Contenuti
Intro
Jujutsu Kaisen is a work based on the manga by Gege Akutami circulated since its first publication in March 2018. The anime was a great success, entering the top most-watched animated series in Japan in 2021. The secret of its popularity is due to the incredible animation that moves the story along, enriched by the more classic Shonen Battle canons and its characters. Its peculiarity is, in fact, to encapsulate themes and elements found in the most popular Shonen and to bring them together in a Dark Fantasy setting.
Although only one season has been released, the Anime already encompasses several characters whose characterization is well delineated by classic Shonen canons. This article will go over the characters of Jujutsu Kaisen starting with the main, secondary characters and then concluding with the antagonists of the series. It is therefore recommended to pay ATTENTION TO SPOILERS even though an attempt will be made to discuss them in a general way.
History
It centers on Itadori Yūji, a high school student enrolled in the Occult School Club because he is too lazy to participate in the Sports Club. One day, the boy discovers that his grandfather is on the verge of death, so he rushes to him in the hospital. Once he reaches his destination, his grandfather, during his last moments of life, urges him to live by helping others so that he can die surrounded by people.
This last message from him will inspire our protagonist and develop him character-wise. Several days after his grandfather’s disappearance, Itadori meets Megumi Fushiguro, a sorcerer who informs him of the existence of a cursed talisman within the school. From the latter, our protagonist learns about the world of curses, beings created by the negative emotions that flow through people’s bodies.
Furthermore, Fushiguro explains to him that sorcerers are those who can channel these negative emotions of theirs into a kind of power that can cope with cursed beings, theMaleficent Energy. Meanwhile, Itadori’s friends from the Occult Club, in possession of the talisman, open the seal placed on it and attract all the curses to the school. Remembering his grandfather’s last words, our protagonist throws himself headlong to save his friends but, not knowing how to use evil energy, is soon overwhelmed.
To prevent curses from taking hold of the talisman, Itadori swallows it by becoming the host of Ryomen Sukuna, a very powerful curse. This is where Satoru Gojo, the most powerful sorcerer at the Tokyo Institute of Occult Arts, comes in, who, together with the higher-ups in the world of sorcery, decides to postpone Itadori’s execution until he has absorbed all 20 fragments of Sukuna’s soul so that he can finally exorcise him.
Jujutsu Kaisen Main Characters
YŪJI ITADORI
Yuji is the main character in the series. He is a high school student who despite being very skilled in sports, due to his laziness, decides to join the Occult Club where he makes friends with two other boys. His life seems to be uninspiring and monotonous until the moment when his grandfather, the only relative he has, dies in the hospital. From here on, our protagonist seems to fall into a moment of depression that will be abruptly interrupted by his encounter with Megumi Fushiguro, a sorcerer from whom he will learn the meaning of the Maleficent Energy, a power contained in every person derived from negative emotions.
At first the boy is skeptical of the sorcerer, but soon reality will confront him. In fact, curses (monsters created by evil energies) appear in the school after the removal of the seal placed on a ‘cursed artifact, Sukuna’s finger. Yuji runs to the aid of his friends from the Occult Club, who are responsible for removing the seal, and throws himself at the cursed beings.
Not knowing how to use the Evil Energy, however, the boy is soon defeated, and in a desperate attempt to prevent curses from taking hold of Sukuna’s finger he decides to swallow it. The govane then becomes Ryomen Sukuna ‘s host and taken possession of by the latter begins to destroy everything in his path, even injuring Fushiguro. Sukuna’s destructive thirst, however, is stopped by Satoru Gojo, who knocks him unconscious within moments.
When he awakens, Yuji finds himself trapped by Gojo, who informs him of the decision of the higher-ups: he must choose whether to absorb all 20 of Sukuna’s fingers or, alternatively, be executed on the spot. Thus begins the journey of our protagonist, who will enroll in the Tokyo Institute of Occult Arts to understand the secrets of using evil energy.
Powers
Since before he swallowed Sukuna’s first finger, Yuji has been endowed with superhuman physical and athletic abilities. After becoming the host of the terrible curse, however, he will gain even more mind-blowing abilities even though he will have to fight against Sukuna ‘s constant attempts to take over his body. As a result of the training and experience gained in fighting Yuji will also learn a new evil power, the“Divergent Fist,” which will allow his fists to strike twice, creating a powerful impact.
