I'm tired of saying this, but Jujutsu Kaisen biggest mistake was not sticking to its actual strength

Jujutsu Kaisen is a series that, at one moment, was highly regarded as a tremendous battle shonen manga, but the more the story progressed, the worse it got in terms of quality. However, a lot of people don't point out that author Gege Akutami made a considerable mistake by not sticking to the manga's main strength and which is the element of tragedy in the story.

One aspect of Jujutsu Kaisen that many people praised was the rather tragic nature of the story, emphasized by how sorcerers often end up dying young and with their efforts undermined. That is something that is missed by the end of the manga, especially during its epilogue, which is something that Akutami should have explored a lot more in the story of Yuji Itadori and his friends.

Disclaimer: This article contains spoilers from the manga/anime and reflects the opinions of the writer.

Jujutsu Kaisen should have maintained the focus on the tragic nature of the story

Nobara's return reduces the tragedy of the story (Image via MAPPA).

An element that endeared Gege Akutami's manga to the general public is the tragic nature of the story, which was evidenced for the first time when Mahito murdered Junpei Yoshino in front of the protagonist, Yuji Itadori. A lot of people, especially in the anime adaptation, assumed that it was going to follow the classic battle shonen trope of having Junpei join the main cast, but he ended up dying, which gave the series a more unpredictable nature.

Furthermore, moments such as Nobara Kugisaki's apparent passing when fighting Mahito in the Shibuya Incident arc added to that since she was displayed as one of the main characters of the series. This was the story's biggest strength because it seemed that Akutami was playing a bit with the expectations people had with shonen tropes, adding to the tragic nature of sorcerers, which was emphasized through Suguru Geto's downfall.

There was a strong focus on the story in displaying the fact that sorcerers usually start young and have to endure a lot of death and even die young themselves, which is something that characters like Satoru Gojo and Nanami Kento want to avoid. However, by the story's conclusion, most of this is ignored and the consequences are greatly reduced.

Issues of the final arc

Yuji, Megumi, and Nobara were the main focus of the story's conclusion (Image via MAPPA).

As the Jujutsu Kaisen final arc, Shinjuku Showdown, was drawing to its conclusion, Akutami decided to bring back Nobara so she could assist Yuji against Ryomen Sukuna. This was also coupled with Megumi Fushiguro recovering control over his body with little to no real damage suffered despite claims he suffered major consequences from Sukuna fighting Gojo with the former's body.

Therefore, Megumi's actions throughout the story didn't give him any meaningful negative consequences since his sister's death was out of his control, Nobara comes back, thus lessening the impact of her injuries against Mahito, and characters like Yuta Okkotsu and Higuruma got to survive without any major losses. All in all, the series had a very happy and positive conclusion that did feel like a natural progression throughout the story.

Final thoughts

Ultimately, it is difficult to not admit that Jujutsu Kaisen was a disappointment by the time it reached its conclusion. However, the series did have some strong elements and one of them was the tragic component of the characters' journeys, which was a stark contrast in the ending.

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About the author

Kevin is an expert anime writer at Sportskeeda who endeavors to keep readers apprised with the latest news and trends in the genre via his content. The groundbreaking Dragon Ball series captured a young Kevin's imagination, introducing him to the entrancing world of Japanese animation. Since then, he has been a staunch follower of the works of many artists, including Berserk's creator, Kentaro Miura, who he admires greatly for his unparalleled work quality.

With a BA in Public Accounting, Kevin’s dip into the world of content began 7 years ago when he took up writing. Since then, he has written for numerous websites, including Nerdgenic, Stretty News, MusikHolics, and BookNerdection.

He maintains very high ethical standards in his content by placing a strong emphasis on transparency, and obtaining comprehensive information off the web to fully capture nuances.

Kevin has has had the privilege of interviewing several musicians, including metal band Stryper’s Michael Sweet, Bobby Blitz of Overkill, and Saxon’s Biff Byford.

When not immersed in the anime world, Kevin writes comic book scripts and books for his own projects. He also enjoys reading and watching football.

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Edited by Niharika Dabral