#I KNOW not all characters can have a whole arc of their past like gojo

[rottiens]

Me towards authors who kill off characters without exploring their development on a deeper level:

me with gege when kenjaku, geto, kashimo, yuki :)

[gojossocks]

Jealousy, Jealousy

Pairing: Gojo x reader

Genre: fluff, comedy

Summary: you’re watching the final episode of Attack on Titan. Fully captivated with the anime and clearly simping over your favorite fictional character, your boyfriend throws a silly tantrum.

WC: 1.3k

a/n: I hope jjk and aot fans' mental health is okay, here is a fic to make up for the shibuya arc and aot's final ep :")

Gojo Satoru has always been insufferable, it is a known fact to everyone in Jujutsu High. He had been more insufferable this past week, though. 

He had been complaining to his bestfriends about you and Suguru swears that he might shave his whole head or commit murder as a result of his insanity. Being the receiving end of Gojo’s relentless antics can make you go crazy like that. 

Suguru’s sitting on his best friend’s couch, doing the paper that both of them should be doing. Instead, Satoru has been whining endlessly about you, claiming that you aren’t giving him attention anymore since you got hyped for the last episode of your favorite anime show, Attack on Titan. 

“Satoru,” he sighs, rubbing his temples. “It’s normal for our age to be obsessed over shows. She’s not cheating on you, stop being dramatic.” 

“I know but all she does is talk about it!” Satoru crosses his arms over his chest before huffing, glaring at your poor Levi plushie. “Especially that shorty over there.” 

“You’re right, Satoru. Maybe she does love Levi over you.” Suguru smirks at him, a mischievous glint in his eyes which earned a sharp look from his best friend. 

“OH shut the fuck up Sugu-” 

Satoru’s rant came to an abrupt halt when his door swung open. You rushed to him, pulling him in a tight embrace. Caught off guard, Satoru stiffened for a moment before tentatively wrapping his arms around you, rubbing your back in a soothing pattern. His eyes widened when you started to sob, staining his shirt with your tears.  

(Suguru pretends he is non-existent in Satoru’s apartment) 

He couldn’t understand anything you’re saying because you’re sobbing and your voice is muffled with his shirt so he pulls away and looks at you worriedly, concern etching his features.  “What’s wrong, babe? What happened?”

He gently scoops you into his arms, settling on the couch with you nestled on his lap. 

“It’s over, Eren’s dead.” you mumbled, your voice laden with the aftermath of the episode . He couldn’t help but burst into a fit of laughter  that quickly died down when he saw your puffy eyes and the glare you shot his way. He halted his amused look when he noticed you pulling away but his grip on you remained still, preventing you from escaping. 

He grins at you, pressing a kiss on your forehead. “It’s okay, Y/N. I’m here.” He assures you, his voice soothing. “Let’s get some ice cream and cuddle all day, yeah?” 

Satoru couldn’t help but to revel in the sensation of having your undivided attention, you just look so cute with your pout as you look at him with puppy eyes. The grip you have on him when he soothes you didn’t go unnoticed by him too. His eyes flickered to Suguru, who shook his head begrudgingly on the other side of the couch before returning to his work. 

“It’s such a shame, ‘Toru. I’m gonna miss Levi so much, my pretty pretty baby girl.”  you cooed, your eyes fixed on your phone. Satoru’s eyebrows shot up in confusion before your words registered in his brain.

“HA?!” He exclaimed and glanced over, only to find out that your lock screen wallpaper has been changed. No longer was it graced by Satoru’s cheeky grin as he stole a kiss from you, it had now been replaced by Levi ackerman. You constantly talking about your fictional ‘husband’ annoys your boyfriend but setting him as a wallpaper?! That is so low. You’ve done it now. 

Satoru looks at you in disbelief, his eyes wide in bewilderment. “Y/N! How could you betray your boyfriend like that?! It’s a show, he’s not real. He’s not your baby girl. I am!” 

A giggle escapes your lips as you look up at him“You’re my baby girl?” you teased. 

“That’s not the point.” He complains. “Why don’t you dote on your boyfriend instead?  I’m clearly more attractive and taller than Remy or whatever that guy’s name is.” 

“Satoru, you’ve read the manga. You know who Levi is.” Suguru chimed in, emitting a groan from your boyfriend. 

“Shut up Suguru! I thought you were on my side!” 

The next day, you were surprised when Satoru didn’t accompany you to school as usual. Throughout your shared class, he was uncharacteristically quiet. Not to mention that he styled and parted his hair differently, mirroring the look of your fictional crush. Suguru and Ieri couldn’t contain their laughter when they first caught sight of Satoru’s new look. 

Gone was his usual nosiness and his penchant for poking into other people’s business. Satoru, now wearing a stoic expression, glared at anyone who dared to look at him. It was clear that he was trying to also embody the persona of Levi Ackerman and you don’t know whether to feel concerned, annoyed, or amused. 

The breaking point came after your last class of the day. Back at Satoru's apartment, he continued with his newfound demeanor, and you'd had enough. Despite trying to hold back laughter at the absurdity of the situation, you found yourself missing the usual antics of your clingy and insufferable boyfriend.

When you requested for cuddles and he responded with a dismissive ‘tch.’ and that did it. You decided to take matters into your own hands so you straddled his lap and cornered him, smirking at the visible reaction you elicited from your boyfriend.

His eyes widened, cheeks flushing, as he looked at you in surprise. 

“Got you.” you grinned at him, your voice dripping with amusement. “I thought I was dating Satoru Gojo so why are you acting like Levi?”

He stammered for a moment, clearly caught off guard. "I-I thought you liked this... stoic stuff."

Rolling your eyes, you leaned in, your lips inches away from his ear. "I like my cute and energetic boyfriend way more," you whispered, the warmth of your breath causing a visible shiver to run down his spine.

“Well Satoru Gojo isn’t your wallpaper, is it?”  he grumbled, a hint of jealousy evident from his voice.  

"Come on, 'Toru, don't be jealous. Levi's just a fictional character. You're the real deal. I also changed back my wallpaper!" you opened your phone to reveal your lock screen, hoping to dispel his jealousy. You changed it back to his face. 

“But babe, you don’t love me anymore” he pouted, his lower lip jutting out a mockingly hurt manner, his expression resembling a wounded puppy. “I figured if I became a replica of him, you’d love me again.” 

You wanted to smack him but you decided against it. You know your boyfriend’s smart but you kinda doubted that once he made that conclusion.

“Satoru, it’s just a show. Of course, I love you!” you reassured, offering a warm smile to emphasize your sincerity. 

Satoru sighs in a deliberately exaggerated manner. A playful grin tugs at his lips as he looks at you.  "Fine, but I better get some extra attention tonight to make up for this betrayal," he demanded. 

You chuckled, and leaned in to plant a quick, affectionate kiss on his cheek. "Deal."

“Also, tell me you love me then.” He added, his hand squeezing your thigh. 

“I love you.” you reply sincerely, 

“Hm?” He leans his ear towards you. “What was that?” 

You decided to play along and plant a soft kiss on his lips, "I," another kiss, "love," followed by another, "you." and you conclude with a final, lingering kiss. 

"Happy?" you say, pulling back.

"Very much," Satoru grins at you victoriously. but then, he looks at you with a sly twinkle in his eyes. "Wait, no. Tell me you don't love Levi and that you'll throw your plushie away so I could cuddle you 24/7."

"No."

"BABE!" Satoru whines. 

You can't help but laugh at his theatrics and without a moment's hesitation, you shower him with even more affection and assurances. Needless to say, that day (and perhaps the entire week), you let him hog you to himself, indulging in countless cuddles and sweet gestures to nurse his ego back to full health.

wanna read more?

[leenodeeno]

The Fall of the JJK Empire, as written by a Gojo lover

so one of my friends said i should post this here, and, at their persistence, i have finally made a sideblog to share with the world. here's my dissertation on why the jjk ending was bad. MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD

The JJK manga has literally changed the anime and manga scene forever. It's revolutionary. It offers consumers the chance to open their minds to concepts and ideas that are hard to portray successfully in art. There are so many different ways to analyze it and explore the human condition in the different aspects of this story. It's a shame that the way the story played out has caused so much anger and disappointment that will probably lead a mass of people to avoid the story entirely.

Gojo's the reason a good portion of the cast are still alive at the end and their executions were postponed, so the whole giving a multiple chapters long backstory (a whole story arc) on the man just to kill him with no closure is a disservice not only to the story, but also to the fanbase. Gojo deserves closure. And I'm not saying that just because of the fact that I adore Gojo, but more in the fact that, as a major character, he pushes the story forward and makes people think and feel things about not only the JJK universe itself, but about real life and how things work in reality. Gojo was a progressive radical. He believed that change starts with educating the youth. He believed that in order to see the change you want to see, you need to be the one to step up and take the actions needed to set the change in motion. He didn't care about being there to see this change, but that doesn't matter. He just wanted the change to happen so his children (yes, the students were his children) could live in a better world.

His letter to Megumi was disrespectful, but lackluster at best if you're trying to be nice about it. Gojo was his father figure. He was the one that stepped up and raised him to be who he is today. The letter basically just being “by the way I killed your dad LMAO” is insane. Yes, it kind of fits what their relationship was like, but there was also so much love between them that the audience got to see glimpses of throughout the story. That love should have shined through in the final letter to Megumi. The way it played out, Megumi was abandoned by two fathers in his life, gaining no closure for either one.

There were so many points in the story that could and should have been expanded upon, but, instead, we're left with barely fleshed out characters that are supposed to be so important, but we barely have anything left to have faith in them. Megumi's character was brutally massacred by Gege. Megumi had so much potential to be a powerful sorcerer, especially one that made a huge difference in Yuuji's life. And he did, to a point. Megumi ended up with very little character growth, to include his growth as a sorcerer. His whole schtick being his sister gave him nothing other than a failed dream to follow. A sister that has no impact on the story other than being the vessel for Sukuna's lover and dying in the span of about two chapters. His abilities did not grow as much as his hype in the story paved the path for — even leading to his domain never being completed. The audience is also left with many questions regarding his technique that are never answered. Can he gain new shikigami to replace the ones lost? Who knows. If he can't, does that end up with him essentially being useless as a sorcerer since his whole technique revolves around those shikigami? Another question never answered.

I am very happy with Sukuna's ending; I am not happy at all with Gojo's ending. What was the purpose of us having to skip past the time period of Gojo being unsealed and training for the final fight? Training scenes are key to character and story growth in shonen. Key scenes that the audience did not get, in part because of poor writing and in part because of the pressure from Jump to finish the series in order to give the spot to a different serial. There was so much potential for closing off the loose ends during the final training arc, and the story was done a disservice by skipping that whole period of time.

I will forever be thankful for this manga and its invitation for me to analyze the human condition in ways I never thought I'd be able to. You don't even have to enjoy Gojo's character, but the amount of hate I've seen that completely disregards his growth is crazy. I'll be honest, I didn't even really like Gojo when I first joined the fandom, but, over time, Gojo's story and experiences grew on me, and I now have so much love for him. It's baffling how people can not even acknowledge his strengths as a character and the lessons his story can teach to the world.

Gojo's impact on the real world alone knows no bounds, and that impact, which is also stated several times in the story, is completely disregarded by the characters that he should have been most important to. He did not even receive a sentence of the other characters grieving his loss. I would have been okay with even just a panel of incense burning for Gojo, or even just a quick acknowledgement of his death and the effect on the world of the story. It all basically panned out to the characters saying, “Wow, he sacrificed himself for all of us. That's pretty shitty.” Like give us anything.

