Akutami Should Look to Other Countries for a Jujutsu Kaisen Sequel

Jujutsu Kaisen title card
Jujutsu Kaisen title card (Image Credits: MAPPA)

Jujutsu Kaisen needs a follow-up in other nations. In this anime, the worldbuilding is intense and the stakes in battles are high, and the system of cursed energy is structured uniquely, which has attracted audiences all over the world. Even back in the first season, Jujutsu Kaisen built its story on the complex and even risky interaction of sorcerers and curses in the modernity of Japan. It follows the story path of the elusive world of jujutsu sorcerers and the grim realities they wade through, a vivid depiction of spirit-world combat and the often brutal process of exorcism, rooted in rigid cultural and historical traditions.

However, the world of Jujutsu Kaisen appears strangely closed due to the thorough description of jujutsu in Japan. Although there is a glimpse of America seen in the manga, the story is otherwise steeped in the Japanese borders. This choice makes sense because this source material has its origins in Japanese folklore and onmyo traditions. But once the manga is coming to an end, the question must be asked: What is the next step? A fresh and intriguing area to explore would be how jujutsu systems operate in other regions of the globe. This possibility may provide an opportunity to create an interesting background for a continuation, and one that will widen the lore and enrich the character pool further.

Gary preparing to abduct jujutsu sorcerers from Japan (Image Credits: Shueisha)
Gary preparing to abduct jujutsu sorcerers from Japan (Image Credits: Shueisha)

The essence of Jujutsu Kaisen is the principle of a cursed energy, which is created due to human negative emotions. This is not a uniquely Japanese concept; negative energy, rituals, and the legends of exorcism are common all over the world. In voodoo in the Caribbean, shamanism in South America, or occult traditions in Europe, they all have some form of understanding of unseen powers and spiritual defense. The next book could look into how these traditions have spawned other forms of organizational sorcery, whether or not they resemble what we've seen in Japan.

In addition, the presentation of the international Jujutsu organization would enable Jujutsu Kaisen to make strides in the realm of story structure and momentum. Other cultural treatments of curses might offer powerful new mechanics. As an example, the action sequences could be made more nuanced when there is a system where not all is about straight-up fighting, but based more on spiritual negotiations or interactions. Similarly, international faction rivalries, which may have a conflict on how curses ought to be dealt with, may be the ideological battlefield of the new series.

African sorcerer Miguel (Image Credits: MAPPA)
African sorcerer Miguel (Image Credits: MAPPA)

It might also be expanded geographically to enable a sorely needed thematic expansion. The original Jujutsu Kaisen has addressed such issues as loss, moral ambiguity, duty, and trauma. Projection of the same themes to a new cultural setting would retain the emotional resonance but present new contexts. A case in point: the cursed spirits of a sorcerer living under a repressive regime may be perceived differently in a society that upholds mysticism. Such opposing worldviews would provide color to the world and enhance the narration.


Jujutsu Kaisen Manga’s Foundation Allows Room to Expand Internationally

In the Jujutsu Kaisen manga, jujutsu is already implied to be not necessarily and solely Japanese. The fact that a group of American military forces comes to exploit the cursed energy in a small arc affirms that people possess knowledge of curses beyond the borders of Japan. The thing is, this was only hinted at, and there is still a lot more to be added. With more purposeful development on such international threads, a second might create a global infrastructure of sorcerers, with variant schools, philosophies, and methods.

This kind of expansion might even address another problem of shōnen books: the inexorable power cap that comes to a good deal of long-running shōnen. As the story has progressed, bringing each new big arc, Jujutsu Kaisen heroes have become much mightier. Exporting the narrative to another place is an invitation to new challenges and a plausible reset of the power dynamic. Upstart threats, unfamiliar cursed practices, and an alien faction of curse-users might provide tension without the need to goose it up.

Gojo and Miguel (Image Credits: Shueisha)
Gojo and Miguel (Image Credits: Shueisha)

The original series established a legacy with a succession of seasons, and a sequel directly about international jujutsu would do honor to the legacy without reinventing the original idea. It has an opportunity to involve a wide range of characters and introduce real-life issues that depict the maturity of the original. Regardless of which route Akutami takes in continuing the story involving characters the readers have all gotten to know so far or resetting everything, the possibilities are enormous. The popularity of Jujutsu Kaisen all over the globe implies that its audience is eager to experience the world of the anime outside Japan.


Finally, the expansion of Jujutsu Kaisen on a global scale, as a sequel, will be a logical development of the series' topics and mechanics. It has established a very lively foundation that can easily hold stories across the globe. Expanding on a variety of cultural traditions and geopolitical tensions, a new series would maintain the franchise's lively and fresh appeal, ensuring that the world of Jujutsu Kaisen continues to provide surprises and thrill its audience long after the conceptual idea is exhausted.

Edited by Sezal Srivastava