The kind-hearted protagonist ofJujutsu Kaisen,Itadori Yuji, has never gotten a fair shake from the anime community. As it turns out, series creator Gege Akutami himself also underestimates the plucky hero. When fans list offthe characters they most love inJujutsu Kaisen, any number of names come up—Satoru Gojo, Kugisaki Nobara, even Megumi Toji—but the name least heard is “Itadori Yuji”.
There arefair criticisms to be made about Itadori Yuji. His lack of power for a lot of the series, as well as his tendency to have the spotlight stolen away, are both valid reasons to have pause about the character. However, Gege Akutami describes a problem with Yuji that people rarely bring up, but which both accurately describes why people feel distant fromJujutsu Kaisen’s protagonist, and why he’ll be remembered in time as one of Shōnen Jump’s greatest heroes.
Gege Akutami Explains How He Sees Yuji in Jujutsu Kaisen Exhibition
He Characterized His Protagonist as “Bland” on Purpose
In a Japanese Jujutsu Kaisen exhibition held in 2024, Gege Akutami explained his perspective on Yuji as a hero. Before, he said thathe feels it difficult to write Yuji—that was years ago, though, and the more recent comments reflect how Gege has grown to reflect on the shōnen hero.Comicbook provides the following breakdown of Gege’s comments, via journalist Evan Valentine:
Gege Akutami took the chance to explain why he decided to create Yuji Itadori and how the protagonist works in the realm of the shonen series, “Itadori’s versatility is in the sense that he’s easy to fit into shounen-type stories, but this can also make the stories a bit bland. When Itadori does something straightforward, like saving someone, there’s no real need for a reason behind it, so the story is easy to move forward but it also can lead to the reader not feeling much or not getting a good taste of his actions.”
Akutami then described how he wanted Yuji Itadori to be a ‘universal character’, “My idea was to use other characters to pave a defined path and portray a universal protagonist. I wanted Itadori to be a flexible character.”
His argument is well-reasoned, at least. Akutami essentially thinks that, because Yuji is a “blander” and more “versatile” protagonist,other characters have to propel the story. It’s clear that Gege’s focus is on the quality of the story overall, rather than Yuji being a unique shōnen protagonist. In fact, it stands to reason that since Yuji’s supposed to be a “universal” protagonist,he’s supposed to be the very opposite of a unique protagonist.
However, this also undermines Yuji’s value as a character and a protagonist on his own. In reality, Yuji is an ideal protagonist for his time and place. He’s a massive motivator forJujutsu Kaisen’s success, too.
Yuji And the Meaning of Meaninglessness
Jujutsu Kaisen’s Protagonist Undermines the Narrative of Most Shonen Heroes
As a character,Yuji has a notoriously scant backstory. In fact, even Gege bemoaned his own decision not to expand on Yuji’s relationship with his grandfather early on. Moments intoJujutsu Kaisen’s story, Yuji’s grandfather passes away, and he takes up an existential preoccupation with a meaningful death—and in turn, a meaningful life.This theme is revisited throughoutJujutsu Kaisenas other characters pass away: Junpei, Nanami, and much later, Gojo.
Jujutsu Kaisenobviously features many horrifying deaths. Yuji feels constantly surrounded by the reality of death, the fleetingness of life, anda pressing need to forge some kind of understanding about it all. Their respective proximity to death is one of Yuji’s definitive similarities with Yuta,Jujutsu Kaisen’s original protagonist. The big difference, though, is that Yuta never struggles with death in the same way as Yuji does—Yuji’s complicated relationship with life and death drives one of the core messages ofJujutsu Kaisen.
Sorry to Burst Your Bubble, But Jujutsu Kaisen’s Ending Was Already Great Before the Epilogue
Jujutsu Kaisen just got an incredible new epilogue, but it’s not the game-changer a lot of fans want to believe it is, and Gege himself suggests why.
During the Shibuya Incident, when Yuji watches horrified from inside as Sukuna takes his body over for a rampaging massacre, what strikes Yuji most isn’t the volume of death, nor the content of the death,but the meaninglessness of the death. It’s not a binary association of “life = good” and “death = bad”, and this is one ofJujutsu Kaisen’s more interesting traits. It’s why, for example, Gojo is such a complicated hero due to his willingness to disregard and discard civilian lives.