Yes. I'm upset about Gojo's death and the ending as a whole. But not in the delusional “Gojo's the best, he never should've died blah blah blah” way that a lot of the shallow fans of the story are saying why they're upset.  I think it's very poetic, and it's a tragic story. There are things to be learned from this. This is art, and it's meant to make people feel things.

I do disagree with the people that say Gojo didn't accept his death. It's very clear in his fight and his final conversation with Yuuji that he accepted it. No, he didn't want to die, but he did accept it in the end as something that needed to happen in order to see the change he's been pushing for since he was sixteen years old.

If this ending pushed by Gege and Jump is supposed to be seen as Jujutsu society being completely fixed, then the whole narrative of Gojo's beliefs and his reasons for not killing the higher ups (that just ended up being killed offscreen by the man in the end anyway) because he didn't want to be like them is completely pointless.

And if the whole point was to play Sukuna and Gojo as two sides of the same coin, it was executed very poorly. The audience got to see Sukuna's closure and his choice to seek nirvana in the end. It's very vague whether Gojo decided to seek nirvana or to spin the wheel again and try to go for a better life than he had. Essentially saying “We had the same struggle, and we're going to play that out,” but then the conclusion for both of them isn't clearly shown?

Why should fans have to accept the offscreen death of their favorite character just to spare the author's feelings about being critiqued for his clearly rushed, piss-poor ending? Killing essential characters offscreen is lazy, and it causes people to subconsciously think that they aren't dead because they didn't actually see them die. It's basic human behavior. Not to include the fact that Gege used similar tactics with Nobara, and she ended up being alive in the end. He played into the fact that it was up in the air whether Gojo was alive or not, and it was not executed in a way that made the audience understand the choice. It was done in a way that was on the verge of being cruel because Gege himself has shared his own disdain for Gojo.

Gege hated how much Gojo was loved, and it caused poor writing and a feeling that he was killed just as a way to say fuck you to everyone that loved Gojo. Yeah, he has said many times that he hates Gojo, but Gojo is part of the reason the popularity skyrocketed (and that's probably what added to his hatred for the character). Maybe the plan was for Gojo to die all along, and that's okay, but the way it played out was cruel. Either way it could have happened, Gege's choices led to a major character death that is universally hated, and his fan base and the anime/manga community as a whole will remember it if and when he puts out future works. His legacy as one of the greatest mangakas has been tainted because of this death and the way the story was clearly rushed and filled with plot holes at the end. However, I will say I absolutely cannot get behind the people that are threatening Gege because that's just vile behavior.

Gojo is designed to be attractive and play into that character role, but there's so much more that the shallower Gojo fans just didn't or couldn't grasp, and I think that also plays a big part in the range of reactions going on in response to his death. “Gojo the type to hit and quit.” Yes, but would you care to analyze why he does that? There is depth to his character that the fans that don't care to look deeper don't see. They are the reason a lot of JJK fans are disregarded.

But, I also had to come to terms with the fact that for a lot of people in this fandom, they're very young, and this is one of the first major events they've had to interact with in regards to the ending and everything else. A lot of us have already experienced situations like this many times because we've been around long enough to experience the emotions and actions that go along with loving a major piece of pop culture as it's currently being released. A lot of these young fans are experiencing it for the first time, so I think everything needs to be taken with a grain of salt with what people are saying about the ending. And yes, the current generation of people joining fandom spaces are not mature enough for it, but that's a whole other thing that I don't want to get into right now. The parasocial relationship thing is going to always happen in fandom, but it's going to happen a lot with JJK because, again, a lot of these younger fans it's their first time experiencing a fandom like this.

There are always going to be takes and theories that are shallow, but I'm here for the ones that start with those, but then they continue to analyze and explore why they're thinking that way. I think that's why I'm partially excited that JJK has ended so that these younger fans can either dive deeper and explore the themes and ideologies and morals given to them, or they can decide they don't want to or they just can't. But, I'm excited to see what this piece of art (yes, this manga was art) can do to help develop people in their abilities to explore and discover new ideas and grow as people. This manga has so much potential to make change, and I'm hoping it does that even a little bit.

I just think that, yes, as people that have grown and learned and have more experiences inside and outside of fandom, we have to allow for these younger fans to have this experience. We have to allow them the chance to grow. We can gripe on and on about how they're annoying and everything else, but I'm sure we (at least myself) were once in their shoes. They need to be given that time and space to grow. Not all of them will, but that's okay too. I don't think it's conducive to constantly shoot people down (depending on the idea or whatever it is, obviously) and expect people to want to grow, if all they're being met with is constant negativity and beratement. There has to be that opportunity for growth.

In the end, the conclusion of the story was poorly written — caused by the author's growing resentment of the story he created, insurmountable timelines pushed by money hungry companies, and a fanbase where a majority of the members weren’t quite mature enough to embrace the story as it should have been.

[exo-raskreia]

hi as a jjk fan, do you have any issues with the writing from gege? if so, what do you think are wasted potential in terms of characters, bonds. i think that there is lack of emotional impact or expansion fo characters sometimes. for instance animes like mha have alot of meaningful character arcs and backstories. It's a bit hard to express how I feel becuase jjk is an amazing story but i am just a bit disappointed of the wasted potential with female characters and like shoko and utahime. and the world building. yes i am fellow gojohime shipper ;).

(Oncoming long RANT 😅)

If you ride on Gege's coattails, this may not be for you.

I actually do have issues with Gege's writing, so I agree with you. JJK has an interesting premise with hidden lore & I would recommend it to anyone wanting to get into, or already into, anime/manga, but it could be so much better if Gege just cared enough (which I sometimes feel like he doesn't? It just feels like he wants to hurry up & finish it so he can start on his idol manga... 💀). He skips so much, it honestly feels like he's going off a checklist, especially in the latest arc.

Compared to other battle shounens, namely Naruto, Fairy Tail, MHA, & even Gintama, JJK is severely lacking in several areas. It's unfortunate because the premise & characters are full of potential.

I will go over some of the issues. A lot of these were obvious from the start but they've only gotten worse over time.

• The fast pacing (speed running at this point). It's battle after battle, no downtime, big arc right after big arc, etc. Us readers & the characters themselves barely have time to process things before he moves on to the next thing. He skips so many things, so much happens off-screen/off-panel (can't forget how he skipped Yaga's fight with Gakuganji that lead to his death, skipped Gojo's entire month after his unsealing then "kills" him off-panel a few chapters later, I could go on...)

• The lack of character emotions, development, backstories, etc. We barely know anything about the characters, like their hobbies & interests? (This is why I have a hard time making up headcanons & potentially writing a fic for our ship... How can I keep them in character when I barely know stuff about them? 😮‍💨). We barely see any of them training (training arcs/chapters are typical for battle shounens); the Tokyo students preparing for the Goodwill Event would have been a fitting time to showcase this, for example. There's little to no mourning shown for character deaths (like Yaga? Nanami? Mai? Mechamaru?).

Yuta has such a cool CT & we didn't get to see how he discovered it & all. Like, come on 😔. Also, it would've been nice to see the Goodwill Event from his first year when he beat the Kyoto students, especially Todo... (Gege simply tells us about it. Like he tends to do for a lot of things 🙄).

Gege could've done more build-up to Gojo's sealing in Shibuya by showing his upbringing & development from his arrogant teen self (tho already having shown hints of caring for others & not liking the higher-ups) to the sensei who loves his students & strives for a better Jujutsu society. His past arc should've been longer imo. Needed more slice of life & character interactions, bonding. Heck, Toji should've gotten his whole backstory there too before he died. More build-up to Gojo's "death" too, as Gege skipped that whole month after his unsealing 😒...

• While on the subject, the lack of character interactions, bonding. We haven't seen most characters interact with each other despite being in the same circles, vicinity. Tokyo & Kyoto students, GjHm with them, Gojo & his colleagues (esp more Uta), the Zenin clan (like, wish we could've seen how GjHm interacted with Naoya. Imagine the drama 😫), Gojo & his elusive clan, I could go on... Would've loved to see Gojo interact with Kashimo, Higuruma, Choso... 😮‍💨

As such, several have died & we never saw them interact with certain others nor even know much about them 😑... The emotional impact of character deaths & bonding would be higher if only Gege cared enough to flesh out his characters more... (At least the Phantom Parade mobile game is giving us some much-needed slice of life content. Wish Mappa would give us some OVA's like that too...)

• Lack of world building. Once again, so much we don't know, such as the clans, especially Gojo's. Apparently, they're still alive, yet we haven't seen them?

Are they not fighters, then? Nothing from them on their clan head's sealing/unsealing/"death". The Zenin Clan debuted & got killed off soon after. Other clans irrelevant. Jujutsu sorcery primarily exists in Japan so other than Miguel, goodbye to the potential of any foreign sorcerers making their appearance...

• Female cast. It's crazy how they were once praised for their potential but now... Now, all they've got is just your typical battle shounen treatment 😒. While Gege has shown he cares little for all his characters (lol), it does seem like the female characters have suffered a bit more from his writing. They've either died (like Mai off-screen? Yuki, the only female Special Grade, had one fight & died?), become powerless (Miwa, thru an off-screen Binding Vow revealed many chapters later? Seriously?), lack screentime (the Kyoto girls? Shoko, the only one who can use RCT on others & closest friend to Gojo?!), or simply haven't done a whole lot, especially compared to the male characters. For some or most, it's a mixture of all these 💀 (like Tsumiki).

Nobara is the main girl & yet her role ended about halfway thru the series. Can't believe Gege did that to her, despite her potential & competence to be the FL of a battle shounen (poor Yuuji still thinks of her. And we don't even know what Gojo thought about her demise? 😮‍💨). Maki seems to have it better, yet some could argue she's just Toji 2.0/female Toji. Unfortunately, I thought about Toji when she was fighting Sukuna; I was like, "If Sukuna's this impressed by her, imagine Toji with his higher experience?" I doubt that's what Gege would want us to think when Maki's shining (or does he? 🤨😒).

• Don't even get me started on Utahime. She's the main teacher of Kyoto, loved by all her students according to Gege, yet we don't get to see it? She's barely relevant? Imagine what she felt as her students kept on dying or becoming unable to fight. Thru her character, such as during her investigation of Kyoto for the traitor, we could've gotten some great insight into how things are over there? We don't even know what the Kyoto school looks like 💀.

Her scar has several implications & yet we don't know how she got it? How has she dealt with being a scarred woman in Jujutsu society, especially considering Momo's words about such a thing during the Goodwill Event? Utahime could be a great role model to the girls, especially Maki now, & yet... 😮‍💨 (I'm telling you, she should've been the main adult female of the series, just like Gojo's the main adult male)

She's one of Gojo's friends, has known him for 10+ years, & is one of his few most trusted allies, yet we haven't seen how they got to this point? Their comedic interactions make us wonder how they built that deep trust. I NEED to know what happened between them during the timeskip!!! 😫

Her CT buffs herself & others. Why has she not been a part of any on-screen fight prior to the Shinjuku Showdown? There were a couple instances where we almost saw her in action & yet... Why did Gege gatekeep her CT for so long? To showcase her CT for the first time for Gojo & Gojo ONLY. He's insane. They can't beat the package deal allegations. So, does this have any meaning? Can we hope for more-

• I sometimes wonder if JJK would be better as a seinen like I once heard he intended for it to be... There are definitely elements of that... How much darker could the story get, since sometimes Gege pushes the boundaries of Shounen Jump (I know he wants to, lol)... How much more fleshed out could it be if he was writing it the way he wanted to originally (supposedly he never intended for a school setting but was forced by his previous editor?)... Maybe we could even get a Tokyo Ghoul:re style chapter with GjHm during the timeskip if y'all know what I mean-

So, to sum up: JJK is interesting & I would recommend it, but there's a whole lot of wasted character potential, terrible pacing, & lack of interactions, development, & world building. There's so much we don't know & Gege wants to end it already? He's sitting on a gold mine & yet... 😑😒

No idea how things will end but I can at least hope for an open ending that leaves us with some hopeful possibilities... Uh, right?

