The Culling Games have truly divided people's opinions on Jujutsu Kaisen. It seems that every week there is a major drama regarding the JJK chapter, and it really takes me back to the days of weekly Naruto or Bleach, where people found reasons to complain, nitpick, criticize, and bemoan every major decision in the series.
Now that those series are over, and people are re-reading them as a complete whole, many are discovering that they weren't so bad after all. In truth, Naruto and Bleach are good actually. At least in most people's opinions. And in my opinion, Jujutsu Kaisen is good actually. So, I'm going to address some of the common criticisms I find online, and talk about why I don't think they are all that fair.
There isn't much of a structure to this. The criticisms are not placed in order of worst to best, or most common to least or anything. I am literally writing this on the fly. I also fully expect a lot of people on this sub to disagree, and am ready for the Earth-shattering consequences (downvotes).
YUJI IS FORGOTTEN
"Yuji is shafted as a protagonist" is a pretty popular claim about the Jujutsu Kaisen story. I personally, really don't get this. From chapter 1 to about the end of Shibuya, we focus primarily on the story from Yuji's perspective. There is only one exception to this, that being The Hidden Inventory arc, that gives us Gojo's and Geto's backstory.
That backstory plays an integral role in the story, and in my opinion, it was placed in just the right time; a few chapters before the Shibuya Arc begins. Reading it that early means that we get the context for Gojo and Geto's relationship, and we understand why it hits Gojo so hard that Kenjaku body-jacked his best friend.
Come Shibuya, Yuji plays an integral role in the arc, gets some incredible character moments, and wins the final fight against one of the strongest Curses in the arc (Mahito). Yes, he gets help, and a lot of it. But, Yuji having relationships with the extended cast of the series is one of the main reasons why I care so deeply about him. In this case, it is a feature, not a bug of the arc.
In the Culling Games, yes, there are protracted periods of time where Yuji does not do much. However, why are we pretending like JJK is the only series that does this? Taking the focus away from the main character/cast is a pretty popular feature of Shonen action manga with a large cast. Naruto has done it (a good chunk of the War arc focuses on other battles, and there are entire arcs dedicated to Sasuke), Bleach has done it (Karakura and TYBW), and even One Piece has done it (just a year ago in Egghead, there was an entire month and a half focusing on what is going on apart from the Straw Hats). A ton of other Shonen do it too, but the Big 3 is what most people are aware of, so let's stick to those.
In short, Gege has handled Yuji relatively well. He is a character that many fans love, and he remains in the top three of all the JJK popularity polls. I'm not saying popularity is a mark of quality, but there is certainly something about the character that the audience connects with.
YUJI PUNCH/KICK MERCHANT
Personally, I rarely entertain these kinds of criticism. There is really no way to pontificate on a character like Yuji having a specific fighting style that somebody doesn't like. The writer conceptualized the character to be a basic brawler. If somebody doesn't like that, it is perfectly fair. Maybe the manga simply isn't for them.
I happen to like brawlers whose main shtick is punching and kicking in a world where all kinds of weird abilities exist. I always have. So, personally I enjoy Yuji being "a punch/kick merchant." If you don't, you don't. That is fair, and we can keep it at that.
YUJI IS A CHOSEN ONE (AND THAT IS BAD)
The reveal that Yuji is the son of Kenjaku and the nephew of Sukuna got a lot of people upset. In come the cries of "Chosen one!!!" My problem with this is that people never explain why "the chosen one" trope is bad, aside from the fact that...well...they don't like it.
My second problem is that, Yuji was not chosen. He was specifically created by Kenjaku to perform the purpose which he fulfilled (being Sukuna's vessel). The fact that this is what he was made for has caused Yuji immense pain, trauma, and anguish. That is far from being gifted. It is more like being...dare I say it....cursed?
As for Yuji awakening Shrine and Blood Manipulation, well both of those were foreshadowed quite early. To the point that most people online (myself included) believed that he would awaken either one of these powers, or both of them (personally I believed he would have Blood Manipulation).
There is also the matter of "Damned if you do, damned if you don't." Either Yuji is a punch kick merchant, which is lame, or he has a special cursed technique, which is lame.
THE FEMALE CAST SUCKS
I blame a lot of anime news and journos for this one, they certainly hyped the JJK cast quite a bit when the show was first coming out. The truth is, JJK girls are written about how you'd expect for a Shonen Jump series, with a few exceptions. What most people admire about JJK is that Gege rarely sexualizes women.
There is no denying that when we compare JJK to other Shonen Jump series, the girls are a lot less sexualized and creeped on. In most manga, even the ones where the women are well written, they are more often than not sexualized.
That being said, Gege does write good female characters. Maki is well-written, Nobara was well-written, Mei Mei is well-written. Even the one off characters that don't do much aren't particularly poorly written. There may not be as much focus as some would like on them, but that isn't a female character exclusive. In a big cast, most characters will end up getting shafted eventually.
Inumaki and Panda were introduced as pretty impressive sorcerers, with Panda even being among the five recommended for Grade 1 after the Good Will Event arc. At this point, neither of them factor into the story at all.
