These two episodes marked the start of the Tokyo No. 1 Colony arc, in which Itadori and Fushiguro officially join the Culling Game as players. Their mission is to make a rule that would exempt peaceful people from having to kill others. Also, we finally met a new antagonist named Higuruma. Let’s review Jujutsu Kaisen episodes 54 and 55!
Episode 54: Tokyo No. 1 Colony, Part 1
Episode Rating: 7/10
The episode begins with a character we haven’t seen in a long time. It was Setsuko Sasaki, the friend of Yuji when he was still in regular highschool. She was in the occult club with him and Iguchi. We saw a scene of her “waking up” to a dream-like dimension where Kenjaku was waiting. He called to Sasaki gently and said he was there to give her the chance to the leave the colony before the culling game began.
It was an interesting scene. As Kenjaku walked beside Sasaki, he suddenly seemed much more human. This was especially true when he smiled and thanked Sasaki for being friends with his son. It’s interesting to think that Kenjaku is Yuji’s mother. When Sasaki woke up, she was safe outside the barrier enclosing Tokyo Colony No. 1. She met up with Iguchi and wondered what might have become of Itadori. That’s probably the last we’ll see of Sasaki for a long time, but it’s nice to know she’s alive.
Going back to the present, Yuji and company were sitting on the rooftop and planning what to do next. They also had to explain to Hakari that Gojo had been sealed, and Panda broke the news that Masamichi was dead. He had apparently been the Principle of Jujutsu High, which I had forgotten. Everyone was sad to hear of his death. On a related note, there was a Princess Mononoke reference. After Hakari heard that two strong allies were out of the picture, he stated, “I haven’t been this bummed out since I watched Yakul get shot in the ass with an arrow.” If you don’t know, Yakul is the red elk that Ashitaka rides in Princess Mononoke. He suffers a non-fatal arrow wound in the movie. I had to point that out because Princess Mononoke is my very favorite movie of all time.
At that moment, a Kogane appeared. The cursed but oddly cute creature announced that a new rule had been added and explained what it was. Then it revealed that it was not just a general Kogane but also a personal liason attached to Yuji Itadori. Fushiguro pointed out how weird this was, because it meant Yuji was already considered a player despite not having entered a colony yet. We don’t get a direct answer yet to the question of why Yuji is already considered a player, but it might be connected to the fact that Sukuna probably made a pact with Kenjaku in the past. Then again, this hypothesis has an issue. Yuji became connected to Sukuna of his own free will. This might be important later, but I don’t understand it too well yet.
According to the information from the Kogane, there was another player with a hundred points. His name was Hiromi Higuruma and he was in Tokyo Colony No. 1. The group decided that Megumi and Yuji would go to that colony and find Higuruma. They would try to convince him to make a rule that could save people like Tsumiki. Meanwhile, Panda and Hakari would go to Tokyo Colony No. 2 to look for the “Angel” person who could break Gojo’s seal. Kirara wanted to help too, so Hakari left her in charge of communications between the colonies, which likely didn’t have cellphone reception. It’s sad that we’re parting with Hakari, Panda, and Kirara, but I saw it coming. It’s also nice to have some focus back on the Itadori-Fushiguro character dynamic. (I don’t ship them at this point, but I enjoy their interactions when they’re together.)
Unfortunately, as soon as Yuji and Megumi crossed the barrier into the colony, they were teleported to two separate locations. Yuji found himself falling down into the city from the sky. He was attacked by Hanyuu, a female sorcerer who could fly. She was a newbie hunter who staked out the teleport spots to kill rookies who appeared. Though the airplane hair was difficult to take seriously, I honestly really liked Hanyuu’s design otherwsie. She had style. But she was a small fry and very easy for Yuji to defeat. There was also a man with Hanyuu – his name was Haba and his hair was like helicopter propellers. He was also easy for Yuji to take down. After a devastating punch to the head didn’t knock Haba all the way out, Yuji ended it by kicking the man between the legs. Brutal! (But then again, these are rookie killers.)