Megumi Fushiguro
Fushiguro is a first-year sorcerer in the Tokyo Institute of Occult Arts who opens the protagonist’s eyes to the world of evil energy, fighting together with him against the curses in the school. A boy with remarkable intelligence and skill as a strategist, Megumi is also a very reserved person who, however, does not shy away from helping his friends. It is he who convinces Satoru to try to save Yuji from execution, and together with the protagonist he will form Gojo’s trio of students.
Powers
Fushigoro’s power is to create beings with animal-like features(shikigami) through the use of evil energy to exorcise curses.
Nobara Kugisaki
Kugisaki is a first-year girl at the Tokyo Institute of Occult Arts who meets Yuji during their first mission, under the tutelage of Master Gojo. Nobara is very self-confident, brash, and with an adamant temper but, at the same time, caring and respectful even if she does not show it to others. The girl also presents, some flashes of insanity and sadism as can be observed during her fights.
Powers
Nobara’s power consists of using a hammer and nails infused with his evil energy. Specifically, he shares the damage between his straw doll and his target by serving a voodoo-like technique.
Satoru Gojō
Master of Itadori, Megumi, and Nobara at the Tokyo Institute of Occult Arts, Gojo is the most powerful sorcerer appearing in the series and makes his first appearance by stopping Yuji’s destructive fury seized by Sukuna. Saturo has a complex personality: he is playful and easy-going toward his students but rude and arrogant toward his superiors.
During fights he is extremely confident in his abilities and his reputation as a powerful sorcerer, so much so that he believes himself invincible. Satoru’s ultimate goal is to reform the world of jujutsu from the bottom up through education. He seeks, in fact, to promote a new generation of sorcerers hoping that they will one day become his equals.
Powers
Endowed with great intellect and superhuman strength, Gojo also possesses countless powers. One above all is the “infinity” technique that allows him to control the space around him while avoiding any kind of attack. He is also able to use ‘ domain expansion, a technique that creates a metaphysical space by trapping victims and restricting both their mental processes and actions. Finally, he is endowed with semi-clairvoyance thanks to his“Six Eyes” power that allows him to use the domain expansion several times without needing to rest.
Sorcerers of the Tokyo Institute of Occult Arts
Maki Zen’in
Maki is a sophomore model student teaming up with her friends Panda and Toge Inumaki. She comes from one of the three great sorcerer families, the Zenin clan, which mistreated her from birth and expelled her because of her lack of magical powers. This family adversity of hers will be the reason why she will aspire to become a great stegona, despite her lack of talent. Maki is a very stubborn and outspoken person who tries to step up, without anyone’s help, because of her great willpower.
Powers
Although she was born without magical powers, Maki has always had tremendous physical abilities, and by mastering the use of numerous weapons, she nevertheless became a jujutsu magician.
Toge Inumaki
Toge is a sophomore student paired with Yuta Maki and Panda. At first he seems to be a quiet and aloof boy; however, he proves to be perceptive and thoughtful by avoiding speaking out so as not to accidentally curse his classmates because of his powers.
Powers
Toge, inside his mouth, possesses the “Snake & Fangs” seal by which he infuses his words with evil energy, forcing all who listen to him to obey.
Panda
One of the most unique characters in the series, Panda, is not an animal as it may seem, but a living doll created by Principal Yaga. Although he does not have a soul, he is a very intelligent, optimistic individual with a great sense of humor, sometimes seeming more human than some of his peers.
Powers
It possesses an extremely strong body that can be reinforced using jujutsu protection. There are three cores within Panda’s body: the balanced-type Panda , the power-type Gorilla , and a third yet to be revealed, all of which confer different abilities.
Aoi Todo
Todo is a third-year student who forms a deep friendship with Yuji and becomes his mentor. Much of his personality revolves around hislove for pop idol Takada-chan and his hatred of boring people. Todo, in fact, asks those he meets to describe the ideal girl to him, judging them by their response. An eccentric and self-confident boy, Aoi loves the thrill of confrontation more than anything else, often seeking a rival to match him.
Powers
In addition to having amazing physical strength, competing with Yuji’s ability, Todo also possesses the Boogie Woogie power that allows him to stand in for his partner during a fight.
