), a race of spiritual beings💴 whose primary desire is to bring harm to humanity.
These Curses are shown as gruesome monsters, ghosts, and yōkai.
Jujutsu Sorcerers (呪術師,💴 Jujutsushi, lit.
"Cursed Technique Masters" or "Shamans") are people who control the flow of Cursed Energy in their bodies, allowing them💴 to use it as they please and also to reduce its release.
High-ranking Sorcerers and Curses can refine this energy and💴 use it to perform Cursed Techniques (呪術式, Jujutsushiki), which tend to be unique to the user or their family.
An advanced💴 form of Cursed Technique is Domain Expansion (領域展開, Ryōiki Tenkai), which the users build a pocket dimension of variable size.
Inside💴 the domain, all of their attacks will always connect and grow in strength.
Plot [ edit ]
Yuji Itadori is an unnaturally💴 fit high school student living in Sendai.
On his deathbed, his grandfather instils two powerful messages within Yuji: "always help others"💴 and "die surrounded by people.
" Yuji's friends at the Occult Club attract Curses to their school when they unseal a💴 rotten finger talisman.
Yuji swallows the finger to protect Jujutsu Sorcerer Megumi Fushiguro, becoming host to a powerful Curse named Ryomen💴 Sukuna.
Due to Sukuna's evil nature, all sorcerers are required to exorcise him (and, by extension, Yuji) immediately.
However upon seeing Yuji💴 retaining control over his body, Megumi's teacher Satoru Gojo brings him to the Tokyo Prefectural Jujutsu High School with a💴 proposal to his superiors: postpone Yuji's death sentence and train under Gojo until he consumes all 20 of Sukuna's fingers💴 so the Curse can be eliminated.
At the same time, a group of Cursed Spirits plot a multi-layered attack on the💴 world of Jujutsu sorcery, including the Cursed Spirit Mahito and a corrupted sorcerer named Suguru Geto, who was executed by💴 Gojo a year prior.
Gojo partners Yuji and Megumi with fellow first-year Tokyo student Nobara Kugisaki training them to become sorcerers,💴 but during a mission gone wrong, Sukuna gains full control of Yuji's body, so Yuji allows the both of them💴 to die.
Despite this, Sukuna brings Yuji back to life, having grown an interest in Megumi.
Aware the Jujutsu high-ups intend to💴 kill Yuji, Gojo keeps his resurrection a secret to continue training him.
Yuji meets fellow student Junpei Yoshino, who falls victim💴 to Mahito's manipulations, leading Yuji to swear vengeance.
Gojo reveals Yuji being alive during the exchange event between the Tokyo and💴 Kyoto Jujutsu schools.
The Kyoto school's principal wants Yuji dead immediately so schemes to get it done, while the Tokyo students💴 help Yuji.
During the event, Cursed Spirits attack the schools, but are fought off by Yuji, Gojo, and third-year Kyoto student💴 Aoi Todo, though Mahito steals three "Death Paintings" (half-human half-Curses), and summons them.
After a mission in which Yuji is able💴 to consume several of Sukuna's fingers and kill two of the Death Paintings with Nobara's help, the disfigured second-year Kyoto💴 student Kokichi Muta, who controls the Cursed Corpse Mechamaru, is revealed to be a mole working with Geto and Mahito.
Kokichi💴 betrays them to protect his friends, only to be killed by Mahito.
On Halloween, the Cursed Spirits unleash their ultimate plan💴 by releasing several barriers over Shibuya, leading many sorcerers to react.
Gojo fights and exorcises various Cursed Spirits, but is sealed💴 away by Geto in a special artifact, the Prison Realm.
The events also reveal that the current Geto is not the💴 original but rather Geto's corpse possessed by an ancient sorcerer named Kenjaku.
Yuji and his allies face Kenjaku's forces in order💴 to rescue Gojo from the Prison Realm.
During the chaos, Yuji faces Choso, the third Death Painting sibling, and is defeated,💴 only to be spared due to Choso receiving a vision revealing they are brothers.
