Jujutsu Kaisen isn’t just one of the best shōnen series of the past decade, it’s one of the best anime series in general. It’s a series known for top-tier battles, lovable characters, and, as of season three, some of the best animation in the art form.
The third season saw the series ascend to heights few thought were possible. It adapted the first half of one of the best arcs in Jujutsu Kaisen, the Culling Games Arc. Season three was the first season to animate part of an arc, as both the first and second season adapted different arcs in their entirety.
After MAPPA’s skill bringing the third season to life, we’re not too worried about the fourth, but there is one aspect to pay attention to. The second half of the Culling Games Arc has some of the most important moments in the franchise, so MAPPA needs to get the pacing down or it might ruin the flow of the whole series.
Jujutsu Kaisen Is a Staple of Modern Shōnen
There’s no denying Jujutsu Kaisen’s status as a king of modern shōnen. There are a ton of great shōnen series that have been released in the past decade, but only a few have captured the decade’s lust for terrifyingly amazing battles like Jujutsu Kaisen. It’s a series centered on action, and we wouldn’t want it any other way.
Jujutsu Kaisen doesn’t just have amazing battles either: it has some of the most memorable characters in shōnen. Satoru Gojo, one of the strongest characters in the entire series, is also one of the most lovable. He’s almost in Goku’s tier of popular characters, as the world can’t get enough of the white-haired, blue-eyed powerhouse.
Jujutsu Kaisen Season 4 Officially Announced: Everything We Know So Far
Jujutsu Kaisen gets an official announcement and teaser for Season 4, so here is everything we know so far about JJK’s Culling Game Part 2.
Itadori Yuji’s story is uplifting and heartbreaking in equal measure. He’s had to mature quickly over the course of the show, and he’s taken on more burdens that most shōnen protagonists could imagine.
The first season of Jujutsu Kaisen was solid, and the second improved upon the first measurably, but the third season is where the action-packed series really took off.
Season Three Is Unquestionably 10/10
The third season of Jujutsu Kaisen is so good that it barely looks like the first two seasons, and there’s nothing wrong with them, it’s just that good. The third season adapted the first half of the Culling Games Arc with the precision MAPPA is coming to be known for. The animation is stunning, the characters are nearing their peaks, and the story itself couldn’t be more gripping.
After the Shibuya Incident Arc, it feels like things couldn’t have gotten much worse for Yuji. If there’s a central theme to Jujutsu Kaisen, however, it’s that things can always get worse for the young hero. Even after losing so much, it looks like he’s set to lose even more in one of the most captivating and dark arcs the series has.
While the best fight of Jujutsu Kaisen is still coming, season three had plenty to rave about. The series started out ferociously with Maki’s annihilation of the Zen’in Clan and ended on a high with Yuta’s battle against Uro and Ryu, two Sorcerers reincarnated into the Culling Games.
Unlike the previous two seasons, season three only animated half of an arc instead of the full thing. Most fans thought that season three would be split into two cours to give MAPPA animators time to bring the second half to life. The addition of a fourth season isn’t a bad thing for Jujutsu Kaisen, so long as MAPPA gets the pacing right.
Season Four Splits up a Major Arc
The Culling Games Arc is one of the top three most important arcs in Jujutsu Kaisen, next to the Shibuya Incident Arc and the Shinjuku Showdown Arc. Splitting it up isn’t necessarily a bad decision, as even the greats at MAPPA need time to bring the manga to life. Seeing how great the third season turned out to be also shows that MAPPA truly is taking their time turning the manga into a masterpiece.
Attack on Titan, another masterpiece within the shōnen genre adapted by MAPPA, had a major problem towards the end of its run, basically where Jujutsu Kaisen is. There were too many gaps between seasons, killing all the momentum that it had built up over years. There were several seasons titled “The Final Season,” letting fans down when they had to wait years for the actual final season.
Will MAPPA Also Split up the Shinjuku Showdown Arc?
The Shinjuku Showdown Arc will be the single most influential arc in anime for years when it comes out. It features Gojo’s long-awaited clash against Sukuna, the strongest Sorcerer of the modern era vs. the King of Curses. It’s a fight that Jujutsu Kaisen has been building towards for nearly a decade, and it will be nothing short of record-breaking.
If MAPPA split the Culling Games into (at least) two seasons, will they do the same for the Shinjuku Showdown? It’s not the worst thing in the world if they do, but a substantial gap between the two, or more, seasons can be incredibly detrimental to any excitement that the series builds.
MAPPA can cement Jujutsu Kaisen as one of the best anime series ever made if they get the fourth season right. If they treat it like Attack on Titan, however, it might lose all the hype it has spent years building up, and nobody wants to see that from such a spectacular series.
- Cast
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Junya Enoki, Yuma Uchida, Asami Seto, Yuichi Nakamura
- Created by
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Gege Akutami