The official guidebook that looks back on the second season of the TV anime “Jujutsu Kaisen,” “Hidden Inventory/Premature Death” and “Shibuya Incident,” will be released on October 4, 2024. To commemorate this, a portion of the interview between director Shota Goshozono and producer Keisuke Seshita, as well as a group interview featuring Junya Enoki (voice of Yuji Itadori), Yuma Uchida (voice of Megumi Fushiguro), and Asami Seto (voice of Nobara Kugisaki), three of the main cast members, has been pre-released.
“Jujutsu Kaisen,” a dark fantasy manga created by Gege Akutami, has been serialised in Weekly Shonen Jump and has achieved a remarkable milestone of over 90 million copies in circulation, including digital versions. The series has captivated fans worldwide with its compelling narrative of curses and the sorcerers who combat them.
The anime adaptation, which premiered in October 2020 and concluded in March 2024, was an instant hit. Its subsequent film, “Jujutsu Kaisen 0,” broke box office records, grossing a staggering 26.5 billion yen worldwide.
Building on this success, the second season of the anime, “Hidden Inventory/Premature Death” and “Shibuya Incident,” aired from July to December 2024 and garnered immense popularity both domestically and internationally. To further delight fans, it has been announced that a sequel titled “The Culling Game” is in production, and a compilation film of the second season will be released in 2025.
Adding to the excitement, the original manga is set to conclude with the release of Weekly Shonen Jump on September 30, 2024. As the series reaches its climax, fans can look forward to more thrilling adventures and revelations in both the anime and manga.
The “TV Anime ‘Jujutsu Kaisen’ Hidden Inventory/Premature Death/ Shibuya Incident Official Guidebook” offers a retrospective of the second season of the TV anime, featuring commentaries from the director, nine other production staff members, and the cast. This is a must-have book for fans, filled with the heartfelt thoughts of the creators.
To commemorate the upcoming release on October 4th, a portion of the interview between director Goshozono and producer Seshita, who were at the heart of the production, as well as a group interview featuring Junya Enoki (voice of Yuji Itadori), Yuma Uchida (voice of Megumi Fushiguro), and Asami Seto (voice of Nobara Kugisaki), the three main cast members from both the first and second seasons, has been pre-released. Both the staff and cast share their thoughts on the characters and the work from their respective perspectives on the second season.
In addition to the previously mentioned interviews, the official guidebook includes a wide range of commentaries from the production staff and cast, such as a conversation between Yuichi Nakamura and Takahiro Sakurai about “Hidden Inventory/Premature Death,” and a roundtable discussion on music and sound featuring Yasunori Ebina, Yoshimasa Terui, and Tateki Kobayashi. Furthermore, it is packed with character introductions, various setting materials, and comments and illustrations by Gege Akutami. This is a must-read for any fan.
The “TV Anime ‘Jujutsu Kaisen’ Hidden Inventory/Premature Death/ Shibuya Incident Official Guidebook” will be released on October 4, 2024, for a price of 1,980 yen (including tax). As a preview, the TV anime’s official website will pre-release a portion of the “Yasunori Ebina x Yoshimasa Terui x Tateki Kobayashi Music and Sound Roundtable” on October 2nd, and the “Yuichi Nakamura x Takahiro Sakurai “Hidden Inventory/Premature Death” Conversation” on October 3rd. Don’t miss out on these valuable interviews before the guidebook’s release.
Director Shota Goshozono x Animation Producer Keisuke Seshita: TV Anime “Jujutsu Kaisen” Season 2 Interview
Interviewer: The second season of the TV anime “Jujutsu Kaisen” begins with the past arc, “Hidden Inventory/Premature Death.” Were there any particular things you were conscious of when producing “Hidden Inventory/Premature Death”?
