Jujutsu Kaisen
We are reaching the end of the tragic saga of Junpei Yoshino. We are getting a better look at what makes Yuji Itadori tick. Let's get to it!
"Narrow-minded"
Junpei's Mother: "Staying home from school again? It's OK. You don't have to go. All you kids at your age. You tend to take these things too seriously. If you think about it, school is just a tiny aquarium. After all, there's a whole ocean out there. Swim where you want to swim. Hey! That was a pretty cool thing to say, wasn't it? What a brilliant saying. Way to go me!"
Manga Chapters: 23 (p. 11-21), 24 & 25
Arc: Vs. Mahito
Yuji Itadori talks to Junpei Yoshino about the incident in the movie theater. He also discloses that he is a jujutsu sorcerer. The two boys bond over their love of movies and Yuji ends up having dinner with Junpei and his mother. When tragedy strikes Junpei involving a curse and a Sukuna finger, Mahito convinces Junpei to go after his school bully.
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| JJ-Cast Away |
This is sort of a quieter episode of "Jujutsu Kaisen" and I don't mind that. It doesn't have to be all action all the time. It's these quieter episodes that allows the characters to shine and you connect with them. That's what makes this such a great show.
I think I've said this before but I sometimes have a difficult time connecting with the main character of an anime. For me, it's all about the supporting characters. I usually find the main character kind of vanilla. Kind of boring. But I love Yuji Itadori. And it's episodes like this that really drive home why he's such a great character. His compassion and his heart are what draw you to him. He's never not genuine. He has this quality where he can really connect with people. You see it with Junpei. They bond over movies which is kind of perfect since Yuji just spent so much time watching movies. And the movie they are bonding over is the JJK universe version of the "Human Centipede" series. That is wild. And kind of funny.
We see more of Itadori's effortless charm when he's having dinner with the Yoshino's. He continues to endear himself to Junpei by continuing to show off his knowledge of films. I thought it was really funny when he made the Wilson volleyball with the plate. Also, is Junpei's mom giving Misato Katsuragi vibes with her getting shitfaced with her son and his friend and ending up passing out at the kitchen table? I kind of love it. She is extremely likable which makes what happens to her in this episode even more tragic.
Junpei and Itadori have a conversation that mirrors the conversation that Mahito and Junpei had about the soul. Junpei talks to Itadori about what he'd do if, as a jujutsu sorcerer, he'd have to kill someone. Itadori struggles with this. He doesn't want to kill anyone. He believes that life has value. And he knows that as soon as he crosses that line, that life will lose his value. And Itadori truly believes that he will find a way to resolve these conflicts without taking a life. This should come off as naive, but it really doesn't. It comes off as extremely genuine and it really makes an impact on Junpei. Junpei seemed to be leaning more towards believing what Mahito says but he sees people that are good like Itadori and his mother. So, how could he kill anyone?
Things come tumbling down when Junpei's mother wakes up to find one of Sukuna's fingers on the kitchen table in front of her. This draws a truly terrifying curse to her that ends up killing her, eating. the lower half of her body. It's clear that Mahito is responsible for this, something that is confirmed when he's talking to Geto at the end of the episode. But he uses Junpei's mother's death to further manipulate Junpei. This sends Junpei into a rage and he goes to school ready to kill his primary tormentor who he believes is responsible for his mother's death.
Mahito is able to put a veil over the school. He speaks with Geto who seems unconcerned that Jujutsu High has another one of Sukuna's fingers. Mahito is using Junpei to try to force Itadori into making a pact with Sukuna. In the school, Junpei is going hard after the bully. It's hard to watch. It definitely looks like he is ready to kill this kid, but then Yuji Itadori makes his entrance on the scene.
The Juju Stroll for this episode is like a brief movie trailer type stinger. Sadly, I couldn't find a video of it on YouTube.
Grade: B+
"To You, Someday"
Mahito: "You know, Junpei, you are a pretty smart kid. But sometimes thinking too much can lead to even more foolish decisions than impulsiveness. You're a classic case of that. I'd even say that you can actually be almost as foolish as those people you call fools yourself. And that's why you'll die."