Also... GOJO WILL RISE ✊️

[linkspooky]

Hi! Thanks for your tremendous work, it's always a pleasure to read your blog! I just wanted to ask your opinion on Hidden Inventory / Premature Death Arc. I know this one is important to make parallels on different characters' stories, but I for me this arc is a surprise. I mean why would Gege suddenly make us involve in the future? 🥲 I just don't understand how he could come to telling us the stories from the past. Do you find it fitting?

Jujutsu Kaisen is a story primarily about cycles: the previous generation giving way to the newer one, spring turning into summer. In particular it's about the passing of the torches between generations. The elders in Jujutsu Society resist what is natural, they are such hardline traditionalists they often sacrifice the young because they refused to give way and let the new generation replace them.

Gojo Satoru's ideals which are in opposition to the elders state that not only should children be allowed to live out their youths, they should surpass their elders. Gojo is staunchly opposed to say, the elitist Zen'in who believe themselves the strongest, or even Sukuna the greater sorcerer of all time, in the fact he wants the kids he's raising to grow stronger than him.

On the flip side, Jujutsu Kaisen is also about negative cycles, like the curses which can never truly die so are exorcised only to be reformed. It's also about the cycle of abuse, such as Toji being abused by the Zen'in, only to abandon his own son in turn. The flashback arc is necessary, because the problems the current generation are facing started with the previous one. These problems persist because the cycle is unbroken.

Tengen in their explanation states that the distortion that caused Kenjaku's plans to succeed in the modern day happened eleven years ago, and he lists two reasons why, first Zen'in Toji who was not affected by cursed energy, and second Geto who could control curses.

Toji is hailed as the destroyer of destinies because he's free form cursed energy, but as for a more meta-textual reason why Toji gets as much focus in story as he does, is because much like Maki he's a product of the worst abuses of sorcerer society.

There's a reason for this line here when Toji appears before the collected members of the Zen'in Clan, Naobito the head, Maki the Toji of her generation, and Megumi who was almost sold to them and is Toji's son who he abandoned therefore another link in the chain of abuse.

All of these characters are effected by the cycle of abuse in the Zen'in Clan, yes, even Naobito and later on Naoya who appear to be at the top. It's that whole "Toxic Masculinity harms men" thing too. Naobito was not born a drunken, abusive jerk and he was likely not a good father in any capacity considering the way Naoya acts.

They're all trapped in the cycle known as the Zen'in Clan, and they all stare on in envy to the one they think is free, Toji, who escaped and became the sorcerer killer. Toji who, the whole clan was secretly fearful of because they believed he had the capability of killing them / also according to Naoya's take looked down on him because he was an otherworldly strength they did not recognize and tried to suppress him to make themselves feel superior.

Either way, Toji is someone who they have put down their entire life because he wasn't born to meet their standards, because he's something new and different from tradition and the big three houses are the worst traditionalists of Jujustu Society. The Toji they all fear however, is a monster created by the Zen'in Clan themselves. Despite being abused by toxic masculinity, Toji is also toxic masculinity incarnate. He drinks, gambles all of his money away, he's an absentee father, and his greatest onscreen time is shooting a girl who's about Mai's age in cold blood. If Mai was the ultimate victim of the Zen'in Clan's toxic masculinity, then Riko is also the ultimate victim of Toji's masuclinity which didn't just target sorcerers but reached out and targeted innocent girls (Riko) and children (Megumi).

The explanation of who Toji was in the past, how he both killed Riko and drove the wedge between Geto and Gojo's friendship creating the first dsiruption in the cycle is important because in the modern day the Zen'in Clan has not broken the cycle. The abuse of the Zen'in Clan is so bad, that one generation later they've already manufactured another Toji.

While Maki's rise to power is glorified a little bit too much, in story the fact that the cycle has repeated itself is not a good thing. Maki's lost her chance of happiness and reconciliation with Mai, she's won against the Zen'in but it's a pyrrhic victory, she's now strong at the cost of everything else. As I said before Mai is also a clear parallel to Riko, someone who just wanted to live a normal life cut down in the prime of her youth by a member of the Zen'in, who's death then sparks another person to spiral.

They're just girls who longed for an ordinary life and be together with their loved ones, and Maki and Geto are both haunted by the fact that they were unable to save them in the aftermath. Geto's actions are spurred by the way the world carelessly killed Riko, and Maki gives up on reforming the Zen'in Clan and chooses destruction after they swallow up Mai.

The flashback chapters do more than just give parallels between say Gojo and Geto's friendship and the current friendship between Megumi and Yuji, or even give us Gojo's backstory and insight to his character they also go to great lengths to show us how much things have not changed in the modern day Jujutsu World.

While the distortion that drove Toji to do what he did began in the Zen'in Clan, Geto is basically driven by the faults of Jujutsu Society as a whole. The death of Riko is his eye opening moment where he learns the truth of their society, the young are sacrificed for the old. It's not just the fact Riko died, but afterwards he witnessed crows of people appluading for it, and Toji acting like that death was nothing. There's also the fact her death / sacrifice was ordered by Jujutsu Society in the first place, but Geto thought he could overcome that cycle with strength alone until he couldn't. Geto's monologue that leads to his slow breakdown even refers to being a sorcerer as "an endless cycle."

The three years of Geto and Gojo's youth is referred to their spring, whereas Premature Death takes place in summer. Not coincidentally, in story Summer is referred to as the worst possible season for curses because curses accumulate during that time.

Jujusu Kaisen is about cycles, and the inability to escape them. Geto and Gojo's springtime of youth turns to summer, Geto begins to have doubts because of his inability to protect Riko, and his witnessing of sorcerers dying around him.

It's not just Geto's superiority complex, or his increasing antipathy for the weak normal people who demand sorcerers exorcise curses for them because they can't defend themselves. Geto also bears witness to the continued death of children around him. It's not just a hazard of the job, sorcerer society continually sacrifices young people to uphold the strict traditions of the elders.

Geto is moved by the mistreatment of the young in a way Gojo is, Riko's death is what opens his eyes, a few days Geto goes to the village he witnesses the brutal death of Haibara and Nanami's own feelings of helplessnes to stop it, and then his breaking point is when he sees two twin girls who are sorcerers ganged up on and imprisoned by an entire town, the same way that the indifferent crowds cheered for Riko's death and the same way sorcerer society considered Riko an expendable sacrifice to maintain Tengen.

Sorcerer Society's callous indifference to both the deaths of their sorcerers, but especially the young is what drives Geto to his breaking point. This is also the source of Gojo's ideals, because he realizes something went wrong with Geto and he doesn't want that mistake to repeat.

“For people like us, we naturally know how to get rid of the poisons within their heart. But for youths who hold onto a lot of sentimental feelings, it’s another matter altogether. Their heart might collapse just from getting struck by poison once.” “Isn’t it an adult’s duties to rid poison from a child’s heart? As a teacher, you should know this better than me, right?” [Light novel 1: Ressurection Puppet]

In Gojo's case he is actively trying at least, to raise kids in a way that they won't break like Geto did. It's the loss of Geto which inspires his current ideals. However, to dwell on this briefly Gojo is also still a very flawed mentor because he's a product of the system who raised him.

Kenjaku comes back in the form of Geto's body to defeat Gojo. Then Sukuna ends up taking Megumi's body away from him. There's a pattern here, two people who Gojo has a strong connection too have their bodies taken away from him. In Megumi's case this is where Gojo has failed to break the cycle because of his stated intetions, because Gojo didn't adopt Megumi to help him after his father died, Gojo swooped in to take Megumi because he was a potential weapon he could use against the elders.

The flashback arc ends with Gojo making his slightly predatory deal with Megumi, by threatening his sister's happiness unless he complies and lets Gojo train him instead of the Zen'in. Megumi is shown to be a child that's continually having trouble growing up throughout the story, because of his broken home situation.

The ending of Hidden Inventory could have been Gojo learning his lesson and breaking the cycle in regards to Megumi, but he deliberately did not, and so once again the problems the main characters are facing now is created by the failures of the past.

Gojo Mr. "I can totally beat up on Megumi, it's fine."

In this case though, Hidden Inventory is also about how the problems of the past are plagueing Megumi's life, because the primary villain of it is his father, and the ending of the whole arc is us seeing his first encounter with Gojo. Megumi is in this case the latest youth swallowed up by the old, because Sukuna is quite literally a member of the previous generation physically stealing his body away from him to prolong his life long after he died.

Tsumiki's death is also a repeat of the death of Mai Zen'in, and Riko Amanai. It's once again the death of an innocent being swallowed up by the toxic masculinity of Jujutsu Society, all while the person who wanted to protect them is completely helpless to stop it. Gojo also took responsibility for Megumi, and Tsumiki both and later on couldn't live up tot hat responsibility, Tsumiki is dead and Megumi is possessed.

The Hidden Inventory flashback arc is there to establish what is basically the beginning of the cycle in the story, so we can see later on how this cycle is repeating itself again and again without being broken even this late (200 chapters) into the story. With the eventual hope that if the adults like Gojo can't fully break the cycle, then the kids he raised will be able to do so in his place.

[sblvrgg]

i'm so mad at gege after the last episode cause it made me start thinking about female characters in jjk so here i am.