The Cursed Spirit Jogo force feeds Yuji💴 ten fingers, re-awakening Sukuna, who goes on a rampage that destroys a large portion of Shibuya.
Yuji then faces off against💴 Mahito, who mortally wounds Nobara, but with the help of Todo, is able to successfully defeat him for good.
However, Kenjaku💴 absorbs Mahito, and using his Cursed Technique, re-awakens thousands of new sorcerers throughout Japan which Kenjaku had been planting for💴 thousands of years, as well as unleashing a slew of Curses on Japan, to usher in chaos and a world💴 of Cursed Spirits reminiscent of the Heian period, the prime period of Jujutsu Sorcerers.
In the aftermath, Yuji and Megumi team💴 up with second-year student Yuta Okkotsu and experienced sorcerer Yuki Tsukumo, with both being special grade Jujutsu Sorcerers, along with💴 Choso and second-year student Maki Zen'in to meet with Master Tengen, an immortal, part-Curse part-human Jujutsu Sorcerer.
Tengen reveals Kenjaku's plan💴 to merge the former's consciousness with Japan's human population.
The Culling Game, Kenjaku's all-out war between the sorcerers and Curse users💴 of Japan, then begins.
Maki goes to the Zen'in compound to collect Cursed Tools she needs, but is forced to kill💴 her entire clan when they lay a trap for her.
Meanwhile, Yuji, Yuta, Megumi, second-year student Panda, and third-year student Kinji💴 Hakari, seek out a mysterious woman named "Angel" who can free Gojo from the Prison Realm, as well as also💴 find a way to rescue Megumi's step-sister, Tsumiki, from participating in the Games.
The group are able to discover Angel, however💴 during this time, the Culling Game serves its purpose in acquiring a surplus of cursed energy for Kenjaku's plans, while💴 he also succeeds in killing Yuki and capturing Tengen.
When the group attempt to save Tsumiki, they learn she has become💴 a host for a reincarnated sorcerer.
Sukuna uses this opportunity to execute his ultimate plan, taking control of Megumi's body.
He succeeds💴 in doing so, killing Tsumiki and regrouping with Kenjaku, however the reunited main group are able to use Angel's power💴 to free Gojo from the Prison Realm.
Gojo, now unsealed, agrees with Sukuna and Kenjaku to fight on the 24th of💴 December.
The main group makes plans and gets ready for the ultimate showdown on the day.
On the day of their fight,💴 Gojo begins the fight by unleashing Hollow: Purple at 200% capacity, destroying Sukuna's arm in the beginning.
The battle starts off💴 as a battle of physical strength, and later both of them activate their domain expansions.
The first time, Gojo's domain is💴 completely broken by Sukuna, putting him in danger and forcing him to use reverse cursed technique.
Later, Gojo reveals a new💴 ability: recharging his technique with reverse cursed technique, a feat previously thought to be impossible.
They both expand their domains once💴 again, and Sukuna destroys it from within.
They expand their domains for a third time, but this time Gojo minimizes his💴 domain to the size of a ball.
His domain breaks again, but Gojo also manages to gravely damage Sukuna.
This happens once💴 again, and Sukuna begins to lose.
Just at this moment, Sukuna unleashes Mahoraga, the strongest shikigami of the Ten Shadows Technique.
Gojo💴 unleashes his technique once again, but Mahoraga surprisingly adapted to his technique without even seeing it, confusing Gojo.
He then realizes💴 that Sukuna forced Megumi's soul to bear the brunt of his technique, allowing Mahoraga to adapt to Unlimited Void without💴 actually being unleashed.
This leaves Gojo unable to use his domain.
Sukuna prepares to deliver the final blow, but even he cannot💴 use his technique, thanks to the sure-hit effect of Unlimited Void.
Leaving both unable to use their techniques, they resort to💴 a showdown of physical strength.
Production [ edit ]
In 2017, Gege Akutami published Tokyo Metropolitan Curse Technical School, a 4-chapter series💴 that ran in Jump Giga from April 28 to July 28.
