Given Satoru Gojo's status as the poster boy for the Jujutsu Kaisen series, it's difficult to fathom anyone not having a soft spot for the enigmatic teacher with the blindfold.
However, to everyone's surprise, the Jujutsu Kaisen mangaka, Gege Akutami, has been openly expressing his dislike for the Special Grade sorcerer on social media for the past few years.
Warning: This article contains spoilers for the Jujutsu Kaisen manga. Proceed with caution.
Indeed, Akutami's disdain for his own creation has been evident in the manga, with multiple instances of him undermining his most beloved creation.
Jujutsu Kaisen mangaka Gege Akutami's recent actions prove his hatred for Satoru Gojo
Undoubtedly, Satoru Gojo stands as the most popular and cherished character in the Jujutsu Kaisen series. His influence has left a significant mark on the series, propelling him to become one of the most iconic figures of the new generation of anime.
Gege Akutami, the creator of Jujutsu Kaisen, has gone to great lengths in the past few years to prove his disdain for Gojo, who surprisingly, he created himself.
His dislike for the character stemmed from the accidental creation of an excessively powerful individual. This led to the belief that Gojo's mere presence would guarantee safety in any situation, a theme emphasized in the story as Gojo is seen as the ultimate trump card among Jujutsu sorcerers.
Akutami confessed that the excessive power of Gojo presented a significant challenge for him. In fact, Gojo's overpowering nature made it difficult to develop genuinely threatening villains within the Jujutsu society.
Gojo's immense power meant that he could potentially resolve nearly any challenge single-handedly, posing a significant obstacle for the writer in creating credible stakes for the storyline.
Akutami went as far as to leave several disrespectful comments about Gojo, with the most notorious one being, "Something Gojo doesn't have.. probably a personality". His comments were enough to show his strong dislike for the blindfolded teacher, and his recent actions have made his disdain perfectly clear once again.
Akutami usually creates character art and illustrations for special occasions related to his characters. However, he noticeably did not provide a single character art of Satoru Gojo for Volume 25 of the Jujutsu Kaisen manga series, which featured the long-awaited chapter where Gojo got unsealed from the Prison Realm.
When Gojo made his epic return in chapter 221 of the Jujutsu Kaisen manga, it caused a frenzy on the internet. Fans couldn't help but express their excitement and some even felt that Akutami should have given the moment more recognition.
In chapter 236 of the manga, Gojo's unexpected demise at the hands of Ryomen Sukuna sparked widespread criticism from fans on social media. Many were disappointed with the off-screen death of the beloved character, leading to speculation about the mangaka's motivations. Some attributed it to Akutami's alleged dislike for the character, fueling a frenzy within the fandom.
Moreover, in the recent installments of the Jujutsu Kaisen manga, Hiromi Higuruma has been portrayed as Gojo's potential heir, with a natural talent that is said to rival even that of the blindfolded teacher. This has raised the anticipation of fans for Higuruma's upcoming battle against The King of Curses.
Despite the extensive excitement surrounding him, he tragically met a brutal end at the hands of Sukuna in chapter 247 of the manga. This proved to be the breaking point for fans, who were furious that their beloved character was killed off so suddenly after being compared to Gojo.
Many fans believed that Akutami had a strong animosity towards Gojo and would eliminate any character who was likened to him.
Final thoughts
It is widely speculated among fans that series creator Gege Akutami dislikes Satoru Gojo, but it is hard to believe that he would go to such extremes to display his disdain for the character. These are just rumors among fans and not confirmed by the mangaka.
It is not the character's fault for being so strong that it hinders the progression of the story. Fans feel that the mangaka should not show contempt towards the character, especially since they are the ones who created him.
Editor's P/S
As a hard fan of Jujutsu Kaisen, I am deeply disappointed and frustrated by Gege Akutami's recent actions towards Satoru Gojo, one of the most beloved characters in the series. Akutami's open dislike for his own creation is evident in his social media comments and the way he has treated Gojo in the manga. The lack of character art for Gojo in Volume 25, the off-screen death in chapter 236, and the recent portrayal of Hiromi Higuruma as a potential rival only to be killed off abruptly all point to Akutami's disdain for the character. This has caused a great deal of anger and disappointment among fans, who feel that Akutami is deliberately undermining one of the most popular aspects of his own series.
I understand that Akutami may have felt that Gojo's immense power made it difficult to create credible stakes for the storyline, but I believe that there were other ways to address this issue without resorting to such drastic measures. Gojo's death, in particular, felt like a cheap and disrespectful way to remove a character who had become a fan favorite. I hope that Akutami will reconsider his attitude towards Gojo and give him the respect he deserves as one of the most iconic characters in Jujutsu Kaisen.