(jjk anime and manga spoilers ahead)

nobara is such a great character, she looks like the usual "girl of the trio" for like the first two seconds you know her but she's so much more and SO BADLY USED IN THE PLOT EXACTLY LIKE SHOKO

everything about yuji/megumi/nobara is a sort of parallelism with satoru/suguru/shoko but it doesn't work out completely cause we know almost nothing about shoko and the little we do know it's mostly written in the extra volume about jjk characters and techniques, it's not like gege actually tells us more about her in the plot and he could have done that in the hidden inventory arc even if it was meant to be focused on satoru and suguru AND THIS MAKES ME FURIOUS

like okay you just want a female character with healing powers? great (not great, but let's not focus on this rn) BUT AT LEAST MAKE HER ACTUALLY HEAL SOMEONE???? I LOVE HER BUT SHE'S SO USELESS, EVERYONE DIES IN SHIBUYA AND SHE'S JUST THERE DOING NOTHING WITH YAGA BECAUSE SHE CAN HEAL BUT SHE CAN'T FIGHT??? HELLO???

in the hidden inventory arc she's not even involved in missions, we have more scenes of her in the opening/ending that in the actual episodes. i don't need to know her whole story but if you put her there as the only character (beside satoru and yuta) who can use reversed technique then MAKE HER ACTUALLY USE IT WHEN NEEDED

and no, i'm not talking about this just because i want our beloved satosugu back. as a suguru kinnie i'm 100% convinced that his death was the only right option for his character from the moment he left jujustu tech. i have some mixed feelings about gojo's death but just because i think gege could've handled it better, not because i absolutely need him back like some delulu maniacs in the fandom (no offense, i'm suffering with you all but some people are crazy). but in shibuya she could've been more useful, at least in helping the students.

nobara at least has a strong personality and a cool technique, she's not just another sakura or orihime (i hate orihime but sakura is great too ofc, i just mean that nobara unlike them isn't the girl put there just to heal her male companions and have a crush on one of them) or shoko herself (and thinking about it shoko is even more useless cause sakura and orihime at least help and heal their crush).

we know a lot about her past, i was crying like a baby watching her say goodbye to fumi and then... she dies, just like that. her goal isn't even that difficult to achieve, it's not some big dream like suguru's, it's something extremely personal and she's not gonna reach it cause gege killed her. i love nobara too but honestly she doesn't have that great development merely because she dies before she can actually become stronger. everytime she fights she gets severly wounded or is there to support others or she's the one who needs support. i feel like she doesn't have her big moment before dying (like maki does for example, i know she's not dead yet but i wouldn't be so mad if it happened cause she has a great development since jjk 0. i would cry like a baby again though, pls gege don't kill her i'm begging you).

and no, i don't think nobara's death is necessary for yuji or the plot in general either. yuji has already seen nanami die in front of him, sukuna has killed who knows how many people and he could do nothing about it, he was still mad at mahito for junpei so why kill nobara too?

gege doesn't even show her in the afterlife when gojo dies (and a delulu part of me hopes that's because she's still alive), like i know that in that airport there are people from his past and the focus is on them, his blue spring and whatever but damn she's one of his students too, he talks about megumi and the fact that he still had things to explain to him but he doesn't even mention her? (he doesn't mention yuji either okay i know, i would've liked that too but at least they have a cute moment before the fight against sukuna).

instead of focusing on those that should be the main female characters we have mei mei though. don't get me wrong, she's our mommy, i'm barking (respectfully) every time i see her on screen or in the manga but is all that screentime really necessary? do i really need to see her in bed with ui ui or walking like a runway model for minutes? mmmh i don't think so.

i don't know, maybe i'm the one missing something in this story, maybe i'm not getting it completely but still, as much as i love jjk i'm mad. i could go on for days about this and what's happened in the manga these last few months, but i'm gonna stop for today.

at this point i'm convinced that gege introduced too many characters and he can't handle them properly, unlike other mangakas like horikoshi who literally shows you the backstory of every single kid you see, even the one drawn in the corner of a panel in that one chapter that everyone forgot about (horikoshi has problems handling fem characters too, but this is a whole other problem and it's something that involves a lot of different animes/mangas).

that's it, going back at crying now, thinking about how my life could be way better if i put this same effort in my studies.

[space-c4det]

Learning how to use Clip Studio and Tumblr all at once slay </3 Okay I have to ramble about their characters though like omggg forgive the block of text

Anyway more progress on the Macaque and SWK sketches, I love their designs in the show and I've been thinking a lot about the way they're styled. Especially since one of the biggest challenges I can think of when it comes to a show about literal legos is that the character models are very samey, of course.

Also, SWK and Macaque have a particularly interesting challenge, with both being demon monkey guys. Aside from the obvious color palette change (they share similar yellow, red, and black just inverted though which I delusionally associate with their soul mate-level connection to one another) some of my favorite character differences is their eyes??? Like, from Macaques down turned lashes to Sun Wukongs upturned lashes? There's also sharper shapes used in Macaques design versus the roundish lines used in SWK's design which is a popular way of distinguishing "bad" from "good" or in this case, to just make Macaque look edgy and disheveled compared to the more put together SWK.

Like from his brows, his makeup, his frayed cloak, he just has such trademark bad-boy qualities. It's really simple but it's really effective in distinguishing their designs aside from just a color swap.

I think it's also a cool way to establish their personalities. Ironically Macaque, despite coming across as deceptive, is often a lot more honest to Mk and his friends than Sun Wukong is. Which subverts the initial impression of his design. Speaking of which, Sun Wukong's design is just so cute? The rounded lines that make up his design feed the impression that he's trustworthy. A confident, good-natured mentor who's gotten past all his wild youthful exploits (he's literally committed several war crimes) and is just trying to pave a good path for MK. And while he definitely cares for MK and really does want him to succeed, gah damn, he is a hot mess. My favorite part is that Macaque at least acknowledges he's got issues, but Sun Wukong is just in complete denial but that's a whole different post.

Anyways I love the details that their character designs are subversive to their real personalities. Like even MK states it outright to Macaque that he's really not the bad boy loner he makes himself out to be, its all a facade and most likely a response to the several times he's been just screwed over by Sun Wukong

Interestingly enough, Sun Wukong has a whole arc about how he's a really bad mentor, an untrustworthy dude, and kind of downright manipulative when it comes to using his persona to put himself in positions of leadership. Though I don't think he does it out of malice, more just recklessness. The chill mentor vibe (giving Gojo energy tbh) even gets challenged in season one by Macaque after he mentions that the Real Sun Wukong would have destroyed a whole mountain range just to win a fight. And like, if you know anything about what Sun Wukong is like in JTTW, bro has zero chill.

Also, they're like perfect foils and it's my favorite thing. Macaque showcasing himself as violet and SWK as golden in his shadow play was a great use of complimentary colors. Anyway, rant over, I love it when character designs are made to be cohesive with each other </333

brb gonna watch the entire series again

[uncarbonatedsoda]

I wrote a script for a video essay but I'm too scared to actually record it, so I'm gonna just post the script here as a kind of.. visual essay? i dunno :P

also quick warning for blood/severed limbs, if that makes you uncomfy- maybe skip this one

so let's get started- our topic is all about

more specifically, the eyes in demon slayer. Not just the eyes themselves, but what they represent; and how they're used in storytelling.

I’m pretty sure almost every anime fan is familiar with what I call: Eye shots. Eyes in anime and manga are famous for being absolutely stunning; take Gojo’s ice-blue eyes from the extremely popular series Jujutsu Kaisen.

In animated shows in general, eyes are more than just eyes.

A character’s eyes can be one of their most iconic and recognizable features (Gojo is also a prime example of this), have a driving impact in the story (Gojo again), or be a form of symbolism in their appearance or how they’re used in a shot.

For example, we’ve all seen the iconic reflection shots. We get a close-up of the character’s eye, while something important, either in the moment or to them as a character, is reflected in the iris.

As for Demon Slayer.. eyes definitely have an importance in the series, at least from my perspective.

Ufotable has blessed us with several gorgeous eye shots over the seasons- and in this series, we’re going to be talking about certain characters’ eyes and analyzing them, their appearance, the changes in their appearance, how they play into the characters and their stories, etc.

part 1: muichiro

The first character we’re gonna be covering is Muichiro. Mui had his time to shine in the last-animated arc, Swordsmith Villiage.

For a brief summary, after breaking his sword for the thousandth time, Tanjiro travels to the Swordsmith Villiage to talk to his assigned swordsmith in person. While there, he meets and fights alongside two Hashira: The Love Hashira, Mitsuri, and the Mist Hashira, Muichiro.

During Muichiro’s flashback, we see that his personality was much more optimistic and compassionate when he was younger. Meanwhile, his twin brother Yuichiro had the indifferent and cold personality Muichiro displays in season 3.

yuichiro (black) muichiro (light blue)

The reason for this drastic personality change is also revealed in this flashback, when the brothers were attacked by a Demon.

I don’t know about you guys, but my brother’s severed arm flying past my head and hitting the wall in a splatter of blood would definitely change something in me.

After witnessing Yuichiro’s death, Muichiro lost his memories through what I see as a classic case of a person subconsciously blocking traumatic memories to protect themselves.

After this memory loss, Muichiro also started displaying his late brother’s cold and skeptical attitude.

Yuichiro’s behavior stemmed from the pain of losing both his parents so quickly. While Muichiro didn’t remember these events clearly, the effects were still there.

Now, what does all of this have to do with Muichiro’s eyes?

When we first see Muichiro, his eyes are dull.

They have no highlight, and they look empty and glassed over.

At first, the emptiness of his eyes just seems like a way of representing his faraway personality, but as we continue to get to know him, and see his backstory, we start to see how his eyes, and his aloof personality, represent more than that.

As the arc progresses, and the Hashira begins to regain his memories, the highlights in his eyes return. He also starts acting more maturely and seriously in later episodes- and as we've seen in the latest season, he's started expressing more emotions common for someone his age (14).

In animation, eyes with no highlights or pupils is a way to represent emptiness, or maybe suppressed feelings. In Muichiro’s case, the light in his eyes vanished when he lost his memories, and returned when he regained them.

The life returned to his eyes, and as an extension- returned to him as a whole. I personally see his arc as trauma causing someone to shut down and lose themselves in the pain, and slowly regaining that life and sense of self overtime, with help from others (in this case Tanjiro being the supportive and sweet boy he is).

Aaaaanddddd that's the end of this first part! Thank you for coming to my TED Talk.

next time on 'tsunnalyzing' - part 2 of the "analyzing eyes" series: shinobu

see you next timeee :D

[jeffersonhairpie]

Spoilers up to chap 336 of Jujutsu Kaisen

-

Sorry gotta get this out of my system

A slightly unhinged list of reasons that I'm Not A Fan of this Gojo death that I sincereley hope will make me look like an overreactive weirdo in a few weeks time:

He died offscreen. I know we see the body but we don't actually see the finishing blow. Bizzare for a character of his prowess and significance at this point in the story

Gojo in the 'afterlife' immediately talking about how much stronger Sukuna was than him hits really strange for a character defined by his casual arrogance. Gojo is fast as fuck so it's pretty clear that Sukuna could only get him with the Mahoraga-aided slashes if he caught Gojo off guard. Nothing we have seen in the Gojo vs Sukuna fight indicates that Sukuna is all that much stronger than Gojo and they're mostly pretty evenly matched. Nothing about this ending for Gojo looks to me like 'dying without regrets'.

Sticking Gojo in a box for 3 years real time (19 days in universe time) and freeing him just so the rest of the story can screech to a halt while all the other characters watch him die is fucking stupid. It's bad storytelling.

There are a few different things you could view as Gojo's character arc - whether it be the question he's asked of whether he's the strongest because he's himself or himself because he's the strongest, whether it's laying Geto to rest, whether it's learning that being the strongest is not all there is to being a complete person, whether its shedding his loneliness by learning that Geto is not the only person who he could be emotionally close to. Whatever you see it as, his arc has not reached its conclusion. Gojo is incomplete and him dying now makes his whole character feel like a waste. He didn't even really learn to value the people left alive bc how is he in the afterlife all smiling and happy knowing that Sukuna is about to rampage through the lot of them?

Gojo dying has always been so damn obvious. This is entirely personal preference, but I would have sooooo much rather seen him have his powers neutered so he was forced to understand tha value of an individual life than just wiped off the board. Also I think the universe could benefit from the notion that getting stronger and dying are not the only two things that can happen to a sorcerer.

I know they're not even on the same scale of plot significance, but I can't help comparing how Nanami's death was painful but felt well foreshadowed and entirely justified in the story to this death which very much doesn't (my thoughts on Nobara's death are more complicated). Nanami's death hurt because it felt true to the character, but Gojo's death has just annoyed me.

