Welcome to Anime Rants with Mono (7Mononoke). Released in Fall 2020, Jujutsu Kaisen has since become a highly popular shounen series. It’s a staple of anime in the 2020s. The genres are supernatural, fantasy, school, and action. Main character Yuuji Itadori unexpectedly becomes involved in the dark world of Jujutsu sorcerers, those who use cursed energy to fight off malevolent curses in monster form. The story will follow Itadori’s adventures, friendships, and struggles in this ominous new reality.
Spoilers Note: As this will be a brief review based mostly on quality, I won’t delve too deep into the story. Thus, there will be no major spoilers in this review.
Article Contents
Visuals
Score: 9/10
From the serious art-style and character designs to the smoothly animated action sequences, the visual quality of Jujutsu Kaisen is top-notch. In a popular shounen anime, it’s important to invent characters with distinct and memorable designs that aren’t overly complicated. Jujutsu Kaisen did this perfectly. Characters like Yuuji Itadori, Satoru Gojo, and Mahito are branded into my memory forever in a positive way. All the characters rock their simple but unique looks.
I mentioned that the action sequences are extremely high quality. I would go so far as to add that some of the best and most creative shounen fights I’ve ever seen were in Jujutsu Kaisen’s first season. Aside from action scenes, the dark and saturated color pallet is also memorable and enjoyable. The face expressions are slightly over-the-top, but in a way that I appreciate in an anime. Other elements like lighting are impressive, too. You definitely have some visual feasts to look forward to if you watch this anime.
Story and World
Score: 8/10
Shounen anime isn’t exactly known for its unique plots. This is a big part of why I tire of shounen anime so easily. Jujutsu Kaisen is ultimately no different in the way it sets up its starting concepts – a boy unexpectedly gains magical powers and has to navigate a new world using his power to fight monsters. The idea of a magic system based on supernatural curses and negative energy isn’t completely original, either. It’s similar to a number of other magic systems across anime.
Not every story needs to be unique. Jujutsu Kaisen is, in my mind, “classic” rather than “unoriginal.” I don’t mind an overused story model as long as its other elements are strong and well-executed, which is the case with Jujutsu Kaisen. It has just enough interesting and unusual aspects to keep it entertaining. For some examples, this anime has a powerful emotional core, a highly creative and dynamic magic system, and an atmospheric darkness that feels more mature than classic shounen.
The structure and pacing of the series is solid. You won’t get bored with Jujutsu Kaisen, as there is always plenty of action. The first half of the season is divided into short arcs (1-3 episodes, usually) that cover different missions and battles. Then, in the second half, there are two longer arcs – the Kyoto Sister School Exchange Event, and the Origin of Blind Obedience arc. The goofy baseball episode between these two serious arcs was a welcome refresher. For the most part, the story flows together very well.
The last things to mention are the story themes and world-building. Both are above average and contributed to the high score for the story category. Lighter themes like teamwork, friendship, empathy, and courage are explored. There are also darker themes of death and loss, bullying, and flawed human nature. As for the world-building, it includes the awesome magic system of cursed energy as well as the microcultures of Jujutsu Sorcerers: their clans, interactions, and traditions.
Audio
Score: 10/10
The audio elements in Jujutsu Kaisen are essentially perfect. First there are the songs. Opening song “Kaikai Kitan” by Eve is memorable and upbeat, the perfect thing for a shounen theme song. Personally, I prefer the musical style of the second OP, “Vivid Vice” by Who-ya. The harder rock elements and more emotional vocals appeal to me. However, I do think the first song and it pop-rock style works better for a mainstream anime series.
It’s impossible to discuss audio elements of Jujutsu Kaisen without mentioning the first ending song, “Lost in Paradise” by Ali (featuring Aklo). This style of music is uncommon in anime, especially combined with the visuals of dancing characters. This very jazzy song is popular and widely recognized among anime viewers and J-pop fans. In comparison, the second ED is barely worth mentioning. It’s called “Give it Back” by Co Shu Nie. It’s a soft, emotional ballad that didn’t leave much of a mark. That said, I do like the vocals.