[3][4] This series would serve later as a prequel to💴 Jujutsu Kaisen, being retroactively titled as Jujutsu Kaisen 0.
[5] According to Hiroyuki Nakano, the chief editor of Weekly Shōnen Jump,💴 Jujutsu Kaisen received unanimous approval in the serialization committee.
[6] It debuted in Weekly Shōnen Jump on March 5, 2018.[7]
Akutami stated💴 that Neon Genesis Evangelion influenced the mythological aspects of the series,[8] being also influenced by horror and found footage films.
[9]💴 Akutami is particularly a fan of Yoshihiro Togashi, author of YuYu Hakusho and Hunter × Hunter,[9][10] expressing intentions to have💴 an art style as close as possible to his.
[8] The author is also a fan of Tite Kubo, author of💴 Bleach, and discussed in an interview with him the similarities between their works.
[11][12] Other manga artists who influenced Akutami include💴 Masashi Kishimoto (Naruto) and Yusuke Murata (Eyeshield 21 and One-Punch Man illustrator).
[8] The magic system of Jujutsu Kaisen is largely💴 based on Hunter × Hunter, whose fights, in Akutami's words, "rejects emotional arguments", stating, however, that like Daisuke Ashihara, World💴 Trigger's author, whose magic system is also similar to Togashi's series, Akutami is trying to find and develop their own💴 style.
[9] In particular, Akutami believes the first chapter was a mix of Bleach and Naruto.
Akutami regrets some elements of the💴 first chapter, due to the short appearance of Yuji's grandfather within the story.[13]
In October 2020, Akutami stated that the story's💴 ending and main stages are planned, but that the path between the two remains "fairly free.
"[8] In February 2021, Akutami💴 stated that the series would probably be finished within two years, declaring, however, no confidence in that statement.
Akutami knows how💴 the story for Megumi Fushiguro will end, but not for Sukuna.
[14] On June 9, 2021, it was announced that the💴 manga would enter on hiatus due to the author's health issues;[15][16] it resumed publication on August 2 of the same💴 year.
[17][18] In December 2022, Akutami hinted that the manga would end within a year, stating during the Jump Festa '23💴 event: "If you accompany me for up to one more year (probably), I will be very happy."[19]
Publication [ edit ]
Jujutsu💴 Kaisen is written and illustrated by Gege Akutami.
The series started in Shueisha's Weekly Shōnen Jump magazine on March 5, 2018.
[2][7]💴 Its chapters are collected and published by Shueisha into individual tankōbon volumes.
The first volume was published on July 4, 2018.
[20]💴 As of July 4, 2023, 23 volumes have been released.[21]
Shueisha began to simulpublish the series in English on the app💴 and website Manga Plus in January 2019.
[22] Viz Media published the first three chapters for its "Jump Start" initiative.
[23] In💴 March 2019, Viz Media announced the print release of the series in North America.
[24] The first volume was published on💴 December 3, 2019.
[25] As of March 21, 2023, nineteen volumes have been released.[26]
Related media [ edit ]Novels [ edit ]
Two💴 novels written by Ballad Kitaguni have been released under the Jump J-Books imprint.
The first, Jujutsu Kaisen: Summer of Ashes, Autumn💴 of Dust (呪術廻戦 逝く夏と還る秋, Jujutsu Kaisen Iku Natsu to Kaeru Aki), was released on May 1, 2019.
[27] The second novel,💴 Jujutsu Kaisen: Thorny Road at Dawn (呪術廻戦 夜明けのいばら道, Jujutsu Kaisen: Yoake no Ibara Michi), was released on January 4, 2020.
[28][29]💴 In February 2022, Viz Media announced they licensed the novels for English publication.
[30] Jujutsu Kaisen: Summer of Ashes, Autumn of💴 Dust was released on December 27, 2022.
[31] Jujutsu Kaisen: Thorny Road at Dawn was released on April 25, 2023.[32]Anime [💴 edit ]
An anime television series adaptation was announced by Weekly Shōnen Jump in November 2019.
[33] The manga author, Gege Akutami,💴 and the main cast members appeared at Jump Festa '20 on December 22, 2019.
