2020 brought us a lot of awesome anime to get hooked on. Many memorable anime like Enen no Shouboutai and Re: Zero kara Hajimeru Isekai Seikatsu got their second seasons that year. However, what truly set 2020 rolling was the number of new anime available. Dorohedoro, Deca-Dence, Akudama Drive, and the acclaimed Moriarty the Patriot were some of these shows.
As it wasn’t enough, 2020 was also the year that one of the best shows these years graced television. That anime was Jujutsu Kaisen. Jujutsu Kaisen is arguably one of the best anime to come out. Fantastic storytelling, incredible world-building, and a cast of colorful and likable characters quickly drew fans in. The clamor for more was very visible.
If you haven’t checked out Jujutsu Kaisen, you should definitely set aside some time. Jujutsu Kaisen’s reach was astounding. In fact, the anime was the second most-watched series on Crunchyroll. It was only behind Black Clover. Fast forward to 2021, Jujutsu Kaisen was awarded Anime of the Year at the 51st Crunchyroll Anime Awards. We highly encourage you to check out the anime.
Jujutsu Kaisen ended its 1st season with 24 episodes on March 27, 2021. As with many anime, fans were forced to wait for its second season. Again, many anime fall victim to a “drought” when the 1st season comes. A drought refers to the period of time in between an anime season where the anime totally goes blank. Nothing about it is ever shown, no news concerning it is released. A drought can be anywhere from a few months to several years.
Now, droughts can stem from several seasons. It can be from the standard production process, a creative stump, studio issues, or the author’s status. One famous example is Hiatus x Hia, err Hunter x Hunter, that’s been on hiatus for approximately three years and one month as of this writing.
Thanks to Togashi’s brilliance and the established world of the anime, many fans are still hopeful that Hunter x Hunter will still be finished. For some anime, however, a drought can be semi-permanent. If it does receive the opportunity to return, there’s a large possibility the fan base isn’t as receptive as they once were.
An example of that is Psycho-Pass. The first season was incredible. After a 1 year hiatus for the second season and another whopping five years for the third season, the reception was…meh. Many fans just didn’t consider the 2nd and 3rd seasons worth the wait.
Thankfully, many studios are now coming up with solutions to alleviate the drought fans are experiencing between seasons. Studios are now releasing movies that cover a short arc or plot from the anime to satiate fans’ wants. Although fan’s interest is the main reason for this, studios also use movies to move the story forward and awaken the interest from the fan base.
Need another example of these movies? Look no further than Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba the Movie: Mugen Train. Does the movie cover an essential arc in the anime? Check. Does it move the story forward? Check. Did it stir the fan base? Absolute check. Fans were in for a treat when the Demon Slayer movie came out. Now, the current season of the anime is airing, and it’s enjoying the benefits the movie generated.
MAPPA studios, a legendary studio in the anime world, has heard the clamor. Last December 24, 2021, Japan saw the Jujutsu Kaisen 0 on the big screen. Toho distributed the film. The film has garnered overwhelmingly positive results, and the fans are extremely satisfied. Although the movie doesn’t move the story forward(more on this later), the fans are happy, and the build-up for the second season is enormous.
As of this writing, there’s still no confirmation on the exact release dates of Jujutsu Kaisen’s second season. If you prefer rumors over confirmed news, a lot of sites are reporting that the second season will start this October 2022, though fans will probably see it in the early months of 2023. Don’t worry about that fact, though. A second season is inevitable, a sure thing to come.
Thanks to Jujutsu Kaisen 0, the flame is burning bright amongst the fans. In fact, Jujutsu Kaisen 0 is generating interest for newcomers to the series.
In Japan, Jujutsu Kaisen 0 went on to sell 4.3 million tickets and earned more than 5 million yen or $50,000,000 at the box office. Those are staggering numbers, considering today’s situation. What makes it more astounding is that the movie hasn’t even been released worldwide.
So the question is, when will international fans get to see this awesome movie? For those in the US, the sad news is that you’ll have to wait a bit longer. Don’t worry, though; the wait is definitely worth it and hopefully won’t be too long.
It has been confirmed that Jujutsu Kaisen 0 will be released on March 18, 2022 in the US. Compared to the Demon Slayer movie, which took almost seven months for a US theatrical release, Jujutsu Kaisen 0 will only take two months. The movie will be released in South Korea and Hong Kong this month.
Without giving too much away, Jujutsu Kaisen 0 will take a break from the current events in the anime series and focus on past events way before the start of the anime. The prequel will be about Yuta Okkotsu, a high school student who seeks the help of Satoru Gojo.
A curse is currently plaguing Yuta. The cursed, now-deformed spirit of Rika apparently follows him everywhere. Yuta then decides to go to the Tokyo Prefectural Jujutsu High School to learn more about the curse. Although Yuta might be a new character for some, he actually is an old student and is overseas when the anime series begins.
As the movie serves as a prequel, it’ll establish Yuta’s interesting backstory along with his relationships with other notable figures in the series, most notably Satoru Goju. We won’t give away spoilers, but some known characters from the anime series will make an appearance in the film.
The studio behind the anime’s and movie’s production is MAPPA. The studio is known to produce popular anime such as Shingeki no Kyojin and Hajime no Ippo: Rising. Directed by Sunghoo Park, fans will get to enjoy the movie. The script of Jujutsu Kaisen 0 is written by Hiroshi Seko. Character design is by Tadashi Hiramatsu. Takeki Kobayashi is the music producer.
Yuta Okkutso, the main protagonist of the movie, is voiced by Megumi Ogata. Kana Hanazawa voices Rika Orimoto, Yuta’s childhood friend and beloved. Yuichi Nakamura also returns to voice the great sorcerer, Satoru Goju. The other original cast members from the anime that will appear will also voice their characters in the film.
Although few have seen the film outside of Japan, many fans and newcomers alike say that Jujutsu Kaisen 0 will set the bar high for anime films to come. Admittedly, many people were saying that making a relatively unknown character as the main protagonist of a big film is risky.
That risk has definitely paid off, as many fans are excited about this incredible movie. Fans outside Japan don’t have to wait long as the film will soon be released. For those in the US and North America, the film will officially screen on March 18, 2022. Want your fix of Jujutsu Kaisen while waiting for the movie? You can re-watch the series again or get bits of the movie by watching the teaser trailers and wait for the theatrical release.