Manga Chapters: 26, 27, 28 & 29 (p. 1-3)
Arc: Vs. Mahito
Yuji Itadori and Junpei Yoshino face off. Junpei uses his newly discovered cursed technique to go against Yuji. Yuji attempts to reason with Junpei. To learn why he is doing this. When Yuji learns about Junpei's dead mother, Yuji vows he will help bring whoever killed her to justice. He tells Junpei that he should join him at Jujutsu High. It seems like things are turning around for Junpei until Mahito appears.
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| They're all going to laugh at you. |
In anime there are some tragic stories/characters. The one that always jumps out at me is Nina Tucker from "Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood" who gets turned into a half dog chimera by her father. I'm not saying that Junpei Yoshino is exactly the same, but he is definitely one of the most tragic figures in "Jujutsu Kaisen." From the moment that Junpei meets Mahito, you just know that he is going to meet a tragic end, but you hold out hope. You want him to get through this and join our merry band of misfits. And the show really makes it seem like he is going to join the crew since there is a shot of him with Yuji in the opening credits. But that is all for naught.
The episode begins with a fight between Junpei and Yuji. Yuji stops Junpei from killing the boy he mistakenly thinks has something to do with the death of his mother. Junpei is using a jellyfish shikigami to go after Yuji. In a flashback, we see Mahito teaching Junpei how to use his cursed technique which is a poison cursed technique. Both boys are relying on the information that they've been given by their mentors. Gojo had told Yuji that when it comes to shikigami users, he should attack the person not the shikigami which is what Yuji does. This attack allows him to try to reason with Junpei.
Junpei reveals to Itadori what happened to his mom and again, we see what makes Itadori such a great character. He's ready to accept Junpei into the Jujutsu High clan no matter what. Even though, they just have this knockdown drag out fight, once Yuji learns what Junpei is going through, all of that falls to the wayside and he's ready to be a good friend to Junpei. It's in that moment, where you start to think that maybe Junpei is going to become a member of our main cast, but alas that's not to be, because its at that moment that Mahito returns.
Mahito shows Junpei his true colors. He transfigures Junpei and sends him after Itadori and when that happens you can see Itadori's heart break and then fill with rage. Junpei can't handle the transfiguration and dies in front of Itadori. This really tests Itadori's resolve from the previous episode about not killing. It shows that it is easy for you to say something like that but it becomes more difficult when you are faced with something like seeing someone you were establishing a relationship with murdered before your eyes. Itadori sees red and he goes after Mahito with all he has.
This whole deal is Mahito and Geto's way of trying to get Itadori so desperate that Itadori makes a binding vow with Sukuna. Little do they know that Sukuna already made a pact with Itadori that the latter doesn't remember. And Sukuna is toying with Itadori, refusing to heal Junpei no matter what Itadori offers. He also threatens Mahito when he attempts to use idle transfiguration on Itadori.
The fight between Mahito and Itadori is the most brutal fight we've seen on the series so far. Itadori unleashes his full fury on the patchwork curse. But Mahito isn't taking this sitting down, shifting his limbs into weapons, puncturing Itadori in multiple places. Mahito feels confident that Itadori will call upon Sukuna, but he refuses. When Itadori is headbutting Mahito over and over again, you feel it. It's really rough.
Nanami shows up in the nick of time to help Itadori out. He quickly realizes that either Mahito's power doesn't work on Itadori or he is trying to keep Itadori, but either way they can use that to their advantage. Nanami makes the decision to exorcize Mahito there. In the previous episode, Nanami deduced that Mahito was a younger curse so now is the time to take him out.
The Juju Stroll is transfigured humans trying to figure out how a pop up pirate works. Again, I couldn't find it on YouTube.
Grade: A
Next up, the battle against Mahito concludes and the exchange event begins.
What did you all think of these episodes? For non-manga readers, did you think that Junpei may be joining the team? Do you love Yuji? Let me know in the comments.
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