Jujutsu Kaisen Creator Explains His Philosophy on Killing Characters

Gege Akutami has never been shy about killing his characters and recently spoke about taking Jujutsu Kaisen players off the board.

By Evan Valentine

Jujutsu Kaisen is a shonen series that has never been afraid when it comes to killing its characters. This point was made evident in the anime thanks to the second season's Shibuya Incident Arc which saw both heroes and villains alike passing from this mortal coil. With MAPPA confirming that a third season is in the works that will focus on the Culling Game, anime fans should prepare themselves for even more deaths in the future. In a recent interview, series creator Gege Akutami took the opportunity to share their philosophy when it came to killing characters and how the decision is ultimately made.

When it comes to the Shibuya Incident Arc, anime fans witnessed quite a few major characters kick the bucket. On the hero side of the equation, Nanami was killed following a devastating fight against Jogo which gave Mahito the perfect opportunity to deliver the killing blow to the Jujustsu Tech enthusiast. Following Nanami's death, Akutami wasted little time in seeing Mahito add another notch to his belt in killing Nobara, Yuji Itadori's female classmate who was considered one of the biggest characters of the series. On the villains' side, we saw Jogo, Dagon, Hanami, Toji, and Mahito all meet their ends. 

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(Photo:

Kento Nanami in Jujutsu Kaisen Season 2

- TOHO Animation)

Jujutsu Kaisen's Death Count

At the latest Jujutsu Kaisen Exhibit in Japan, Gege Akutami was more than happy to take fan questions. One specific question was asked as to the status of Mei-Mei, the powerful cursed energy user, who decided to run when the going got tough. Rather than killing her, Akutami decided to instead leave her in the background as the mangaka dove into his methodology on killing characters, "I don't think a character should die if readers don't feel any emotion for them like sadness." 

Following the Shibuya Incident Arc, there are quite a few deaths that have yet to be adapted into the anime. Without going into spoiler territory, said deaths have shaken the manga world to its core as Jujutsu Kaisen fans are still struggling to come to grips with the events. Once these deaths hit the small screen, expect the anime world to feel some serious tremors.

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Want to see what other characters kick the bucket before Jujutsu Kaisen ends? Follow along with Team Anime on ComicBook for all the latest updates on Jujutsu Tech and hit me up directly @EVComedy to talk all things comics and anime. 

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