Jujutsu Kaisen: Mappa Has a Chance To Give Yuji’s Domain the Justice Gege Never Did

Among manga endings in recent history, few have been as controversial as Jujutsu Kaisen’s. This immensely popular series concluded its story in 2024, with some fans appreciating its send-off and many more having divisive reactions. Those left unhappy were shocked because of the Shinjuku Showdown Arc, not in relation to plot twists such as Gojo’s death, but Gege’s decision to speedrun the narrative.

During the chaos occurring on Sukuna’s battlefield, the creator chose to skip over several characters and their development up to that point, either missing crucial details or not covering them in enough depth. A major sufferer of this was the protagonist, Yuji Itadori.

Yuji undoubtedly had several standout moments, even directly contributing to Sukuna’s death. Unfortunately, most were unable to tell how exactly he beat the antagonist. Jujutsu Kaisen fans are hoping for Gege Akutami and Studio Mappa to fix this issue with the anime adaptation, taking a cue from Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War.

Jujutsu Kaisen’s main power system is Cursed Energy, under which every sorcerer’s trump card is the sure-hit Domain Expansion. Yuji’s Domain Expansion had been a source of high excitement ever since the beginning. The protagonist’s powers had always revolved around punches, kicks, and Black Flashes, and fans were looking forward to his arsenal expanding.

The moment finally came in the final confrontation against Sukuna, after the rest of the cast had suffered defeat. Having learned to use Domains from Kusakabe, Yuji unveiled his Domain Expansion. The scene cuts after this, taking Sukuna and Yuji to the latter’s childhood hometown. This linked the protagonist and antagonist’s souls, allowing them to have a heart-to-heart talk while walking through Yuji’s life.

Yuji could also connect with Megumi and chat with the dispirited deuteragonist, helping him find the will to live again. Unfortunately, this is all that Jujutsu Kaisen ever revealed about Yuji’s Domain Expansion. Soon after showcasing his ability, he resolved to kill Sukuna and landed a devastating Dismantle hit.

The battle abruptly concluded with the protagonist’s victory, leaving readers with mixed feelings. Though everyone was happy to see Yuji come out victorious after his hardships, most couldn’t understand the purpose of his Domain Expansion. Details such as its name, conditions, and the requirements for activations were omitted. While Yuji himself did not understand the intricacies of his power since he had only recently obtained it, Gege had gone into heavy detail about other Domain Expansions through narrations.

Hence, fans were left confused and disappointed as to why the Jujutsu Kaisen creator wouldn’t explain the main ability that caused the antagonist’s death and Megumi to be saved. This further intensified the rising complaints among the fandom that Gege had rushed through his final arc and simply wished to end the story without tying up loose ends.

How Jujutsu Kaisen Can Take a Note From Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War

Several anime adaptations have been notorious for not faithfully telling the story of their source material. At the same time, the opposite also holds true, with the studio enhancing the manga’s content and helping the creator revisit certain aspects and implement the changes they desire.

The most popular case of this is the Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War anime. Most of the fandom agrees that the anime adaptation is far superior to the manga, not just because of its visuals, but because it goes into heavy detail about elements not addressed in the source material. The creator, Tite Kubo, himself realized this as he was forced to conclude his manga quickly due to his health problems.

Hence, when Studio Pierrot finally began adapting the beloved conclusion of the series, he worked closely with the production team to fine-tune the narrative and fix the regrets he had from the manga. As a result, fans could enjoy a closer look at Uryu’s motivations to join the Quincies, the history between Yhwach and the Soul Reapers, the powers of the Squad Zero members, and much more.

Kubo had written a sequel novel titled Bleach: Can’t Fear Your Own World to expand upon the lore of his series once his health was better, but it felt odd as the main story had already concluded. By working with Studio Pierrot, he could ensure consistency while seamlessly blending in additional details wherever necessary.

This is exactly what fans desire from Gege Akutami and Studio Mappa for Jujutsu Kaisen. The studio has proven that its animation is more than capable of the task of bringing Gege’s creation to life. However, as for the story itself, it would be impossible to amend it without the mangaka's help. Given the potential for Jujutsu Kaisen’s finale to go from good to great with changes starting from Yuji’s Domain, the possibilities would be endless.

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Studio Mappa and Gege have the chance to address major concerns regarding Jujutsu Kaisen’s final arc. The primary inclusion could revolve around Yuji Itadori’s Domain Expansion, revealing details such as its name and conditions, and expanding upon how it could overpower Sukuna. This would help continue the positive trend started by Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War, where mangakas collaborate with anime studios to readdress inconsistencies.

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