Warning! Contains spoilers for Jujutsu Kaisen #224!
The epic final fight between Gojo and Sukuna in Jujutsu Kaisen is revolutionary in one awesome way. This is hardly surprising given how groundbreaking Gege Akutami’s battle choreography and powers have been in the series so far, but with this battle between Gojo and Sukuna, he has added one more refreshing twist to the typical climactic Shonen fight.
While Gojo may have fired the first devastating attack of the battle, chapter #224 of Jujutsu Kaisen, translated by John Werry, shows his fight with the King of Curses begin in earnest. The two have a largely wordless fight as they crash through buildings and fire off powerful attacks. Despite their lack of quips, both combatants are smiling throughout the fight, clearly relishing the chance to finally spar with someone on their power level. The chapter closes with a fun exchange between the two as they step from the rubble of buildings their fight has destroyed. Gojo casually says to Sukuna that he’s blaming him for the destruction and the King of Curses quips that no one will believe him.
Gojo and Sukuna Are Having Fun in Jujutsu Kaisen‘s Climactic Fight
The fun tone and dynamic between these two fighters are unprecedented in other Shonen series. When the fate of the world and the lives of millions are on the line, typical Shonen heroes can’t typically bring themselves to trade quips with the villain. Naruto is a prime example of this. While he may have used a goofy “Sexy no Jutsu” attack in his battle against Kaguya, the tone of that fight was incredibly serious in direct contrast to Naruto’s typical personality. More recently, My Hero Academia has treated its final war arc with an incredible amount of gravitas, even if it featured one scene where Lemillion mooned Shigaraki as a distraction. These examples are indicative of the general nature of grand Shonen confrontations, generally serious but potentially sprinkled with funny moments. Jujutsu Kaisen completely upends that.
While Gojo and Sukuna’s battle has a similar sense of stakes as a more classic final fight, it is a joy to read because of how much fun its participants are having. This makes the goofy quips Gojo and Sukuna trade feel natural despite the epic action immediately preceding it. This tone also makes sense given Gojo and Sukuna’s personalities. Neither has ever been truly pushed to their limits once they attained their full power, which has led them to adopt carefree attitudes. But now faced with someone who could actually kill them, they can fully relish the fight and the sense of danger that comes with it. On some level, they probably care about the broader stakes of the battle, but their main focus at the moment is enjoying this one-of-a-kind fight.
More Shonen Manga Need to Experiment With Tone Like Jujutsu Kaisen
Jujutsu Kaisen is not inventing the wheel, of course. Goku was the first iconic Shonen protagonist who had fun during his battles, despite the entire universe being at stake. However, modern series have taken a more serious approach to the trope of the final battle. Gojo and Sukuna’s fight then could be a blast to the past of the genre, as their unfettered joy is impossible to resist and easily spreads to the reader. This fight shows that more Shonen series should experiment with the tone of their battles. Hopefully, Gojo and Sukuna‘s fight in Jujutsu Kaisen will inspire other Shonen manga to further innovate on the final fight formula.
Jujutsu Kaisen Chapter #224 is available to read from Viz Media.