Once Yuji was done beating the crap out of Haba, he encountered a young man named Rin Amai who was from his old highschool. Amai agreed to take Itadori to Higuruma, who he said was in Ikebukuro. But since Amai often worked for bullies, his words might not be trustworthy. This could be a trap. Meanwhile, Megumi was attacked by a young woman. He defended himself, whacking her in the face, and she immediately started whining. I don’t like her at all so far. The woman’s name was Remi, and when Megumi asked, she said Higuruma was in Shinjuku. Since Ikebukuro and Shinjuku are separate areas of Tokyo, someone is lying. I think Remi is even more suspicious than Amai, so I suspect she is the liar. To be continued.
Episode 55: Tokyo No. 1 Colony, Part 2
Episode Rating: 8/10
The first section of the episode served as an introduction/backstory for Higuruma. He was a private lawyer who often defended clients with serious criminal charges. In particular, he had a history of taking on cases that were impossible to defend. We learned about a case Higuruma took in which he defended a young man named Oe who was charged with the murder of his two neighbors. Higuruma believed Oe was innocent, even though his story was difficult to believe. For one thing, he had resisted arrest and tried to run, which made him look guilty. For another thing, he literally had the murder weapon in his apartment. Nevertheless, believe it or not, the unfortunate youth was innocent. Despite knowing that over 99% of trials end in a guilty conviction in Japan, Higuruma still took Oe’s case and tried to prove his innocence.
It didn’t go well. Though Oe was found innocent in the first trial, the court immediately appealed the case. In the second trial, Oe was found guilty and recieved a life sentence. This was not the first time something like this had happened, but it was the last straw for Higuruma. As the trial ended, Higuruma stood up and whacked the table repeatedly with a gavel. A curse was born and his powers awakened. Higuruma demanded for everyone to come back, but we never saw the results of his retrial. He might have killed everyone in the room, for all we know. But we do know that after this experience, Higuruma gave up on the idea of justice and became a killer in the Culling Game.
I’ve always been intrigued by characters who have strong senses of justice. Lawyer characters are sometimes like this. Very righteous or moralistic characters like this often break hard. However, I think Higuruma is a slightly different variation of the usual idealistic justice-seeker whose goodness is crushed by the unfair world. It’s not exactly that he was ever morally strong. In his own words, he just couldn’t leave things alone when he perceived them as incorrect. It’s more of a compulsive need to correct things than a strong sense of morality per se. I think that’s why it was relatively easy for him to “turn to the dark side.” Since the justice system was broken, then he figured he might as well judge others on his own authority, killing whenever it suited him. I am very fascinated by Higuruma and his psychology. He is yet another case of an excellently written Jujutsu Kaisen antagonist!
After Higuruma’s story, we return to the present. I’m probably going to rush through the rest of this episode because I’m mentally “out of juice.” While Rin Amai led Yuji to the theater where Higuruma was staying, Remi led Megumi to her base. Waiting there was a powerful sorcerer named Reggie Star. He was a reincarnated sorcerer from long ago and he had sent Remi out to lure in easy prey to kill. But when he saw how strong Megumi was, Reggie instead said he wanted to be allies. (Side note: The death glare that Megumi gave Remi for tricking him was priceless.)
Yuji found Higuruma fully clothed in a bathtub in the center of the theater’s stage. Though he was puzzled by the odd adult, Itadori wasted no time asking for his help. But Higuruma said it simply wouldn’t do to end the system that had given him so much power. He wanted to protect the Culling Game. Hearing this, Yuji got aggressive and took up a battle stance, demanding the use of Higuruma’s points. Higuruma responded by immediately trapping Yuji in his Domain Expansion. He also had a huge shikigami creature with him that is called “Judgeman.”
This episode also revealed that Kenjaku was planning something sinister and different from what Tengan had assumed. The Culling Game was not actually a ritual for ferrying souls to the other side or whatever. There was some secret plan happening instead. It involved singling out the strongest players in each colony. Reggie said that Kenjaku was planning to drop a bomb, but I don’t know if this was literal or figurative speech. This is also the point where I stopped reading the manga, so I have no idea what happens next. We’ll see! To be continued.
~Thanks for reading~
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