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Anime villains are a spectrum. Most of them are antagonists with sympathetic backstories that justify or at the least excuse their actions, like Itachi Uchiha fromNarutoor Akaza fromDemon Slayer.Fans end up having a soft spot for characters like these. However, the grass isn’t always greener on the other side.
Ryomen Sukuna, the main antagonist ofJujutsu Kaisen,is a rare anime villain who doesn’t have any tragic backstory to pacify his actions. Despite the recent prologue chapter attempting to do this, fans aren’t convinced by it nor empathizing with the King of Curses.
The epilogue depicts Sukuna being uncharacteristically kind to Uraume butJujutsu Kaisenreaders had enough of it. After killing Gojo Satoru, the only sorcerer at his level, he was unstoppable. He’s killed people left and right with no remorse, took over Megumi’s body, and done unrecoverable damage to him. However, are Sukuna’s deeds so bad that they make him an unforgivable villain?
Ryomen Sukuna is an example of a true villain
A villain without mercy is nothing short of thrilling. It’s especially accurate for the world ofJujutsu Kaisenwhere the curses are meant to be merciless and violent. Ryomen Sukuna is the literal King of Curses so any redeeming quality would’ve diminished any of his antagonistic qualities.
The man was already a unique villain in the world of shonen anime. After possessing Yuji Itadori, the typical thing fans would’ve expected is for them to reach a compromise and become friends slowly. However,Gege Akutamidefied our expectations. Sukuna actively expressed how much he hated Yuji and threatened to kill him on and on.
Jujutsu Kaisen Epilogue: Gege Akutami Gave Gojo the Perfect Ending Despite Fans’ Disappointment
When they do come to a typical shonen deal, it’s malicious and Yuji cannot even control it, making it completely unfair. He never shows any remorse for this and takes advantage of it thoroughly. He later on takes over Megumi who is far more compromised than Yuji to deal with Sukuna’s overwhelming cursed energy.
The King of Curses then goes on to kill several characters, includingfan favorites such as Gojo Satoruand Choso. Fans even thought he killed Megumi for a while until Yuji freed him. Unless you include killing Fushiguro’s potential in the series, fans were relieved he wasn’t dead but still found Sukuna’s treatment of him deplorable.
Gege Akutami’s attempt at redeeming Sukuna in the last chapters ofJujutsu Kaisenfailed
What makes a good unforgivable villain is also good world-building. That’s why villains inNaruto, although unforgivable, work so well. For example, Madara Uchiha whose actions are despised by fans but his past explains so much.
We witness the Uchiha’s goal of peace become warped into something more radical, which is an explanationJujutsu Kaisenfans would’ve loved for Sukuna. In the last chapter 271, Sukuna speaks with Mahito and exposes how the King of Curses onlywanted revenge against those who outcasted him. He gave us a tidbit of his past where he imagined two paths: one with Uraume, and one with an unknown girl.
“I’m genuinely so sad”: Jujutsu Kaisen Fans Get a Harsh Reality Check After Becoming the Worst Anime Fanbase
While we have no idea what Akutami was hinting at, the lack of the Heian Era lore doesn’t exactly convince fans of his complexity, unlike Madara whose past with Hashirama and the loss of his brother were beautifully told. It gave fans a chance to connect with him.
Lastly,the recently released epilogue showed Sukuna finding Uraumeand taking them in as his student. Fans liked this side of him but it’s not nearly as convincing as Madara. This snippet of his past offers no explanation as to why Sukuna ended up this way, it only told us what we knew: that he did have humanity.
However, the show-don’t-tell storytelling doesn’t apply if Akutami doesn’t show or tell us about the Heian Era.Narutoeffectively does both and still doesn’t try to apologize for Madara’s villainous character. The controversial mangaka’s storytelling failedJujutsu Kaisen.
Jujutsu Kaisenis available on Crunchyroll and VIZ Media.
Bidisha Mitra
Articles Published :802
Bidisha is an Anime Content Writer at FandomWire with over 700 published articles. With over 7 years of writing experience, she’s versatile and adept. When she’s not writing, she’s also a voice actor on the side.Bidisha is currently continuing to learn Japanese and gets more fluent everyday. Her expertise is One Piece, Bungo Stray Dogs, and Haikyuu, but has been watching anime for over a decade. She was previously a Content Writer reviewing the latest Kpop music.
