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One of the most alluring aspects of Gege Akutami’sJujutsu Kaisenis how it features a wide range of characters that the story revolves around. From Satoru Gojo to Toji Fushiguro, all have been absolute fan favorites from the moment they were showcased in the series.
However, when Season 2 started to air, the mangaka developed an infamous reputation for killing off some of the major and beloved characters from the show. TheJJKcommunity considers the death of the Honored One as the saddest in all of the series.
The mangaka would feel otherwise, as they had to take the pen and draw the mortifying death of one of their favorite characters, Kento Nanami, during the Shibuya Arc. While killing their favorite character was not easy for them, they have another regret orbiting around their magnum opus.
Gege Akutami hoped their two favorite characters would be more popular
The anime industry in 2021 was taken by storm whenGege Akutamiintroduced its magnum opus,Jujutsu Kaisen,to the world. The show features bewitching animation, a perfectly paced plot, and characters that have added to its ever-growing popularity. Be it the main characters or the side characters, everyone has had their moments of brilliance.
The4th popularity pollfeatures Gojo Satoru and Yuji Itadori as the most popular characters in the global fandom. However, in Season 2, everyone was hating on the author for killing their favorite characters without any warning.
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Fans believed that the author’s inclination toward the King of Curses, Ryomen Sukuna,would make him his favorite character. Surprisingly, that was not the case, because in one of the old interviews viaTumblr, they stated how they found Kento Nanami and Kasumi Miwa to be fairly“decent”and wanted them to be more popular than the lot. They said,
There’s no character that I especially like, but I want Nanami and Miwa to be more popular. Because they are decent.
While Miwa survived the end game in the author’s defining work, Nanami was not so lucky, as they had planned how his death was necessary for the character development of Yuji Itadori.
Gege Akutami planned Nanami’s death from the early stages of the Shibuya Arc
Nanami Kento is one of the many side characters featured inJJK,but the way he was designed by Akutami-Sensei made him a character that has an excessively huge fan base. The female fans would call him the“man of their dreams,”where a major part of his popularity goes toKenjiro Tsuda and his soulful voice.
While Gojo was in a league of his own, Nanami’s backstory was equally impressive, as he rose from salaryman to Grade 1 sorcerer, even mentoring Itadori Yuji. After the first season ended, fans were excited to see more of him in the Shibuya arc.
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They were caught off guard in Season 2 Episode 18, when he was killed in the most gruesome way possible by Mahito. Socialmedia witnessed the griefas emotions andtheories started circulating following his death.
While none could foreshadow his demise, the mangaka had long planned this scene, which was necessary for the epic battle that followed between Itadori and Mahito. In an exclusive interview via X (@f9x00), the author explained the importance of the character’s exit. They said,
I had decided long ago that Itadori and Mahito would settle their fight in the Shibuya arc, and that Nanami would die as the trigger for this battle. This idea was present from the early planning stages of the Shibuya arc.
They further added that despite being their favorite character, it would not do justice to the story, as it might evoke feelings of betrayal among the readers.
The fact that Nanami remained in the story up until this point already held significant meaning. Although he was a favorite character of mine, I felt that not having him exit here would betray the readers.
While attempting to do justice to their story, they went on a killing spree, resulting in arguably themost detestable ending to their work, in which fans would regard the author as the man who haunts them for killing their favorite characters out of nowhere.
JJKcan be streamed on Hulu; meanwhile, the manga can be read on VIZ Media.
Tushar Auddy
Senior Writer
Articles Published :1784
Tushar Auddy is a Senior Writer at FandomWire, primarily covering WWE. He has contributed to anime, MCU, DCU, animation, and TV Series, giving sharp insights and coming up with his own unique theories, which take the fandom by storm.