[34] The series was produced by MAPPA💴 and directed by Sunghoo Park.
Hiroshi Seko was in charge of the scripts, Tadashi Hiramatsu designed the characters.
[35] While the anime💴 had an advanced streaming debut on YouTube and Twitter on September 19, 2020,[36] it officially aired on MBS's Super Animeism💴 block and TBS from October 3, 2020, to March 27, 2021.
[37][38][35][b] The series ran for 24 episodes.
[39] From episode 3💴 onwards, the series includes post-credits anime shorts titled "Juju Sanpo" (呪術さんぽ, lit.
"Jujutsu Stroll"), which focus on the daily lives of💴 the characters.[40]
On February 12, 2022, a second season was announced.
[41] Shōta Goshozono replaced Sunghoo Park as the director, with Sayaka💴 Koiso and Hiramatsu designing the characters.
[42] It premiered on July 6, 2023.
[43] It will air for two continuous cours and💴 adapt the manga's "Hidden Inventory / Premature Death" and "Shibuya Incident" story arcs.[44]
The anime is licensed by Crunchyroll for streaming💴 outside of Asia.
[45] Crunchyroll has released streaming dubs for the series in English, Spanish, Portuguese, French and German that premiered💴 on November 20, 2020,[46][47] with the English dub also premiering on HBO Max on December 4, 2020.
[48] Crunchyroll is also💴 streaming for the second season.
[49] Viz Media released the first part of the first season on home video on February💴 28, 2023.
[50][51][52] In Asia-Pacific, Medialink licensed the series and streamed it on iQIYI and Ani-One Asia's YouTube channel;[53][54] Ani-One Asia💴 later streamed the series for their Ultra subscribers.
[55] The company also released the series on Netflix in Southeast Asia, India,💴 Hong Kong, and Taiwan on June 3, 2021.
[56][57]Music [ edit ]
The original soundtrack of the Jujutsu Kaisen anime series is💴 composed by Hiroaki Tsutsumi, Yoshimasa Terui and Alisa Okehazama.
[35] The series' first opening theme is "Kaikai Kitan" (廻廻奇譚), performed by💴 Eve, while the first ending theme is "Lost in Paradise" performed by ALI featuring Aklo.
[58] The second opening theme is💴 "Vivid Vice", performed by Who-ya Extended, while the second ending theme is "Give it back [ja]", performed by Cö Shu💴 Nie.
[59] The original soundtrack was released on a 2-CD set on April 21, 2021.
[60] Anime Limited released the soundtrack digitally💴 in North America, Europe and Oceania on April 21, 2021,[61][62] and was released on CD and vinyl on January 31,💴 2022.[63]
Terui returned as the sole composer of the second season.
[42] For the second season's first five episodes (covering the "Hidden💴 Inventory / Premature Death" arc), Tatsuya Kitani performed the opening theme "Where Our Blue Is" (青のすみか, Ao no Sumika), while💴 Soushi Sakiyama [ja] performed the ending theme "Light" (燈, Akari).
[64] For the sixth episode onwards (covering the "Shibuya Incident" arc),💴 King Gnu will perform the opening theme "Specialz".[65]
Video games [ edit ]
In June 2021, a free-to-play role-playing video game, titled💴 Jujutsu Kaisen: Phantom Parade, developed by Sumzap for smartphones was announced.
[66] The game was set to be released in 2022;[67]💴 however, it has been delayed to sometime within 2023.[68]
A collaboration with PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG Mobile) was announced in August 2021.
The💴 collaboration was made available globally, except in Japan and Mainland China, from February 15 to March 15, 2022.[69][70]
A fighting game,💴 titled Jujutsu Kaisen: Cursed Clash, developed by Byking, was announced in July 2023.[71][72]
The outfits from Yuji Itadori, Satoru Gojo, Megumi💴 Fushiguro, and Nobara Kugisaki were released as cosmetic items in Fortnite starting on August 8, 2023.
[73][74]Stage play [ edit ]
A💴 stage play adaptation of the manga was announced at the Jump Festa '22 event in December 2021.
