J-Subculture News

Jujutsu Kaisen, drawn by Akutami Gege, has been serialized in Weekly Shonen Jump since 2018. Although it was initially hidden behind the world hit "Kimetsu no Yaiba", recently started to draw attention. Jujutsu Kaisen can be described as "more chew, more taste". It's an addictive combination of powerful battle scenes and horrific horror that gives you goosebumps. Once you start reading it, you'll be hooked. Anime has been on air since October 2020.

A dark story with a comical side

Dark fantasy has been definitely grabbing the attention like "Shingeki no Kyojin" and "Kimetsu no Yaiba". There are still both positive and negative options for this kind of story. Jujustu Kaisen may be one of these, the story contains stuff such as to curse people, turn into monsters, and kill tons of people. Even so, what hooks you is the comical way which makes you chuckle in the middle of the darkness. The main character Yuji Itadori has a cheerful personality, and it creates a perfect balance of negative and positive elements.

Too unique characters

One of the reasons for the popularity of "Jujutsu Kaisen" is that the characters are so distinctive. Especially, the female characters are unusually strong and devastatingly outspoken.... In a typical shonen manga, a heroine should be pretty, shy, and modest. But such as the female character, Nobara Kugisaki, is a crazy girl who uses a nail and a hammer as her weapons. There's definitely no chance of developing a romance as the story going forward. Another impressive part is that the characterization of an enemy called "Jyurei" is drawn in detail. They should be hated monsters, however, you somehow feel like you can't hate them while continuing to read. Even for the top class of Jyurei called Mahito who has no blood or tears recognizing people only as toys, you might feel a certain affection. It might be a very strange feeling that you never have. 

The series has sold more than 15 million copies, including the electronic version. Staying home is becoming more and more common, and this is probably one of the reasons for the growing demand for anime and manga. The 14th volume will be released on 4 January 2021. You can't wait to see what happens next!