MAPPA's Unfinished Episode: Animator's Tweet Sparks Debate in Jujutsu Kaisen Community

After the release of Jujutsu Kaisen season 2 episode 17, an animator from the series admitted that only 30% of the original vision was achieved. The tweet was later deleted, but the animator later explained the reason behind the deletion.

Studio MAPPA has faced criticism for their production planning, leading to poor working conditions for the animators. Employees were also forced to sign NDAs preventing them from discussing the situation. However, with new information emerging regularly, it appears the situation has only gotten worse.

Jujutsu Kaisen animator reveals why he deleted his "unfinished episode" tweet

Screenshot of Enrico Nobili's original tweet (Image via Our Website/X)

Following the release of Jujutsu Kaisen season 2 episode 17, freelance animator Enrico Nobili took to Twitter on November 17 to express his happiness about the positive response from fans. However, as a member of the animation team, he revealed that only 30% of the intended vision was achieved, which made watching the episode uncomfortable for him. Shortly after, the animator deleted the tweet without explanation. Then on November 21, Nobili posted a follow-up tweet to clarify why he had removed the original one.

He clarified that the misunderstanding arose from his tweet, leading people to believe that the episode was only 30% complete, giving the impression that the anime had released an "unfinished episode." This caused frustration among Jujutsu Kaisen fans who felt deceived and demanded MAPPA to release the completed episode. However, this narrative was entirely untrue.

The animator clarified that when he posted the original tweet, he was referring to the "30%" as the intended vision the animators had for the episode, not the completion progress of the episode itself. This meant that the episode had already been fully animated and did not require any further rework.

Moreover, the animator acknowledged that using a numerical percentage to describe the intended vision was a mistake. He also recognized that fans were quick to misinterpret the information by solely focusing on the numbers without considering the full context of the tweet.

Editor's P/S

As a Gen Z fan, I have mixed feelings about the recent revelation that Jujutsu Kaisen season 2 episode 17 was only 30% complete. On the one hand, I understand the frustration of fans who feel like they were misled by the studio. On the other hand, I also sympathize with the animators who were forced to work under difficult conditions.

I think it's important to remember that anime is a collaborative art form, and there are many factors that can affect the final product. Sometimes, things don't go according to plan, and corners have to be cut. However, I believe that fans have a right to be disappointed when they feel like they're not getting the quality of product they expect.

I hope that MAPPA will learn from this experience and do a better job of managing expectations in the future. I also hope that the studio will provide its animators with better working conditions so that they can produce the best possible work.