Prequel to Jujutsu Kaisen
Genre(s): Shonen, Action, Supernatural, Mystery, Horror
Age-Appropriateness: 16+ (Violence, frightening imagery, profanity)
Platforms: Likely Crunchyroll in the future
Episodes: One 1 hour 45 min. movie
TheAwersome Rating: 8.8 / 10 (Very good installment)
Premise: Yuta Okkotsu is haunted. Ever since his childhood friend Rika died in a car accident, her ghost has stuck with him. Manifesting as a monstrous and powerful entity, Rika protects Yuta, and in a very violent fashion. As Yuta is helpless to stop Rika’s bloodshed and brutal vengeance against those she sees as threats, he seeks to isolate himself from all others. The Jujutsu sorcerers want to keep a close eye on him though, so Satoru Gojo brings Yuta to Jujutsu High School to train. Here Yuta meets fellow first-year classmates Maki Zenin, Toge Inumaki, and Panda. In learning to channel the cursed energy from Rika, Yuta soon learns that the dangers of the Jujutsu world extend far beyond the curses that they exorcise.
TheAwersome’s Thoughts: I love good prequels, man, and this is one of them. It’s not in the “slightly different vibe and massively better than the original series” category, because in this case the original series is fantastic and this prequel matches the same vibe, albeit a little more serious in tone. It’s neat to see a story in the Jujutsu world that doesn’t involve Sukuna, Yuuji, or the other first-years from the series. Maki gets a good amount of character exploration and depth that felt very authentic and satisfying.
As is the norm in Jujutsu Kaisen, there’s a good balance of well-timed comedy, phenomenally aminated fight scenes, and genuinely terrifying and horrific monsters/body horror, so come prepared for an experience that will leave you shaken and stirred.
TLDR: A fantastic Prequel with a slightly more serious tone.
I do recommend that you watch the first season of Jujutsu Kaisen before watching the movie, as it assumes to an extent that you understand the world and its “rules,” as well as a handful of the characters.
It was a great call to cast the same voice talent for Shinji Ikari from Evangelion as Yuta, as the characters bear some good similarities. Not to mention that Megumi Ogota is a fantastic voice actor to begin with. Without getting too spoilery, I have to say that I truly enjoyed this movie’s take on the “Power of Love.”
You’ll Likely Enjoy This if You Enjoyed:
- Jujutsu Kaisen Main Series (obviously)
- Movie caliber animation of Demon Slayer – Mugen Train
- More serious prequels like Fate/Zero, No Game No Life: Zero, Kizumonogatari
At a Glance Anime 