Jujutsu Kaisen 0

Somewhere Between Seasons 1 & 2

Jujutsu Kaisen 0 (劇場版 呪術廻戦 0) is a movie prequel to the Jujutsu Kaisen series. It came out back in 2021, after the first season of the anime. But, I never actually got around to watching it until only recently.

After watching the first episode of Season 2, I figured I should probably go back and watch the movie. After all, Season 2 also appears to be a prequel. I won’t be getting into major spoilers for that here. But, it takes place back before the events of Season 1.

So, I finally decided to watch Jujutsu Kaisen 0 so I wouldn’t miss out on anything in Season 2. However, I quickly learned that 0 and Season 2 don’t take place at the same time. The events of Season 2 — at least in the beginning — take place before even 0.

If you’re wondering if you need to watch 0 before Season 2, I’d say no. It doesn’t appear that 0 is mandatory viewing material for the second season. But, with that said, you’re going to understand a bit more in Season 2 if you’ve already seen 0.

For example, Suguru Getou is a prominent character in both the movie and the second season. From what I remember, we didn’t see too much of him back in Season 1. So, if you’ve seen 0, you’ll understand his character a lot more going into Season 2.

This movie also follows different characters than the first two seasons. Season 1 followed Yuuji, Megumi, and Nobara. And Season 2 is following Gojou and his friends from his time in high school. But 0 follows the current second-year students Maki, Toge, and Panda.

Oh, and it also follows a brand new character, Yuuta Okkotsu.

Yuuta Okkotsu & Rika Orimoto

The two new characters in Jujutsu Kaisen 0 are Yuuta Okkotsu and Rika Orimoto. Yuuta and Rika were childhood friends and promised they would marry each other in the future. However, Rika died shortly after when she was hit by a car in front of Yuuta.

After this traumatic event, Yuuta found himself cursed by what used to be Rika. Whenever people threaten or harm Yuuta, Rika’s curse appears and gravely injures them. There’s something else Yuuta and Yuuji have in common. That’s the grade of their curses. Both Sukuna and Rika are Special grade curses. That means they could cause catastrophic damage, hence the planned executions.

But, before his execution, Gojou intervenes. He believes that they shouldn’t kill a child like Yuuta. Instead, he suggests Yuuta attend Jujutsu High — which should sound surprisingly familiar. That’s exactly what happened with Yuuji Itadori in Season 1. He was set for execution before an intervention sent him to Jujutsu High.

While at Jujutsu High, Yuuta learns to use Rika’s curse. Letting her go out of control is dangerous for both Yuuta and everyone around him. And the way he controls her curse is by channeling it into a sword. Well, at least partially. She also still acts autonomously.

There’s something else Yuuta and Yuuji have in common. That’s the grade of the curses they’re afflicted by. Both Sukuna and Rika are Special grade curses. That means they could cause catastrophic damage, hence the planned executions.

We already know how strong Gojou is from Season 1. His cursed technique allows him to control space, time, and matter. And yet, we learned that if Rika went berserk and Yuuta couldn’t control her, even Gojou may not be able to stop her. That’s how powerful Special grade curses are.

I Don’t Understand the Ending

I enjoyed Jujutsu Kaisen 0 while watching it. Though, I’m not going to say I thought it was an amazing anime. It certainly had its issues. But, one of the things it did well was made me curious about the rest of the series.

There were a few things that happened at the end of the movie that I don’t understand. And I’m not saying that the movie was bad because I didn’t get it. I’m saying that I hope Season 2 eventually explains some of these things. I want to know more.

So, let’s start the spoilers off by talking about Getou, the villain. At the end of the movie, it’s implied that Getou died. And yet, we know Getou is still around in the present timeline. We’ve seen him in Season 1. However, in the current timeline, he has a scar across his forehead.

So, does this mean Getou actually died there and was revived somehow? Mahito is the cursed spirit covered in stitches. Could he have been the one to revive Getou somehow? Or, is it that Getou never died and Gojou somehow saved his life? And if that’s the case, how is he free again?

The other thing I didn’t understand was what happened to Yuuta. Obviously, Yuuta isn’t present in Season 1 alongside the other second-year students. But, he didn’t die. Instead, he’s found in Kenya with one of the other villains from the movie.

Why is Yuuta palling around with the enemy? I forget the guy’s name, but he was on Getou’s side. And during the big fight of the movie, this was the guy fighting against Gojou. But now, he seems to be on good terms with both Yuuji and Gojou. So, what happened there? And will Yuuta be returning?

Conclusion

In the end, I gave Jujutsu Kaisen 0 a 7/10. That’s a point lower than I gave the first season of the anime. The movie was still good. But, again, I didn’t think it was that good. And considering it redid some of the same tropes from the anime, it wasn’t too unique, either.

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My review of Season 2 is available now.