I never expected the final fight to be Gojo vs Kenjaku and I knew that something was going to have to happen to him in order to justify him not being part of the final showdown. Yuji as the MC and as Kenjaku's kid in this story about how the sins of the past shape the present is 100% the right choice for the story. Much as I thought it was taking the easy route, I hadn't discounted the possibility that Gojo would die, I had just expected him to, ya know, learn something and complete his character arc before he did.

This death just feels really cheap to me, in a way that I don't think even makes for a good fakeout. Maybe the fact that characters have already come back from the dead means that there was no way to have a fakeout feel entirely shocking, but I don't think I should be left thinking 'was that REALLY it?' after the fakout death.

BUT maybe hope doesn't have to be lost

Things I am holding on to hoping that this will be some kind of fakeout (copium is real and I am huffing it):

Gojo wasn't hit in the head, and in his fight with Toji he is able to come back from basically being dead because his head was undamaged

There is still one of the ten shadows that we haven't seen and given that it can't possibly be a stronger combatant than Mahoraga I'm betting on it having a healing ability, which would presumably be incredibly strong given that it's the last to be unveiled. The same healing could save Gojo and Nobara

When Yuji was presumed dead by his classmates and training with Gojo, Gojo comments that Yuji's body will eventually be scarred by Sukuna's cursed technique and he'll be able to use it as his own. Sukuna has the ability to bring people back from the dead so if Yuji can access those powers he can save Gojo (and probably Nobara).

Maki and Mai have something of an 'afterlife' conversation that is real but it doesn't stop Maki from returning to the land of the living.

Depending on exactly how you want to count 'coming back from the dead' several characters have done it at this point lol

In the afterlife Nanami has that random ass line about how curses and sorcerers can bring people back from the dead that doesn't seem to fit in with everything else being said. This could be foreshadowing.

Speaking of foreshadowing, maybe Gojo's line about not wanting to have two death anniversaries was an indication that he intended this to happen and has some sort of pre-established plan for how to win.

Shoko reveresed technique bass boosted by Utahime can heal anything #IBelieve

[penultimate-step]

JJK S2 Livewatch: Eps 5-7

the watch continues! Ep 5 acts as a sort of coda to the previous arc, and then we return to the present time for eps 6 and beyond. honestly that surprised me - part of the fun of going blind into a series that you heard mutterings about but don't know details is seeing where you have weird impressions for no reason. I thought the flashback arc was going to be more substantial - like half this whole season. joke's on me, I guess, but it's fine.

Ep 5 continues going extremely hard and unsubtle on the imagery. Like 15 minutes are devoted to showing just how traumatized Geto is. Everywhere he goes, a part of him is back in that audience room, hearing the cultists cheer. The show uses audio and visual cues to indicate this to the audience - windows act like TV sets and display scenes from the past, the sound of rainfall is swapped out for the sounds of applause. I'd be quite interested to know how the manga conveyed it, because these all seem like flourishes distinct to the adaptation, which I appreciate. Eventually we get to the moment of Geto's final choice, with the light flickering his shadow into two versions of him that he could become, he fully becomes a villain and massacres the town.

Honestly, while I did feel the ep was great, if I do have a complaint it did feel like the whole thing happened way too fast. I didn't question my assumption that the flashback was going to be longer last time because it seemed like there was a long way to go for Geto to become the self he was by the movie, but in the end it felt pretty abrupt. He struggles for a while with inner doubts then decides he will be the kind of person to commit mass murder, and then does. It's a little weak for a villain arc.

What's not weak is the scene where Gojo confronts Geto, though. My favorite bit is how they have their argument in the middle of a crowded street. The way passerby are going about their day, pushing the two aside, really emphasizes the whole thing - because the everyday civilians can ignore the sorcerers, can walk right past them as if they are in a different world entirely, but they aren't. theyre right there, and their presence is very clearly what the whole fight is about. One of my favorite scenes.

I liked the scene right before where Geto talks with Shouko a bit less, though. Apparently she doesn't go on missions? I'm curious what her deal is. Anyway. Feels like she didn't get enough screentime for me to understand her relevance or her importance to the other characters. Between her and Tsukumo, both of the relevant female characters in this ep only have screentime so that they can show up and ask the main men about their feelings. The "proud" shonen tradition of strict gender roles in action I suppose.

Overall while I have some issues with the pacing, and think the flashback needed some more substance to make us really feel the change in Gojo and Geto, I still liked ep 5.

Ep 6 brings us back to the present, but not fully into the main plot just yet. First we have a brief interlude where the main trio meet at a cafe, along with an old classmate of Yuji's. Going to be real, I had forgotten what the personalities of these three even were, so it was nice to have a relaxed refresher before jumping into the main event. That is the main purpose of this little event, I think, a bit of a tone cleanser to break up the melancholy flashback and the action-heavy present time. It's also good to get glimpses of the lives of the protagonists from before they entered the story - little bits of characterization can go a long way.

As for the battle that follows, I have mixed feelings. It did have the kind of overly flashy fight style that I disliked in S1. However, the fact that the guy brought out a whole mecha does make it seem warranted this time. It didn't really grab me as a fight, but probably if it had been less dramatic I would have thought it had fallen flat.

The fact that I rambled for so much longer about ep 5 alone than the next two eps combined is probably a bad sign, I think. I just find the present day plot less interesting than the flashback was. But I'd rather be optimistic, the show still has plenty of time left to change my mind.

[lanxyuu]

Okay, so I had time to process my upset gut feelings and think/read about different takes, and my feelings have shifted. This beautiful art from Twitter (link) that really helped solidify it for me as well.

Kenjaku's possession is such an act of objectification and violation of automony, so seeing Gojo, who's been experiencing that his whole life, get treated like this in death as well was definitely extremely upsetting, and I was disappointed in the writing for having his arc seemingly end on such a depressing note.

But as I thought about it more - Yuta doing this is completely different from Kenjaku. In this chapter, it's shown that Yuta was the one who most clearly was aware of Gojo's burden, and wanted to share it. He's the only one who so clearly outwardly acknowledged it, and demanded that the burden of "becoming a monster" had to be shared by someone - before volunteering himself to be that someone.

And it's not just the body of Gojo that Yuta gets - it's Gojo's memories as well. The idea of experiencing, knowing everything about Gojo's life and memories seems unfathomable. His status as The Strongest puts him in a position that feels almost sacred, separated from "normal human beings" and thus incomprehensible to us - which is exactly why Gojo carried the burden alone. Yuta - who wanted to carry that burden, the one who told Gojo "don't try to become a monster all by yourself anymore" - is the one who ends up bridging this separation through a method severely risking his own life.

Kenjaku, somebody who's lost all humanity, derived value from Geto's memories by learning about Gojo's weaknesses. He's the prime example of "using somebody for their powers" and the sheer dehumanization that sorcerers go through. On the other hand, Yuta, by gaining Gojo's memories, is viscerally understanding the life of "the strongest sorcerer" in a self-sacrificing act that I believe is truly the most selfless way to share that burden - by giving himself up and becoming one with Gojo.

By fighting even after the brink of death in this messed-up, horrible state of being in Gojo's body, Yuta is literally sharing the burden of The Strong - acting as a weapon and disregarding his own personhood to do so - as Gojo, The Strongest, had to do. Only in this situation, it's even more twisted than your own individuality having no value to society, because Yuta has sacrificed his life in his own body, giving up his own personhood in the most twisted way possible to be this weapon.

Yuta's character is all about love, and I can now see this heart-wrenching, self-sacrificing possession as a final act of love; of becoming one with Gojo who has always been alone, of truly understanding and living and sharing that sole burden. But the fact that he was pushed into this position is very tragic, and after having these thoughts with more clarity, I now think it's actually very well-done in showing the uncaring, thankless world of sorcery that everybody is victim to. These feelings of horror and upset and disgust are intentional, and we can see how the discussion of how inhumane the plan is was shown in this chapter.

Overall, my feelings are a lot more mixed now, but the way I'm feeling now is likely what was intended - not the way I felt before, where I felt like it was just a fumbling of Gojo's character arc. It's also made me REALLY appreciate Yuta a lot more, and he's definitely solidified himself as one of my favourite characters after this.

Since we're deep in the heat of battle, and this is the first chapter of Yuta possessing Gojo's body, I am now hoping that after the dust settles, if Gojo truly doesn't come back, there will be a bit more reflection on Gojo's life and character, now that Yuta literally has all of Gojo's memories. After all, this chapter had Yuta really strongly highlight Gojo's solitary burden, and showed Gojo (ONCE AGAIN) reflecting on his past with Geto. So overall I feel like I can expect something a bit more reflective later on?

Even if it's Yuta - who cares about Gojo, who expressed that he wanted to lift the burden of becoming a monster all alone from Gojo - using Gojo's body, it still stings so much. The way his body is being used like this - a weapon, a tool, like all of society has treated him his whole life, only now in death as well. The only value is purely derived from him being the strongest. Satoru Gojo as a person is discarded. The only thing that matters is the empty body of The Strongest Sorcerer.

I refuse to accept his story ending this way. By bringing back his memory and body, it shows that Gojo's presence in the story STILL isn't completely, 100% over yet, and I really, really hope this isn't how it ends for him as a character.

[blog-of-hubris]

Bearing it all for the World to Witness - Takako Uro

Character analysis on Uro, the culling game player I am the most interested in thus far. *DISCLAIMER* This is MY personal meta on Uro. You can feel free to agree or disagree, nothing I feel is necessarily FACT. Anywho, enjoy! 

Who is Takako Uro

Takako Uro is one of the newest characters introduced in the Culling Game arc of Jujutsu Kaisen and is probably one of if not my favorite new character introduced. We meet her in the highly volatile Sendai Colony, where she is one of the 4 strongest players there. Unfortunately for her and her peers/rivals Yuta Okkotsu entered the colony with the intention of taking everyone down and obtaining 400 points. What made Uro stand out to me, was not only her appearance (which is obviously there to make you pay attention - more on this later) but just the boldness of her character dialogue and body language. I love a female character who has confidence, skill and isn’t being tomboy written so that she feels relatable to males. Uro is clearly a female character who embodies the realism of powerful women who have resentment toward the world they were born into. 

Uro embodies this in many ways, and I basically highlight these throughout this meta in each section. From her technique to the nuance behind her backstory, Uro (to me) is one of Gege’s best written one-off characters without getting a backstory focused chapter like Higaruma. I also find it very interesting that Gege decided to introduce a character that had connection to the Fujiwara and the Michizane clans. Kinda off topic, but I think this was Gege setting up for deeper dive into the past, and Uro was the first stepping stone to that, hence her final conversation with Yuta. 

So all we know for a fact about Uro is that she was a head assassin for the Fujiwara clan, was betrayed by them and now has a heavy hatred for their kin. She probably was happy to see the future being a time period where those bloodlines aren’t as prominent which is why she was so ticked off to run into Yuta being so boldly powerful in modern times. It is this layer upon layer for her character that I'll delve into which makes her a gem to me. I do hope you understand where I'm coming from as I ramble and rant about this wonderful woman and how perfect her character is so far.

Surface Manipulation

Uro’s technique is one of my favorites in the series due to its versatility and creativity of a technique. What really gets me is how this technique can be seen as a play on Uro only seeing things on the surface, not looking truly deeper into things. Of course this is something that leans more on the head canon side of the analysis, but its worth exploring. The idea is that Uro only saw things for what they seemed, and she was manipulated because of that. This leans into a section later about Uro’s past and how I think her life came to an end, so consider this a planted seed that’ll get watered as you continue reading. 

