The Unbreakable Bond: Exploring the Intricate Brotherhood in Jujutsu Kaisen

Highlights

Jujutsu Kaisen Episode 37 showcases excellent animation, with a focus on creativity rather than just flashy fights and explosions.

Choso possesses an impressive blood manipulation technique, enabling him to overpower Yuji by employing diverse techniques and fortifying specific parts of his body.

This visually captivating episode immerses viewers in a spectacle of intricately depicted details, accentuated by a striking contrast between Choso and Yuji's blue and red auras. These opposing colors symbolize the profound conflict between cursed spirits and the essence of humanity. Additionally, the episode delivers a memorable glitch effect and concludes with a surprising twist involving fabricated memories.

Warning: Spoilers ahead for Jujutsu Kaisen Episode 37, "Red Scale", currently available for streaming on Crunchyroll.

Episode 37 of Jujutsu Kaisen showcases an intense showdown between Choso and Yuji. The exceptional animation remains unhampered by ghosting, as the series prioritizes creative storytelling over relying solely on flashy explosions and vibrant visuals to enhance its fight scenes. The overall composition of this episode is truly impressive, with the exception of the introduction.

Choso's Blood Manipulation

The intro scenes in the second season of Jujutsu Kaisen have been impressive, seamlessly fitting into their respective episodes. However, in Red Scale, which is arguably one of the best episodes in the entire series so far, the intro falls short. In the manga, the scene where Inumaki clears the way for Yuji occurs before the encounter with Choso. The main difference is that in episode 36, this scene feels out of place and disrupts the continuity of the episode, which is solely focused on the fight between them. Despite this disappointing intro, the episode itself offers plenty of standout moments and intricate details.

This wasn't the first instance of witnessing his assaults, but it was the initial occasion when he engaged in an all-out one-on-one confrontation. The blood manipulation technique, an ancestral skill of the Kamo clan, is unparalleled. It is a cursed technique dreaded for its formidable strikes, but with a significant drawback – blood loss. Nevertheless, Choso, being one of the death paintings, is exempt from succumbing to the effects of blood loss.

As Mechamaru suggests, he may have no weaknesses, but his final advice to Yuji offers him a glimmer of hope. Engaging in a chaotic bathroom battle with water cascading in all directions proved to be effective in dismantling Convergence, thus eliminating his long and mid-range attacks. However, despite this setback, Mechamaru showcased his prowess as a master hand-to-hand combatant through his awe-inspiring techniques, Red Scale and Blood Meteorite. These techniques heighten his physical abilities and fortify specific areas of his body, which, combined with his formidable cursed energy, overpower Yuji.

A noteworthy aspect of Choso's blood manipulation is that his facial blood marks transform with each unique technique. This vibrant display was vividly depicted in the episode. For instance, when he employs Flowing Red Scale: Stack, the three blood marks stretching across his nose and eyes transform into arrowhead designs.

Another Visual Masterpiece

The episode contains an overwhelming amount of intriguing details. One cannot help but imagine the immense challenges faced by the animators in completing such a difficult episode. However, if the animators and directors can successfully pull it off, all the hardship could be justified by witnessing the astounding outcome. Let's begin by discussing the brilliant use of color throughout the episode.

In terms of the characters, Choso is depicted with a chilling blue aura, despite the fact that his cursed technique involves manipulating blood and his cursed energy is red. On the other hand, Yuji is surrounded by a warm, red aura, even though his cursed energy is actually blue. This striking contrast might symbolize the opposing forces of cursed spirits versus humanity, while also adding depth to their familial conflict, which will ultimately take an unexpected turn.

The scenario begins with vibrant colors at the station entrance, but grows darker as they enter the bathroom and the fight intensifies. However, the darkness is abruptly shattered by a vivid scene when Choso fails to defeat his opponent. This scene, depicting Choso's face through a hole in the wall followed by a close-up of his eye, is reminiscent of a previous scene from earlier in the season.

This scene parallels the fight between Toji and Satoru, where a semicircular hole in Toji's body reveals Satoru in the distance. In both instances, the character who caused the change in personality and behavior has been defeated. While this episode's overall theme revolves around brotherly love and true bonds, such as evident in the placement of arrow signs, this particular scene employs a common technique to convey the character's state of mind.

Memories That Didn't Exist

The visual brilliance of the episode extended beyond their numerous visual cues. In the last minute or so, a remarkable transformation occurred. The image forcefully altered the aspect ratio, accompanied by an animated glitch that shifted it from 16:9 to 4:3, while also adopting a classic animation filter or VHS style. This was all done to portray the memories that appeared in Choso's mind, memories that were not actually real.

Ultimately, the bond between the brothers was the focal point from beginning to end. Even the music played during the fight was a rendition of the same soundtrack used in the battle between Yuji and Choso's younger brothers.

Following the portrayal of a fabricated memory featuring the entire family, Choso is seen disoriented, attempting to comprehend the recent events. The concluding moments depict the shattering of a glass and the elevator doors closing into darkness, a fitting conclusion to an exceptional episode. It remains unclear how Choso came to realize their true relationship, and the narrative doesn't allow for much contemplation. Subsequently, in the scene that ensues the ending, Mimiko and Nanako are already positioned beside Yuji, prepared to carry out their own vendetta.