Mai Zen’in
A member of the Zen’in clan, Mai, like her older sister Maki, was mistreated by her family members because of her lack of talent in Jujutsu. Her hatred for her sister turns out to be inspirational, and this will prompt her to pursue a career as a sorceress. Mai has an irreverent, rude personality and is always looking for an opportunity to boost her ego.
Powers
Mai is an excellent marksman: In a close encounter she can hit her opponent point-blank with her rubber bullets infused with evil energy while, from a distance, she can shoot with extreme accuracy using her revolver.
Kokichi Muta
Koichi is a second-year student who, because of his frail and sick body, is forced to live inside his shelter with tubes attached. Despite this difficulty, he manages to attend sorcery school and become a skilled sorcerer by controlling a remote puppet named Mechamaru.
Powers
Kokichi has the ability to control wide-ranging puppets of cursed corpses. Mechamaru, his weapon of choice, is able to emit discharges of cursed energy as heat rays dealing enormous damage to the opponent.
Yoshinobu Gakuganji
Yoshinobu is the dean of the Tokyo Institute of Occult Arts and a member of the top leadership of Jujutsu. He was among those who pushed for Itadori’s execution and, because of his staunch traditionalism, is often in opposition to Gojo.
Powers
Yoshinobu’s technique allows him to launch powerful energy blasts by using his own body as an amplifier of sound waves from his electric guitar.
Masamichi Yaga
A second-year teacher and later principal of the school, he was the one who gave birth to Panda. Masamichi is a strict, caring, and serious man with strong morals and patience especially toward his superiors.
Powers
Masamichi is able to bring dolls to life by inserting a cursed energy core and controlling them by spell. During his career as a sorcerer he made a wide variety of cursed corpses, including Panda.
Kento Nanami
Nanami initially left school after graduation to become a wage earner, but returned four years later to continue working as a sorcerer by becoming Yuji’s mentor. A very wise and reserved person, Nanami is an ordinary man weighed down by the practices of daily life.
Powers
Using her technique, Nanami is able to divide her target into ten sections and create a weak point. He can freely choose which part to divide and whether to apply it to mortals or objects.
Curses
Sukuna
Known as the undisputed King of Curses, Sukuna is the main antagonist of the series who makes his first appearance after Yuji ingests one of his fingers. In the past, the Jujutsu leadership teamed up to defeat him but, unable to destroy him because of his extremely resistant body, they decided to seal him in twenty cursed artifacts. Sukuna has an evil, selfish and exceptionally sadistic personality, even toward his fellow human beings.
Being imprisoned in Yuji’s body, he uses his cunning to deceive our protagonist, ripping out his heart and sealing a binding pact with him. The ‘ agreement will allow the boy to come back to life, provided that, when requested by Sukuna, for the duration of one minute Itadori must relinquish control of his body to the Curse.
Powers
In addition to possessing enormous amounts of cursed energy, Sukuna, is very skilled in close combat by making use of his high speed and mighty strength.
His technique, “reverse curse,” allows him not only to regenerate his own limbs in an instant, but also to heal others.
Mahito
Mahito is a curse that, along with Hanami and Jōgo, shares the goal of eradicating humanity by replacing humans with cursed spirits. He presents a sadistic and immature personality, enjoying playing with human emotions.
Powers
Mahito’s technique, “inactive transfiguration,” allows him to reshape souls, enabling him to heal wounds, create a clone, and transform his body into an endless variety of weapons.
Jōgo
Jōgo is a curse teamed with Hanami and Mahi eager to extirpate the human race from the earth. His overconfidence and immense pride will be obliterated by Saturo Gojo, who, in a clash between the two, will defeat him with ease by showing off his innumerable skills.
Powers
Jogo possesses an innate volcanic technique that enables him to produce cursed flames. It also has the ability to generate flames from its palms or create small volcanic openings in its surroundings that erupt powerful rays of energy.
Hanami
An ally of Mahi and Jōgo, Hanami is a curse born out of the fear aroused by natural disasters and aims to rid the earth of humans because of their environmental mistreatment. Compared to his comrades, he is a quiet curse who does not like to display his ego and flaunt his strength in combat.
Powers
Hanami can easily reinforce his body with cursed energy and regenerate his limbs in an instant. He is also able to control nature around him by making use of poisonous roots and flowers to overpower his opponent. Hanami can, finally, launch a long-range projectile by channeling solar energy through a flower placed on his shoulder.