Otherwise, I think its important to her characterization to highlight her being introduced as a character that could control “the sky”. Instantly I think about the saying “the sky is the limit”, and for the world of jujutsu the sky is NOT the limit; if we were to put a “Ceiling” of some sort I would say the Heavens themselves, and of course Uro’s surface manipulation isn’t effecting the heavens. The Sky is literally her limit, being the maximum application of her technique, letting her fly, use it to block attacks, return blasts back to senders and more. Its a very powerful technique, not as strong as Gojo’s limitless of course but its almost like a subclass version of it. Anyway, I just find her ability to be a way gege is characterizing her without giving away too much of her back story or personality. 

Past as one who hasn't achieved

I think its very bold of Gege to consistently bring up the sexism in the jujutsu world throughout the eras. We got a whole character arc around Maki and Mai’s treatment by the Zenin clan, but that wasn't where Gege decided to end the discussion. Uro was a surprise to see, as she clearly and boldly embodies a woman who gave up her own potential as an individual for what she believed was a “greater good”. This was her own words in fact. The idea of fighting for the sake of others is sick to her because of what she experienced in her first life. Uro doesn’t play a riddle game with Yuta or try to confuse him in their fight. She fight him straight up, wanting to crush him head on, butt naked bearing it all for everyone to witness. Thats because she wants to prove herself to everyone and herself. She took Kenjaku’s offer in order to come back and “become someone”. 

I’m always so impressed how much Gege has picked up from Togashi in terms of writing nuance and giving just enough information to make certain information “obvious assumptions”. Gege doesn’t have to tell us outright every detail of what happened to Uro, just use Uro’s word choices, body language and thoughts to guide the reader to the obvious assumption. For Uro it was her treatment by the Fujiwara clan, but not just that specifically the man who tricked her into getting executed for the sake of his kin. This is layers onto Uro wanting to “become someone” - she was the lead of a masterclass assassin group that was known to be the shadows themselves, not even having a last name! Her anger burns so strong because she was given a name, told to fight for others and then was used as a scapegoat, not to mention that Gege hints that Uro’s anger stems from a lovers quarrel. 

So when you put the pieces together it seems like Uro was involved with this Fujiwara Representative sexually but in secret, of course she actually fell in love with him but his love (seemingly) was not genuine and he used her. With that context in mind, when you look back Uro definitely comes off as a woman full of scorn, but Uro isn’t a fool nor is she mercilessly vindictive. She didn’t go around killing non-sorcerers just to remind herself that she is powerful. She went after other sorcerers, people who could fight back against her - all in order to “become someone” for “her own sake” (more on this later), it just really resonates with me that becoming someone to her is truly just her expressing herself in the spotlight, another play on her floating in the sky naked for everyone to see. 

It is clear that since she was a woman with skill and power as an Assassin it was clear to “That Man” (unnamed, status unknown) of the Fujiwara Clan to keep Uro in the shadows not only physically but mentally as well. Her understanding of her role in life was to be on the sidelines, unnoticed, and living for others. Her group of assassins were not even allowed to bear names, yet we know Uro by name - so does that mean she continued with the name given to her by “That Man” or is this a name she gave herself? These are questions I would like answered.

“Become Someone” for “Your Own Sake”

The core to the conflict between Uro and Yuta was not only the misunderstanding with Yuta’s bloodline, but also Yuta’s ignorance and lack of genuine sympathy for Uro’s situation. Yuta himself points out that Uro had 70 points so her focus was clearly only other players, but he still belittled her choices of coming back and fighting in the Culling Game for her “own sake”. So does that mean Yuta wouldn’t look down on someone who came back for the sake of another? Not only that, Uro’s life was taken from her.. she had regrets due to being manipulated by the world around her, so she chose to return from the underworld and move toward a second life. I honestly sided with her when she got angry with Yuta, because it was clear she had more to her situation than met the eye. 

Thats not to say that Uro was some perfect girl who was just mistreated, she was a killer - a trained assassin for the Fujiwara clan & at the time was seemingly very proud of it. What I am saying is that Uro may have accepted her death had she not felt like she was wrongly done by the ones she worked for, and that experience may have also opened her eyes to how manipulated she was. I don’t think Uro is a bad person at heart, this was proven to me when she gave Yuta those final words of advise, even though he knew the two them couldn’t necessarily come to an understanding. The truth is, Uro is simply still bitter about her life prior, and her fight to become someone for her own sake has lead her on a path filled with unknowns in a new era still coming face to face with her past regrets just in new appearances. 

To become someone for her own sake is Uro coming into the true understanding to transcend in the world of jujutsu. As she said, the sorcerers and cursed spirits that have transcended are those with an unshakable ego, that has no regard for anyone but themselves. Thats the path that Uro is going for, she refuses to go back to fighting for someone else’s sake, because she wants to accomplish something. Once again going back to her being nude in public, this adds to the idea of Uro ignoring the stigmas that come with being a woman, leaving her bare skin out symbolizing her putting her full self out there into the world now, no longer living in shadow and embracing herself to go beyond what she believed she was before. 

The thing about Yuta being the main force in her way that is poetic, is the cycle of karma coming to remind her that she hasn’t truly moved on, and someone challenging that makes her instantly revert to her primal anger toward the Fujiwara. Its realistic, faulty and perfect for a character who we know has come back for a second chance at life. That also exposes that Uro hasn't truly harnessed and understood that anger she has. She hasn’t properly converted that negative emotion into focus to become more powerful, but she had the right idea. It reminds me of when Sukuna told Jogo that he should have burned everything at his desire without worry in order to surpass Gojo. Uro has to truly move on, not necessarily forgive if she’s going to truly reach that next level. 

Now I wonder what will Uro accomplish in this second life? Will she actually achieve a second life after the culling game or is this all just another part of Kenjaku’s plan and lives will be sacrificed? I think no matter what Uro is fighting now her own place in this new modern world. 

What's Next? (Conclusion)

Sorry for ranting on about Uro and probably repeating the same thing over and over lol, but I really wanted to share my thoughts on her! I tried to be concise, and point out the things I found interesting about her character but I am mostly interested in what's next. Gege seems to be setting up these side characters for something important later, and I'm very unsure what they are. I personally hope to see more of Uro, whether it be through flashbacks per Kenjaku or us seeing what she has going on later down the line when all the pieces on the board start to move.

Tell me in the comments below what you think about Uro! (Be nice!!)

[violettelueur]

— ITADORI YUJI + FUSHIGURO MEGUMI + GOJO SATORU + RYOMEN SUKUNA || S/O THAT IS AN ANIME/MANGA LOVER

↳ featuring : itadori yuji + fushiguro megumi + gojo satoru + ryomen sukuna from jujutsu kaisen

↳ warnings : grammar issues

↳ form : headcanons

↳ published : 17 april

↳ pronouns : non specified in headcanon

↳ request : Hi!! I would like to order a large headcanon "Itadori, Fushiguro, Gojo, and Sukuna with a s/o who loves watching anime and reading mangas" please. Thank you! Also, I love your writing and omg your playlist!!! *chef's kiss* Period.

↳ barista’s notes : i’m glad that you really love my playlist ╲ʕ·ᴥ·　╲ʔ also right now, i am planning the death painting arc and trying to add in my idea that i have hinted in an ask! so i can’t wait for you guys to read it when i get the chance to write it ʕ •ᴥ•ʔゝ☆ other than that, i hope you enjoy your cup of classic black coffee and please come again soon!

When Itadori finds out that you are an anime and manga lover, I feel like he would love you even more because you both have a common interest with each other now - like something he can talk about and share with you.

You and Itadori love suggesting manga to each other and sometimes you would suggest Josei manga to him (like Wotakoi) and in the beginning, he would be like “that isn’t really my type” but with a little persuasion and some pushing, he will take the time to read it.

Later on, he will become really invested in the characters’ relationship and will rant to you how the female is taking too long to confess or how cute the relationship is - basically, he has become more invested than you are.

Sometimes he will ask if you both could re-enact a romance scene together, it’s quite funny for him to ask because it’s just a normal kiss scene...but who is saying no?

He would also suggest manga series to you and of course, how could you even deny him when he is showing you an adorable face in a way to convince you to read it with him.

Instead of movie nights, there will be times where you guys would binge-watch a whole season one anime series and complain how there isn’t a season two at all - Fushiguro will complain about how loud you both are.

When you both go on date, you and Itadori will always end the day by going into a bookstore and pick out manga for each other because it’s interesting to see what you guys choose for each other - you will also buy some for yourselves but it’s fun!

There will be days (like your off day) where you and Itadori would just sit on his bed and read manga silently because it’s nice to feel each other’s presence.

Itadori will sometimes just say “amazing!” and show you what is happening which causes you to add that manga he is reading onto the list.

If you and Itadori are sorcerers, he will compare his powers to other characters from any manga he has read or anime he has watched - it’s like an amazing comparison to him.

Overall, anime and manga is another way to show your love to each other since you both can share everything with each other, but the time you both spend together is more appreciated as you and him are just living in the moment, away from the sorcery world.

Fushiguro seems like the type of person to ask why you are into this stuff - something like “isn’t this for kids?”

When you hit him for what he just said, he will now shut his mouth about his comment and just leave you to your little obsession.

However, over time when you are reading manga, he will peek over your shoulder to see what you are reading and is somewhat interested in the drawings and art that are on the pages.

He will question how much time it takes to draw one panel and how a story can be told with such little worlds and a few pictures.

Later one, he will ask for some suggestions from you and if you start with shounen manga to him, he will be amazed at how much detail is drawn into a fight scene - he will ask from time to time what is going on and please explain it to him.

When he goes to the bookstore to grab something to read since he has finished all of his, he will look at the manga section to pick up the next volume you need as well as the first volume of the manga you had recommended to him.

Like Itadori, he really likes it when you both cuddle and just read together in his dorm room - it’s just nice to feel each other’s presence.

When it comes to anime, he has learned from his past actions to not comment about “is this kid’s stuff” and will watch it with you to see what it is and to make you happy.

Later one, he will never admit it, but he really does get invested in the shows and will sometimes watch a few episodes ahead of you because he couldn’t wait until your next anime night.

Fushiguro also seems like the type to question some decisions the anime characters make because some of them are dumb - he’s also the type to ask why Asta from Black Clover is so loud.

Overall, Fushiguro slowly gets into your little hobby of anime and manga, but he isn’t too in love like you are. However, he does appreciate how you both spend time together with these things since he got to learn about you more.

When Gojo finds your stash of manga books in your room, he is the type that will tease you for it and comment on how much money you have spent since your shelf is full of manga books.

Of course, you would tease him back for spending so much money on sweets and he will pout at you while saying that he ‘can’t help it’.

Gojo is also the type of person that will flick through the manga book and will bend the spine of them causing you to beat him up because….just no.

He will buy you another copy because he now realises how precious your manga books are to you - he will complain that he is more precious than them.

Every time he makes a teasing comment about you reading manga, you will always hit him back with the whole ‘at least the boys are better boyfriends than you’ comment - he will pout at you before clinging on to you, telling you to take that back.

Gojo does like to snatch your manga book out of your hands when he feels like you are not paying him enough attention than he likes - he would say ‘I deserve more attention than this’.