Goshozono: For “Hidden Inventory/Premature Death,” I had a personal theme in mind: “How do I interpret and portray the reasons why Gojo fell into darkness and his subsequent actions in the anime?” So, I focused on that theme while creating it. As a result, I came to the interpretation that Gojo killing non-sorcerers and trying to create a world only for sorcerers wasn’t just a decision he made on his own. Rather, it was the result of the stress that had been accumulating in the sorcery world for a long time, combined with Gojo’s own stress, finally reaching a breaking point.
With this interpretation as the central axis, I created “Hidden Inventory/Premature Death.” It might be difficult to put into words, but there’s also an aspect where we treated it like a “youthful idol movie” for Gojo and Geto. I felt it was important to emphasise that both of them are cool and charming.
Interviewer: So, in that sense, were you also conscious of emphasising the “youth” aspect?
Goshozono: I think one of the charms of “Jujutsu Kaisen” is to “betray expectations in a good way.” In “Hidden Inventory/Premature Death,” for example, the story shifts dramatically from a bright and cheerful youth movie featuring Gojo and Geto to a point where Riko dies and Gojo and Geto fall out. That’s the biggest “betrayal” in the narrative, right? So, before reaching that major “betrayal,” we consciously went in the completely opposite direction of a “bright and cheerful youth movie” to create a significant emotional contrast.
Interviewer: Were there any particular things you were conscious of when producing “Hidden Inventory/Premature Death,” Seshita?
Seshita: I kept it simple. First and foremost, I wanted to make Gojo and Geto look cool. The animation is important for showcasing the characters, but the colours and lighting on screen are also crucial. So, I focused on maintaining the overall visual appeal of the screen.
Interviewer: Did the two of you have a good understanding of each other’s vision for the visuals?
Seshita: To ensure that I understood Goshozono”s vision and could convey it to the staff, we did a lot of adjustments during the production of the first PV. Creating a video is the most effective way to share a vision, so we took a lot of time to do it properly. We really did, didn’t we?
Goshozono: Yes, we did a lot. (laughs) Speaking of the PV, it was a great idea to include drums in the music.
Seshita: Yes, it was.
Note: Excerpt from the official guidebook.
Jujutsu Kaisen “Shibuya Incident” Roundtable Discussion: Junya Enoki (Yuji Itadori), Yuma Uchida (Megumi Fushiguro), and Asami Seto (Nobara Kugisaki)
Question: Do you think the characters you play have changed from Season 1 to Season 2 of the TV anime Jujutsu Kaisen?
Enoki: In the beginning of Season 1, Itadori still had a student mentality. He hadn’t experienced the deaths of people close to him. However, when Junpei was killed and he was taken advantage of by the curses, I think Itadori developed a stronger determination to fight. Since the “Shibuya Incident” follows these events, I think a significant change in Season 2 is that he approached it with a firm resolve to live as a jujutsu sorcerer.
Seto: In Season 1, I felt like Nobara’s initial reason for becoming a jujutsu sorcerer was to move to Tokyo. Compared to her ambitions as a sorcerer, her desire to “go to Tokyo” was stronger. In Season 2, I think they delved deeper into why she disliked the countryside so much. After coming to Tokyo, becoming a sorcerer, and meeting Itadori and Fushiguro, I think her initial thought of ‘What are these guys?’ gradually changed. Through fighting together and various experiences, her sense of “comradeship” with them probably grew stronger.
Uchida: Fushiguro is someone who’s always been able to express his will, especially at crucial moments. Like when he asked Gojo to save Itadori, that’s something that’s always been consistent about him. But… he places a very low priority on himself. He’s the kind of person who would choose to be sacrificed if he thought it was for the greater good. Even in Season 2, he summoned Mahoraga without any regard for himself. I think that was the best course of action for him at the time.
The only thing that I think changed significantly from Season 1 is the realisation that “dying to win and winning even if you die” are different things. I think he’s now able to choose a stronger path, realising that death isn’t necessarily the end. However, during the “Shibuya Incident,” he seemed to be constantly pondering this idea. So, in that sense, rather than saying he grew or changed, I felt like he was thinking even more deeply compared to Season 1.
Note: Excerpt from the official guidebook.