Wow this series was a real rollercoaster for me.
Jujutsu Kaisen
(Gege Akutami)
January 2019 to September 2024
271 Chapters
So I read the first three chapters of this when Shonen Jump App were doing Jump Starts and really liked it. Thought it was really promising (I guess I was right on that count lol). But back then of course, they weren’t simulpublishing. So I waited until the anime because the manga back catalogue was being translated on a weird schedule. And it was great! I went in blind which is rare for a Jump anime for me and it kept me on my toes. I hadn’t realised how serious it was going to be in terms of the way it treated it’s characters.
Then after the first season, I decided to binge read the manga so I could read it as it released weekly. It was the flashback plus Shibuya arcs and man, did I feel let down. The flashback arc annoyed me because I felt like it introduced some plotholes (I realised later that Gege just likes to leave things hanging without acknowledging he’s doing so, but then eventually addresses it way later, even if it’s just in passing haha). And the Shibuya arc was just kinda a drag, I didn’t really enjoy any of the fights much. But! Everything got waaay better after and I do think it was because Gojo was outta the picture lol.
The Culling Arc would usually be where I would think things are getting dragged out, but the fights were cool and the character interactions fun. Like seriously some really awesome fights, I can’t wait for them to be animated 🤩 Plus Gege playing the super long game on a bunch of plot points was kinda epic.
In more general things, one of the great things about this manga, that was consistent throughout, was the offbeat humour. And it’s been awhile since I’ve actually liked a WSJ guy/guy/girl main cast trio. I feel like Yuuji was the not-that-dumb (he said it himself!) gung-ho main character, Megumi was the actually kinda pathetic emo-ish one (so not that cool lol, made him so much more likeable to me haha) and Nobara was like the anti-jump heroine (without having to vomit like Kagura in Gintama haha). I loved how she stuck to her guns even if it made her kinda obnoxious lol. Plus Yuuji and Nobara ‘we buds’ schtick was awesome.
So I wasn’t sure if I wanted to buy this manga, but Gege delivered for sure, on multiple levels. So just gotta wait like 3 years for a boxset 😝
Categories: Simulpub Review
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