Now when it comes to anime, Gojo will compare himself to all of the characters when it comes to fighting scenes.

Like “I can beat him”  or “She will lose to me instantly” - okay Gojo, we get it, you are the strongest sorcerer in all of Japan...shut up.

He is also the type to pause in the middle of the episode to kiss you because you are too concentrated on the episode and he wants one - he will compare his relationship with you to the anime couple by saying you are the better couple.

There will be times where he finds anime memes and will send them to you from time to time because he thinks they are funny to add to replicate his reaction.

Overall, Gojo just loves annoying you about your addiction to anime and manga since it just adds to the list of things he can make fun of you for when in reality he is also somewhat invested since he loves to comment during your episode from time to time.

Sukuna is the type to be so confused about why you love anime and manga, you should love him and him only…..selfish boy.

So when you are reading a manga book, he will stand in front of you with an annoyed look on his face because you should be paying attention to him and him only.

He is more confused about the number of manga books you have because he wonders how much money do you even have to maintain this obsession of yours.

He wouldn’t read with you, but there are times when he would hold you from behind and rest his chin on your shoulder to peer at what you are looking at.

If it’s a fight scene, he will comment on how much stronger he is and how he would beat them up in an instant.

If it’s a romantic scene, he will tease you by biting your neck before telling you that you both do more stuff than what the couple are doing right now.

Now when it comes to anime, Sukuna wouldn’t stop with the whole “I am the stronger one” comment as he would say that in every fight scene that you watch with him.

To be completely honest with you, I don’t think you are able to finish even one episode with him because he will distract you with every opportunity he gets.

Anime and chill…

However, if you are able to finish one episode with him by your side (I’m impressed with that...like wow) he will just be silent since I don’t think he had actually paid attention at all and just fell asleep during the middle of it.

Overall, Sukuna doesn’t take the time to understand or know why you love anime and manga, he is the type to let you do what you want to do with the case that you give him the attention he believes he deserves.

© violettelueur 2021 : written and published by violettelueur - do not steal or repost

[viaphni]

PART 2 POETIC RAMBLE IS GONE NOW WE MESSILY SLAM DOWN THOUGHTS

I want to briefly extend with Professor Red, Blue, and the Great Librarian, as well as characters like Enchant and the Elementals

1, blue and red and them

As of now, they are the only survivors of the Chromatics that we know of

And from what we can see, they have known each other for a very long time. Before the purge, I assume, but maybe not.

Professor and Blue seem to "hate" each other (to me it honestly seems like Professor hates Blue and Blue is just... dealing) but THEY WERE BESTIES I SWEAR AR

They clearly were familiar with each other

When they met, Red said "You're brighter than last time" i know thats such a normal comment but like... it seemed the least aggressive among all the other thoughtless insults he spat at Blue

And Blue kept being like "why didn't you tell me it was This Guy......." to Diamond, and when he didn't get the answer he was looking for, he said "It doesn't matter." in a dismissive tone, walking off, WHAT HAPPENED BETWEN THM I NEED TO KNOW rnlight now

(unrelated but He also mentioned that there was another smart Red Steve and thats the one that built the core i SWEAR thats the one who built the core)

When they were joking about the stupid Ultrakill playthroughs Blue was like "ohhh i stilll have you friended on there" while Professor was all "WE ARE ENEMIES.... who ... also speedran together...."

and they like bickered a lot

Guys they were best friends i swear htye were best fdiends im about to gojos past arc insane behavior analyze every move this dynamic

I love these characters I love the chromatics i so desperately wish to know more

And then theres the Librarian?? Who they knew too??

Apparently he is "a homie" and "our friend buddy pal chum bud friend" (more friendly teasing) so he might have been a part of whatever dynamic Red and Blue had

Also the great library was created by gods i guess

Which is insane because why is a GREEN STEVE the only one running it

Is that why he and his old friends are alive? Do the three of them have favor with the creators

Is that why they were sent there after being kicked out of the Bifrost

2, elementals

So far, we've seen Winter, Volcanic, and Lush

And this is really confusing because we dont really know what their place in all this is??? They don't fall in with the Chromatic purge, nor do they fall in with the replacements that are the Ores

I assume they were a product of the old world but it still doesn't clear up what their deal is

We haven't been given like . any clues on that at all

At least that I remember??? It's just strange. They all kind of showed up out of nowhere for an episode and disappeared

I know they arent throwaways though, they'll eventually tie in and become useful but I hope that happens soon

3, Enchant

Enchant just..: knows things

I assume he was the one who told Lapis about the Lock coming from other types of Steves, meaning he could know about the existence of the Chromatics and maybe even their history

Enchant's character analysis as a whole is still a work in progress, I need to finish it

Uh u h i cant think of anything else for now

Giant ramble over

1470 words is crazyyyyyyyy

Writing another corrupted colors theme, but this time about the Chromatics

because there is something so FASCINATING to me about their story despite how little we actually know

The Locks of the Ores, the erasure of history, the revenge of the colors

Unhinged analysis time

Until Corrupted Colors, our knowledge of this universe's residents extended only to the existence of the Ores. Weaker, less powerful, lacking some of the key abilities that typically accompany Steves in their energies—because they were locked away. To access one's true potential within them, they had to snap. To break the Lock that lingered in their soul and have the rites of power they were made with

But a Lock is not natural, not native to the normal state of people

For there to be a Lock, somebody had to have placed it there, thrown away the key — but who?

Diamond learned of this Lock through Lapis when they had just met one another, talking in his bedroom. That this energy, the force behind this Lock, drew its origin from a different, unknown type of Steve. But not even Lapis knew who.

Later in the show, in the lab, Professor Red told his tale of the Chromatics to Lapis and Diamond. The story of their origin and of their past.

A story linked to Chaotic.

"Before the Ore Steves, there were Chromatics! Red, Blue, and Yellow. And... some others. Don't ask.

Overall, life was peaceful. Until... The First War. It caused Chaos, Pain, and Destruction.

The Creators of this world who watched over us decided to forsake us. And punish us. For ruining the world.

Now. What happened to them, you may ask?

...Punishment."

And the Chromatics were gone. It's such a vividly awful sight in my mind, the idea of the very gods who formed the world wiping out their own creation in face of their own impurities, washing the world clean with the blood drawn of their people, if there was even time for blood to be drawn

If there is something I think is missing in a lot of Steve shows, it is the viewing of gods and Creators as truly holy beings, beyond the comprehension of the mortal mind, even if in the slightest ways

The idea of such a devastating purge by the hands that held the very power to make this world real in the first place

It is a terrifying sight

And more terrifying to think that this history was erased almost completely. Even Lapis revealed that he believed this "First War" was the Diamond Civil War

History has been rewritten to reflect the will of their Creators. And now, it's being dug up by force.

The Ores were the product of this purge, beings of the blank slate, freshly created. The Lock on their power, to keep away such catastrophes that got the Chromatics killed.

But this is where we get into Chaotic.

From a different analysis:

"It was revealed that Chaotic seemed to be the very essence of Chromatics ("It seems like the pure essence...of Chromatic energy."), seeking vengeance, the betrayals of their people. Chaotic is constantly switching attitudes, constantly contradicting itself, seeking to infect and overtake the Ores. The infection is messy, a swirl of all the colors. It wants to come back."

It wants to come back.

It seems that even in death, the Creators could not erase the stain that Chromatics were on their world. That something was left behind to linger, festering in the long years that followed after the purge, seeking only itself and coming and growing together into the conflicting, colorful amalgamation that is Chaotic.

"I AM NOBODY AND EVERYBODY. WE ARE EVERYONE."

"NO! WE WON'T HURT ANYONE!"

"NO NO NO! SHUT UP!"

"We won't forgive him..."

These are some of Chaotic's first lines in the show. Given its recently revealed motives, it makes everything clearer and clearer.

There seem to be the spirits and souls, at least the consciences, of the Chromatics, melded together and moving as one. There are some who are merciful towards the Ores, seemingly accepting of their fate—but others hold the fury that drives them to infect and overtake, color swirling over the land and across the bodies of the mindless infected

"We won't forgive him."

It appears they will do anything they can to return, crawl out from the abyss they were banished to, claw their way from weakness to dominance once again, clearing their path of recognizable Ores until all that is left is that mass of color, anything to return, anything to be worthy again, to be desired and seen and understood again

"We won't forgive him." and who could he be? Origin, I would assume.

Not forgiving him for taking their lives and leaving them forgotten. A mistake. A simple screw up. Leave it and move on.

But this is nothing new. We've seen the tendency for memory of the past to never quite fade fully— not only the survival of some Chromatics (Red, Blue, Great Librarian), but the remnants of Diamond's memories from LOTB... flashbacks, hallucinations, familiar feelings, wherever they may have returned from. The Creators seem to always let something slide. You'd think they'd all have been erased from existence. So why are they still alive? Why is Chaotic roaming the world why those who sought to keep its original forms dead—do seemingly nothing about it?

Or perhaps they are, and we cannot see it, or maybe the rage and fear of the Chromatic amalgam is so strong that it even overpowers the gods that made it

Maybe it has grown to an equal match against its oppressors.

This is. fascinating to me

[charmspoint]

Please do rant about the misuse of Chuuya if you have the will and time. He used to be my favourite (still is really) but nothing happened with him! It's awful

It's a bsd day isn't, i can sit here and pretend i'm all into jjk now but till the rest of my days ill be ready to foam at the mouth about bsd after i have forgotten who gojo satoru is THATS IMPACT BABY

Anyway: Chuuya Nakahara, what a crime

Context wise, I got into bsd around the time the anime started. I think it was either one of those instances where i watched the first episode and immediately binged the manga or saw the synopsis and binged the manga before watching, one of those two.

Things we knew about Chuuya back then?

Jack

Shit

Dazai's ex (partner)

We had that scene when Dazai gets caught and of course the coveted panel of Dazai and Chuuya as kids, i would post it here but for some reason tumblr decided i get no picture rights but everyone and their dog knows what im talking about.

The thing was Chuuya is so fucking cool. His design? Top notch. His chemistry with Dazai? Top notch. His character even outside that relationship? Top notch.

He had the coolest fucking design and a mysterious relationship with one of fan favorite characters. He was angry and snappy which perfectly bounced off of Dazai's annoying coolness but as soon as he was away from Dazai he tended to show much calmer and kind hearted side. Also he was hot and strong. Instant fan fav.

When i said Kafka's writing problems could be seen even back then i really meant it, even then Chuuya was underutilized. Think about it. Chuuya is a part of soukoku generations. Out of Dazai, Atsushi n Akutagawa, Chuuya was the only one that didn't really get any solo development. He was pretty much something for Dazai to have in his past.

But we still loved him!

That was a wild west for Chuuya fics because the only thing we really knew was that he was Dazai's partner and that Kouyou was his mentor (and ill get to Kouyou). So basically! Anything went! I've read SO MANY fics about guessing at Chuuya's backstory (we can all remember how popular french chuuya was, and also cough cough prostitute chuuya) the fandom was just going wild it was great. I wasn't active as a write back then but one of my fav headcanons was that Chuuya was just some half feral kid Kouyou scooped off the street like 'my son now', there were some really good pieces in all of that.

More love than Kafka ever gave him thats for sure.

Because Chuuya is really really fucking strong. Not like Gojo strong, but he's up there in his own universe you know. So what does that mean? Go to the bus stop young man and sit there. Chuuya basically, god he wasn't a character if he wasn't needed for Dazai stuff. Cannibalisation was Such.A.Waste.

