All has been revealed! A Jujutsu Kaisen exhibition was held at the Crunchyroll Anime Expo, showcasing some bits and bobs from the series. However, that wasn’t all the pop-up museum had to offer. Gege Akutami, the author of JJK, also participated in the event—revealing a handful of behind-the-scenes information about the creation and lore of the hit manga series.
It would not be a long shot to say that Gege Akutami closed some doors during this interview, especially concerning the lives of some of the fans’ favorite characters. The manga creator also pointed out things he could have done initially with the characters and storyline but decided to go another route. It was an exciting interview that revealed interesting new knowledge about the series as we near the end of Jujutsu Kaisen.
Jujutsu Kaisen’s Alternate Protagonist: A Mystery Character’s Original Role in the Series
Jujutsu Kaisen has a cast of unbelievable characters who can take the main spotlight from Yuji Itadori in a flash. Who in their right mind wouldn’t want to see more of Gojo? Or Yuta? Maybe a bit of Todo, while you’re at it. In any case, one of the biggest reveals during this year’s expo was Yuji wasn’t even supposed to be in the driver’s seat.
This honor originally belonged to another ultimate fan-favorite character, Megumi Fushiguro. According to Twitter user @lightningclare, “Initially, Megumi was the MC and Tsumiki was also part of Ch1, but the idea was scrapped after Gege re-read & found it boring.” That was the hill Gege Akutami and the rest of the team decided to stand valiantly on, and they were absolutely right. “I’ll agree on one thing, it would’ve definitely been boring if Megumi was the mc,” one fan on Twitter shared.
Nevertheless, would you have rather seen Megumi and his sister fend off curses with Yuji covering their backs or vice versa? Who knows? Gege favored one side over the other and hasn’t looked back since then.
Gege Akutami’s Shocking Plot Twists: The Deaths of Fan Favorites in Jujutsu Kaisen
Gege Akutami’s interviews hold a mix-and-match of questions. There could be queries about the storylines, plot holes, and character deaths. Ever since JJK Chapter 236, fans of the series were never the same. As the battle between the two strongest sorcerers came to an end, so did Gojo’s life.
Fans, however, were optimistic that the Strongest Sorcerer of Today would return from the dead…and he did! But only through Yuta’s usage of Kenjaku’s CT which lets him control Gojo’s lifeless body. Definitely not the resurrection fans were hoping for!
But this only lit a fire under the hearts of the collective fanbase as they came up with new theories to cope with their favorite sensei’s death. Some believed Shoko had an ace under her sleeve while others believed in the possibility of Gojo taking the control of his body back from Yuta. But in typical Gege Akutami fashion, the mangaka confirmed the death of Gojo Satoru. He also added that the cover of JJK‘s Volume 26 will be Gojo’s “funeral photo.”
Strap yourself for more, though, as Gojo only makes up half of Gege’s confirmed death list. You might have remembered that the original team consisted of Yuji Itadori, Megumi Fushiguro, and Nobara Kugisaki with the latter missing the most action of the three.
The Shibuya Arc indeed had some soul-crushing deaths with Nanami and Mechamaru, but one that kept fans on their toes was Nobara’s tragic fate. Surely, she deserved a death worthy of a member of the main trio? Nope. Another one bites the dust—or rather, Gege Akutami’s pen.
A fan on Twitter said: “Gege messed up hard with Nobara’s character. If she returns, I’ll be too little too late atp. If she’s truly dead, he killed off one of the main trio way too early. Big fumble from him.” This fan just spoke what thousands and millions of people had in their minds.
According to @lightningclare‘s tweet, Gege actually premeditated Nanami and Nobara’s death even before writing the Shibuya Arc. Little did fans know that after Gege let her shine for her final moments against Mahito, the story would turn even darker than before. As heartbreaking as these two deaths are, at least we know they remain in the memory of our other beloved characters!
Gege Akutami’s Ruthless Approach: Why No Character is Safe in Jujutsu Kaisen
Speaking of beloved characters, Gege Akutami makes it a point for fans to not stay attached to any. Jujutsu Kaisen is infamous for letting important characters go whether fans like it or not. Basically, no one is safe from the true culling game (see what I did there). If you want to know how Gege concludes his decision to kill off a character, then here’s how the conversation went down:
Question: Why did Mei Mei escape Shibuya and something else (death) didn’t happen to her?
Gege’s A: I don’t think a character should die if readers don’t feel any emotion for them like sadness.
Mei Mei got the short end of the stick as fans started to blast her on Twitter with one JJK fan posting: “me voting for mei mei 5 million times in the next popularity poll so gege thinks we like her and can finally k1ll her off.” The fans have started replying to their favorite mangaka in kind! The relationship between Gege and JJK fans is truly weird.