The instrumental OST in Jujutsu Kaisen is truly noteworthy. There are a number of great and memorable tracks. This is probably due the fact that there were three different music composers for this one series. If you don’t like one style, you’re likely to appreciate one of the others. The composers are Alisa Okehazama, Yoshimasa Terui, and Hiroaki Tsutsumi. The theme for Mahito’s Domain, “Self-Embodiment of Perfection” is an example of a terrific OST.
Next we’ll go over voice-acting, but only very briefly, because I could go on for pages if I let myself. I genuinely think the voice-acting is nearly perfect in Jujutsu Kaisen. The big names of veteran voice-actors include Junichi Suwabe as Sukuna, Takahiro Sakurai as Suguru Getou, and Kenjirou Tsuda as Kento Nanami. Younger VA Junya Enoki stars as Yuuji Itadori and does a wonderful job bringing the youthful protagonist to life. Last of all, Yuuichi Nakamura plays the unforgettable Satoru Gojo.
Characters
Score: 9/10
Most characters have interesting starting concepts right off the bat. For example, Kugisaki is a very aggressive person who also rocks her womanhood in her own way. Another fascinating character is Mahito, a walking and talking personification of a curse. He is strangely human in some ways and completely monstrous in others. The most bewildering thing about him is his childlike enthusiasm and joy. Villains are not usually like this.
The only character who didn’t seem almost immediately unique to me was Itadori. He starts the same way as many main characters in shounen anime: a hopeful and strong boy who wants to help others. While he’s not too bright, he has a heart of gold. I happen to like this type of character immensely. It reminds me of Gon Freecs from Hunter x Hunter. Therefore, even if he fits into some main character tropes, Itadori is a great protagonist. I couldn’t possibly not root for him.
The character development in general is pretty good. My only real complaint is how quickly Itadori bounces back from any kind of low. But while he does recover quickly, he also feels immense emotional pain when going through certain developments. As long as the main character isn’t 100% emotionally invincible, that’s good enough for me. Putting Itadori aside, most other characters also experienced personal growth and/or exhibited interesting personalities and bits of psychology.
There are some truly entertaining, complex, and unforgettable characters in Jujutsu Kaisen. Possibly the most famous and beloved example is Satoru Gojo, the most powerful sorcerer in the world. It’s fascinating to try to predict his psychology and responses, and it’s satisfying when he goes HAM on an enemy. Moreoever, Gojo brings a lot of humor to the table. Some of the other characters I appreciated most were Hanami with her fierce love of nature, Todo with his exuberant enthusiasm for life, and Maki with her amazing force of will. There are so many other good characters too, but you should get the idea by now.
Personal Enjoyment
Score: 8/10
First, while the topic is fresh on our minds, I have a few more notes about the characters in Jujutsu Kaisen. Honestly, the characters were the best parts of the show for me. In addition to the ones I’ve already mentioned, I enjoyed Nanami and his teacherly personality, along with the loveable Panda, and the sympathetic bullied kid, Junpei Yoshino.
Momo was also a great character, though she only got a few scenes so far. When she spoke about being a woman in the Jujutsu world, it was extremely interesting. Finally, Although Mai has a nasty personality, I could still sympathize a little with her complex feelings toward her twin sister. Siblings are messy.
It almost goes without saying, but in addition to the characters, I also thoroughly enjoyed other aspects such as the music, voice-acting, vivid visuals, and exciting fights. The complexity of the world of Jujutsu sorcerers was something I found intriguing. Also, I appreciated the narrative’s grimmer side – it can be quite dark for a shounen anime. On a final note, the humor in Jujutsu Kaisen was usually successful in making me smile – especially when Itadori and his friends are just being goofy together.
Overall Score
Overall score = 8.8 / 10.0
The overall score is the average of the scores for the five categories explored above (visuals, audio, etc.). Most of the anime series that I enjoy are in the 7s and 8s range, with high 8s and 9s being fairly rare. Therefore, it should be clear that Jujutsu Kaisen is a an excellent, high-quality anime. For comparison, Jujutsu Kaisen‘s current score on MAL is 8.60.
If you enjoy classic shounen stories and don’t mind a little bit darker of a style, definitely check out Jujutsu Kaisen. You’ll probably like it even more if you’re into occult or curse-related stuff. That’s all for today. As always, I’m grateful to you for visiting Anime Rants.
~Thanks for reading~
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