Itadori Yuji Is the Perfect Hero of His Time
Jujutsu Kaisen Couldn’t Have Picked a Better Lead
Thus, one of the big turns inJujutsu KaisenisYuji’s major revelation during his showdown with Sukuna. Yuji determines that what gives life—and death—meaning isn’t the impact a person had on the world, nor is it how they live in memories of others. Yuji says, cryptically,it’s about the fragments one leaves behind.
He decides that it doesn’t matter how “meaningful” of a life someone lives altogether. Ultimately,he throws out the question of a meaningful life. The big revelation that makes Yuji such an incredible hero, here, is that he detaches some arbitrary meaning in life/death from the quality or value of life/death. That’s a huge change.
The Most Popular Character Of His Generation: How Jujutsu Kaisen’s Gojo Changed Anime Forever
Jujutsu Kaisen’s Gojo made anime popular, welcoming, and more character-focused and changed future anime forever.
It’s true thatJujutsu Kaisenoften makes room for others to propel the story, but it’s not because Yuji’s weak or bland. It’s precisely the opposite:Yuji is the only hero of his kind. Fans would often be upsetwhen Yuta would take the spotlight from Yuji, or when the latter lagged behind in strength compared especially to special-grade sorcerers like Gojo. That’s not even to mention the egregious take that Yuji succeeded becauseJujutsu Kaisendefaulted to a “power of friendship” conclusion.
It’s true, too, thatYuji lacks the strength or innate ability typically associated with shōnen heroes. Even when he does become a capable sorcerer later on, it’s at least in part because of muscle memory from Sukuna. It’s likeif the protagonist ofNarutowere Rock Lee, rather than Naruto or even some other overpowered conviction-heavy figure like Sasuke or Gaara.
Like his friendship with Todo, Yuji’s greatest and most charming moments come precisely when he doesn’t take himself too seriously.
This approach works perfectly for Yuji precisely because, for every other shōnen hero, their role as a protagonist is dependent on some central meaning or goal. Yujicanmove out of the way, because the story isn’t—and never has been—about him being the greatest, nor winning some grand ideological struggle, nor carrying out some incredible mission. His viability as a protagonist isn’t tiedat allto some central meaning.
Yuji’s role as protagonist is valuable on its own,despite the fact that he’s unorthodox. It’s valuable because, for every major story event, he’s there; because, thanks to his emotional sensitivity, he opens up other characters; because,like Yuji’s friendship with Todo, his greatest and most charming moments come precisely when he doesn’t take himself too seriously.
Top 5 Lessons in Jujutsu Kaisen Every Anime Fan Should Take To Heart
Jujutsu Kaisen does not just provide entertainment, thrills, and heartbreak to viewers, it offers valuable life lessons every fan should take note of.
Today’s world is complicated, andstories of protagonists with grand missions are getting tired. Yuji is a protagonist who is happy just to be happy—a protagonist who’s willing to scrap some grand search for meaning that’s nonsense anyway. Everybody feels pressure today to adopt some sort of social role, to achieve some kind of grand milestone, to aspire to some wonderful career or stack up one’s degrees.
Life puts an immense burden on people today to turn their lives into inspiring stories. It makes people feel anxious; it makes people feel depressed. Because of that, watching shōnen heroes fulfill dreams and extract meaning from the ether gets boring. Sometimes, it’s okay to be content or to be swept up in everything, doing one’s best regardless. Itadori Yuji is one of Shōnen Jump’s greatest heroes ever because he fulfillsJujutsu Kaisen’s central meditation: sometimes there’s no meaning to be found,but that doesn’t preclude one from trying to fulfill themselves anyway.
Source:Comicbook.com
Jujutsu Kaisen
Jujutsu Kaisenis a Japanese anime and manga series created by Gege Akutami. The story is set in a world where Cursed Spirits, born from negative human emotions, prey on humanity. It follows high school student Yuji Itadori as he becomes entangled in the world of Jujutsu Sorcery after swallowing a cursed talisman—Ryomen Sukuna’s finger—and becomes the host for one of the most powerful curses. Yuji joins the Tokyo Metropolitan Magic Technical College to learn how to combat curses while searching for the remaining fingers of Sukuna to exorcise him permanently.