A little of topic but here's what i would have done with cannibalisation: so we took the guild arc to (allegedly tho honestly even this is wonky in canon) build relationships within ada and pm right? Come cannibalisation and ooop they are at each each others throats again but why? It feels like throwing a whole arc in the water. Instead of just sic'ing them at each other again wouldnt it have been more rewarding to like??? keep building??? on those reletionships??? like ada n pm being reluctant to go in another all out war with connections they made during the vs guild war??? Soukoku and shin soukoku should have lead that front! Instead we just kinda resolve to everyone fighting each other

AND CHUUYA GETS BENCHED LIKE NO OTHER

THE BOOK

THE FUCKING BOOK

UGH

Im still so angry. Remember when it happened and we were all like :D!!! WOW COOL!!! AN ULTIMATE BRAIN VS BRAWN SHOWDOWN THIS WILL BE SO AWESOME and then slowly we started to realize that...chuuya and ranpo werent coming back. It was such a fun idea everyone was excited for but it wasnt going to happen. Kafka wasnt transporting them to a new and interesting battle arena, he was escorting them out of the court because he didnt want to worry about them at the moment.

Ranpo comes out

Chuuya doesnt

and for the longest damn time it just feels like kafka completely forgot about him. No sign, no word, chapters pass.

He had one cool apperance which was admittedly really badass and disappears again woops hes a vampire now

i wasnt keeping up with bsd anymore at the vampire point but lemme tell you god i about lost it

HES A VAMPIRE NOW

HES A VAMPIRE NOW

IS HE DEAD WONT SOMEONE PLEASE TELL ME IF THAT MEANS HES DEAD????

KAFKA REALLY TOOK AWAY ONE OF THE FAN FAVORITE CHARACTERS, ONE OF THE MOST PROMISING CHARACTERS IN THE SHOW AND JUST FUCKIN TURNED HIM INTO A FYODOR HANDGUN IM LOSING MY MIND

Chuuya backstories

I was excited about Chuuya backstories i was. There were so many cool theories in the fandom i think everyone was eager to find out the canon truth.

He has a god inside of him.

He has a god inside of him.

Why?

Kafka, buddy, pal. Here's an advice from me to you. IF YOU ARE GOING TO PUT SOMETHING AS BIG AS A GOD IN YOUR STORY YOU SHOULD ESTABLISH THAT THOSE EXIST IN YOUR UNIVERSE BEFOREHAND

NOW

Now

I don't think most of the fandom disliked this take as much as i did though at that point i was pretty distant from most of the fandom cuz i really disliked what it became at the time (lets not get into THAT) BUT i blew my fuse on that

There are supernatural elements in bsd in terms of abilities right. Those seem p limited and grounded in their own way, perfectly applicable to the story. The only thing whack is lovecrafts ability but its LOVECRAFT of course hes allowed and even encouraged to be something freaky.

THAT ISNT ENOUGH TO ESTABLISH ACTUAL GODS ACTUALLY EXIST LIKE LOVECRAFT CAME OFF AS A GAG I THOUGHT IT WAS JUST THAT ONE CHARACTER CREATIVE TWIST A LIL MYSTERY IN THE WORLD BUT NO WE ARE STICKING WITH THIS WITH CHUUYA OF ALL PEOPLE HUH OKAY?

But you know what you know what i dont even care thats fine, i can live with jesus christ superstar chuuya thats fine

But then

Mother fucking Rimbaud.

Hey kafka? Why dont you just say you hate writing women huh?

So here's the thing right, heres the thing.

fifteen was about chuuya getting initiated into pm right? Remember how the only thing we knew about that is that dazai was his partner and kouyou was his mentor right? It would be natural to assume those two played a major role in that section then right?

Well Dazai at least gets to :D

KOUYOU GOT SO ROBBED

Like

MY GOD SHES HIS MENTOR

And here is where it really starts showing up for Chuuya, Kafkas tendency to, instead of exploring relationships with present characters, he just throws in new ones. We don't get to explore the relationship between Kouyou and Chuuya. Instead we get some dude literally mostly referred to as Rando-san and HE ends up being the person most responsible (aside from dazai) for getting chuuya into pm and HES the one who chuuya got his hat from which you know implies he was his mentor cuz of the handing of clothes thing and then to top it all off we get that stupid ass scene where chuuya is sitting on his grave talking to him

Kafka

buddy

I get it, i know. Dazai and Oda connection was really good, people adored that. BUT YOU CANT JUST COPY PASTE IT ON ANOTHER CHARACTER AND HOPE FOR THE SAME RESULTS YOU FUCKING HACK

At this point i dont care about bsd anymore. I stopped reading, i listen my friend talk about it but thats p much it

Stormbringer

I havent read stormbringer. I'm not going to read stormbringer. What i know about it is what can be read on the wiki and what i saw passing through my dash.

And im tired.

There is so much Chuuya backstory 2.0 could cover. His reletionship with Kouyou. Akutagawa. Black Lizard. Fuck Ive always wondered since Kouyou also mentored Kyouka did Kyouka have any sort of relationship with Chuuya.

Instead what do we get.

Another

Fucking

Group

Another fucking little group that was never ever mentioned before and that will never ever be mentioned again. Instead of exploring Chuuya's relationship with characters we know and care about, we get handed another batch of fresh out of the oven characters and we get told 'these are chuuyas friends! care about them!' NO??? I DONT???

Like would be SO hyped to explore chuuya in interaction with any of the other characters. I wrote two platonic soukoku stories, another one for Kyouyou and Aku were in plan i want this, i would read this, i would be interested in this.

But what i dont care about is seeing Chuuya bounce off of another random ass set of characters (+Dazai) who dont matter jack shit in the grand scale of things.

I'm just done! I care about Chuuya so much and i want him to be explored and well written but...god i just cant, i cant do it anymore i cant stand this vacuum worldbuilding. Chuuya doesnt seem like he has a relationship with anyone in pm aside from Dazai even tho he seems well beloved and instead of exploring those barren relationships we just get handed p much meaningless ones. That's just not how you build a character rooted firmly in your story. That's how you use a character so you have an excuse of introducing like seven more new ocs you couldnt fit anywhere else. It's exhausting. I don't know maybe stormbringer isnt like that but literally every summary i read about it sounds like that and im not about to go suffer Kafka to confirm the opposite, i'll just hole myself up with Izanyas versions of events thank you very much

[papellie]

JUJUTSU KAISEN Y/N CHARACTER IDEAS FOR THE FANFIC WRITERS OUT THERE!!!

1. Y/N is the eldest child of the head of one of the most powerful families of jujutsu sorcerers making her next in line for the seat. But she cannot control her curse energy and technique. Given this situations she was constantly discriminated in the household. Even if things were like this, her father loved her and did not take the position from her.

To remove her from the lineage, the elders conspired against her giving her a special grade rank. With the fact that she has no control over her powers they thought she'll eventually die from taking on special grade missions and her father cannot do anything about this.

Little did they know, because she was on death's door they made a monster that will wreak havoc and will destroy everything on its path.

2. Y/N is a curse spirit/cursed doll who—at first—had no free will. She acted only what her creator wishes.

3. Y/N can see curses.

When she was younger she lived in the country side with her grandparents. But she started seeing curses specially in school and it affected her so much that she doesn't leave her grandmother's side. Her parents were working in Tokyo and decided to bring her there too, thinking that she won't be scared anymore because the city is always busy. But little do they know that there are more hideous and frightening curses out there.

She doesn't want to burden her family anymore so she stayed quiet while shaking in fear everytime she encounters one.

4. MC is one of Choso's younger siblings (Preferably female)

Same parents with Yuji. Her mother (when inhibited by Kenjaku [the ancient sorcerer {mentioned in chapter 145}]) had kept her a secret. The body was alive but it has no soul making her just bedridden for her whole life. Her cursed technique is that whoever and whatever touches her with cursed energy, she instantly nullifies it. Kenjaku had been experimenting on the body for years taking her on the verge of death everytime. That's where Choso see's visions of an unfamiliar girl(MC) just like when his other sibling are on death's door. Kenjaku planned to take the body as his after possessing Suguru Geto's.

Soul inhibitants options:

• MC is Isekai-ed and transported to jjk world. (I've been reading way too much historical reincarnation manhwa for this on lmao)

• Heaven blessed the body with the soul probably by the time kf Shibuya arc. Personality is like a child because it's the first time waking up to the world and she is just learning. Relationships: has a strong connection to Choso and Yuji because they're siblings. (Getting a overprotective older brother Choso yeyy!!!)

5. MC is part of the Gojo Clan

She was strong as a jujutsu sorcerer but she does not exceed their family's standards, specially being one of the strongest clan. Y/N admired Satoru so much as a kid. He was her idol and the only one who cared for her in the suffocating household. But when he started to go to Jujutsu Technical College he had made friends the same age as him and gave his all to them. Y/N had felt left out but deep inside she knew he'll have to live a life that didn't circulate on just protecting her.

The little attention she gets whenever he returned to the household during his school breaks was okay. But then some time after when she heard he had killed one member of the Zenin clan he had became cold and distant. Not long, he had permanently left the household and never visited, he had left her all alone.

In rare times when they talked he was cheerful, yes, but Y/N had became more sensitive to so many things because of the pressure of their family and Satoru didn't know her anymore.

She no longer enjoyed the time she had with him. All he does was lecture her or only talk about his students and her jealousy eats her up whenever he mentions and boast about the black-haired kid who had the shadow technique that he practically raises.

When she entered high school she had pleaded to Kyoto Jujutsu Technical College just because he hated that white-haired jerk so much. But Satoru always gets what he wants. Now she lives in constant anxiety that she thought she would've scaped from her household but now she's getting the treatment from the person who had saved from from at first.

I don't know what's the ship here lmao. But for me it's no Y/NxGojo Satoru. They're cousins here(emphasis on that).

You can use her hatred to Megumi though. Make an angsty Megumi x Y/N where they're rivals.

6. Y/N is one of Tokyo Jujutsu Technical College third year student(s).

(We got some info on one of the third years in the lastest chap so MANGA SPOILER) (Noritoshi Kamo x Y/N rivalry & secret feelings)

She's a first grade sorcerer that was suspended with her other classmate(s) and she actually liked being suspended. She hated being a sorcerer. Coming from a powerful jujustu clan she was forced to be one. She has been making all sorts of delinquent acts but her family won't let her go because she was wielding the family's powerful curse technique. But as a woman, her clan fully denies of her being the head of the family. So they are tying her down to the heir of the Kamo Clan.

She hated the boy, how he was prim and proper while she dyed her hair for several times this year. She hated him because of how he was dumb for letting his family control him. But the truth is she hated his clan for changing him to a person that has no freedom. He broke the promise that they made when they were children. That they will only marry the person they loved because their parents never did that's why they didn't loved their children(them) too.

In her eyes, she knew he didn't love her but she did. She will never admit to that fact because she knows he will just be suffocate by it. But little did she know that they have the same thoughts—and probably feelings—of each other.

(Lmao I'm going to separate this cause y'all gonna know when you read)

As a past time for being suspended she goes to best friend Takada-chan's concerts and sometime she gets invited to go to stage to perform. (Forgive me. I've been watching way too much kpop performances lately)

will add more ideas when I get more. So make sure to come back! and if you guys have some don't be afraid to comment!