[75] It ran at💴 The Galaxy Theatre in Tokyo's Tennōzu from July 15–31, and at the Mielparque Hall Osaka from August 4–14, 2022.
The play💴 is directed by Kensaku Kobayashi and written by Kōhei Kiyasu.
The cast includes Ryūji Satō as Yuji Itadori, Kazuaki Yasue as💴 Megumi Fushiguro, Erika Toyohara as Nobara Kugisaki, Sara Takatsuki as Maki Zen'in, Fūma Sadamoto as Toge Inumaki, and Takeshi Terayama💴 as Panda.[76]
Other media [ edit ]
A fanbook, titled Jujutsu Kaisen Official Fanbook (呪術廻戦 公式ファンブック, Jujutsu Kaisen Kōshiki Fanbukku), which features💴 exclusive information about the series, character profiles, author commentaries, an interview and a special dialogue between Akutami and Bleach author💴 Tite Kubo, was published by Shueisha on March 4, 2021.
[77] In June 2023, Viz Media announced that they will release💴 the fanbook in Q2 2024.[78]
From September 16, 2022, to July 2, 2023, Universal Studios Japan hosted attractions based on Jujutsu💴 Kaisen.
"Jujutsu Kaisen the Real 4-D" attraction will feature a 4D cinema experience (with all the usual wind in your face,💴 sprays of water, and moving seats) for an entirely original animation in about 20 minutes long.
Other attraction is a roller💴 coaster called "Jujutsu Kaisen × Hollywood Dream - The Ride -Kaikai Kitan-" which ran until January 18, 2023.
It features an💴 inbuilt sound system that allows each individual rider to pick from selection of songs to ride to.[79]
In October 2022, Crunchyroll💴 and BoxLunch announced their merchandise collaboration for the series' photo experience spots alongside My Hero Academia, in select stores in💴 the United States.
Fans could take pictures through select locations, featuring an additional installation with characters of the series.
The BoxLunch stores💴 were also hosted a lottery with an exclusive meet-and-greet event with the Jujutsu Kaisen voice actors as the prize.
[80]Reception [💴 edit ]Manga [ edit ]
Jujutsu Kaisen was sixth on the fifth Next Manga Awards in the Print category in 2018.
[81]💴 The series ranked first on the "Nationwide Bookstore Employees' Recommended Comics" by the Honya Club website in 2019.
[82][83] It won💴 the third annual Tsutaya Comic Award in 2019.
[84] In 2019, the manga was nominated for the 65th Shogakukan Manga Award💴 in the shōnen category.
[85] The series ranked 31st on the 2020 "Book of the Year" list by Da Vinci magazine;[86]💴 it ranked fourth on the 2021 list;[87] and sixth on the 2022 list.
[88] On TV Asahi's Manga Sōsenkyo 2021 poll,💴 in which 150,000 people voted for their top 100 manga series, Jujutsu Kaisen ranked nineteenth.
[89][90] Jujutsu Kaisen won the Mandō💴 Kobayashi Manga Grand Prix 2020, created by comedian and manga enthusiast Kendo Kobayashi, in which each year's winner is decided💴 based on his personal taste.
[91] The manga was nominated for the 25th annual Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize in 2021.
[92] On💴 a 2021 survey conducted by LINE Research asking Japanese high school students what manga series they are currently into, Jujutsu💴 Kaisen topped the rankings for both girls and boys.[93]Sales [ edit ]
The Jujutsu Kaisen manga had 600,000 copies in circulation💴 by December 2018;[94] 770,000 copies in circulation by February 1, 2019;[95] 1.
1 million copies in circulation by February 2019;[96] 2💴 million copies in circulation by June 2019;[97] 2.
5 million copies in circulation by November 2019;[98] 4.
5 million copies in circulation💴 by May 2020;[99] 6.
8 million copies in circulation by September 2020;[100] and over 10 million copies in circulation by October💴 2020,[c] having grown 400% in one year, and about 230% in a half year.