GOJO VS. SUKUNA
The Gojo vs. Sukuna fight is one of my personal favorite manga fights (not top 1, but definitely in the top 10). When the chapters were coming out, most people were excited about the outcome. However, that all changed when Gojo became Go/jo...
I understand that Gojo is a fan favorite character, and I understand why someone would be disappointed that he has been removed from the story. That being said, was there really anyone who believed that Gojo would actually win this fight? Like, Sukuna is the main villain of the story, it stands to reason that it will be the main characters that defeat him, does it not?
There is also this popular argument that I hear a lot about Gojo's defeat being off-screened, and I really don't understand. The Gojo vs. Sukuna fight went on for chapters upon chapters. True, we didn't see Sukuna use the World Slash, but the entire battle was not off-screened. Gojo used his most powerful attack, and opened himself up for an attack. His death was impactful and put a neat bow on his character. I really don't understand the problem.
THE SUKUNA GAUNTLET
Sukuna beating down the main cast has been going on since Gojo's defeat. A lot of people are upset about this, because Sukuna seems unbeatable. But, that is the point, no? Sukuna is an unbeatable monster. He defeated the strongest sorcerer, who most would argue would do just as well against the main cast, if not better.
Sukuna mauling all of the cast is a testament to his strength. That being said, it isn't as if Sukuna has never been pushed back. We clearly see moments of the King of Curses being pushed into desperation, and even being put on the defensive. Higuruma almost killed him, Yuji's Black Flash combo did enormous damage, the Yuta/Yuji + Maki combo nearly killed him, and most recently, Yuji and Todo absolutely f*cked him up.
Finally, I don't believe, as some people do, that Sukuna is going to win at the end. I fully believe that he will be defeated, and that Yuji will deliver the finishing blow. I can understand why it would be annoying to read the big final battle weekly. But, like, JJK is a battle shonen. So fighting should be expected.
CHAPTER 261 SPOILERS
The complaints surrounding this chapter is what pushed me into making this rant (though I had been planning it for a while, I always thought it wasn't worth it). This section will also contain spoilers so, you've been warned.
For the unaware, Yuta copied Kenjaku's technique and used it to body-snatch Gojo. Whether you like this or not, there is one thing you can't say about it; that it is an asspull. Kenjaku's body-snatching technique has been established and explained. Yuta's copy technique has been established and explained. Yuta being able to copy Kenjaku's ability is perfectly in character.
"But, it is disrespectful to Gojo"
Well, first of all, Gojo is a fictional character, and therefore can't be disrespected. I realize this goes without saying, but the people who are saying this really seem to be taking this whole situation personally, which is quite bizarre.
Second of all, yes, it is disrespectful towards Gojo. In fact, Yuta is behaving outright monstrous. That is the whole point of this chapter. Yuta has thrown away his morals, his beliefs, and his convictions, all so he can fulfill Gojo's job and finish off Sukuna. It is a bit of character development. Maybe some people don't like the way Yuta's character has progressed. But, that doesn't negate the fact that he has progressed.
MISCELLANOUS STUFF
This is the final section. In it I will address some random mini-criticisms that aren't as common or as popular as the ones I addressed above. I won't spend too much time on them, so pardon me if I seem curt.
- Mahito wasted his Idle Transfiguration against Yuji
No, Mahito's Idle Transfiguration was useless against Yuji, because Sukuna was not allowing Mahito to touch his soul. In other words, Mahito transforming into his Instant Spirit Body of Distorted Killing was the exact right choice he had to make in order to fight Yuji.
- Yuki/Nobara/Higuruma were wasted.
Yuki was absolutely not wasted. She played her role in the story, and her death was well-played and well-placed. She delivered her notes to the cast, and fought against Kenjaku. Kenjaku just so happened to win.
Nobara's death could be considered a waste, as her character was not fully complete. However, that is a part of the point that Gege is trying to make in JJK. Sometimes, we don't achieve our goals. Sometimes life gets in the way. Sometimes people die.
Sorcerers dying a pointless death has been a part of the JJK theme for a long time. Other shows, like Naruto and One Piece for example, are often criticized for not killing off members of the main cast during tense and dangerous situations. In JJK people are not safe, and even a main character can and does die.
Higuruma's death was pretty well done imo. We had a whole chapter where Higuruma said he wants to die and fully expects to. I feel like people should not be too surprised that he does die.
- Megumi sucks
It is fair enough if you don't like Megumi, but him being absolutely crushed and broken by the circ*mstances is absolutely reasonable. I do get that the Potential Man memes are quite funny sometimes though.
- Toji meatriding
A lot of people say Gege meat-rides Toji. Sure, there are a lot of moments where Toji gets hyped up. However, in most context, it makes sense. Gojo remembering Toji during the Sukuna fight is integral, as Toji has left Gojo traumatized in many ways. Maki being compared to Toji makes sense as well, as she is basically Toji-but-better, and imo, Toji's main purpose was to boost Maki's character development in the first place.
Also, a writer having a favorite character is not a big deal. I don't know, I think it is probably common. It isn't like Toji has become the face of JJK or anything.
TL;DR: Jujutsu Kaisen is good actually.