[101][102] By December 2020, the series had💴 15 million copies in circulation.
[c][103] By January 13, 2021, the series had over 20 million copies in circulation,[c][104][105] and increased💴 to 25 million copies in circulation by January 26.
[106][107] By February 2021, the manga had over 30 million copies in💴 circulation.
[c][108][109] By the start of March 2021, the series had over 36 million copies in circulation,[c][110] and by the end💴 of the month, the manga recorded over 40 million copies in circulation.
[111] By April 2021, the manga had over 45💴 million copies in circulation.
[c][112][113] By May 2021, the manga had over 50 million copies in circulation.
[c][114][115] By October 2021, the💴 manga had over 55 million copies in circulation.
[c][116][117] By December 2021, the manga had over 60 million copies in circulation.
[c][118]💴 By April 2022, the manga had over 65 million copies in circulation.
[c][119] By August 2022, the manga had over 70💴 million copies in circulation.
[c][120] By July 2023, the manga had over 80 million copies in circulation.[c][121]
Jujutsu Kaisen was the fifth💴 best-selling manga series in 2020 (from the period between November 2019 to November 2020), with 6,702,736 copies sold.
[122] In January💴 2021, Jujutsu Kaisen's first fifteen volumes at the time (including volume 0) took 15 of top 16 spots of Oricon's💴 weekly manga ranking (week of January 11–17), being only surpassed by Attack on Titan's 33rd volume, which topped the list.
[123]💴 Jujutsu Kaisen was the second best-selling manga series in the first half of 2021 (period between November 2020 and May💴 2021), behind Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, with over 23 million copies sold,[124] while its 16 volumes at the time💴 (including volume 0), were among the 25 best-selling manga volumes.
[125] It was the best-selling manga series in 2021, with over💴 30 million copies sold;[126][127] its eighteen volumes at the time (including volume 0) were among the top 25 best-selling volumes.
[128]💴 It was the best-selling manga series for second consecutive year in 2022, with over 12.
2 million copies sold;[129] volume 18💴 was the best-selling manga volume of the year, while volumes 17, 19 and 20 were among the 30 best-selling manga💴 volumes of the year.
[130] It was the fourth best-selling manga series in the first half of 2023 (period between November💴 2022 and May 2023), with over 3.
7 million copies sold,[131] while volumes 21 and 22 were the second and third,💴 respectively, best-selling manga volumes from the same period.[132]
In North America, the volumes of Jujutsu Kaisen were ranked on NPD BookScan's💴 monthly top 20 adult graphic novels list since January 2021.
[133] They were also ranked on The New York Times' Graphic💴 Books and Manga bestseller monthly list since February 2021.
[134] According to ICv2, Jujutsu Kaisen was the seventh best-selling manga franchise💴 for fall 2021 (September–December) in the United States, and it was also the sixth "most efficient manga franchise" for retailer💴 bookshelves, based on the website's calculations of which manga franchises had the highest sales per volume.[135]
Critical reception [ edit ]
Leroy💴 Douresseaux of Comic Book Bin gave the first volume a score of 8.5/10.
Douresseaux praised the series for its characters, plots,💴 settings, and internal mythology, and described it as a "combination battle manga and horror comic book".
[136] Shawn Hacaga of The💴 Fandom Post, in his review of the first volume, compared the series to early Bleach and praised it for its💴 world, lore, characters and artwork, concluding that it is a "solid first volume".
[137] Hannah Collins of CBR found parallels between💴 Yuji and Sukuna and Marvel Comics characters Eddie Brock and Venom.
She also noted similarities to Bleach, Blue Exorcist and Tokyo💴 Ghoul.
Collins commended the manga and, regarding its then recently announced anime adaptation, concluded that Jujutsu Kaisen is a "darkly enjoyable💴 action series that's sure to be one to watch out for in 2020".
[138] Rebecca Silverman of Anime News Network ranked💴 the first volume as a C.
Silverman praised the series' use of Japanese folklore and yōkai elements, comparing this and Akutami's💴 art style to Shigeru Mizuki's GeGeGe no Kitarō, but criticized the story for being "very generic".
She concluded, "It has the💴 potential to be more as Akutami gets more comfortable with the serialization process and figures out precisely where the story💴 is going, so it may be worth a second book to be certain.
But as of this one, it's just okay,💴 making it the kind of series that gets damned with faint praise".
[139] Azusa Takahashi of Real Sound praised its storytelling,💴 setting and "surprising" story development, also noting similarities to other works like Bleach, Ushio & Tora or Neon Genesis Evangelion,💴 stating, however, that the series is not only a homage to popular works centered on the battle development, but that💴 it has a "clever composition that sublimates into originality, so you have to be absorbed in it.
"[140]Anime [ edit ]
The💴 Jujutsu Kaisen anime was awarded "Anime of the Year" at the 5th Crunchyroll Anime Awards, while Ryomen Sukuna won the💴 "Best Antagonist" category and "Lost in Paradise feat.
AKLO" by ALI won the "Best Ending Sequence" category.
[141][142] In January 2021, it💴 was revealed that the anime series was the second most-watched anime series on Crunchyroll in 2020, only second to Black💴 Clover, being watched in 71 countries and territories, including North America, South and Central America, Europe, Middle East and North💴 Africa, Africa, Asia and Oceania.
[143] The official music video of the series' first opening, "Kaikai Kitan" by Eve, reached 100💴 million views on YouTube in April 2021, being one of the fastest anime openings to hit such number of views.[144]
In💴 2021, Jujutsu Kaisen ranked second in the anime category of the Yahoo! Japan Search Awards, based on the number of💴 searches for a particular term compared to the year before.
[145] During the same year, the series became the second most💴 discussed TV show worldwide on Twitter, surpassing Squid Game.
[146] The series placed nineteenth on the annual Twitter Japan's Trend Awards💴 in 2021, based on the social network's top trending topics of the year.
[147] It also won the Best TV Anime💴 award at the 2021 Newtype Anime Awards, while Hiroshi Seko won Best Screenplay for his work on the series.
[148] In💴 2022, the series won the Tokyo Anime Award for Animation of the Year in the television category.[149]
Critical reception [ edit💴 ]
Micah Peters of The Ringer said that while the series' "focused execution" of shōnen tropes makes it "infinitely watchable", is💴 its "specificity, its personality, its ultra-slick stylishness" what make the show special.
He added: "Like with Park's previous work, there is💴 a sumptuous amount of splashy, expensive, mo-cap-enabled animation, delivering on the action promised by the comics".
[150] Paul Thomas Chapman of💴 Otaku USA called it a "prime example of average material elevated by excellent execution", adding that it is similar to💴 Bleach and YuYu Hakusho.
Chapman commented that Sunghoo Park "puts the "beatdown" in narrative beats", being able to "segue from goofy💴 comedy to chilling horror in an instant", and that he and the crew at MAPPA "make this narrative mutability seem💴 effortless".
[151] Ana Diaz of Polygon highlighted the 17th episode, praising the series' treatment of its female characters, different to other💴 shōnen series.
Diaz wrote: "Jujutsu Kaisen goes a step further than avoiding gender tropes by presenting a variety of female perspectives.
It's💴 not like there's any right way for these young women to deal with the unique pressures they face.
The story lets💴 them disagree, and fight for their perspectives and their place".
She concluded: "The show's widespread success signals that audiences aren't just💴 ready for change, they're actively craving it.
Now, every other creator has the green light to write all kinds of women💴 into their shows".[152]
Awards and nominations [ edit ]Novels [ edit ]
Jujutsu Kaisen: Iku Natsu to Kaeru Aki and Jujutsu Kaisen:💴 Yoake no Ibara Michi were among the best-selling novel series in the first half of 2021 (period between November 2020💴 and May 2021), with 235,170 and 206,059 copies sold, respectively,[160] and both novels were the best-selling-novel volumes in the first💴 half of 2021.
[161] Both novels were the best-selling novels of 2021, collectively selling a total of 487,434 copies.[162]Notes [ edit💴 ]
